TANAKH
Stephen M. Reynolds, Ph. D.
Our Jewish neighbors of
course do not regard the New Testament of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as
inspired. In fact some of them even react to it with loathing and even go so far
as to suggest that it is unfair to the Jews and should be rewritten with alleged
anti-Jewish sentiments expurgated.
They do, however, share with
us respect for what we call the Old Testament. The Jewish Publication Society of
Philadelphia, New York and Jerusalem, has produced two translations of these
sacred writings. One in 1917 is entitled The Holy Scriptures According to the
Masoretic Text A New Translation. This work is largely dependent on the King
James Version except where that Version is supportive of Christian doctrine.
A name commonly used by Jews
for the Old Testament is TANAKH which is formed by the initial letters of the
Law or Pentateuch, the Prophets and the Writings, the three divisions of the
Hebrew Old Testament. In 1985 the Jewish Publication Society published a new
translation of the Old Testament in English called simply TANAKH. This has been
done by Jewish scholars well versed in the ancient languages in which the Old
Testament was originally written, Hebrew and Aramaic.
It is not likely to be much
used by Christians and it is improbable that the work of our Foundation will be
given much attention by our Jewish neighbors. Nevertheless a brief critique of
it is presented in the following paragraphs.
It is of course not to be
used by Christians as their whole Bible, nor are we to look to it for guidance
on matters of faith and practice. But we should never forget that Jerome, Luther
and other translators looked to Jewish scholars of their day for help in
understanding Hebrew philology. The scholars of the Lorine L. Reynolds
Foundation in their effort to improve translations of the English Bible will
look to Jewish scholarship in all places where its goal cannot be considered an
attack on Christianity.
A place where the TANAKH
seems to have caught the meaning of the inspired author is in Psahn 32:9 where
the King James Version has translated: "Be ye not like the horse or like
the mule, that have no understanding, whose mouth must be held in with bit and
bridle, lest they come near unto thee."
This gives an unsatisfactory
reason why people put bits and bridles on these domestic animals. The KJV gives
readers to understand that it is to keep them from coming near an innocent
bystander to do him harm. This is not the reason horsemen put these instruments
on animals. It is to make them useful to man. The NIV has it, conversely, that
the reason is to get the animals to come near someone. This suggests that unless
bits and bridles are put on horses and mules they will not come to a person who
wants them to approach him But animals will sometimes come to a person without
being ridden or driven by someone who has put bits and bridles on them. They
might come if offered food.
The fact is the original is
Hebrew poetry which is often very concise and even enigmatic. Translated
literally we would render the words about coming near, as. “not to come near
(or approach) to thee." This does not say what the subject of the
infinitive "to come near" is. The TANAKH takes the subject to be the
admonition “Be not like the horse or like the mule that have no
understanding."
The
rendering of the TANAKH is:
"Be
not like a senseless horse or mule
Whose movement must be curbed by bit and bridle;
c far be it from you"1
c
(The note c-c is
"Meaning of Hebrew uncertain: for this rendering cf. Ibn Ezra.")
The rendering of the TANAKH has more modesty than some
other English versions such as the KJV and the NIV which give the impression the
translators are sure of the meaning when the Hebrew is too concise to give
complete certainty. The KJV and the NIV do not give a true reason for bit and
bridle, but the TANAKH's suggested rendering makes sense. It strengthens the
idea that human beings should strive to act with more intelligence.
Though the TANAKH
demonstrates the great learning of Jewish scholarship over the centuries (Ibn
Ezra, for example, lived from 1092 to 1167) one can without being unfair say
frankly that it contains bias against Christianity. Isaiah 7:14, a passage cited
in Matthew's Gospel as a prediction of the virgin birth of Christ is translated
to make it appear that an ordinary birth in the time of Isaiah is foretold. In
Zechariah 12:10 where the Hebrew without variants says "and they shall look
upon Me whom they have pierced,”2 the TANAKH says in a note
"meaning of Heb. uncertain" and in the text presents a corrupt
pretense of a translation: "and they shall lament to ME about those who are
slain." Bad as this is, it at least has one merit which is that the LORD
speaks about Himself in this verse. This is better than the New Revised Standard
Version translated by scholars professing Christianity to whom was added a
non‑Christian (Jewish) member to please "our Jewish neighbors."
This version changes "me" (the LORD) to "one" (an unknown
person). This is done on the basis of Theodotion's Greek translation. Theodotion
was a non-Christian who may have been motivated in his translation by a desire
to remove the idea that the Godman, Christ Jesus, was pierced at Calvary. This
way of destroying a Christian proof-text appears to have been pleasing to
the NRS translators, but it was rejected by the TANAKH translators who used
another device to accomplish the same thing. From this we learn to "beware
of the leaven of the Pharisees" in whatever guise it presents itself.
