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This article uses the true Hebrew name given to Messiah at his birth by YHWH (God) instead of the intentionally false anti-Semitic name of “jesus” given by Israel's worst enemy, Rome. That name is Yahshua or Yeshua (pronounced "yah SHOO ah" or "yeh SHOO ah"). I present material regarding the name of Messiah elsewhere on the "General Articles" page of this web site and prove that traditional Christianity purposely refuses to use Messiah's actual name.
I will usually use the term "torah" (pronounced "toe RAH" or "TOR ah" to some) instead of "Law." Torah is actually better translated from the Hebrew as "teaching" or "instruction" and specifically refers to the first five books of Moses in its strictest sense - Genesis through Deuteronomy. In the Messianic writings (New Testament) the term "Law" is shown because it was rendered from a Greek word, nomos, that means "Law." In truth the Greek word was used in many places (but not necessarily all) to refer to torah; therefore, I consider torah to be more accurate. I will gradually depart throughout this discussion from use of the term "Law" since it is actually a bit of an incorrect rendering of "torah" in my opinion. However, I will show it for a while to reinforce to those unfamiliar with the term "torah" that it refers to what is commonly considered the Eternal "Law"of YHWH.
I will use the term "Messianic writings" when referring to what is commonly called the "New Testament." In fact, I eventually intend to remove the term "New Testament" from my entire site unless I deem it absolutely necessary and replace it with "Messianic writings." I also will use the more proper term "Tanakh" (pronounced "tah NOCK") to refer to what is commonly called the "Old Testament." Tanakh is an acronym for the three Hebrew words for the "Law," the "Prophets," and the "Writings."
My reasons are simple. Perhaps traditional Christianity's most egregious and profane error is its separation of Holy Scripture into two separate and distinct "covenants" or "testaments." The separation is more properly described as butchery of The Living God's Eternal teachings. That horrific and grossly unscriptural error has led to a situation where the vast majority of Christians show very little reverence for what they consider the "Old" Testament. Most never have read it and never will because they have been led to believe that it is relatively unimportant!
The truth is that there is and always has been one and only one "covenant" between YHWH (God) and man. That covenant has evolved and been expanded upon but never was the original covenant abolished. It has grown like a healthy child; yet, traditional Christianity decided early in its history to abandon the child just as he was maturing and to replace him with a bastardized impostor. That impostor began to reign with particularly robust strength in the fourth century with the ruthless support of Roman power and has grown to become a spiritually deadly master of deception and Scriptural distortion. But the original and now adult child is still available to those seeking truth, and it is that man that I proclaim on this web site.
At the very least the Law, the Prophets, and Writings are NOT "Old" or unimportant. They are just as inspired and relevant today as they were the day they were given. I will therefore not implicitly condone traditional Christianity's lawless (anti-torah), anti-God, disgusting and demonically inspired implicit trashing of the "Old" Testament. I discuss this issue at length in my article in which I prove, without doubt, that traditional Christianity does not and never has promoted "following Christ." That discussion can obviously be reached by picking the link just shown in the previous sentence. My proofs are irrefutable and represent a serious test to see if those traditional Christians brave enough to study it truly do wish to "follow Christ." I discuss it further in a separate article in which I ask the question, "What is the True Holy Scripture?"
My reasons for using the term "Messianic writings" are similar. The term "New" Testament contributes even further to the severe errors just mentioned; therefore, when you see "Messianic writings" take note that it refers to what is commonly and erroneously called the "New Testament."
In this discussion I refer to "anti-Paulists" and "counter missionaries" Anti-Paulists are those who reject Paul as being a true apostle and, therefore, reject his writings. They view them as false teachings and strive to convince others that such is the case. All anti-Paulists seriously misconstrue Paul's writings as being anti-torah (anti-Law), which happens to be the same error practiced by Christianity.
Anti-Paulists usually hold Judaism's rabbinic traditions (traditions of men or "oral torah") and/or interpretations of the written torah (Eternal Law) in high esteem without ever really stopping to seriously scrutinize as to whether or not those traditions and interpretations actually correctly represent the teachings in the Tanakh. The same applies to Karaite views of torah which many anti-Paulists revere. They also fail to study how modern day rabbinic Judaism emerged as a new religion after the destruction of the second temple in 70CE and wrongly consider it to be the religion of Moses and all great men of the Tanakh. They are often so “star struck” and generally infatuated with Judaism's reverence for torah and perhaps some of their rabbis that they fall victim to Judaism's errors. Nevertheless, despite their incorrect embrace of Judaic or perhaps Karaite views of torah, most anti-Paulists are correct in viewing the eternal torah (Law) of God favorably.
