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After
years of studying the Bible, including the synoptic gospels, Thomas Gospel, Q
Gospel, Marcion Gospel, etc, I came to conclusions as follows:
1.
Prophet Jesus was sent to the People of Israel (the people of the book), hence
the Gospel was given to the people of Israel, and was originally written in
Hebrew language. Jerome called it as matthaei authenticum.
2. However,
since the majority of the people of Israel rejected him (and the gospel),
therefore the gospel was transferred to another nation(s) or the gentiles, and
written in other language, that is Koine Greek (cf: Gospel of Thomas Logia#109,
Gospel of Matthew 21:43; and also Quran Sura Fathir (35) verse 32 [note: please
read Tafsir Tabari about this verse Quran 35:32])
3. The
original gospel that was written in Hebrew didn't survive. The gospels
available today are the one that were written in Greek, around a hundred years
after Jesus gone. The closest gospel to the original one is either the Gospel
of Matthew or the Gospel of Luke (or a better candidate than Luke: the Gospel
of the Lord by Marcion of Sinope), or somewhere in between (Gospel of Q).
4. Since
the Gospel was originally addressed to the Jews, many of the verses of the
Gospel are intended for the Jews, and not for the gentiles who are not familiar
with the Jewish Bible. For example, "You are the light of the world"
which refers to Isaiah 42 and 49, which talk about the role of the Jews as the
light for the gentiles; "You have heard that it was said 'You shall love
your neighbor ...'" (the gentiles won't be familiar with this verse);
"If you greet your brothers only, what credit is that to you? Even
the Gentiles do the same"; "Therefore, do not be anxious
saying 'what shall we eat, drink or wear?' For the Gentiles seek
after all these things."
5.
Because the Jews were the chosen people, it's not surprising that the
commandments for the Jews are heavier than that of the Gentiles, including the
heavy commandments in the Gospel. After all, the Jews should be stand out among
other people, so they have heavier burden compared to others. Some of the very
hard commandments in the Gospel that were intended for the Jews and very
difficult for the gentiles (or ordinary people) to implement are: "Love
your enemies", "Bless those who curse you", "Sell all of
your possessions and give it to the poor", etc.
6.
However, not all verses in the Gospel are for the Jews only. Some verses are
intended for the Jews and the gentiles alike. Some verses that are intended for
all human beings include the Beatitudes and the parables in the Synoptic
Gospels.
7. One of
the missions of Jesus is to fulfill the prophecy in Isaiah 61:1-2, that is, "The
Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to preach good news to
the poor, to heal the brokenhearted ... to comfort all who mourn."
8. The
fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 61:1-2 (or Luke 4:18-19) was either in
the Sermon of the Mount and/or the Sermon on the Plain. However, for the
Beatitudes or the Good News, I prefer the Beatitudes in the Sermon on
the Mount (Matthew's version). Because, the mission of the Jesus is to bring
"good news", and not "I have good news and bad
news, which one do you want to hear first".
9. The
original beatitudes are supposed to be like as follows:
Blessed are the poor, for theirs is
the Kingdom of Heaven,
Blessed are those who mourn, for they
shall be comforted,
Blessed are those who are humble, for
they shall inherit the earth,
Blessed are those who hunger and
thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied,
Blessed are the merciful, for they
shall receive mercy,
Blessed are the pure in heart, for
they shall see God,
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they
shall be called sons of God.
10. Each
of the Beatitudes corresponds to a particular commandment in the Seven Laws of
Noah
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Beatitudes
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Seven Laws
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Blessed
are the poor
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No
idolatry: You cannot serve God and money (Luke 16:13). And the opposite
of mammon is being poor. See also Luke 16:19-25 (Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus)
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Blessed
are those who mourn
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No
Blasphemy: the Book of Job (or Iyov) Chapter 1 and 2. Even though Job
(or Iyov) was very miserable, he still bless God.
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Blessed
are those who are humble
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Do not
murder. Take a lesson from Cain and Abel. Cain killed Abel because he was
mad, and he was not humble at all. Murder is related to anger
(Mat 5:22), and anger is the opposite of humble/meek.
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Blessed
are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness (justice)
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Set up
the courts of justice
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Blessed
are the merciful
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Do not
steal (Luk 6:29-30)
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Blessed
are the pure in heart
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Do not
commit adultery (Mat 5:28)
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Blessed
are the peacemaker
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Do not
eat blood and/or the limb of living animal? (okay,
i'm not sure about this one)
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11. Each
of the Beatitudes even corresponds to a particular verse in the opening chapter
of the Holy Quran, that is surah Al Fatehah, as follows:
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No
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Al Fatihah
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Beatitudes
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1
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In the
Name of God,
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Bismillah teaches us to begin everything
with bismillah (in the Name of God). Bismillah reminds us to begin every
activity in the name of God. Basically, we're nothing without God. Everything
we do, we do it for God.
It
relates to the beatitude: Blessed are those who are humble. It’s like
the parable of the Unworthy Servants in Gospel of Luke 17:7-10.
Everything we do, we do it for God.
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2
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Praise
be to God
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Blessed
are those who mourn. The
story of Prophet Ayub (Job or Iyov) teaches us to bless God in every
condition. It’s the same as no blasphemy in the seven Laws of Noah.
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3
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The
Most Gracious, Most Merciful
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Blessed
are the merciful
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4
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King of
the Day of Judgement
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Blessed
are those who hunger and thirst of righteousness (justice). It's very similar to dinim
or the commandment to establish courts of justice in the Noahides.
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5
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To you
only we worship, and to you only we ask for help
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Do not
worship two gods (Quran
Sura 16:51). You cannot serve God and mammon (Double Tradition). Mammon means
money, wealth, or riches; and the opposite of mammon or being
rich is being poor. So it relates to Blessed are the poor. The poor
depend solely on God.
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6
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Show us
the straight path
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Blessed
are the pure in heart, for they shall see God: Can the blind lead the blind?
In the Quran, guidance (or huda) is related to the heart and eyes.
(ref: Quran Sura 30:53, 43:40, 10:43, 22:46, 17:72)
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7
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The
path of those whom You favor ….
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Blessed
are the peacemakers. Some
interpreters interpret this verse for the Jews and Christians. And one of the
famous verses in the Quran about those two people is “walan tardha ankal
yahuudu walan nashara…”. The peacemakers should bring peace, not
war. Even if the Jews and the Christians hate us, we -the muslims- should not
hate them.
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So, let us respect the Gospel,
especially the Beatitudes. If you, as moslem or non moslem alike, who
believe that Jesus will return to this world some day, isn't it good to learn
some sayings of Prophet Jesus in the Gospel, in case we meet him in our time?
Isn't it good for us to prepare to welcome him, and learn in advance about what
will he teach us, the human beings? I think what he preaches to us, human
beings, won't be far from the Beatitudes in Matthew 5 and some of the parables
in the synoptic gospels (especially Luke and Matthew). So you should read the
Beatitudes at least once in your life time, or better yet, you should memorize
the Beatitudes above (point number#9).
'What will be your condition when the son of Mary will come down and become your Imam' (HR Bukhari Muslim from Abu Hurairah) (there are two versions of this hadith, that is between wa ammakum and wa imamukum, but I believe that the son of Mary will be both an imam and a just judge/hakeem for mankind)
Notes: In Tafseer Qurthubi on Al Imran 3-4, there's a riwayah that states that there will be an ummah in the end of times that will memorize the Gospel (Injil). I hope it's us.
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