The Languages of the Bible
The Bible has been translated into over 3,300 languages. It is thus the most widely distributed, most copied, most printed, most and the most read book in all of human history. For all these reasons, it is the most successful and important book in the world. It is also the most common translated work. The entire Bible, i.e. Old (OT) and New Testament (NT), has been completely available for about 2,000 years, when subsequent religious books have not even been gave a single letter. Today, according to the German Bible Society, there are translations of the complete Bible (AT+NT) in 694 languages (as of October 2020). This reaches over 80% of the world's population. The New Testament is available in another 1,542 languages; at least some biblical writings have appeared in another 1,159 languages. This means that in 3,395 languages there are at least a book of Holy Scripture, which makes it unique in the world. In concrete terms, this means that almost 100% of people on earth read at least one biblical book in their own mother tongue. can. Jesus promised, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for the witness of all nations, and then shall the end come." (Matthew 24:14). No other book in the history of mankind has ever achieved this importance, and so has the future and for all eternity. The Bible is therefore completely rightly called "THE BOOK OF BOOKS".
The Original Languages of the Bible
The original Bible text is available in 3 languages, namely Ancient Hebrew, Old Aramaic and Ancient Greek. The Old Covenant or Old Testament (OT) was written in Hebrew and in short passages also in Aramaic (Daniel 2:4b-7:28; Jeremiah 10:11; Ezra 4:8–6:18; 7:12-26). The Aramaic share is very low and is well below 0.1% of the total AT. Aramaic was originally very similar to Hebrew and had also 22 letters, which looked the same or very similar and were only significantly changed in form centuries later (cf. Peschitta, see below; as well as link alphabets and letters). Therefore, only the Hebrew and Greek alphabets are suitable for the number symbolism of the Bible is relevant. God has chosen the "people of Israel" bound to a small geographical region to be an example to the world. Why it was Israel was, that is explained here. Therefore, the language of this very It is used by the people to put the words of God into writing (OT). Since only the consonants (without vowels) were written down in Hebrew, the scrolls were not as long as they were. Actually, it should have been. This had the great advantage that not so many of the very expensive animal skins (parchments) had to serve as a basis for writing. The individual scrolls were As a result, it was possible to depreciate and transport better.
The ancient Hebrew alphabet is composed of 22 letters and the Old Covenant (or the Old Testament, abbr.: AT) was written on 22 scrolls. The 22 symbolizes completeness of the Hebrew alphabet from Aleph to Taw and the completeness of the AT. These 22 scrolls (cf. structure of the Bible) were the Bible of Jesus, from which he often quoted.
Until the completion of the entire NT, i.e. several decades after Jesus' resurrection, the Holy Scriptures of the first worldwide Christian church (the The Greek translation of the Hebrew OT (Septuagint, abbreviation: LXX). This is an important fact that many Christians are not aware of, who AT simply do not want to pay attention to it.
The New Covenant or New Testament (NT) was written in the then world language Greek (Koine) so that it could be easily understood everywhere and spread worldwide. Individual words or short phrases were also used in the NT mentioned and explained in Aramaic (e.g. Mk 5:41; 7:34; 14.36; 15,34; Jn 1:38, 41-42; 1 Corinthians 16:22; Romans 8:15). The ancient Greek alphabet is composed of 27 letters (24 main letters + Digamma, Qoppa, Sampi; all of which have a numerical value) and the NT was therefore set to created exactly 27 (22+5) scrolls. It symbolizes Greek completeness.
The Bible was written with 22+27=49 letters on 22+27=49 scrolls. The number 49 (7 x 7) is a symbol for the complete completion of the Word of God, which consists of a total of 70 (7x10) books (cf. alphabets, letters and their Numerical values, structure of the Bible).
The spiritual language behind the physical letters
Unlike other books, the Bible is not only about visible letters, but also about spiritual statements that behind the letters. What does this mean? Even if a person were to memorize the Bible, he would never fully understand its contents without the Spirit of God. can. This is evidenced by many Bible passages (Matthew 13: 11; Luke 24:44-45; John 12:16; 1 Corinthians 2:10; 2 Corinthians 3:14-15; Col 1:26-27; 1 Peter 5:5). Therefore, it is necessary to ask God for understanding of the Bible. Knowledge of one or more languages and of individual books alone is not enough. Without God's help, there is no understanding of the Bible, even if it is in one's mother tongue. is read.
The NT was NOT written in Aramaic!
Recently, some theologians have published an Aramaic NT and made the claim that the NT is allegedly not in Greek, but in Aramaic (= Syrian) language. Why do they say this? The aim of this theory is to increase the authority of the thousands of Greek manuscripts (basic texts) that exist in the Reformers and most of the Bible translators worldwide served as a foundation to question and sow doubts about the quality of the original Greek text. It is a targeted attack to the basic text. By using Aramaic personal and place names, the authors want to give the appearance of accuracy in order to increase the sales figures of their Bibles. increase. No Christian needs to be impressed by this. The clear facts are:
1. Aramaic (Syriac) was the language of Babylon and the Gentile peoples. Aramaic is not a "sacred language" as some claim. In the same way, someone might say that Greek is a "holy language" just because Jesus conversed with the Roman soldiers and Pilate in Greek. Aramaic (or Syriac or Chaldean () was the language of Babylon. More precisely, it was the language of the Neo-Assyrian (hence the name), later Neo-Babylonian and finally Persian world empire with all its cruel Rulers. These empires were located on the territory of present-day Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. As a result of the many sins and rebellion of the Israelites against God, God allowed them to Babylonian captivity. There they were forced to learn the new Babylonian language (=Syriac, Aramaic, Chaldean). Since the Babylonian exile in the 6th century BC. Hebrew was almost completely replaced as a colloquial language, while Syriac spread among the people. The actual Bible and mother tongue, namely Hebrew, was ultimately understood only by a few priests. When the older generation died and the When Israelites returned to their territory after about 70 years, they took the Aramaic language with them. Hebrew was spoken only by a few priests, so that the language was not lost. Jesus himself used the Aramaic language not because it was better than another, but because he was concerned about the people he was only interested in. was able to achieve. Jesus quoted from the Hebrew Bible, because there was no Aramaic translation of the entire OT at all, at most a few books. But there was certainly a Greek translation (Septuagint) and has been for centuries.
