“To Train Up a Child contains the methods of "traditional child training that parents have done for thousands of years in all cultures and all religions,"

Announcement: As of May 4, 2012, Samuel Martin's book "Thy Rod and Thy Staff, They Comfort Me: Christians and the Spanking Controversy" is now available for free - For details, please see -  http://samuelmartin.blogspot.com/2012/05/pen-is-mightier-than-punch.html

Many of you may have seen this discussion between Janet Heimlich and Michael Pearl of late. In that discussion and article which accompanies the video are some interesting quotes. One of them is as follows and will be the subject of my short discussion here.

“To Train Up a Child contains the methods of "traditional child training that parents have done for thousands of years in all cultures and all religions," Pearl argued. "And it's not information primarily derived from the Bible, not at all. My parents trained me up in the way that I trained my children, and my children are now training up their children the same way." http://www.christianpost.com/news/biblical-chastisement-are-evangelical-christians-more-likely-to-abuse-video-71332/

Michael Pearl actually believes this statement, but he is dead wrong. Unfortunately, it seems that Pearl obtained a BS, but it seems he did not read too many history books along the way. Had he have, he would realize that you cannot generalize when it comes to historical facts. We should not be too surprised though because of the almost 80 quotes I could find in his book, they were all from the King James Version of the Bible with 2/3rds of these from the Old Testament. Nothing wrong with the King James Version, but if you are living in rural Tennessee trying to understand information that was happening several thousand miles away across an ocean some three thousand years ago using tools that are themselves 400 years old, you’re going to perhaps have limitations in understanding. I mean some of us are doing our best to work with Scripture in the modern world of the Internet, the IPAD and the IPHONE, while others are still using tin cans with strings attached to communicate. Anything wrong with two tin cans and string? No, but when it comes to understanding Scripture, give me an IPHONE and an IPAD over two tin cans and piece of string any day
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So let’s look at his generalization referenced above: "traditional child training that parents have done for thousands of years in all cultures and all religions," Pearl argued. "And it's not information primarily derived from the Bible, not at all.

So, as Pearl tells us, he is just doing what ‘all cultures and all religions” have been doing for “thousands of years.” Well, let’s check this out.

Don’t Generalize

When I was in college, I followed the BA track and took lots of courses on history, sociology, anthropology, etc. I even earned a minor in anthropology as a part of my degree which focused on Middle Eastern studies.

Early on in my academic experience, I was given a solid lesson in not generalizing. I was writing this paper about Europe and made some really ridiculous generalizations in the paper. I was talking about what was taking place in “Europe” in the 14^th century. To hear me tell it, “Europe” at that time just represented one homogeneous group with little difference or distinction and this is where I got rightfully corrected.

My teacher told me: Sam, this is an ‘A” paper, but don’t GENERALIZE. To say that what was happening in Bohemia in the 14^th century was the same thing as what was taking place in Paris or Copenhagen during the same period is just really silly nonsense and my teacher was right. I remembered that lesson still today just as clear as it was now some 20 years ago when I was in university.

So generalizing is dangerous territory, but Pearl marches right in. To say that “all cultures and all religions” have done what Pearl is doing today is, with all due respect, absolutely ridiculous.

Let’s look at a case study.

There is a great book called “The Child in Christian Thought” (Eerdmans: 2000) edited by Professor Marcia Bunge who is one of the giants in the child theology movement. Professor Bunge has written a number of books and in fact we are waiting for a new one to come out this year which promises to be her most exciting offering yet and it will be not disappoint because it will be about child theology. This book contains essays from the cream of the global theological world currently dealing with the subject of child theology.

In that book, there is a chapter titled: ‘Wonderful Affection’: Seventeenth Century Missionaries to New France on Children and Childhood by Clarissa Atkinson, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the Harvard Divinity School.

Let's look at a few quotes from this article because it is very relevant to our discussion here.

“Along with the gospel, Christian missionaries carried to the New World distinct and deeply held beliefs and assumptions about children and childhood. Such beliefs and assumptions are embedded in culture, and in Christian contexts associated also with the theological anthropology of particular times, places, and religious subgroups or denominations. In the seventeenth century, the ideologies of childhood of Roman Catholic missionaries to New France drew them into close and intense encounters with people of cultures radically unlike their own. To Jesuit and Ursuline missionaries, the indigenous people of Eastern Canada held not only different but horrifyingly mistaken views about many things – notable among these, the nature, education, and discipline of children.” (pg. 227)

So, these missionaries about 400 years ago from Europe had some specific ideas about children in mind (similar in fact to those of Pearl), but what did they find in Eastern Canada? Well, according to Pearl, “all cultures and all religions” have been doing what he is today doing for “thousands of years”, all except these people in Eastern Canada that is.

