Understanding 1 Corinthians 10:27

When I was first getting an understanding of Biblically clean eating and keeping other commandments in Scripture, 1 Corinthians 10:27 kept throwing a wrench in my understanding of the Bible.

This verse often gets translated like this:

"If any unbeliever invites you to a meal, and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience." -1 Corinthians 10:27 NIV

Isn't this giving permission for us to eat anything, including unclean animals? At least when someone serves it to us? And if I shouldn't raise questions of conscience, I guess that means I should disregard any concerns I have over the ethics and decisions of multi-national corporations that are largely in control of the food supply, and not worry about things like supporting local farmers, good growing practices, or fair trade.

While it's hard to understand the above passage as anything but a free pass to do whatever we want, that is incredibly confusing in light of so many other passages from Scripture about clean eating! Why does the Bible share the story of Daniel refusing to eat unclean meat? Why does Peter mention after his vision that he has never eaten anything unclean? Why were Adam and Eve kicked out of the garden because of eating something the Creator told them not to? Why does Leviticus succinctly enumerate which animals should not be eaten? What is the point of all this if we are ultimately allowed to eat anything?

We need to know that the ancient Greek did not have punctuation. It just had words. How you string them together will greatly impact the meaning of the words! Do you remember those illustrations from middle school English on the importance of commas? Words like, "I want to eat, Mother" can mean someone is telling their mom they want to have dinner. But if you remove the comma and are left with, "I want to eat Mother," then the same words take on a cannibalistic meaning! That's a silly example but it demonstrates how punctuation can dramatically change the meaning of a sentence.

When Scripture is translated into English, it's up to the translators to add the grammar and punctuation that make it a lot more readable for us. How could their personal beliefs and the religious tradition they are surrounded with not impact where they choose to put those punctuation marks? While I believe the word of YHWH is perfect, human translations of it are not.

The word for word Greek translation goes like this:

all - the - those being offered - to you - you eat - not any - thoroughly judging - through - the - knowledge

The first time I read this I stopped after, "All being offered to you you eat." But if you keep going you have, "All being offered to you you eat not any." What a difference! This gives us an entirely opposite meaning! In the Greek, there is no punctuation to indicate if the word for 'not any' should be paired with eating or with thoroughly judging. It's up to the reader to understand how these words fit with Scripture. We do that by looking at the context this statement is made in - what's going on in the rest of the chapter? what was being discussed before that? who is the audience? - and what the rest of the Bible says about this subject.

Which translation fits better with the context of this statement?

A few verses prior in 1 Corinthians 10:21, "You cannot drink from the cup of YHWH and the cup of demons." And just a few verses later, 1 Corinthians 10:31 says, "Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of YHWH," which illustrates that our decisions around food can glorify YHWH or not. From those verses it wouldn't make sense to say to not raise questions of conscience or use judgment when it comes to food matters.

Which translation fits better with the rest of the Bible?

We have instructions like, "you shall not eat what is unclean," lists explaining what can and cannot be eaten, examples of people like Daniel and Peter, and no indication whatsoever from the Messiah that they food instructions are no longer applicable. He even went out of his way to say, "I did not come to abolish the commandments." Translating the verse as, "Eat whatever is set before you without using your judgment," would be starkly opposed to other things the Bible says about eating.

There isn't anything in the context of this chapter or the rest of the Bible to support the common translation of, "Eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience." That translation is jarring and doesn't fit with the rest of Scripture. A few chapters prior Paul literally tells us not to eat something that would cause someone else to stumble, so it wouldn't make sense for him to say to eat anything now.

Are you a follower of church tradition or YHWH's word? If we call ourselves Bible believers, would it be more fitting to translate this verse in a way that lines up with the rest of Scripture or with church doctrine? For me, that's an easy choice.

I believe a better translation of this part of Scripture would be:

"Whatever is set before you eat nothing, ask questions for conscience's sake."

