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Isaiah's Account of the Lord's Resurrection in the Last Days
By Author Eli Kittim
According to Isaiah's biblical account concerning "the last days" (Isa. 2:2) of humanity, "the LORD" will resurrect just prior to Judgment Day. Isaiah says the following:
"Men will go into caves of the rocks, and into holes of the ground before the terror of the LORD, and before the splendor of His majesty, when He ARISES to make the earth tremble" (Isa. 2:19, NASV, emphasis added).
Interestingly enough, the Septuagint, an early Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, translates the Hebrew word qum with the word αναστη, from the Greek word ανάστασις (anástasis), meaning resurrection. The frequently-used apocalyptic phrase “Arise, O God” (cf. Psalm 68.1) is a divine imperative that is hereby rendered in eschatological categories. The Hebrew word qum (i.e., cumi in Mark 5.41), & in Greek (e.g. Isa. 2.19 LXX) anastē — means "resurrection."
So what is the purpose of this brief study? We're trying to show that according to Isaiah's depiction, "the LORD ... arises to make the earth tremble" (Isa. 2:19) "in the last days" (Isa. 2:2), just before Judgment. A resurrection that had occurred two millennia ago would in fact contradict this reading. Yet the New Testament itself doesn't contradict this at all, but rather confirms it:
"Once in the end of the world hath he [Jesus] appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. ... After this the judgment" (Heb. 9:26-27, KJV).
So, as you can see, the Church’s teaching contradicts both the Old and New Testaments by telling us that this event already happened.
"O, what a goodly outside falsehood hath!"
Shakespeare
The Lord’s Resurrection in the Last Days In Isaiah and Daniel
By author Eli of Kittim 🎓
According to Isaiah’s biblical account concerning “the last days” (Isa. 2:2) of mankind, “the LORD” will resurrect just prior to Judgment Day. Isaiah says the following:
“Men will go into caves of the rocks, and into holes of the ground before the terror of the LORD, and before the splendor of His majesty, when He ARISES to make the earth tremble” (Isa. 2:19, NASV, emphasis added).
This eschatological passage is echoed in Rev. 6:15-17. Interestingly enough, the Septuagint, an early Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, translates the Hebrew word “קוּם qum” with the word “αναστη,” which is derived from the Greek word ανάστασις (anástasis) and means resurrection:
Eισενεγκαντες εις τα σπηλαια και εις τας σχισμας των πετρων και εις τας τρωγλας της γης απο προσωπου του φοβου κυριου και απο της δοξης της ισχυος αυτου οταν αναστη θραυσαι την γην. ——-Isaiah 2:19, Septuagint LXX
New American Standard Translation:
“Men will go into caves of the rocks, and into holes of the ground before the terror of the LORD, and before the splendor of His majesty, when He arises [or resurrects: ‘αναστη’] to make the earth tremble.”
Scholars render the Hebrew word “קוּם qum” as resurrection. The word in Hebrew, qum (קוּם i.e., cumi in Mark 5:41), and in Greek (LXX) — anastas — means “resurrection.” The word anastas is derived from the term ἀνίστημι and is the root word of ἀνάστασις: https://biblehub.com/greek/386.htm
Similarly, in the New Testament we find the same Greek word, meaning resurrection, attached to an end-time prophecy:
“THERE SHALL COME THE ROOT OF JESSE, AND HE WHO ARISES [‘anistamenos,’ means resurrects in Greek] TO RULE OVER THE GENTILES, IN HIM SHALL THE GENTILES HOPE.” ——-Rom. 15:12
So what is the purpose of this brief study? We’re trying to show that according to Isaiah’s depiction, “the LORD … arises to make the earth tremble” (Isa. 2:19) “in the last days” (בְּאַחֲרִ֣ית bə·’a·ḥă·rîṯ הַיָּמִ֗ים hay·yā·mîm Isa. 2:2), just prior to Judgment. A resurrection that had occurred two millennia ago would in fact contradict what we just read. Yet the New Testament itself doesn’t contradict this at all, but rather confirms it:
“Once in the end of the world hath he [Jesus] appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. … After this the judgment” (Heb. 9:26-27 KJV).
So, as you can see, the Church’s teaching contradicts both the Old and New Testaments by telling us that this event already happened.
In Chapter 12 and verse 1, Daniel prophesies the death and resurrection of a great prince named Michael—meaning מִֽיכָאֵ֜ל “who is like God”—at the end of days. He writes:
"At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Every one who is found written in the book. And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, Some to everlasting life, Some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12:1-2, NKJV).
