Who is a Jew?

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
Jul 9, 2022
441
65
28
#1
According to the Law of Moses, a Jew is one whose mother is a descendent of one of the twelve Tribes of Israel, and who is circumcised on the 8th day, and is a follower of the law. If anyone contends with this I will listen (*and likely argue, if you don't know me by now).

There are millions of people who claim to be Jews, and they claim this based on the traditions of their families, and, what I would call a tangential relationship with, the law of Moses. There are millions of "Jews" who are living in Israel based on a claim to Israel existing "for Jews."

But here is the sticking point I find in our day. By the definition of the Law of Moses, to be a Jew by blood, I need to be able to track a bloodline, on my mother's side, to Jacob. But at this date, it is unclear if anyone on earth who claims "Jew" can actually trace ancestry that far.

Now, as for problems from this discovery:

Religiously, this brings the question of who gets the blessings and responsibilities of carrying out the law? Since "the Jew" is known by Moses's Pentateuch, clearly he is seeking to sacrifice at the alter when he sins,but he needs a Levite to do this, meaning someone must be able to trace a bloodline to Levi.
Politically, this would, logically, also infer that at some point, God decided to change his criteria for who gets to claim "His" land in Israel.

Both of these bring more questions, and I find few answers.
More troubling, the Gospels and subsequent instructional letters, seem to infer that the Christian is now Israel, meaning that Jerusalem is actually the home of every Church on earth.
Does this mean we should seek to move to Israel and make it ours? To which tribe would we claim blood line?
 

Live4Him3

Jesus is Lord
May 19, 2022
1,383
639
113
#2
Romans chapter 2

[28] For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
[29] But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
 
Feb 21, 2016
758
175
43
#3
Isaiah 40:3
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God
.

John 1:23
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.


Black people were the original Israelites.By the time of Jesus they would have mixed with all the nations they came in contact with. Jesus has the physical characteristics of all nations.There is no black Jesus or white Jesus.
Black peoples hair are not straight.But their hair resembles an olive tree.When their hair continues to grow,it resembles a olive tree weighted down with fruit.
Man came from the dust/dirt.The darker the dirt,the richer the soil.
When John prepared the way making straight the way of the Lord,that's when the gentiles were grafted in."Make straight the way of the Lord"
The straight hair of the gentiles!
God created everything in it's order for his purpose.

Place your palms out facing you.See the line crossing over from your left hand to your right?The left side of your whole body is for the old covenant and your right the new covenant.The line crosses over from the old covenant into the new covenant.
The palm is liken to the desert.Thats why below the straight line there's a line that turns back and goes another way.
Just like what happen to the Israelites.
three rings on eight fingers for the spirit,water and the blood.Two on the thumbs for the covenants.

The reason why your left and right side of the body is in the image of the covenants is because you are a living Ark.Jesus fulfilled the commandments/covenants and he sits on the mercy sit.Your heart.
 
P

pottersclay

Guest
#4
According to the Law of Moses, a Jew is one whose mother is a descendent of one of the twelve Tribes of Israel, and who is circumcised on the 8th day, and is a follower of the law. If anyone contends with this I will listen (*and likely argue, if you don't know me by now).

There are millions of people who claim to be Jews, and they claim this based on the traditions of their families, and, what I would call a tangential relationship with, the law of Moses. There are millions of "Jews" who are living in Israel based on a claim to Israel existing "for Jews."

But here is the sticking point I find in our day. By the definition of the Law of Moses, to be a Jew by blood, I need to be able to track a bloodline, on my mother's side, to Jacob. But at this date, it is unclear if anyone on earth who claims "Jew" can actually trace ancestry that far.

Now, as for problems from this discovery:

Religiously, this brings the question of who gets the blessings and responsibilities of carrying out the law? Since "the Jew" is known by Moses's Pentateuch, clearly he is seeking to sacrifice at the alter when he sins,but he needs a Levite to do this, meaning someone must be able to trace a bloodline to Levi.
Politically, this would, logically, also infer that at some point, God decided to change his criteria for who gets to claim "His" land in Israel.

