Time: Wed Sep 10 10:14:32 1997 by primenet.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with ESMTP id JAA27046; Wed, 10 Sep 1997 09:51:39 -0700 (MST) by usr04.primenet.com (8.8.5/8.8.5) with SMTP id JAA24673; Wed, 10 Sep 1997 09:47:51 -0700 (MST) Date: Wed, 10 Sep 1997 09:47:44 -0700 To: (Recipient list suppressed) From: Paul Andrew Mitchell [address in tool bar] Subject: SLS: Biblical languages: a brief exegesis Dear Friends, I am sharing this detailed message from my friend Frank, who is a lay biblical scholar, and has much to share with us. I know he will be happy to know that I have forwarded this brief exegesis to all of you. Do enjoy! /s/ Paul Mitchell http://supremelaw.com copy: Frank Stamos >Dear Paul, > >Hi, hope everything is well with you. Have some time now and rather than >typing off the top of my head decided to cite excerpts from some material I >have on the subject of Biblical language: > >"LANGUAGES. The first language spoken by the invading Israelitish tribes >in Palestine was Hebrew, a Semitic tongue related to Phenician to the >Canaanitish dialects of the tribes they dispossessed, and to the speech of >Moab. The tell-el-Amarna letters, and the inscription of Mesha are >evidence of this. Hebrew, over the first centuries of the occupation of >Palestine, was both the literary and colloquial language. It remained the >literary language permanently. In colloquial use it was replace by >Aramaic. The date of the change is difficult to determine with precision. >Eliakim's request to the Rabshakeh (II Kings 18:26) to speak 'in the Syrian >language,' which as a common eastern language of deplomacy, the leaders >understood, and not "in the Jews" language shows that Hebrew was still the >Jewish vernacular in 713 B.C. Such was still the case as late as Nehemiah, >two centuries later. > >The next evidence is from the NT where phrases quoted in the Palestinian >vernacular (e.g. talitha cumi, and the cry from the Cross) are undoubtedly >Aramaic. Before Aramaic replaced Hebrew thus, it had, of course >infiltrated its vocabulary. The other colloquial dialect of NT times was >Greek, which also provided the literary language for the NT writings. It >is the common dialect of Greek which is thus represented, that simplified >and basic form which descended from Attic and became an alternative >language in most of the Mediterranean basin, and especially in the kingdoms >of Alexander's successors. Christ spoke Aramaic, but undoubtedly >understood Greek, and read the Scriptures in classical Hebrew. Paul knew >all three languages, and used them with equal facility, with the addition >of Latin." (Taken from "The Zondervan Bible Dictionary" Zondervan >Publishing House, Thirteenth printing, 1972) > >"TEXTS AND VERSIONS (NEW TESTAMENT). .....In the beginning, of course, >there was no 'New Testament' as a single volume. The individual books were >written over a period of years and afterwards were gradually brought >together. What did a book of the NT look like when it was first written? >Its language was Greek. There doubless were both written and oral records, >probably both in Aramaic and in Greek, which lay behind our Gospels. Proof >is lacking, however that any of the NT books as such were originally >written in Aramaic." (Ibid) > >"Languages. The ancient Biblical world was thoroughly polyglot. Important >was Sumerian, non-Semitic pictograph and sign language current in southern >Babylonia previous to 3000 B.C. The Semitic Babylonians brought in >Akkadian, written in cunciform characters. The great family of Semitc >languages included its Eastern branch, Assyrian-Babylonian (Akkad.); N.W. >Semitic. Aramaic, Ugaritic, Hebrew and Phoenician; S. Semitic, Arabic, >Ethiopic and Amharic. The language of the Philistines still remains >obscure. The Moabites spoke a dialect very similar to Hebrew, as shown by >the Moabite Stone discovered in 1868. The Gezer Calendar (c. 925 B.C.), >the Siloam Inscription (c. 702 B.C. and the Lachish Letters (c. 589 B.C.) >give us epigraphic evidence of the development of Hebrew. The Ugaritic >Tablets from Ras Shamra (1929-1937) have greatliy illuminated Canaanite >dialects, and being closely associated with Hebrew, have shed much light on >the language of the OT. As a cultural bridge between the great Nile Empire >and the empires on the Halys in Asia Minor and on the Tigris-Euphrates in >Mesopotamia, the ancient Hebrews came constantly in contact with various >languages. Now well known are Hittite, Hurrian and Semitc dialects spoken >in antiquity. Excavations at Boghaz-Keui, Mari on the middle >Euiphrates....and at Nusu in the Tiogris country have yielded a whole vast >cuneiform literature in Hittite and Hurrian. At the end of the OT period >(c400 B.C.) Hebrew began to fade out and Aramaic became the lingua francia >of S.W. Asia as Akkadian had been in the Armana Period (c. 1400 B.C.). By >the time of Jesus, Aramaic was the common vernacular in Palestine with >koine Greek a universal language since Alexander's conquests in the fourth >century B.C. The Latin of the Roman Empire also became a kind of linqua >francia. The superscription on the cross was hence written in Greek, Latin >and Hebrew (Aramaic) (Luke 23:38)." (Taken from the "Ungers's Bible >Dictionary" Moody Press, Seventeenth Printing, 1971). End of quotes. > >Actually, Paul, this subject can go on and on, much the same as legal >research; one cite leads to another and another and soon you have several >books open. I inserted the texts of "Ungers" in response to a mail I >received from Ray Earnest regarding this subject (sending him a copy of >this mail). Really wish I had a scanner at my disposal as there are many >books available with photgraphs of ancient texts and graphics showing the >time of various translations. Saturday I had a photo taken of the >Pantocrator, Christ in the dome of our Church, I will send you a copy of it >via E-mail just as soon as I can. After reading your mail to me thought >you would appreciate our Lord God Savior's pleased eyes as He now looks >upon you. I believe, Paul, that He has always looked upon you with >pleasing eyes as He has always known what you were preparing yourself to >do. I enjoyed giving the tours this last week-end, it is really satisfying >to serve in this way. > >May we always remain agents of the Most High regardless of our location or >condition. Take care of yourself and may God continue to Bless you. > >Warmest Regards, Frank > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ======================================================================== Paul Andrew Mitchell : Counselor at Law, federal witness B.A., Political Science, UCLA; M.S., Public Administration, U.C. Irvine tel: (520) 320-1514: machine; fax: (520) 320-1256: 24-hour/day-night email: [address in tool bar] : using Eudora Pro 3.0.3 on 586 CPU website: http://www.supremelaw.com : visit the Supreme Law Library now ship to: c/o 2509 N. Campbell, #1776 : this is free speech, at its best Tucson, Arizona state : state zone, not the federal zone Postal Zone 85719/tdc : USPS delays first class w/o this As agents of the Most High, we came here to establish justice. We shall not leave, until our mission is accomplished and justice reigns eternal. ======================================================================== [This text formatted on-screen in Courier 11, non-proportional spacing.]
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