This is because “the Jesuits, enthusiastic proponents of the widespread belief in physical discipline among early modern Europeans, insisted upon such punishment on their French schools. Neither their humanist tradition nor their dedication to education countered their acceptance of the general view that beating a child was a necessary and appropriate part of moral and intellectual training.” (ibid, pg. 237)

To these well intentioned French Europeans who went to Canada as missionaries among the native peoples 400 years ago, they brought their belief in corporal punishment with them. But what did they find when they arrived?

“The most striking and significant comments by Jesuits on cultural difference concern the discipline, punishment, and ‘spoiling’ of children. From the very beginning, the missionaries were both struck by the Indians’ love for their children and horrified at the way they raised them.  “They treat their children with wonderful affection, but they preserve no discipline, for they neither themselves correct them not allow others to do so.” (JR 1:277) This attitude and behavior interfered with instruction and conversion The theme is repeated over and over: children had to be taught in boarding schools away from home because their parents would not allow them to be properly trained – that is, subjected to the corporal punishment that was taken for granted in French homes and schools.” (ibid.)

This phenomenon was not limited to Canada. Note the following testimony from a Canadian missionary:

“All the Savage tribes of these quarters, and of Brazil, as we are assured, cannot chastise a child or see one chastised. How much trouble this will give us in carrying out our plans of teaching the young.” (ibid, pg. 238)

A final thought summarizes how these two groups (French missionaries and native communities looked at each other.

“The affection shows by native adults toward children looked to the missionaries like spoiling, while French discipline looked to the natives like incomprehensible brutality.” (ibid, pg. 240-241)

Let’s not put our heads in the sand though. The native communities were not always 100% kind to all children, especially orphans, but this article illustrates an important point which we are here emphasizing:
I reiterate in saying that this article helps demonstrate that to say that “all cultures and all religions” have done what Pearl is doing today is absolutely ridiculous. Just in this article we have testimony from 17^th century Canada referring also to the same time period of native peoples also living in Brazil that they did not follow this European model of child rearing which had corporal punishment as a key element.

This is why our dear friend Pearl needs to stop generalizing and start learning some facts about some of the things he is asserting in his books.

Let me conclude by saying that I believe that the teachings in Mr. Michael Pearl’s books concerning corporal punishment come out of this European tradition of corporal punishment and they represent the very worst gutter theology (to quote Professor William Webb of Toronto Seminary in Canada) on the religious book market today. Those who purchase these books are warned to take care to consider alternative points of view because the point of view given by Pearl and his supporters is very narrow and lacks any serious investigation of history, culture, sociology, or anthropology, but rather relies on opening up the King James Version of the Bible and pulling out a few verses here and there and adapting it to a cultural lifestyle which is by no means necessarily connected to the Biblical context at all.

A new gender equality and role for women was an element of the Messianic age

A new gender equality and role for women was an element of the Messianic age

It is not often realized, but the Bible speaks clearly about the fact that a new role and inclusion of women in the development of the Messianic age on earth was going to happen.

The Messianic age was going to be something different. Note what Isaiah says about this time:

“The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them. The cow and the bear shall graze; their young shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. The nursing child shall play over the hole of the cobra, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the adder's den.” (Isaiah 11:6-8) (ESV)

Relationships were not going to be the same between man and animal, between child and animal and between animal and animal. But note this. They were also not going to be the same between man and woman! This is because man and woman were going to participate jointly in the emergence of the Messianic age.

This is the exact teaching of the Apostle Peter in Acts 2, who quotes the same teaching from the book of Joel and Peter does this right at the very beginning of the Christian Church. This new movement called Christianity was going to involve men and women equally. Note what he says:

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, I will pour forth my Spirit upon all flesh: And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, And your young men shall see visions, And your elders shall dream dreams: Yes and on my bondmen and on my bondmaids in those days will I pour forth of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.” (Acts 2:17,18)

This text cannot be much clearer. There is no exclusion here. It says very clearly “daughters” and “bondmaids” and that “they will prophesy.” Luke, under the guidance here of Paul, is showing the gender equality aspect of the new teaching of Christianity. It does not stop here. Go through the rest of Acts and you will find the same thing in evidence.

Really though the place to see the seeds of this gender equality are to be found in the companion book written by Luke under Paul’s guidance: the Gospel of Luke itself. Let us first look at the Gospel of Luke and we will see an obvious focus on gender equality.

Gender equality in the Gospel of Luke

The Gospel of Luke is fundamentally different than the other two Synoptic Gospels as we have shown and one area where there are obvious differences between Matthew and Mark is in the area of its orientation towards women. This orientation has been well recognized by Christians scholars throughout the years because it is such a clear difference.

A good summary of this view is found in the following quotation:

“Most naturally also in Luke we find the most frequent allusions to that which has been one of the most striking distinctions between the old and modern world – the position of women as a fellow-heir of the kingdom of heaven, sharing in the same responsibilities and hopes,” (Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol v, pg. 554. article: ‘Luke’)

Let us look at a very clear example of this in Luke’s Gospel (there are many). It is not something isolated or something that could really just be subject to one person’s interpretation. In no way! It is a cross cutting aspect of Luke’s Gospel. Women just keep be referenced in Luke in a way which is not the case for the other Synoptic Gospels.

