Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you have corrupted your wisdom by reason of your brightness: Ezekiel 28:17

What brings this article about, is a combination of three things. The first being a question asked here at Truth on The Net Dot Com. The second is an email sent here that questioned the ego problem associated with knowledge. And the third is an article written by a very well known Jewish Commentator. I will start with the article by Dennis Prager.

Does Religion Make People Better or Worse?
By Dennis Prager
Tuesday, September 5, 2006

However, this advocacy of religion comes with two caveats.

First, the claimed superiority of Judeo-Chr--tian values in no way means that all believing Jews and Chr--tians are good people, let alone better than all other people. There have always been and there are today morally superior individuals in every religion. And there are morally superior individuals among atheists and people of no organized religion.

Second, there is no religion that has not made, or at least enabled, some of its adherents to be morally worse than they would have been had they not adopted that religion.

So our question is not whether there are good or bad people in every religion. The question is whether any given religion is likely to make one who believes in it a better or worse person than he would have been had he not believed in that religion.

Let's begin with my religion, Judaism. I recall a young man who attended a Jewish institute I used to direct. When he first arrived at the institute, he was a particularly kind and nonjudgmental individual -- and completely secular. After his month-long immersion in studying and living Judaism, he decided to become a fully practicing Jew. When I met him a year later he was actually less kind and was aggressively judgmental of the religiosity of fellow Jews, including me and others who had brought him to Judaism. In one year he had become in his eyes holier than the teachers who brought him to religion in the first place.

Now, of course, there are teachings in Judaism that, if honored (such as the Prophet Micah's admonition to "walk humbly with your Elohim"), would have prevented him from becoming sanctimonious. But the religion's emphasis on legal observance enabled him to count the number of laws fellow Jews did not observe and judge them accordingly.

One major benefit of Judaism's being law-based is that it can provide an individual with a way to regularly

Now the question from Jacqueline:

To: hawke@truthonthenet.com

Subject: Why are they so nasty?! Is it a sin to be loving and nice????!!???
Date: Sat, 26 Aug 2006

My name is Jacqueline, I am a born again Chr--tian. Please don't hurt me or be angry with me, but I have an honest question:

I have friends who used to be Chr--tians (G-d, J-s-s), who are now Messianic Jews (Yahweh, Yeshua). As much as I am looking for the Truth, I started to avoid them because of the fruits they now bear.

The core of the Scripture is Love, towards each other and our Messiah. But these people are now far less friendly, more judgmental and scornful, puffed up and proud, basically they have become intellectual snobs, contradicting what the Fruit of the Spirit would have us bear in Galatians 5:22.

Why have they become like this? Does everyone change like this when they get the Truth? Is it the Truth really?! They know a lot, but their witness is poor, I do not want to become like them!!

Because of this I think that someone is lying, but I am not sure who! It is discouraging, I just want to live a simple life according to Romans 13:10, to pick out a verse in particular. How are people won to the faith with this kind of behavior? Are they telling the Truth badly? Are they causing confusion?

A Ma`alot Song Song of Ascents. By David. Yahweh, my heart isn't haughty, nor my eyes lofty; nor do I concern myself with great matters, or things too wonderful for me.
Surely I have stilled and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me.
Yisra'el, hope in Yahweh, from this time forth and forevermore. Psalm 131:1-3

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up.
But if anyone thinks that he knows anything, he doesn't yet know as he ought to know. 1 Corinthians 8:1-2

Now the letter concerning the ego problem:

Anthony Writes:
Dear Mr. Hawke,

I have been surfing your site and I will admit that you are
striving to promote the well being of life in general. Your site
provides a wealth of up to date information and it is good,
because someone has to do it. So I want to applaud you for your
efforts as I continue to increase my knowledge of the world scene
from all angles. I search for truth point blank and not half
measured self purported ideas as so many sites are doing. There
is this thing of the deeply embedded ego that too many have not
come to recognize yet, which cause them to err, hurting many with
their misinformed theology.

