Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus: Messianic Prophecy Objections, Vol. 3

I’ll admit I had an agenda when I purchased Michael Browns Volume 3 - Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus. Frankly I was interested in understanding how Dr. Brown interprets the prophecy of Daniel 9. Much of today’s Christian eschatology hangs upon this critical prophecy but surprisingly, in way too many instances, the Scriptural foundation for this prophecy is neglected. Lately I’ve been exploring how today’s influential Bible teacher’s answer 20 key foundational questions about the prophecy of 70 Weeks and that quest has led me to this book.Let me say right up front the book was not what I expected. It’s been some time since I’ve enjoyed and learned as much from a book as I have from Dr. Brown’s Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus: Messianic Prophecy Objections. Questions about Daniel 9 aside, this was just really informative book about a subject which I love.One of the first things that struck me about this book was the fact was Dr. Brown’s perspective. As a Jewish believer in Yeshua, writing to his Jewish brethren, Dr. Brown didn’t approach the subject primarily from the point of view of trying to convince his reader about the legitimacy of the prophetic Scriptures in general because his audience, for the most part, already has a great respect and love for the God’s words.Rather Dr. Brown took the prophetic texts of the Bible and explored them from both a traditional Jewish (historical) perspective as well as Messianic Jewish (New Testament) perspective showing how a reasonable rendering of the evidence from both sources supports the view that Yeshua (Jesus) was the Messiah spoken of in the Torah and the Prophets.As gentile believer in Yeshua this was a unique and enlightening exploration of the subject for me. I frankly was not aware of just how extensively the traditional Jewish sources had written about the Bible’s messianic prophecies or their messianic expectations for those prophecies.Over the years I’ve read a little bit about the Jewish anti-missionaries arguments against Yeshua as the fulfillment of Bible’s messianic prophecies but until I’d read this book I did not have a good grasp of their basis nor the extent to which those arguments had been carried.This book really changed that for me. Dr. Brown’s arguments were logical and persuasive yet given in a respectful and direct manner. Based upon many of the ancient Rabbinic sources Dr. Brown quoted in this book, it is difficult to see how anyone else but Yeshua (Jesus) fulfilled the prophecies found in the Torah and the Prophets. And for those of you my Christian peers who think Dr. Brown blindly tows the traditional evangelical Christian line on every interpretation of Bible prophecy, you too might be surprised.I was especially intrigued by Dr. Browns view of the prophecy of Daniel 9. I found it surprising and refreshing that Dr. Brown, as one who believes in a literal and future second coming of the Messiah, sees a reasonable interpretation of Daniel 9 in which the 70 Weeks were fulfilled in the first century by Yeshua (Jesus). Granted this is the first book I’ve read by Dr. Brown but I found no evidence in this book that he, as a Jewish believer in Yeshua, has a preterists or suppersessionist view of the Scripture. On the contrary, Dr. Brown presents a strongly futurist view of the Jewish peoples future role in Gods plans for mankind.Lately, I’ve been struck by how many of my Christian peers incongruently disassociate the 6 goal of Daniel 9:24 from Yeshua’s death and resurrection, placing them outside the 70 Weeks in some dispensational gap thus weakening the messianic redemptive nature of this pivotal prophecy, a prophecy which they claim is written directly too and for the Jewish people. Among futurists Dr. Brown seems to be a lonely but welcome voice, pointing to Yeshua’s death and resurrection as the most reasonable and Biblically sound understanding of the six goals of Daniel’s 70 Weeks prophecy.To get a sense of how Dr. Brown sees two of the six goals of Daniel 9:24 here is a quote from page 98:“In other words, it was during his first coming that Yeshua died for the sins of the world, making atonement for iniquity and bringing in everlasting righteousness, in accordance with Daniel 9:24.”