Let’s not stop here though, many women themselves in Jerusalem knew of these prophecies and were looking for the emergence of this period of time in history. One such woman is mentioned very clearly in the Gospel of Luke. She was “Anna, a prophetess, daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher (she was of great age, having lived with a husband seven years from her virginity, and she a widow even unto eight four years), who departed not from the temple, worshipping with fastings and supplications night and day.” (Luke 2:36-38)

If we just read right over this and don’t see something being pointed out here, we are missing out its importance. Luke, under the guidance once again of St. Paul here, is showing that the Messianic age was commencing and here, not only does the prophet Simeon (Luke 2:26-31) get to bless the baby Jesus, Luke and Paul make sure that everyone knew that God was including women in this process exactly as the prophet Joel had said would take place which Peter quotes in Acts 3.

What did this great prophetess Anna do? “And coming up at that very hour she gave thanks to God, and spake of Him [Jesus] to all that were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.” (Acts 2:38).

When we think about what kind of a woman Anna must have been? She was over 100 years old and would have commanded great respect among the people. It says that she had been fasting and praying in the Temple, day and night, for 84 years! She was called a “prophetess” and her opinion would have not been taken lightly by people.

Note: This is a small excerpt to a much larger paper I have on this subject. Over 51,000 words already. Hope to bring that out in the future.

What Can the Sabbath Teach Us About Child Rearing practices in Ancient Hebraic Society?

An excerpt from "What Can the Sabbath Teach Us About
Child Rearing practices in Ancient Hebraic Society?"

A new research study

by

Samuel Martin

The Sabbath is one of the most important teachings in all of the Holy Scriptures. It is a commandment of God whose roots stretch back to the earliest of times. It is a cultural marker which today and in the past has served to distinguish those adherents of the faith of Judaism. It was a holy day of rest in ancient times about which we have a great deal of information about what it meant to the ancient Hebrews and from this information, we are able to piece together good understandings of the role that this weekly holy day played in the religious and daily life of the ancient Hebrews.

In this paper, we are not going to look at the teaching of the Sabbath with the view to better understand specifically the day itself. No! We are going to use the Sabbath itself as a type of methodology to help us better understand how this day, the practices associated with it, the rituals and the symbolic meanings connect together to paint a picture from which we can make reasonable suggestions about practically how the Sabbath itself affected child rearing practices.

In addition to the Sabbath itself, I intend to also bring in some fundamental Christian theological beliefs which help us to better understand symbolically how important the Sabbath is for Christians and one key aspect of what the Sabbath is designed to show us.

What we are going to find is that in studying the physical aspects and rules associated for observing the Sabbath, we will have a better understanding of the fundamental role that this day played in the religious system of ancient Israel. In addition, when we are open to consider the more symbolic teachings of what the Sabbath meant to convey, we can then expound and extend these symbolic teachings to their reasonable conclusions.

Here we are not speaking of mystical or esoteric teachings which are hidden and mysterious, but rather we are dealing with well-established beliefs that were well known among the general population in the Second Temple period concerning what the Sabbath symbolically taught the ancient Israelite. END




Sincerely,

Samuel Martin
Project Director
New Foundation for Biblical Research

One day we won’t have to keep them so close, but until then: Hang on tight - Part Two

One day we won’t have to keep them so close, but until then: Hang on tight - Part Two

This post has been republished in a new book referenced below:

Amazon.com: Thy Rod and Thy Staff They Comfort Me - Book IV: Selected Essays on the Subject of Spanking Children in Support of Peaceful Parenting (9780978533984): Martin, Samuel: Books

One day we won’t have to keep them so close, but until then: Hang on tight - Part One

One day we won’t have to keep them so close, but until then: Hang on tight - Part One

This post has been republished in a new book referenced below:

Amazon.com: Thy Rod and Thy Staff They Comfort Me - Book IV: Selected Essays on the Subject of Spanking Children in Support of Peaceful Parenting (9780978533984): Martin, Samuel: Books

Christmas Narratives in the Bible

Christmas is a wonderful time. It is the a time when we remember and reflect on the fact that God became man being born of a virgin just some ten miles from where I am writing this.

However, every Christmas I have to admit that what is often displayed as "fact" associated with Jesus' birth shows just how mixed up we all can be.

Just today in watching a particular broadcast of a major religious leader, I noted some of these "facts". Here was a display of the baby Jesus with his mother and father in a manger and who were around Him? Yes, of course, the three wise men.

But wait a minute isn't this the Biblical teaching? No, it is not.

The fact is, the story of the wise men visiting Jesus in Bethlehem took place some 15 months after He was born. St. Luke tells us that the shepherds found a baby lying in a manger (Luke 2:16) St. Matthew tells us that the wise men found a little child in a house (Matt. 2:11).

The wise men did not visit the manger and they did not visit a baby that was just born. However, this is what the vast majority of Christians believe.

