Next week, we begin a new Sabbath Devotional series called “Traveling with Paul.” In it, Dwight takes a fresh, objective look at the apostle Paul and his letters from a Hebraic Perspective.
Before we get there, I want to share some helpful thoughts as an on-ramp to the study. For instance, “What do we (JC Studies) mean by a Hebraic Perspective?” I don’t want to take that for granted, especially if you’re newer to this email list and our ministry. An even more important question is this: “How do we help you connect the Testaments in order to flourish in your high calling?” That is the “why” informing everything we do.
We are passionate about providing you with understandable answers to those core questions.
Recently, I was getting coffee at a café when I couldn’t help but tune in to an older woman talking fervently to a couple of younger women about a passage in John’s Gospel. The entire time I was there, she didn’t stop talking. A little reading followed by a lot of expounding. Her content was rich, but I couldn’t help thinking, “It might help to slow down, ask some questions, and hear from those you are seeking to help.”
When you do, from my experience, you’ll find believers are typically struggling to remember what’s being said and how all the pieces fit together to form a coherent picture. One that they can really live into. Providing continuity in the story the Bible is telling is where connecting the Testaments excels.
Jesus grew up as the son of Jewish parents during Israel’s Second Temple period, some two thousand years ago. As such, he spoke the language, interacted with the Old Testament, and participated in the culture of his people, the Jews, as they endeavored to be faithful to divine revelation. Think of it this way: Jesus had and expressed faith in YHWH, the God of the Bible.
This was no accident of history. It was by divine design (Galatians 4:4, Mark 1:15). As the Good News about him eventually spread across the globe throughout the generations, this contextual reality became a touchstone to prevent his message from being assimilated and perverted for personal, ecclesiastical, and political power: Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14).
That is why we use “Hebraic Perspective” as a synonym for a Biblical Worldview. In so doing, we align with the most widely accepted, foundational academic principle of translation and interpretation: the Bible can never mean what it never meant. Said another way, the primary rule of context is that context rules.
We simply insist that a holistic approach to a biblical way of thinking must be conditioned by Scripture as read, embodied, and taught by Jesus of Nazareth. The mind that was in the Messiah (1 Cor 2:16) provides the framework, or in the language of jigsaw puzzles, the edges and the big picture into which everything fits. Jesus had a shorthand way of saying all this: “The Kingdom of God/Heaven is here.” He should know, he is the “King” promised to eternally sit on David’s throne (2 Samuel 7:16, Matt 22:45, Acts 13:32-39).
When looking at sacred Scripture and the ideas that arise from it, the first interpretive question from a Hebraic perspective is, “What did this mean to Yeshua in his historical setting?”
Here is a creative way of looking at it.
Imagine we are watching an American football game. The player running the ball is being tackled, and the ball comes loose as he nears the ground. After a scramble, the opposing team recovers the ball and runs it into the end zone. The referees consult and call the play a fumble, resulting in a touchdown.
The coach exercises his right to challenge the on-field call, arguing that the runner’s knee touched the ground before the fumble, which would end the play. If so, the touchdown would be nullified, and the team on offense would keep possession of the football.
Now imagine that all this takes place in the waning minutes of a championship game, and the team that recovered and scored was now in the lead as a result of the play. The referees have an important decision to make, one that will impact the game and affect a lot of people. It is incumbent on them to use the best tools to see the play as accurately as possible.
Together, they will watch a replay in slow motion. Helpful, but they can only see the play from one camera angle. Enter the “reverse camera angle,” a revolutionary tool that significantly increased their accuracy. By placing cameras strategically on the opposite side of the playing field, the reverse camera angle provides a unique tactical perspective; an additional view of the play from a different vantage point.
Regardless of the outcome, the reverse camera angle will always add a fresh dimension to what was witnessed.*
In my analogy, the primary camera angle is the traditional interpretation of Scripture. That is important. The reverse camera angle is the Hebraic Perspective. That is equally important.
Sound Bible teaching must take into account the original historical context as well as traditional interpretations. (Which, interestingly, themselves came out of their own contexts. For example, consider the complex history of Christian Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, and the Protestant Reformation.) Again, both angles are necessary to ensure accuracy in translation and interpretation.
To change from analogy to simile, with the rebirth of the State of Israel in 1948 came a renaissance in biblical studies. We are privileged to know more today about the life and times of Jesus, pretty much since the first century after those original events. The Hebraic teaching offered at JC Studies serves you much like a tour guide, drawing on proven expertise in the necessary disciplines of language, literature, and the religious culture of Second Temple Judaism to help you maximize your exploration of God’s Word in God’s world.
A careful review of biblical texts and concepts within their contexts adds valuable dimensions to biblical faith.
We are fond of saying, “We take you back into Yeshua’s setting so you can be better equipped to go forward in your own.” What you will find at JC Studies are guides well-versed in both camera angles. Those trained to carefully consider the historical and traditional readings of biblical texts—along with a Hebraic perspective—to maximize their impact.**
While walking with us, you will learn some crucial Hebrew words and concepts. More importantly, you will see how they work from Genesis to Revelation. Our goal is for you to see God’s Story more clearly. And, speaking pastorally, where you fit in the story so you can live it with all your might.
Anything you receive from us, including the monthly audio and weekly Sabbath emails drawn from Dwight Pryor’s transcripts, will enhance your Jesus-following by helping you see a bigger picture and how the pieces fit together.
With all of this in mind, we offer you our latest series, “Traveling with Paul.” The reverse camera angle of a Hebraic perspective will confirm what you know, correct some misunderstandings, and add to the height, depth, and breadth of God’s living and active Word.
* My example is taken from a real-life game situation. For those of you who like to know the “rest of the story,” here it is. The referees analyzed the views in order to confirm or overturn the on-field call. Was the fumbler’s knee down before the ball came loose? Was there a clear recovery by the other team? Was the ball eligible to be advanced?
From the standard view, it looked like the runner was down before the fumble. However, the reverse camera angle showed that, though it was close, the runner’s knee clearly did not touch the ground. They were correct in calling a fumble. And the opposing team had indeed recovered the turnover. However, in the scramble for the fumbled ball, the player who secured it brushed the ground with his knee while being touched by his opponent. He was, by rule, down where it happened, and the on-field call of a touchdown was overturned. Play on!
** First among them is our founder, Dwight A. Pryor (1945-2011). For over twenty-five years, he traveled the world earning a reputation as a Bible teacher of unique clarity, depth, and balance. He left behind a treasure trove of biblical audio and video teaching employing the Hebraic Perspective. Dwight’s teaching voice lives on at JC Studies, while his seminal thoughts continue to bear fruit among the countless scholars, preachers, teachers, and haverim (friends) he influenced throughout his lifetime.
