THE ORIGINAL ARAMAIC UNDERSTANDING OF HELL

 

THE ORIGINAL ARAMAIC UNDERSTANDING OF HELL

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JESUS AND ARAMAIC

 

1. If you have read my earlier writings, you will understand that Aramaic was the original language of Jesus. It was a pre-cursor to the Hebrew language. While Hebrew was more commercially used, Aramaic was more domestically spoken and written.

Jesus spoke in Aramaic to his disciples and the common people (many were illiterate, and can only understand Aramaic).

 

2. Jesus used the word "hell or hell-fire" in Matthew 5:22 (KJV) in our English translations. We are going to see what he meant.

 

Matthew 5:22 (KJV) - But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

pictures here: Taken from : https://www.thearamaicscriptures.com/

 

3. The actual Aramaic words spoken are as above. The spoken word in interlinear English Translation would be "Gehenna dnoora"

 

4. The word "Gehenna dnoora" is an Aramaic Idiom.

 

5. IN Aramaic, "Gehenna dnoora" means "Regret", "Mental torment", "Destruction", "Remorse", "Mental suffering", "Mental agony".

 

6. "Gehenna dnoora" does NOT mean an INFERNO where God burns people forever!

 

7. According to Aramaic scholars, they confirmed that the Aramaic-speaking Church Fathers of the 2nd to 5th centuries AD uses the word "Gehenna dnoora" (English translated as "hellfire") to denote "torment of the mind", and not a fiery place where people are burning forever.

 

8. It was only much later, that the term "hell or hellfire" became translated as a designated place of eternal punishment for the wicked and unbelievers.

 

 

WHAT IS HELL? WHERE IS HELL?

 

1. Some cultures and ancient beliefs taught that it is an underground (middle earth, or subterranean) torture pit where living souls are tormented and burnt for eternity.

 

2. Some beliefs teach that hell is a spiritual place of unending separation from the presence of God.

 

3. These thoughts and concepts of hell as a fiery punishment came from (a) certain misunderstood biblical passages and (b) some cultural and contemporary misinterpretations of early church leaders like Augustine and Tertullian.

 

4. Prior to these concepts of hell, it was NOT conceived or taught as a place where God torments "disobedient" human beings.

 

5. Jesus NEVER taught such an idea, and it was not presumed to be such by his followers. When Jesus used the Aramaic term "Gehenna dnoora", he used it as a common Aramaic idiom that means "mental torment".

 

 

WHERE DID WE GET THIS WORD "HELL" IN OUR ENGLISH?

 

1. The origin of the English word "hell" comes from the Anglo-Saxon (old English language) words "hel" meaning "a hidden place", and "helan" meaning "to hide".

 

2. In our English translated bible, the translators had used the word "hell" to translate from 2 Aramaic terms "sheol" and "gehenna dnoora". And this was wrong.

 

3. "Sheol" and "Gehenna dnoora" are actually two very extremely different Aramaic (and Semitic) terms, yet the English translators had used the word "hell" to represent both.

 

4. "Sheol" comes from the Hebrew word "shalal" meaning "to be still or quiet".

 

5. In those ancient Hebrew days, the Hebrews believed that "sheol" was a place below the surface of the earth where the dead, BOTH GOOD AND BAD, remained there quietly and inactive. (This could be a borrowed cultural belief of the Assyrian and Babylonians that had such beliefs. Remember that the Jews were in captivity and under these over-lording masters for several generations i.e. hundreds of years).

 

6. The ancient Hebrews believed that their dead will wait in "sheol" until it is judgement day for them, the good guys and the bad guys. This term "sheol" is used more in the older text of the Hebrew Tanakh (similar to the Old Testament).

 

 

"GEHENNA DNOORA" IS ALSO A PHYSICAL PLACE

 

1. Yes, I said that "Gehenna dnoora" is an Aramaic idiomatic expression meaning "mental torment", but it is also an ancient "physical place".