Talking about this very subject, Fr. John Warburton, of the Shrine of St. Joseph in California talked about this very issue. Fr. Warburton gives the common view held by many and how even he had to change his mind based on the plain teachings of the Holy Scriptures.

"For most of my life, I comfortably presumed that Jesus was born on December 25, right at the juncture between B.C. and A.D The Gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus was "about thirty years of age" (Luke 3:23) in the 'fifteenth year of Tiberius' (Luke 3:1). The sixth century Roman monk Dionysius Exiguus, trusted St. Luke's report. He subtracted 29 from the fifteenth year of Tiberius in order to establish Jesus' birth as the center point of human history. This is the calendar we use today.
     Each year in the Church's Liturgy and in traditions using crib sets at home, I became accustomed to imagining the birth of Jesus in a stable just past midnight on Christmas Eve, the visit of the angels and shepherds later that night, and then, after twelve days the visit of the three kings. Imagine my consternation when I began to study the Gospels more carefully and became aware of some vexing problems and seeming contradictions. For instance, St. Luke writes that the holy Family returned to Nazareth after the presentation of the child Jesus in the Temple (Luke 2:39). Whereas St. Matthew informs us that the Holy Family fled in haste from Bethlehem to Egypt just after the visit of the Magi (Matthew 2:13-15). St. Luke tells is that the shepherds found a baby lying in a manger (Luke 2:16). St. Matthew tells us that the magi found a child in a house ((Matthew 2:11)." (Guardian of the Redeemer, 2000th Anniversary of the Nativity, Oblates of St. Joseph - Santa Cruz, CA: 2000)

Yes, the Bible is clear. Jesus was born in Bethlehem and the shepherds came to visit him in a manger after He was just born. Then, some 15 months later, the wise men came to see, not a baby, but the child Jesus living in a house in Bethlehem.

For more information on this subject, please see - http://www.hillsdale.edu/news/imprimis/archive/issue.asp?year=1996&month=12

But wait, these are just little innocent mistakes. Minor confusions. Not a big deal.

No. It is a big deal because we are dealing with the facts and we should get them right. I mean don't we want to know the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help us God?

The point is, if we (I include here those religious leaders I saw broadcasting their mistaken message today to the whole world) can't even get these simple little things right, what about more complex issues?

What is interesting is the fact that if a person will do a tiny bit of research, they will note that there are two different Greek words referenced in Matthew and Luke which describe two different phases of life for a child, in this case talking about our Lord Jesus.

As the article in the above link shows and if one will examine any more advanced translation or a Bible concordance, one can find that the words describe two phases of life: one for a baby in arms and one for a toddler, who walks and talks. See the article for a more in depth discussion on these issues. This is really a science meets faith article written by a research astronomer which features a book written by my late father, Dr. Ernest L. Martin, on the Star of Bethlehem. - See http://www.amazon.com/The-Star-That-Astonished-World/dp/0945657889/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396032451&sr=8-1&keywords=The+star+that+astonished+the+world.

This, in fact, relates to the whole argument of who is being discussed in those texts found in the book of Proverbs which many use to advocate for corporal punishment of children, with no definition of what phase of life of that of a "child" is under discussion.

I have a whole chapter in my book "Thy Rod and Thy Staff, They Comfort Me: Christians and the Spanking Controversy." See - http://www.amazon.com/Thy-Rod-Staff-They-Comfort/dp/0978533909/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324834969&sr=1-2 - which talks about the importance of this issue.

Because of the misunderstanding related to this issue, we have well intentioned but seriously misinformed individuals advocating the corporal punishment of children starting at 6 months of age or less using the Bible as the authority for the same.

Just as it is important to remember that there is accurate information in the Gospels to help us better understand the circumstances and facts associated with Jesus' birth and how the nuance of language can help us have a more accurate understanding, so it is that we can also have a greater understanding of the texts in Proverbs which describe children and the various phases of life that starts at birth going up to adult hood..

If we do this, I think we are going to have a greater chance to know the truth and the facts and not be confused.

Merry Christmas

Samuel Martin - Jerusalem - 12.25.2011

A guest post on Dulce's Blog

I've contributed a guest post to Dulce de Leche, one of my favorite blogs.

http://www.dulcefamily.blogspot.com/2011/12/was-jesus-married-some-thoughts-by.html

I have been so blessed by her writings. Check them out. I know you'll enjoy them.

Merry Christmas

Samuel Martin

Books that I cannot live without

Bible Study Aids – Books that I cannot live without

I got a comment from a friend recently in Canada expressing an interest in getting some solid resources for Bible study. My father, Dr. Ernest L. Martin, provided a nice outline many years ago (Foundation for Biblical Research Exposition October 1976), which I still find to be very relevant so I want.to share it with you.

Your Research Library

“The two most important books that everyone ought to have in his library are:

The Englishman's Greek Concordance and the Englishman's Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance.

