Introduction

The scriptures are thoroughly Hebrew from beginning to end. As a result, interpreting the
passages in a way that is more common to Greek, or other pagan religious thought processes or
doctrinal concepts could be disastrous to us understanding the text properly.

E.C. Dewick puts the contrast between Hebraic and Grecian thought processes on pre-existence as
such:

“When the Jew said something was ‘predestined,’, he thought of it as already ‘existing’ in a
higher sphere of life. The world’s history is thus predestined because it is already, in a sense,
preexisting and consequently fixed. This typically Jewish conception of predestination may be
distinguished from the Greek idea of preexistence by the predominance of the thought of
‘preexistence’ in the Divine purpose.” – Primitive Christian Eschatology

Before digging into specific scriptures or concepts I just want to give some general information. My
intent is to provide evidence supporting the conclusion that the many places in scripture where a
preexistence of Yeshua is interpreted is incorrect. While it should be our goals as interpreters to
exegete the text, or pull our information and conclusions from the text itself, many of the concepts
upon which the doctrine of the preexistence rest are eisegetical, or placed upon the next. When the
supposed “proof texts” of the New Testament and the concepts they outline are compared with the
Hebrew scriptures and the concepts therein the picture of what preexistence really is becomes
clearer.

Existence Before Creation/Manifestation

Things in the Old and New Testament scriptures are often spoken of as existing before they
actually came in to being or came to pass. Luke 20:35-38 says,

“But those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and the resurrection from the dead,
neither marry, nor are given in marriage.  (36)  For they can’t die any more, for they are like the
angels, and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.  (37)  But that the dead are
raised, even Moses showed at the bush, when he called the Lord ‘The God of Abraham, the
God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’  (38)  Now he is not the God of the dead, but of the living,
for all are alive to him.”

The scriptures and Jewish thought ancient and contemporary testify that death is a slumber, even
though it is still a complete death. No immortal spirit exists that moves into some purgatorial state
after the shedding of the body. That is a thoroughly Greek concept. However, the Hebrew mind
knows that even the dead are alive to Yahweh. Revelation 4:11 confirms this by saying,

“Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created
all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”

According to the apostle John everything existed before they were created. In the Hebrew mind
“preexistence” isn’t literal, it is notional or ideal. All things exist in the divine and perfect plan of
Yahweh before they are every manifested in the physical or spiritual worlds.

Preexistence or Foreknowledge?

The authors of the New Testament had a perfect Greek word at their disposal for preexistence.
Προυπ?ρχων, prohuparkon, which literally means “to exist beforehand.” That word is found
nowhere within the pages of the Greek New or Old Testaments. The word for “foreknown”,
προγιν?σκω proginosko, however, is used five times.

Ironically, the concept contained within the word prohuparkon doesn’t appear until it is found in
the writings of the Greek commentators of the second century CE, by which time the influences of the
pagan religions had found their ways into the church. Eusebius in his Ecclesiastical History, Books 3
and 4, confirms that the church remained as a pure and uncorrupted virgin in doctrine until the death
of the last Hebrew bishop of Jerusalem. Based on the time data included in the historical record this
was around 148 CE, which was the eleventh year of the reign of Caesar Antonius Pius. It wasn’t until
then, Eusebius says, that the corruptions of those from outside began to bleed in. It is also not until
this time that any concept of a literal preexistence of Yeshua is discussed, most likely introduced by
Justin Martyr around the year 150 CE.

According to 1 Peter 1:1-2, all believers were foreknown by God. None of us were brought into
existence until our earthly births even though we were all foreknown in the mind and divine plan of
Yah. Likewise, we read later in verse 20 that Yeshua was also foreknown before the foundations of
the world, but he wasn’t made manifest until the last age. The contrast between preexistence and
foreknowledge is an important one.

Any supposed manifestations of a preexistent Yeshua, such as him appearing on Mount Sinai,
wrestling with Jacob, talking with Abraham outside his tent, etc., would all go directly against what
Peter taught in his epistle. It would have required him to be manifested in this world prior to the last
age. In addition, it isn’t mentioned explicitly in the text of scripture that it was Yeshua who performed
those acts. All such propositions are only implied. Proper biblical hermeneutics requires that
implications cannot be used in the establishment of doctrine.