"For [though] walking about [fig., conducting ourselves] in the flesh, we do not wage war [fig., struggle against evil forces] according to the flesh.
For the weapons of our warfare [are] not fleshly _but_ powerful in Yahweh for [the] tearing down of strongholds [or, fortresses],
tearing down misleading arguments and every high place [fig., arrogance] lifting itself up against the knowledge of Yahweh, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Messiah,
and being in readiness to punish every disobedience, whenever your* obedience is completed." 2 Corinthians 10:3-6

O Timothy, guard that which was committed to you, having turned away from the profane empty babblings and opposing theories of the falsely named knowledge,
which some asserting have missed the mark concerning the faith. Grace be with you. Amen 1Timothy 6:20-21

So many, many times, we have encountered pseudo knowledge and purveyors of Biblical knowledge, who turned out to be wolves in sheep's clothing. We are told to seek the knowledge of Yahweh. We are told to seek the wisdom of Yahweh. But with this search/quest, comes a caveat. Beware of the arrogance that can come with such exalted understanding that perhaps only a few can and will possess! The knowledge of Almighty Yahweh's true way lifts you up above your surroundings. But with this Heavenly knowledge should come humility! But contrariwise, the opposite often happens. Knowledge is power and many times some people just cannot handle power!

What would you do if you had the same powers that Yahshua possessed while he was here on earth? What would you do if you could walk on water? Would you capitalize on this great ability? What would you do with them (the powers of Yahshua)? Would you do good? Or, would you use them for evil? Would you want to heal someone, or would you want to destroy someone because they made you mad?

There has been a battle, or perhaps more appropriately put-A War from the beginning of earth's renewal in Genesis 1:2. Satan used his powers to destroy the creation of Yahweh! While Elohim (Yahshua under Yahweh's direction) used their powers to restore and rebuild the creation once again!

And so it is with knowledge. Yahshua the Messiah exhibited the perfect humility that comes with the powers he was given! He always used them for good.

"And it came to pass, when the days were well-nigh come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem,
and sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.
And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he were going to Jerusalem.
And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, master, will you that we bid fire to come down from heaven, and consume them?
But he turned, and rebuked them." Luke 9:51-54

"even Yahshua of Nazareth, how Yahweh anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for Yahweh was with him." Acts 10:38

Choices, always a system of choices!

"And Yahweh Elohim took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden, to work it and to keep it.
And Yahweh Elohim commanded the man, saying, Eating you may eat of every tree in the garden;
but of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil you may not eat, for in the day that you eat of it, dying you shall die." Genesis 2:15-17

A major battle in this era can be realized in the Creationism vs. Evolution. The Apostles and Elders that were taught by Yahshua the Messiah, had their battles (in their generation) also. Gnosticism was one of those battles.

O5599 Timothy,5095 keep5442 that which is committed to thy trust,3872 avoiding1624 profane952 and vain babblings,2757 and2532 oppositions477 of science1108 falsely so called:5581
Which3739 some5100 professing1861 have erred795 concerning4012 the3588 faith.4102 Grace5485 be with3326 thee.4675 Amen.281 (KJV) 1 Timothy 6:20-21 (w/Strong's Numbers)

G1108
γνῶσις
gnōsis
gno'-sis
From G1097; knowing (the act), that is, (by implication) knowledge: - knowledge, science.

Martin Dibelius and Hans Conzelmann (The Pastoral Epistles, translated by Philip Buttolph and Adela Yarbro, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1972, page 92) comment:
Daniel C. Arichea and Howard A. Hatton (A Handbook on Paul's Letters to Timothy and to Titus, New York: United Bible Societies, 1995, page 164) comment:

"Gnosticism is the name given today to a religious school of thought that began to take shape at the end of the first century A.D. or the beginning of the second century A.D. There is no scholarly agreement on its origin or even its relationship to early Chri--ianity. It may have been an offshoot of Judaism and/or some other contemporary religious philosophy, Pheme Perkins (Encyclopedia of Early Chri--ianity, Second Edition, edited by Everett Ferguson, NY: Garland Publishing 1999, pages 465), in his very comprehensive article on the subject of Gnosticism, writes:

Derived from the Greek for "knowledge," gnosis, the term "Gnosicism" covers a number of religious and quasi philosophical movements that developed in the religious pluralism of the Hellenistic world and flourished from the second to the fifth centuries A.D. Gnosis in this sense does not refer to understanding of truths about the human and natural world that can be reached through reason. It refers to a "revealed knowledge" available only to those who have received the secret teachings of a heavenly revealer. All other humans are trapped in ignorance of the true divine world and the destiny of the Gnostic soul to its home there. For some Gnostic groups, the return of the soul to the divine was pictured as a reunion with a heavenly counterpart. Ritual enactment of the "marriage" between the soul and her consort seems to have been typical of groups that traced their teachings to Valentinus, a Gnostic teacher active among Chr--tians in Rome in the middle of the second century A.D. Other groups placed more emphasis on freeing the soul from all its attachments to the material world by an ascetic overcoming of the passions. For them, sexuality and femininity were evils that had to be rejected at every turn..." by Robert Nguyen Cramer

