Hi again, BibleGuy
when the lxx was translated, they used 'the lord' whenever the YHWH was found.
the nt writers continued this practice when quoting the ot.
so it seems reasonable, to me, to continue the practice of the nt writers and use 'the lord' when translating the nt.
Nice to meet you Dan_473!
Thanks for writing.
I maintain that the Scriptures require that we (Christians) grow in faithful obedience to the Torah of the covenants in which we participate...and that includes the Torah of Moses.
And yes, I oppose "legalism".
But let's define "legalism": LEGALISM = seeking justification through law (without faith)
If you define it differently, let me know, and we'll talk about that definition too.
Paul opposed legalism, as I've defined the term. (Gal. 5:4-5).
Paul also obeyed Torah (Ac. 21), which is a Torah-obedient example which we should imitate (1 Cor. 11:1; Php. 4:9).
You wrote: “It seems to me, and I mean this very politely, that the gentile lawkeepers I've met keep the law as long as it's not an inconvenience.”
My response: I see your point. That may be true. Perhaps every gentile lawkeeper you’ve met has been inconsistent and arbitrary in their theology and/or practice.
But, I maintain that our theology and practice should be derived from Scripture itself (not from whatever we see others doing).
And, Scripture commands Torah. So, I seek to obey Torah (as much as is presently possible and proper in this present diaspora), even if it’s “inconvenient”.
You see, many Christians arbitrarily pick-and-choose only select Torah portions to obey. But arbitrary picking-and-choosing is surely not an acceptable way to decide what to obey.
Other Christians try to force a complete wedge between OT law and NT law…but such an effort is truly unscriptural.
So, the only reasonable option is: Obey as much as is presently possible, knowing that 100% of Torah will again be obeyed in the future (Dt. 30:1-8).
This way, I’m not arbitrary, not inconsistent, and not forcing an unscriptural wedge between testaments.
Make sense?
You wrote: “when the lxx was translated, they used 'the lord' whenever the YHWH was found.
the nt writers continued this practice when quoting the ot.
so it seems reasonable, to me, to continue the practice of the nt writers and use 'the lord' when translating the nt.”
My response: No…actually…the LXX Septuagint translators did not use “the lord”…because that would be English, and I truly doubt they knew English!
I think you actually probably meant to say that the LXX translators used something like “kurious” (G2962) which translates as “lord” in English.
So sure…use “lord” if you like…but don’t forget that our God actually has a NAME! His name is YHVH (that is, the tetragrammaton), not merely Heb. “adon” (H113) which also comes through as “lord” in English.
I think someone was telling me not to use YHVH, but to use “lord” in English…but such English usage is ambiguous, since Heb. “adon” also comes through as “lord” in English…and it’s important to YHVH that we actually know his NAME (Jer. 16:21), not merely his title.
And if it's important to YHVH...then it's important to me too.
Now then…what do you do?
- Seek maximal Torah-obedience.
- Arbitrarily pick-and-choose selective Torah-obedience.
- Non-arbitrarily select Torah portions for obedience (say, by picking only the “moral” Torah portions)
- Completely disregard Torah…focusing only on the NT.
I maintain that most Christians typically choose 2, 3, or 4…
BUT, I also maintain that 1 is the truly Biblical position advocated in Scripture, as commanded by the Father, Son, Spirit, Pentateuch, Prophets, Psalms, Proverbs, Apostles, and Epistles…even in Revelation.
=====> So what do you do? 1? 2? 3? Or 4?
This is a VERY important question for EVERYONE to answer…regardless of what position you take.
After all, you’ll give account of yourself at the judgment seat…so it might be worth spending a few minutes actually thinking about something like this!
blessings…
BibleGuy