Maimonides & Jesus of Nazareth – the Messiah?

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

Born during the Medieval era in 1135 AD, Moses Ben Maimon came to be known by a single name: Maimonides. In Jewish circles, Maimonides is better known as Rambam, the Rabbi who brought clarity to Jewish Law with some calling him “the second Moses.”

Author of Mishneh Torah, Maimonides’ book is considered to be a monumental Jewish work. He is responsible for formulating the 13 principals of Jewish faith.^[1]

Messiah or stumbling block? Rabbi Maimonides expressed his views on this question about Jesus of Nazareth as well as thoughts on Messiah prophecies, his lineage, and supernatural powers.

Two chapters of Mishneh Torah focused on the Messiah. Chapters 11 and 12 contains characteristics that would identify the Mashiach, Hebrew for Messiah, or would disqualify anyone purporting to be the Messiah.^[2]

Considered controversial, his statements became a target of the Censor. As late as the 1990s, portions of Chapter 11 were relegated only to footnotes and even today requires deeper digging under the names Melachim uMilchamot or Mishneh Torah, Kings and Wars.

Explicitly in Chapter 11, Maimonides identified Balaam’s (Bilaam) prophecy as messianic. In a phrase-by-phrase interpretations, in agreement with Rabbi Rashi, he interpreted Balaam’s prophecy as referring to Mashiach:

“Reference to Mashiach is also made in the portion of Bilaam who prophesies about two anointed kings: the first anointed king, David, who saved Israel from her oppressors; and the final anointed king who will arise from his descendants and save Israel in the end of days. That passage Numbers 24:17-18 relates:

‘I see it, but not now’ – This refers to David;

‘I perceive it, but not in the near future;” – This refers to the Messianic king;

‘A star shall go forth from Jacob’ – This refers to David;

‘and a staff shall arise in Israel’ – This refers to the Messianic king…“

Multiple prophecies establish a prophetic requirement the Messiah must be born in the royal lineage of David to which Maimonides agreed:

“In the future, the Messianic king will arise and renew the Davidic dynasty, restoring it to its initial sovereignty.

Describing characteristics that would identify the Messiah when he arrived, the Rabbi expounded:

“If a king will arise from the House of David who diligently contemplates the Torah and observes its mitzvot as prescribed by the Written Law and the Oral Law as David, his ancestor, will compel all of Israel to walk in (the way of the Torah) and rectify the breaches in its observance, and fight the wars of God, we may, with assurance, consider him Mashiach.”

Anyone who denies the Messiah, Maimonides wrote, is denying the prophets, Moses, and the Scriptures. It is the same three prophetic aspects pointed out about himself to his followers and Cleopas by the resurrected Jesus: ^[3]

“Anyone who does not believe in him or does not await his coming, denies not only the statements of the other prophets, but those of the Torah and Moses…

Next, Maimonides described more pointedly the things that would disqualify anyone who might otherwise be viewed as the Messiah. Denouncing Jesus, the Rabbi pointedly called out Jesus of Nazareth by name saying he only “aspired” to be the Messiah, was executed, and that Christianity was a “stumbling block.”^[4]

“If he did not succeed to this degree or was killed, he surely is not the redeemer promised by the Torah. Rather, he should be considered as all the other proper and complete kings of the Davidic dynasty who died. God caused him to arise only to test the many, as Daniel 11:35 states: ‘And some of the wise men will stumble, to try them, to refine, and to clarify until the appointed time, because the set time is in the future.'”

“Jesus of Nazareth who aspired to be the Mashiach and was executed by the court was also alluded to in Daniel’s prophecies, as ibid. 11:14 states: ‘The vulgar among your people shall exalt themselves in an attempt to fulfill the vision, but they shall stumble.'”

“Can there be a greater stumbling block than Christianity?”

