Friday 8 November 2013

Did Jesus learn

I was asking today about reconciliation between Jew and Christian. My own hesitant question is here. On the way, another blog took on the question - did Jesus learn. And in that question - answered directly in Hebrews 5:8, the Hebrew translation reconciles Jew and Christian equally directly.

Here, it is Christian who needs to do the mitsvah - to hear the voice of command. A Christian who is without hearing needs a different name. All of us in our various lives (and in my multifarious levels of blindness and deafness) must find obedience. Such obedience never leads to violence because our violence is fully disclosed to God (see Psalms 58, 109, and 137 for examples).

וְאַף בִּהְיוֹתוֹ בֵן לֻמַּד בְּסִבְלֹתָיו לִשְׁמֹעַ בְּקוֹל מְצַוֶּה
It is not compact like the Greek - literally it reads: 
but even though he was son, he learned (same word as Talmud) through his bearing of burdens to hear the voice of command.

the Greek
καίπερ ὢν υἱὸς ἔμαθεν ἀφ᾽ ὧν ἔπαθεν τὴν ὑπακοήν
though being son he learned from what he suffered obedience.

So that Hebrew, usually compact, takes three words to say one Greek word.

Here is an alternate more compact Hebrew
וְאַף כִּי־הָיָה הַבֵּן לָמַד מֵעֻנּוֹתוֹ לִשְׁמוֹעַ
And though for he is the son, he learned from his affliction obedience (=to hear)


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