Why Jesus used Strong Language
The following is from an email I received last week from Dr. Boyd Purcell, the author of “Spiritual Terrorism.” It is a quote from his soon to be released book, “Christianity Without Insanity.”
Mild Accuracy A Weakness!
Dr. Rocco Errico, a scholar in the Aramaic which Jesus spoke, said that an Aramaic speaker’s purpose was not to deliver the message in scientifically accurate terms. “He piles up his metaphors and superlatives, reinforced by a theatrical display of gestures and facial expression in order to make the hearer feel his meaning. He speaks as it were in pictures…It is also because he loves to speak in pictures and to subordinate literal accuracy to the total impression of an utterance, that he makes such extensive use of figurative language…he is fond of metaphor, exaggeration, and positiveness in speech. To him mild accuracy is weakness.” [Errico, Rocco A. And There Was Light. Smyrna, The Noohra Foundation, Inc.,, 1998, p. 9]
Dr. Purcell writes, “This understanding of the Aramaic language and culture explains exactly why Jesus’ used all these vividly-strong picture words in general and, especially in regard to hell—weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, cutting off one’s hands and feet and gouging out one’s eyes, unquenchable fire, being salted with fire, etc., because He needed to communicate in the manner His audience would have readily understood. They would not have taken such word pictures literally. On the other hand, they would have considered mild accuracy weakness! If Jesus had spoken in a mild manner, He may have lost his audience as they became bored and walked away. Even if they had not walked away, they may have missed His point if He were speaking in a style unfamiliar to them.”
Boyd continues, “When trying to correct the inconsistency between what the Pharisees taught and what they did, Jesus could have said in our Western-world abstract style, ‘Your teachings and your behavior are incongruent.’ But Jesus, as an excellent Aramaic speaker, exclaimed, ‘hypocrites,’ ‘serpents and generation of vipers,’ ‘child of hell’ [lit. Gehenna], ‘blind guides,’ ‘fools,’ ‘strain out a gnat and swallow a camel,’ ‘whitewashed tombs’ [clean on the outside but a stench on the inside], and How can you escape the damnation of hell'” [lit. the judging of Gehenna. “Damnation” is not a Biblical concept] (Mt. 23:13-33)?
“Doubtlessly, Jesus deliberately mixed the metaphors of fire and salt to make it impossible for literalists to logically interpret this metaphorical language literally. It is, of course, impossible to literally salt anyone or anything with fire. And yet literalists, locked into a mindset of literalism, still interpret Jesus’ words literally. This is a major cause of spiritual abuse/terrorism and spiritual insanity. Yes, Tasker, the general editor of the Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, is definitely right. It is difficult to overestimate the emotional and spiritual damage which can be done when fire is understood literally, rather than metaphorically!” [Tasker, R.V.G. The Gospel According to St. Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary. Grand Rapids, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1979, 240]
End Quote from Boyd Purcell (M.A., M.Div., Ph.D. Author, speaker; Board Certified Chaplain and National Board Certified Counselor)
In “Hope Beyond Hell” I quoted Greek scholar William Barclay who wrote:
“It was the eastern custom to use language in the most vivid possible way. Eastern language is always as vivid as the human mind can make it.”
As well, I quoted Thomas Allin, author of “Christ Triumphant” who wrote:
“The whole Bible is oriental. Every line breathes the spirit of the east, with its hyperboles and metaphors, and what to us seem utter exaggerations. If such language be taken literally, its whole meaning is lost. When the sacred writers want to describe the dusky redness of a lunar eclipse, they say the moon is ‘turned into blood.’ He who perverts Scripture is not the man who reduces this sacred poetry to its true meaning. Nay, that man perverts the Bible who hardens into dogmas the glowing metaphors of eastern poetry—such conduct Lange calls ‘a moral scandal.’ So with our Lord’s words: Am I to hate my father and mother or pluck out my right eye literally? Or take a case by Farrar: ‘Egypt is said to have been an iron furnace to the Jews (De. 4:20; Jer. 11:4), and yet they said, ‘it was well with us there,’ and sighed for its enjoyments (Nu. 11:18).’ Therefore I maintain that no doctrine of endless pain can be based on eastern imagery, on metaphors mistranslated very often, and always misinterpreted.”
In Luke 14:26, Jesus says:
“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.”
