KJVO and Pagan Easter.

Hi everyone;
The tyndale Bible has Christ useing the word easter in mathew I believe it's where the deciples are haveing there last super.
Romanbear
Peace

 

I agree. Even in 1611 "Easter" was a poor translation for the Greek word pascha in Acts 12:4.

 

Would somebody please read the preceding verse )Acts 12:3). If you have read your Old Testament, you would know that the days of unleavened bread followed the Passover. If the days of unleaved bread were in progress as the verse implies, then Passover was over with. Easter is NOT referring to the passover, but is referring to Easter(a pagan holiday).

 

Exactly, Herod was waiting for his "holiday" Easter Not PASSOVER,passover had already happened; the passage was translated correctly.

[ December 07, 2002, 08:35 PM: Message edited by: JYD ]

 

The term "Passover" is sometimes used to refer to the whole week, not just the first day.

Ah, I see, so Luke was in error when he used the word "pascha". Gotcha.

 

Here is what I found and what makes sense to me!

The Greek word which is translated "Easter" in Acts 12:4 is the word pascha. This word appears twenty-nine times in the New Testament. Twenty-eight of those times the word is rendered "passover" in reference to the night when the Lord passed over Egypt and killed all the firstborn of Egypt (Ex. 12:12), thus setting Israel free from four hundred years of bondage.

The many opponents to the concept of having a perfect Bible have made much of this translation of "pascha."

Coming to the word "Easter" in God's Authorized Bible, they seize upon it imagining that they have found proof that the Bible is not perfect. Fortunately for lovers of the word of God, they are wrong. Easter, as we know it, comes from the ancient pagan festival of Astarte. Also known as Ishtar (pronounced "Easter"). This festival has always been held late in the month of April. It was, in its original form, a celebration of the earth "regenerating" itself after the winter season. The festival involved a celebration of reproduction. For this reason the common symbols of Easter festivities were the rabbit (the same symbol as "Playboy" magazine), and the egg. Both are known for the reproductive abilities. At the center of attention was Astarte, the female deity. She is known in the Bible as the "queen of heaven" (Jer. 7:18; 44:17-25). He is the mother of Tammuz (Eze. 8:14) who was also her husband! These perverted rituals would take place at sunrise on Easter morning (Eze. 8:13-16). From the references in Jeremiah and Ezekiel, we can see that the true Easter has never had any association with Jesus Christ.

Problem: Even though the Jewish passover was held in mid April (the fourteenth) and the pagan festival Easter was held later the same month, how do we know that Herod was referring to Easter in Acts 12:4 and not the Jewish passover? If he was referring to the passover, the translation of pascha as "Easter" is incorrect. If he was indeed referring to the pagan holyday (holiday) Easter, then the King James Bible (1611) must truly be the very word and words of God for it is the only Bible in print today which has the correct reading.

To unravel the confusion concerning "Easter" in verse 4, we must consult our FINAL authority, THE BIBLE. The key which unlocks the puzzle is found not in verse 4, but in verse 3. (Then were the days of unleavened bread...") To secure the answer that we seek, we must find the relationship of the passover to the days of unleavened bread. We must keep in mind that Peter was arrested during the "days of unleavened bread" (Acts 12:3).

Our investigation will need to start at the first passover. This was the night in which the LORD smote all the firstborn in Egypt. The Israelites were instructed to kill a lamb and strike its blood on the two side posts and the upper door post (Ex. 12:4,5). Let us now see what the Bible says concerning the first passover, and the days of unleavened bread.

Ex. 12:13-18:
"And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.

14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

15 Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses; for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.

17 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.

18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even."

Here in Ex. 12:13 we see how the passover got its name. The LORD said that He would "pass over" all of the houses which had the blood of the lamb marking the door.

After the passover (Ex. 12:13,14), we find that seven days shall be fulfilled in which the Jews were to eat unleavened bread. These are the days of unleavened bread!