When we understand the verse this way it fits with the rest of Scripture, and the verse makes more sense itself. Otherwise, why would it throw the bit in there about the conscience or "thoroughly judging through knowledge"? Does that really sound like the Bible, "Go ahead and do whatever - don't worry about your conscience"? This book is filled with commandments on how to live and stories of examples we are to follow - including people literally dying to keep YHWH's instructions - and then suddenly, "Whatever situation you're in, don't worry about turning to Scripture to see what you're supposed to do." (Because 'the knowledge' would be knowledge of what the Bible says.) Not judging if something is acceptable according to Scripture or not would also be a direct contradiction from the Messiah's instruction in John 7:24 to judge righteously!

It's also interesting to look at why this might have been said. We know that many early believers who had been part of Judaism followed an unbiblical rule of not eating with unbelievers. This began to change following Peter's vision, so many former Jews were eating with people who were new to the faith, or unbelievers, for the very first time. Paul is giving practical advice on how you act when you are in that situation, since many people he knew hadn't experienced that before. Also happening at the time was a huge evangelism push, where believers travelled far and wide to share the good news of the Messiah. These people were intentionally going to the homes of unbelievers and needed to know how to conduct themselves in a godly way. Paul is reminding his audience that unbelievers or even new believers are typically not familiar with the Biblical instructions about food, so that they don't accidentally eat something the Bible says not to while dining in someone's home.

This verse is an admonishment to actively work to keep the Bible's instructions about what we eat. It is literally telling us to ask questions before diving into a meal that someone else has prepared. When we have dinner at a family reunion, brunch at a friend's, or go out for a meal it is appropriate to ask questions about the ingredients so that we can maintain a Biblically clean diet. Questions like, "What's in this salad?" or "Is the quiche vegetarian?" or "Is this sausage beef or pork?" are okay to ask so that you can be informed about the decisions you make! Since we are to glorify YHWH with what we eat, that effort is well worth it.

More on Biblically clean eating:
Understanding Peter's Vision
Understanding the Messiah Declaring All Foods Clean
Five Reasons Believers Should Keep the Bible's Dietary Commandments

Syncretism - What the Bible Says about Mixing Beliefs

Today we are going to be talking about syncretism. Do you know what this is? Syncretism is defined as: 

-the amalgamation, or the attempted amalgamation, of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought
-the combination of different forms of belief or practice
-incorporating pagan customs into the faith of the Bible

Just reading the definition of the word may be like flipping on a light switch for you. For most of my life it had never really crossed my mind that faith practices or beliefs could be combined, never mind that my own beliefs might be mixed with ideas not found in Scripture. Syncretism is mixing the word of YHWH with anything besides it. This is a big problem for us because while YHWH gives life, nothing else can.

What does Scripture say about mixing beliefs?

"You are not to worship YHWH in the way those nations worship their gods." -Deuteronomy 12:4

"Do not learn the ways of the nations." -Jeremiah 10:2

"When you pray, don't do so like the foreigners." -Matthew 6:7


These passages show that YHWH doesn't want us picking up ideas, customs, traditions, or beliefs from anyone besides himself. No matter how popular or 'nice' the practice may be, if it is not found in Scripture we are told not to take part. Unfortunately most sects of faith claiming to be based on Scripture have mixed in many customs and practices of foreign origin. (Please note that 'foreign' is used to denote things foreign from Scripture, not your nationality or traditions.) Examples of this would be mixing the ancient and ungodly customs of Christmas with the Biblical story of the birth of the Messiah. Or moving Sabbath worship and rest from the seventh day of the week to the first. Or using an image or statue as part of a worship service. Indeed there are a host of ideas not found in Scripture being welcomed into the Christian church today. We are expressly told not to combine YHWH's instructions on how to live with customs from other cultures. This mixing has lead many people away from the truth.