* * *In what I hope is considered friendly and edifying criticism, there are several area where I believe Dr. Brown’s explanation of Daniel 9 could have been established upon a more solid Biblical context. They are:• The chronology of Ezra & Nehemiah• The command (dabar) to restore and build Jerusalem• Biblical time as it relates to the prophecy of 70 Sevens• The Messianic context of Daniel 9:4Because it relates more directly to the subject of this book I briefly explain the fourth point:Ironically or appropriately, depending upon your point of view, this fourth point relates to the first messianic passage Dr. Brown looked at in this book, namely the Akedah in Gen. 22.In the opening pages of this book Dr. Brown explores one of my favorite prophetic foreshadowing of the Messiah found in Gen. 22. It is the story of the binding of Isaac. It is such a wonderful story of faith, innocence and obedience!As a result of Abraham’s faith and obedience (regards to sacrificing his son Isaac) we find recorded in Gen. 22 the first time Yahweh swore an oath with any man in the Bible. In part this oath promised that through Abraham’s “seed” all nations of the earth would be blessed."And the angel of YHWH called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn [shaba], saith YHWH, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice." (Genesis 22:15-18)This “oath” is confirmed some years later to Isaac:"Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee; for unto thee, and unto thy seed, I will give all these countries, and I will perform the oath [shebuw’ah] which I sware [shaba] unto Abraham thy father; 4 And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; 5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws." (Genesis 26:3-5)Later in Deuteronomy 7:7-9 & 12 Moses calls Israel’s attention to this “oath” Yahweh “swore” to Abraham."YHWH did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because YHWH loved you, and because he would keep the oath [shebuw’ah] which he had sworn [shaba] unto your fathers, hath YHWH brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that YHWH thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;…Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken tothese judgments, and keep, and do them, that YHWH thy God shall keep unto thee the covenant and the mercy which he sware [shaba] unto thy fathers:" (Deuteronomy 7:7-9, 12)This brings us to Daniel 9 and the prophecy of 70 Weeks. In Daniel 9:4 the very first words out of Daniel’s mouth, when sets out to petition YHWH to forgive and redeem his people and restore Jerusalem, are a quote from Deu 7, those words are a call for YHWH to remember the “covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments”. That “covenant and mercy” in part was promise that through Abraham’s seed all nations of the earth would be blessed."And I prayed unto YHWH my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;" (Daniel 9:4 )It didn’t take long for the angel Gabriel to bring an answer to Daniel’s prayer. That answer was the prophecy of 70 Sevens which told Daniel exactly when that “seed” would come and what that Seed would accomplish.In other words Daniel 9 begins with Daniel asking Yahweh to remember the “oath” (shebuw’ah) that He (Yahweh) sware (shaba), with Abraham. In answer YHWH sends Daniel the prophecy of 70 Sevens (shabuwa). And to add a really beautiful touch both shabuwa (sevens) and shib’iym (seventy) appear to come from the, primitive root, shaba, that is to sware. So in way we could look at Daniel’s 70 Weeks prophecy as an Oath of Sevens, at least that’s how I like to think of it now.For further confirmation related to the messianic context of Daniel 9:4 consider the prophecy of Zacharias at the dedication of his son John. This prophecy talks about the coming redeemer as fulfillment of the covenant and mercy - the oath (shebuw’ah) Yahweh sware (shaba) with Abraham."And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for he hath visited and redeemed his people, And hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David;As he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets, which have been since the world began:That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; To perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember his holy covenant; The oath which he sware to our father Abraham," (Luke 1:67-73)And finally the words of Peter confirming that the “covenant” made with Abraham was about the Messianic “seed” who turn Israel’s from their iniquities, the very theme of Daniel’s prayer (Daniel 9:4-23) as well as the prophecy of 70 Seven’s itself (Daniel 9:24-27)."Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities." (Acts 3:25-26)So for those who might doubt Dr. Brown’s messianic/redemptive interpretation of Daniel 9, won’t you first take into account the “covenant and mercy” of Daniel 9:4. I don’t think you’ll ever look at this wonderful prophecy the same way again.Covenant and Mercy Indeed!* * *In closing, whether you are Jewish or Gentile, if you enjoy seeing a subject through another person’s eyes, Dr. Brown’s book is a valuable resource which will challenge you, giving you a brand new perspective on the Bible’s messianic / redemptive message. I thoroughly appreciate this fantastic book and the manner the in which the information was presented in it, so much so that I’ve already purchased volume 4.Maranatha!

