     
              How can we be convinced that Jesus is the 
              Messiah?  ** freeware ** 16 ascii pages. 
              The  author,  Risto Santala,  studies  the 
              theme  in  the  light  of  the  Bible  and 
              Rabbinical writings.  The following topics 
              are studied:"1) Was there really a certain 
              time when the Messiah had to come?  2)  Is 
              it   really   correct  to  believe  in   a 
              suffering Messiah?  3)  The  signs  of the 
              Messiah."   Jewish  sources mentioned  are 
              Talmud,   Sidur,  Midrash,  LXX,   Aramaic 
              Targums and Zohar.  Rabbis  mentioned are: 
              Ibn Ezra,  Jochanan Ben Zakkai, Abrabanel, 
              Moshe  Alsheich,  Eliah De Vidas,  Kimchi, 
              Joseph Rabinowitz,  Samuel Ben Yizhak  and 
              Rashi.   These bible  talks  were given in 
              Moscow to Messianic Jews, Autumn 1992. 


     HOW CAN WE BE CONVINCED THAT JESUS IS THE MESSIAH?  I/III
     Risto  Santala
     
     Bible talks given in Moscow to Messianic Jews, Autumn 1992 
     
     **************************************************************** 
     Permission is hereby given to all persons to copy and pass to 
     others this text provided that it is not used for monetary gain. 
     **************************************************************** 
     
        GREETINGS FROM ISRAEL: 
     
     To  begin with I should like to bring  warm  greetings  from  the 
     believers  in  Israel.  I  have had the privilege of  working  in 
     Israel since 1954:  first in the Scandinavian Sailors'  Church in 
     Haifa and then in our Hebrew boarding school "Shalhevet Yah"   in 
     Jerusalem.   There has been a tremendous change in the  Christian 
     witness  within the last thirty years.  In the fifties we  didn't 
     have  a  single Hebrew-speaking congregation there but now  there 
     are  33   different  active groups of  believers  throughout  the 
     country. One of the originators of this development was, perhaps, 
     Mr.  Victor Smadja, a faithful and courageous believer.  He began 
     to  gather  youngsters for regular Bible conferences  and  summer 
     camps  by Lake Gennesaret.  In that way,  after 1960,  the  small 
     group of 8 young Hebrew and Arab believers grew in a few years to 
     120  or more.  The small printing shop that we began secretly  in 
     the basement of our school became an independent concern and grew 
     under  the  auspices  of  brother  Victor  to  be  a  significant 
     publisher.  It has printed about 130 different Christian books in 
     Hebrew  and some 30  others in Arabic.  Amongst these is the  New 
     Testament  in modern Hebrew and a new song book containing  about 
     400   psalms.   Even  my  Hebrew books "The Messiah  in  the  Old 
     Testament  in the light of Rabbinical Writings"  and "The Messiah 
     in the  New Testament in the light of Rabbinical Writings",  have 
     come  out through this Yanetz-publisher.  I  recently received  a 
     phone  call  from Jerusalem informing me that the  publisher  had 
     received  more  than 7,000  letters concerning the  first  of  my 
     Hebrew books,  and about 2,400 asking about the second.  But what 
     is more important,  in these letters they  ask for their own copy 
     of  the  New Testament.  Thirty years ago we could not even  have 
     dreamed  of  getting  this kind of interest  in  Israel  for  the 
     Christian faith.  We hope and pray that this "Messianic" movement 
     will continue to grow and prosper in the Holy Land. 
        
     As we share these Bible studies with each other,  we do hope that 
     the  same  points  of view that are indispensable  for  believers 
     living  in Israel would also give others a new insight  into  the 
     gospel message and help strengthen their personal conviction. For 
     without  a personal conviction we do not have a faith  that  will 
     stand the times of trial. 
        
          
     THE CHALLENGE OF FAITH: 
          
     In  dealing with the so-called Jewish question there is  constant 
     danger of provoking ambivalent feelings of love or hatred.  If we 
     discuss  Jewish  history and the Church,  or the politics of  the 
     Near East,  or Christian mission and dialogue with the Jews,   it 
     automatically raises the question who is right. However, the main 
     challenge for both Jews and Christians is in the words of  Jesus: 
     "What about you? Whom do you say I am?" 
        
     The  Jewish  world  has three main streams:  the  Orthodox,   the 
     Reformed and the secular one.  According to a certain rabbi,  the 
     Orthodox  group  addresses  God as "Lord of the  Universe",   the 
     Reformed  Jew approaches Him as "God our Father"  and the secular 
     man  with the words "to whom it may concern!"  For many,  God  is 
     only an idle vacuous word. 
        
     Even  the  Christian  world suffers from a  lack  of  conviction. 
     Professor David Flusser,  lecturer in New Testament at the Hebrew 
     University  in Jerusalem,  once stated concerning the  difference 
     between  the apostles and a modern Christian:  "Our definition of 
     the  faith is:  'I do not know but I believe'  but  the  apostles 
     said, 'I know in whom I believe' ". All of us, Jews and  Gentiles 
     alike, ought to do what the dog in the old advertisement for "His 
     Master's Voice" did - sit in front of a big horn listening to the 
     voice of his "Master".  Do we prefer to listen to human teachings 
     or are we ready to obey the voice of our Lord? 
        
     In  their  preaching the first apostles concentrated on the  very 
     heart of the gospel - the person of Jesus.  When the apostle Paul 
     met Jesus on the way to Damascus "he immediately proclaimed Jesus 
     saying, 'He is the Son of God' " (Acts 9:20).  He was not talking 
     philosophy or theology,  but the person of Jesus.  While still in 
     prison in Rome he tried "to convince" his listeners "about Jesus" 
     and  he  "preached the kingdom of God and taught about  the  Lord 
     Jesus Christ"  (Acts 28:23  and 30).  Also before King Agrippa he 
     told  that  he always testified "to small and great  alike"   and 
     "said  nothing  beyond  what the prophets and  Moses  said  would 
     happen  - that the Christ would suffer and rise from  the  dead". 
     This meant for him a kind of 'holy concentration'  on the essence 
     of the message.   
        
     But  how can we be convinced that Jesus is the  promised  Messiah 
     and  how can we convince our Jewish brother that He is also  "The 
     King of the Jews"?  In our sophisticated world there is a certain 
     tendency  to  deny  the  use of  the  Old  Testament  to  support 
     Christian  doctrines.   In  the autumn of  1981   the  well-known 
     professor  John  Pawlikowski from Chicago came to  Jerusalem  and 
     stated  to  a Jewish audience that it is already time to  abandon 
     the  so-called  "theology of fulfilment",  which is based on  the 
     assumption that the Scriptures are fulfilled in Jesus.  According 
     to  another theologian,  this kind of "messianic bridge"  between 
     the Old and New Testaments is "artificial in its nature" and must 
     be rejected. 
        