Mishneh Torah launched Maimonides into Jewish celebrity status prompting letters sent to him with questions. His response letters, known as Responsa (or Teshuvot), have become additional important texts of Maimonides’ Scriptural interpretations.^[5]

One Responsa was to Yeminite Rabbi Jacob al-Fayumi, known as the “Epistle Concerning Yemen.” In the letter, Maimonides regarded Zachariah 6:12 and the parashah of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 as messianic prophecies. He quoted from Isaiah 52:15 and 53:2 foretelling the Messiah could be identified by his origins and his wonders:^[6]

“…all the kings of the earth be thrown in terror at the fame of him – their kingdoms be in consternation, and they themselves will be devising whether to oppose him with arms, or to adopt some different course, confessing, in fact their inability to contend with him or ignore his presence and so confounded at the wonders which they will see him work, that they will lay their hands to their mouth; in the words of Isaiah, when describing the manner in which the kings will hearken to him, At him kings will shut their mouth; for that which had not been told them have they seen, and that which they had not heard they have perceived. [Is. 52:15] ”

“What is to be the manner of Messiah’s advent, and where will be the place of his first appearance?

…there shall rise up one of whom none have known before, and the signs and wonders which they shall see performed by him will be the proofs of his true origin; for the Almighty where he declares to us his mind upon this matter, says, ‘Behold a man whose name is the Branch, and he shall branch forth out of his place’ (Zech. Vi. I2). And Isaiah speaks similarly of the time when he will appear, without his father or mother or family being known, He came up before him, and as a root out of the dry earth [Is 53:2], etc.”

Supernatural powers of performing miracles, wonders, and resurrection of the dead was addressed by Maimonides in Chapter 11 without mentioning the Gospels nor Jesus of Nazareth by name. What the Rabbi did not say is often overlooked – such miracles could be performed by the Messiah although he did not say it is a requirement.

“One should not presume that the Messianic king must work miracles and wonders, bring about new phenomena in the world, resurrect the dead, or perform other similar deeds. This is definitely not true.”

Was Jesus of Nazareth a fulfillment of the Messiah prophecies or merely a stumbling block test sent by God?

Updated June 17, 2024.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] Maimonides. Mishneh Torah. Jewish year 4937 (1177 AD). “The Rambam’s Mishneh Torah.” <http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/682956/jewish/Mishneh-Torah.htm> Rich, Tracey R. “Jewish Beliefs.” JewFAQ.org. n.d. <http://www.jewfaq.org/beliefs.htm> “Moses Ben Maimon.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/11124-moses-ben-maimon> Furst, Rachel. “The Mishneh Torah.” MyJewishLearning.com. 2010. <http://mobile.myjewishlearning.com/texts/Rabbinics/Halakhah/Medieval/Mishneh_Torah.shtml> Seeskin, Kenneth. “Maimonides.” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 2006. revised 2017. <https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/maimonides> Maimonides statue. Wikimedia Commons. image. n.d. <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Maimonides_statue_-_Cordoba.jpg>
[2] Maimonides, Moses. Mishneh Torah. Ed. Yechezkal Shimon Gutfreund, Brooklyn, NY: Sichos in English. “The Law Concerning Moshiach.” Kesser.org. n.d. <http://www.kesser.org/moshiach/rambam.html#SIE> Maimonides. Mishneh Torah. “uMilchamot, the Laws of Kings and Their War.” 2015. <https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1188343/jewish/Melachim-uMilchamot.htm> Maimonides. Mishneh Torah. Sefaria.org. 2023. “Mishneh Torah, Kings and Wars.” <https://www.sefaria.org/Mishneh_Torah,_Kings_and_Wars?tab=contents>
[3] Maimondies, Mishnah Torah. Melachim uMilchamot. CR Josephus, Flavius. Against Apion. Book 1 #6-7. The Complete Works of Josephus. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false > Luke 24:24-27, 44.
[4] Mangel, Nissen. “Responsa.” Publisher: Kehot Publication Society. 2008. Chabad.org. 2014. <http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/107783/jewish/Responsa.htm> “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <https://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8616-jesus-of-nazareth>
[5] Mangel.“Responsa.”
[6] Maimonides. “Letter to the South (Yemen)”. p374. Neubauer and Driver. The Fifty-third Chapter of Isaiah According to the Jewish Interpreters <https://books.google.com/books?id=YxdbAAAAQAAJ&pg=PP1&hl=en#v=onepage&q=advent&f=false> CR “Iggerot HaRambam, Iggeret Teiman.” Sefaria.org. responsa. n.d. <https://www.sefaria.org/Iggerot_HaRambam?tab=versions> “Responsa.” Chabad.org. “The Epistle Concerning Yemen.”n.d.<https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/107783/jewish/Responsa.htm>