Mixing worship of the Living God with things he said not to do is syncretism and it is wrong. We are not allowed to worship however we please (see for example, the trouble the Israelites got themselves into with the golden calf incident), and that still applies to us today. The Messiah taught this with his words in Matthew telling us not to pray in the customs of other religions. It is important that we take these instructions seriously, and honestly evaluate our habits, beliefs, and practices in the light of Scripture. Are my beliefs consistent with what Scripture says? Do my daily life choices - from how I treat others, to what I eat, to what holidays I celebrate - reflect how Scripture says I should be living? Or does my lifestyle have more in common with the culture around me? Am I intentionally living in a way that honors YHWH's word? These are hard questions, but they are worth asking so that we can make the changes we need to. We are to be completely obedient to following his ways. In John 14:15 the Messiah tells us that if we love him we will keep his commands. Not his commands mixed with the ways of the nations.

Faith and Works: The Meaning of James 2:26

"It's not about works." Many of us have been taught that trying to 'earn' our salvation by what we do is an insult to the Messiah's blood. Since he paid the price for us we are free to do, well, almost anything we want so long as we are trying to serve him and mean well. We can set aside the commandments of the Creator if they aren't convenient to our lifestyle today. All we have to do is believe, any expectation on ourselves to live a certain way is an affront to the Messiah himself.

Is this what Scripture teaches? James 2:26 says that faith without works is dead. This passage makes it clear that our actions and deeds are significant to YHWH. James makes it clear that faith and works go together. Works alone aren't enough, but just having faith shows there is a conspicuous lack in our lives. This used to be a confusing concept to me (and no doubt to those who tried to remove this passage of Scripture from the Bible), I would hear it and then remember Galatians 2:16, that we are declared righteous by faith in the Messiah and not by works of the law. How do these fit together?

Let's take a step back to see that a better rendering of this passage from Galatians would be, "We are declared righteous by faith in the Messiah, and not by the works of the Aaronic priesthood." Scripture is not teaching that the commandments given to  the priests are wrong or bad, but they were only a temporary covering of sins until the Messiah came. We are not made righteous by the sacrifice of animals. It is not saying that the choices we make have no consequence before YHWH or in our lives. 

Like with the animal sacrifices, our actions alone are not going to make us righteous. You could keep every Sabbath of your life and never covet your neighbor's possessions, but without the Messiah it is not enough. However, once we have faith in the Messiah our works should reflect that! He himself said that if someone loves him they keep his commands (John 14:23), so don't think for a minute that your actions don't matter to him.

The Messiah wants us to love him, and therefore he wants us to be obedient to the commandments in Scripture. Not that our salvation depends on being able to perfectly walk that out every day. Like a loving husband, he offers grace and mercy when his bride is not perfect. Not to worry, your salvation doesn't depend on you. But you showing love to the Messiah? You get to do that by keeping his commands.

The Meaning of Yom Teruah (Spiritual Significance of the Feast of Trumpets)

Have you ever wondered about Yom Teruah, the Hebrew name behind the Feast of Trumpets and wanted to know what this special time is all about? Yom Teruah is a significant Biblical event that happens on the first day of the seventh month in the Biblical calendar. It translates something like Day of Sounding or Day of Awakening Blasts. It's commonly called Feast of Trumpets, which is a pretty good name but it doesn't quite describe the significance of the day, or the Hebrew word teruah. Let's delve a little more into the meaning of 'teruah' to get a better idea of what this set apart time of YHWH is.

If we read Scripture in Hebrew, 'teruah' would be a common word to us. It is used something like 36 times just in the Old Testatment. Strongs defines it as: alarm, signal, sound of tempest, shout, shout or blast of war or alarm or joy.

Where do we see teruah in Scripture?