 

2. I bring the similar example of our Malaysia term "Jinjang". When we say a person is very "jinjang", it is an idiomatic expression to mean that he/she is "backward", "uneducated", "uncultured". BUT "Jinjang" is also a "physical place" where the Jinjang residents are "gangster-like", "a place without law or order". We have many other idioms like these.

 

3. The physical place of "Gehenna dnoora" means the "Valley of Hinnom".

 

4. During the time of Jesus, the "Valley of Hinnom" was a place outside of Jerusalem where the Jews burned their rubbish!

 

5. But BEFORE the time of Jesus, during the ancient time of the early kings, the "Valley of Hinnom" was a place of sacrifice to the pagan god of the Ammonite (the residents of Canaan) called Molech. Read 2 Kings 23:10 and 2 Chronicles 33:6 (KJV). The physical location of "Valley of Hinnom" is described in Jeremiah 19:2.

 

 

FROM THE BOOK by ROCCO A. ERRICO,

"THE MESSAGE OF MATTHEW: AN ANNOTATED PARALLEL ARAMAIC-ENGLISH GOSPEL OF MATTHEW, "HELLFIRE - GEHENNA", page A-17"

 

[ The name "Gehenna" - "Gei Hinnom" in Hebrew - derives from the infamous valley of Ben Hinnom, southwest of Jerusalem. After the fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, Assyria made the southern Kingdom of Judah pay tribute. 2 Chronicles 28 tells us that the Judean King Ahaz (735 - 715 BCE) took some precious silver and gold temple ornaments to appease the King of Assyria. Ahaz worshiped and offered sacrifices to idols. In the Valley of Hinnom in Jerusalem the King condemned his son to the flames as a sacrificial offering to pacify the gods.

It was because of these horrible atrocities and practices that the valley, "Gei Hinnom", became a Hebrew term for "hell". During the time of the New Testament, the Hinnom Valley became a place to burn rubbish and the bodies of plaque victims.]

 

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

Our Western trained minds had been brainwashed by modern contemporary wrong translations and have misinterpreted "hell".

 

Review another of my post on "hell":

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/04/hell.html

 

 

 

(to be continued...)

 - Later posts will deal with other passages containing the word "hell" in the bible text, and what they originally referred to.

 

 

 

 

Poetry and Idioms in the Bible

Poetry and Idioms in the Bible

The bible is quite poetic in many of its books. The Psalms is full of poetry. Ecclesiastes is full of poetry. Song of Solomon is full of romantic poetry. Poetry is the language of the heart, while factual knowledge is the language of the mind.

The culture of the people that lived during the times when the books of the bible was written is a very poetic culture, and we shall see some of them.

The same can be said of poetry in the Chinese civilization, the Indian civilization and many of the ancient civilizations that have left behind holy writings for their followers.

English itself has gone through much poetry.

"If music be the food of love, play on." This is Shakespeare's poetry in old English in his book "Twelfth Night".

We accepted it as metaphorical poetry. As a language of the heart. We didn't question it like how can "love" digest "music", and through what physical digestion system. Or how can "music" be called "food".

Question: How are we going to distinguish what is poetry and what is not?

Answer: By looking at it through the "lens" and eyes of the Aramaic language and culture.  By doing so, we go back to the ORIGINAL meaning of the poetry, and we will NOT interpret the words according to our Western educated mindset, and definitely not according to the 21st Century "church" organization manner.

Let us  look at one such example:

Let us read Ecclesiastes 12:1-6 in the King James Version.

This  text came to my mind because of the impact of verse 1 that I had when I was in my youth. This is my memorable verse, admonishing me when I was in my twenties.

I will attempt to put in side by side, the King James Version text vs the original Aramaic text (or called the Aramaic Peshitta text), that had been translated into our modern day English via the Errico translation (you can Google this translation and check it up).

Ecclesiastes 12:

1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;

2 While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:

3 In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

4 And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low;

5 Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:

6 Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.