2. The Old Testament is written in Hebrew and contains only very brief Aramaic content, mainly from the time in the Captivity (Daniel 2:4b-7:28; Jeremiah 10:11; Ezra 4:8–6:18; 7,12–26). The Aramaic script was initially very similar to the Hebrew, but over the centuries it has developed considerable Experiencing change. Thus, the later Syriac (Aramaic) signs are no longer comparable with the biblical ones. Aramaic is not Hebrew. Many Christians both languages are the same and do not know the differences. They also do not pay attention to the large differences of letters in the peschitta. Should God have used a "sacred Bible language," as some Christians call it, he would have chosen Hebrew, but not Aramaic, the language of the Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian and Persian rulers. Every single Aramaic word, which came from the mouth of the Hebrew people, it reminded them of their former apostasy from God, because so they came into captivity (slavery) and had to pass their mother tongue (Hebrew) replace a new one (Syriac, Aramaic, Chaldean). It was an audible reminder of their former disobedience to God.
3. No name cult. Since in English translations from Peschitta the geographical places and personal names on in the Aramaic If correspondence has been written, the outward appearance of accuracy arises. But Jesus never asked people to speak the Babylonian (Aramaic, Syriac, Chaldean) language. or to practice an Aramaic name cult. He was interested in understanding his word in EVERY language and not in the pronunciation itself. In the Lord's Prayer Jesus even said, that we should address God as "Father" (or Daddy). It makes no sense to pronounce the Aramaic names, but at the same time replace the Sabbath with Sunday (see Resurrection Sabbath), and to violate God's commandments in various ways. For God, what matters most is whether someone has the selfless and pure Agape love (it is the solution). of all problems in society, family and marriage) and not the phonetic pronunciation of place and personal names in the language of Babylon.
There were several regional Aramaic dialects at the time of Jesus, and it is not known which of them Jesus used at all. He probably has all He used dialects depending on where he was regionally. So everyone in the people could understand his messages and there is not a single reference in the entire NT that suggests that people did not understand his language. At most, the spiritual content of his words was unclear to them, but not the language. God has never required us to use the Aramaic Pronouncing names (e.g., Yeshua instead of Jesus, Elohim instead of God; Jukhanan instead of John, Yitzhak instead of Isaac, Matityahu/Mattai instead of Matthew, etc.) and people even more unnecessarily confuse by saying "Jukhanan" instead of "John". In some Christian communities, a veritable cult of names is practiced; for men think particularly justly, to be intelligent, knowledgeable and especially close to God when they only pronounce the Aramaic names. But the Septuagint is a clear proof that we can easily identify the names in the can pronounce the respective national language. Jesus was always concerned with the comprehensible content of his words and with the way of love agape, which is described in the Sermon on the Mount and 1 Corinthians 13) and not about a meaningless language cult. In addition, Aramaic has changed dramatically over the centuries, as have German and English. So we don't know how the personal and place names were pronounced exactly 2,000 years ago. This is also unimportant, since it is about the spiritual content of the Bible and not about the Babylonian language. The Hebrew (and not Aramaic) pronunciation is always preferable anyway, because it is still the main language of the Bible. God's criterion in judgment is the existing love in people and not how they pronounced individual words. And what should never be overlooked: Jesus himself has the different languages because he existed as the "Word of God" before he was born as a man. There are many Bible passages about this, especially in the New Testament. This is also true in theological circles. and is also known as the term "preexistence" Christi" at Wikipedia. See also the meaning of the names and their numerical values (name-AT and name-NT). Jesus, therefore, as the Word of God himself, has the different languages with the different pronunciations of the Create personal and place names. We have to respect this and not change it.
4. Greek was the main language of the Roman Empire at the time of the NT and was only replaced by Latin many decades later. Most literature in all areas of life (science, economics, philosophy, theology, medicine, art...) has been published at present. of the NT mainly written in Greek. Many Jews were brought up multilingual. Even the entire Hebrew Old Testament was written more than 200 years before the birth of Jesus. into Greek (and not into Aramaic), the Septuagint originated. Most Christians are not aware of how important and widespread the ancient Greek language is. (the so-called koine, from koinós "common language") in Israel and throughout the Roman and extra-Roman Empire. It was the common language or the world language from about 300 BC to 600 AD and was then far more important internationally than the English language for us today.
The age of Hellenism began as early as 336 BC, when Alexander the Great (*356 BC; †323 BC) began his reign. and lasted until the incorporation of Egypt (the last Hellenistic empire) into the Roman Empire in 30 BC. The Greek language was not only used in the area of today's Greece, but in a huge empire area, which extends from today's southern Italy far into Asia Minor, Persia and North Africa (Egypt). extended.
The territory of Israel was by no means only in the periphery, but in the middle, i.e. in the center of the Mediterranean Greek Empire. So it was a transit area for caravans with all kinds of trade products and for soldier movements on its entire area. Israel was thus above For several generations culturally, economically, scientifically, religiously and militarily under the strong influence of the then Greek world power and its world language. Therefore, many Israelites in Judea and outside Judea grew up multilingual from an early age and could speak Greek fluently.
In 332 BC, Alexander the Great besieged Jerusalem with his troops, but did not destroy the city. The Jewish historian Josephus Flavius (*37; †100 AD) describes that Alexander was sympathetic to the Jewish people. When the Jewish high priest quoted a prophecy from the book of Daniel (Daniel 8:20-22) to his Greek guest, which had already given him 200 years ago as the conqueror of the Persian Empire, Alexander is said to have been deeply impressed.
After Alexander's early death (323 BC), his empire (as prophesied in the Bible) was divided into four kingdoms. in each of which one of Alexander's generals ruled. However, the new Greek rulers were at odds with each other and waged wars against each other. Israel was therefore once under the The rule of one, sometimes under the other, continued to be under strong Hellenic influence for more than 150 years. In 168 BC, the Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanes (*215 BC, †164 BC) Jerusalem conquers as foretold by the prophet Daniel (Daniel 9:27; 11:31). The gold treasures were stolen and the temple was desecrated by the abomination of desolation (an altar of Zeus on which a pig was sacrificed). Many Jewish men were executed or as slaves Led away. Epiphanes had the Hebrew and Greek Torah scrolls burned and forbade the Sabbath celebration and all biblical Feasts, as well as circumcision. Aramaic was considered inferior and should no longer be spoken. Those who did not abide by his rules were killed without mercy. His goal was to completely Hellenize all Jews and eradicate so-called Judaism. Many women and children were enslaved and scattered throughout the Reich. But those Jews who took Zeus were spared and even richly rewarded. Therefore, some Jews publicly embraced this false belief, even if they were inwardly opposed to it. The Greek language was not only official language, but also educational, cultural, medical and economic language, so that farmers and fishermen were also interested in speaking Greek to sell products or to be able to buy. Of course, all slaves had to understand Greek, because their Hellenic masters were not interested in learning the Aramaic language for them. The The most important works of ancient literature were written in Greek. Many Jewish children, whether from slaves or from respected traders, had been living throughout the Reich since Generations have been familiar with the Greek language from an early age and over the years even lost knowledge of Hebrew and Aramaic, which is only local (Israel) and usually only was spoken by priests.
