Was Jesus A Carpenter?

 

Was Jesus A Carpenter?

Brett Todd

My first career was working on a sawmill up in Minnesota with Alof Green, a quiet old Swede who only lost a few fingers along the way.  I also framed and built houses for a few years after that.  To this day, I humorously claim that I’m a little like Jesus because I’m a carpenter.

But was Jesus really a carpenter?  In Mark 6:2-3 we read these words: 

On the sabbath, he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.

You may note that Matthew 13:55, has a variation of Mark’s reading above that says something a little different, it reads “Is not this the carpenter’s son?” So, is Jesus the son of a carpenter or a carpenter himself?  As we have noted in the past, Matthew borrowed from Mark to write his Gospel and often added additional caveats to what Mark wrote.  In this situation, more than likely Matthew viewed such a statement, “Is not this the carpenter” as an insult and edited Mark's words to read, “son of a carpenter” to make Jesus look classier.  Whatever the reason, Matthew wanted to make clear to his readers that Jesus’ father was the carpenter and not Jesus.

There is an interpretation to this reading that is not often discussed by scholars that I think is worth mentioning.  It is believed because of the linguistic difficulty of this verse that both Matthew and Mark missed the Aramaic (the language spoken by Jesus and his kinsmen) metaphorical expression of the members of this synagogue.  The Aramaic expression “carpenter” (Naggar) means one who is a scholar.  The meaning behind Mark 6:2-3 would be that Jesus was not a carpenter but a scholar because only scholars can know these things (See Gez Vermes).

For some, this interpretation may seem difficult.  How can the word carpenter mean scholar, they are two different words, aren’t they?  Even in English we use words metaphorically that mean something completely different from their original meaning.  For example, after eating at a great barbecue chicken restaurant one might ask, “How was the chicken?” and metaphorically the answer would be, “Wow!  It was really bad, really bad!”  Meaning that it was really good.  The same is true for the word carpenter in Aramaic, during this time period, the word carpenter could have meant that one was really smart, or a scholar (see the Talmud).

Was Jesus a scholar?  Historically, it would appear that Jesus was very intelligent and understood the Hebrew Scriptures as well as other Jewish traditions, at least this is what the Gospel writers would have us believe, but was he a carpenter?  Maybe, maybe not.

In our next study, we will take a closer look at the historical and biblical character, Pontius Pilate.

(God) All In The Family?

 

(God) All In The Family? 

Brett A. Todd

In 1947, archaeologists discovered a treasure trove of ancient manuscripts in caves near the Dead Sea in Israel. Perhaps you have heard of them, they are called the Dead Sea Scrolls. They are an astounding 1000 years older than Hebrew manuscripts used in most of our English Bibles. If you want to get a closer look at what the original Old Testament Hebrew read, the Dead Sea Scrolls are a one in a million.

One of the surprising nuggets scholars found in these ancient Dead Sea Scrolls has to do with whether or not God had a family, you know, a father, mother, and yes, of course, sibling. I know, I know, you may be gasping for air at this moment. Who would have ever thought that the God of Israel, the very God Jews and Christians worshipped had a family, right?

Here in Deuteronomy 32:8-9, the Dead Sea Scrolls give us a much more original reading of these two Bible verses, it states:

When the Most High God (El-yon) apportioned the nations, when he divided humankind, he fixed the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of god (beney ’el [im]); the Lord’s (Yahweh) own portion was his people, Jacob his allotted share.

***Once again, most English translations incorrectly read, “sons of Israel”.

In the passage above, the Most High God (El-yon) divides the people of the earth into nations according to the number of sons of god (beney ’el [im]). Interestingly, one of those sons of god, as noted in verse 9, is Yahweh, the God of Israel, the people of Jacob. According to this earlier reading found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, Yahweh, the God of Israel and the God who Christians worship was a part of a larger divine pantheon (family) in which the Most High God (El-yon) is the ruler, or one could say, the father of the sons of god, including, Yahweh, the God of Israel.

*Side note: Every time you see the capital letters spelling out the name, “LORD”, it is referring to Yahweh, the God of Israel. 

It is worthy to note, the Scripture above, Deuteronomy 32:8-9 is not unlike some of the ancient Canaanite literature (Jews are distant ancestors of the Canaanites), where the Most High god (the sky god), El, and his wife, the goddess Asherah, had seventy sons who were his divine council who he could summon at any time. Is this what Deuteronomy 32:8 is referring to? All early evidence seems to point in this direction.

