It is now commonly held the Christ was a Jew; we need to look at this important matter as it has deeper repercussions than you might think. And, while the notion of a Jewish Jesus has been with us for some time, due to the mis-translation of Matthew 27:37; Mark 15:26, and Luke 23:38 from the Latin text; the idea is now considered fact. Yet, He was not regarded as such when He was here. Jesus is only once referred to as a Jew in the Gospels (John 4:9; 22) an error in rendering the Greek words for Judean and Judah. At the time, He was known as a Nazarene, Galilean, teacher, and the Christ of God. (Luke 9:20)
Presenting a Jewish Jesus to the world is historically and culturally wrong, and was done for deceptive reasons by some. Jesus was born of Miriam/Mary into the tribe of Judah. His ancestors were David, Jacob and Abraham. He was an Israelite by birth, descended from Israelite’s, Hebrews, Shem and Adam. There were no people called Jews in His ancestry or for that matter in David, Abraham, Moses or Noah. Jew is a recent English word; it did not exist when Jesus was here. Its first appearance in its present form was in the 1769 revision of the King James Bible.
Jesus was persecuted by the Pharisees and Sanhedrin, which encouraged the people to call for His death. They were prepared to bare its consequence when Pilate washed his hands of the whole affair. Jesus was the Lord from Heaven (1Cor 15:47) and the Jews convinced the Romans to execute Him, as they weren’t allowed to do it themselves. Then answered all the people and said, His blood be on us and on our children. (Matthew 27:25)
Setting the Stage
In November 1968, twenty years after the founding of the State of Israel, the Jerusalem Post published the results to their survey: Who or what is a Jew? Nine percent of those surveyed could not answer the question. Not one of the 1500 respondents said they were descended from Abraham, Jacob or David. While a small survey, it points to the slide towards secularism in Jews today. As the Zionist State was founded by political national-socialists; David Ben-Gurion was a self-professed atheist with no time for Judaism, and the majority of contemporary Jews do not regard themselves as religious, it seems not to speak to the overarching belief in God they once held.
Commenting on this growing trend, the Pew Survey of 2013 had this to say about American Jews when it looked at their attitudes toward religion, society, and history.
Secularism has a long tradition in Jewish life in America, and most U.S. Jews seem to recognize this: 62% say being Jewish is mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while only 15% say it is mainly a matter of religion. Even among Jews by religion, more than half (55%) say being Jewish is mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, and two-thirds say it is not necessary to believe in God to be Jewish.
Jews tend to be less religious than the U.S. public as a whole, with fewer saying they attend religious services weekly, believe in God with absolute certainty, or that religion is very important in their lives. When we asked Jews about what is and is not essential to their own sense of Jewishness, 73% say remembering the Holocaust is essential (including 76% of Jews by religion and 60% of Jews of no religion). Almost as many Jews, 69%, say leading an ethical and moral life is essential, and 56% cite working for social justice and equality; only 19% say observing Jewish law is essential.
As Judaism and Jewish Law are of little importance, and western religion is generally in decline, this brings up two essential questions. Why (and when) did Zionist Christians and Jews, begin to promote the idea of Jesus being a Jew when: (a) religion no longer has the influence in Jewry it one held and: (b) Jesus is objectionable to Orthodox Jews and has no place in their culture.
Jews of the First Century
The belief that Jews of the New Testament came only from Judah, Levi or Benjamin is mistaken. Herod Antipas: the Tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea during Christ’s ministry was Idumaean as were many living there, yet he attended the Temple in Jerusalem. The idea Jews today are a people with a lineage to Old Testament times is also unsound, as Jews come from diverse ethnic backgrounds. To be Jewish is to follow Judaism, it is not, and can never be racial; a view continually maintained by many Rabbis today.
Judaism is a religion. Judaism is not a race nor is it a nationality. That was and still remains the consensus among the rabbis. (Rabbi Liebermann: The Role of Zionism in the Holocaust)
When a handful of Judah returned to Jerusalem c.538BC, the district was still known as the Babylonian Province of Judea, though run by a coalition of Egyptians and Greeks. Its inhabitants were Judeans, which included Egyptians, Greeks, Chaldeans and Edomites, a diversity of others including Elamites and Medes, also those from Arabia and Crete. The new arrivals from Babylon became Judeans by residency. The name pertains to the location not to a specific race or people. The same rule applies in every country today. Yet, if we take the common view that all Judeans were Jews, it makes everyone living there Jews, which is of course nonsense. Not all horses are from the same stable.