There are many other scriptural instances of the concepts of foreknowledge and foreordination
found in the scriptures.

• In Acts chapter 2 we are told that the betrayal, trial and ultimate crucifixion of Messiah was a
  part of the “predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God.” Though it was part of the plan
  from before time began, it wasn’t brought forth until the perfect time came.
• Revelation 13:8 and 17:8 tell us that everyone destined to inherit eternal life has been written
  in the book of life from the foundation of the world. That is a hard concept to swallow and
  some may disagree with it entirely. But, agree or disagree with it, the text itself is written as
  such.
• In 2 Corinthians 5:1 Paul says that we have a building from God in the heavens, not that we
  will have. That new body is spoken of as though it already exists, though we do not yet have
  it.
• In John 17:5 Yeshua says, “Glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you
  before the world existed.” A couple important things need to be pointed out in this passage.
  First, the focus is not on a preexistent Yeshua, but rather a preexistent glory for Yeshua.
  Second, nowhere in the text does this convey that this was a restoration of glory which had
  been removed from him. This was a bestowing of a foreknown and foreordained glory which
  was for Yeshua, with the Father in his divine plan before the world came to be. There are
  other passages of scripture that clarify this meaning:

o Verse 22 of the same chapter says that the same glory had already been given to
Yeshua; the verb given there is in the perfect tense, which in Greek represents a
completed action. And yet we know that at this point Yeshua had yet to be glorified
since he hadn’t yet been killed and raised again.

o In the same verse, the foreknown and foreordained glory of Yeshua was given to the
apostles, yet we know they didn’t preexist their births.

o Rom 8:28-30 says, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love
God, to those who are called according to his purpose.  (29)  For whom he foreknew, he
also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn
among many brothers.  (30)  Whom he predestined, those he also called. Whom he
called, those he also justified. Whom he justified, those he also glorified.”

• Paul speaks to many believers who were yet alive as having already been
  glorified. In the divine plan, those whom are to be “saved” are already known.
  Again, regardless of one’s belief on the divine predestination and/or selection of
  the elect, Paul is clear here in stating that those who have been called have also
  been glorified. This glorification doesn’t take place in the present life, but in the
  one to come, but is spoken of as having already taken place.

o Jeremiah 1:4-5 says, “Now Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, (5) ‘Before I formed
you in the womb, I knew you. Before you were born, I sanctified you. I have appointed
you a prophet to the nations.’”

• Read literally, without incorporating the Hebraic understanding of preexistence
  and foreordination, we would have to admit that Jeremiah preexisted his earthly
  birth.
• It would have been impossible for Yahweh to “know” Jeremiah personally
  otherwise, assuming literal preexistence is intended.
• However, if we consider that Jeremiah only notionally or conceptually preexisted,
  meaning in the mind and purposes of Yahweh, instead of literally preexisted in
  some tangible form, the text makes sense.
• If we permit ourselves to properly exegete this passage using the Hebraic
  understanding of preexistence, why wouldn’t we do the same thing for the
  relevant passages of the New Testament? Instead of reading those literally, as
  we could here, we should read them with the Hebraic understanding in mind.
• Only after then, if it still makes no sense, should we even consider alternative
  ways of reading or exegeting a certain passage.

o 2 Kings 19:20-25 says, “Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying,
‘Yahweh, the God of Israel, says “You have prayed to me against Sennacherib king of
Assyria, and I have heard you.  (21)  This is the word that Yahweh has spoken
concerning him: ‘The virgin daughter of Zion has despised you and ridiculed you. The
daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head at you.  (22)  Whom have you defied and
blasphemed? Against whom have you exalted your voice and lifted up your eyes on
high? Against the Holy One of Israel!  (23)  By your messengers, you have defied the
Lord, and have said, ‘With the multitude of my chariots, I have come up to the height of
the mountains, to the innermost parts of Lebanon, and I will cut down its tall cedars and
its choice cypress trees; and I will enter into his farthest lodging place, the forest of his
fruitful field.  (24)  I have dug and drunk strange waters, and I will dry up all the rivers of
Egypt with the sole of my feet.’  (25)  Haven’t you heard how I have done it long ago,
and formed it of ancient times? Now I have brought it to pass, that it should be yours
to lay waste fortified cities into ruinous heaps.”’”