In verse 18 we see that dates for the observance were April 14th through the 21st. This religious observance is stated more clearly in Num. 28:16-18:

"And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD.

17 And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

18 In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein."

In verse 16 we see that the passover is only considered to be the 14th of the month. On the next morning, the 15th begins the "days of unleavened bread."

Deut. 16:1-8: "Observe the month of Abib (April), and keep the passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of Abib the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by might.

2 Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto the LORD thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the LORD shall choose to place his name there.

3 Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction: for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life.

4 And there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; neither shall there any thing of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day at even, remain all night until the morning.

5 Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which the LORD thy God giveth thee:

6 But at the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.

7 And thou shalt roast and eat it in the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: and thou shalt turn in the morning, and go unto thy tents.

8 Six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread: and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to the LORD thy God: thou shalt do no work therein."

Here in Deuteronomy we see again that the passover is sacrificed on the first night (Deut. 16:1). It is worth noting that the passover was to be celebrated in the evening (vs. 6) not at sunrise (Eze. 8:13-16).

In 2 Chr. 8:13 we see that the feast of unleavened bread was one of the three Jewish feasts to be kept during the year.

2 Chr. 8:13: "Even after a certain rate every day, offering according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts, three times in the year, even in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles."

Whenever the passover was kept, it always preceded the feast of unleavened bread. In 2 Chr. 30 some Jews who were unable to keep the passover in the first month were allowed to keep it in the second. But the dates remained the same.

2 Chr. 30:15,21: "Then they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the second month: and the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and sanctified themselves, and brought in the burnt offerings into the house of the LORD. And the children of Israel that were present at Jerusalem kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with great gladness: and the Levites and the priests praised the LORD day by day, singing with loud instruments unto the LORD."

Ezra 6:19,22: "And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month. And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the LORD had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel."

We see then, from studying what the BIBLE has to say concerning the subject that the order of events went as follows:

(1) On the 14th of April the lamb was killed. This is the passover. No event following the 14th is ever referred to as the passover.
(2) On the morning of the 15th begins the days of unleavened bread, also known as the feast of unleavened bread.

It must also be noted that whenever the passover is mentioned in the New Testament, the reference is always to the meal, to be eaten on the night of April 14th not the entire week. The days of unleavened bread are NEVER referred to as the passover. (It must be remembered that the angel of the Lord passed over Egypt one night, not seven nights in a row.)

Now let us look at Acts 12:3,4: "And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people."

Verse 3 shows that Peter was arrested during the days of unleavened bread (April 15-21). The Bible says: "Then were the days of unleavened bread." The passover (April 14th) had already come and gone. Herod could not possibly have been referring to the passover in his statement concerning Easter. The next passover was a year away! But the pagan holiday of Easter was just a few days away. Remember! Herod was a pagan Roman who worshipped the "queen of heaven." He was NOT a Jew. He had no reason to keep the Jewish passover. Some might argue that he wanted to wait until after the passover for fear of upsetting the Jews. There are two grievous faults in this line of thinking.

First, Peter was no longer considered a Jew. He had repudiated Judaism. The Jews would have no reason to be upset by Herod's actions. (to be continued)

Second, he could not have been waiting until after the passover because he thought the Jews would not kill a man during a religious holiday. They had killed Jesus during passover (Matt. 26:17-19,47). They were also excited about Herod's murder of James. Anyone knows that a mob possesses the courage to do violent acts during religious festivities, not after.

In further considering Herod's position as a Roman, we must remember that the Herods were well known for celebrating (Matt. 14:6-11). In fact, in Matthew chapter 14 we see that a Herod was even willing to kill a man of God during one of his celebrations.

It is elementary to see that Herod, in Acts 12, had arrested Peter during the days of unleavened bread, after the passover. The days of unleavened bread would end on the 21st of April. Shortly after that would come Herod's celebration of pagan Easter. Herod had not killed Peter during the days of unleavened bread simply because he wanted to wait until Easter. Since it is plain that both the Jews (Matt. 26:17-47) and the Romans (Matt. 14:6-11) would kill during a religious celebration, Herod's opinion seemed that he was not going to let the Jews "have all the fun." He would wait until his own pagan festival and see to it that Peter died in the excitement.