Teruah is what Israel did that brought down the walls of Jericho. (Joshua 6:20) 

There was a great teruah when the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the Israelite camp when they were battling the Philistines. (1 Samuel 4:5)

Moses sent Pinchas the priest to war with an instrument to teruah with. (Numbers 31:6)

When King David moved the Ark of the Covenant, it was with great teruah from himself and all Israel. (2 Samuel 6:15)

There was a teruah for joy when the Temple foundation was rebuilt. (Ezra 3:12)

Job described the face of someone accepted by God as teruah. (Job 33:26)

Music and singing to worship YHWH is teruah. (Psalm 150:5, Psalm 33:3)

Offerings were restarted to YHWH on Yom Teruah. (Ezra 3:6)

The great day of YHWH is a day of teruah. (Zephaniah 1:16)

The Creator himself shall go up in teruah to the sound of a shofar. (Psalm 47:5)

Does this help set the stage a little bit better? We can see that teruah is a word that goes with big things: the presence of God, conquering enemies, rebuilding the Temple, and the joy that comes from worship and obedience to YHWH. (Also the significant consequences of not worshiping or being obedient to the Creator.)

While the Leviticus 23 description of Yom Teruah is brief, we are told that this day is, "a remembrance of teruah." A day to remember the amazing things that YHWH did for Israel throughout Scripture, and what he has done in your personal life! Times we have faced warnings or gone to war, seen walls torn down, remembered covenants, and seen giants conquered. The Feast of Trumpets is a day of teruah, and is a time we are to remember all of that.

It is cool that all of these things were done with teruah - that music, joyful shout, alarm cry - because that really shows how powerful what you listen to is. For years I worked at a Christian radio station and we would hear from listeners all the time about what a difference listening to our station made to their spiritual, mental, and emotional health. That's how powerful truth is - it can totally transform every aspect of your life.

And see how this fits with the prophetic significance of the return of the Messiah on the Feast of Trumpets? While teruah covers some different meanings (alarm and joy don't usually go together), they all fit so well with what I imagine it will be like when the Messiah returns. What could be more joyful or alarming, depending on your relationship with him?

Blessed are the people who know that joyful teruah. -Psalm 89:15

More posts on the Feast of Trumpets:
The Beginner's Guide to the Feast of Trumpets
The Significance of the Shofar During Yom Teruah
Feast of Trumpets Bible Verses

Hebrew School: What is sin?

In today's lesson I want to focus on understanding what sin actually is according to Scripture. Too often the definition gets muddled and people are left thinking that 'sin' is just having a bad attitude or in general "falling short" or that being a 'sinner' is just a vague sense of not being good enough. There is a lot of confusion about what sin is and if we don't stop to define it we can't end up with some very incorrect ideas about Scripture.

In John 8, the Messiah tells the woman who was caught in adultery to, "Go and sin no more." This tells us that the definition of sin to Yahusha is clear cut and easily understandable. This is not like an encounter with an upset boss who tells you not to disappoint him again when you're not sure what he is upset about in the first place. That doesn't leave you with any tangible ways of how to please your superior. But when the Messiah said it, the woman understood that she really could stop sinning because she understood what that was.

What is sin according to Scripture?

1 John 3:4 tells us.

Anyone who commits sin violates Torah, for sin is the transgression of the Torah. RSTNE

Everyone who keeps sinning is violating Torah - indeed, sin is violation of Torah. CJB

Everyone doing sin also does lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. BYNV

Everyone who sins breaks God's law, because sin is the same as breaking God's law. CEV

Scripture defines sin as disobeying the commandments of YHWH. This particular sentence was penned by John, who of course as one of the disciples spent a lot of time with the Messiah. If Yahusha had taught that it was okay to disobey the instructions of YHWH John would have heard him, but he didn't!

Is this just talking about commandments in the New Testament?

First of all, when John wrote this there was no 'New Testament.' At the time the Scriptures consisted of the Tanakh, or what many would call the 'Old' Testament. All of John's basis for commandments would have come from the Tanakh, as did all the Messiah's teachings on the instructions.