Rabbi Rashi and the Messiah Prophecies

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

Rabbi Rashi and the Messiah Prophecies

Rabbi Rashi is considered by Judaism to be one of the greatest interpreters of the Talmud. He emerged at a time when the Dark Ages were transitioning from rule by barbarian tribes like the Huns, Goths and Franks into the feudal era when kings, queens, knights & lords ruled Europe.^[1]

In the year 1040, Shlomoh Yitzha was born in Troyes, France, and as a Rabbi, Rashi was renowned for his wisdom and interpretation of the Talmud in simple terms.^[2] Jewish academies widely accepted and valued his commentaries mostly captured and documented by his students.^[3]

Commentaries of Rashi include some prophecies foretelling the arrival of the Messiah recognized as such by Christian authorities. One of the earliest is found in Jacob’s blessing of his son, Judah:

^{Gen 49:8-10} “Judah, [as for] you, your brothers will acknowledge you. Your hand will be at the nape of your enemies, [and] your father’s sons will prostrate themselves to you. A cub [and] a grown lion is Judah. From the prey, my son, you withdrew. He crouched, rested like a lion, and like a lion, who will rouse him? The scepter [shebet] shall not depart from Judah, nor the student of the law from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to him will be a gathering of peoples.” _{(The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary)}

Rashi’s interpretation of Jacob’s prophecy included three prophetic aspects:

like a lion, David would become like a lion when the people made him their king.

The scepter represents the royal lineage of “David and thereafter.”

Shiloh refers specifically to “King Messiah, to whom the kingdom belongs.”^[4]

Another Messiah prophecy involved Moabite King Balak who realized his army could not defeat the Hebrew’s. His strategy, instead, was to press the prophet Balaam to place a curse on the approaching Hebrew nation, but Balaam’s response was a prophecy doing just the opposite:

^{Num 24:17} “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, A scepter [shebet] shall rise from Israel, And shall crush through the forehead of Moab, And tear down all the sons of Sheth.” _NASB

Rashi commented the opening phrase refers to the “greatness of Jacob” at a future time. Hebrew word shebet is translated in the Jewish version as “staff” whereas the same word is earlier translated as “scepter” in Jacob’s blessing prophecy.^[6] Consistently, the Rabbi’s commentary says shebet represents “a king who rules dominantly.

Hebrew text translations vary slightly between Christian and Jewish Bibles where a word in Hebrew text must be deciphered by translators. Christian Bible translations typically read “I see him, but not now;” Jewish Bible translations read “I see it, but not now” although the context inferred by the remainder of the prophecy is about a king.^[5]

Micah 5:1/2 is recognized by Rashi as a prophecy making specific reference to a future ruler of Israel who comes from Bethlehem Ephrathah, the home town of King David. Although opposed by some Jewish authorities, Rashi believed this to be a specific Messiah prophecy.^[7]

^{Mich 5:1 (or v.2)} “And you, Bethlehem Ephrathah – you should have been the lowest of the clans of Judah-from you [he] shall emerge for Me, to be a ruler over Israel; and his origin is from of old, from days of yore.” – The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary

“And you, Bethlehem Ephrathah”: [Rashi] “whence David emanated, as it is stated (I Sam. 17:58): “The son of your bondsman, Jesse the Bethlehemite.” And Bethlehem is called Ephrath, as it is said (Gen. 48:7): “On the road to Ephrath, that is Bethlehem.”

“you should have been the lowest of the clans of Judah”: [Rashi] You should have been the lowest of the clans of Judah because of the stigma of Ruth the Moabitess in you.

“from you shall emerge for Me”: [Rashi] the Messiah, son of David, and so Scripture says (Ps. 118:22): “The stone the builders had rejected became a cornerstone.”

“and his origin is from of old”: [Rashi] “Before the sun his name is Yinnon” (Ps. 72:17).

Commenting on “the stigma of Ruth the Moabitess,” Rashi said it is the reason Bethlehem is called “the lowest of the clans of Judah.” Expressing his distaste of Ruth, a Gentile, it was unsavory to have a Gentile in a Hebrew lineage.^[8]

Ruth was the Moabite daughter-in-law of the Hebrew Naomi, whose inheritance was lost by the deaths of her sons, it was redeemed by marriage to the Hebrew Boaz. As the grandparents of Jesse, they were the great grandparents of King David.