(FYI: Karaites are a Jewish sect which, unlike traditional rabbinic Judaism, does not recognize the authority of the post-Biblical traditions of men that constitute the Judaic Talmud and latter rabbinic literature. As a result, they are much closer to the original faith than is rabbinic Judaism; however, they still reject the truths revealed in the Messianic writings as well as the Messiah those writings introduce. I personally believe that Paul, himself, became more Karaite-like in his view of torah after his recognition of Yahshua as Messiah.)
Anti-Paulist often claim to accept the Messianic writings not written by Paul; however, I prove elsewhere that usually such is not the case. Their statements of acceptance of the writings (less Paul's epistles) are generally blatant lies. They deceitfully hide the fact that once Paul is viewed as a false teacher virtually the entire compilation of Messianic writings is mortally wounded due to the percentage of them written by Paul and the support for Paul in others, which they reject because of that support - Acts is a prime example. Destruction of the Messianic writings in the minds of those foolish enough to accept their bogus arguments is actually their true objective - an objective they insidiously conceal and that I discuss more fully in a separate article.
Anti-Paulists' favorable view of torah combined with their incorrect understanding of Paul's epistles as well as torah, itself, is a primary factor leading to their notion that the writings of the apostle Paul are lawless "Christian propaganda." You will often hear them refer to Christianity as "Paulianity." In a sense they are correct since Christianity does indeed elevate Paul's writings above all else in the entire Bible, including the teachings of Messiah. However, Paul should not be faulted for Christianity's wickedly lawless (anti-torah) incorrect interpretation of his teachings or their ridiculous elevation of his words above all others in Scripture - including The Living God's. I am certain that Paul would not support such gross misuse of his writings. I expand upon the problem of Christianity's elevating of Paul's teachings above Messiah's and even God's in my previously mentioned article on how Christianity does NOT follow Christ.
Many - in fact most - anti-Paulists display a shocking level of absolute hatred of Paul as they tirelessly fight to condemn him. They never - and I do mean never - give Paul the benefit of doubt and always assume the worst about that great man of God. In many cases their accusations and assumptions regarding Paul are outlandishly speculative and betray a bias that has degenerated into a frenzied psychosis, which I discuss in the article for which I just supplied a link. Accusation and condemnation are the standard rules of conduct among anti-Paulists, while compassion, humility, calm understanding, and "doing unto others as you would have them do unto you" is wholly lacking in their approach. The "Accuser" spirit is readily apparent in the anti-Paulist psyche. I elaborate on the depth of hatred among anti-Paulists in other articles on this web site.
Realizing that being viewed as too disagreeable and hateful may hurt their cause, anti-Paulists often try to hide the extent of their contempt for Paul by masquerading as "caring" and "concerned" about those they feel are deceived by Paul's writings. Some of the more naive and overly trusting souls of the world are fooled by the hypocritical attempts. However, if you are around them long enough their efforts to contain the hostility they feel eventually becomes too difficult to maintain, after which their ghastly, murderous rage towards Paul is revealed in a violent hate-explosion. At that point they usually do not even attempt to hide it anymore until they once again are around people who did not witness their hate-explosion.
I have observed that many anti-Paulists women, but of course not all, are - politically speaking - radically feminist in their approach to Scripture. If I communicate long enough with a woman who happens to be an anti-Paulist it commonly becomes evident that her disdain towards Paul is at least in part based upon his teachings about women. It is amazingly common. I have often received anti-Paul comments or anti-Paulists sympathy statements from women who reveal such to be the case. These women despise Paul for his teachings that women should not exercise authority over men, particularly in the home and with respect to leadership positions within religious assemblies. Sometimes this single issue is what drives them to reject Paul's epistles. They oddly miss the same implicit instruction found in the Tanakh and simply elevate their own pride and "self" above Biblical teachings. They focus their rebellious, egotistical anger at Paul. Such women are easy recruits for the anti-Paulist armies, and anti-Paulists know this. In fact they often become the most zealous enemies of Paul.