Thus we see that it was God's providence which had the Spirit-filled translators of our Bible (King James) to CORRECTLY translate pascha as "Easter." It most certainly did not refer to the Jewish passover. In fact, to change it to "passover" would confuse the reader and make the truth of the situation unclear.

 

Yes, DinkyDoo, several of us have seen that info before. That article is a valiant effort, to be sure, but it simply implies Luke was in error for using "pascha" instead of another word like "Ishtar" or "the festival of Astarte" or similar.

Basically, the argument that "Easter" is correct is an arugment that original scripture was wrong and needed to be corrected over a thousand years later by English translators. I outright reject such an argument.

 

Here we are, Christians, debating over the translation of a single word. The word pascha appears 29 times in the New Testament, as DinkyDoo had stated previously. In the KJV the word is translated as Easter only in Acts 12:4. The same word is translated as Passover in its other 28 appearances in the KJV. In the NASB it is translated as Passover in all 29 appearances. The point is not what holy day Herod was waiting for, just that he planned to hold Peter for a while before his trial. Does it matter that the Jewish month Abib actually started in what is now the later part of March and continued into what is now the earlier part of April?

In our zeal to either prove or disprove whether the KJV is the only Bible version we should be reading, we forget that the Bible is the word of God in written form. We are so determined that our own view is correct that we lose sight of what the Bible says to us. By debating about the little things like the translation of a single word, we totally ignore the entire scope of the Bible - that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, our only means to attain salvation.

God has no desire that we fight amongst ourselves over what Bible version to use. God has seen to it that His word, the Bible, has been handed down to us in a form that He accepts. I don't think that God wants us to worship the Bible itself, and that is what seems to be happening here. When Jesus gave the Great Commission in Matthew 28, He didn't say "Go and bicker amongst yourselves as to what Bible to read." Jesus told us to go to the whole world and spread the Gospel. If we're busy debating Bible versions or the translation of a single word, we're doing just exactly what Satan wants us to do - focusing on something beside God.

The debate over KJV Only has gone on far, far, far too long. If we can't put aside petty arguments then we don't deserve to be called Christians!

 

^^I couldn't agree more, and couldn't have stated it any better. But, sadly, I don't think this divisive controversy is anywhere near its end.

 

I am not interested in knocking the KJV. There is
not a Bible, of which I am aware, that is perfect,
that did not make a bad translation choice some-
where.

What I am interested in is the truth and in Truth.
Truth does not always make me comfortable, but
it is the prerequisite, and it must be for all who
intend to follow our Messiah.

I had said my piece, and I thought I would not be
writing again. I had hoped, because there are
people here whom I respect, that someone else
would fill in the gaps. Well, since it did not
happen, or, at least, the person who did explain
this was ignored, here we go . . .

Leviticus 23:4 - 14 tells that the Passover is on
15 Nissan, which is also a day of no leaven. The
first day, no matter what day of the week it comes,
is a sabbath. The days without leaven are to cont-
inue for seven more days, with the final day, no
matter what day of the week, being another sab-
bath. (Of course, since a seventh day of the week
will also fall in here at least once, possibly twice
in this 8-day period, there will be an additional
Sabbath.

If you have a Jewish calendar, you will see that
in the year 2003, "Passover - Day 1," as it is called
in the calendar I have in front of me, is on Thurs-
day, the 17th. Looking at the 16th, it says, "Erev
Pesach 7:42," the time on which we light our can-
dles, because our days begin at sundown, not at
midnight. In other words, Pesach has begun, and
this day is a sabbath. "Erev" basically means the
"evening of Pesach": remember that in our days,
evening is followed by night, then morning, then
noon and afternoon. "The evening and the morning
were the first day" [Genesis].

