A. Thank you.  By Jewish History or Jewish tradition I mean information I’ve picked up from official Jewish writings that aren’t part of the Bible.  History books and commentary on the Old Testament, plus the so-called oral tradition that Jews believe God gave to Moses but wasn’t included in the Bible. These include the Mishna and Gemara, which together make up the Talmud. The Jews believe these are second only to the Bible in their authority.

A. The Christian Baptism is an adaptation of the centuries old Jewish Mikvah, which is what John the Baptist was performing.  It was (and is) a ritual purification by immersion in water, undertaken before the Sabbath and other Holy Days.  It also marked both the beginning and end of significant  periods in a person’s spiritual life.  John used it to symbolize the beginning of a person’s spiritual preparation to receive the coming Messiah.  As Christians we use it to symbolize the new birth after we’ve already received Him.  Therefore the purpose of John’s baptism was different from the one that we practice in Christianity.

A. I teach that this has never been revoked because it never has been.  Paul taught it to the Church in Corinth 20 years after the cross, during the Age of Grace, to be done out of respect for one’s spouse as well as for the unseen visitors who join the congregation for worship.  Therefore, comparing it to circumcision seems more than a little extreme.  Also, the so-called 2 witness method is not appropriate for deciding whether to accept or reject something one of God’s Apostles has taught while under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

A. BC means before Christ, but AD stands for Anno Domini, Latin for the Year of our Lord.  It supposedly began at His birth so there aren’t any missing years.

Why does it say he died two different ways?

A. When Judas tried to return the money, the priests couldn’t take it back because it was tainted, so they used it to buy a field from a potter. It was money belonging to Judas that paid for the field, so indirectly, he bought it. This transaction was prophesied by Zechariah about 500 years earlier. (Zech. 11:12-13)

Tradition says that Judas hanged himself on a tree above an embankment. Either the branch or the rope broke sending his body over the edge. When he hit the ground he burst open. It’s not clear whether this happened at the point of death or sometime later after his body had begun decomposing.

A. I don’t know where your Bible study leader got his information from, but the New Testament clearly made the observance of the Feasts of Israel optional for the Church long before 300 AD.  Their primary value for us lies in their historical and prophetic significance. Both can be greatly enhanced by observing the feasts, but we’re under no obligation to do so.

In Romans 14:5 Paul wrote:

One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.

And in Colossians 2:16-17 he said:

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

In saying these things he made all religious celebrations optional, subject to our individual convictions.

A. The Bible speaks of Jesus participating in Passover on the year He was crucified, and being present at the Feast of Tabernacles (John 7), and Hanukkah (John 10:22-23) at least once each.  There’s no record of His other activities as an observant Jew except for His attendance at weekly Sabbath services (Luke 4:16).

Q. First I would like to tell you what a tremendous influence the site has in my life, and how much I enjoy it. Your website is like a fountain of truth that I eagerly frequently visit when I am in thirst for truth and righteousness.

I recently read your article on “The Passover: History and Prophecy” This article like many others, I opened to read in enjoyment of another dose of truth that all of your articles seem to offer. I stumbled upon the part where you wrote about Jesus having the last Supper, or Passover meal, and where you claim to say he stopped at the third cup, the cup of redemption. I examined all the gospels and I cannot find a trace where it mentions what cup Jesus is on when he offers his blood as a covenant symbolized by the wine. It actually seems to imply that he in fact never drinks the wine at all, for I cannot find a passage in any of the gospels saying that he drank wine. Can you help me understand this?

A. Matt. 11:18-19 reads, “For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.” ‘

Then there’s Luke 22:17-18. After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

In both passages its clear that the Lord did partake of wine on occasion.

As for which cup of the Passover Jesus used to institute the communion memorial, you won’t find it in the Bible because it comes from Messianic Jewish tradition. But here are some points in it’s favor. First, the 3rd cup is taken after the dinner is over. Luke 22:20 says, In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”

But more importantly, the 3rd cup is called the cup of redemption because it recalls God’s 3rd promise to Moses from Exodus 6:6-7. “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.”

It’s hard to miss the symbolism. Every view of the cross brings to mind the Lord hanging there with outstretched arms in the ultimate act of redemption. And mighty acts of judgment were levied against the religious system, the people who rejected Him, and the powers of darkness as well. The Temple was destroyed and the people scattered, and Colossians 2:15 says, “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

All in all there’s a good circumstantial case for the Communion cup being the 3rd Cup of the Passover.

Q. I need your help to refute a charge an atheist has brought against the Bible. He claims the Bible says we “think with our hearts.” He claims approximately 920 verses say that we think with our hearts. Is he right? Does the Bible claim we think with our hearts? Isn’t it our soul that guides our actions?

A. In the Hebrew culture, as in many others, the heart symbolizes the seat of emotion. Thinking with our heart means thinking emotionally, based on our feelings. It’s not to be taken literally, any more than being heartbroken over a failed love affair means that the organ in our chest no longer works.

When Jeremiah 17:9 says that man’s heart is incurably wicked, it means that when we act on our feelings, we will almost invariably do something that’s opposed to God’s will for us. The hardest skill we must learn as believers is to listen to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and make “contrary to feelings” choices, deciding to act out of love instead of self-interest, jealously, revenge, etc.

Q. I am trying to find what colors were in the coat of Joseph and what did they mean. I have been unsuccessful trying to find this information. Could you help me?

A. The phrase translated coat of many colors that first appears in Genesis 37:3 is a controversial one, and may not mean that at all.

In the strictest sense it refers to an undergarment worn by both men and women that was long sleeved and full length. The Hebrew word translated colored really means that it went from the palms of the hands to the soles of the feet. It was usually made of linen and was sometimes embroidered. In the King James the fact that the word “many” is in italics means that it doesn’t appear in the original language. The NIV translates the phrase as “richly ornamented” but there’s a tradition that it actually means seamless. A seamless undergarment would be difficult to make but was much more comfortable, and therefore very expensive. Only the wealthy could justify such a garment, and perhaps this is a more likely reason for Joseph’s brothers to be jealous of him.

In any case, the fact that you can’t discover what the colors of Joseph’s robe were may be a good indication that the robe was not many colored at all.