Is “hate” here literal or metaphorical? No Bible teacher I know of has ever taught that Jesus spoke literally in this passage. In the same way, the terms “fire” and “burning” are metaphorical. To say otherwise, is to grossly misinterpret the Scriptures and malign God’s character before the world. (For an explanation of what “fire” means in the Scriptures, see this link: Fire in the Bible )
One final thought:
Not everything in the Bible or in the words of Jesus are meant for you. Some of the most severe of Jesus warnings were targeted specifically to the Pharisees and Sadducees (Mt 3:7; 12:34; 23:33; etc.), those whom Jesus needed shock treatment to wake up. To those who are prideful, self-righteous and selfish, the strongest warnings are needed. But to those who are humble, disgusted with themselves (who feel they are truly missing the mark and sincerely desiring to be changed), He has but comforting words of mercy and grace. Remember what He said about the humble publican and proud Pharisee who went to the temple to pray? Who left the temple justified and forgiven? (Luke 18:10). Or what did He say to the woman caught in adultery whom her accusers wanted to stone?” (John 8: 6-8). Did He speak harshly or gently to her? This is why we need to seek and listen to the Holy Spirit when we read the Bible, to discern what is meant for us. Paul exhorts us to “rightly” divide the word of truth. (2 Tim 2:15).
Are you feeling down about yourself, truly wishing you could be a good person? Then listen to what Jesus would say to you…
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light (Mt 11:28-30).”
June 7, 2012
Gods mercy is not abandoned in his judgments. The lake of fire which is the second death is abolished (emptied) at the very end and life with God put in its place. The fifth chapter of Romans along with the fifteenth chapter of first Corinthians reveals this to those with seeing eyes. I very much enjoy the hope beyond hell. May God continue to bless you in glorifying his nature, character and name.
July 11, 2012
Heb 13:8 יהושע Messiah is the same yesterday, and today, and freover. This means that He is unchanging and it is we humans that seek change due to our mindsets being influenced by greek philosophical schools of thought..For example In the New Testament, we find three words translated as “hell.”The first is γεεννα geenna [G:1067]. When the New Testament was translated into Greek, the translators transliterated rather than translated some Hebrew words into Greek. An example of this is the word αλληλουια hallelouia [G:239], a word found in Revelation chapter 19, and is a transliteration of the Hebrew word hy-wllh halelu-yah [H:1984 & 3050] meaning “Praise1 Yah.”The Greek word geenna is a transliteration of two Hebrew words, ayg gai [H:1516], meaning “valley” and Mnh hinnom [H:2011], a place name of uncertain meaning. Gai hinnom or “Valley of Hinnom” is the name of a valley outside Jerusalem. In the days of Yeshua the “Valley of Hinnom” burned continually with fires that consumed the garbage and dead animals dumped there by the inhabitants of the city. Above examples show that hebrew was the original root of the scriptures and then it was translated into aramaic, then transliterated into greek. The inerrancy of God’s word is only true to the initial source vehicular language of communication. With each translation/transliteration thereafter a perfect understanding of the intended meaning would not be conveyed. In addition to this, Our understanding of G-d’s kadosh [holy] word has been influenced by anti semitism throughout the ages.If you consider the eastern peshitta scrolls in aramaic would be far closer to the original source than the koine greek transliterations. Look to Y’shua as the living Torah and freely love him by observing His mitvots [commandments] because he has graciously given us salvation with faith in Him as a gift from Him too! Y’shua did not come to do away with one jot or titttle of the Torah but he came to make dead people live and live more abundantly. He only raised the standards of our understanding in Torah.. he came to teach us how Torah is to be applied for our halacha!
June 7, 2012
We live by every word.
Where I do see how all are saved I cannot agree that Christs words do jot apply to all mnakind. All will live His words.
I feel the drastic language was directed at our flesh which He must overcome within us .
June 8, 2012
I am so thankful for Hope Beyond Hell. I am a believer since 1978 when God opened my eyes and I’m so happy to be free of that terrible Calvinistic belief. Then I was Wesleyan and “Christian Universalism” makes the most sense of any of it. Jesus Christ is the Victor, not satan. Hallelujah!
June 18, 2012
A very special thanks to you Jerry for this forward. Excellent! I’ve often pointed out to folks struggling to accept UR, that EVERY passage of scripture (mis)used as a proof-text for ET is in pictorial, metaphorical, symbolic language, filled with hyperbole. Coming from a Meditteranean ethnicity, growing up watching my Italian parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles expressing themselves in a way very similar to the Hebraic manner, I’ve had an advantage of getting the “feel” of what our Lord Jesus and his apostles were really conveying by their very vivid, dramatic style of communication. It’s good to be reminded that it would have been expected that Jesus would have spoken with very animated gestures, as is second nature to us Italians. There’s the old joke: Cut off one of the fingers of an Italian, and he loses 1/10 of his vocabulary. 🙂 Thanks again bro., John G.
Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2012 21:56:00 -0700
June 18, 2012
Thanks Gerry! I sent this on to over a dozen people and am getting wonderful responses.