Counter missionaries or, as they are sometimes called, anti-missionaries, are those who reject Messiah and all the Messianic writings - not just Paul's epistles. All I mentioned above about anti-Paulists applies to full-blown counter missionaries with the sole exception of anti-Paulists' claims of accepting selected portions of the Messianic writings. Unlike anti-Paulists, at least counter missionaries are honest about their total rejection of those writings. They represent one very tiny step further beyond anti-Paulists to the finish line of total rejection of the Messianic writings and the Messiah presented therein. All counter missionaries are anti-Paulists. There is generally very little difference between anti-Paulists and counter missionaries, and most anti-Paulists are actually counter missionaries who deceptively refuse to admit their true counter missionary agenda. The ultimate objective of counter missionaries (and if the truth be told, anti-Paulists) is to destroy one's faith in the Messianic writings which, if done, destroys one's Messianic faith entirely or so alters it as to make it meaningless.
Within this discussion my use of the term "anti-Paulists" applies equally in all respects to "counter missionaries" since each group essentially share common goals. Both groups are actually counter missionary - opposed to the core truths revealed in the Messianic writings.
All that said, perhaps the most bizarre and deceitful aspect of anti-Paulists and counter missionaries is their almost universal selective use of hand picked passages from the Messianic writings as part of their technique to disprove those very writings. They often extract selected passages, which they present in a way to suggest they agree with the passages, then use them to allegedly prove that the bulk of those writings being quoted from are illegitimate. Such a tactic is outrageous and schizophrenic. It may be the most oxymoronic example of arguing a position in all of religion since by quoting from them they actually implicitly show the Messianic writings are reliably authoritative and legitimate. If not, why quote from them at all?
I've heard it many times. It may represent the foremost "mantra" of anti-Paulists. It is a standard accusation hurled by anti-Paulists and usually constitutes a fundamental aspect of their alleged evidence that the apostle Paul was anti-torah and thus a servant of the devil. That accusation centers on Paul's reference to the torah as a “curse,” which to them is utterly indefensible and blasphemous. Paul's reference to the “curse of the Law” stirs them into a hateful, bloodlust frenzy against him. Believe me friend, if you want to stir up anti-Paulists mention Paul's teachings on the "curse" of the Law and you will see them begin to swarm like an angry hive of killer bees lusting to sting you! Those unfamiliar with anti-Paulists would be stunned by the level of intense hatred shown towards that devoted Messianic follower of Messiah. It is one of the darkest and purest forms of misdirected religious fervor I have ever personally encountered.
In this article I will prove that Paul was unquestionably correct in his statement(s) about the "curse of the Law." I will dispense a powerful truth-insecticide to dispel the killer bee anti-Paulists. I will do this quite easily using a flood of passages from the Tanakh which clearly show that torah can and does become a "curse" to those who do not perfectly obey it throughout their entire life, which of course means all of us.
My use of the Tanakh instead of the Messianic writings to prove my point is intentional and should not be missed since it results in a major disarming of the anti-Paulists servants of deception. They cannot accuse me of using the Messianic writings which they consider to be illegitimate. Fine, I will not because I do not have to, and in so doing they are left looking rather foolish as they scramble for a response to my Tanakh based proofs. So, given all the Scriptural evidence I will supply, those who still insist that Paul was wrong when he discussed the "curse of the Law" will have to face an awkward fact. That fact is that the "curse" of torah is most prominently displayed and proven from the beloved Tanakh and even the written torah (5 books of Moses) which they claim to embrace. Did I hear anti-Paulists scream "OUCH!"? Yes indeed, there is far more proof of the "curse" of the Law in the Tanakh (and even the torah) than is found in the epistles of Paul.
Finding proof in the Tanakh of the accuracy of Paul's teachings concerning torah's curse is so easy that I am forced to conclude it is known to many anti-Paulists. Anti-Paulists leaders and activists display no lack of Scriptural knowledge in other areas; therefore, I think they are actually well aware of the fact that Paul's reference to torah's "curse" does, indeed, have firm and conclusive Tanakh support. Unfortunately, most who fall victim to anti-Paulist leadership wolves often do not have much of a grasp of what the Tanakh teaches and, therefore, are easy prey to the anti-Paulist agenda. Ironically, most anti-Paulist advocates actually consider themselves well versed in Scripture despite their glaring lack of knowledge regarding the issue herein discussed. In truth, they reveal themselves to be woefully lacking in Scriptural knowledge. There are many reasons for the foolish and tragic acceptance of anti-Paulist nonsense, but that is a topic unto itself and not the point of this specific discussion.
Even though this discussion will focus upon only one area of anti-Paulist activity, it nevertheless will deal a severe blow to their entire wicked agenda. This is accomplished by the fact that the primary opposition they voice to what Paul wrote branches off the "curse" factor in one way or another. Therefore, if a person can recognize Paul's accuracy in presenting the "curse" of the torah then they will be well on their way to understanding Paul's underlying intent in most other areas.