In the 53rd chapter of
Isaiah the 10th verse; the TANAKH has `But the LORD chose to crush him by
disease..." It is true that there is a note saying the meaning of the
Hebrew is uncertain, but the significant thing is that if persons read this who
are not Christian and are convinced that this is an accurate translation of the
Hebrew original they will come to the conclusion that the one referred to cannot
possibly be Jesus of Nazareth for the New Testament never says he was diseased.
Christians throughout the ages have believed that this chapter of Isaiah is a
prediction of the suffering, death, burial, ultimate triumph, and saving power
of the Lord Jesus Christ. This chapter has been a means of winning many Jews to
a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. It is a shame if any are misled and turned
aside by this false translation and think that the one described cannot be Jesus
for he was not diseased, as this misleading translation says the person
described was, not only in verse 10 but also in verse 3.
What are the facts? They are
that the words which the TANAKH renders disease
in verses 3 and 10 are entirely in agreement with what happened to Jesus if
they are translated correctly. The word in verse 10 is ylix/h, the hiphil
perfect, third person singular masculine for hl'ix/h,) from hl't
. There is no reason this form of the
verb must be limited in meaning to the idea of sickness and even less is it
proper to limit it to the idea of disease. In the hophal stem it is clearly used
in the sense of to be wounded, in I
Kings 22:34. There ytiylex\h clearly
means I am wounded, and any idea of
sickness or disease is altogether impossible. See also II Chronicles 18:33 and
II Chronicles 25:23. The word ylix in Isaiah 53:10
which the TANAKH translates disease does
not necessarily mean disease or even sickness.
In Jeremiah 10:19 it may be translated wound,
but not disease.
Christians must reject the
TANAKH rendering of the words in question in verses 3 and 10 of the 53rd chapter
of Isaiah which to us speaks so clearly of Christ. We must not be dismayed by
them The truth is the Hebrew words speak of Christ as being wounded and not as
being sick or diseased.
All people of every religion
or of none at all should know that this translation of the Bible, although given
to the world and especially to the great English speaking Jewish population by
scholars of great learning in the Hebrew and Aramaic languages and highly
skilled in English, were nevertheless people deeply committed to Judaism
It is not our intention
or indeed our right to criticize them by accusing them of twisting the
Scriptures whenever they came to a Christian proof-text. It is enough to
say that in these places they were reflecting well established Jewish traditions
which were very dear to them These ideas were thought of at some time by Jewish
teachers who probably knew they were changing the meaning of the passages in
question to put down Christianity. It is therefore the duty of every Christian
to search out and oppose with the strongest arguments possible this translation
in these places and to encourage Jews and others not to depend on it as true
representation of the Word of God to mankind.
THE TANAKH AND
THE NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION COMPARED
In
connection with criticisms of the TANAKH as to its treatment of
proof-texts supportive of Christianity, it is appropriate to bring into
view a translation now used in some Christian Churches. This is the New Revised
Standard Version, the producers of which include a Jewish scholar unconverted to
the Christian religion. This translation has a number of places where passages
which if correctly translated are proof-texts of important Christian
doctrines are badly rendered to the advantage of Judaism. It is to be expected
that a translation frankly Jewish, like the TANAKH, would destroy the
effectiveness of passages supportive of Christian doctrine, but it is sad indeed
when a translation produced under the auspices of professing Christians and
intended to be used in Christian churches does the same thing. Thus Christians
must hold the TANAKH with sadness as unacceptable, and must with even greater
sadness regard the New Revised Standard Version as unacceptable as well. Christ
is wounded once more in this book, this time in the house of his
"friends."
1.
Hebrew. ^yl,ae broq. lB
2.
Hebrew Wrq'D'-rv,a
tae yl;ae WjyBihiw.
It has been observed that ta, the sign of the
direct object, is not necessary to complete the sense in this verse. These are
the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and God may be here in a
cryptic manner revealing that He is the FIRST and the LAST. He is the same
eternal God who is revealed to be the FIRST and the LAST, the Alpha (A) and
Omega (Q), which are the first and last letters of the Greek Alphabet. The Bible
is in general easy to understand but there are occasional somewhat hidden
meanings. For Alpha and Omega as a name for the LORD, the Second Person of the
Godhead "Who is, Who was and Who is to come, even the Almighty" see
Revelation 1:8; 21:6 and 22:13. Since Aleph and Tau (the first and last letters
of the Hebrew alphabet) are not necessary to give the sense, "They shall
look on Me whom they have pierced," it is reasonable to deduce that they do
not serve the purpose of introducing the direct object of the verb look in
“They shall look,” but have the mystical purpose of showing that it was the
eternal God Who is the One pierced and looked upon and thus they give the
meaning, They (those who put Christ to death) shall look on Me, the First and
the Last (the One who existed before the creation of heaven and earth and will
remain after they are gone) Whom they have pierced. This adds to the already
overwhelming evidence that Jesus Christ is God.