When the Romans later ruled the province, they also called the region Judea and the people, Judeans. This is why Pilate ordered the sign Rex Iudaeorum over the crucified Christ (also in Greek and Hebrew) which translates: King of the Judeans. It was an insult, as Rome ruled Judea; it was also a dig at Herod Antipas. The Greek name for the region was Ioudaia; its inhabitants were called Ioudaios from the Aramaic, Jehudhai. The Latin form is Iudaeorum, hence Judeans. Wherein rests the birth of an error found in most bibles, dictionaries and encyclopedias (Wikipedia) that have come from the Latin text. The Aramaic Jehudhai means Juda-ites, or the people of Judah; it does not mean Jews.
Judah was the 4th son of Jacob whose name was changed to Israel by God. (Gen 32:28) All of Jacob’s sons were Israelites as were their descendants. They were still and remained Israelites when Jesus was here. Paul confirmed his ancestry when writing to disciples in Rome … for I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham…” (Rom 11:1) (See also: Acts 13:21; Php 3:5) Jesus confirmed the Israelite line of the Apostles when He first met Nathanael. (John 1:47)
In case you’re still of the view Old Testament Israelites were Jews; the 10 tribes of Israel and the bulk of Judah (3-4 million) were removed north into Assyria, under the name of Ephraim, ending in 721BC. 700 years later they were nowhere near Palestine but spread throughout the known world. (James 1:1)
Those called Jews in the time of the Apostles, were only a trace of Judah returned from their exile in Babylon, which was to the east of Jerusalem. These separate captivities were 200 years apart. The first involved millions, the latter a few thousand who became the Jews of the 1st Century. (2Ki 24:14; 16)
Now, Jesus came for Israel (Matt 15:24) as foretold by the Prophets. And, while He also came for the remnant of Judah, they rejected Him. And one shall say unto him, what are these wounds in thy hands? Then he shall answer those with which I was wounded in the House of my friends. (Zechariah 13:6)
The Pharisees, who openly argued with Christ, are the foundation of rabbinic tradition; the origin of Jewish oral tradition, practice and ethics brought from Babylon. The people we know as Jews in the New Testament lived by this tradition, which shaped the Talmud. Jesus loathed what they stood for and told them so on several occasions. They acted contrary to God’s instructions and were cursed by the LORD. This is the Prophet Jeremiah’s comment and warning to the Jews from Babylon, who later refused Jesus’ testimony and called for His death.
Because ye have said, the LORD raised us up prophets in Babylon; know that thus says the LORD of the king that sits upon the throne of David, and of all the people that dwell in this city, and of your brethren that are not gone forth with you into captivity; Behold I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence and will make them like vile figs that cannot be eaten they are so evil. (Jeremiah 29:15-17)
There was no oral tradition during Old Testament times; even God wrote the Ten Commandments! (Exo 31:18) Why would Isaiah say, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book… (Isa 30:8) The thought of God leaving His Word to the fragile memory of humans is plainly naive. As the LORD spoke through His Prophets, not men’s clairvoyants, we can see the difference between 1st Century Israelites and Jews by their conventions: Israel’s Standard of Truth as applied by the Apostles, against the austere law and practice of the Pharisees. It was the darkness of flesh verses the light of the spirit.
And ye have made void the word of God because of your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, this people honour me with their lips; But their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as their doctrines the precepts of men. (Matt 15:6-9)
A New Subtext
Today; through intent or ignorance, the word Jew has a new meaning nurtured by those wishing to exploit its assumed relationship with the entire Bible. It has succeeded to such a degree, most people can no longer grasp the original intent of a word, meant to draw the distinction between the followers of the Christ and His Grace, and Pharisees predisposed to unforgiveness and legalism. There is also the ambiguity surrounding the new word Israeli, as a substitute for Israelite, implying a form of birthright. The reason for this re-positioning was to provide cover for the Khazarian-Ashkenaze Jews of Europe, who have no bloodline inheritance to New Testament times; or Israel of the Exodus. As recorded in the Jewish Encyclopedia of 1906, they adopted the Talmud and teachings of the Jews in the 8th Century.
In the New Testament, the word Jew was used to denote a person who lived in Judea and followed the doctrine of the Pharisees. Today a Jew is (a) someone who follows Judaism (b) an Israeli; even though 20% living in Israel are not Jews or (c) anyone who wants to be a Jew regardless of race. It is now used to imply a form of ethnic autonomy and nationhood.