Another Scripture in the Hebrew Old Testament that seems to refer to this same pantheon of gods is found in Psalm 82:1,

God (Elohim) has taken his place in the council of the God (EL); in the midst of the gods (Elohim) he holds judgment…”

In this ancient reading of the Bible, a reversal of power takes place and Elohim, the God of Israel and Christians, brings judgment on the Canaanite High God El’s and his assembly of the gods (Elohim). As one can see, it is all in the family with some family disputes: El, Yahweh/Elohim, and the sons of God.

In our next study, we will ask and answer the question, “Was Jesus a carpenter?

Angels We Have Heard From On High???

Angels We Have Heard From On High???

Brett A. Todd

One of the most fascinating verses in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament) is found in Genesis 6:1-2, it reads:

When people began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that they were fair, and they took wives for themselves of all that they chose.

Who were these sons of God?  Some have suggested these were the offspring of Seth, the third son of Adam and Eve (Genesis 1:15).  But such a suggestion fizzles when in the Bible we read that these sons of God were in heaven (Job 1:6).  How could the son of Seth, human beings, be in heaven if they were here on earth?  Such a theory is not plausible.

It is more plausible to understand that these “sons of God” were gods, which we will talk about later in another article, or angels who came from heaven and had sexual relations with the daughters of men.  In the Job reading mentioned above, this seems to be the case.  The sons of God were heavenly beings (angels) and some of them were good angels and some of them were bad.   

One might ask how spiritual beings (angels) could have sexual relations with human beings.  This is a good question.  What we must understand is that for the ancient people, the idea of an angel or demon or a god having sexual relations with a human being was not such an absurd idea as it is for modern 21st-century people.  Spiritual beings were always having sexual relations with human beings, this is how they got demigods, and yes, even their heroes and warriors (Genesis 6:4).  In the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, this is how Jesus was conceived.

In our last study, we mention how the Book Of Enoch?” significantly influenced the thinking and writings of Jews and early Christians. Such is the case with Genesis and the sons of God.  Here’s how Enoch reads (Enoch 6:1-2, 8): 

And it came to pass, when the sons of men had increased, that in those days there were born to them fair and beautiful daughters. And the Angels, the sons of Heaven, saw them and desired them. And they said to one another: “Come, let us choose for ourselves wives, from the children of men, and let us beget, for ourselves, children…” These are the leaders of the two hundred Angels and of all the others with them.

Enoch continues the imaginative story, a very long story of how their offspring, the Nephilim, giants, brought havoc on the earth by eating nearly all the human beings and vegetation, and even each other, that God is forced to destroy them by bringing forth a flood.  More than likely, you know the Noah and the Ark story.

In our next study, we will ask the question, “Did God have a family?  You know, a mother and father as well as siblings?”

WHAT IS THE BOOK OF ENOCH?

WHAT IS THE BOOK OF ENOCH?

Brett A. Todd

In the last few years, there has been a growing curiosity about the Book of Enoch, probably because of the renewed interest in mystical and apocalyptic literature, as well as a growing interest in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Let’s take a look at the Book of Enoch.

The Book of Enoch is an ancient Hebrew apocalyptic writing (4 BCE) that describes why the angels fell from heaven, the origin of demons, Nephilims (Giants), and why the Genesis flood was necessary.  This book was falsely named after the alleged author, Enoch, the great grandfather of Noah.

Although this book is not considered to be a part of the Bible, it is worthy to note that it was widely read by Jews and early Christians.  In fact, the Book of Enoch was found among the Dead Sea Scroll in 1947, which illustrates how important this book was among the Jewish Essenes and most likely other Jewish groups as well.  It also deserves attention to note that Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews) and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church do consider the Book of Enoch to be Scripture and is found in their Bible.

To the surprise of many, the Book of Enoch is quoted in the New Testament.  In Jude 1:14–15, we read, note the apocalyptic nature of this verse, “It was also about these that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, ‘See, the Lord is coming with ten thousands of his holy ones, to execute judgment on all, and to convict everyone of all the deeds of ungodliness that they have committed in such an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.’” (Enoch 1:9).

You may remember the old revival hymn, “He Could Have Called Ten Thousand Angels” by Ray Overholt.  More than likely, it was from this passage of Scripture that he was inspired to write this much-loved hymn.  However, for our study what should really catch the attention of the reader is the fact that this spurious reading from Enoch, found its way into the Bible and became Holy Scripture itself. 

There is another story in the Bible in which the Book of Enoch has significantly influenced both Jews and Christians through the years.  This story is found in Genesis 6:1-8 and talks about the sons of God (Angels) who came down from heaven and had sexual relations with the daughters of humans.  We will take up this story in our next study.