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Lesson 42 Hope of Israel Ministries BIBLE Correspondence Course 17

and led Israel astray” (b. Sanh. 107b).
Both of these traditions reflect the Mes-
siah’s disputes with the prevailing Judahite in-
terpretations of the Law, and the second one
seems to ADMIT that he worked some kind of
miracles or wonders as well -- even if it explains
them differently than do most Christians.
The two items in the rabbinic traditions
that are most widely believed to contain a core of
INDEPENDENT TESTIMONY to genuine, his-
torical information about the Messiah refer to his
death and his disciples. In b. Sanh. 43a, the Mes-
siah is said to have been hanged on the eve of the
Passover. Since crucifixion was quite often re-
ferred to as “hanging,” this tradition provides
powerful support for John’s account of the Mes-
siah’s death, in which the Judahites seem not to
have begun celebrating the Passover when the
Messiah was crucified.
In the Talmud the Messiah is scornfully
called “that man” or “Son of Pandera,” or “dead
dog,” and “the hanged one,” “the sorcerer,” “Ba-
laam,” and “Seducer.”
The Jewish Encyclopedia tabulates the
places where Yeshua is mentioned in the Tal-
mud. This encyclopedia terms as a mere “subter-
fuge” the attempt of atheists to run from these A page from the Babylonian Talmud.
references which apply to Yeshua the Messiah.
The miracles of the Messiah were not cles! Let the ignorant atheist deny that!
denied by the Judahites. INSTEAD, THE JU- The Talmud subtly calls the gospel that
DAHITES WHO SAW THE MESSIAH PER- the Messiah preached an “avengil”, meaning a
FORM THOSE MIRACLES SAID HE “blank paper.” They did not want to use the ori-
LEARNED SORCERY IN EGYPT -- which is ginal word “evangel”, meaning good news. They
merely another way of stating what we read in did not like the good news of the Kingdom of
Matthew 12:24: “But when the Pharisees heard YEHOVAH God that the Messiah brought.
it, they said, This man doth not cast out demons They did not want the Kingdom of YEHOVAH
but by Beelzebub, prince of the demons." God to rule over them -- to tell them what to do!
The Talmud records Yeshua’s healing of The most striking and significant pas-
the blind, the halt and the leprous. It also men- sage regarding the historical existence of the
tions his walking on the sea! There is also a full Messiah occurs in the work of the first-century
list of references to the Messiah’s mother, Mary. Judahite historian Josephus:
These events are therefore here “About this time there lived Jesus, a wise
PROVED to be historical FACT -- they are re- man, if indeed one ought to call him a man. For
corded by the Messiah’s own enemies! he was one who wrought surprising feats and
The Messiah not only lived, but the Ju- was a teacher of such people as accept the truth
dahites, in the Talmud, are witness to his mira- gladly. He won over many Jews and many of the

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