1. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 1 of 11 Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – Is it about A Particular Prophet? A Counter-Missionary Education Lesson by Uri Yosef, Ph.D., Director of Education Virtual Yeshiva of the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. http://virtualyeshiva.com [The article on this topic is located here - http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Deut18.pdf]http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Deut18.pdf Copyright © Uri Yosef 2011 for the Messiah Truth Project, Inc. All rights reserved Counter-Missionary Education

2. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 2 of 11 Introduction Deuteronomy 18:15&18 are popular so-called “proof texts” in the portfolio of the Christian missionary and, as of late, also in use by Muslims who target Jews for conversion to Islam. Christian missionaries cite these two verses to support their claim that they foretell the advent of Jesus who is referred to as a prophet in the New Testament (Matthew 21:9-11). Muslims use these two verses as evidence that the arrival of Muhammad, Islam’s "prophet", is foretold in the Hebrew Bible. A careful reading and analysis of the entire passage, Deuteronomy 18:9-22, establishes the proper context of these two verses, and demonstrates the absurdity of such claims, both by Christians and Muslims. The analysis presented in this lesson is directed specifically at the claim by Christian missionaries and its refutation.

3. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 3 of 11 Deuteronomy 18:15,18

4. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 4 of 11 Summary of Christian and Jewish Perspectives Christianity (  )Judaism (  ) Although Christians will admit that the reference here to the succession of God’s true prophets is plausible, the prevalent view is that the herein promised prophet is preeminently Jesus This is not about any one prophet. Herein is established the Office of the Prophet, which will be occupied by the line of prophets God will send to Israel, and of which Moses is the “titular father” Peter identifies Jesus as this promised prophet (Acts 3:22-23) There will be a significant prophet sent to Israel in each generation Stephen identifies Jesus as this promised prophet (Acts 7:37) None of greater rank and caliber than Moses Deuteronomy 18:19(KJV) – And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. Deuteronomy 18:19(JPT*) – And it will be, that whoever does not hearken to My words that he [the prophet] speaks in My name, I will exact [it] of him. Christians believe this passage foretells the dire consequences of unbelief in Jesus and the disregard of his mission, and often allege that the Jewish people suffered these consequences for rejecting Jesus Throughout the era of the prophets, Israel many times suffered the consequences, both individually and collectively, for not heeding the calls by its true prophets to repent and observe God’s Law * JPT – Judaica Press Translation [available here - http://www.chabad.org/library/article.asp?AID=63255 ]http://www.chabad.org/library/article.asp?AID=63255

5. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 5 of 11 Deriving the Proper Context The entire passage that deals with prophets, Deuteronomy 18:9-22, must be considered in order to understand the context of the two verses in question, verses 15&18. This passage defines the status of the true prophets of Israel, who are counted among the officers of the Hebrew commonwealth (the others are the judges, the king, and the priests; their respective status is defined in previous sections). The salient points regarding the status of a prophet of Israel are: The prophet is affirmed as the successor of Moses and the only legitimate channel for (two-way) communication with God The prophet is someone who tells the truth; someone who does not tell us what we want to know, but rather tells us what God wants us to know The prophet’s primary job is to be the teacher and religious guide during his or her mission The prophet may only convey that which God commands him, and does not have the authority to create his own messages Using the above as a backdrop, we shall next examine verses 15&18 in more detail.

6. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 6 of 11 Deriving the Proper Context (continued) The Hebrew noun נָבִיא ( naVI ), which is properly rendered as “a prophet“ in the Jewish translation, appears as “a Prophet“ in the KJV translation. Is this treatment in the KJV translation justified? A study of the application of the term “prophet” in both the KJV "Old Testament" and KJV New Testament will help answer this question: It appears that the use of “the Prophet” at John 7:40, where it is a direct reference to Jesus, was designed ostensibly to establish a subtle link between Jesus and the use of “a Prophet” in Deuteronomy 18:15&18.

7. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 7 of 11 Deriving the Proper Context (continued) A closer look at the context of the two verses, Deuteronomy 18:15&18: The two verses convey the same message – in the former Moses paraphrases God's promise, and in the latter he actually quotes God's promise. Verse 15A prophet from among YOU, from YOUR brothers, LIKE ME, the Lord YOUR God will set up for YOU; you shall listen to him. ContextMoses speaks to the Israelites and tells them about God’s promise ParaphraseGod told ME that He would bring forth for YOU a prophet from YOUR midst …, LIKE ME, … Verse 18A prophet I will set up for THEM from among THEIR brothers LIKE YOU; and I will put My words into his mouth, and he will speak to THEM all that I shall command him. ContextMoses speaks to the Israelites and quotes God's promise as it was told to him by God ParaphraseThis is what God said to me: “I will bring forth a prophet for THEM from among THEM …, LIKE YOU, …”.

8. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 8 of 11 The “Litmus Test” for True & False Prophets The entire passage on the status of prophets, Deuteronomy 18:9-22, together with a previous passage, Deuteronomy 13:2-6, combine to produce the “litmus test” for identifying false prophets. The test of a false prophet is spelled out here: The test of the false prophet is the non-fulfillment of the particular prediction he or she announced as the credentials of his or her divine call. However, one must keep in mind that signs and miracles performed by someone who claims to be a prophet are not necessarily the proof of his or her truth: Thus, even an acknowledged prophet is automatically proven false if he or she claims to have been sent by God to advocate any form of idolatry, or if he or she proclaims any precept of the Torah to be abrogated permanently. It is also worthwhile to note that the “litmus test” is valid even after a given prophet passes on – the prophetic horizon, though not unlimited, is definitely not limited by the prophet’s own lifetime.

9. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 9 of 11 Some of the Flaws in the Christian Perspective The SubjectThe Flaw Jesus vis-à-vis the prophets of Israel Unlike the prophets of Israel, who justified their pronouncements on the Torah, acknowledging God’s supremacy and never acting on their own authority, Jesus, by proclaiming his justification on his own authority, did not follow the path of the true prophets of Israel Jesus vis-à-vis Moses God promised Israel a (generic) prophet, one who would be like, not greater than, Moses. Yet, according to the Christianity, Jesus, as the “Son of God” for Christians and a co-equal part of the godhead for Trinitarians, is much greater than Moses was. Did God lie? Jesus vis-à-vis God What kind of a god, or divine being is Jesus if he can only say whatever God tells him to say? Jesus vis-à-vis the People of the Land The Hebrew Bible teaches that no person can see God and live (Exodus 33:20). According to the New Testament, Jesus, as God manifest in the flesh, came to live among the people, and he interacted with them all the time, and they did not die. How could Jesus be this prophet?

10. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 10 of 11 Some of the Flaws in the Christian Perspective (continued) The SubjectThe Flaw Jesus vis-à-vis the People of the World The New Testament warns that all those who will not hearken to “that prophet” shall be destroyed (Acts 3:23). This is a false warning since most of the world's population is not Christian and does not listen to Jesus, let alone know of him, yet they have not been destroyed. When Christians allege that the warning concerns only the Jewish people, they ignore the fact that the Jewish people are alive and well today, and are more successful now than ever before Jesus vis-à-vis the “litmus test” for true & false prophets A prophet who presumes to speak in God's name words that he was not commanded and/or speaks in the name of other gods, is a false prophet who is to be put to death. The New Testament contains several accounts alleged to be prophecies by Jesus, which fail the “litmus test”. Two such examples are – He will come back “soon” (Matthew 16:28) “Not one stone left on another” (Luke 19:44)

11. May 19, 2011Deuteronomy 18:9-22 – A Special Prophet? Page 11 of 11 Summary Deuteronomy 18:9-22 does not speak of any one prophet in particular who will emerge from among the Jewish people. This passage - Contains a generic reference to the line of prophets of which Moses is the "progenitor" Formally establishes the Office of the Prophet for Israel Defines the “litmus test” for distinguishing between true and false prophets Promulgates the death penalty for false prophecy The Office of the Prophet was established for eternity, even at times in history, as has been the case for the past 25 centuries, in which Israel has had no true prophets (Traditional Judaism holds that true prophecy ceased following the destruction of the First Temple in 586BCE [the true prophets who were alive at that time continued their missions]). The prophets in the Hebrew Bible foretell that true prophecy in Israel will return in the messianic era, at which time the Office of the Prophet will, once again, be occupied (Joel 3:1, Malachi 3:23[4:5 in Christian bibles]).