Second, when instructions are given in the 'New Testament' they stem from the commandments in the Torah. We see the Messiah do this many times like in Matthew 5:27-28 when he talked about adultery. He acknowledged the commandment to not commit adultery, and then clarified that you shouldn't even think about it. He gave us a better understanding of the commandments, he never did away with them.

What does this mean?

It means we don't have to wonder what sin is or if we're doing it. By studying Scripture we learn the commandments of YHWH and that tells us how we should live. By keeping the commands we are obedient to YHWH. He does not want us to be in the dark, blindly guessing at every decision what his will would be. Understanding what sin is empowers us to walk with confidence in our faith.

Read these passages with a better understanding of sin.

"If you don't do what is right, violating the Torah is crouching at the door - it wants you, but you can rule over it." -Genesis 4:7

"If we confess we have violated his commands he is faithful and just to forgive us." -1 John 1:9

"He bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to Torah violations and live for righteousness." -1 Peter 2:24

"Forgive others when they violate the commandments against you, and YHWH will also forgive you." -Matthew 6:14

"Should we violate the Torah because we have the favor of YHWH? Of course not." -Romans 6:15

"Direct my footsteps with your word. Don't let violating the commandments rule over me." -Psalm 119:133

"We have violated the Torah and done wrong." -Daniel 9:5

Yahusha said, "I tell you that everyone who violates the Torah is a slave." -John 8:34

"I have hidden your word in my heart, that I wouldn't disobey your commands." -Psalm 119:11

"He did not violate the Torah." -Hebrews 4:15

More Hebrew School:
What a Hebrew is
The Set Apart Times of Scripture
Keeping the Law...even if we can't do so perfectly
What a 'no-work day' is
The Northern and Southern Kingdoms
Syncretism!
Why We Don't Sacrifice Animals

5 Things The Messiah Taught About the Sabbath

These are some of the things the Messiah said about the Sabbath day. Religious leaders were often upset with his actions on the Sabbath, not because he was breaking God's laws about the set apart day, but because he was setting aside the tedious manmade rules they had made up. Jesus was always in favor of going back to the simplicity of what Scripture instructs, so that keeping the Sabbath is doable for all of God's people.

The Messiah always kept and honored Shabbat. We see him eating in someone's home, instead of buying food in the marketplace. We see him teaching, in place of doing his carpentry work. We see him going to congregation, as opposed to working at home. He walks with his disciples, instead of saddling up a horse or hiring a chariot for transportation. All of those things he did to honor YHWH's set apart day. He also talked about the Sabbath.

Here are five things the Messiah taught about the Sabbath day:

1. "Shabbat was made for mankind." -Mark 2:27
Yes, YHWH created Shabbat for us. not for his own benefit. Not for the angels. Not just for the sake of having rules. Not only for the people who lived 3,000 years ago. He made it for us, as a gift. A custom gift; this is not like trying to squeeze into your little sister's jeans. This is a tailor made jacket that fits perfectly. It suits us. Yahusha taught that the Sabbath was a gift from YHWH especially for us.

2. "The son of man is master of the Sabbath." -Luke 6:5

Yahusha chose to describe himself in relation to Shabbat, and that shows us part of his identity that he values. Mastering something doesn't make it null and void. On the contrary, when someone says they have mastered something - whether that's organic chemistry, croissant baking, or a second language - it means they have purposefully spent a lot of time on it and it's important to them. Why would we treat the Messiah's declaration of Shabbat differently? He was speaking of the Sabbath because it's something he cares about.

3. He made a practice of teaching people on the Sabbath. -Luke 4:31

Many of us have been told  that it doesn't matter what day of the week we worship YHWH, but isn't it worthwhile to see that our Savior made it a point to do this on the seventh day of the week? He didn't limit himself to teaching one day a week but his habit was teaching on Shabbat. Yahusha organized his life with respect to this day. We can also see that he expects his people to learn on Shabbat.