Boaz was the son of Salmon who had married Rahab, a Gentile prostitute who hid two Hebrew spies being sought by the Jericho King’s posse.^[9] As a reward, Rahab was spared by the Hebrews when they destroyed Jericho.^[10]

Leaving no doubt his interpretation of Micah 5:1/2 is a Messiah prophecy, Rashi explicitly said the future ruler of Israel would be “the Messiah, Son of David” referring to Psalms 118:22. The Messiah’s divine characteristic, “his origin is from of old,” is called Yinnon by Rashi, a Hebrew epithet meaning “be continued.”^[11]

Zechariah 12:10 is a prophecy foretelling the Messiah’s manner of death, according to Rashi. Taking a side in the split view of Talmud contributors in Talmud Sukkah 52, he commented, “And our Sages expounded this in tractate Sukkah (52a) as referring to the Messiah, son of Joseph, who was slain.”^[12]

Christianity’s agreement with Rashi on the Messiah prophecies of Jacob, Balaam, Micah and Zechariah, part company on another prophecy, Isaiah 7:14.^[13] Isaiah’s prophecy, Rashi taught, was not about a virgin birth of the Messiah, rather it referred to Manoah’s wife, mother of Sampson, the Biblical strongman.^[14]

As a Rabbi, Rashi obviously did not believe Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah primarily due to a particular disqualifying reason. Specifically it was the circumstances of his death, according to JewishEncyclopedia.com citing Rashi – Jesus was hanged:

“The very form of his punishment would disprove those claims in Jewish eyes. No Messiah that Jews could recognize could suffer such a death; for “He that is hanged is accursed of God” (Deut. xxi. 23), ‘an insult to God’ (Targum, Rashi).”^[15] – Jewish Encyclopedia

Crucifixion of Jesus as a historical fact nor the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in the royal lineage of the House of David is undisputed in that era by Judaism. Ultimately, the question between Christianity and Judaism remains…what are the odds Jesus of Nazareth was a fulfillment of the Messiah prophecies?

Updated August 1, 2024.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] “Dark Ages.” New World Encyclopedia. 2013. <http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Dark_Ages> “Middle Ages,” “Feudalism,” & “Renaissance.” Encyclopædia Britannica. 2017. <https://www.britannica.com/event/Middle-Ages> <https://www.britannica.com/topic/feudalism> <https://www.britannica.com/event/Renaissance> “feudal system.” Vocabulary.com. n.d. <https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/feudal%20system>
[2] “Rashi (Solomon Bar Isaac).” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12585-rashi-solomon-bar-isaac> “Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi).” Chabad.org. 2017. <http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/rabbi-shlomo-yitzchaki-rashi> Segal, Eliezer. “Rashi’s Commentary on the Talmud.” University of Calgary. n.d. <http://people.ucalgary.ca/~elsegal/TalmudMap/Rashi.html> “RASHI – רש״י.” Geni. photo. 2022. <https://www.geni.com/people/RASHI-%D7%A8%D7%A9-%D7%99/6000000006709501378>
[3] “Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi).” Chabad.org.
[4] Rashi. The Compete Jewish Bible – with Rashi Commentary. Gensis 49. <http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9952#showrashi=true> “Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki).” Jewish Virtual Library. 2017. Mindel, Nissan. “Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi).” Chabad.org.
[5] Net.bible.org. Hebrew text. <http://classic.net.bible.org/bible.php>
[6] Net.bible.org. Hebrew text shebet <07626> Numbers 24:17. Rashi. The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary Commentary.
[7] “Jesus of Bethlehem.” MessianicJewishTruth.com. n.d. Archive.org. 2013. <http://web.archive.org/web/20131103080951/http://www.messianicjewishtruth.com/Jesusbethlehem.html> “Who will emerge from Bethlehem.” Teshuvas HaMinim. 2011. Archive.org. 2012. <http://web.archive.org/web/20120902023316/http://www.teshuvashaminim.com/michah51.html>
[8] Mendel. “Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki).”
[9] Joshua 2.
[10] Joshua 6:25; I Chronicles 2:11; Matthew 1:5.
[11] Yinon (Yinnon).” eTeacherHebrew.com. 2016. <http://eteacherhebrew.com/Hebrew-Names/yinon-yinnon> Interlinear Bible. Psalms 72:17. BibleHub.com. 2014. <http://biblehub.com/interlinear>
[12] The Compete Jewish Bible – with Rashi Commentary. Zechariah 12:10 <http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/63255/jewish/The-Bible-with-Rashi.htm> Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sukkah 52a. <http://www.halakhah.com/rst/moed/16b%20-%20Succah%20-%2029b-56b.pdf>
[13] The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah , Chapter 7. “Who is the Almah’s son?” Teshuvas HaMinim. 2011. Archive.org. 2012. <http://web.archive.org/web/20120425022737/http://www.teshuvashaminim.com/isaiah714.html> Robinson, B.A. “Isaiah 7:14 “Behold, a virgin shall conceive…”” Religious Tolerance. 2007. <http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_proi.htm> Gill, John. John Gill’s Exposition of the Whole Bible. Isaiah 7:14. 2017. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb.html>
[14] The Compete Jewish Bible- with Rashi Commentary. Isaiah 7:14. CR Judges Chapter 13.
[15] “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011.;