• Hezekiah was told by Yahweh, through the prophet Isaiah, that the actions
  prophesied were already done and formed in the past. The Hebrew Perfect
  tense is used here, which, like the Greek designates a completed action.
  However, those things, which were as good as done in the plans and purposes of
  Yahweh, weren’t brought to pass until the designated time.
• Again, these things all preexisted in the Hebraic meaning of the word. But, they
  didn’t literally exist prior to their coming to pass.

  o Using the understanding and confirmation we gain from the Jeremiah and 2 Kings
  passages above, how can that clarify our interpretations of such passages as John
  17:5?

• The glory which Yeshua had with Yahweh before the world needn’t exist or to
  have been granted to Yeshua while he was in some literal, preexistent form.

• Instead the glory and the bestowal of it upon Yeshua was as good as completed
  having been in the plans and purposes of Yahweh.

With God?

Many things are spoken of in the scriptures as being “with” Yahweh, things which aren’t literal,
but conceptual:

• Job 10:12-14 says, “You have granted me life and loving kindness. Your visitation has
  preserved my spirit.  (13)  Yet you hid these things in your heart. I know that this is with you:
   (14)  if I sin, then you mark me. You will not acquit me from my iniquity.”
• Job 12:16 says, “With him is strength and wisdom. The deceived and the deceiver are his.”
• Job 23:13-15 says, “But he stands alone, and who can oppose him? What his soul desires,
  even that he does.  (14)  For he performs that which is appointed for me. Many such things
  are with him.  (15)  Therefore I am terrified at his presence. When I consider, I am afraid of
  him.”
• Job 27:10-12 says, “Will he delight himself in the Almighty, and call on God at all times?  (11)  I
  will teach you about the hand of God. I will not conceal that which is with the Almighty.  (12) 
  Behold, all of you have seen it yourselves; why then have you become altogether vain?”
• Wisdom of Solomon 9:9 says, “And with you is wisdom, which knows your works, And was
  present when you were making the world, And which understands what is pleasing in your
  eyes, And what is right according to your commandments.”
• Sirach 1:1 says, “All wisdom comes from the Lord, And is with him forever.”
• Prov 8:30 says, “then I [wisdom] was the craftsman by his side.”

None of these instances are or can be exegeted as meaning more than what they state they are –
wisdom – which is an incorporeal, intangible concept. Yeshua isn’t found by name in any of these
instances and to read it as such is to misread the plain text of the scriptures. The New Testament, in
Luke 2, states that Yeshua “increased in wisdom.” That doesn’t mean he increased in himself. Paul
states in 1 Cor. 1:30 that Yeshua was “made to us wisdom from God”, not that wisdom, or Yeshua
mystically in the form of intangible wisdom, existed before his earthly birth.
In addition to the above, the Hebrew scriptures contain many other things spoken of as being
“with” someone using the Hebrew equivalents of the Greek word pros – im or et.

• 1 Chr 28:12 says that the spirit was “with” David relating to the pattern of the temple; which
  means “in his mind”. In fact, knowing this, the most reliable literal translations of the Bible

today, as agreed by scholars and lay-people alike, such as the NASB, KJV, ASV, LEB, WEB,
and LITV all translate that phrase as something like “had by the spirit” or “had in his mind”.

• 1 Kin 11:11 in most translations states something like “Because this was done by you” about
  Solomon, meaning because he performed those unrighteous acts. However, the Hebrew text
  says “because this was with you.”
• Ps 50:11b is translated as “the wild animals of the field are mine,” or something similar. Yet
  the Hebrew text states “the wild animals of the field are with me.” We know Yahweh dwells in
  the heavens and the earthly beasts are not literally with him.