In 164 BC, the Jews managed to free themselves from the violence of the oppressors (Maccabean Revolt) and reopen the Temple. clean. Even today, the Jewish festival of Hanukkah (Festival of Lights) commemorates this event. But freedom did not last long, for in 63 B.C. Judea was conquered by the Roman general Pompey and incorporated into the Roman Empire. When the Romans came, they had no communication problems with the Jews, because Greek was also their literary, military, cultural and economic language, which many Jews speak perfectly. Could.
It is a mistake to believe that Greek was only relevant in Israel at the time of Alexander the Great and his successors, because for a long time it was also the state language of the The Roman Empire was the first Roman Empire. Most authors of antiquity even wrote their now famous works in Greek until 600 AD. Therefore, a Roman life was without the study of Hellenic literature completely unthinkable, because all educated Romans and Israelites read the Greek books on philosophy, theology, natural science, medicine, History, religion, music and art and were influenced by it. Even in the Roman Empire itself, most of the most important works were not in Latin, but in Greek. drafted. At the time of Jesus, the entire Mediterranean was in the Greek-speaking world and scientists, merchants, priests, doctors and politicians from different peoples wrote their works. in Greek and not in their actual national languages.
The famous Jewish-Roman historian Josephus Flavius (*37, †100 AD), who lived at the same time and in the same room as the writers of the Gospels, also wrote the Most of his works from 75-90 AD not in Aramaic, Hebrew or Latin, but in Greek, which indicates the importance of this language in the Roman Empire, even decades after death. Jesus, makes it clear. Greek was also the language of the Roman soldiers (Acts 21:31-37). Although Latin was also spoken among the Roman soldiers, the written language could be they only gain influence much later. The Latin Vulgate dates back to 382 AD, when the Greek language was increasingly replaced by Latin (the new church language). Europe) has been suppressed. Until then, Greek was the main language of the first Christian communities, because it was the language that affected everyone, not only educated and free, but also understood the slaves. In other words, Greek was the language of the so-called "first Christian early community", which consisted of former Jews and especially many Gentile Christians from the There was a wide variety of regions.
5. Age, quantity and quality of the original texts and the foundation of all Christian Bibles worldwide. There are thousands Greek manuscripts, but complete historical Aramaic texts of the entire NT have not been found to this day. A huge number of Greek manuscripts have a small number of Aramaic. The oldest Greek manuscripts found were created only a few years after the original writings. All existing Aramaic New Testament texts are much younger, on the other hand, so they were written much later. The word "Bible" is also not derived from Aramaic, but from the Greek language, because the Ancient Greek "biblia" (βιβλια; Mt 1:1) means "scrolls" or "books". Thus, Christianity still uses the Greek Name "Bible" and not a corresponding Aramaic. The Bible is therefore "the book of books" and these were written in the OT (Septuagint) and NT in Greek, whereupon the Greek name "Bible" refers to this day. If we had to base our faith on the few Aramaic manuscripts, it would be a catastrophe, because there is a great deal of God's Word would simply be missing. The lack of old copies of the Aramaic texts proves that they were insignificant among both Gentile and Jewish Christians. They only played in very small geographical areas. On the other hand, there is a flood of basic Greek texts. The textual basis of the Reformers and most Bible translators worldwide was Correct, as has been proven many times. If Luther had had to build on the Syrian text, his Bible would still not be finished. Many of the Aramaic texts used today are nothing more than new idiosyncratic Aramaic translations from the ancient Greek manuscripts. This is an important fact that many Christians are not aware of.
6. Missing texts and books in the Peschitta. The oft-quoted Peschitta, which is usually used as the basis for today's Syriac (Aramaic) texts were mainly created from the 5th century AD. The entire Greek NT, on the other hand, was complete long before and it was had been distributed throughout the Roman Empire for centuries. Before that, there were only the Aramaic Gospels and some translations from the Hebrew Old Testament, the so-called Targumim. The Peschitta played a role only in the small Syrian area, so the OT was gradually translated into Aramaic for the church there. "In any case, the Peschitta has been used several times and in the individual books have been revised very differently. The oldest Peschitta manuscript on the Tanakh from the year 464 contains the 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th books of Moses. Later manuscripts resembled the Literation increasingly Greek translations and show especially the influence of the Septuagint" (Wikipedia). Several experts were able to prove that the Aramaic NT must be a translation from Greek, which the Proponents of the peshitta, however, deny it, because otherwise nothing would speak for the Aramaic texts. But the many Greek loanwords provide clear proof. In addition, the Peschitta incomplete. The Gospels were available early. But some important parts of the NT are incomplete and some books are even missing altogether (2 Peter, 2 Joh, 3 Joh, Judas and the Revelation). These non-existent texts had to be translated from Greek later in order to have a complete Aramaic Bible at all. The mere absence of this important books is another clear proof that the NT was written in Greek.
7. The language of Jesus was also (!) Greek and the Greek numerical value of its name is 888. If the proponents of the Peschitta say that Aramaic was the language of Jesus, then that is only half the truth, because the whole truth is that the language of Jesus was also Greek. Jesus is multilingual Like many Jewish children of his time, he was brought up. Jesus' mother tongue was not only Aramaic, but also Greek. When Joseph and Mary had to flee with Jesus to Egypt (Mt 2:13-23), the country of origin of the Septuagint, it was not Arabic that was spoken there, but Greek. It was only after Herod's death that they went to Nazareth (Matthew 2:13-23), a region in Greek was widely spoken. The Hellenic influence in Israel began as early as Alexander the Great, more than 300 years before our era, and continued through all For generations. Jesus himself never needed a translator when talking to the Roman soldiers, as he had known their language since childhood. Jesus had power over forces of nature, could read people's minds, heal the sick and even raise the dead; should he have been unable to communicate with people? Certainly not. Jesus understood the Hebrew (OT), Aramaic (short sections Daniel and Ezra) and of course the Greek texts (Septuagint) of the Bible. Not only Aramaic, but also Greek was i.e. the language of Jesus, since he grew up multilingual (multilingual). Thus, the NT is also written down in the language of Jesus (Greek) Aramaic was not his only language.