Both are published by Samuel Bagster and Sons in London, England. But I understand they can be obtained through Zondervan Press in Grand Rapids, Michigan, whom, I understand, bought out Samuel Bagster. [Please note that new editions of these are available and they have added the Strong's numbering system which makes them all the more effective.]

These books give a concordant treatment to all of the words of the New and Old Testament. By studying the words in their context, we can find God's meaning of them much better. I highly recommend these two books.

It is not enough just to buy these concordances. You really must read the introductions carefully to understand how they have been developed in the first place and to appreciate how to use them properly. 

The best Greek-English Lexicon is that of Arndt and Gingrich.  This is published by the University of Chicago Press.  The best Hebrew Lexicon is that of Brown-Driver-Briggs, published by Oxford University Press.

The best general Encyclopaedia, though it is somewhat old now, is that of M'Clintock and Strong. This set has 31,000 articles and while it is over 100 years old, it is an important part of my own library. [Carol: This is my recommendation for your son.]

The best one-volume Encyclopaedia (and this is one you must have at all cost) is the New Bible Dictionary published by the Inter-varsity Fellowship in London, England. This could be obtained from any religious bookstore.

There are two other essential Encyclopaedias you ought to have. One is the Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, two volumes, and the Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, two volumes. Both of these were edited by James Hastings.

Another excellent little volume which is indispensable to me, is one which has over 500,000 scriptural references and parallel passages in it. It is called The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge and is also published by Samuel Bagster and Sons.

The best King James Bible is the Newberry Edition. This has copious internal and marginal notes which help make the Hebrew and Greek far clearer.” (Ernest  L. Martin, FBR Expositor October 1976)

My favorite Bible version for modern study is the ESV. See www.esvstudybible.org. 

Please keep in mind that all modern English versions of the Bible position the order of the books wrongly. Please see www.originalbible.com.  

Concordant Word Study from the Hebrew Bible Using “The Englishman’s Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance of the Old Testament.”

This data is taken from the invaluable and timeless work produced under the leadership of Mr. George Wigram titled: “The Englishman’s Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance of the Old Testament.” It is mentioned in the previous list.

I have even referred to this information in my own book "Thy Rod and Thy Staff, They Comfort Me: Christians and the Spanking Controversy." Many peope who rely on the King James Version of the Bible will find this information eye opening. 

There is, of course, nothing wrong with studying from the King James Version of the Bible as long as we know its limitations. 

The following is taken from page 1220. The word in the various texts below that appears in italics is the English word that is translated from the Hebrew original “sh’ol.” (שאול) This shows the power of studying using this concordant method to see what is really underneath our English texts. Note that most of these resources use the King James Version as a standard template for their reference as they were produced more than 160 years ago.

Word study on the Hebrew word “sh’ol” (שאול)

Genesis 37:35 I will go down into the grave.

Genesis 42:38 my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.

Genesis 44:29 my gray hairs with sorrow to the grave.

Genesis 44:31 gray hairs of thy servant…to the grave.

Numbers 16:30 they go down quick into the pit;

Numbers 16:33 went down alive into the pit,

Deuteronomy 32:22 shall burn unto the lowest hell,

I Samuel 2:6 he bringeth down to the grave,

II Samuel 22:6 The sorrows of hell compassed me about;

I Kings 2:6 his hoar head go down to the grave in peace.

I Kings 2:9 hoar head bring thou down to the grave

Job 7:9 he that goeth down to the grave

Job 11:8 deeper than hell; what canst thou know?

Job 14:13 wouldest hide me in the grave,

Job 17:13 the grave is mine house:

Job 17:16 They shall go down to the bars of the pit,

Job 21:13 in a moment go down to the grave.

Job 24:19 (so doth) the grave those which have

Job 26:9 Hell (is) naked before him,

Psalm 6:5 in the grave who shall give thee

Psalm 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell

Psalm 16:10 thou wilt not leave my soul in hell;

Psalm 18:5 The sorrows of hell compassed me

Psalm 30:3 brought up my soul from the grave:

Psalm 31:17 let them be silent in the grave.

Psalm 49:14 sheep they are laid in the grave;

Psalm 49:14 their beauty shall consume in the grave

Psalm 49:15 my soul from the power of the grave:

Psalm 55:15 let them go down quick into hell:

Psalm 86:13 delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

Psalm 116:3 the pains of hell gat hold of me:

Psalm 139:8 if I make my bed in hell,

Psalm 141:7 bones are scattered at the grave’s mouth,

Proverbs 1:12 swallow them up alive as the grave;

Proverbs 5:5 her steps take hold on hell.

Proverbs 7:27 Her house (is) the way to hell,

Proverbs 9:18 her guests are in the depths of hell.

Proverbs 15:11 Hell and destruction (are) before the

Proverbs 15:24 depart from hell beneath.

Proverbs 23:14 deliver his soul from hell.

