Do we really need to know Hebrew to understand the Bible better?

The Old and the New Testaments were both written by Jews. Many times people have asked me because I have studied Theology if I speak Hebrew. As we all know, the New Testament canon we have today consist of 27 books, and it was written in Greek, and we also, really did not have the full canon until about 367 AD. To make a long story short, the reason for the New Testament is because of the resurrection of Jesus, and it was written by believers after His ascension. Now, those believers such as Paul and the Apostolic Church Fathers quoted from the Old Testament when they wrote in the New Testament. However, the Old Testament which they used was written in Greek, and it was the Septuagint.

The Septuagint was written about 300 years before Jesus was on Earth. Many Hellenistic Jews around the empire had began to lose the Hebrew language; therefore, this became a translation for them and others who spoke Greek. The Septuagint's name came from the Latin "septuaginta interpretum" which means the "translation of the seventy interpreters." The Septuagint was translated by about 70 Jewish Scholars. Normally the Roman numeral LXX (seventy) is used as an abbreviation. Now, the original question was do we really need to know Hebrew to understand the Bible better?

I will leave this up to you to answer. The Septuagint (the Old Testament), which was written in Greek, was around for 300 years before Jesus. I said that the Apostolic Fathers and Paul used it as reference when quoting in the New Testament. The early Christian Church used the Septuagint as their source for the Old Testament. If you spoke Greek, both the New and the Old Testament were there as a source from the beginning, and for 2000 years now. So, what do you think, do we really need to know Hebrew to understand the Bible better? Well, that would probably be entirely up to you because the Masoretic Texts are written in Hebrew; however, the seventy scholars that translated the Septuagint into Greek did a fantastic job. By the way, I have an interesting note; the Hebrew canon was not closed until the first century.

References:

http://ecmarsh.com/lxx/

http://www.ccel.org/bible/brenton/

Jay Bakker speaking with Frank Schaeffer

I very much enjoyed hearing a discussion with Jay Bakker and Frank Schaeffer which took place on October 7th, 2012 at Pete’s Candy Store in Brooklyn, NY. I hope you can enjoy it as well. The following link is where you can listen or download a Podcast:

http://www.revolutionnyc.com/frank-talk-with-jay/

The Link Between the Old and the New Testaments, is it the Cornerstone?

For starters, the question used in the title sounds a bit awkward, one might say. So, we know that a cornerstone is the base or foundation of a corner in a building that joins two walls. The reason why I am bringing it up is because both the Old and the New Testaments mention a cornerstone, but when we read the verses that mention a cornerstone, it does not sound at all like a literal meaning. I will show some verses that mention the word, and maybe you will have to think about it on your own, and decide for yourself on the meaning in the context. First, I want to present Psalm 118:22, it says:

“The stone which the builders rejected is become the chief corner-stone (JPS).”
The previous verse, Psalm 118:21 says:

“I will give thanks unto Thee, for Thou hast answered me, and art become my salvation (JPS).”

The verse that followed verse 22 (23), says:

“This is the LORD'S doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.”

Let’s leave Psalms, and move on to another book, Isaiah. Isaiah 28:16 says:

“Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a costly corner-stone of sure foundation; he that believeth shall not make haste (JPS).”

Now, the same verse with the preceding and proceeding verses sounds as follows:

“Isaiah 28:15 Because ye have said: 'We have made a covenant with death, and with the nether-world are we at agreement; when the scouring scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us; for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood have we hid ourselves';
Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a costly corner-stone of sure foundation; he that believeth shall not make haste.
Isaiah 28:17 And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plummet; and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding-place (JPS).”

Now, when we look at the New Testament, this is what 1 Peter 2:6-7 says:

"For it stands in Scripture: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame." So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, "The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone (ESV)"

Okay, I will not get too involved, and I will leave it up to you to investigate about the cornerstone. I will not provide any further clues, so, enjoy your search!

References:

ESV Bible

JPS Tanakh