Michael Brown does an excellent job of answering questions Jews or anyone else may have about Jesus as a Jew and as the Son of God. He may get a little long-winded in some of his answers as many do who are trying to explain something that is heartfelt to others who don't get it but it's all worth it. He's well thought out and this is a book worth having, especially if you deal with people who have questions or wonder about the realities of Jesus' life.

Brown is the foremost Christian expert on Judaism, and I highly recommend this 4-volume set. This volume centers on messianic prophecy and is my favorite of the four volumes. It can either be read as a reference source (looking up different objections in the book is not hard using the index) or read all the way through. I have chosen the former method--and this particular volume has more highlighting than the others--so while I haven't read every page, they're on my shelf whenever a question on Judaism arises. The thing about Judaism is it is so different moving from Orthodox all the way to Reformed. But the general ideas in this book cover all the branches. Every Christian should be able to talk to their Jewish believer friends, family, and co-workers, because the topic is of utmost importance.

Michael Brown has written another classical and powerful defense of Christianity/Messianic Judaism in this third volume. Brown undertakes painstaking analyses of many of the prominent Biblical passages widely attributed by Christians to be fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth, including Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, and Zechariah 12:10. Brown considers the Messianic veracity of such passages by examining, when applicable and/or necessary, the Biblical Hebrew along with contextual and grammatical considerations of the passages in question, and utilizing early Rabbinical sources. Most importantly, Brown demonstrates that the New Testament writers' exegeses of the Old Testament were perfectly methodologically acceptable. Meanwhile, Brown provides scholarly answers to common objections to the various prophecies.This is definitely a must-read for those interested in examining whether or not the Christian assertion of Messianic prophetic fulfillment in Jesus Christ can withstand scrutiny, especially when viewed in light of the historical Jewish understanding of such texts as well as proper studies in Hebrew linguistics and ancient Biblical exegeses performed by the Jewish sages.

Excellent book.

G j

I am a little disappointed that the author was not able to finish the series in the third book, but this one was definitly the best of the series! I started it at Togos, and wasn't able to put it down until I had finished it. It was just mind boggling how much evidence this fellow was bringing up to defend every fascit of objections that I have been hearing to Messianic Prophecies that I got from my cousin's Rabbi. But I must admit that now I am already growing anxious for the next book to come out...this is a really great series to invest in!

This is a very good book, and I have enjoyed reading it!