The Place – Promises at Mt. Sinai

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

The Place – Promises at Mt. Sinai

Promises about the place were made at Mt. Sinai when God gave Moses the 10 Commandments. Building blocks for the Messiah and a key foundation for the Hebrews, these promises could actually be considered as prophecies.

Four new promises built upon upon the previous promise made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as the place for their descendants to possess. Additionally, God promised to establish a kingdom; the permanent place for His Name to dwell; the exclusive place for Israel to observe the Passover; and the Judgement Seat of Israel.^[1]

Hebrews did not fully understand what it all meant and God didn’t give a lot of details for the place except it would be in the land promised to Abraham. None of these promises and expectations seemed like the remotest reality to the Hebrews who, after 400 years, had just fled the harsh rule of Pharaoh in Egypt, the only life they had ever known.

Starting from scratch, great faith in these promises was required from the fledgling nation of people. It seemed like an impossibility, especially for a ragtag nation of tens of thousands of former slaves without an army.

Doubts and lack of faith by the Exodus generation would cost them from seeing God’s promised land.^[2] Yet, against all odds over the coming centuries, these promises became a reality.

Israel conquered its enemies in the land and each of the 12 tribes of the sons of Israel were allotted their own regions.^[3] Formidable and now-experienced, the army of Hebrew warriors protected them even before the establishment of a kingdom.

A king, the most famous in Hebrew history, was born in Bethlehem in the lineage of Judah. It stemmed from the prophetic blessing of royalty from Jacob to his son.

David, the giant-slayer, ruled without a Seat of the Throne until he conquered and occupied the fortified city of Jebus or Salem. Soon thereafter, the city came to be called Jerusalem, also known as Zion.

A permanent place for the Name of God to dwell required a temple. Fundamental to a theocracy, this temple needed to be located near the king’s throne in the nation’s capital to be protected against heathen enemies.

King Solomon, son of David, built the Temple on Mt. Moriah as his father had decided. Known as Solomon’s Temple, the remnants one wall of the Temple is known as the Western Wall, a most holy place in Israel today.^[4]

Consecrated and blessed by King Solomon, the first sacrifice was offered at the new Temple on its permanent alter. Miraculously, the sacrifices were ignited by fire sent down from heaven.^[5]

According to God’s Law, the Passover was to be celebrated at its appointed time requiring sacrifices to be offered by the priests of God at a central permanent place of worship, in this case, it would at the Temple. Passover was then observed at its appointed time and the sacrifices were offered there by the priests of God.^[6]

For a theocratic government, the Judgement Seat also needed to be located in close proximity to both the Throne and its Temple.^[7]The most important and most complicated cases of the nation were to be judged in the place God chose.

Jerusalem became the Judgement Seat of Israel under the reign of Solomon where both major civil and criminal cases were decided. In a theocratic government, God’s Law served both as the criminal code and the basis for civil laws.