Interesting is the encounter between Jesus and the Roman centurion of Capernaum (Matthew 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10; John 4:46-53). In the original text, the official title έκατόνταρχος (hekatontarchos) mentions what the Greek translation of the Latin centurion is. It is clear what was meant by this and this is also explained at WIKIPEDIA: "Centurio or Centurion ("Hundertschafts-Führer", from Latin centum = hundred), in ancient Greek sources also referred to as Hekatontarch (έκατόνταρχος), was the name for an officer of the Roman Empire, who usually commanded a centuria ("hundred") of the Roman legion or a comparable unit of auxiliary troops." Jesus was able to get along very well with the Centurion and the disciples understood all the communication. No translator is mentioned. The Romans were never interested in the Aramaic language, they forced the peoples to Greek and later Latin.
The New Testament reports further contacts with Roman soldiers, especially the interrogation of Jesus before Pilate (Matthew 27:11-26) is worth mentioning. Both were able to have a perfect conversation. We never once read that there were communication problems or that a translator was necessary. The Roman soldiers made fun of Jesus while going to the crucifixion and that was certainly not in Aramaic (Matthew 27:27-30). "But when the centurion and those guarded with him saw the earthquake and what was happening, they were greatly frightened, and said, Verily, this was the Son of God" (Mt 27:54). The soldiers spoke Greek among themselves, and yet the audience could understand what they were saying. The Evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John certainly didn't go to the centurion with a translator to ask what he was saying so they could write it down later. In the Gospels, not a single translator which would be necessary because Jews have been growing up multilingual for centuries.
Pilate himself had an inscription in several languages affixed to the cross with the text "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews" "and it was written. in Hebrew[Greek: H ebraisti = יהושוע or ישוע], Latin [Rhomaisti = Jesus] and Greek [Hellenisti] language" (John 19:19-20). In some manuscripts, Luke even mentions the Greek language first: "But there was also an inscription above him in Greek [Hellenikois = Ιησους] and Latin [Romaikois] and Hebrew [Hebraikois] letters: This is the king of the Jews" (Lk 23:38, ELB 2006). The name "Jesus" is not a modern invention, like some false teachers behauten.
At the crucifixion, all people also saw the Latin name "Jesus" and Greek name "IESOUS" (Jesus) and this form is extremely important, because neither the Hebrew nor the Aramaic form have the numerical value 888, but only the Greek version (see 888). This numerical value 888 is far above the Hebrew and Aramaic numerical values of the old name (see numerical values AT), because only through Jesus' death on the cross do we have access to God. Satan tries again and again to To remove the name "Jesus" from history and replace it with other names. But he will never succeed, because this Greek name "Iesous" with the numerical value 888 is the most important name in the entire universe.
Acts 4:10-12: "And be made known to you and to all the people of Israel: In the name of Jesus [Greek: Iesou] Christ [Greek: Christou] of Nazareth, whom you crucified, the raised God from the dead; through him this [formerly sick man] stands here before you healthy. 11 This is the stone rejected by you builders, which is used for Cornerstone. 12 And in no other is salvation, neither is there any other name under heaven given unto men, by which we shall be blessed [=saved]." It's about the Greek name of Jesus!
Even in the communications after Jesus' death, an Aramaic translator was never mentioned (Matthew 27:62-66; 28:11-15). In addition to Hebrew and Aramaic, Greek is also the language of Jesus. And what is important: Jesus and the evangelists also often quoted from the Septuagint, which linguists have clearly proven. For this purpose, there are special literature with a list of examples. Even today, the Israelites speak not only Hebrew in their land, but also very well English and other languages (German, Russian, Polish...). Many Israeli websites are at least bilingual. Why, then, are some Christians surprised that the Jews used to speak several languages? understood?
8. The language of the evangelists and the first Christians was Greek. Aramaic (Syriac) was undoubtedly the colloquial language of the This does not mean that the writers of the NT actually used Aramaic and not Greek. If anything, it would be clearly only one or very few fonts are the case. In order to reach the many scattered Christians in the Roman Empire, the scribes of the NT had no other option than to use the Greek language for their Gospels and Epistles. Only in this way could they ensure that the content was read and, above all, understood by a broad circle. In order to In order to pass on the writings of the NT, numerous copies in other languages were made very early on, including, of course, partly into Syriac (Aramaic). But at the latest from 70 A.D., i.e. after the conquest of Jerusalem and the expulsion of the Jews to all parts of the world, Aramaic no longer played a role at all. According to experts, many of the New Testament writings written only after 70 AD (see dating). It makes no sense to publish the NT in a language that almost no one understands anyway, not even the Jews. God's goal is not to conceal, but His Word to make known to the whole world. At the time of the evangelists there was no other language in the world better suited to this than the Greek world language of his Time. Some of the epistles and revelation were written around the year 100 A.D., a full 30 years (more than a generation) after the expulsion of the Jews from their land. all over the world. The Jews themselves scattered in the Roman Empire, from slaves to masters, increasingly communicated with each other only in Greek. The many Jewish Grave inscriptions throughout the empire have been carved mainly in Greek and only a few words such as "Shalom" (peace) remind of their ancient origin (see Historical Menorass). This means that even in their most personal realms, namely the death of their beloved relatives, the Jews themselves are not in Aramaic, but in Greek. Wrote.
All evangelists also understood Greek. Their aim was to tell all people about the deeds of Jesus, and their scattered Christian brothers in the to reach already existing churches (Matthew 28:16-20). And no other language was better suited for this than Greek. It is important to note 1. BY WHOM the books of the NT, 2. WHEN they were written (for more info see date), 3. TO WHOM they were addressed (mainly to Greek-speaking Jewish and Gentile Christians) and 4. WHERE the recipients (mostly in the Roman Empire outside Israel).