4. "It is permitted in Torah to do good deeds on Shabbat." -Matthew 12:12

Many have taken the accusations of the Pharisees to mean that the Messiah violated the Sabbath. Truthfully they were only accusing him of breaking their own traditions, not commandments of YHWH. Yahusha teaches that it's okay to disregard manmade rules or expectations for what the Sabbath day looks like, as long as we honor YHWH's instructions. He also tells us here that Shabbat contradicts nothing that YHWH has said because we are free to keep all of his commandments on this day.

5. People get healed on the Sabbath. -Mark 3:5
Whoa. The number of times Yahusha healed someone on Shabbat show that YHWH is trying to communicate something with us. While healing is certainly possible any day of the week it is worth noticing that the Messiah consistently healed those who came to him on Shabbat.

This list is not exhaustive but we can see that Shabbat was something important to both the Messiah and to the writers of the Gospels. Many teachings recorded in Scripture were spoken by the Messiah on the Sabbath and then reiterated by Paul and others on later Sabbath days. We can now make the same choice to honor YHWH's set apart day.

More on the Sabbath:
What to Do on the Sabbath
Sabbath in the New Testament
Why I'm Still Keeping the Sabbath

Israel: Overcoming with YHWH

When you hear Israel what comes to mind? The land along the Mediterranean in the Middle East or the those former Egyptian slaves wandering the desert are the typical answers for most of us. But originally Israel was a name for a person.

After wrestling through the night, Yahusha changed Jacob's name to Israel in Beresheet 32:28. In the Restoration Scriptures it reads like this,

And the Man said, your name shall no longer be called  Yaakov, but Yisrael: for as a sar you have power with Elohim and with men, and have prevailed.

In other words, you are now called Israel because you have power with YHWH and have overcome. YHWH helps you overcome.

In Western culture names are given mostly for how they sound. The meaning of the name is secondary or not considered at all. But in Scripture names are given for the significance of what they mean. When women like Havah, Leah, Rachel, and Hannah give birth they tell us why they gave their children the names they did. The meaning of their names is significant.

A few name meanings in Scripture:

Yahudah - I will praise YHWH

Eliyahu - My God is YHWH

Yeremiyahu - Whom YHWH has appointed

Eliezer - YHWH helps

Yitzchak - Laughter

Micah - Who is like YHWH

Sarah - Princess

Shmuel - God heard

Moshe - To draw out

Yahusha - YHWH is salvation

Think for a minute the impact of getting called by one of these names. Would your life be different if every time someone spoke your name you were reminded that YHWH appointed you? How could your mom calling, "Come here My God is YHWH," sink that truth into your being? What was it like when people were whispering of Yahusha and literally saying things like "The one doing miracles is YHWH is salvation,"? We can see everyone on this list lived out their name. Sarah is the matriarch of all Israel. Moshe drew the people of Israel out of Egypt. Elijah's God was YHWH.

YHWH renamed Jacob Israel. YHWH chose to call the Hebrews Israel. Why?

Israel literally translates as "YHWH overcomes."

I love that. YHWH overcomes. YHWH overcomes evil.  YHWH overcomes religious lies and partial truths. YHWH overcomes my broken nature. YHWH overcomes demonic bondage. YHWH overcomes sin. YHWH overcomes anxiety. YHWH overcomes a corrupt and pagan world.

YHWH overcomes it all.

YHWH calls His people Israel. Not some of His people. Not the ones with a certain bloodline. All of His children He calls Israel. Israel is the family of YHWH. When you accept Yahusha and make teshuvah you are grafted into Israel (Romans 11). He calls you Israel. He reminds you that He overcomes.

Gilyahna/Revelation 2:7 says this:

He that has an ear, let him hear what the Ruach says to the Yisraelite congregations; To him that overcomes I will give to eat of the eytz chayim.

Overcome and you will get to eat from the tree of  life. If you have ears--hear that.

Israel is a reminder that we are to overcome this world. YHWH will help us. YHWH overcomes.