Something spoken of as being “with” Yahweh should by no means be interpreted as meaning it
preexisted with him in some tangible, corporeal, or literal fashion.

John 1

John 1 is by far the most commonly used scripture used as a proof text for the preexistence or
the doctrines of the trinity, binity, and the like. However, we should first clarify what it says and what it
does not say. Literally translated it would read:

“In a beginning was the word, and the word was with the God, and God was the word.”

Now, no English translation translates the final clause as such. So, most commonly we read:

“In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God.”

Aside from retranslating it to convey the meaning of the phrases, or use what is called dynamic
equivalence, the above it what it does say. Here is what it does not say:

“In the beginning was the son [or Yeshua], and the son [or Yeshua] was with God, and the son
[or Yeshua] was God.”

We must ensure that we strive to interpret the meaning of verses in the Bible based on the text itself,
not what we impose upon it based on previously conceived or accepted doctrines.
Davar, in Hebrew, is used over 1,400 times in the Tanakh. There is not a single occurrence
where that word is referring to a person or preexistent being. It is unreasonable to assume that John,
a Hebrew by birth, raised in the Hebrew culture, and taught the Hebrew scriptures from a child, would
have suddenly diverged so significantly from the scriptures he had at that time into believing that the
word was a preexistent being of some sort.

In Greek the word logos is used over 300 times and, outside of a single occasion in Revelation
19 where it is used as a title, not a being, it unequivocally refers to a word, thought or concept. There
are only six occurrences in the New Testament where the word logos is translated with a capital W,
three in John 1:1, one in John 1:14, one in 1 Jn. 1:1 and one in Revelation 19. Capitalization is not
something original in the manuscripts themselves as they were written in what are called uncials,
which are all capital letters. One only need to look at the Codex Sinaiticus and other very early
manuscripts of the New Testament to see for themselves.

Unless the text requires that we do so, we need to read logos in the context of the New
Testament’s usage of it.

• The “word” in John 1:1 became flesh in 1:14, just as the “word” in Genesis was made water,
  land, trees, birds, sea creatures and beasts.

• The “word” in John 1:1 can be “with” God just as other intangible concepts such as wisdom,
  strength, and unperformed tasks detailed previously.
• Before the KJV there were seven English translations of the Bible that translated the
  prepositions relating to logos using the English neuter – it. These include the Tyndale Bible
  (1535), the Matthew translation (1535), the Taverner translation (1539), the Great Bible (1539),
  the Whittingham translation (1557), the Geneva Bible (1560) – which was the Bible most used
  by the founding fathers of this nation – and the Bishop’s Bible (1568).
• There are at least four scholarly sources on Greek grammar and translation that state explicitly
  that the phrase kai theos en ho logos, or “and the word was God” in John 1:1c is qualitative in
  nature, not quantitative or declarative. C.F.D. Moule in his work “An Idiom Book of New
  Testament Greek”, Dana and Mantey in their work “A Manual Grammar of the Greek New
  Testament”, an article in the Journal of Biblical Literature called “Qualitative Anarthrous
  Predicate Nouns”, and Bill Mounce’s “Basics of Biblical Greek”, which is used in universities
  around the nation to teach Biblical Greek, all conclude the same thing regarding that phrase.
• Translations suggested by them include “what God was, the word was,” and “the word was
  divine.” Instead of equating the word with God, the form of this phrase instead conveys the
  qualities of God upon the qualities of the word.
• Importantly, we need to understand and interpret John 1 and indeed the entire gospel itself in
  such a way that we take away what the gospel writer themselves said was their goal. Joh
  20:30-31 says, “Therefore many other signs Yeshua also performed in the presence of the
  disciples, which are not written in this book; (31) but these have been written so that you may
  believe that Yeshua is the Messiah, the son of God; and that believing you may have life in His
  name.” The author’s goal wasn’t to in any way convince his audience that Yeshua was God
  the Son, but rather that he was the Messiah and the son of God. For those who would assert
  that the phrase “son of God” is one intended to convey godhood upon someone I encourage
  you to read Exodus 7:1, Exodus 22:9, Psalm 82:6, Luke 3:38, and John 10:33-36, among other
  passages, which call other human beings by either the phrase “elohim” or “son of Elohim”.
• I have a possible, alternate, and completely different proposition for the understanding of John
  1 that I can detail to anyone interested at a later time.

