Restoring Nazarene Judaism

Shalom Chaverim, Well I have an important new discovery to report concerning the Apocrypha and specifically the Wisdom of Solomon. According to Melito in the second century CE, the Wisdom of Solomon was considered canonical by Jews and Christians. The Hebrew version of the Wisdom of Solomon is also mentioned by Ramban (1194-1270 CE) in the preface to his commentary on the Torah. He also quotes from the book. We can now be certain that the Wisdom of Solomon was originally written in Hebrew and that the original Hebrew survived until at least 1611. For this I must acknowledge David Katcher for providing us with an important tip. The original 1611 edition of the King James Version has a marginal note to the word “pricked” in Wisdom of Solomon 16:11 (yes that it’s the verse, and yes it is ironic) which says “Hebr. stung.” From this we know that the KJV translators had the original Hebrew of this book in their hands. (Likewise they also had the now lost original Heb...

Dear Mr. Trimm, I'm concerned about Yochanan chpt.3, where Yeshua responds to Nicodemus question on being born again. What does Messiah mean when He said to be born of water & Spirit? I have a mathew henry's bible commentary, which goes into quite alot of detail, but seems to leave me with more questions than answers. How does this process work? thank you. From my Commentary on Yochanan at http://www.lulu.com/nazarene 3:1 Now, there was there one man from the P’rushim. His name was Nakdimon, a ruler of the Judeans. The Aramaic actually reads  ”Nicodemus” however the reference is almost certainly to Nakdimon ben Gorion one of the three leading councilors in Jerusalem. According to the Talmud he was wealthy enough to feed the entire city for ten years (b.Gittin 56a). One rather lengthy Talmud story tells us that once, during a drought, Nakdimon made a deal with a Roman General so as to procure twelve wells of water for the Jewish people. According to t...

Preface: Clearly the Emissary Paul died many centuries ago.   This is a hypothetical simulated interview.   I will do my best job to draw Paul’s words directly from Scripture. Interviewer:  Now you have been said to be a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.   Is that an accurate statement? Paul:   Yes, I am a follower of that Way which you call a “sect”. (Acts 24:5, 14) Interviewer: Some have called you a “Christian” is that accurate? Paul:  I wrote two thirds of what has since come to be called the “New Testament” and in all of that material, I never even used the word “Christian” not even once to describe myself or anyone else.   That word is not even part of my vocabulary.   I am a Jew, a Pharisee, and a follower of that Way which is called the Sect of the Nazarenes. Interviewer:  So then, in your own words, how would you describe yourself? Paul:   I am a Jew, a Pharisee of Pharisees. ...

The Seven Heavens in the Scriptures By James Trimm (Drawn from the Talmud b.Hagigah 12b) Several passages in the Scriptures reveal the truth that there is actually more than one “Heaven” (see Gen. 28:12; Dt. 10:14; 1Kn. 8:27; Ps. 148:4; Eph. 4:10 and Heb. 4:14). Moreover 1Cor. 12:2-4 refers to “the third heaven” which it identifies with PaRDeS (paradise). In fact the Hebrew word for “heaven” is SHAMAYIM (Strong’s 8064) which is always plural in the Hebrew. The Talmud lays out the Seven heavens as follows: (1) The First Heaven – ROK “curtain” (Strong’s 1852) “It is He that sits above the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretches out the heavens as a curtain (ROK), and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in;” (Is. 40:22 HRV) (2) The Second Heaven – RAKIA “firmament” (Strong’s 7549) “And Elohim set them in the firmament (RAKIA) of the heaven, to give light upon the earth,” (Gen. 1:14 HRV) (3) The Third Heaven – SHEHAKIM “...

Nefilim: In the Flesh by James Trimm The Torah says: 1 And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, 2 That the sons of Elohim saw the daughters of men, that they were fair. And they took them wives, whomsoever they chose. 3 And YHWH said: My Spirit shall not abide in man forever. For that he also is flesh; therefore shall his days be a hundred and twenty years. 4 The N’filim were on the earth in those days and also after that, when the sons of Elohim came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them. The same were the mighty men that were of old--the men of renown. 5 And YHWH saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil; continually. 6 And it repented YHWH that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him at His heart. 7 And YHWH said: I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the earth: bot...

Shalom Chaverim, While digging through my old papers I ran across this article written way back in 1981 by a Messianic Jew names Andrew P. Pilant. At the time Pilant was advocating something he called "Traditional Messianic Judaism" which was getting little attention from the mainline of the movement. Although I never met Pilant, when I came into the Messianic movement from Rabbinic Judaism around 1984 I found myself influenced by this paper. I do not agree with everything said in it, but I think it is worthy of posting here nearly 30 years later: IN DEFENSE OF TALMUDIC LAW By Andrew P. Pilant 1981 "If we we're going to be Jewish, we have to be honest about it. . . Jewishness is something that was more than laying teffilin, more than just singing Jewish songs. It is thinking Jewish, it is smelling Jewish, it was taking Judaism and putting it out to the ends of your fingertips -- so that everything that you come in contact with would have a Jew...

THE TEN HEAVENS Part 3 By James Scott Trimm THE WINE Concerning the three upper heavens the Zohar says: He then discoursed on the verse: “And in the vine were three branches”, etc. (Gen. XL, 10). ‘We have learnt’, he said, ‘that there are seven firmaments which are six and also five. All issue from the ancient holy supernal Wine, which Jacob presses from a certain Vine. Therefore it was that Jacob presented to Isaac the wine which was fitting for him. That wine proceeds from grade to grade up to Joseph the Righteous, who is David the Faithful. This Vine is the one that is recognized as holy, in contrast to another which is called the “strange vine”, the grapes of which are hard and biter. But this is the vine from which all the holy ones drew the taste of old and good wine, the wine in which Jacob poured water so that all who knew the taste of wine could drink it with relish. When this vine came near the Shekinah it put forth three branches. Then it “was as though i...

THE TEN HEAVENS Part 2 By James Scott Trimm WAIT- THERE’S MORE! After laying out each of these seven heavens, the Talmud goes on to say: And R. Aha b. Jacob said: There is still another Heaven above the heads of the living creatures, for it is written: And over the heads of the living creatures there was a likeness of a firmament, like the colour of the terrible ice, stretched forth over their heads above.(Ezek 1:22) Thus far you have permission to speak, thenceforward you have not permission to speak, for so it is written in the Book of Ben Sira: Seek not things that are too hard for thee, and search not things that are hidden from thee. The things that have been permitted thee, think thereupon; thou hast no business with the things that are secret.(Sira 3:21-22) (b.Chag. 13a) The Talmud is referring to the fact that Ezekiel chapter one describes YHWH riding upon his MERKEVAH (“Throne-chariot”). This is obviously corresponding to ARAVOT, the Seventh Heaven which ...

THE TEN HEAVENS Part 1 By James Scott Trimm THE THIRD HEAVEN In his second letter to the Corinthians, Paul makes a rather odd comment: 2 I knew a man in the Messiah fourteen years from before (but whether in a body or without a body I do not know, Eloah knows) who was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I knew this son of man (but whether in a body or without a body I do not know, Eloah knows), 4 Who was caught up to Pardes: and heard unspeakable words that are not permitted for a son of man to speak. (2Cor. 12:2-3) Now you may notice that from out of the blue (literally) Paul throws out the phrase “third heaven”, a phrase which he assumes the reader understands. However nowhere in the Tanak (Old Testament) or even in the so-called “New Testament” do we see the phrase “third heaven” or even references to a “first heaven” or a “second heaven”. Clearly Paul here expects his readers to simply be familiar with a tradition of a “third heaven” which he is aware of, but ...