Gnosticism (after gnôsis, the Greek word for "knowledge" or "insight") is the name given to a loosely organized religious and philosophical movement that flourished in the first and second centuries CE. The exact origin(s) of this school of thought cannot be traced, although it is possible to locate influences or sources as far back as the second and first centuries BCE, such as the early treatises of the Corpus Hermeticum, the Jewish Apocalyptic writings, and especially Platonic philosophy and the Hebrew Scriptures themselves. In spite of the diverse nature of the various Gnostic sects and teachers, certain fundamental elements serve to bind these groups together under the loose heading of "Gnosticism" or "Gnosis." Chief among these elements is a certain manner of "anti-cosmic world rejection" that has often been mistaken for mere dualism. According to the Gnostics, this world, the material cosmos, is the result of a primordial error on the part of a supra-cosmic, supremely divine being, usually called Sophia (Wisdom) or simply the Logos. This being is described as the final emanation of a divine hierarchy, called the Plêrôma or "Fullness," at the head of which resides the supreme G-d, the One beyond Being. The error of Sophia, which is usually identified as a reckless desire to know the transcendent G-d, leads to the hypostatization of her desire in the form of a semi-divine and essentially ignorant creature known as the Demiurge (Greek: dêmiourgos, "craftsman"), or Ialdabaoth, who is responsible for the formation of the material cosmos. This act of craftsmanship is actually an imitation of the realm of the Pleroma, but the Demiurge is ignorant of this, and hubristically declares himself the only existing G-d. At this point, the Gnostic revisionary critique of the Hebrew Scriptures begins, as well as the general rejection of this world as a product of error and ignorance, and the positing of a higher world, to which the human soul will eventually return. However, when all is said and done, one finds that the error of Sophia and the begetting of the inferior cosmos are occurrences that follow a certain law of necessity, and that the so-called dualism of the divine and the earthly is really a reflection and expression of the defining tension that constitutes the being of humanity -- the human being.

False knowledge and false teaching continued through the eras of Biblical time. The oral law was another invasion of diverse teachings supposedly taken from the Bible.

THE HISTORY OF THE TALMUD.

CHAPTER I.

THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME "TALMUD"--THE SAMARITANS--ANTIOCHUS EPIPHANES--THE SADDUCEES.

The name "written law" was given to the Pentateuch, Prophets and Hagiographa, and that of "oral law" to all the teachings of the "sages" consisting of comments on the text of the Bible. The word Torah alone was applied to the entire Bible, the term "Talmud" was reserved for the oral law, though the meaning of these two words is identical; namely, "teaching" or "study." Still, because it is written Velimdo (Deut. xxxi, 19), and teach it the children of Israel (put it in their mouths; that is to say that the teacher's duty was to explain and comment on the laws and ordinances until the children understood them thoroughly and were conversant with them by heart)--the name "Talmud" was applied to what was styled by a long phrase "Oral Law" (Torah-she b'al-Peh). This word designated all the commentaries of the sages on the Scriptures which the Pharisees had begun to interpret figuratively.

Figurative interpretation was inaugurated in the days of the Great Assembly when its members resolved to keep themselves distinct from the Samaritans, their inveterate enemies, who adhered to the literal interpretation of the text, which, in the opinion of the Pharisees, was falsified by them. This study, however, commenced to make progress at the time of the Sanhedrin, or from that of the Macedonian conquest of Judea, when the term "Great Assembly" was changed to the Greek "Sanhedrin." It spread into every college where were assembled sages entrusted with the guidance of congregations, with instruction of the Law, of ordinances relating to clean and unclean, to property,

p. 6

to crimes. All sages who interpreted the biblical passages figuratively, unlike the Samaritans, were called "Pharisees." The Samaritans of course persecuted those Pharisees (see App. No. 1), objected to their interpretation, and did them great injury whenever they had the power. At last, Janai, Hyrcanus the First, overcame them, burned their temple, devastated their city, and compelled them by force of arms to conduct themselves according to the doctrines of the Pharisees, though he himself in his latter years became a Sadducee.