Who wrote the books of the NT? As can be seen from the Bible itself, Matthew was a tax collector by profession (Matthew 9:9; Mk 2:14; Lk 5,27;) and as a tax collector of Rome, hated by the Jews, he had to be able to speak, calculate and write Greek fluently, since Greek was the official language. Rome's Strong Influence in Israel is also reflected in the naming. Mark is derived from the common Latin (Roman) first name Markos and means "dedicated to the Roman god of war Mars". The According to literature, the evangelist Mark was the first bishop in Alexandria, where Greek had been the main language and a matter of course for centuries. It is precisely here that The Greek Septuagint (LXX) was created for the Jews themselves. The name Luke was a common Greek name derived from gr. lucos (bright) and "into the light" born into it". He was a physician (Colossians 4:14) from Antioch and thus familiar with Greek literature, for the most important medical books of his time were in Greek (and not in Aramaic). Theophilus is the addressee of both Luke's Gospel (Luke 1:3-4) and the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 1:1). He does not have a Jewish, but a Greek name (Greek Θεόφιλος, Theo-philos), which translates as "God-lover" or "God-friend". Wikipedia writes about his person: "In the Gospel of Luke he is referred to as "illustrious Theophilos" ("κράτιστε Θεόφιλε"), a form of address used in writing and orally for Roman senators, knights and procurators, e.g. for Felix in Acts 23:26 and for Festus in Acts 26:25. Therefore, it can be assumed that Theophilos was a noble man." In scientific circles, it is assumed that in addition to a historical person, a literary Fiction of the author could be meant, with which he his "theophiles", i.e. The converted Christian readers, wanted to address personally. The one in the Acts of the Apostles Stephen (c. 1 A.D.; † c. 36/40 A.D.) was a deacon of the early Jerusalem community. He is considered the first martyr of Christianity. "His name indicates a Hellenistic origin" (quote Wikipedia). John was the youngest disciple of Jesus. He lived many years after the temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in A.D. 70. and the Jews were scattered in all parts of the Greek-speaking world. In all these areas, Aramaic was completely meaningless in the Christian communities. As Johannes old Aramaic no longer played any role at all. Therefore, he wrote in Greek so that Christians could hear the Gospel of Jesus and Revelation. Therefore, there is no Aramaic revelation!. So the foundation of all Bible translations were men who understood Greek. Paul (a Latin name that translates to "the little one" or "the one") Humble" means. Gr. Παύλος;) He was a Roman citizen. He spoke Hebrew/Aramaic (Acts 21:39-22:2; 26:14) and, of course, Greek (Acts 9:29; Acts 21:33-39). His Hebrew name Saul (Hebrew: Saul. Schaul) was used less and less over the years, because he mainly traveled Greek-speaking areas and to this day his Greek name is "Paulus". known to us or German equivalent "Paul". Paul traveled a lot with Timothy, Paulu.s; he was "the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, and of a Greek father" (Acts 16:1-8). His Greek name Timotheos (Τιμόθεος) was very common in ancient Greece, meaning "honor/cherish God" and is mentioned 24 times in the NT. There were never any communication problems on the trips in the mainly Greek-speaking areas. Any questions?
9. The Jews rejected Jesus, so God cleared the way to the kingdom of God for people from all nations. The Word of God should be in all over the world and understood everywhere and not only by a small scattered Jewish minority, which also rejects Jesus anyway. And they reject Jesus Christ to this day and do not recognize who he really was and is. Jesus himself said, "Go and make disciples of ALL NATIONS. 20 And teach them to keep all that I have commanded you" (Matthew 28:19-20). And the language of "all peoples" was certainly not Aramaic, but Greek. The worldwide little-known Syriac was completely unsuitable to serve as a worldwide translation base. It could rather cause misunderstandings. The Greek, on the other hand, was easy to understand and widespread. No pagan ever had to learn Aramaic to hear the Word of God, but almost all scattered Jews had to learn Greek or already understood it.
10. The time factor: If we had to wait for a Bible translation from the Aramaic text, billions of people would have For many generations, they will never be able to read or hear the Bible. God has made no mistake and has not failed mankind for the last 2,000 years. Be Word has been handed down to us over the centuries in the original Greek language of the NT, the later Latin Bible (Vulgate) and the many translations in various languages. The Germanic Gothic Bible by Bishop Wulfila (Ulfilas; *c. 311; †383) appeared before the Vulgate. For this translation, Wulfila invented a Gothic typeface with new Letters. It is based in its whole structure mainly on the Greek alphabet and some Latin letters and special characters. We can use the thousandfold existing Greek manuscripts trust and do not need to concentrate on the very few and incomplete Syriac or Aramaic texts. Aramaic (the language) of the Neo-Babylonian and Persian rulers) will never be given such a high status as Greek as a textual basis. We distance ourselves from those who have doubts about Greek Sow the word of God of the New Testament and introduce new heresies.
Jesus prophesied that a sign of the end times would be that "this gospel of the kingdom in the WHOLE WORLD as a witness to ALL NATIONS" (Matthew 24:14). Would we have to wait for the Bibles in all languages to appear first? and for all peoples were translated from the Aramaic text (which has not even been completely found until today), Jesus would probably never return to earth.
11. Quotes from the LXX in the NT: How important the Greek language was for the Jews is impressively shown by the Septuagint (Abbreviation: LXX), the complete translation of the Old Testament into Greek, which was already made in the 3rd century BC. It is interesting that the work on this is not in Israel, but in Alexandria, the great port city of Egypt, which was named after Alexander the Great. At the time when the translation was carried out, almost the entire central area belonged, including all of Israel, to the Greek Empire. The translation was not done secretly by an unknown person, but officially by 72 respected Jewish people. Scholars (hence the name "Septuagint", derived from the number 70), namely 6 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. They all spoke perfect Greek, so the creation went very fast ahead. The Septuagint was the world's first complete and official translation of the Bible. It is still considered one of the greatest and most influential works in world literature.
The Septuagint was copied again and again and spread in the following centuries in the Greek and then in the Roman Empire. But it was not only It was initially the only Bible of the first Christian communities in the world who did not understand Aramaic and Hebrew. It was also the foundation of the first Christian church. It was not until decades after Jesus' death that the writings of the New Testament were added. Until then, the experience with Jesus was only passed on orally. The Greek Septuagint was much more important and widespread than the few incomplete Aramaic translations. The later Syrian texts also have clear Greek features, suggesting a Translation from Greek into Syriac. If the Jews themselves wrote and disseminated the entire Old Testament in Greek, then it is illogical why they Should write the New Testament in Aramaic, in a language that over time even few Jews understood?
Many New Testament quotations from the OT are taken from the Septuagint, which additionally proves that the apostles also read in it or at least belong to it. have. Not everyone could afford their own Bible, but the quotes are surprisingly good. Some small deviations suggest that the writers also from memory Quoted. There are several passages that prove that Paul took certain words and phrases from the Septuagint. For example, in 2 Corinthians 4:13 he writes: "Because we but have the same spirit of faith, as it is written: "I believe, therefore I speak" [επιστευσα διο ελαλησα], so we also believe, therefore we also speak." That is nothing else a literal quotation from Psalm 116:10 from the Septuagint, where it is actually written literally: "επιστευσα [I believed] διο [therefore] ελαλησα [I spoke]", i.e. exactly the same text as in the Greek New Testament. The Septuagint was written in Greek, the world language of the time, so that all Jews and non-Jews could understand it. The incomplete Aramaic Old Testament texts never had a chance to serve as a basis for quotations.
