Torah

Messiah

Much of the New Testament relies on a reader's pre-knowledge of the Jewish Oral Torah, often referred to as the "Mesorah". From this, we derive ubiquitous concepts like, Messiah, the World to Come, Sin, heaven and Hell.

The Hidden Orchard

14 May 2023 — 4 min read

If you take a step back from the New Testament, you will notice that the texts are surprisingly quiet on major topics that readers have come to take for granted. Entire religions and theologies have been built upon these ideas, yet, they are not thoroughly explained amid the pages.

Whether your canon contains extra books, or not, the problem remains. This is especially the case regarding the ubiquitous topic of Messiah.

For instance, how did the people know what to look for in a Messianic candidate, or that there was a Messiah at all? Where did they learn these traditions? Importantly, we should ask from whom did they learn about the concept of Messiah?

Scripture and Oral Tradition

Remember, we cannot simply point to the New Testament as it did not exist yet. At the time Paul wrote that "all scripture is G_D-breathed", we must remember that this, and other references to "Scripture"¹, were referring only to that which is found in the Hebrew Bible.

We are left with the reality that the original audiences possessed a significant amount of institutional knowledge that is not found (plainly) in the Hebrew Bible. Further, these ideas are to be found in the Jewish oral tradition.

Though, for many Christians, there is a natural apprehension around the idea of engaging with the Jewish tradition. It may feel like a theological step backward, perceiving Judaism to be in the Apostolic rearview mirror.

Others perceive the Rabbinic tradition to be out of alignment with their tradition, specifically, the tradition of "Sola Scriptura". Sadly, this is true for much of Messianic Judaism as well, likely as it more often tends to emerge from Protestant Christianity than from Jewish roots.

The problem is that a reader who lacks access to a coherent primary tradition will inevitably resort to filling the gaps with their own. The result of this activity can be - and has been - widespread disunity that has resulted in the thousands of denominations in the church today.

The assumption maintained on this website is that much of the New Testament relies on a reader's pre-knowledge of the Jewish tradition, often referred to as the "Mesorah". This includes historical information, contemporaneous influences, linguistics, literary styles, and most importantly, the Midrashic² and mystical tradition backgrounds.

The Pharisees

In the century before the birth of Jesus, Queen Salome Alexandra³ invited the Pharisees into her government cabinet. During her 9-year reign, they were instrumental in helping her make informed decisions, and govern the people.

Through their seat of power, they were able to establish many schools to provide religious education to the people throughout the land of Israel. Students could 'sit at the feet of the scholars' and learn the rich traditions behind the words of scripture. A young Jesus had such an experience, as the Gospel records (Luke 2:46).

Ironically, the Pharisees, who receive no shortage of slander and abuse from modern pulpits, are the reason we are aware of these concepts today. Even the concept of Messiah relies heavily upon Rabbinic (Phariasic) interpretative methodology. The same can be said for other household concepts, like Reward and Punishment, Heaven & Hell, how to organize a religious service, and much more.

The Word 'Messiah'

The word Messiah in Hebrew is Moshiach (משיח), which simply means "anointed one". This word is derived from the word Mashach, which means 'to anoint'.

How this word became the title for the popular concept of Redeemer is not so simple. When you look at the Hebrew Bible, the word most commonly appears when someone has been anointed, either as a king or in the sense of being selected for a purpose. None of the uses explicitly reference the Messiah in the grander eschatological sense.

What makes it more challenging is that multiple people are called "Messiah" in the Biblical texts. For example, it is David in Psalm 85:51 and 2 Samuel 22:51; and it is a Gentile, the Persian King, Cyrus in Isaiah 45:1.

Many of the prophetic passages said to refer to Messiah are equally written to describe a historical person who has come and gone. In Daniel, the idea is hinted at, at best, though none of these suffice to construct a theological framework.

If you venture into the apocryphal books, you will see familiar terms, perhaps like 'son of man', but these too are mere mentions that again rely upon institutional knowledge.

In the First Century

By the first century, there was a remarkable expectation of a redeeming, Davidic Messiah. This is evidenced by the increase in messianic movements and existential, apocalyptic angst. The sheer number of Jews who followed Jesus did so because he met some unwritten list of criteria.

Even still, there was a great diversity of thought about the Messiah. For instance, it seems most assumed that Jesus's mission was to overthrow the Roman government, which he repeatedly indicated would not be happening at that time. Where did they learn this idea?

The authors of the Gospels and Epistles seem to have been well-versed in these traditions as well. Numerous times we see references to various midrashic traditions⁴, kabbalistic hints, and glimpses of the dual-Messiah model⁵.

Understanding Messiah

Much of the teachings of Messianism remained cloaked in mystery to this day. While some components are physical and literal, other aspects are deeply mystical. While Messiah corresponds to a person, it also incorporates all of humanity and a movement that spans throughout time⁶. To be an active part of hastening Messiah's arrival can be quite demanding.

Then, as now, uncovering this tradition is still very much reliant upon the Rabbinic process and the people who first mined it from Scripture. This means that academia and later, non-native, traditions do not hold the ultimate key to understanding. We must incorporate the knowledge that the original audience understood.

One should also be discerning to find a qualified teacher to rebuild and reset the foundation. Of course, with new insights come theological implications. Consequently, we might ask, how would one's afterlife be dependent upon knowledge of traditions that are not clearly spelled out in the Bible? Perhaps we find that this assumption and others will require reexamination.

Nevertheless, today, as in ancient times, the reward is great for those who venture in pursuit of truth.