John 8:58

The phrase ε?γω? ει?μι in Greek, though literally translated “I am”, in the 45 times it is found it is never
used in the New Testament as an appellation for God (unlike in Exodus 3, where it is). In the places
where Yeshua uses it in statements to identify himself, or label himself something, he uses it to
identify himself as the promised Messiah.

• Mat 24:5 "For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Messiah,' and will mislead many.”

o In comparing Mat 24:5 to the parallel verses in the other gospels, we read:

• Mar 13:6 "Many will come in My name, saying, ε?γω? ει?μι [I am] and will mislead
  many.
• Luk 21:8 And He said, "See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in
  My name, saying, ε?γω? ει?μι [I am] and, 'The time is near.' Do not go after them.

o In both parallel verses the translators add the word “he” after ε?γω? ει?μι for clarification.
Yeshua isn’t telling his apostles to be on the lookout for people who are claiming to be
Yahweh, he is warning them about people who would come claiming to be the Messiah.

Many other instances in the scriptures use the phrase ε?γω? ει?μι, without being implied or coupled with
a stonable offence.

• Matt. 26:22 has Judas using the phrase
• Luk. 1:19 has Gabriel using the phrase
• Luk. 22:70 has Yeshua using the phrase to proclaim himself as the son of God, not God
  himself
• In John 6:48 and 51 Yeshua says he is the bread of life and the bread from heaven, both using
  ε?γω? ει?μι, yet the Jews in the audience made no efforts to stone him then
• In the same chapter, John 8:24, Yeshua says that unless they believe ε?γω? ει?μι, which
  translators translate as “I am he”. However, the word “he” is not in the Greek text.

However, even here, using the same orphaned phrase, the Jews didn’t threaten to stone him The
same happens in John 8:28, no stoning. The reason for the desire to stone him wasn’t due to any
supposed equating of himself with Yahweh, it was due to the culmination of an extremely scathing
discourse by Yeshua. He stated that the Jews:

• Judged according to the flesh
• They will die in their sins
• They cannot enter the kingdom of heaven
• They are from below, of this world

• Yeshua’s word has no place in them
• Abraham is not their father, but rather the devil is
• They have not come to know Yahweh
• They are liars
• Then finally he declares himself to be the one prophesied before and greater than their
  greatest idol – Abraham

It was the sum total of all of those things that moved them to stone him.
In addition to the above, the phrase ε?γω? ει?μι is used twice by Yeshua while he was being betrayed
and arrested in the garden. When Yeshua asked “Whom do you seek?”, the soldiers replied,
“Yeshua the Nazarene.” Yeshua responded by saying ε?γω? ει?μι. The translators, however, rightly put
the word he in the text after ε?γω? ει?μι. Yeshua wasn’t responding to their inquiry with a declaration that
he was the “Great I AM.” Rather, he was telling them “I am the one you are looking for.”
More confirmation of this is found in the fact that despite the many witnesses to his response –
soldiers, apostles, and officers of the chief priests alike – that was never brought up as a point of
accusation in his trial before the high priests. Had his audience understood that he was actually
declaring himself to be the great I AM that would surely have been top on the list of offences and
charges brought against him.

Created Through Him

Colossians 1:15-20 says,
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. (16) For by Him all things
were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or
dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him. (17)

He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. (18) He is also head of the body,
the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come
to have first place in everything. (19) For it was the Father's good pleasure for all the fullness
to dwell in Him, (20) and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace
through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in
heaven.”

Several important points need to be made about this passage.