     In  the light of these arguments,  it is good to remember  Jesus' 
     own example on the road to Emmaus,  when He began "with Moses and 
     all  the  Prophets  and  explained  what  was  said  in  all  the 
     Scriptures concerning Himself".  And He said, "Everything must be 
     fulfilled  that  is  written about Me in the Law of  Moses,   the 
     Prophets and the Psalms".  This was also the reason why the first 
     disciples  had  to teach the Gentiles the Old Testament first  in 
     order  to  be  able to convince them that Jesus  was  really  the 
     promised  Messiah.  And all the old Jewish writings from the time 
     of Jesus to our day are based on the principle that every  single 
     statement  must be confirmed with the word of the Old  Testament. 
     There  is  also  a declaration in  the  Talmud,   the  rabbinical 
     collection of the Law from 200-500  A.D.,  that "all the prophets 
     without  exception refer to the days of the  Messiah"   (Berachot 
     34,b).  This is the common foundation on which our dialogue  with 
     our Jewish brothers is based. 
        
     In  the same week that I was preparing this paper,  I  received a 
     long-distance call from Jerusalem after 12 o' clock midnight.  An 
     Orthodox  Jew had read my Hebrew books on the Messiah and  wanted 
     guidance on the same lines.  Another Jewish brother, who had also 
     taken  part  in a Bible contest in Israel,  came to my home  that 
     week  and  discussed  the very same subject for  more  than  five 
     hours.   For a Jew it is important to know what the earliest  and 
     less  censored ancient writings taught about the Messiah.   There 
     was an important consultation in Bossey,  near Geneva,  in August 
     1982.    There  Christian  and  Jewish  scholars  discussed   the 
     significance  of  Judaism  for  the Church  today.   And  it  was 
     officially  stated  in  the  report that "all  of  us  have  been 
     impoverished  by an understanding of the Bible that minimises our 
     Jewish  roots".   "In the encounter with Judaism and  the  Jewish 
     people  the  church  gains  a fuller sense of  its  own  biblical 
     roots". Here is our challenge today. 
        
     In fact there are three practical questions which we always  face 
     when we discuss Jesus as the Messiah:  Was there really a certain 
     time when the Messiah had to come?  Is it correct to believe in a 
     suffering  Messiah?   And does the biblical  expectation  of  the 
     Messiah fit the life of Jesus? 
        
          
     THE MESSIAH HAS ALREADY COME ! 
     
     There  are  some Jewish sources that assume that the Messiah  has 
     already come.  According to the Talmud, human history consists of 
     three  main periods:  "Two thousand years are  without  form  and 
     void,  two thousand years is the time of the Law and two thousand 
     years  are  the  days of the Messiah,  but because  of  our  many 
     iniquities they became as they became" (Sanh. 97,a). 
        
     The Messiah had to come after the period of the Law but something 
     negative  occurred.  The talmud states also that "the  last  days 
     already passed"  (Sanh. 98,b); this means that the Messianic days 
     have  already passed away.  Every morning a Jewish believer reads 
     in  his prayer-book,  the Sidur,  that he has been  commanded  to 
     offer the daily sacrifices but "now because of our iniquities the 
     Temple  has  been  destroyed and the daily  offerings  have  been 
     abolished". Something drastic happened in between. 
        
     The New Testament also speaks in terms of soteriological periods. 
     "Jerusalem will be trampled on by the Gentiles until the times of 
     the  Gentiles are fulfilled"  (Luke 21:24).  Or "a hardening  has 
     come upon part of Israel until the full number (or the  fullness) 
     of  the Gentiles has come in,  and so all Israel will  be  saved" 
     (Rom.  11:25).  And "when the time had fully come,  God sent  His 
     Son,  born of a woman, born under the Law,  to redeem those under 
     the Law"  (Gal. 4:4).  And Christ "died at the right time for the 
     ungodly"(Rom.   5:6).   There was a certain timing for the  first 
     coming of Christ. 
        
     I remember well how Rachmiel Friedland, the late Secretary of the 
     Hebrew  Christian Alliance in Israel and a close friend of  ours, 
     became a devoted Christian.  He was saved from the Warsaw  ghetto 
     by  a miracle.  When in hiding among some Christian  families  he 
     knew  how to answer almost every biblical argument put forward in 
     favour  of Christian faith.  There were only two Bible prophecies 
     which for him remained without a solution:  the blessing of Jacob 
     in Genesis 49  and the 9th chapter of Daniel.  According to these 
     prophecies the Messiah had to come at an appointed time. 
        
          
     THE BLESSING OF JACOB 
     
     exhibits, like a jewel, the various facets of the messianic idea. 
     All  the  old  Jewish  sources relate it to  the  coming  of  the 
     Messiah. According to verse 8, the brothers of Judah are going to 
     praise him.  And the Midrash,  an old synagogue "sermon",   asks: 
     "Why  do  the brethren praise you?  Because all  Israel  will  be 
     called  by your name 'Jews',  and furthermore,  even the  Messiah 
     will come from you". 
        
     In  the 10th.  verse we read:  "The sceptre shall not depart from 
     Judah,   nor the ruler's staff from between his feet,   until  he 
     comes to whom it belongs (until SHILOH comes)  and the  obedience 
     of  the nations is his.  He will bind his donkey to a vine,   his 
     colt to the choicest branch;  he will wash his garments in  wine, 
     his  robes in the blood of grapes.  His eyes will be darker  than 
     wine, etc." Here again the Midrash has a strange remark:  "Israel 
     does  not need the teaching of King Messiah,  for it is  written: 
     'to him shall the Gentiles rally', not Israel" (Israel 11:10). 
        
     In using the illustration of the donkey  and the vine the  rabbis 
     explain that the Messiah will not come on a war-horse,  a  steed, 
     because he is the King of Peace.  And if someone sees a donkey in 
     a  dream,   he is expecting messianic salvation,  because  it  is 
     written in Zachariah 9:9  that he is humble and riding on an ass. 
     And  "whoever  sees a choice vine (soreka)  in a dream,  he  will 
     expect the Messiah". This is in fact the reason for the statement 
     of Jesus that he is the "true vine".  The Messiah will also  wash 
     his people in the blood of grapes - an old Ugaritic idiom!   Then 
     the  sages describe the eyes of the Messiah,  how beautiful  they 
     are.  The Greek translation of the Old Testament,  the Septuagint 
     (LXX),  uses of these eyes the expression  "kharopoioi",  "making 
     joyful".   In the book of Revelation we read three times that the 
     eyes of Jesus were "like a flame of fire". 
        
     The main hint of the first coming of the Messiah is linked to the 
     word  "until".  It means that he will come when the  genealogical 
     scrolls are still in the Temple and one can find out whether  the 
     Messiah-candidate is from Judah or not.  These scrolls (megilloth 
     yuhasin)   still existed there in the time of Jesus.  When  Psalm 
     118:22   speaks of the "stone which the builders have  rejected", 
     some rabbis explain that it relates to the Messiah,  who is  born 
     in  Bethlehem and will be restored as the corner-stone after many 
     sufferings  at  the  end  of time.  This Psalm  is  called  "shir 
     hamatronitha", "the royal song",  and Israel is to sing it to the 
     Messiah-King,  but it is written:  "from the house of the Lord we 
     bless you" (verse 26). The Temple still existed! 
        