Both of these bring more questions, and I find few answers.
More troubling, the Gospels and subsequent instructional letters, seem to infer that the Christian is now Israel, meaning that Jerusalem is actually the home of every Church on earth.
Does this mean we should seek to move to Israel and make it ours? To which tribe would we claim blood line?
First of all the church is the church....Israel is Israel.
Jesus is the redeemer....restorer. he does not replace. So no the church is not Israel.
Israel is physical. Christians are spiritual.
God is the husband of Israel. Jesus is the bridegroom of the church.
Christianity came out of judisim. Jesus was and is a jew. If we are found in him what does that make us?


Live4Him3

Jesus is Lord
May 19, 202286630663




Yesterday at 6:31 PM
New #2
Romans chapter 2

[28] For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
[29] But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

If i were to adopt you to be my child would i become part of your family? Or would you become part of mine?
 
Jan 12, 2022
798
177
43
#5
The Bible, the books of the Law specifically, does not follow the matrilineal line. It follows the patrilineal line. So therefore, by the flesh, a jew is any of the sons of Judah the man, the literal patriarch, father of the jews.
 
Jan 12, 2022
798
177
43
#6
Though by the power of Spirit, there is another possibility here. That possibility is the King of the Jews can add people to the kingdom of the jews even if they be a gentile (ie: Uriah the Hittite one of King David's worthy knights). The King of the Jews can also banish any from the kingdom even if they be by lineage the sons of Judah (ie: King Solomon's judgements against various figures from David's past regime such as Joab on his ascent to power.) In this sense since we know Lord Jesus is the King of the Jews, it is all up to his royal prerogative.
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
30,706
3,650
113
#7
If you have any doubts as to who is a Jew, learn from Hitler he was quite adept at finding out.
 

Lafftur

Senior Member
Apr 18, 2017
6,739
3,556
113
#8
According to the Law of Moses, a Jew is one whose mother is a descendent of one of the twelve Tribes of Israel, and who is circumcised on the 8th day, and is a follower of the law. If anyone contends with this I will listen (*and likely argue, if you don't know me by now).

There are millions of people who claim to be Jews, and they claim this based on the traditions of their families, and, what I would call a tangential relationship with, the law of Moses. There are millions of "Jews" who are living in Israel based on a claim to Israel existing "for Jews."

But here is the sticking point I find in our day. By the definition of the Law of Moses, to be a Jew by blood, I need to be able to track a bloodline, on my mother's side, to Jacob. But at this date, it is unclear if anyone on earth who claims "Jew" can actually trace ancestry that far.

Now, as for problems from this discovery:

Religiously, this brings the question of who gets the blessings and responsibilities of carrying out the law? Since "the Jew" is known by Moses's Pentateuch, clearly he is seeking to sacrifice at the alter when he sins,but he needs a Levite to do this, meaning someone must be able to trace a bloodline to Levi.
Politically, this would, logically, also infer that at some point, God decided to change his criteria for who gets to claim "His" land in Israel.

Both of these bring more questions, and I find few answers.
More troubling, the Gospels and subsequent instructional letters, seem to infer that the Christian is now Israel, meaning that Jerusalem is actually the home of every Church on earth.
Does this mean we should seek to move to Israel and make it ours? To which tribe would we claim blood line?
Hmmm….. Who is a Jew? :unsure:

There are 12 Tribes of Israel that become the 4 walls that surround the New Jerusalem. There are no Gentiles in the Wall. (Secrets in Nehemiah)

I’m pretty sure, Jesus Christ knows who is a descendant of Jacob… Jesus is building a Wall around the New Jerusalem according to the Father’s plan.

God the Father is the Master Architect, Jesus Christ is the General Contractor, the Holy Spirit is the Foreman on-site, and the angels and us believers are the laborers working together under the direction of the Foreman and General Contractor.
 

Live4Him3

Jesus is Lord
May 19, 2022
1,383
639
113
#9
Isaiah 40:3
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God
.

John 1:23
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.


Black people were the original Israelites.By the time of Jesus they would have mixed with all the nations they came in contact with. Jesus has the physical characteristics of all nations.There is no black Jesus or white Jesus.
Black peoples hair are not straight.But their hair resembles an olive tree.When their hair continues to grow,it resembles a olive tree weighted down with fruit.
Man came from the dust/dirt.The darker the dirt,the richer the soil.
When John prepared the way making straight the way of the Lord,that's when the gentiles were grafted in."Make straight the way of the Lord"
The straight hair of the gentiles!
God created everything in it's order for his purpose.