 

• Verse 15 states that Yeshua is the image of the invisible God, not God himself. The same
  concept is found in Hebrews 1:3. Our reflections in a mirror are not us. If the mirror were
  destroyed we still exist.
• 1 Cor. 11:7 states that man himself is both the image and glory of God. Just as we are not
  God himself, neither is Yeshua.
• In verse 16 the word typically translated as “by” is the Greek en, which actually means “in.”
  So, it would be translated “For in him all things…”
• Eph 2:10, in similar fashion, says we are created “in” Yeshua. We aren’t created by Yeshua,
  but in him.
• What is the context throughout the rest of the passage? It is referring to a form of
  governmental structure and order, of which Yeshua is the chief. Specific things are mentioned,
  narrowing the context of the word “all”. We need to understand the concept of “all”. “All” is by
  no means all-inclusive. Examples from our own day include phrases like “Hey, who ate all the
  brownies?” Clearly all the brownies in the world weren’t eaten. 2 Sam. 17:14 says “all the
  men of Israel”, Jer. 26:8 says that “all the people seized” him; 1 Jn. 2:20 says the recipients of
  the letter knew “all things.”
• “All things created” doesn’t necessarily refer to the corporeal and tangible world. For example,
  Gal. 6:15 uses “creation” in reference to the new creature when one is born again in Messiah
  (which is the same word in Greek). Col. 1:23 says that the gospel was proclaimed to all
  “creation”, again using the same word. But that doesn’t mean that the trees, rocks, and clouds
  had the gospel proclaimed to them. Most powerfully, 1 Pet. 2:13 says we are to submit
  ourselves to every human “institution”, using same word in Greek for “creation”.
• The things in context are thrones, powers, rulers, authorities – all related to the church
  mentioned in vs. 18. On earth, those things related to the church, and in heaven, the same
  things related to heaven – thrones of authority and power. Eph. 4:11-12 speaks of the same
  things in the assembly.
• In Koine (New Testament) Greek there is a phenomenon known as epanadiplosis. It is a
  character and figure of speech in Greek whereby a fixed and limited phrase is encircled by a
  word or words intended to limit or specify its scope. In the case of Col. 1:15-20 the “things”
  created are those inside of the encircling phrase “all things created”. Those things are thrones,
  principalities, dominions and powers in the heavens and on earth.
• He is “before” all things does not mean, in context, “before” in reference to time. In James
  5:12 and 1 Peter 4:8 the Greek “pro” means “before” in the sense of importance, significance,
  or superiority. The same should be applied here. In the full context of a hierarchy being
  spoken of Yeshua is superior to all of them and holds the position of preeminence.
• The “firstborn” of all creation also does not imply that he was literally the first created being.
  This is important because any type of creation means that he cannot be God, since God is
  uncreated. But, just as Israel is called Yahweh’s “firstborn”, so is Yeshua. Others, such as

Ephraim and Shem also obtained the privileges of the firstborn even though they technically
weren’t. Firstborn is as much a rank as it is a description of the order of birth.

When properly translated and understood in context, this passage doesn’t place Yeshua in the
position of creator nor does it proclaim a preexistence before his earthly birth. In addition, several
passages in the Tanakh state that Yahweh alone is creator, such as Isa. 44:24.

Alef and Tav

Many believe that the presence of the Hebrew letters alef and tav in verses such as Genesis
1:1 prove that Yeshua preexisted his earthly birth. This is because they use passages in Revelation
that declare Yeshua the alpha and omega. Even if Revelation was originally written in Hebrew, a
proposition that has no manuscript or historical support, the supposition that those two letters, when
found together in the Tanakh, show a preexistent Yeshua, is an extreme stretch.

Grammatically speaking the letters in the word et, formed with the letters alef and tav, have
two meanings. First, and most frequently, it is the marker of the direct object of a verb. For example,
the act of creating in Genesis 1:1 takes place upon the objects of the heavens and earth. They are
the direct objects of the act of creating, therefore the et precedes them. Second, it is a word that
means “with” and usually connected to the word it relates to by a Hebrew makkaf, or dash.