The point is this: A primary thrust of Paul's missionary outreach, especially to his Hebraic brethren, was his desire to bring them to an understanding of torah's curse aspect and how rejection of Messiah's substitutionary, curse-taking death clearly and Scripturally does leave them in a cursed spiritual state - a state of torah legal condemnation from which the torah provides no means of escape. It is for this reason that an understanding of the "curse of the Law" leads to a better understanding of Paul's motivation and Messiah's glorious work.
This dialogue will be lengthy. It will address three primary points, which due to the length of the discussion will be divided into at least two separate articles.
Anti-Paulists and counter-missionaries seemingly have no serious problems with YHWH's continually revealing His Divine Plan over a long period of time, and often for the first few thousand years or so of Biblical history. It is only in the first century CE when Yahshua the Messiah happened to enter the scene that they consider the revelation period to have suddenly been closed, welded shut, and terminated and, therefore, that The Living God was forbidden from using Yahshua and his original followers to contribute further to revelation of His Eternal Plan. The bias and double standard of their position dictating when and how YHWH is allowed to reveal truth is obvious. It is also irreverent and blasphemous.
Now on to the discussion.
Warning! If you are a steadfast anti-Paulist adherent who has absolutely no intention of changing or desire to study this issue then you may want to stop reading now; otherwise, you will find yourself uncomfortably on the wrong side of truth and likely extremely embarrassed for supporting the lies of anti-Paulists.
I will start this portion of the study by listing some of the many passages from the Tanakh in which "curses" are mentioned with special emphasis on those passages which refer to the legal application of torah and the effect of torah violation. There are a lot of Tanakh verses which directly or indirectly speak of the curses generated by the torah. Note that - the curses generated BY the torah! Due to the large number of passages I will not include them all in the text of the discussion nor will I list all that are actually available. Instead, I will provide a link to them here that will popup a separate window in which the partial list can be viewed. Just move that separate window over to the side of your screen for viewing during this discussion.
I placed each verse or multiple verses in context side-by-side from three separate Bible translations: The King James Version, The Updated New American Standard Version, and the Jewish Publication Society (JPS) Tanakh (for those who do not trust "Christian" translations). Please note that the verse numbering scheme of the JPS Tanakh is not always the same as other translations; therefore, the verse number may be slightly different. Additionally, a few passages, particularly in the JPS Tanakh, show a word other than "curses," such as "sanctions," but the meaning is the same. You will see that the three different translations are equal in the intended meaning of each verse, and such was the case with the many other versions I could have cut-n-pasted from to form the list.
It is immediately obvious and undeniable when viewing the list that the torah is filled with curses and, thus, that the phrase "curse of the Law" is definitely descriptive of what Scripture clearly says. Nevertheless, I will go through some of the listed verses passage by passage and provide others from elsewhere in the Tanakh to more clearly identify the causes of the curses and prove the lack of provision for curse removal. The causes and lack of provision portion of this discussion will include an itemized list of various sins for which YHWH clearly dictates punishment with no animal sacrifices or other means available to remove the curse in a torah-legal way - often a curse of death. (Of course, this "no remedy available" scenario was part of the torah (teaching) that leads to YHWH's crowning achievement of torah - the "cornerstone" - Messiah Yahshua's atoning, curse-lifting, substitutionary death and resurrection. That is largely how torah is the "tutor that leads us to Messiah" just as the wise and torah knowledgeable apostle Paul said, but that will be further investigated later.)
Now I will prove that torah does establish curses. Wait! I just did! Yes my friend, the partial list of passages I just supplied prove the fact to be just that, a Scriptural fact. Wordy comment from me is not necessary. Those who are unwilling to accept the concise, unambiguous statements from Scripture simply do not want to accept truth. I will not waste time with those who reject what the torah and Tanakh clearly teach since their bias has blinded them to the The Living God's easily discerned truth on this issue. The torah very definitely leads to a curse.
Seriously, no comment is necessary for most of the passages, especially those from the heart of torah since their meaning is easily understood using simple common sense reasoning. Even so, given the extent to which Paul's teaching of the "curse of the Law" is angrily rejected and the fury with which Paul is mercilessly attacked by anti-Paulists, I will methodically expand upon what the passages plainly teach or, to be more precise, why they teach it.
So, now that it has been proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that the term "curse of the Law" is an accurate description of Scriptural reality, I will proceed with identifying the causes of the curses.
To be continued ...