Place your palms out facing you.See the line crossing over from your left hand to your right?The left side of your whole body is for the old covenant and your right the new covenant.The line crosses over from the old covenant into the new covenant.
The palm is liken to the desert.Thats why below the straight line there's a line that turns back and goes another way.
Just like what happen to the Israelites.
three rings on eight fingers for the spirit,water and the blood.Two on the thumbs for the covenants.

The reason why your left and right side of the body is in the image of the covenants is because you are a living Ark.Jesus fulfilled the commandments/covenants and he sits on the mercy sit.Your heart.
Just when I thought that I had heard everything, along comes the craziest post ever.
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,234
6,529
113
#10
Any who became citizens of the original Israel did not become Jews, they became Israelites, but only if they declared belief in God.

As for becoming Jews, Jew was never a denomination. It became the umbrella title for the many newly formed denominations called Judaism. Judah was but one Trimbe of the twelve, and they too were of the faith of Abraham, Israelites.

Judaism became entrenched in the unstudied as a dnominatioal umbrella for many denominations from Jesus Christ, of the tribe of Judah, onward.

You will not be able to find the term Judaism in the Old Testament.. If you truly know the translation, the meaning of Jew, ou wuld know that all who come to the God of Abraham are Jews, not of the tribe but of the meaning, that is, Praisers of God (Yah).
 
Feb 21, 2016
758
175
43
#11
Just when I thought that I had heard everything, along comes the craziest post ever.
After God revealed to me just how perfect he made us in his image,I just see these things.If he didn't give me understanding I'd be a unbeliever in what I said as well.
But I wouldn't scoff the person who said it.
If he is on the mercy seat,it's as if he is speaking himself.The same way Moses was like to Aaron.As if he were God speaking.What goe's for the prophets goes for us.
If you speak from the heart,and your heart is for/of God,he is speaking from his throne.
Pretty amazing if you ask me.:)
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,234
6,529
113
#12
When our own bodies will have been glorified, we will be just like Jesus Yeshua, We will not be He, but just as He is.

If after living in this age a whileand reading just someof the Word guided by the Spirit of our Maker, one still cnnot see thaat all flesh is a blinder to our true selves, I pity that person.

We are to worship God in Spirit and truth, not in flesh for the flesh is a lesson of the futility of this age, allied to decay.

If you are black in this age, white, oriental or whatever, and you are in Jesus Yeshua, you and I are the same as our Blessed Savioor. We donot know how He is now, but se do know we shall be just like He (is).

Let us not teach racism to our fellows in Jesus Yeshua, for in heave there will be no races, not a one.
 

Moses_Young

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2019
9,150
4,950
113
#13
According to the Law of Moses, a Jew is one whose mother is a descendent of one of the twelve Tribes of Israel, and who is circumcised on the 8th day, and is a follower of the law. If anyone contends with this I will listen (*and likely argue, if you don't know me by now).
According to this definition of a Jew, women can't be Jews? :unsure: Are you able to quote the chapter and verse where this definition of Jew is provided in the law of Moses?
 
Jul 9, 2022
441
65
28
#14
Isaiah 40:3
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God
.

John 1:23
He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.


Black people were the original Israelites.
I can't speak of this with much knowlege. The few "reliefs" or carvings if you will, of Hittites that I've seen from ancient times (not sure the years or who carved it tho), show what is claimed to be a Hittite looking rather much like those who claim Ashkenazi, not African, but Middle Eastern, and very much like what tend to be known as Jews, with the nose and the ears.

But I know that there were dark Africans in Jesus's family tree, God respects faith over blood-line. Otherwise there wouldn't have been an Abraham, since there was no blood-line at that day. Otherwise the prostitute that saved the spies would have been killed. Otherwise Boaz could not have married Ruth.
 

JaumeJ

Senior Member
Jul 2, 2011
21,234
6,529
113
#15
A Jew, according to the writings, would be a member of the Tribe of Judah. There are eleven more tribes.