     When  King Archelaus,  the son of King Herod,  was expelled  from 
     Judah  in the year 6 A.D.,  it was a great disaster for the  Jews 
     because they then lost their self-government and judicial  power. 
     Rabbi  Rachmon  describes the situation as  follows:   "When  the 
     members  of the Sanhedrin noticed that they had been deprived  of 
     their  right over life and death,  a  general consternation  took 
     over  them  and  they covered their heads with  ashes  and  their 
     bodies with sackcloth,  exclaiming: 'Woe unto us, for the sceptre 
     has  departed  from Judah and the Messiah has not yet  come'   ". 
     According to Mark 1:15 "the TIME was fulfilled and the kingdom of 
     God was at hand". The Messiah came in due time! 
        
          
     THE PROPHECY OF DANIEL 
     
     gives  both the timing and the task of the Messiah.  In  the  9th 
     chapter we read about the  decree issued by Artaxerxes Longimanus 
     (probably in 457  B.C.) granting permission to the Jews to return 
     to  Palestine  and rebuild the city of Jerusalem.  SEVENTY  WEEKS 
     were  granted  from  this date "UNTO the Messiah the prince"   or 
     "UNTIL the Anointed One"  and then "the Anointed One will  be cut 
     off...  and  the  people of the ruler (the Romans,   according to 
     Josephus)  will come and destroy the city and the sanctuary".  To 
     our friend Rahmiel Friedland it meant that the Messiah must  have 
     come  before  the destruction of the Temple that happened in  the 
     year 70 A.D. ---he must have already come! 
        
     And  what was the main task of the Messiah?  According to  Daniel 
     9:24,  he came "to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to 
     atone for wickedness,  to bring everlasting righteousness".   The 
     Hebrew   text  twice  uses  in  this  connection  the  expression 
     "lachtom",  "to seal". When our sins have been "sealed"  with the 
     atoning blood of Jesus,  we must not "poke" and "finger"  our own 
     past or that of others. 
        
     The New Testament deals with historical facts.  Something drastic 
     happened  the  same year that Jesus died.  Even the  main  Jewish 
     source,   the  Talmud,  speaks about the discontinuation  of  the 
     sacrificial   system  before  the  destruction  of  the   Temple. 
     Something mysterious happened 40  years prior to its destruction. 
     There are three different discussions about it (in Sanh.,  Abodah 
     Zarah and De Yomah). According to them, the sacrifices lost their 
     power,   the Presence of God left the Temple and the gates of the 
     Holy  of  Holies opened by themselves.  The friend of  Nicodemus, 
     Rabbi  Yochanan  Ben Zakkai,  who was rescued  from   beleaguered 
     Jerusalem  in  a  coffin  by his  disciples,   handed  down  this 
     tradition in Mas. Yomah: "FORTY YEARS PRIOR to the destruction of 
     the  Temple...  the western candle did not burn and the gates  of 
     the  Temple  opened  by themselves;  and thus Rabbi Yochanan  Ben 
     Zakkai rebuked them saying:  'Temple,  Temple,  why do you grieve 
     so? I KNOW that you are about to be destroyed.' " 
        
     All this occurred 40  years before the destruction of the Temple, 
     in  the  year 30  A.D.,  which is considered the year  of  Jesus' 
     death.  We also have this story in three of the Gospels,  how the 
     veil  of the Temple was rent in two from top to bottom when Jesus 
     died.   Three  times  the  Epistle to  Hebrews  interprets  these 
     occurrences:  we now have a new hope that enters through the veil 
     to  the Holy One.  The Messiah entered by His own blood into  the 
     Holy  of Holies to atone for our sins.  And thus he opened up for 
     us "a new and living way" through the curtain to our God, so that 
     we can draw near to Him "in full assurance of faith". 
        
     It  is  most interesting to know that even the  Jewish  historian 
     Josephus described a similar sign from the same period.  Once the 
     heavy  gates  of  brass facing east from  the  Temple  opened  by 
     themselves  although  they had been locked by  iron  bolts.   The 
     Temple  guard  hastened to notify the commander about the  matter 
     and he succeeded in locking them only with great difficulty. 
        
     AND WHAT ARE THE CONCLUSIONS TO BE DRAWN?     
     
     The Messiah had to come at a certain time.  He had to die for our 
     sins  and to "seal"  them with His atonement.  After his  coming, 
     Jerusalem and its Temple had to be destroyed.  The Jewish  prayer 
     book,   the Sidur,  states that "on account of our iniquities the 
     Temple  has been destroyed and the daily offerings abolished"  -- 
     all  this  is  very  logical.   But how  do  we  grasp  all  this 
     personally?  We are convinced about this only by the work of  the 
     Holy Spirit,  if we are ready to hear our "Master's voice".  Then 
     it works! 
        
     I  remember  how  one night I came with some  tourists  from  the 
     airport at Lod to Jerusalem. I Began a discussion with the Jewish 
     driver  saying that those people behind us were Christians,   and 
     they believed that the Messiah has already come. Then I noted the 
     fact  that  we  were now living in the Jewish year 5730   or  so. 
     According  to Jewish tradition,  the Messiah had to come near the 
     year  4000,  but that time has already passed.  And  because  the 
     driver  had an Orthodox Jewish background,  I  quoted some Jewish 
     sources which state that HE HAS ALREADY COME.  I  quoted by heart 
     from a well-known supplementary prayer for the Day of  Atonement, 
     which, according to a Jewish scholar, was perhaps composed in the 
     6th century A.D.:  "The Messiah our righteousness has turned away 
     from  us.  We are horrified,  and there is none to save us.   Our 
     iniquities  and  the yoke of our sins are a burden.  But  he  was 
     wounded  for  our transgressions,  he carries our sins  upon  his 
     shoulders,   there is forgiveness for our iniquities,   with  his 
     stripes  we are healed.  It is time to create a new creature  for 
     eternity.  Bring him back from the circle of the nations,   raise 
     him from Seir (a cryptogram for Rome) so that we could hear him A 
     SECOND  TIME on the Mount of Lebanon (the Temple)  through Yinnon 
     (a cryptogram for the Messiah)...redeem us for a second  time and 
     let us hear of his grace a second time etc." This hit the driver, 
     and all of a sudden he gave a jump behind the steering-wheel  and 
     almost drove us into a ditch.  And he exclaimed: "Then the rabbis 
     were hiding the truth from us !!!"  After this I had to introduce 
     myself  as  a Christian too.  But the driver  still  remained  my 
     friend. 
        
     "Fulfilment theology"  is not "artificial"  in its nature.  It is 
     the  only  way  to convince us as to whether Jesus  is  the  true 
     Messiah or not. And He really came in due time to "seal"  the new 
     covenant with us. 
        
     
     HOW CAN WE BE CONVINCED?   II/III 
     
     IS IT CORRECT TO BELIEVE IN A SUFFERING MESSIAH? 
      
