Did You Ever Hear of Isaac?
In a pathetic attempt to defend himself from the accusation of having misquoted the Targum, Shapira again displays his incredible ignorance of the Bible (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgQOBqOx0ow ).
In my article entitled “The School of Matthew” I pointed out that Shapira misquoted the Targum to Micah 5:1. The Targum actually says that Messiah’s name has been called from ancient times while Shapira quotes the Targum as if it had said that the Messiah’s actual existence was from ancient times.
Shapira defends himself with two arguments. First he says that he accurately quoted a midrash about the name of the Messiah on page 168 in his book.
It seems that Shapira thinks that if he has one accurate quotation in his book then that entitles him to fill the rest of his book with misquotations and lies. If this is the level of honesty that you are looking for then Shapira is your man.
The next argument that Shapira excitedly announces to his audience is that in Judaism one may not name a child before it is born. Thus, if the Targum speaks of the name of the Messiah as something that was declared from ancient times that must mean that the Messiah himself must also originate from ancient times. Shapira makes this ridiculous claim as his friend sits there solemnly nodding along.
The Bible records that Isaac, Ishmael, Solomon and Josiah were all called by their names before they were born (Genesis 16:11; 17:19; 1Chronicles 22:9; 1Kings 13:2). It seems that Shapira and his friend are not familiar with some of the central characters in the Bible. If you want to join them in declaring your ignorance of the Bible all you need to do is click on the “like” symbol under Shapira’s video.
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I love the way you show how dumb for lack of a better word Shapira is I am still amazed that this guy is endorsed by Dr Brown or by anyone for that matter
Isn’t it kind of against Shapira’s main purpose, anyway, if he was trying to prove that the rabbis accepted a ‘plurality in’ God and a unity of Him and moshiach… but actually they were bringing in this ‘name’ idea in order to clarify that that’s NOT the case?
If the stakes weren’t so high and the consequences so serious, this would be very funny.
I don’t know Shapira. But I know that the Tanach doesn’t know one pre-existent Jew at all. Thus, “Jesus” was not pre-existent either. Furthermore, “Jesus” according to the “NT” never ever was annointed King in Israel, King of the Jews, according to Torah requirements. Thus, how could he possibly be the Messiah? After the Christian “Prince of Peace” more blood was shed in wars and crussades e. g. then ever before There is more evidence that “Jesus” was not the Mashiach than that he was. In fact, there is an assertion around, that “Jesus” was the “Christ”. But “Christ” is Greek and not Hebrew and it is a proof, that “Jesus Christ” was a pagan.
If the Targums, Talmud, or Jewish commentators truly provide support for a large part of Shapira’s theories, then he must not have much disagreement with Judaism. If only a few words (like a few specks or flakes of gold) in these Jewish writings are such a good source for understanding the Moshiach and the messianic age, then just think how much “gold” is in “dem thar hills” (Talmud, Targums, Torah), if we dig deep into their “rock formations” and “veins of ore” in those original sources for the “true gold”. Why are we or they wasting our/their time searching in some later or “secondary source” (NT, which was so contaminated by Rome) or listening to modern Christian preachers or “new-age messianic rabbis” chasing after the “pyrite” or “fools gold” of Jesus/Yeshua who was rejected by those writers of the “Truth of Messiah”? Let’s not be like Shapira, who just snatches a few of the words overheard in the conversation about the Messiah by the Prophets, the Sages, and the Rabbis. Let’s “join with them” and listen intently to the words of the original Prophets and the Sages of old, and listen to what the Rabbis still say today. Let’s return to the Torah and to a theology that is deep and true and not to the superficiality of the pop religion of today’s Shapira’s and Brown’s, etc.
Since I brought it up, pyrite is inexpensive, yet has quite a few commercial uses (but it is also quite hazardous & is known to combust spontaneously in some underground mines). The name was derived from the Greek word meaning “of fire” or “in fire” and was a name used in ancient Roman times for several types of stone that would create sparks when struck against steel. That brought to mind the idea that Jesus would “baptize in fire” (and fire reminds me of “the devil). And it brings to mind the gnostic idea of “tiny bits of light” or “sparks of Jesus”, which reminds me of highly volatile & flammable nature of Christianity during a good portion of its history, especially when directed (struck) against Jews.