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Author: search.filters.author.Day, Charles RHas files: No

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    What Did You Go Out To See? A Demon Crazed Ascetic? Light on Matthew 11:7b From an Aramaic Reconstruction Conspectus : The Journal of the South African Theological Seminary, Volume 8, Issue 09, Sep 2009, p. 26 - 34
    (South African Theological Seminary Press Johannesburg, South Africa) Day, Charles R
    In Matthew 11:7, Jesus asks the crowd a question concerning John the Baptist : what did you go out into the wilderness to see; a reed shaken by the wind? There is a depth to this question which has remained unexplored. Far from being a poetic image meant to convey something prosaic, this question probably alludes to an actual term of contempt used by the enemies of John. A proposed Aramaic reconstruction reveals not only the pun behind this, but may also allows exegetes a greater glimpse at the way Jesus uses this image to force the crowd to acknowledge him as Messiah. The story starts in Matthew 11:1-6, when the disciples of John the Baptist come to Jesus with a question from their master, who was at that time in prison. They ask on his behalf: are you the one who is to come or shall we look for another? Jesus sends them back to John suggesting that the signs and wonders performed provided the self-evident answer. It isn't that these displays of miraculous power in themselves proved anything. Jesus is claiming that his ministry is the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. The list Jesus gives is an allusion to a conflated version of Isaiah 61:1-2, which seems to have encapsulated the messianic expectations of the time.
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    Those Who Are Persecuted Because of Righteousness, are Those who Pursue Righteousness : An Examination of the Origin and Meaning Matthew 5:10 Conspectus : The Journal of the South African Theological Seminary, Volume 9, Issue 03, Mar 2010, p. 25 - 32
    (South African Theological Seminary Press Johannesburg, South Africa) Day, Charles R
    Standard renderings of the eighth beatitude, Matthew 5:10, such as the NIV's 'Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven', fail to convey the subtlety of Jesus's point adequately. In Aramaic, that saying contains a pun based on the fact that the Hebrew / Aramaic word for 'persecute' also means 'pursue'. The article begins by attempting to reconstruct the beatitude in Aramaic, and then draws on evidence from the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Targums to support the contention that Matthew 5:10 contains allusions to Deuteronomy 16:20 and Isaiah 51:1. The key to understanding and translating the beatitute lies in appreciating the double meaning of the Hebrew verb נבף, which helps us to appreciate that being persecuted for righteousness' sake is the result of pursuing righteousness. The idea can best be captured in translation by paraphrasing the verse, such as 'Blessed are those whose pursuit of what God requires causes them to become persecuted, for they receive the kingdom of heaven.'
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