     In  dealing  with  the suffering Messiah we touch upon  the  very 
     core,  the most sensitive mystery of the Old Testament.  It  also 
     shows   whether  Jesus  could  have  been  the  promised  Messiah 
     according  to  the Scriptures.  The late Jewish professor  Joseph 
     Klausner  once  stated that "in the period of the  prophets  many 
     words undoubtedly point to the hope of redemption.  Yet,  at  the 
     same  time  they  do not contain even the most minute hint  of  a 
     personal  Messiah"...and  there  is  "no  trace  of  a  suffering 
     Messiah"   in  the  earliest  Jewish  literature.   As  a  German 
     theologian  he  took it for granted that his  liberal  colleagues 
     were quite right,  and he  did not take the trouble to study  the 
     Aramaic Targums,   the paraphrased translations of the Bible --or 
     the  Zohar,  the Aramaic commentary on the Pentateuch --  or  the 
     Midrash,  the sermons  of the old synagogue.  They speak a  great 
     deal about the King Messiah and his atoning sufferings. 
        
     THE MAIN LOGIC OF THE MESSIANIC MOTIVE     
     
     in Jewish literature is based on the story of creation. When "the 
     Spirit  of God moved upon the face of the waters",  according  to 
     the rabbis,  it was "the Spirit of the Messiah,  as it is written 
     in Isaiah;  and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest  upon him". And 
     when God "saw the light, that it was good", it was "the light  of 
     the Messiah", as it is written in Psalm 36:9, "in thy light shall 
     we see light". The Aramaic name, "Nehorah", "the light", which is 
     a  cryptic  name  for  the Messiah,  is taken from  Daniel  2:22, 
     because "he reveals deep and hidden things, he knows what lies in 
     darkness,  and LIGHT dwells with him".  It also fits the prophecy 
     of Isaiah that the Messiah is "the light  of the Gentiles"  (42:9 
     and 60:3).  Mankind lost the true light in the Fall and God gives 
     it back by the Messiah. 
        
     According  to  the  sages,   the Messiah will  do  some  kind  of 
     "repairs"   on this defective world,  called the "tikun ha-olam". 
     This "rehabilitation" will restore the world to its former state. 
     In the Midrash we read that the whole of history has been damaged 
     by the sin of Adam and Eve,  and will remain so until the Messiah 
     comes,   "and  in  his own time will God,  blessed be  His  name, 
     swallow up death, because it is written in Isaiah 25:8:  'he will 
     swallow up death for ever'  ". In the Fall the world was infected 
     by sin,  sickness and death.  Now the Messiah will atone for  our 
     sins, he will carry our diseases and overcome death. 
        
     BUT SIN MUST BE EXPIATED BEFORE GOD     
     
     The  main principle of  the Day of Atonement was in  the  promise 
     "You shall be clean BEFORE THE LORD!"  This is the keyword in the 
     Book of Leviticus (See 16:1, 16:30, etc.). The prodigal son said, 
     "Father,  I  have sinned against heaven and before you!" In Psalm 
     51  we confess,  "Against thee, thee only,  have I sinned!"  Luke 
     5:21  states, "Who can forgive sins but God only?"  And in 2 Cor. 
     5:19   we  read,   "God  was in Christ reconciling the  world  to 
     Himself".   This  is  the reason why the Messiah  had  to  be  of 
     heavenly origin and the Son of God. 
        
     THE PICTURE OF THE SUFFERING MESSIAH IS PARTICULARLY PROMINENT IN
     ZECHARIAH 12:9-14, 13:6-7, PSALM 22 AND ISAIAH 53.
     
     In  dealing with these prophecies the rabbis apply it  either  to 
     the people of Israel or to the Messiah, the son of Joseph. I well 
     recall  a  meeting in Haifa when an older friend claimed that  he 
     had heard about Jesus in the local synagogue.   "They spoke there 
     about the Messiah, the son of Joseph."  I  had to explain that it 
     was not the son of Joseph and Mary but Ephraim the son of  Joseph 
     to whom they were referring. This "pet name" given to the Messiah 
     is  taken  from  Jeremiah  31:9  and 20.   According to tradition 
     (Mekhilta)   it is said that the children of Ephraim  left  Egypt 
     prior  to  the  deliverance of the nation by Moses and  that they 
     perished in battle with the Philistines.  This tradition has been 
     used to explain the sufferings of the  Messiah both in connection 
     with Zechariah, Psalm 22  and Isaiah 53.  Sometimes the different 
     elements are mixed together in the  Midrash.  "Our teacher taught 
     that the patriarchs of the world stand in the month of Nisan (the 
     time of Passover)  and say to him,  'Ephraim,  the Messiah of our 
     righteousness, although we are your fathers, you are greater than 
     ourselves for you have suffered the iniquities of our sons. Great 
     and evil punishments were endured by you...you have been  scorned 
     and  despised by nations on behalf of Israel,  and you have dwelt 
     in darkness  and  obscurity...  and your skin shrivelled  on your 
     bones;  your body has become dry as wood,  your strength is dried 
     up like a potsherd.  All this came upon you on account of the sin 
     of your sons.' " 
        
     Sometimes  the  picture  of  the  Suffering  Servant  appears  in 
     unexpected contexts revealing the authenticity of the  tradition. 
     While  preparing my Hebrew books about the Messianic idea in  the 
     Bible,   I   also had to show the Messianic motif in the book  of 
     Ruth.   In  doing  that I read the Midrash  of  Ruth,   which  is 
     considered   to  be  one  of  the  oldest  documents  in   Jewish 
     literature. In this way I found one of the main roots of the Holy 
     Communion.   In Ruth 2:14  Boaz says to Ruth at mealtime,   "Come 
     hither, eat of the bread and dip your morsel in the vinegar!" The 
     Midrash  declares  four times that she ate "for the days  of  the 
     Messiah...  and whoever eats for the days of the Messiah  in this 
     world,  eats for the world to come". About the bread,  it is also 
     stated four times that it is "the bread of the Kingdom".  In this 
     discussion,  which extends to two pages,  a  certain rabbi states 
     "in  the  Holy Spirit",  which means that it is accepted  by  the 
     synagogue, as follows, "This speaks about the King Messiah, 'Come 
     hither',   you are near to the Kingdom.  And eating of the  bread 
     means:  this is the bread of the Kingdom. 'And dip your morsel in 
     the  vinegar',   this refers to his sufferings,  for it  is  said 
     (Isaiah 53),  'and he was wounded for our transgressions'."   The 
     paschal  lamb  is called in Talmud by the name  "guf  ha-pesach", 
     "the body of the Passover". In our story in Midrash Ruth there is 
     an explanation of the "morsel" saying, that the "second deliverer 
     will  give manna"  from heaven as Moses did.  It is very  logical 
     indeed  to  understand  what Jesus meant when he  gave  the  Holy 
     Communion: He himself was the heavenly bread, He himself was "the 
     body of the Passover" as "the Lamb of God".  He gave his blood as 
     a token of his love... and the vinegar refers to his sufferings. 
        
     EVEN  THE  ZOHAR,  THE  ARAMAIC  COMMENTARY  ON  THE  PENTATEUCH,
     DESCRIBES IN THREE DIFFERENT PLACES THE SUFFERINGS OF THE MESSIAH
     USING THE 53RD CHAPTER OF ISAIAH.

