Aug 24, 2010 Posted on Aug 24, 2010 in Apostolic Writings, Miscellaneous, Yeshua | 2 comments

Follow Your Heart…?

I have the privilege of being a part of the editing team for the Delitzsch Hebrew Gospels translation from Vine of David. Every time I go through Aaron Eby’s translation I learn something about either Hebrew or our Master, or both.

Today, I was finishing up reviewing chapters 9-16 of Luke and came across a phrase which Aaron has translated: “He returned to his heart.” It was in the context of Yeshua’s parable of the prodigal son, and his making the decision to return home after his time of rebellion. This reminds me of the phrase we hear so often, “Follow your heart.” However, most of the time we hear that phrase, “Follow your heart,” it generally means: “Go for it!” “Dream big!” “Live the American Dream!” It is usually in the context of self-indulgence, where we are supposed to find that “inner-voice” that is telling us what we need to be doing with our lives to get the fullest experience of life…to “drink in life” with passion. It’s really the opposite of the Hebrew meaning of this phrase (which I will explain further momentarily).

It reminds me of this new movie Eat, Pray, Love, based on the book by Elizabeth Gilbert (which could be subtitled, “Hinduism has allowed me to cast off restraint”). Sadly many Christians are looking to this as a spiritual expression for believers. They are searching for something “more.” They want adventure & romance, and if their current situation can’t provide it they search it out. I’ve seen countless Christian marriages fail in the last 3-4 years because of this. And the answer is usually the same, “I’m following my heart” or “God is leading me in a new direction.” But would God really wreck a marriage, the most primal institution of the world, in order to make “me” happy? Is it really all about me? According to the philosophy of “Follow your heart” it is. However, Scripture actually warns us about the deceptions of the heart:

The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? (Jeremiah 17:9)

How many people are being told this? How many people have bought into the lie already, and it’s too late to recognize this? This is where being a diligent student of the Word will allow it to drive our lives, rather than allowing our hearts to drive them. In the context of the passage to which I referenced, the Hebrew literally says the same thing. It is וַיָּשֶׁב אֶל־לִבּוֹ. “And he returned to his heart.” But what does that mean? Does it mean that he finally found his “purpose” in life through reading The Purpose Driven Life? Does it mean he finally got up enough courage to hike the Himalayas? Does it mean he gave up his family, went off to a foreign country and lived it up? Wait… that’s what he did before he “returned to his heart.” So you see, “returning to one’s heart” in the Hebrew sense is not about all of these things, but about “coming to your senses.” It’s about following your head, not your heart. It’s about doing what’s right, rather than what feels good. Why? Because the right path and the difficult path are often the same, and when we choose the right over the wrong, the blessing will be in the journey. The joy will come from within, rather than from anything external. And the fruits will be eternal, rather than momentary.

Have you returned to your heart?

Oct 1, 2009 Posted on Oct 1, 2009 in Miscellaneous | 6 comments

Is “Barak Obama” behind the Hebrew of Luke 10:18?

I’ve been trying to post this as a note on Facebook, but evidently they have a content filter in place that won’t allow me to post notes with the name of the President in it. I’m posting it on my site as an alternative.

I’ve had a few people ask me about the validity of the statements behind a video on YouTube (http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsgHUZX&h=4b2921334b24fa472a39a1114ceb45d5) trying to make a connection between the name “Barak Obama” and Yeshua’s (Jesus) statement in Luke 10:18 that he saw “Satan falling as lightning” so I thought I would go ahead & post a note about it. The creator of this video claims that the original Hebrew that Jesus would have spoken would contain the name “Barak Obama” thus pointing to our current President as the Anti-Christ. My statements henceforth are neither an endorsement of the character of the our current President, nor any kind of slander.

First, let me say that I’m no Hebrew scholar by any means, AND I am willing to stand corrected by those who know far more about the intricacies of Hebrew than myself (i.e. @aaron.eby, etc.). However, from my current knowledge of Hebrew, this is my understanding…

Although the creators of this video have some basic Hebrew knowledge, they don’t have any understanding of Hebrew syntax.( FYI – A Strong’s concordance is not going to give you Hebrew understanding beyond a few root words.) The main error he made in this is that the Vav (he called it a “Waw” or “Vau”) is used primarily as a conjunction meaning “and.” If the Vav were where he says it would be, it would read “And I saw Satan falling and lightning.” There would be no mention of “from heaven” or “AS” lightning. Also, when the Vav comes at the beginning of a word, in all the cases I know of it has the “oo” sound, not the “oh” sound.

I’m looking at one of my Hebrew New Testaments right now, and this is how Luke 10:18 reads:

ראיתי את השטן נופל כברק מן השמים.

Which transliterates to:

“Ra’iti et HaSatan nophel k’varak min hashamayim.”

The word “k’varak” uses the root word “barak/baraq” which means lightning. But in this syntax, it doesn’t sound anything like what he is saying. The prefix “k” means “like” or “as.” It has to be there to say “like lightning” or “as lightning.”

Also, there is no mention of “bama.” The common Hebrew word for “heaven” is “shamayim.” In the Avinu (what we call “The Lord’s Prayer”), it begins with “Avinu Shebashamayim” (Our Father In Heaven) and would be rendered the same in any context. The word “heaven” or “heavens” is always rendered as “shamayim” since Genesis 1, especially when referring to the throne of Hashem (God).

This appears to be a very forced, and poor translation of the Hebrew behind the words of our Master.