Until the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, before which period all the high priests since the erection of the second temple had been of the family of Zadok, King David's high priest (see App. 2), and the priests had been also among the sages of the Pharisees and no disputes arose between them as to the interpretation of the law. From the time of Antiochus, however, when the high priesthood passed from the descendants of Zadok to other families, finally coming into the possession of the Maccabees, who were not descendants of the house of Zadok, began to differ from the Pharisees in the interpretation of the Torah, and to explain the texts on the basis of oral tradition. They founded a distinct sect, styled "Sadducees" (after Zadok), and the dispute with the Pharisees and their teaching, i.e. with the Talmud, was begun. They persecuted the Pharisees to the utmost; being mostly men of wealth and rank, and in their hearts leaning toward the Hellenes, who then held sway in Palestine, they joined the Samaritans, the foes of the Jews, whose aim was to eradicate the study of Judaism. Thus united, they gave their aid to Antiochus Epiphanes, who was anyhow the enemy of the Jews, and who decreed on the pain of capital punishment that the Pharisees should discontinue their studies, that circumcision should be performed in a manner other than that prescribed by the Pharisees (see App. No. 3); that the Sabbath should not be observed according to the interpretation of the Sabbath law by the Pharisees, etc. The obvious intention was to destroy the Talmud together with Pharisees who adhered to it. These persecutions against the Talmud ended usually in favor of the Sadducees until the time of Simon ben Shetah, and the above mentioned Janai, Hyrcanus I. (Johanan the High Priest). Then the Pharisees triumphed over their foes, and the oral law was the absorbing subject of the Sanhedrin, under the

p. 7

leadership of Joshuah b. Prachia, Simon b. Shetah and Jehudah b. Tabai. The Talmud was then studied in all colleges of Palestine, Egypt and wherever Jews lived. Owing to the enmity of the Samaritans and the opposition of the Sadducees, many laws and regulations were added to the Talmud of the Pharisees. From that time the Pharisees began to restrict their interpretations so as to make them agree with the deep though literal meaning of the texts, employing therein much sophistry. They counted all the letters of the Torah, and if they found a word or letter not absolutely necessary to the understanding of the text, they said it was placed there only to add to or subtract from the meaning. But at that period the Mishna was not a separate and distinct thing from the Talmud, though many ancient Mishnas already existed in writing, but without a separate title. The Pharisees studied the ancient Mishnayoth, added (see App. No. 4) to them, and explained the biblical texts. All this was entitled Oral Law, or, shortly, "Talmud." http://www.sacred-texts.com/index.htm

Suppose someone counters with this passage?

"What then [is] the advantage of the Jew? Or what [is] the benefit of circumcision?
Much in every way! For indeed first that they were entrusted with the oracles of Yahweh." Romans 3:1-2

The oracles or utterances were the spoken words of Yahweh to Israel (the Ten Commandments) and then the total law (Torah) to Moses who wrote them down. Exodus 20:1-21

Somehow the the so-called Talmud was derived from the actual words of Almighty Yahweh given to Moses. The Torah contains all that is needed for the human race. Interpretations abound, but are they necessary? The Torah is a simple set of laws to understand. Complications arose through the various interpretations of this law. (Rashi really knows how to put words in the mouth of Yahweh Elohim as to the meaning of His (Yahweh's) own words for instance!)

The preceding examples of quasi-knowledge have caused quite a stir where each were disseminated as truth. The Gnostics claimed a personal connection with the "Divine Being/Hierarchy and those who espouse the Talmud claim a similar connection. Both are teaching untruths. They became corrupt when they rejected the true teachings of the Holy Word in their eras. The Torah says:

"You shall not add to the Word which I command you, nor take from it, to keep the commandments of Yahweh your Elohim which I command you." Deuteronomy 4:2

"Yahweh is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of Yahweh will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
Therefore since all these things will be destroyed like this, what kind of people ought you to be in holy living and righteousness,
looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of Yahweh, which will cause the burning heavens to be dissolved, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
But, according to his promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells."

2Peter 3:9-13

"Who is the image of the invisible Elohim, the firstborn of all creation;
for in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and and he is before all things, and in him all things consist. Colossians 1:15-17

The unseen world produces an assortment of possibilities regarding structure and content. It was only recently that Scientists were able to view the atom and sub-atomical world with their electron microscopes. Theories did abound as to the creation's composition. Perhaps even superstitions guided the conclusions of unknowing individuals. Their influence, knowledge, and community stature was unquestioned as to validity. Today scientific theories abound, but now they are under a different set of standards than at previous times in history. They can now be proven right or wrong with good investigative techniques. The same can be said of Biblical knowledge. You can prove or disprove teachings today. Not like years ago when only certain people had copies of the Bible and then used this advantage to hold sway over the people! Today we have more research tools available than previous eras of time!

Knowledge should bring humility and a sense of responsibility with it. No one should become arrogant with increased knowledge. To whom more is given, more is required. We all will have to answer for our actions while we lived here on earth. Will we have to answer for arrogance? Or will we be a humble thankful people? Our choice!

Yours in Yahshua, Hawke