Poetry:  In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble,

Aramaic Meaning: the legs begin to tremble,

Poetry: the strong men shall bow themselves,

Aramaic Meaning: the arms lose their strength,

Poetry: the grinders cease because they are few,

Aramaic Meaning: loss of teeth and the ability to chew,

Poetry: those that look out of the windows be darkened,

Aramaic Meaning: the eyes grow dim,

Poetry: And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low,

Aramaic Meaning: the ears become so hard of hearing that the sound of women grinding at the mill is low,

Poetry: he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low,

Aramaic Meaning: have difficulty in distinguishing sounds and the songs of birds startles the individual,

Poetry: and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, (Note: Actually the KJV translation is wrong. The original Aramaic text reads: "and the locust shall multiply",

Aramaic Meaning: your children shall multiply quickly and you will see your grandchildren and great grandchildren,

Poetry: Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern,

Aramaic Meaning: before life ends, or before the loss of sexual potency and virility.

Conclusion:

When you understand Aramaic poetry, you have a better translation of the bible, and you will NOT have a misunderstanding of the text of the bible.

I did touch on some of the other poetic texts in other articles, and how misinterpreting them literally have created havoc among the Christian churches and communities.

You can see them here:

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-shaking-of-powers-of-heavens.html

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/05/10-reasons-why-people-are-confused.html

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2020/05/how-to-interpret-bible.html

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2019/01/god-coming-on-clouds-in-old-testament.html

Bonus:

Remember when Jacob blessed his sons on his deathbed in Genesis 49:2..?

The Hebrew patriarch Jacob (also called Israel) called his 12 sons to appear before him. He began to bless each and every one of them and prophesied to them concerning their lives and their future generations.

Gen 49:2 (Aramaic version): "Gather yourselves together and hear, O sons of Jacob, and listen to Israel your father."

Jacob began to speak to each one of them, Reuben, Simeon, Levi and so forth.

When he came to Judah, he began to use Idioms and said:

Gen 49:11-12 (KJV): he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:

12 His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.

Huh..?

How do you do that?

You CANNOT understand this verse at all, if you do not read it from the original Aramaic idiom language. Jacob was using Aramaic idioms.!!

Idiom: "to wash one's garments in wine and in the blood (juice) of grapes" and "to have eyes red with wine"

Aramaic Meaning: Judah would have many many farms upon farms of vineyards, and meaning that he would prosper abundantly.

Idiom: "his teeth white with milk"

Aramaic Meaning: Judah would possess many flocks of goats and sheep. He would have plentiful supply of milk.

So what was Jacob saying? Go wash your clothes in wine?

No. Jacob was prophesying that Judah would prosper and succeed through vineyards and livestock.

The Important Key of Aramaic Culture to understanding the bible

 The Important Key of Aramaic Culture to understanding the bible

To understand the Culture of the Semitic (or Aramaic) people, will help you understand the bible and the spirit in which it is written.

The writers of the bible were greatly influenced by their own Culture.

Their Culture in turn dictates their Social Habits, their Customs and their Mannerism. These played an important part in the lives of the Semitic people (Jews also), and forms the Culture of the nation of Israel.

For example, when the writers were living under certain social norms of their era, they write according to what they know and practice in their lives.

Let me illustrate (from the book "Manners & Customs of the bible"):

Example 1: When Peter was praying on the housetop in Acts 10:9.
What was Peter doing on the housetop (which is flat). He could have easily prayed in his room, inside his house.

Culture tells us that the Semitic people (Jews and non-Jews) always pray on their housetops. Those who worship God, do so on the housetops. Those who worship idols in their houses, also do so on the housetops. It is their culture, not ours.

The Jews also prayed on their housetops for another additional reason, and that is so that they can have privacy and that they can more readily look in the direction of the temple  in Jerusalem.

Today, we cannot imitate this, because we will fall down, and we are not able to view Jerusalem from our roofs.


Example 2: Woman kissing the feet of Jesus in Luke 7:38

This practice of kissing the feet of someone was part of the Semitic Culture. It is a common practice among the Jews as well as the Greeks and Romans.

It shows the highest form of reverence and affection.

It is also a show of submission and obedience to the person.

If there is a particular important request from that person, the one who request will also kiss the feet before presenting the request.

Today, we can't imitate this because most of us wear socks and shoes, and the practice is not part of our present day Culture.