It is important to grasp the fact that to be a Jew was to observe the religion of the Jews; it had no further implication until Jewish Nationalism surfaced in the 19th Century following the birth of Jewish Enlightenment. The Christian Movement of the 18th Century calling for the Restoration of the Jews to Palestine, a calamitous judgment, started it all.
Jewish Nationalism grew out of the erroneous belief of Restorationists, Owen, Rutherford, John Darby and others, in accord with British and American politicians that all Jews must return to Palestine to ensure the return of Christ, which has no Biblical foundation at all. No one bothered to verify Eastern European Jewish ancestry, check the Bible for the facts on the dividing of Israel and Judah, look up the details of their banishment from Judea and Samaria, or confirm their subsequent history.
A Jewish Jesus
The belief that Jesus was a Jew is endemic throughout Theological colleges, Churches, and promoted in Christian and secular media. It has spread like wildfire across the Internet, consumed Wikipedia and most religious websites. Use of the names, Yahashua and Yashua is bedding down this erroneous belief, through its association with all things Jewish and Zionist, in order to entice Christian Zionists, and like-minded followers toward the Israeli State. But of most import, the purpose of Yahashua or Yashua is to remove the name of Jesus Christ from the face of the Earth! It has plumbed the depths of iniquity.
Now, Pontius Pilate knew Jesus wasn’t a Jew, but an innocent Judean from Nazareth. He surely knew the difference between a guiltless Christ and Sanhedrin rabble who wanted Him dead. To even imagine a Jewish Jesus reveals a meager understanding of the Bible, His recorded genealogy, which is why all those begats are there; the Prophets, Peter and Paul and their inspired writings. It denies a legitimate, tested, and proven record of the Ever-Living God and His interaction with mankind. As Paul says; Jesus Christ the same yesterday, today, and forever. (Heb 13:8)
The reason Jesus became Jewish, was to attach the Zionist State and Judaism to His Davidic ancestry and the Prophets of Israel. It was also to blur the lines between Judeans and Jews; Israel and Judah, Israelite and Israeli. And, it was encouraged to lock down support of American heartland Christianity, so they might endow and protect it. It has worked like a charm. To preserve the blunder of Rutherford and Darby; anyone who continues to champion the return of the Jews to Palestine; and Christian media evangelism, the idea will never be undone. It will stand as a pinnacle of foolishness.
The idea Jews are our lost brethren, deserving our love and support in their homeland aspirations, was conceived two centuries ago. It has since been contaminated by errant thinking to shore up the Jews of Eastern Europe as rightful heirs to the Holy Land. And, it was done to blind us all to the truth of Jesus Christ. It has become a triumph of such scale; many Christians in their apparent lack of knowledge are now on the edge of the abyss, believing Jesus was a good Jew from Nazareth who communed with God. It has become a state of mind, populating the thinking of all who look narrowly upon the Scriptures.
In the Jerusalem Post survey, 42% of respondents mentioned parentage as a contributing factor to their Jewishness. Parentage points to origin. Rabbis uphold and teach, Jesus could not be the Messiah as he had no Jewish father, which is of course, completely true. If, as tradition holds, it is from father to son the seed line is carried, and Jesus had no Jewish father as Rabbis assert, He can no longer be deemed a Jew. So, like Pharaoh at the time of the Exodus, Rabbis are condemned out of their own mouths. And all the while, Jesus remains; the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star. (Rev 22:13)
Isaiah and Paul agree and confirm (Isa 9:6; Heb 1:8-13) Jesus is the Existing One who came forth from the same Spirit who created the Heavens and the Earth, to declare His Gospel of truth and salvation; to save us from our sins, for all have sinned. If we believe Jesus is Jewish it follows, the creating Spirit is innately the same. When we take time to think about it, we soon realize how absurd this idea actually is. I pray His Spirit reveals it, so you might begin to see the truth of the LORD and His Christ.
Jesus and Pilate
Then Jesus answered, my kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.
Pilate therefore said unto him, art thou a king then? Jesus answered; thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause I came into the world that I should bear witness to the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
Pilate said unto him, what is truth? And when he had heard this, he went out again unto the Jews and said unto them, I find in him no fault at all. (John 18:36-38)
A servant in Jesus’ Name, may His peace be upon you all.
James