Proverbs 27:20 Hell and destruction are never full;

Proverbs 30:16 The grave; and the barren womb;

Ecclesiastes 9:10 no work, nor device, … in the grave,

Song of Songs 8:6 jealousy (is) cruel as the grave:

Isaiah 5:14 hell hath enlarged herself,

Isaiah 14:9 Hell (marg. or, the grave) from beneath is moved for thee

Isaiah 14:11 Thy pomp is brought down to the grave,

Isaiah 14:15 thou shalt be brought down to hell,

Isaiah 28:15 with hell are we at agreement;

Isaiah 28:18 your agreement with hell shall not stand;

Isaiah 38:10 I shall go to the gates of the grave:

Isaiah 38:18 the grave cannot praise thee.

Isaiah 57:9 didst debase (thyself even) unto hell.

Ezekiel 31:15 he went down to the grave

Ezekiel 31:16 I cast him down to hell

Ezekiel 31:17 They also went down into hell

Ezekiel 32:21 speak to him out of the midst of hell

Ezekiel 32:27 gone down to hell with their weapons

Hosea 13:14 ransom them from the power of the grave;

Hosea 13:14 O grave, I will be thy destruction:

Amos 9:2 Though they dig into hell,

Jonah 2:2 out of the belly of hell (marg. or, the grave),

Habakkuk 2:5 enlargeth his desire as hell,

It must be pointed out that there is no other word in the Hebrew Bible translated as “hell.” Because of this, one has to ask: Why it was deemed necessary by the translators of the King James Version to translate this word “hell” in one place and the “grave” or “pit” in another? If you look at the texts, which feature the word “hell”, it is clear that in some cases the translators themselves put the word “grave” as a marginal reference. See Jonah 2:2 and Isaiah 14:9. The reason for this was that Jonah was obviously not in “hell” when he cried from the belly of the fish.

I hope that in this short example you can see the value of this type of concordant studying approach. To be sure, untold riches await the student who uses this method of Bible study.

Christian Scholars and Preachers Disagree on Spanking Children

http://ezinearticles.com/?Christian-Scholars-and-Preachers-Disagree-on-Spanking-Children&id=6290943

Link to a new article I've just posted on www.ezinearticles.com.

Hope you find it valuable.

Samuel Martin

My free ebook here - https://www.biblechild.com/

Behind every Church Father is a Mother

Behind every Church Father is a Mother

In response to a comment left by Crystal on my blog, http://samuelmartin.blogspot.com/2011/11/if-king-james-version-was-good-enough.html, Crystal mentioned the following:

"My 4th child was born peacefully, painlessly, and calmly at home- blowing the pain-filled woman's curse out the window. "

First of all, do yourself a favor and visit Crystal's blog. http://piscessunleomoon.blogspot.com and see her really interesting experience with raising diaper less children (among other things).

Crystal's experimentation is in fact giving us all a glimpse into the past: a past which did not have diapers or any of the other so called modern 'conveniences' that, as Crystal has aptly demonstrated, help disconnect parents from the rhythm of life and the communications that even little infants can give. This is really amazing stuff and eye opening information that working daddies may miss, but attentive mommies know all too well. Thanks Crystal.

Her blog in fact was one of the most instructive things I have read in a while because I have been thinking about writing a major article on family life and her experience is so helpful because researchers often have so little to go on.

I mean when it comes to the Bible, often times, we just don't know what was going on in ancient times and this affects how we relate to the texts.

I know one scholar (Dr. Stephen Pfann of www.UHL.ac) who uses a grading system to help put things in perspective.

A. 100% sure were know about the issue
B. Somewhat certain
C. Less certain
D. Speculation or educated guesses

You'd be surprised how many times honest scholars will tell you that they simply do not know what was happening in the Biblical period (designating things grade 'D') because we just don't have enough evidence.

Family life is one of these. There is just so little information about all of this because most of the information we do have is passed down to us mostly from the perspective of men if we get anything at all. It is really hard to find a mother's voice sometimes and this is where Crystal's example is so helpful for the researcher.

Her experience allows us anthropologically to see how things may have been in ancient times in daily life of caring for little infants in particular. The Bible has a paucity of information on this and other sources are also equally sparse.

This is especially important to my research because I am seeking a better understanding of how to relate to the biblical texts relating to child rearing.

I'll have much more to say about this later because this has not only the potential to be a major paper, it could end up in fact being a small book, but I am asking for more inputs from mothers who have experience in this area.

But before I forget, let me say something about that child birth curse.

I am currently studying for my higher Theology degrees here in Jerusalem and I am seriously considering in the future doing my Ph.D. on the subject of equality between men and women in the Bible. This inspiration for this, in fact, comes from Karen Campbell at www.thatmom.com. Thanks Karen. Her question to me really touched a nerve. (The answer to her question is currently almost 50,000 words and counting.)

In fact, I have already started working on a dissertation in this regard with the hope that I will be able to move forward with this suggested subject for a doctorate. All in good time. Rest assured though that I will bring this material out in the future at the right time, but it is not ready yet.

However, Crystal's comment on my blog does raise a point which is important and it concerns the common conception that there is some awful curse associated with child birth. It goes back to Genesis 3:16 & 3:17. Here is a small excerpt from my possible future dissertation.