The Septuagint, an early Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, translates the Hebrew word “עָמַד amad” (“stand up”/arise) with the Greek word παρελευσεται, meaning to pass away:
ἡ γῆ παρελεύσεται NAS: and earth will pass away, KJV: and earth shall pass away, INT: the earth will pass away (Mt 24:35 Strong’s Concordance) https://biblehub.com/greek/pareleusetai_3928.htm
The Theodotion Daniel 12:1 of the Septuagint translates the Hebrew word עָמַד (amad) as αναστήσεται, which is derived from the root word ανίστημι and means “shall arise.” The word ἀναστήσεται is the root word of ἀνάστασις and means to “raise up” or to “raise from the dead.” Accordingly, notice how the term ἀναστήσεται in its singular and plural form conveys the meaning of resurrection. In the Theodotion Dan. 12:1, we have the singular form ἀναστήσεται (“shall arise"). Similarly, ἀναστήσονται (the plural form in the Old Greek Dan. 12:2) represents an explicit reference to the general resurrection from the dead, thereby establishing its meaning. And since both of these resurrection events (namely, Michael's resurrection followed by the general resurrection of the dead) are set for "the time of the end" (Dan. 12:4), the implication is that they are eschatological in nature!
So Daniel is telling us that at the time of the end, when there will be great turmoil and distress upon the earth, Michael, the great prince—after passing away (παρελεύσεται)—will arise from the dead (αναστήσεται) in order to energize the general resurrection of the dead (ἀναστήσονται)! What does all this mean? Daniel 12:1-2 reaffirms the last-days-resurrection theme found in Isaiah 2:19 and Hebrews 9:26-28. Therefore, Christ’s resurrection could not have happened two thousand years ago, as most people believe:
“[These] men … have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place” (2 Tim. 2:18; cf. 1 Cor. 15:53-55).
Eli of Kittim's unique interpretation of the New Testament account of Jesus as prophetic rather than historical!
The Jesus Story: History or Prophecy?
By Author Eli of Kittim
There is no good evidence to support that Jesus is a real historical figure. The mainstream view concerning the New Testament account of Jesus is fatally flawed. It is inconsistent, and in order for it to work, it must either ignore or gloss over many critical passages. For instance, it contradicts many explicit passages from both the Old and New Testaments regarding an earthly, end-times Messiah (cf. Zeph. 1:7, 15-18; Isa. 2:2, 19; Dan. 12:1-2; Zech. 12:9-10; Heb. 1:1-2; Heb. 9:26; 1 Pet. 1:20; 2 Thess. 2:1-3, 7-8; Rev. 12:1-5), and uses bizarre gaps and anachronistic juxtapositions in chronology in order to make heterogeneous passages appear homogeneous. The existing schema simply does not fit in with the context and content of these passages, nor does it fit into any of the Old or New Testament prophecies either.
What is more, this historical interpretation of Jesus is in error because it confuses theology with history, and tradition with scripture! Let us not forget that much of what we know about this subject is based on tradition, not scripture. And the prevailing view is largely based on a superficial, surface reading of the gospels. In retrospect, it appears that the gospels are giving us a theological outline of Christ’s life, not a purely historical one. For example, scholars now dispute that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. And even if we suppose that it were true, then why doesn’t Paul mention that? Let us not forget that some of Paul’s writings predate the gospels. The idea that Jesus is born in Bethlehem is a theological statement intended to connect Jesus with the Old Testament and to assure us that he is indeed the prophesied Messiah of Hebrew Scripture. Anything more than that would be reading too much into the text. Similarly, Jesus is called the King of the Jews in order to show that he is the new David, the Messianic fulfillment of Hebrew Scripture. Just as he supposedly goes to Egypt in order to show that he is the new Moses. These passages are not meant to be taken literally. They are theological statements.
But, in contrast to Christian Mythicism, I firmly believe that the Bible is verbally inspired by God. Hence I accept the authority of Scripture. However, I am convinced that, according to the Bible, Jesus neither existed, nor was he meant to exist during the time of Antiquity. Therefore, I still believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Lord (God-incarnate), who will appear on earth (for the first time) at the end of the world!
Furthermore, I believe there were eyewitness reports coming from the earliest Christian prophets, but these contained visions of Jesus, not physical encounters. The eyewitnesses saw Jesus just as Paul had seen him. And everyone knows that Paul saw visions of Christ. But Paul never saw Jesus in the flesh! There are many scriptural references to that effect. For example, 1 Peter 1:11 states that the account of Jesus was prophesied by the Holy Spirit, “As he [the Holy Spirit] predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.” Revelation 19:10 further reveals that the New Testament account of Jesus is not historical: “For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.“ And Hebrews 9:26 confirms this view by issuing the following statement concerning the precise chronological timing of Christ’s appearance and sacrifice: “Once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” In some cases, the authors of the Epistles seemingly contradict the gospels because they allude to Christ’s manifestation as occurring in the “last days” (Heb. 1:1-2), so that the correct timing of Christ’s coming suddenly becomes an open question. Thus, according to my research, both the Old and New Testaments agree that the Messiah will come once at the end of time!
