Comments on The Rebel God: The Talmud on Substitutionary Atonement

Apparently Anonymous is Greek...

2010-11-29T16:56:27.454-08:00

Apparently Anonymous is Greek...

A suffering God? What a blaspheme!

2010-11-29T14:56:40.094-08:00

A suffering God? What a blaspheme!

That question goes beyond what I looked into since...

2010-10-22T12:03:52.571-07:00

That question goes beyond what I looked into since Talmudic studies are a huge, and is not really my main focus. So the answer is, I just don't know. It is an interesting question though. What have you found?

I do certainly think the servant in Isa 53 is ultimately pointing back to the nature of God who bears the people's sin in love in the same way the priest does (who also represents God in the form of a mediator). Of course I am coming at this from a particular reading of Scripture that is connected to my Christian faith, and so these clues I pick up on are not unrelated to the fact that I know the story of Jesus and thus read in the light of that revelation of God's image as well. One thing I notice as I read the NT is that Jesus' disciples were all surprised that the messiah would suffer, and did not see that coming. Greeks on the other hand were shocked that God could suffer, while that idea fits more with a Jewish conception of God. So either way the cross seemed to throw off both Jews and Greeks for different reasons. Because of that I don't think you will find a clear obvious line from Jewish thought to the idea of God beating our sin by dying for us. That was something that shocked and surprised pretty much everyone. That's why Paul calls it a "scandal". The best you can find a little clues that point to the coming surprise.

What have you found on G-d being the one to atone ...

2010-10-20T05:41:44.897-07:00

What have you found on G-d being the one to atone for us? There are only one or two Torah verses mentioning it and only a few more K'tuvim and Nevi'im verses. Rashi doesn't really clarify it and doesn't offer cross reference support of his conclusions. You'd think there would be lengthy Talmudic debates on it, as it was and is a topic highly contested between Jew and Crstian.

harcore dude :) Then I have to pick up on my germa...

2010-02-06T07:53:08.057-08:00

harcore dude :) Then I have to pick up on my german :) The book seems quite interesting!

Hi Eirik, There is no English version, I read the ...

2010-02-05T14:24:51.879-08:00

Hi Eirik,
There is no English version, I read the German one.

Hi Derek! Where did you buy "the Commentary t...

2010-02-05T13:30:51.414-08:00

Hi Derek! Where did you buy "the Commentary to the New Testament from the Talmud and Midrash" I can only find it in german.

Peace

2009-02-13T19:06:00.000-08:00

This comment has been removed by the author.

Hi Derek, I've been reading your writings for the ...

2009-01-24T23:44:00.000-08:00

Hi Derek, I've been reading your writings for the past couple weeks and I have to say that I feel like I found my long lost twin..lol. You have put into writing all the things about atonement and Hell I've been thinking over for the past year. I've come out of an extreme fundamentalist background and finally landed in the middle. The liberals and conservatives to me are just two extremes on the outer edges of the spectrum. It'd be great to enter into dialogue with you on these things and get involved with what you have going on here. I've been trying to get my own site up and running (consistently, the key word) to talk about my journey. I'm glad to have found you through theopedia! Blessings bro!