Now, after they both arrived, here is where we can thank our dear male scholars for starting us off on the wrong path of gender inequality. It starts right here in the third chapter of Genesis. Look at it here from the perspective of multiple versions. Here we want to home in two sections of Genesis 3:16 and 3.17.

Version	Text from Genesis 3:16 (about woman - Eve)	Text from Genesis 3:17 (about man - Adam)
NIV	“pains in childbearing”	“through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.”
NLT	“pain of your pregnancy,”	“All your life you will struggle to scratch a living from it.”
ESV	“pain in childbearing”	“in pain you shall eat of it”
NASB	“pain in childbirth”	“in toil you will eat of it”
God’s WORD Translation	“pain and your labor when you give birth to children”	“Through hard work you will eat”
KJV	“in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children”	“in sorrow shalt thou eat”
NKJV	“in sorrow you shall bring forth children”	“in sorrow shall you eat of it”
ASV	“in pain thou shalt bring forth children”	“in toil shalt thou eat of it”
Bible in Basic English	“in sorrow will your children come to birth”	“in pain you will get your food”
Douay-Rheims Bible	“in sorrow shalt thou bring forth children	“with labour and toil shalt thou eat”
Darby Bible Translation	“with pain thou shalt bear children”	“with toil shalt thou eat of it”
English Revised Version	“in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children”	“in sorrow shalt thou eat of it”
Webster’s Bible Translation	“in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children”	“in sorrow shalt thou eat of it”
World English Bible	“In pain you will bring forth children	“In toil you will eat of it”
Young’s Literal Translation	“in sorrow dost thou bear children”	“in sorrow thou dost eat of it”

http://bible.cc/genesis/3-16.htm & http://bible.cc/genesis/3-17.htm

Now, in the above referenced table, you can see that the italicized words relative to the woman are: pain, pains or sorrow. However for the men, the words italicized are: painful toil, struggle, pain, toil, hard work, labour and sorrow.

Now, when we compare these two columns, we can note that the language that describes what happens to woman really looks harsher on the surface and these above referenced language differences highlight this issue. Here, on the surface, we see that woman is getting a seemingly greater punishment. This is how it has been framed by theologians down through the centuries until now. 

Modern versions correct this. For example, note my favorite, the ESV: (see http://www.esvbible.org)

    To the woman he said,
    “I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing;
        in pain you shall bring forth children.
    Your desire shall be for your husband,
        and he shall rule over you.”
    And to Adam he said,
    “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
        and have eaten of the tree
    of which I commanded you,
        ‘You shall not eat of it,’
    cursed is the ground because of you;
        in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
    thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
        and you shall eat the plants of the field.
    By the sweat of your face
        you shall eat bread,
    till you return to the ground,
        for out of it you were taken;
    for you are dust,
        and to dust you shall return.”
(Genesis 3:16-19 ESV)

What we can see though when we look at these verses in light of an accurate Biblical understanding what is here being conveyed in the original Hebrew language, a different picture presents itself.

What we must understand is that the words italicized in the first column, which are designated towards woman and the words found in the second column which are associated with man are in fact in Hebrew the very same word!

Yes, that is correct. In Hebrew, we find in these two verses the exact same Hebrew word (עצבון – gitz-tzah-vohn) is used! There is no difference in the intensity or stress, the force or level: No! Not at all. What woman was to suffer in child birth, man was to suffer by working the ground. Not more for one and less for the other. Equality by using the same term.

There is no greater degree or intensity of punishment on woman or women in this text of Scripture at all, but were one to rely on these many Bible versions, mostly created by men, one would decidedly not get this opinion.

This is really where many well intentioned people get off on the wrong foot concerning gender relations in Scripture. In this verse, the gender relations are equal! There is no greater punishment for the one over the other in the original language.

In closing, thanks again Crystal for your really important capacity building. I hope that others will give some of your ideas a go.

 

Should we preach? publish?, or proclaim the Gospel - Yes? No? Maybe?

Should we preach? publish?, or proclaim the Gospel - 

Yes? No? Maybe?

I just got my copy of Michael Pearl's book in the post sent from a new friend in North Carolina (thanks TJ - your book is on the way). In reviewing the book, I opened up the front cover and saw a little box which says:

"All Scripture quotations are from the King James Holy Bible"

So, I went to page 35 and found Mr. Pearl's references to 'prove' his arguments in favor of spanking children. The texts he quoted were very familiar to me and to many of us. They are commonly known as the 'rod' verses. They were:

Proverbs 19:18
Proverbs 13:24
Proverbs 22:15
Proverbs 23:13,14
Proverbs 29:15
Proversb 29:17

So there it was - Case Closed. The Bible advocates spanking children. End of story. Well, not quite so fast.

I got to thinking about this whole issue once again and thought about this book and its assertions.

