Response to Yaron Reuven

One Verse Destroys the New Testament In Parashat Vayigash

Rabbi Yaron Reuven Short Torah Clips

00:00 Prepare to be shaken

00:36 How many souls went to Egypt with Jacob (Genesis 46:27)

70 vs 75 in NT

Rabbi Reuven claims that Christian response to this is:

“Agrees with Sefer Yovalim or the Book of Jubilee”

In reality several manuscripts of the Tanakh have 75 including the Septuagint. This is a false steel manning argument.

Acts 7:14 is part of a speech which Luke records. The speech is given by Stephen, a Greek Jew who no doubt would have read the Septuagint. The Septuagint (along with the Dead Sea Scrolls) varies from the Masoretic Text in both Genesis 46:27 and Exodus 1:5 and reads instead "75 people." It's likely Stephen was quoting this tradition.

I would include that the Septuagint version of Genesis 46:20 includes the names of 5 grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Joseph. (3 children and 2 grandchildren of Manasseh and Ephraim) Genesis 46:20 (LXX) "And there were sons born to Joseph in the land of Egypt, whom Aseneth, the daughter of Petephres, priest of Heliopolis, bore to him, even Manasses and Ephraim. And there were sons born to Manasses, which the Syrian concubine bore to him, even Machir. And Machir begot Galaad. And the sons of Ephraim, the brother of Manasses; Sutalaam, and Taam. And the sons of Sutalaam; Edo

Gen 46:27 indicates that 66 biological descendants of Jacob had traveled to Egypt. That is, when Joseph and his two sons are not counted from the genealogy (along with Er and Onan, who had died previously in Canaan), the number is 66 people according to the Masoretic Text. Thus 66 biological descendants of Jacob traveled to Egypt. This number did not include the wives of the sons of Jacob (Gen 46:26).

However, Gen 46:27 indicates that 70 people traveled to Egypt. In this regard, the additional four people appear to have been -

JacobLeahZilpahBilhah

Thus Ex 1:5 and Deut 10:22 indicate that there were 70 persons "...who went down to Egypt."

Finally, the Septuagint (LXX) indicates 75 people, as noted in Acts 7:14 of the Christian New Testament. That is, the Genesis passage in the LXX reads as follows:

Gen 46:27 (NETS) 27 And the sons of Ioseph who were born to him in the land of Egypt were nine persons. All the persons of Iakob’s house who came into Egypt were seventy-five.

Thus the LXX takes the perspective: 66 + 9 = 75. That is, the 66 biological descendants of Jacob plus the nine children of Joseph (as noted in the LXX) would comprise the people "who came into Egypt." In this regard, Jacob and his three wives are excluded from the count. From this perspective, Jewish tradition, provides yet additional (and alternative) information to consider this problem.

As apparent in Acts 7:14, Joseph desired that Jacob and all his relatives would live and remain with him in Egypt. So, if the 66 biological relatives plus Jacob and his three wives comprised the 70, who were the other five people, whom Joseph wished to live and remain with him from the apparent perspective of Jewish tradition (which assumes that Joseph only had two sons)?

The additional five would appear to be -

Manasssah (son of Joseph)Ephraim (son of Joseph)Jochebed (daughter of Levi born in Egypt - Nu 26:59)Er (died in Canaan)Onan (died in Canaan)

The latter two had died in Joseph's absence--that is, they died after Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt, and so Joseph may have learned from Judah that they were born to him (Judah) during the 22 year hiatus (that is, Joseph's absence), but not that they had died. As regards Jochebed, according to the Talmud, Jochebed (Levi's daughter) had been conceived, but yet unborn when she arrived in Egypt in the womb of her pregnant mother. Thus she constituted a living person albeit unborn. According to the translation of the Babylonian Talmud by Neusner (2011), we read the following in b. Baba Batra 8:4, II.4.D -

He said to him, “I had a valuable pearl in my hands, and you want to take it away from me! This is what R. Hama bar Hanina said, ‘This refers to Jochebed, who was conceived on the way [down to Egypt] and was born between the walls of Egypt: ‘… who was born to Levi in Egypt’ (Num. 26:59), meaning, her birth was in Egypt but not her conception.”

In other words, if Joseph's two sons (Manassah and Ephraim) are included with Jochebed, Er, and Onan as part of the "in all" (NASB translation of Acts 7:14), then the LXX number of 75 persons would comprise "Jacob and all his relatives"--that is, Jacob's direct relations, whom Joseph had desired to live and remain with him in Egypt from the apparent perspective of Jewish tradition (which assumes that Joseph only had two sons).

In summary, the Masoretic Text and the LXX (with additional information supplied from Jewish oral tradition in the Talmud) appear to be aspects of the same issue, but viewed at from different angles.

Neusner, Jacob (2011). The Babylonian Talmud: A Translation and Commentary (Vol. 15). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 361.

02:36 Where is the Cave of the Patriarchs? (Genesis 23:19)

He says Acts claims the Mearat Hamachpela is in Schem and Torah says it’s in Hebron

He claims Christians will claim “But Joseph was buried in Schem”

04:16 Can God be a man? (Deuteronomy 4:15)

3:55 “A person became God”

Deuteronomy 4:15““Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire,” Rabbi claims has no image or likeness of an image

Appreciate the Rabbi knows these are claims of deity

“Eli Eli lama sabachtani” who are you crying to? Says there’s no explanation to this seeming contradiction.

05:54 Do you believe in the new testament?

Says now many Christians say they don’t believe He’s God anymore. Who does that? Who says that?

Goes on to say “they’re gonna give you all types of explanations, this was for this, this was for that.” “Anyone that’s spiritually honest, intellectually honestl will simply not buy it.”

Says no two Christians are alike because of diversity of ideas.

07:05 How is Jesus related to King David?

Matthew 1:6 “and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,”

Luke 3:31 “the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,”

“Gives you two sets of 25 names that do not match with each other. So which one is it?”

Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus, Volume 4: New Testament Objections Objection 5.10: The Genealogies of Jesus Given by Matthew and Luke are Hopelessly Contradictory

but it has twenty-two generations and names in Chronicles, while Ezra only has sixteen names

Michael L. Brown, Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus: New Testament Objections., vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2007), 77.

Goes on to say “This one is from the mother, this one is from the father.” Yeah, that’s literally the answer.

“That’s not what the book says”

“How is Jospeh’s lineage related if it’s immaculate conception” explain legal vs biological lingeage. Find if there’s even such an example in Tanakh or Talmud.

Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus, Volume 4: New Testament Objections Objection 5.11: The Messiah is David’s Son. If Jesus Were Really Born of a Virgin, Then Joseph Was Not His Father and He is Really Not a Descendant of David, Even According to Matthew’s Genealogy. And If You Claim that Luke’s Genealogy is tha

Sheshan’s genealogy continues through his daughter’s children, all of whom bear good Israelite names rather than Egyptian names, despite Jarha’s Egyptian background