New Testament Languages

[Bithynian]

I think that’s the case only if the are mislabeling it.

There is enduring scholarly controversy about whether the various Greek terms used in the 1st-5th centuries AD that refer to “Hebrew”, e.g. Ἑβραίς and others, refer actually to Hebrew, Mishnaic Hebrew and/or Aramaic.

 

[Wife.of.Gabriel]

Hebrew wasn’t Jesus or the Apostles’ native language, Aramaic was. The language most widely spoken by Jews at the time was Greek and that’s why the New Testament was written primarily in Greek with just a few words or phrases in Aramaic.

At the time of Jesus ministry, the Scripture was the Septuagint which was about a 200-300 yr old (At the time) Greek Translation of what we now call the Old Testament. This Greek Scripture is what was read during their (Jewish) worship services for centuries. The New Testament quotes the Septuagint when the Old Testament was quoted. Hebrew was reintroduced as a language used for Jewish worshippers during a counsel held after the destruction of the Temple about 40ish years after Jesus death & resurrection and the Jews translated the Greek Septuagint into Hebrew and as they did that, they removed all books that were written originally in Greek (never written in Hebrew to begin with) - like 7 books were removed, if I remember correctly.

 

[OurLadyofSorrows]

I have a few coin examples that are bilingual, Greek and Hebrew, in circulation during the last and first centuries. I will make a new thread that wont take this off topic to discuss them. There is quite a bit of archaeological proof for Hebrew in use alongside languages of its oppressors.

 

[Wm777]

I have a few coin examples that are bilingual, Greek and Hebrew, in circulation during the last and first centuries. I will make a new thread that wont take this off topic to discuss them. There is quite a bit of archaeological proof for Hebrew in use alongside languages of its oppressors.

Actually, you could post it here…

It might help if people cited sources…

I very much appreciate everything everyone is saying, but one common problem with social media is a lack of references.

Everyone always talks about stuff, but people rarely do more than opine on most topics. It tends to be a bit different with the Bible, but still - when you get into different historical stuff a lot of it becomes hearsay…

 

[Bithynian]

I very much appreciate everything everyone is saying, but one common problem with social media is a lack of references.

For the linguistic environment at the time of Christ, the best general reference is The Oxford Handbook of Jewish Daily in Roman Palestine. Chapter 7 focusses on languages, and is authored by Willem Smellik, Professor of Hebrew and Aramaic at University College, London.

But to summarise the main points in his chapter:

• Hebrew was not dead at the time of Christ’s ministry. It existed in two forms, Bibliblcal Hebrew and Mishnaic Hebrew. The former was a liturgical and academic language, the latter was a vernacular.
• But it is nonetheless clear that Hebrew had lost ground to Aramaic, which became the “common vernacular” of Palestinian Jews.
• “For the majority of Palestinian Jews, Greek was probably not the native language, but an acquired vernacular, yet it is difficult to determine the extent of the knowledge and use of Greek among the Jewish population…” (p. 129)
• “Palestinian rabbis were well aware of the co-existence of different native tongues in Roman Palestine.” (p. 125)

Likewise, one cannot easily extrapolate philological and archaeological evidence from 1st century AD Roman Palestine to all Jewish communities across the Mediterranean. Certainly Smelik makes the point that not all Jews were fluent in Hebrew (whether Mishnaic or Biblical): “according to rabbinic sources, certain provisions were made for those who did not speak Hebrew” (p. 125).

 

[OurLadyofSorrows]

Actually, you could post it here

I keep getting flagged for off topic so will make a new thread and link Languages and pictures used with coins of this era are absolutely fascinating

 

[BartholomewB]

the Jews translated the Greek Septuagint into Hebrew

No, the Hebrew originals had never been lost, except possibly for Tobit and one or two other books that were excluded from the canon.

 

[BartholomewB]

Certainly Smelik makes the point that not all Jews were fluent in Hebrew (whether Mishnaic or Biblical): “according to rabbinic sources, certain provisions were made for those who did not speak Hebrew” (p. 125).

In Jerusalem, at least, those “certain provisions” included their own synagogues, according to a footnote in the RSVCE:

6 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists[a] murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution.

Footnotes:​

1. 6.1 Hellenists: Greek-speaking Jews of the Dispersion, who had their own synagogues in Jerusalem and read the scriptures in Greek.

Acts 6:1 RSVCE - - Bible Gateway

 

[Dan_Defender]

At the time of Jesus ministry, the Scripture was the Septuagint which was about a 200-300 yr old (At the time) Greek Translation of what we now call the Old Testament. This Greek Scripture is what was read during their (Jewish) worship services for centuries.

I disagree because most of the Dead Sea Scrolls are written in Hebrew.

 

[Wife.of.Gabriel]

I disagree because most of the Dead Sea Scrolls are written in Hebrew.

Some of the Dead Sea Scrolls were written in Hebrew, but it was an ancient alphabet of Hebrew used called Paleo-Hebrew which fell out of use in the 5th century BCE/AD aka as Before the Greek Septuagint was miraculously translated & used. The rest of the Dead Sea Scrolls were written in both Greek & Aramaic.

The breakaway Jewish sect called Essenes, that is believed to have been the owners of these scrolls, might have maintained their use of some Hebrew in their own worship services, but since their more recently dated scrolls were written in Greek & Aramaic, it could simply be that they kept the Hebrew scrolls because of religious sentimentality since they were ancient, hundreds of years old, in their time &/or they couldn’t afford to obtain ALL of the more “modern”/widely used of their time, the Greek Septuagint, but it is clear that they were able to acquire some of the Septuagint since they had parts of it and that indicates that their sect wasn’t against the use of non-Hebrew scriptures (as was the case of Jews after the final destruction of the Temple).

 

[Dan_Defender]

No. The majority of the Dead Sea Scrolls are in Hebrew, with only some fragments written in the ancient paleo-Hebrew alphabet.