The Kohein From Yehudah

“el ha’Iv’rim • The Kohein from Yehudah” is an “old” translation into English of the NT letter “to the Hebrews.”  It is based upon the earliest Greek manuscripts available, namely, Papyrus 46 [dating to between 170-200 CE], Codex Sinaiticus [dating to about 350 CE], and the Nestle-Aland 28th edition of the “Novum Testamentum Graece.” “The Kohein from Yehudah” is what may be deemed a “dynamic equivalence translation,” being more interpretive, by allowing expressions in the target language that don’t necessarily appear in the source text.


Why is this English translation unique? There are three factors:


1. It is based ONLY on the oldest [i.e. earliest] available manuscripts, considering them as more reliable, than the younger, majority of manuscripts. This gives us an opportunity to take a step closer to what the original NT authors intended.


2. It was written with a Jewish pro-Torah bias, by an observant Jew residing in Jerusalem. It is therefore infused with truths that never compromise on the absolute oneness of the G-d of Israel, and His plan to provide a remedy for transgression, devoid of all forms of human sacrifice, so that mankind might draw closer to Him. No other Hebraically-grounded English translation ever produced, claims this unique perspective.


3. It was published from the Eternal city of Jerusalem, from where the Prophet predicts that “out from Tzion the Torah shall go forth, and out from Yerushalai’im, the Word of HaShem” [Yishaiyahu 2:3], No other English translation of an NT letter has been birthed out from such unique environs.


“The Kohein from Yehudah” seeks to expose deliberate efforts used to protect a host of biased Christian doctrines, made through subtle changes to the original Greek, as well as to later English renderings, which introduced Torah-prohibitive theology into key passages from the 4th to the 17th centuries CE.


The approach taken here should lead the reader into some startling insights, which may spark a firestorm over traditional theology. Many may find their doctrines and creeds shaken to the core, but uncovering a treasure penned originally for Jews, by Jews, should be worth the discomfort. The journey may be challenging, but the destination is worth it!


“el ha’Iv’rim” also answers life’s most perplexing question… “What lies beyond death’s door?” One read through will convince you of the original author’s determination to present a view, consistent with Torat-Moshe, as he stood in the gap to help us all prepare for the Olam Ha’Bah, information about which has always been scarce, leaving most in a vacuum of skepticism and haziness. But here, we are told how Mashiach in this age relates to “The Kohein from Yehudah” in the next, which was a certainty for Moshe, the Prophets and even Yeshua, as much as tomorrow’s rising sun is a certainty for us. What did these great men-of-old know, that we seem to have forgotten? “el ha’Iv’rim,” comes to remind us of these things, after surviving from as early as 107 years after it was first penned, so that we can understand how things work in G-d’s universe, and what happens to everyone of us must pass through death’s door.


Critics may say that this translation is perverts the Word of G-d. To such, the author would respond with the words of Sha’ul…


“I trust in all things that are according to the Torah and that which came by the hand of the Prophets, which were written [beforehand]” —Acts 24:14.


The time has come for Jerusalem to take “el ha’Iv’rim” back [home]! After all, it was addressed “el ha’Iv’rim” [to the Hebrews], and not, “el ha’Goyim.” Christianity has hijacked our text, and manipulated its message for too long, adding concepts our Torah knew nothing about. Today, a Torah-compliant Messianic hope is reborn. What does it say, and how does it sound? Perhaps it’s time to find out.


Uriel ben-Mordechai

Jerusalem