     This book is still very important for scholars of the Oral Law in 
     the  East  and  in the West.  The Zohar  frequently mentions  the 
     Messiah as having a small hut in paradise, called "a bird's nest" 
     or  "the palace of the sick",  sometimes only a "hut".  There  he 
     heard how the house of the Lord was lying in ruins, and he lifted 
     up his voice and wept so that "all paradise was shaken" (See Luke 
     19:41).  He was also asked whether he was willing  to suffer  for 
     the sons of Israel and  he promised to do it "willingly,  because 
     it  is  written,  'he is wounded  for  our transgressions' ".  In 
     another  context  those who have passed away come  and  tell  the 
     Messiah "about the troubles of Israel in their  exile  and  about 
     their guilt,  that they are not  willing to recognize their Lord. 
     The  Messiah  then  lifts up his voice and weeps for those  whose 
     guilt  it  is,   as  it  is  written,  'he was  wounded  for  our 
     transgressions,   bruised  for our iniquities'.  The  souls  then 
     returned to their peace.  There is a place in paradise (the realm 
     of the  dead)  called the palace of the sick.   The Messiah  then 
     enters this palace and calls out,  'May all the diseases,  griefs 
     and sufferings of Israel come hither! And they come upon him. Had 
     he  not  taken  them from Israel and put  them upon himself there 
     would have been no one capable of bearing them on account of  the 
     severity of the punishments written in the Law.  And this is what 
     is written, 'surely he has borne our griefs'." 
        
     This  kind  of language should not be unfamiliar to Jewish  ears. 
     But  still this chapter is a tender spot for the  Jewish  reader. 
     The  Jewish synagogue has omitted the whole chapter (Is.   52:13-
     53:12)   from their traditional weekly readings,   the  so-called 
     "haphtaroth".  And even most of the mediaeval commentaries  state 
     in  brackets  when arriving at Isaiah 52:13  that  "some  of  the 
     material is missing here". 
        
     The  best-known  rabbis  are very cautious when faced  with  this 
     chapter. Ibn Ezra explains, "This is a very difficult matter. Our 
     opponents  say  that  this is an allusion  to  their  God".   And 
     afterwards he adds:  "Many interpreted the passage as applying to 
     the Messiah. Our ancients, blessed be their memory,  say that the 
     Messiah  was born on the day that the Temple was destroyed and he 
     is  now  bound in chains."  Here again we learn that the  Messiah 
     must have already come. Abrabanel sums up the problem as follows: 
     "The  first  thing  to  be determined is of  whom  this  prophecy 
     speaks.   Christian scholars apply it to a man who was hanged  in 
     Jerusalem  at  the end of the Second Temple period and  who,   in 
     their  view,   was the Son of God,  blessed be He,  and  who  was 
     conceived in the womb of a virgin,  as their scriptures say.  And 
     indeed,   Jonathan Ben Uzziel translated it as referring  to  the 
     coming  Messiah,   and  this is also the opinion  of  our  Sages, 
     blessed be their memory, in many of their schools." 
        
     Most of the modern rabbis,  however,  explain that this points to 
     the  people  of Israel.  The textbooks used in state  schools  in 
     Israel  answer that the Scripture here refers to  Israel,   which 
     suffered for other nations in order to atone for their iniquity. 
        
          
     THE  MOST  TRAGIC  INTERPRETATION HAS BEEN GIVEN BY  TWO  LEADING    
     JEWISH RABBIS
     
     in their own time.  Rabbi Moshe Alsheich,  who lived in Palestine 
     in the sixteenth century wrote:  "Our teachers,  blessed be their 
     memory,   confirmed  and unanimously accepted that  this  chapter 
     speaks about the King Messiah...  there are sufferings  which are 
     caused by our sins and sufferings caused by love, when a just and 
     righteous man,  who has not sinned,  humbles himself to carry the 
     iniquities  of  transgressors,   that they may  rejoice  and  the 
     righteous one grieve, the wicked one be whole and he stricken and 
     smitten  by  God...   this is evidence of the King  Messiah,  who 
     suffers for the iniquities of the children of Israel, and behold, 
     his reward is with him." 
        
     Or  may I quote another word given by Rabbi Eliah De Vidas,   who 
     lived in Saphed, Israel, at the end of the 16th. century: "In the 
     same  manner  that the Messiah suffers for our  iniquities  which 
     cause  him to be bruised,  even ours;  if anyone wishes that  the 
     Messiah should not be bruised for our transgressions,  he himself 
     will suffer and be bruised." 
        
     AND WHAT ARE THE PRACTICAL CONCLUSIONS OF OUR CHAPTER?     
     
     The  suffering of the Messiah was to be a surprise.  According to 
     Isaiah 52:15 "he shall startle many nations", alarm and frighten! 
     He will "astonish"   many, because "his appearance was so marred, 
     beyond  human semblance".  In our time we often hear the  concept 
     "dehumanize"   in  connection  with  refugees or  those who  have 
     suffered  in concentration camps.  Jesus became "a worm and not a 
     man",  one could state in accordance with Psalm 22:6. "Kings will 
     shut their mouths at him,  for that which had not been  told them 
     they see."  Who has believed our message?"...  who cared? "He was 
     despised  and  rejected,  as one from whom men hid their  faces." 
     Rabbi  Kimchi expounds these words saying that we hide "our faces 
     from him because we do not wish to look at him on account of  the 
     repugnance   we  would  experience"   upon  seeing  his  horrible 
     appearance! 
        
     The word "stricken", "nagua", has been understood as meaning that 
     he was  "stricken"   with "leprosy"...   following  this,  Jewish 
     tradition  has  given an additional Aramaic 'pet name'   for  the 
     Messiah.   This  word -"HIVRAH",  "LEPER"  -  describes well  the 
     "dehumanized" form of the suffering Messiah.  In the Talmud there 
     is  a  question  about where the Messiah would be found  and  how 
     would  one  recognize  him.  "He is at the entrance of  the  city 
     (Rome)  and he sits among the poor and sick releasing and binding 
     them  at  the same time."  Jesus really identified  with  lepers, 
     touching  and healing them.  We can remember the rich young  man, 
     Francis of Assisi. When he met Jesus as his Saviour and rode back 
     home,   he was so filled with compassion and love that he had  to 
     descend  from his saddle and go and embrace the leper at the side 
     of the road.  He also established special homes for lepers.  This 
     lead eventually to the elimination of leprosy in Europe. 
        
     Another  component in this chapter is the contrast between  "him" 
     and "us".  "Surely,  HE has borne OUR infirmities and carried OUR 
     griefs  but  WE  considered  HIM stricken,  smitten  of  God  and 
     afflicted. HE was wounded for OUR transgressions, bruised for OUR 
     iniquities, the punishment that brought US peace was upon HIM and 
     by  HIS  wounds WE are healed."  And so on!  Jesus  brings  us  a 
     personal inner deliverance! 
        