12. Paul travels to Christian communities that were far away from the Aramaic language area. Paul himself was an educated man and even Roman Citizen. He could speak Greek perfectly. According to most historians, some of his letters were written after the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple in 70 A.D. In concrete terms, this means that when the NT was written, there were hardly any Hebrews left in Israel, because they had previously been deported all over the world. Almost without exception, they lived in an area with Greek. as the main language. It was precisely these people that Paul wanted to reach with his letters. He wrote to the Romans, Galatians, Ephesians, Thessalonians and Corinthians. Are these Aramaic cities? No they are Greek villages. In most of today's Bibles, a map is shown in the appendix in which Paul's travels are recorded. These show that he visited the pagan areas. Traveled. These include today's territories in Turkey, Greece and even Italy, namely in Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire. Corinth was a great trading metropolis, Ephesus (Greek Eφεσος in today's Turkey), was in antiquity one of the oldest, largest and most important Greek cities of Asia Minor and had the largest temple building of antiquity, the Greek temple of Artemis (moon and sky goddess = roman. Diana), one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Of course, Greek was the main language here. Paul also wrote to the Christians In the Roman province of Galatia (also Turkey), one of the Hellenistic centers of that time. Paul wrote two letters to Timothy, the son of a Greek (Acts 16:1-8), whose work for the development of the Christian community was very important. Wikipedia writes about Paul: "In contrast to the Hebrew name Saul, Paul is a name from the Hellenistic-Roman world. Paul himself always used only this name in his letters". It is not logical why Paul, as a Roman citizen, uses a Roman name when he wanted to reach Aramaic readers?
Paul was addressing the many Gentile Christians and scattered Jewish Christians, and their language was predominantly Greek. He did not force anyone to use Aramaic , especially since the Jews themselves increasingly forgot this language in the Diaspora, i.e. could no longer understand it at all. And again, the Bible is not meant for a small group. but for the whole world! And no language was better suited to this than Greek.
13. Fehlende oder unlogische Übersetzungen einiger Wörter im aramäischen NT: Im Neuen Testament finden sich mehrmals Übersetzungen aus dem Aramäischen ins Griechische, um den Hörer die Bedeutung bestimmter aramäischer Worte zu erklären. Beispiele: Immanuel, „das heißt übersetzt: Gott mit uns“ (Mt 1,23) oder „Golgatha, das heißt übersetzt: Schädelstätte“ (Mk 15,21-22) oder Barnabas „das heißt übersetzt: Sohn des Trostes“ (Apg 4,36). Bei diesen Eigennamen sind die Erklärungen sowohl in den griechischen als auch in dem aramäischen Bibeltext enthalten, da es sich um Eigennamen handelt. Genauso gut hätten auch viele weitere Namen in beiden Sprachen erklärt werden können wie z. B. Daniel (der Name bedeutet „Richter ist Gott“) usw. Aber diverse andere aramäische Worte haben keine weitere Bedeutung und müssen daher auch nicht im aramäischen Text erklärt werden. Daher fehlen in der Peschitta einige Texte, die in den griechischen Manuskripten zu finden sind. Einige Beispiele: Im griechischen Text steht: „Rabbi – das heißt übersetzt Meister“ (Joh 1,38). Aber in der Peschitta fehlt diese Redewendung, denn sonst müsst es heißen: Meister, das heißt übersetzt Meister.“ Auch fehlt der erklärende Text in Joh 1,42, denn sonst müsste es heißen „Messias..., das heißt übersetzt: der Messias.“ Jesus sagte zu Petrus: „du sollst Kephas heißen, das heißt übersetzt: Fels (Joh 1,42). Auch dieser Satz fehlt in der Peschitta, denn sonst müsste es lauten: „Du sollst Fels heißen, das heißt übersetzt Fels.“ Weitere fehlende Erklärungen gibt es in Joh 9,7 und Apg 9,36.
Not only in terms of names, the peshitta is incomplete, but also in some idioms: Mark writes that Jesus to the deceased child Aramaic words, the meaning of which he explained. Jesus said, "Talita kum! That translates to the girl [Talita], get up [kum]" (Mk 5:41). But in the Peschitta are missing the last translating words to avoid meaningless repetitions, otherwise it would have to say in Aramaic: "Girl get up, that means translated: girl get up."
Why is this important to know? Quite simply, suppose that the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles had been written in Aramaic, then this would Two things mean:
- that translating into Greek would be subsequent additions to the Bible. Accordingly, there would be no end to the discussions, because then other texts are questioned and there would be a dispute as to which texts belong to the Bible or not
- that the translators must have coordinated with each other worldwide. The four Gospels were written separately in space and time And immediately afterwards often copied and widely distributed. It would be impossible for all copiers to have coordinated with each other worldwide and in all these places. uniformly from the Aramaic Bible would have added these translations to the Bible. The apostles could have made it easy for themselves without mentioning the Aramaic words. But especially, That these explanations were chosen independently of each other is further clear evidence that the Bible was written in Greek and by mentioning special Aramaic Original quotes have been enriched. These explanations were then deleted when translated into Aramaic, as they did not need to be explained in order to make senseless repetitions. avoid.
One of the most powerful sentences in the Bible are the words Jesus cried out on the cross shortly before his death: "Eli, Eli, lama asabtani? That is Translated: My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" (Mk 15:34). Here Jesus quoted the Hebrew text of Psalm 22 "Eli Eli lamah asabtani" (אלי אלי למה עזבתני רחוק). But who now reads the Aramaic text, which will be very surprised, because there is 2 times the same thing in a row, which is not only unnecessary, but also illogical. Literally translated, it says: "God, God why have You forsaken me, that is, translated: my God, my God, why have You forsaken me." The only small difference in the sentence is the word Eli (God), which is quite is insignificant. This passage is also further proof that the NT was written in Greek from the beginning, because an Aramaic writer would have this illogical phrase certainly not used. The Aramaic text is read from right to left (cf. also alphabet and letters of Peschitta):
The Greek NT is logical and easy to understand, because here is first the Aramaic meaning "Eloi, Eloi lema sabachthani" and then the corresponding Greek translation. But in the Aramaic text the same thing is written twice in a row. The English translations of Peschitta make it too easy, because they mention in the first part the Aramaic pronunciation (haste, haste, lemana Shabaqthani) and in the second simply the English translation, although in the text base is twice 100% the same. In the Aramaic text repeat exactly the same words, which is meaningless and proves that the NT was originally written in Greek and the translators were unsure as the Greek translators were. Explanations should be logically translated into their language.