The next day is called, on the calendar, "Passover
- Day 2. Many synagogues open their doors,
inviting people to come and experience a Pass-
over seder on that night. Once again, candles
are lit before sundown. Since this is also the
beginning of Sabbbath, this is the second sab-
bath of the week.

This is just as it is supposed that the week was
when our Lord was crucified. Two sabbaths --
one beginning on Wednesday evening, and the
other beginning on Friday evening, leaving one
day in between for Mary to gather and prepare
the spices.

"Passover - First Intermediate Day," my calen-
dar says says on Saturday. Sabbath ends at
8:46 p.m., and for the ancients, it means that
this is when the first day of the week began--
what we call "Sunday." The only difference is
that sundown begins a bit earlier in Israel.

Sunday: "Passover- Second Intermediate Day.
Monday: "Passover - Third Intermediate Day.
Tuesday: "Passover - Fourth Intermediate day.
Wednesday: "Passover - Day 7."
Thursday: "Passover - Day 8."
Candles are lit on each of these nights, be-
cause each one is considered part of Passover.

Thursday is a sabbath once again, starting from
sundown Wednesday night, as will Saturday be
the Sabbath, starting from Friday at sundown.

These are also the days of counting the omer as
our Lord commanded, beginning on the first
Thursday night mentioned. The omer will be
counted nightly for 49 days until Shavuot, more
commonly known as Pentecost. It is a sabbath,
and that sabbath begins on Thursday night, just
as it is believed to have begun right after our
Lord ascended. So Friday, just as then, is a
sabbath, and the Sabbath begins that Friday, too,
at sundown, going through Saturday at sundown.

I know this may be confusing, but I suggest
getting a blank calendar and mapping it out;
this way, it will make more sense.

[ December 09, 2002, 11:51 AM: Message edited by: Abiyah ]

 

One more thing: please note that Shavuot, or
Pentecost, is not on Sunday as is often supposed.

[ December 09, 2002, 05:18 AM: Message edited by: Abiyah ]

 

Thank you, Ben.

- - - - - - - - - - -

I read this morning, for the first time, DinkyDoo's
post regarding Pesach. With regard to this post,
I thought I should return and clarify some things.

The holy day is 14 Nissan in the modern Jewish
calendar, and the day it begins is on our calendar
on April 16. In order to explain why it is not the
month of Abib (which has nothing whatsoever to
do with April) would be a long, drawn-out process
which I am not interested in going through on the
board.

But one thing I would say, DinkyDoo, is that our
Lord, while this may shock some, was not a
Christian; He was Jewish. That name upon His
thigh, mentioned in Revelation, is not a tattoo; it is
His tzitzit. And Peter would be astounded,
offended, and quite perturbed to hear that anyone
today believed that he stopped being a Jew. This
is a misunderstanding of the Scriptures.

- - - - - - - - - - -

By the way, for those who only do certain things
once in a blue moon, you had better to do those
things in the month of July, 2003, because I noticed,
when I was going through the calendar, that we
are going to have a blue moon on the 30th! 8oD

[ December 09, 2002, 06:12 AM: Message edited by: Abiyah ]

 

