Quote:
Originally Posted by solojoh
I'm interested in a Jewish perspective, not the Christian one, so let me phrase the question differently:
What might a Jew of about 2000 years ago have meant by the term "eternal life?"
Is he referring to a afterlife? What kind of afterlife? What were the differing views at the time?
Thank you,
Sonia
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The idea of the immortality of the soul entered Judaism through the influence of Greek philosophy. You were vague in saying "about 2000 years ago", so I have included information about the changes that occurred in Judaism's teachings a few centuries after 2,000 years ago . . .
The Hebrew Scriptures show what the Ancient Israelites believed about death.
Certain customs have developed that reflect bthe elief that man has an immortal soul that survives death of the body and, so, is aware of what the survivors are doing, etc. . . .
However, the Bible says:
“For the living know that they will die, but
the dead know nothing at all . . .
Also, their love and their hate and their jealousy have already
perished,
and they no longer have any share in what is done under the sun.” (
Ecclesiastes 9:5, 6)
“The soul that is sinning—
it itself will die.” (
Ezekiel 18:4)
"Whatever your hand finds to do, do with all your might, for there is
no work
nor planning
nor knowledge
nor wisdom in the
Grave, where you are going." (
Ecclesiastes 9:10)
In describing what happens to the incorrigibly wicked, it says:
"The wicked are . . . like the chaff that the
wind blows away." (
Psalm 1:4)
"For
evil men will be done away with,
But those hoping in Jehovah will possess the earth.
"[
The] wicked will be no more." (
Psalm 37:9, 10a)
"[The] wicked will
perish . . . vanish . . . vanish like smoke." (
Psalm 37:20)
"[All] the transgressors will be
destroyed;
The
future of wicked people will be
cut off." (
Psalm 37:38)
With a persons' actual future cut off, there is no life to life no matter where!
(The Christian Scriptures teach the same thing at 2 Th 1:9a :
"These very ones will undergo the judicial punishment of everlasting destruction.")
However . . . One of the basic beliefs of 'modern' Judaism is that 'man has an immortal soul that survives the death of his body.'
Where do scholars say that this belief comes from, & when did the big change occur?
The
Encyclopaedia Judaica tells us that . . .
“It was
probably under Greek influence that the doctrine of the immortality of the soul came into Judaism.”
That same source shows that this created a doctrinal dilemma, stating:
“Basically the two beliefs of resurrection and the soul’s immortality are contradictory.
The one refers to a collective resurrection at the end of the days, i.e., that the dead sleeping in the earth will arise from the grave, while the other refers to the state of the soul after the death of the body.”
How was the dilemma resolved in Jewish theology? They changed their belief of no afterlife & a later resurrection, being based on the Bible alone . . . to preferring pagan teachings over those taught in God's Word:
“It was held that when the individual died his soul still lived on in another realm (this gave rise to all the beliefs regarding heaven and hell) while his body lay in the grave to await the physical resurrection of all the dead here on earth.”
University lecturer
Arthur Hertzberg writes:
“In the [Hebrew] Bible itself the arena of man’s life is this world. There is
no doctrine of heaven and hell, only a growing concept of an ultimate
resurrection of the dead at the end of days.”
That is a simple and accurate explanation of the Biblical concept, namely, that “
the dead know nothing . . . For there is
no action, no reasoning, no learning, no wisdom in Sheol [mankind’s common grave], where you are going.”—Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10; Daniel 12:1, 2; Isaiah 26:19.
Job described his hope of a resurrection some time after his death:
"If a man dies, can he live again?
I will wait all the days of my compulsory service
Until my relief comes.
You will call, and I will answer you.
You will long for the work of your hands." (
Job 14:14, 15)
Isaiah wrote about the hope of the resurrection:
“Your dead will live.
My corpses will rise up.
Awake and shout joyfully,
You residents in the dust!
For your dew is as the dew of the morning,
And the earth will let those powerless in death come to life.
" (Isaiah 26:19)
According to the
Encyclopaedia Judaica,
“
In the rabbinic period the doctrine of the resurrection of the dead is considered one of the central doctrines of Judaism” and “is to be distinguished from the belief in . . . the immortality of the soul.”
Today, however, while the immortality of the soul is accepted by all factions of Judaism (while the resurrection of the dead is no longer believed). When was immortality accepted by Judaism?
The
Encyclopaedia Judaica says that . . .
"Only in the post-biblical period, did a clear and firm belief in the immortality of the soul take hold . . . and become one of the cornerstones of the Jewish and Christian faiths."
"The personality was considered as a whole in the biblical period. Thus the soul was not sharply distinguished from the body."
The early Jews believed in the
resurrection of the dead,
and this "is to be
distinguished from the belief in . . . the immortality of the soul."
In 332B.C.E., Alexander the Great took much of the Middle East in conquest. His successors continued his plan of Hellenization,
imbuing all parts of the empire with Greek language, culture,
and philosophy. The
blending of the Greek and the Jewish cultures that resulted was inevitable.
Early in the 3 B.C.E., the first translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek --the
Septuagint-- was begun. Through it many Gentiles came to be familiar with & have respect for the Jewish religion, some even converting. At the same time Jews were becoming conversant with Greek thought, some becoming philosophers, a thing entirely new for them.
In the1st century C.E., Philo of Alexandria was one of the earliest Jewish philosophers. He revered Plato and took it upon himself to explain Judaism in terms of Greek philosophy.
"By creating a unique synthesis of Platonic philosophy and biblical tradition, Philo paved the way for later Christian [as well as Jewish] thinkers." Philo's belief about the soul was that "death restores the soul to its original, pre-birth state. Since the soul belongs to the spiritual world, life in the body becomes nothing but a brief, often unfortunate, episode." (quotes from:
Heaven—A History)
A book that deeply influenced Jewish thought and life is the Talmud—the written summary of the so-called oral law, with later commentaries and explanations of this law, compiled by rabbis from the 2nd century C.E. into the Middle Ages.
"The rabbis of the Talmud," says the
Encyclopaedia Judaica, "believed in the continued existence of the soul after death."
"Probably on account of the influence of Platonism," says the
Encyclopædia of Religion and Ethics, "[rabbis] believed in the pre-existence of souls."
I used also as sources:
God's Word the Bible (NWT; Douay)
"Mankind's Search for God"
- Ch 9: "
Judaism---Searching for God Through Scripture & Tradition"
http://www.scribd.com/doc/183321633/...search-for-god
"What Happens to Us When We Die", brochure.
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I see the Gospels as seeking to address the fact that the end of days that was expected to happen like maybe next Tuesday was so delayed, along with some individual agendas.
How the doctrine of immortality became accepted & taught in Judaism, and what was taught before that . . .