At Pentecost there is talk of Jews "from all nations under heaven" and their "many tongues" (Acts 2). In Acts 6:1, the dispute between to the Greek and Hebrew Jews. Literally it says "Hellenes [Helleniston] against the Hebrews [Hebraious]". But the most important language for all Christians was Greek. The Greek Jews and first Greek Christians are mentioned several times in the New Testament (Acts 6:1; 9:29; 16:1; 17:10-13). The disciples "came to Antioch and also spoke to the Greeks. [Hellenistas] and preached the gospel of the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number became believers" (Acts 11-21). The Greeks, of course, did not understand Aramaic, but the disciples could communicate with them in Greek.
John also translates Hebrew words into Greek. If the NT had been written in Syriac, then many explanations in the NT would be completely meaningless. Especially the Evangelist John, who was the last to write his Gospel, explains the Hebrew (Greek Εβραιστι, Hebraisti) words 7 times. The Hebrew and Aramaic names are mostly the same. Therefore, some mention Bible translations in the following places the word "Aramaic," although it should be correctly "Hebrew." It makes no sense to explain something in Hebrew/Aramaic if it is in of this language, right? Some examples: "But there is a pool in Jerusalem at the shaft gate, which is called in Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti] Bethesda" (Jn 5:2). "When Pilate heard these words, he led Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at the place called stone pavement, in Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti] Gabbata" (John 19:13). "And he [Jesus] bore his cross, and went forth to the place which is called the place of the skull, in Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti] Calvary" (John 19:17). "Say Jesus to her, Mary! Then she turned and spoke to him in Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti]: Rabbuni!, that is: Master!" (John 20:16). "But Pilate wrote an inscription and put it on the cross; and it was written: Jesus of Nazareth, the king of the Jews. (20) This inscription read: many Jews, because the place where Jesus was crucified was close to the city. And it was written in Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti], Latin [Ρωμαιστι, Rhomaisti] and Greek [Ελληνιστί, Hellenisti] language" (John 19:17-20). John also explains names: "They had over them a king, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti] Abaddon, and in Greek [Hellenic] he has the name Apollyon" (Rev 9:11) "And he gathered them together in a place which is called Hebrew [Εβραιστι, Hebraisti] Armageddon" (Rev. 16:16).
James does not address his letter "to the 12 tribes in Israel", since they no longer existed there at all, but "to the 12 tribes in the Diaspora (gr. διασπορα, dispersion, literally: sow/scatter apart; a Greek name; James 1:1)." It is still a well-known term for those living abroad (i.e. scattered in many Jews. John mentions this very word: "Then the Jews [gr. Joudaioi] said among themselves, 'Where will this [Jesus] go, that we might not find him? Does he want to: go to those who dwell in the dispersion [Greek diasporan] among the Greeks [Hellenon], and teach the Greeks [Hellenas]?" (John 7:35). Already at the time of Jesus and before Many Jews lived among the Greeks, so they knew this language as perfectly as the Greeks themselves. Many years after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, Peter writes to the "Elect in the dispersion [Diasporas], in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, the province of Asia and Bithynia" (1 Peter 1:1). It is clear how they develop there over the generations. I would like to ask the Commissioner whether he is prepared to accept the Commission's proposal.
14. Israel speaks Hebrew again today. When the Israelites after the Second World War, that is, after 2,000 years, When they returned to their country from all parts of the world, they began to speak Hebrew again, but by no means Syriac (Aramaic). They brought their mother tongues from many countries. with (English, German, Russian, Polish, Spanish...), but their new national language was Hebrew. If the NT had been written in Aramaic, they would have had to translate it into Hebrew. Then many Jews would ask themselves why God would not have written down the NT in Hebrew right away? This question is answered later in the text.
15. Moreover, the numerical meaning of the Bible also clearly speaks in favour of Greek. The ancient Hebrew alphabet consists of 22 letters and the ancient Greek alphabet of 27 letters = 22+27=49 letters. The OT was written on 22 scrolls and the NT on 27. Added together, all the scrolls of the Bible make up the important symbolic number 49. It is the number completeness and seclusion (7x7=49=22+27). No letter, no book may be added or removed (cf. structure of the Bible). With the 49th scroll and the 70th book (Revelation), the Bible became complete. Most Christians they don't care at all how the Bible was built, and they don't care about the meaning of number symbolism. But God also wants to tell us something. Only the humble in heart, can understand the structure of the Bible and they know that the NT must be written in Greek. Without the 27 Greek letters, the important jubilant number 7x7=49+1=50 could never be reached. It shows the complete completion of the Word of God for all eternity. And the 50th book is of course the most important, it is the book of life.
Camel and bottleneck - proof of the Aramaic NT?
The proponents of the peshitta like to use Jesus' phrase "it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom. God come" (Matthew 19:24; Mk 10,25; Lk 18:25) to prove that the NT was supposedly written in Aramaic. They claim that this is a Greek Mistranslation would have to act, because in the Aramaic text the word "rope" was used instead of "camel", which would be much more logical for them. In fact, the Greek word differs for "camel" (kamelos) only by a vowel from the word kamilos, which denotes a ship's rope. But who has the right to say that Jesus is not really a camel? opined?
Jesus himself often used an impressive, contrasting imagery to shake people up and make them think. All Christians know the words Jesus from the Sermon on the Mount, when He said that a man should not look lustfully at a woman and instead pluck out his eye and throw it away (Matthew 5:29), that it is better would be to cut off his own hand than to use it for apostasy before God (Matthew 5:30). He also spoke of the "beam in the eye" of some listeners (Mt 7:4-5), which affects them. must have had a shocking effect. These are dramatic comparisons. If someone were to tear out his own eye and throw it away and cut off his own hand, then at the latest to him the extreme comparison of Jesus clearly. But a ship's rope is not as much of a contradiction as the camel.
Jesus' comparison of the contrasts between the largest beast living in Israel, the camel and the tiny eye of a needle, was throughout the Jewish, Babylonian and Arab areas are well known, as can be seen from historical sources. Thus it says in the Jewish Talmud: "they (the dreams) show neither a palm tree of gold nor an elephant that can pass through the eye of a needle" (cf. Talmud: bBer 55b; bBM 38b). If now the Jews (!) themselves use an oriental parable, in which even an even more If fatter elephant passes through the eye of a needle, why can't Jesus use an example of a slightly smaller camel passing through the eye of a needle? It must therefore be assumed that the Israelites at the time of Jesus knew this parable very well and knew what Jesus meant. The elephant was only in areas outside Israel known. Most Israelites never saw an elephant in their lives. The camel, on the other hand, was the largest animal that every Israelite knew from his youth and could often see. Therefore, Jesus did not speak of the elephant, but of the camel. And he did not speak of a camel's hair, but of the whole animal, namely of the big camel, nor of a smaller donkey.