People are still insisting that Jew means a denomination. Look for it in the Old Testament, and you will find it doees not exist.

Judaism began with the advent of Jesus Yeshua, but not by Him. No one is so blind as he who refuses to see.
 
Jul 9, 2022
441
65
28
#16
According to this definition of a Jew, women can't be Jews?
Ahh, yes, the females as property of the male of the house seems to be causing some issues in discussion.

But, you may have caught a mistake. on another part.
It seems that "Mother is Jewish" may be yet one More Traditions of Men which is carried by those who claim to be "Jews."

A Jew, according to the writings, would be a member of the Tribe of Judah. There are eleven more tribes.
Indeed. And none of those claiming Israel today can prove any of them are related to any of those tribes.
So where does that leave me?
 

Moses_Young

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2019
9,150
4,950
113
#17
Ahh, yes, the females as property of the male of the house seems to be causing some issues in discussion.
In my view, that description doesn't take into account all scripture. What about Naaman's slave-girl? I would argue her actions alone make her a Jew or an Israelite, despite the fact that she was the property of a Syrian.

But, you may have caught a mistake. on another part.
It seems that "Mother is Jewish" may be yet one More Traditions of Men which is carried by those who claim to be "Jews."
Yeah. I don't know where this common belief came from. But God made the covenant with Abraham and his descendants, not Sarah and hers. Kind of bizarre in my mind, but I know it is a common belief.

Indeed. And none of those claiming Israel today can prove any of them are related to any of those tribes. So where does that leave me?
Also, if a female's Jewishness (or lack thereof) was defined by her ownership, how then was Timothy's mother Jewish? If her Jewishness depended on her owner (i.e. her husband), she would have been a Greek, rather than a Jew, no? ;-)

Acts 16:1 Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:

I'd argue Jewishness always was and always will be a matter of the heart, as per Romans 2:28-29. This definition appropriately explains how Naaman's slave-girl and Timothy's mother can be described as Jews.

Romans 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
 
Jul 9, 2022
441
65
28
#18
Romans 2:28-29 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Ok, I will admit the definition fails to cover females adequately. It also fails to recognize that Israel is NOT only Judah. But how then should I discuss things like Land Ownership in what some claim to this day as "Holy Land?" If God wants our hearts, not our blood, how do I find agreement with people who reject Jesus having "right" to the territory around the Jordan?
In the New Heaven and the New Earth, will those claiming Jew get first claim on The New Jersualem homes?
 
Jan 12, 2022
798
177
43
#19
Ok, I will admit the definition fails to cover females adequately. It also fails to recognize that Israel is NOT only Judah. But how then should I discuss things like Land Ownership in what some claim to this day as "Holy Land?" If God wants our hearts, not our blood, how do I find agreement with people who reject Jesus having "right" to the territory around the Jordan?
In the New Heaven and the New Earth, will those claiming Jew get first claim on The New Jersualem homes?
Well, that's really easy to answer. Jesus gave the jews back their racial homeland because he promised to and he is the King.
 
Jul 9, 2022
441
65
28
#20
First of all the church is the church....Israel is Israel.
Jesus is the redeemer....restorer. he does not replace. So no the church is not Israel.
It is written in Isaiah:
This is what the LORD says:
“Maintain justice and do what is right,
for My salvation is coming soon,
and My righteousness will be revealed.
2Blessed is the man who does this,
and the son of man who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbath without profaning it
and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3Let no foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say,
“The LORD will utterly exclude me from His people.”
And let the eunuch not say,
“I am but a dry tree.”
4For this is what the LORD says:
“To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases Me
and hold fast to My covenant—
5I will give them, in My house and within My walls,
a memorial and a name
better than that of sons and daughters.
I will give them an everlasting name
that will not be cut off.
6And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD
to minister to Him,
to love the name of the LORD,
and to be His servants—
all who keep the Sabbath without profaning it
and who hold fast to My covenant—
7I will bring them to My holy mountain
and make them joyful in My house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices
will be accepted on My altar,
for My house will be called a house of prayera
for all the nations.”
8Thus declares the Lord GOD,
who gathers the dispersed of Israel:
“I will gather to them still others
besides those already gathered.”