Here is a well intentioned Christian brother living thousands of miles away from the region where the Bible was written, using a 400 year old Bible version attempting to bring information which in some cases is over 3,000 years old into our modern day.

When I look on the front cover of the book, I saw the following page and you can review it at the following link.

http://www.newreleasetuesday.com/bookdetail.php?book_id=851

The front cover of the book shows a family riding in a horse drawn cart with a father at the reins with a wife at his side carrying a babe in arms with four other children in the wagon.

When I thought about this book and its teachings, I thought this cover was really appropriate because the information that you find in this book represents a type of a theological perspective which reflects a time about 400 years ago when people moved around by horse and buggy.

The good news is, theologically speaking, we no longer move around with horses and buggys. Today, we have airplanes that take us around the world to libraries where we can study thousands of Bible manuscripts; where online resources are the fingertips that even the non-expert can reach into the treasure troves of Bible scholarship and study at the feet of modern day Gamliels.

The bad news though is that many dear people like Michael Pearl, God bless him, continue to drive around the same old tired arguments which are based on a Bible translation, which was a monument to great scholarship in 1611, but today, it represents one of the biggest obstacles to understanding God's messages to mankind, especially concerning what the Bible means in the book of Proverbs.

And here is where we come to the title of my blog post -Should we preach? publish?, or proclaim the Gospel - Yes? No? Maybe?

I remember once my father telling of an experience he had when he first got into researching the Bible and in fact it relates to this issue we are here discussing. It concerned the issue of preaching, publishing and proclaiming the Gospel of Christ to the world.

My father was a minister as well as a college professor. The church that he was a member of was lead by a very charismatic leader. The Bible of choice in that particular denomination was the King James Version of the Bible.

The Church had a wide ranging ministry with numerous methods of outreach. They had a 'preaching' ministry and a 'publishing' ministry. Yes, the Church used all different types of outreach methods to get the Gospel message out to the world including radio and televsion.

The head of the Church not only insisted, however, in the 'preaching' ministry, but he made a big deal about the need for the Church to also engage in a 'publishing' ministry. This meant a top quality, slick four color magazine, books, booklets, pamphlets, newsletters, etc.

Now, these methodologies were used to 'proclaim' the Gospel. Anything wrong with that? No, not at all.

However, when Dad began to just do a bit of study in the New Testament, he learned that the Greek word keerusso is translated in the King James Version by several different English words: preach, preached, proclaim, proclaimed, proclaiming, publish, and published.

So when we read in Mark 13:10 in the King James Version saying: "And the gospel must first be published among all nations" we can compare this to another section in the Gospel of Matthew which describes the same event and time period. It is found in Matthew 24:14 saying: "And this gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations;"

So, Dad quickly found out that the words "published" and "preached" in these two verses are from the exact same word in the Greek language, which is the original one for the New Testament. Therefore, to say that one must have a "preaching" and or "publishing" ministry on the basis of these verses is really not justified in Scripture at all. Of course, that message is not one that Church leaders want to hear. This is because they often gain great power and influence through their "preaching" and "publishing" ministries.

There is of course nothing wrong with preaching, publishing or proclaiming the Gospel. On the contrary. What is wrong, however, is misusing the Holy Scriptures to attempt to prove that a particular Church or religious leader must engage in preaching and publishing and that Church members should pay to see that these things take place. Preaching and publishing ministries are fine and excellent things in and of themselves, but one should not use these passages as justification for demanding that Church members pay the bills for these ministerial elements based upon a wrong understanding of Scripture.

But here we get to the crux of the matter.  If these well intentioned ministers of the Gospel will use the modern tools that we have available instead of continuing to drive our Christian brethren around in the theological equivalents of horses and buggys, we might be able to avoid some of these nonsensical teachings promoted by many well intentioned but misguided religious leaders. Look at the ESV, which makes this whole issue clear.

    And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. (Mark 13:10 ESV)

    And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations.
(Matthew 24:14 ESV)

So, the answer to my blog question is. Yes! We should proclaim the Gospel.

But, this all helps to contextualize something which I have dealt with in much greater detail in my book and that concerns the interpretation of those six verses that Michael Pearl uses to open and close his arguments on spanking children.

The question we have to ask Mr. Pearl and many other dear brethren in Christ is this: Should we spank? chasten? hit? switch? strike? our children in the way you tell us? Yes? No? Maybe?

Michael Pearl and many others say "Yes."

After reading my book, I think you'll agree that the answer to this question is a resounding:

No!

Note: Some of the material in this post is referenced in audio cassette tape which my father produced in the Foundation for Biblical Research in 1976 called: "A Brief Background of the Director."

“If the King James Version was good enough for Jesus, it’s good enough for me” & Newsletter for November

“If the King James Version was good enough for Jesus, it’s good enough for me

This post has been republished in a new book referenced below:

Amazon.com: Thy Rod and Thy Staff They Comfort Me - Book IV: Selected Essays on the Subject of Spanking Children in Support of Peaceful Parenting (9780978533984): Martin, Samuel: Books