DinkyDoo,

1. After discussing a select number of O.T. passages, you have argued: "(1)On the 14th of April the Lamb was killed. This is the passover. No event following the 14th is ever referred to as the passover. (2)On the morning of the 15th begins the days of unleavened bread, also known as the feast of unleavened bread. It must also be noted that whenever the passover is mentioned in the New Testament, the reference is always to the meal, to be eaten on the night of April 14th not the entire week. The days of unleavened bread are NEVER referred to as the passover." Here you have made a couple of incorrect assertions. First, the O.T does not make so rigid a distinction between the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread as your position requires. The two terms can, in fact, be used interchangeably to describe the same weeklong period. For example, after describing the manner in which the Jews were to eat the Passover, Moses says, "So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread..." (Ex.12:14-15a). Thus, in speaking of the Passover, he highlights the first day, but then describes it as a feast that lasts beyond just that day for a whole week. In Ezek. 45:21, the LORD says, "In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you shall observe the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten." Again, we find that the term 'passover' can refer more specifically to the one day or more generally to the whole period inclusive of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Second, you are wrong in your assessment of the N.T. evidence, for the same elasticity in the use of the terminology as is in the O.T. can also be found in the N.T. For example. Matt. 26:17 tells us that "on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, 'Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover.'" If your distinction were to be applied so rigidly as your position would require, we would have to assume that Jesus was eating the Passover a day late, namely on the first day of Unleavened Bread following the day of the Passover. Also, Luke 2:41 says that Jesus' "parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of Passover," but it then refers to this as a period of "days" in verse 43. Luke thus sees the Passover as more than a period of one day, and thus must be using the term 'passover' to describe the entire period including the seven days of unleavened bread. And if this weren't enough, Luke specifically says in 22:1 that "the Feast of Unleavened Bread drew near, which is called the Passover." Thus Luke plainly states that the whole period inclusive of the seven days of unleavened bread was in his day called the "Passover," no doubt to aid the Gentile reader in understanding how the terms were used. So there is simply no reason that in Acts 12:4 the term 'passover' could not be used this way, especially since Luke is also the author of Acts, and we already know that he can use the term to refer to the entire week.

2. Some of the most glaring errors in your argument come with your assessment of the meaning of pascha in Acts 12:4 in particualr. You have stated that "the passover (April 14th) had already come and gone. Herod could not possibly have been referring to the passover in his statement concerning Easter. The next passover was a yesr away! But the pagan holiday of Easter was just a few days away." First, this assumes that the term 'passover' cannot be used to refer to the whole period inclusive of the days of unleavened bread, which I have already shown to be false. Second, you assume that the Greek word pascha would have been used in Luke's day by someone like Herod to refer to a pagan holiday later known in English as 'easter.' Where is the proof for such an assertion? I know of no reputable lexical work that even hints at such a possibility. For example, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature by Bauer, Arndt, Gingrich, and Danker says that pascha should be translated as "Passover" with reference to 1)the Jewish feast, 2)the Paschal lamb, or 3)the Passover meal. It then goes on to say that "in later Christian usage" it was translated as "the Easter festival"(p.633). Now Herod was neither "later" than the first century, nor was he a "Christian," and Luke has already specifically told us that in his day the term 'passover' could be used with reference to the whole Feast of Unleavened Bread, so I just don't see how your argument can stand. It requires that we read a later usage of the term back into Luke's time with no evidence at all that Luke himself would ever would have used or understood the word pascha in this way. This is a fallacy known as semantic anachronism, and any good translation will avoid it.

Pastork

 

Excellent, Pastork, as usual.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

In all fairness to DinkyDoo, I realized later that
this post is a quotation of a website in which they
were the ones who wrote the errroneous material.
I apologize, DinkyDoo, for not realizing that, but it
was not obvious because of lacks of quotation
marks. It would be interesting to know what site
that came from, though. Thank you.

[ December 10, 2002, 05:34 PM: Message edited by: Abiyah ]

 

Thanks, Abiyah. I suspected that DinkyDoo probably got his information elsewhere. I would also point out that--in all fairness to the KJV translators-- I doubt seriously that they chose to translate pascha as "Easter" for the reasons given by DinkyDoo and those he cites. I don't know why they chose it, but if I had to guess, I would say they chose it because in their day 'easter' was the common Christian term for the holiday. The reason they chose to translate pascha as "Easter" only in this instance may have been that they saw Luke here speaking to Christians as a Christian, whereas in the other passages it had to have been used with reference to the specifically Jewish feast. I would still disagree with the choice, but at least this explanation does not make the KJV translators (for whom I have a great deal of respect) look so much like amateurs.

Pastork

 

You could be right--it is just that I have seen so
much Christian "history" rewritten to meet with
the writers' agendas that I get real suspicious
until I see it in three unrelated sources, and I
have not seen it once in a published source that
Ii trust yet. 8o)