There is no mention of Jesus in any secular writings until about 100 AD
(The following is an excerpt from The Washington Post, “Did historical Jesus really exist? The evidence just doesn’t add up.” Raphael Lataster, Ph.D. Religious scholar)
“The first problem we encounter when trying to discover more about the Historical Jesus is the lack of early sources. The authors of the Gospels fail to name themselves, describe their qualifications, or show any criticism with their foundational sources – which they also fail to identify. Paul’s Epistles, written earlier than the Gospels, give us no reason to dogmatically declare Jesus must have existed. Avoiding Jesus’ earthly events and teachings, even when the latter could have bolstered his own claims, Paul only describes his ‘Heavenly Jesus.’ Even when discussing what appear to be the resurrection and the last supper, his only stated sources are his direct revelations from the Lord, and his indirect revelations from the Old Testament. In fact, Paul actually rules out human sources (see Galatians 1:11-12). Also important are the sources we don’t have. There are no existing eyewitnesses or contemporary accounts of Jesus. All we have are later descriptions of Jesus’ life events by non-eyewitnesses, most of who are obviously biased. Little can be gleaned from the few non-Biblical and non-Christian sources, with only Roman scholar Josephus and historian Tacitus having any reasonable claim to be writing about Jesus within 100 years of his life. And even those sparse accounts are shrouded in controversy, with disagreements over what parts have obviously been changed by Christian scribes (the manuscripts were preserved by Christians), the fact that both these authors were born after Jesus died (they would thus have probably received this information from Christians), and the oddity that centuries go by before Christian apologists start referencing them.”
(The following is an excerpt from Valerie Tarico’s article, “Five Reasons to Suspect Jesus Never Existed,” published in ExChristian.net)
“How Jesus Became God” by Bart Ehrman.
No first century secular evidence whatsoever exists to support the actuality of Jesus. In the words of Bart Ehrman (who himself thinks the Jesus stories were built on a historical kernel):
“What sorts of things do pagan authors from the time of Jesus have to say about him? Nothing. As odd as it may seem, there is no mention of Jesus at all by any of his pagan contemporaries. There are no birth records, no trial transcripts, no death certificates; there are no expressions of interest, no heated slanders, no passing references – nothing. In fact, if we broaden our field of concern to the years after his death – even if we include the entire first century of the Common Era – there is not so much as a solitary reference to Jesus in any non-Christian, non-Jewish source of any kind. I should stress that we do have a large number of documents from the time – the writings of poets, philosophers, historians, scientists, and government officials, for example, not to mention the large collection of surviving inscriptions on stone and private letters and legal documents on papyrus. In none of this vast array of surviving writings is Jesus’ name ever so much as mentioned.” (pp. 56-57)
“The earliest New Testament writers seem ignorant of the details of Jesus’ life, which become more crystalized in later texts. Paul seems unaware of any virgin birth, for example. No wise men, no star in the east, no miracles. Historians have long puzzled over the ‘Silence of Paul’ on the most basic biographical facts and teachings of Jesus. Paul fails to cite Jesus’ authority precisely when it would make his case. What’s more, he never calls the twelve apostles Jesus’ disciples; in fact, he never says Jesus HAD disciples –or a ministry, or did miracles, or gave teachings. He virtually refuses to disclose any other biographical detail, and the few cryptic hints he offers aren’t just vague, but contradict the gospels. The leaders of the early Christian movement in Jerusalem like Peter and James are supposedly Jesus’ own followers and family; but Paul dismisses them as nobodies and repeatedly opposes them for not being true Christians!
Liberal theologian Marcus Borg suggests that people read the books of the New Testament in chronological order to see how early Christianity unfolded. 'Placing the Gospels after Paul makes it clear that as written documents they are not the source of early Christianity but its product. The Gospel — the good news — of and about Jesus existed before the Gospels. They are the products of early Christian communities several decades after Jesus’ historical life and tell us how those communities saw his significance in their historical context.’
Even the New Testament stories don’t claim to be first-hand accounts. We now know that the four gospels were assigned the names of the apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, not written by them. To make matter sketchier, the name designations happened sometime in second century, around 100 years or more after Christianity supposedly began. For a variety of reasons, the practice of pseudonymous writing was common at the time and many contemporary documents are 'signed' by famous figures. The same is true of the New Testament epistles except for a handful of letters from Paul (6 out of 13) which are broadly thought to be genuine. But even the gospel stories don’t actually say, 'I was there.' Rather, they claim the existence of other witnesses, a phenomenon familiar to anyone who has heard the phrase, my aunt knew someone who … .”
Conclusion
These are Biblical Scholars who are giving us all of the critical, historical, and textual data to date. They are experts in the field (academics) who are informing us of the facts of scholarship. Even if we disagree with them, there are still certain facts that most scholars agree on that are indisputable, which give us a very clear picture of early Christianity and of Jesus. This cannot be denied.
However, this does not mean that the biblical story of Jesus is “fraudulent” or “manufactured,” as some writers have suggested. These writers got stuck on the Gospels without consulting the rest of the New Testament, namely, the Epistles and the book of Revelation, which tell us categorically and unequivocally that the biblical story of Jesus is a matter of prophecy, not history. In the final analysis, the Gospels are non-historical stories that foretell the prophecy of Christ’s coming!