As a JewessI found the style of the writer alienating and off putting. It was written in a style that was evangelical, weakly argued and unscholarly in its presentation. It was so bad that I did not feel like completing the book which is unlike me..As a Jewess what I found annoying about the book was the writer's continual interjections in his case for presenting that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah and a fulfilment of the Jewish Scriptures by phrases such as "Praise be to G-D", "Hallelujah" and "Glory be to G-D"!. I heard him say on a video on UTube when presenting his argument that Jesus is the Messiah that as to pertaining to the Jewish people "It is obvious that Jesus is the Messiah"!It might be obvious to him because that is his view but other people take a different view and as far as their concerned their view "is obvious"! His hot-headed, light- hearted and shallow way in presenting his argument that Jesus being the Messiah is not worthy of so an educated man.What people want to hear from such an education Professor is a clear, concise, Biblical, scholarly approach to the case whether Jesus is the Messiah or not, not evangelical preaching and shouts of "Praise be to G-D" every other sentence! This way of presenting to a Jewish audience is simply unsuitable and too reminiscent of Christian Evangelical preacher but who will tell this Professor?No Jewish person will take him seriously when he writes and speaks in such an evangelical Christian style and continues to do so.What I'm getting from this book so far is not a well-argued, compelling, scholarly presentation for Jesus being the Messiah, rather an evangelical hot-head preacher who profoundly alienates the Jewish audience by using language so much like Evangelical Christian preachers and pastors. I didn't feel when reading this book that I was hearing a Jew.What I was hearing was a zealous Christian convert who fails to understand that by his language and style he is alienating the Jewish audience he so desires to reach.His argument were poor. The book just so glib and shallow in its presentation. I didn't feel I was reading a scholarly work by a man of immense learning.Contrast this book with the new book by Rabbi Stuart Federow concerning the differences between Judaism and Christianity the Rabbis presentation and arguments were far more convincing, compelling, well-argued, authorative and Biblical based. Rabbi Federows approach was far more serous and thorough.Professor Brown came to believe in Jesus at the tender age of 16. Amazingly his parents knew he attended a Gospel Church and let him! Even before the boy made the committment to believe in Jesus he was attending this church. I was quite shocked when I heard this. Even Jews that work on the Sabbath, don't keep kosher and so on would not allow or approve of their 16 old child attending a church regularly.One cannot help how much he knows about his own religion Judaism that he was borne into.Is his view of Judaism skewed by spending his whole life within the Christian world and its values and thelogy?Therefore, it is no wonder that Prof Brown comes across to me not a Jew but more as a gentile; a Christian. He exudes no Jewishness even though technically and legally he is a Jew. This is because he has spent his whole life surrounded by and immersed in the non-Jewish Christianized world of Christianity. This is what is so sad when a Jewish becomes to believe in Jesus. It is not that they accept Jesus as the Messiah, but in that they accept all the theology of Christianity which include the writings of St. Paul which intrinsically are diametrically opposed to Judaism. This is what is so sad. The complete rejection of G-D's Torah, Torah learning and the wisdom of sages and Rabbis. The culture of Judaism is rejected as being valueless, for the Christian culture which is considered supreme to Judaism.Having heard so many Rabbis argue so well, convincingly, compellingly for the case being that Jesus is not the Messiah I think the Christian community and writers like Prof Brown needs to get their act together and argue more convincingly, compellingly for the case for Jesus being the Messiah. Christians excel at converting people through convincing them they are sinners and are in need of redemption by the 'sacrifice of the blood of Jesus', but they are poor at arguing the case for Jesus being the Messiah.The facts are that the Rabbis are better at arguing their case.This has historically always been the case.Because of their training they are able to demolish silly arguments and propositions that on analysis prove worthless. Anyone who has done Jury service knows it is all about the barrister/Lawyer. Get a good lawyer and there's a greater chance of you winning!I remember watching a UTube debate between Prof Brown and a Rabbi. The Professor I though argued his case for Jesus being the Messiah very well and I was impressed. However,when the Rabbi replied with one sentence Prof Brown's point now sounded questionable.I did feel that this book was rushed. If careful, serious reflection had been given I think that this book in its present form would not have published but rather re-written.If Professor Brown can write a book that does not scream "Hallelujah", "Praise Be" and so on then maybe I will be able to read it. But at this point as a Jewess I am revulsed by this style of writing. There again I am sure there will be many non-Jews that will find this 'preachy' style a complete and utter turn off. This is a shame because the examination of whether Jesus is the Messiah is worthy of consideration but only when it is written in a scholarly manner that will invite engagement and not a cry from the reader of " Oh no, not another hallelujah"!

I do not think there is another resource like this series. Although Dr. Brown speaks a lot of later Judaism and his views are influenced by further development of Christianity I would say his books take readers back to the first century when Christians (many of them Jews themselves) had to figure out how to explain their faith to their neighbours and friends. He backs up everything he says and is very careful when it comes to original resources.Not too many objections are particularly Jewish. The author deals with questions many Christians and even non-Christians have and sometimes struggle with. I am not a Jew and do not claim be an expert on Judaism. Nevertheless, when I shared some of Michael's thoughts with my Jewish friends they found them really amazing. Should I point out a single issue it would be the way the Trinity is explained (esp- Vol. II, Chapters 3.1 - 2). Other books are full of philosophical stuff and the best you get is a bunch of rather complex terminology that boils down to 3 WHOs and 1 WHAT as Dr. White puts it in The forgotten Trinity. But Dr. Brown shows how the faith in a divine Messiah flows naturally from Tanakh (a.k.a. Old Testament) and Jewish faith. No need to worry about hypostases, consubstantional persons and things most apostles (Paul being possibly the sole exception) had no idea about.So to sum it up, this series could have a subtitle - Understanding Your Own Bible.

Very interesting and well-argued.A useful book for anyone interested in the subject.

Yeah a good read and enjoyable

I misread the title and bought this book. Having gone through it i realized i wasted my money on poor excuses.