Example 3: Naming the baby child in Luke 1:59

On the eighth day, Elizabeth brought her son John to the temple to be circumcised according to Jews tradition. 

In this verse you read that the baby was not named before that, but only at the moment of circumcision. This was the Jewish Custom to give names to children at the time of their circumcision.

Why? 

Because the temple Rabbis tell the Jews of their time that this was because God changed the names of Abram and Sarai at the same time that God introduced circumcision.

This custom and culture was also seen in the circumcision of Jesus, and the naming at the same time in Luke 2:21.

The custom of naming the child on the 8th day is traditionally a Jewish Culture because it is tied to circumcision.

The Romans gave  names to their male children on the 9th day, and to the female on the 8th day. The Athenians gave names on the 10th. Some others on the 7th.

Today, we can name our new born babies even before they are born! And baby circumcision is not our culture.



Culture of the Kurds in Kurdistan

Today in the mountainous regions of Kurdistan, there exist a people group or an ancient race of people (part of the Kurds) who lived and practice the same Semitic Culture as in the olden biblical days of Jesus time. They were thought to be extinct until their discovery around the middle of the 19th century.

This surviving remnant was  descended from the Assyrians of Assyria, a powerful nation that once ruled the ancient Near East. These descendants have mixed with the blood of the Ten Northern tribes of Israel, and they still live, think and speak as did the people of Jesus' times.

See my write up in the Northern Tribes here:

https://advancingtruth.blogspot.com/2021/08/who-are-samaritans.html

Scholar Write-up

According to a British scholar who lived among these people, the late Dr. William Ainger Wigram, he wrote:

"We have now traced the history of a strange nation, from very early days to what is practically our own time - up to, in fact, the eve of the Great War ... A strange survival in an isolated corner of the world, these last representatives of the ancient Assyrian stock have hitherto 

'kept up the most primitive of Semitic Customs to an extent that can hardly be paralleled elsewhere, even in the Mesopotamian marsh districts. '

 One thing is certain, that the Assyrian boasts with justice that they alone of all Christian nations still keep as their spoken language what is acknowledged to be the language of Palestine in the First Century, and  that therefore they alone among Christian nations, if we  except a few villages that may still exist in Lebanon, use regularly the language of Christ."



For more reading:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurds

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Origin_of_the_Kurds

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assyrian_homeland

When you understand their Culture, you gain a greater understanding of the writings of the bible.

An important Aramaic Key to understanding the bible is to understand Mysticism

An important Aramaic Key to understanding the bible is to understand Mysticism

The Western educated world today is very different from the ancient Semitic people of Jesus times.

The Western education system is based on sciences, calculations and logically sequencing.

The ancient Semitic people (Jesus' people) is deeply immersed in Mysticism. It is a strong belief in the spiritual experience of one's self that is not explainable by the intellectual mindset. The emphasis is more towards the inner enlightenment as compared to the physical knowledge.

It is quite interesting to note that the early "saints" of the early Catholic church were very mystical in their writings and speeches.

The bible that we know is also like that. It is written by Semitic people in their mystical nature and capacity for spiritual enlightenments like dreams and visions. This  is their tradition and culture. It is the heart and soul of a nation of people called the Jews.

The Semitics (Jews included) like to say : "Our senses can hear the intimate whisperings of the divine Spirit."

(For the American Western readers, this statement seems to be similar to the traditions of the Red Indian inhabitants of America).

Some recognized Semitic scholars believe that over 40 percent of the bible is based on Mysticism.

The whole spectrum of Mysticism will include:

 - Dreams
- Visions
- Voices
- Acts of healing
- Inner hearing (or clairaudience)
- Inner sight (or clairvoyance)
- Out of body experiences (or bi-location)

It is important to understand what is Mysticism and what is not Mysticism when you read the bible. That is to read it from the Semitic people point of understanding. 

Of course, that would mean to read it from the Aramaic wordings to obtain the original translation. (There are just too many incorrect translations of the bible nowadays).

When we are eager to get to the exactness of the bible, then your journey would be tremendously rewarding.