The Koran also knows this saying, because we read about the sinner: "there will be no opening of the gates of heaven, nor will they become the garden of God. enter before a camel passes through the eye of a needle" (Al-A'raf, Surah 7:40).
It is also important to note to whom something has been said. When Jesus used the comparison with the eye of the needle, it can be assumed that the Pharisees listened, because only a few verses before (Matthew 19:3) it is reported that they sought him out to tempt him. It was NOT the only time Jesus gave them the comparison with the camel, because another time in said he said to them again, "You deluded guides, who sift out mosquitoes, but swallow camels!" (Matthew 23:23). In the same way, someone could claim here that Jesus not camels, but thick ropes, because they could be swallowed better than a camel. But these interpretations are meaningless, because Jesus knew exactly what he was saying. His sermons were visually powerful and lively and went through the heart much more than the sermons of many pastors of today, where you can fall asleep in the service and hardly learn anything for life. In addition, it is the same in sense, because neither the ship's rope nor the camel fit through the eye of the needle. But the camel is much better suited to this impossible contrast between to make clear to a miserly rich man and eternal life, as a ship's rope.
For the avoidance of doubt, money itself has never been a problem for God, for the Bible mentions many men and women of God who were wealthy and yet just (e.g. Abraham, Job). The problem is selfishness and lovelessness, when someone would rather watch others suffer and die than help them. to give some of its abundance. Can a camel pass through the eye of a needle? No! It is an irreconcilable opposition, an impossibility. In the Jewish language, it is about clarifying absolutely unimaginable thoughts. A camel makes this impossible contrast much clearer than a ship's rope. Nor can such a loveless rich man enter the kingdom of God. That is impossible. Jesus also spoke in other places that the way is kingdom of God is not easy. Jesus spoke of the narrow path to the kingdom of God (Matthew 7:13-14; Luke 13:24).
The bottleneck-camel comparison is therefore by no means suitable to prove that the NT was originally written in Aramaic. On the contrary, because the historical mention and the fact that Jerome, the language expert and author of the Latin Vulgate, also used the word "camelum" (camel) is further proof that he not the Aramaic Bible, but the Greek as the basis for his translations.
Why wasn't the NT written in Hebrew?
The Greek language served as the basis for the creation of the New Testament Bible. But how did this come about? Why didn't God also read the second part of the Bible? have it written down in Hebrew? This question is justified and the answer is simple, has already been given in part. The Israelites, as a result of their many sins against God - and thus In this context, it is important to stress the importance of the expulsion among the peoples - increasingly losing their own language. This took place in several phases over several centuries. Since the Babylonian Exile in the 6th century. In the nineteenth century BC, Hebrew was gradually replaced in colloquial language by Syriac (=Aramaic). It was the language of Neo-Assyrian (hence the name), later Neo-Babylonian and Persian empires on the territory of present-day Iran and Iraq. Many words sound the same or similar, but the letters of the Syriac alphabet have evolved over the course of the Centuries of great regional changes and are now considerably different from the Hebrews.
At the time of Jesus, Aramaic (Syriac) was spoken only by the common people, since the medical, literary, economic and commercial language was Greek. The Roman occupying forces also spoke Greek, so that all citizens from the ruler to the slave automatically had to adopt this language, unless they already knew it Knew. Thus, many Israelite children were brought up multilingual before and during Jesus' lifetime. The real Bible Hebrew, on the other hand, was understood only by the few priests and was almost completely lost among the Jewish people. Therefore, the Jews themselves have the entire OT already from 250 BC in Alexandria (Egypt) translated into Greek; the so-called Septuagint was born. It was named after the 70 and 72 Jewish translators respectively. Thus, the OT was able to travel throughout the Roman Empire from The Jews who were already scattered at that time can be understood everywhere. The Septuagint was the world's first translation of the Bible and it was not translated into Aramaic, but into Greek. because it was the world language of the time.
Now, if the Jews themselves wanted the OT in Greek so that it could be understood everywhere, why not Let God also write down the NT in this language, especially since it was addressed to the whole world anyway?
The New Testament was written in Greek, a language understood by the Jews themselves. It was the unifying language between Jews and Heathen. After the Israelites had turned away from God, rejected the Son of God, the Messiah Jesus Christ, and had him cruelly tortured and crucified by the Romans, the Expelled or even killed followers of Jesus, God had the New Testament (NT) written down even more in the Greek language. In any case, hardly anyone in the people understood Hebrew anymore and why would God write down the NT in the Syriac language? It was the language of the Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians, which the Jews as a result of their sins only in the They had to learn captivity as slaves. Thus, the Aramaic language reminded us of the sins of Israel with every single word, while they forgot their original language, Hebrew. Aramaic also became increasingly less important, even among the Jews. This is no surprise, especially since after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, all Jews worldwide were expelled. in areas where no one understood Aramaic. Among the peoples, Aramaic was therefore lost. The many Greek (and not Aramaic or Hebrew) inscriptions on Tombstones in various catacombs throughout the Roman Empire, made by the Jews themselves, are another clear proof. Only a few words like "Shalom" (peace) are and are reminiscent of their ancient language (see Historical Menorass).
The miracle of Pentecost in Acts 2 was already the beginning of a worldwide missionary work and the world language at that time was Greek. Only the Greek language was suitable for spreading the Word of God worldwide. Even the Jews no longer spoke Hebrew and Aramaic was almost completely lost. God has turned away from the Jews and The kingdom of God has now opened to the Gentiles and their main language was Greek. The Latin Bible translation (Vulgate) used the Greek Old and New Testament writings as a translation basis.
It was only after the Second World War, when the Jews returned to Israel after almost 2,000 years, as had been prophesied long before, that the people remembered. and began to speak Hebrew again, but not Aramaic. It was the unifying language of Russian, German, Polish, English, Spanish, etc. speaking Jews. Not only at the time of Jesus, but also today, the Israeli children are brought up multilingual and at the latest during a visit to Israel it becomes clear to everyone that the Residents of Israel can also speak fluent English, many even German or Russian. Why should they not have been able to work in several to communicate languages? At that time, Greek was even more important than English is today.
Result
God had the New Testament written down in the then world language Greek, so that it
1. read everywhere, then
2. above all understood and
3. can also be translated correctly into all other languages.
At that time, only the Greek language was suitable for this. God has no Mistakes made. If we had to wait for the Aramaic or even Hebrew texts, no one would have heard of Jesus for the last 2,000 years. God is not so irresponsible and unloving. No, he gave us the Greek text of the NT so that we could Understand His Word clearly and find no excuses for disobedience and sin.
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