     The  third  component in this chapter is connected with the  idea 
     "to carry". Christ "carried our griefs", the punishment was "upon 
     him"   and  he "bore the sin".  The first Hebrew word  concerning 
     "forgiveness" is the expression "to bear sin", "laset avon".  Sin 
     and  guilt  are  the heaviest burden even  for  modern  man.   We 
     remember the words of John the Baptist:  "Behold the Lamb of  God 
     who  takes  away  the sins of the world."  In  Arabic  the  words 
     "carry" and "lamb"  are written exactly in the same way -"hamal". 
     Also in Hebrew they might have come originally from the same root 
     (se  and la-set).  A  lovely custom pertains among the  Arabs  of 
     northern  Syria:  in the springtime each family chooses  a  small 
     lamb  without  blemish.  This lamb is called "the lamb  of  God", 
     "hamal  Allah".  If one of the family falls ill,   the  relatives 
     slaughter  the  lamb and smear its blood on the forehead  of  the 
     sick person,  making atonement for him.  In the same way the true 
     Lamb of God carried away our sins and "sealed"  his atonement for 
     us. 
        
     The  53rd chapter of Isaiah has served as the strongest  evidence 
     among Hebrew believers for the Lordship of Jesus. Among these was 
     Rabbi Joseph Rabinowitz,  the founder of the "New Covenant Church 
     for Israel", a well-known congregation in Kisinev towards the end 
     of the last century. 
        
     Rabbi Rabinowitz came from Russia to the Holy Land because of the 
     pogroms  of 1881,  intending to found an agricultural  settlement 
     for  Russian  refugees.  As he set out on his  journey,   someone 
     handed  him  a  copy of the New Testament "as the  most  suitable 
     guide for knowing the Land of Israel".  One day he went up to the 
     Mount  of Olives opposite the Old City.  As he beheld the  Temple 
     Mount, the Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre,  he asked 
     himself:   "Why  was  the  Temple destroyed,  why  have  we  been 
     dispersed for so long? Why are we still persecuted in exile? With 
     these thoughts on his mind, the words of Isaiah suddenly occurred 
     to him:  "Surely he has borne our diseases and carried our pains, 
     yet we considered him stricken, smitten by God and afflicted. But 
     he  was wounded for our transgressions"!!  He was amazed.  IN  AN 
     INSTANT  he  understood  that Jesus is  the  Messiah  of  Israel. 
     Delivered  from  a heavy burden and sorrow he returned to  Russia 
     declaring  to everybody that "the key to the Holy Land is in  the 
     hands  of  our  brother Jesus".  May this  conviction  about  the 
     lordship of Jesus fill our hearts too today! 
        
          
     HOW CAN WE BE CONVINCED?     III/III 
     
     THE SIGNS OF THE MESSIAH 
      
        
     The  Christian dialogue with our Jewish brother is in fact easier 
     than the approach to a Gentile. In 1 Cor. 1:22 we read: "For Jews 
     demand  signs  and  Greeks seek wisdom,   but  we  preach  Christ 
     crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles." Even 
     in Western countries people seldom really know what the Bible  is 
     about, and that is why even its message seems a little foolish to 
     them  -  - whereas the Jews do at least understand the  rules  of 
     Biblical  thinking,   and  Jesus is for them  a  stumbling  block 
     because  they  do  not know how serious  his  challenge  is.   It 
     requires a total commitment of believers in him. 
        
     The  Greek word SIGN,  "semeion",  means both a "wonder"   and  a 
     "sign".   In  the  Gospel  of John it appears 14   times  and  is 
     sometimes  translated  by  two words - "miraculous  signs".   Its 
     Hebrew  equivalent  "oth"  also has the same  two  meanings.   In 
     Matthew 12:38  the scribes asked: "Teacher, we wish to see a sign 
     from you." In 16:1  the Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and 
     tested  him by "asking him to show them a sign from heaven".   In 
     John 4:48 Jesus said:  "Unless you see signs and wonders you will 
     not  believe."   In  all these cases the people  wanted  to  test 
     whether he is the Messiah or not. 
        
     The word "oth" is also used in Jewish literature as a counterpart 
     for a distinctive sign characterizing certain matters or persons. 
     In  some contexts the Rabbis speak of "the sign of the  Messiah". 
     If  we ask how we can be convinced that Jesus is the  Messiah  we 
     ought to study these "Messianic" signs. 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF MESSIAH'S BIRTH 
        
     The birth of the Messiah was foretold in Isaiah 7:10-14: "Ask the 
     Lord  your  God for a SIGN ...  Therefore the Lord himself  shall 
     give you a SIGN: Behold, a  virgin shall conceive and bear a son, 
     and shall call his name "Immanu El",  "God with us".  200   years 
     before  Christ  the  Septuagint  understood  the  Hebrew  concept 
     "almah"  in Greek as "parthenos", a  "virgin".  This is the sign! 
     There  is  also  an interesting passage in the Dead  Sea  Scrolls 
     which  speaks of "the Messiah whom God will beget",  words  taken 
     from Psalm 2:7. Dr. R. Gordis states that this passage serves "as 
     the  most important source for the divine birth of Messiah".   In 
     Deuteronomy 18:15  and 18,  in a prophecy which was used by Peter 
     and  Stephen  (Acts 3:22  and 7:37)  we read of a  prophet  "like 
     Moses",  "whom God will raise up" and he will speak in God's name 
     --   the Aramaic Targum of Jonathan expounds it twice saying that 
     "God  will beget him by the Holy Spirit  " (de-ruach qudsha   and 
     be-ruach qudsha ). That is the sign of the birth of Messiah! 
        
     According to Micah 5:2  the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem and 
     his  "goings  forth have been from old,  from everlasting".   The 
     Jewish  commentator RASHI states that he was already "before  the 
     stars  and zodiacs"  and "only God was before  eternity".   Jesus 
     himself  proclaimed  that he was before the creation  and  before 
     Abraham.   Isaiah  7:14  and 9:6  give divine attributes  to  the 
     Messiah,   such  as   "Immanu  El"   or  "the  mighty  God"   and 
     "everlasting  Father".   Targum Jonathan explains that God  "will 
     call  his  name  from ancient times"  and that "the  Messiah  has 
     eternal existence". 
        
     No  wonder that the shepherd heard:  "This will be a SIGN to you: 
     you  will  find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in  a  manger" 
     (Luke  2:12).  The physician Luke and Matthew were also stressing 
     the fact that the child was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 
        
     
     THE SIGN OF HIS APPROACH 
        
     In Exodus 3:12,  14 we read: "And God said,  'I will be with you. 
     And  this will be the SIGN to you that it is I (Anochi)  who have 
     sent me to you.'"  In Midrash Rabbah (Shemoth, para. 3, c)  there 
     is  a discussion that "the SIGN of the first deliverance was,  IN 
     ME  the  Israelites  went  to Egypt ...  the  SIGN  of  the  last 
     (Messianic) deliverance is that IN ME they are going to be healed 
     and  saved."   The expression IN ME is here "be-Anochi".   It  is 
     prohibited for a Jew to say in Hebrew "I am", "ani hu" or "anochi 
     hu",  because this approaches the name of God - "I am who I  am". 
     Only  the  Messiah  speaks  in  the name  of  God  and  with  His 
     authority. 
        