Civil cases were decided by King Solomon on the porch of his palace, then on the east side of the Temple in the Hall of Judgement.^[8] Criminal cases involving the highest level of offenses, including capital death cases, were tried in the Temple Court accessed through the Chamber of Hewn Stone.^[9] Built into the northern wall of the Temple, the chamber served as the meeting place for the 70 elders of Israel, eventually known as the Great Sanhedrin.^[10]

Nebuchadnezzar destroyed and ransacked Jerusalem and the Temple as punishment because the Hebrews did not honor their Covenant with God as the people had agreed to do at Mt. Sinai. During the Persian Empire, the Temple was rebuilt under decrees by Cyrus, Darius and Artaxerxes; its gold contents returned, and observance of the annual Passover resumed until Jerusalem was destroyed by Rome in 70 AD.^[11]

God’s promises from Mount Sinai laid the ground work for Israel’s future in the place and the foundation of various future Messiah prophecies. Over the coming centuries prophets Isaiah, Zechariah, Jeremiah, Micah and other prophets would give details and expectations about the coming Messiah who would come from the House of David.^[12]

All the promises made by God at Mt. Sinai about “the place” came to pass. What are the odds it was all just an extraordinary coincidence?

Updated June 11, 2024.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:
[1] Deuteronomy 1:6-8, 39; 17:8-10, 14. CR Genesis 17, 22, 35, 49; Exodus 19:6; 23:20; Deuteronomy 1:8, 12:11, 16:2, 17:20.
[2] Deuteronomy 1:34-40; Numbers 13, 14:26-35. Wood, Bryant G. BibleArchaeol0gy.org. 2009. “The Number of Israelites in the Exodus.” <https://biblearchaeology.org/research/chronological-categories/exodus-era/3943-the-number-of-israelites-in-the-exodus> “How Many Israelites Really Left Egypt?” JewishBelief.com. n.d. <https://jewishbelief.com/how-many-israelites-left-egypt/>
[3] Deuteronomy 3:12-17. “The Twelve Tribes in Canaan.” Maps Database Source. map. 2020. <https://mapdatabaseinfo.blogspot.com/2018/05/32-map-of-promised-land-joshua.html#
[4] 1 Kings 6; 2 Chronicles 3.
[5] I Chronicles 6; Leviticus 9; Nehemiah 11.
[6] Exodus 12:14-15; Leviticus 23:4-8,; II Chronicles chapters 8, 29, 34-35:19; Ezra 6:16-22. Coulter, Fred R. cbcg.org. The Christian Passover. Chapters 12-13, Part 1. n.d. <https://www.cbcg.org/booklets/the-christian-passover/chapter-twelve-when-and-why-the-temple-sacrifice-of-the-passover-was-instituted-part-one.html>&nbsp
[7] Deuteronomy 17:8-10. CR Exodus 18.
[8] 1 Kings 3, 4, 7:7. “Solomon’s Porch.” Encyclopedia of the Bible. n.d. <https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/encyclopedia-of-the-bible/Solomons-Porch> “Solomon’s Porch.” BibleVerseStudy.com. n.d. <https://www.bibleversestudy.com/acts/acts5-solomons-porch.htm> “Temple of Herod.” JewishEncyclopedia.com. 2011. <https://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14304-temple-of-herod> “Solomon’s Porch.” Bible-History.com. n.d. <https://bible-history.com/backdrops/solomons-porch>
[9] Schoenberg, Shira. “Ancient Jewish History: The Sanhedrin.” 2017. <http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-sanhedrin> Shachter, J. and Freedman, H. Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Isidore Epstein Introduction. <https://www.halakhah.com/sanhedrin/>
[10] Exodus 18; Deuteronomy 1, 17; II Chronicles 19:8:4-11. Shachter and Freedman. “Introduction to Sanhedrin.” Soncino Babylonian Talmud. <https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/sanhedrin/index.html> Ariel, Yisrael. “The Chamber of the Hewn Stone.” The Temple Institute. 2014. <https://www.templeinstitute.org/illustrated/hewn_stone_description.htm> Ariel, Yisrael. “Blueprints for the Holy Temple.” <http://www.templeinstitute.org/blueprints-for-the-holy-temple.htm>
[11] Isaiah 52-53. Sanhedrin 16a, 17a. Shachter, J. and Freedman, H. “Sanhedrin.” Josephus. Antiquities. Book IV, Chapter VIII.14; Book XX, Chapter IX.4. “Ancient Jewish History: The Beit Din.” Jewish Virtual Library. 2017.http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-beit-din>
[12] Isaiah 7, 9; 11; Jeremiah 23, 33; Zechariah 3, 6, 12.