     When  Jesus  spoke  the words ""I am",  "ani hu",  he  uttered  a 
     forbidden  thing  according  to  Rabbi  Gottlieb  Klein  and   E. 
     Stauffer.   It  was a SIGN and token for some of  his  listeners. 
     Jesus said: "I am the light of the world; I am the way, the truth 
     and the life;  I am the bread of life; I am the good shepherd;  I 
     am the true vine;  no man comes unto the Father but by me; I have 
     come that you may have life,  and have it to the full;  I  am the 
     resurrection and the life; before Abraham was born, I am; you are 
     from below, I am from above; if you do not believe that I am what 
     I am you will die in your sins." Was this not a SIGN and token of 
     the lordship of Jesus? 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF THE TEMPLE 
        
     There  was a certain timing for the first advent of the  Messiah. 
     He  had to come before the destruction of the Temple.  John  2:18 
     speaks  of  the sign:  "What SIGN have you to show us  for  doing 
     this?   Jesus answered them:  'Destroy this temple,  and in three 
     days I will raise it up.'  --  but he spoke of the temple of  his 
     body."  In Luke 19:41-44  we see how Jesus "drew near and saw the 
     city,  and he wept over it" .. because it was "hidden" from their 
     eyes that there would be no "stone upon another" when the city is 
     destroyed.  In the Old Testament there are five clear  prophecies 
     about these fateful things: 1 Kings 9:8, Jeremiah 9:11 and 26:18, 
     Micah  3:12   and  Daniel 9:26.  There is also  evidence  in  the 
     writings  of  Josephus that some people were worried  about  this 
     possibility (Antiquities X,  10-11 and Jewish War VI, 5,  3;  see 
     also Yomah 39, b). Jesus also saw this sign in advance. 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF SALVATION 
        
     In  the  Wisdom  of Solomon we find the concept of the  "SIGN  of 
     salvation".  In the 16th chapter it tells of the "fiery serpents" 
     which the Lord sent in the wilderness as follows:  "And Thou hast 
     given  for  them  a  SIGN OF SALVATION  to  remind  them  of  the 
     ordinances  of  Thy  will.  And all those who looked  up  to  Him 
     remained alive, not because they looked up, but through Thy hand, 
     our saving Lord"  ... and Thou bringest down to Sheol and raisest 
     up".  These words are from the first century B. C.  and they were 
     known to the scribes in Jesus' own time. 
        
     When  Jesus  spoke  with Nicodemus in John 3:14,   he  apparently 
     raised the same question and took up "heavenly things", doctrinal 
     mysteries.  He said:  "No one has ascended into heaven but he who 
     descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the 
     serpent in the wilderness,  so must the Son of Man be lifted up." 
     It  is told in 2 Kings 18:4  that King Hezekiah "broke in  pieces 
     the  bronze  serpent that Moses had made ...  and it  was  called 
     Nehushtan." 
        
     I  was  once  in  an Orthodox Jewish  shop  in  Jerusalem  called 
     Nehushtan.  The owner of the shop knew me,  so I said that he had 
     chosen a good name for his business.  And I asked him whether  he 
     also knew what is written about this in the Wisdom of Solomon  -- 
     and I quoted the words of the SIGN of salvation. He probably knew 
     the discussion between Nicodemus and Jesus, because he asked. "Do 
     you  know  what is written about those serpents by  RASHI",   the 
     famous  Jewish  scholar  in medieval times?  I  did not,   but  I 
     promised to look it up at home.  And great was my surprise when I 
     read his message for me:  "This is a derogatory saying and  there 
     is  nothing but the serpent."  I  found,  however,  that this man 
     began  to think about the sign of salvation.  The Aramaic  Targum 
     explains  this  story  by relating it to MEMRA,  the  "word"   or 
     "logos",  which for some Rabbis also represents the Messiah.  And 
     it  states:   "Whoever lifts his heart to the Memra of  God  will 
     remain  alive."   This story is also expounded in the  Talmud  in 
     connection with salvation: "..  the serpent kills and the serpent 
     revives;  and when Israel looks up and commits their heart to the 
     heavenly  Father,  they will be healed:  if not,  they will die." 
     (Rosh  ha-shanah  29,  a).  Jesus apparently knew the  Wisdom  of 
     Solomon in his own time.  And he wanted to show to Nicodemus that 
     he  had  to  suffer  on the cross.  That would  be  the  SIGN  of 
     salvation ever after. And he also said:  "When you have lifted up 
     the Son of Man, then you will know that I AM HE." 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF RESURRECTION 
        
     In Matthew 12:38 we read: "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees 
     said to him,  'Teacher,  we wish to see a SIGN from you.'  But he 
     answered  them,  'An evil and adulterous generation seeks  for  a 
     sign;   but no sign shall be given to it except the SIGN  OF  THE 
     PROPHET  JONAH.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights  in 
     the belly of the whale,  so will the Son of Man be three days and 
     three nights in the heart of the earth." 
        
     For  a  long time this was a riddle to scholars.  But  after  the 
     discovery of old Midrash fragments in Cairo we better  understand 
     the legitimate claim of Jesus.  In these fragments we first  read 
     Genesis  42:18:  "On the THIRD DAY Joseph said to them,  'Do this 
     and you will live'." The Midrash relates it first to Abraham, who 
     intended  to offer his first-born son to God "on the third  day"; 
     then  it proceeds to Moses,  who received the Law "on  the  third 
     day".  Towards the end the fragment mentions the name Jonah,  who 
     was  in the belly of the fish till the third day,  and gives  the 
     following  exposition:   "THE  THIRD DAY  FOR  THE  RESURRECTION, 
     because it is written 'after two days he will revive us,  on  the 
     third  day  he will raise us up,  that we may  live  before  him' 
     (Hosea 6:2)." This is a very interesting argument: the expression 
     "the  third  day"  was a rabbinical concept and a SIGN  that  God 
     himself is again acting according to his promises. The next verse 
     in  Hosea speaks about the Lord:  "his going forth is sure as the 
     dawn."  The concept "Lord"  is in some sources a cryptic name for 
     the  Messiah.   Our  Lord Jesus promised to build up  his  bodily 
     temple in three days. 
        
     Indeed!   According  to the Rabbis the Messiah has "the  keys  of 
     resurrection  in  his hands".  The Midrash tells  that  "he  will 
     swallow  death for ever".  He will also "revive the  children  of 
     dust from the dead".  No wonder that even the Book of  Revelation 
     knows  that he is "the first and the last"  and that he has  "the 
     keys of Death and Hades" in his hands (Rev. 1:18). 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF RESISTANCE 
        
     The  famous  Norwegian author Henrik Ibsen had a  saying  -  "the 
     minority is always right".  The believer is often very alone  and 
     the  enemy  is  his constant companion.  In Luke 2  we  meet  the 
     "righteous  and  devout"   old Simeon.  He was  looking  for  the 
     "consolation of Israel and the Holy Spirit was upon him".  One of 
     the  many  hidden  names  for the  Messiah  is  "Menahem",   "the 
     Comforter" or "consoler".  Simeon saw that the little child Jesus 
     would  be the Light of the Gentiles and "for glory to thy  people 
     Israel".  But the child was also "set for the fall and rising  of 
     many  in Israel and for a SIGN THAT IS SPOKEN AGAINST".  This  is 
     the sign of resistance. 
        
     In Isaiah 8:14 we read: "He will become a sanctuary,  and a stone 
     of offence, and a rock of stumbling". According to the sages this 
     is "the Messiah,  son of David"  (Sanhedrin 38,  a).  Isaiah 8:14 
     adds as follows: "Behold, I  am laying in Zion for a foundation a 
     stone,   a   tested  stone,  a  precious cornerstone  of  a  sure 
     foundation:  he who believes will not be in haste." Jesus himself 
     saw that he would be a stone of offence,  as in Matthew 21:42-43: 
     "Have  you  never read in the Scriptures:  'The  stone  that  the 
     builders rejected has become the cornerstone ... Therefore I tell 
     you,   the kingdom of God will be taken away from you."  Also  in 
     Matthew 8:11-12 there are some very severe words, " so harsh that 
     Jesus  hardly  can have said so",  claims the  well-known  Jewish 
     professor David Flusser. He honours Jesus as a Jewish teacher and 
     believes that "according to the facts Jesus must undoubtedly have 
     risen from the dead".  In this harsh word Jesus said:  "I say  to 
     you that many will come from the east and the west and take their 
     places at the feast with Abraham,  Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom 
     of heaven.  But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown  outside." 
     There is,  however, an even harder word in the Talmud (Hagigah 5, 
     b).  These words are related to Jeremiah 13:17:  "If you will not 
     listen, my soul will weep in secret for your pride;  my eyes will 
     weep bitterly and run down with tears,  because the Lord's  flock 
     has been taken captive." "Rabbi Samuel Ben Yitzhak said: 'This is 
     caused by their pride and Torah will be taken from them and given 
     to the Gentiles.'" 
        
     For a Jew the Gospel is often a stumbling-block; Jesus is a "SIGN 
     that  will be spoken against".  But this Messiah who was born  in 
     Bethlehem and whose origin is from of old will become,  according 
     to RASHI, "a cornerstone". And the Rabbis explain that "we cannot 
     hasten  it and it will not take place immediately but after  many 
     troubles". 
        
     We  also  read  in  Ephesians 2:20  that we  are  "built  on  the 
     foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus himself 
     as the chief cornerstone".  1 Peter 2:4 urges us to "come to him, 
     the living Stone, rejected by men". This reminds me of the lesson 
     which I once received in Bethlehem.  I was walking there together 
     with Rev. George Kuttab, a close friend, trying  to use my little 
     Arabic.   All of a sudden I heard the expression "dead stone"  in 
     Arabic.  "Are there also living stones?",  I  asked straightaway. 
     "Yes,   there  are",   my friend answered.  And he led  me  to  a 
     stonecutter nearby. Then he gave some characteristics of a living 
     stone,   this  time in English:  "The stone is dead until  it  is 
     brought to the mason, the master. In his hands it receives such a 
     form that a) it fits in its own place, b) it carries and supports 
     other stones in the building and c)  even if the house is  pulled 
     down,   it is still fit for other constructions.  This is a  good 
     example of a constructive Christian. If we have been in the hands 
     of our Master, he can always use us for his purpose,  wherever we 
     are.   Resistance  and  opposition  is  the  natural  role  of  a 
     Christian. Jesus makes us into living stones. 
        
          
     THE SIGN OF THE SECOND ADVENT 
        
     The  seventh sign which is to be found both in the New  Testament 
     and  in Jewish literature refers to the advent of the Messiah  in 
     the latter days.  The timing of his first coming was given in the 
     9th  chapter of Daniel.  Now we wait for his second advent  "with 
     the clouds of heaven". A  well-known Talmudic passage claims that 
     "if Israel is a debtor,  the Messiah will come 'humble and riding 
     on  an ass'  (in order to atone for our sins),  but if  they  are 
     righteous, he will descend with the clouds of heaven." 
        
     According to Matthew 24:3  and 30  the disciples of Jesus came to 
     him on the Mount of Olives "privately, saying: 'Tell us when this 
     will be and what will be the SIGN OF YOUR COMING and of the close 
     of the age'?"  Jesus then told of many signs and said that  after 
     them "the powers of the heavens will be shaken,  then will appear 
     the SIGN of the Son of man in heaven" and he will come. Among the 
     signs  which  he described was the fate of Israel and  Jerusalem. 
     The  Holy  City "will be trodden down by the Gentiles  UNTIL  the 
     times of the Gentiles are fulfilled".  (See Matthew 24,  Mark 13, 
     Luke 21, 2 Thess. 2, 2 Tim. 3 and 2 Peter 3.)  In the Talmud also 
     there is a long discussion about the "footsteps of thy anointed", 
     the  Messiah.  In medieval literature these footsteps are  called 
     simply by the name "the SIGNS OF  THE MESSIAH". 
        
     According  to  Talmudic signs there will then be "many  diseases, 
     pestilence and epidemics",  "the whole world will be blood"   and 
     "the sun will turn into darkness and the moon into blood".  "When 
     the kingdoms are challenging each other,  watch for the footsteps 
     of the Messiah"  ... "the truth will be rare and the face of that 
     generation  will be as the face of a dog;  boys will insult  aged 
     people and youngsters will feel no shame before their fathers. On 
     whom are we then to lean?  On our Father in heaven alone ...  The 
     Son  of David will not come until Israel descends to  the  lowest 
     degradation (yeridah tachtonah),  he will not come until the last 
     coin  has finished from their pockets and until Israel  has  lost 
     its friends and supporters".  Of course, some of these things are 
     from the Old Testament and some are reflections of old  Christian 
     sermons. According to the words of Jesus, he will return when the 
     people of Israel is saying:  "Blessed is he who comes in the name 
     of the Lord!"  In 1921  the Jewish philosopher Constantin Brunner 
     coined  a  saying:  "Bring us back our Jesus!"  This  "Heimholung 
     Jesu" might be already very near. 
        
     In  an old Midrash there is a beautiful picture of the coming  of 
     Messiah the son of David:  "When you are descending to the lowest 
     degradation,   on  that day I will save you ...  and as the  rose 
     blooms  and opens its heart to the sun,  so even you,   when  you 
     repent and when you lift up your hearts to Me like the roses,  on 
     that day I will bring the Saviour to you!" 
        
     Of  course,  these SIGNS and "sigificant"  tokens of the  Messiah 
     must be seen in their proper perspective.  Flesh and blood cannot 
     reveal the secret of the Messiah.  But Jesus is still challenging 
     us  all:  "What about you?  Whom do you say that I am?"  Only the 
     Holy  Spirit can reveal to us the lordship of Jesus.  And then we 
     are ready to admit together with the Samaritans in John 4:42: "It 
     is no longer because of your words that we believe,  for we  have 
     heard ourselves,  and we KNOW that this is indeed the Saviour  of 
     the world." 
        
      
     These were the Bible talks. 

     The original Hebrew and English books about "The Messiah in the
     Old and the New Testament" can be ordered through Keren Ahvah
     Meshihit, P.O.Box 10382, Jerusalem, Israel.