Proponents of the view that the et refers to Yeshua only apply that concept selectively,
wherever they choose to. However, if it were applied globally, as such an important proposition
should be, we would read such things as:

• Gen 9:22  Ham, the father of Canaan, saw Messiah, the nakedness of his father, and told his
  two brothers outside.
• Exo 8:26  Moses said, “It isn’t appropriate to do so; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the
  Egyptians to Yahweh our God. Behold, shall we sacrifice Messiah, the abomination of the
  Egyptians before their eyes, and won’t they stone us?”
• Lev 26:40  If they confess their iniquity Messiah, and the iniquity of their fathers, in their
  trespass which they trespassed against me, and also that, because they walked contrary to
  me.
• Exo 32:19-20  As soon as he came near to the camp, he saw Messiah the calf and the
  dancing. Then Moses’ anger grew hot, and he threw the tablets out of his hands, and broke
  them beneath the mountain.  (20)  He took the Messiah calf which they had made, and burned
  it with fire, ground it to powder, and scattered it on the water, and made the children of Israel
  drink it.
• Gen 34:3  His soul joined to Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and he loved Messiah the young
  lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady.
• Deu 22:24  then you shall bring them Messiah both out to the gate of that city, and you shall
  stone them to death with stones; the lady, because she didn’t cry, being in the city; and the
  man, because he has humbled his neighbor’s wife. So you shall remove the evil from among
  you.

Et is used over 10,000 times in the Tanakh, and if Messiah was applied to each most of those
passages would become nonsensical. Messiah is found all throughout the types and prophecies of
the Tanakh. Seeking to place him in there as symbolized by the alef-tav, as pure in motive as it might
be, is exegetically, hermeneutically, and linguistically unwise. Instead of taking the non-existent

Hebrew equivalent of a phrase in Revelation out of context to apply it to the Tanakh, for largely
irrelevant reasons, we should seek the meaning in context.

Ancient Jewish Understanding of Preexistence

Ancient Jewish writings also tell us what the Hebrew mind thought when it came to the concept
of preexistence. The following is found in the Babylonian Talmud, tractate Pesahim 54a:

“Seven things were created before the world was made, and these are they: Torah,
repentance, the Garden of Eden, Gehenna, the throne of glory, and house of the sanctuary,
and the name of the Messiah.”

Witnessing to the above we also have the following written in Genesis Rabbah 1.4:

“Six things preceded the creation of the world; some of them were actually created, while the
creation of the others was already contemplated. The Torah and the throne of glory were
created…The creation of the Patriarchs was contemplated…[The creation of] Israel was
contemplated…[The creation of] the temple was contemplated…The name of Messiah was
contemplated.”

Note that the Jews didn’t consider that the Messiah himself was created before the creation of the
world. Only that his name was created, but only in the mind of God. The same holds true for
repentance since repentance is unnecessary unless the fall into sin occurred.

One of the Targumim, which are ancient Aramaic commentaries on the Tanakh formed during the
second temple period, states the following regarding the name of the Messiah:

“God will reveal his Messiah, whose name is spoken from the beginning.”

An ancient first century work called “The Testament of Moses”, chapter 1 verse 14, has Moses saying
the following about himself during a speech to Joshua:

“But He did design and devise me, and He prepared me from the beginning of the world to be
mediator of His covenant.”

This is very similar to what we read before regarding Jeremiah. Moses, like Jeremiah, and John the
Baptist, and Yeshua, and many others throughout history, were all set apart within the womb for
special and unique purposes. It could be said that each of us have that same gift. We were prepared
and known before the foundation of the world, but not manifested until the perfect time.

In a late first century work known as 2 Baruch, which the church father Origen stated was read by the
Jews in his day, we read the following in chapter 4, verses 3-5:

“It is not this building that is in your midst now; it is that which will be revealed, with me, that
was already prepared from the moment that I decided to create Paradise. And I showed it to
Adam before he sinned. But when he transgressed the commandment, it was taken away from
him–as also Paradise. After these things I showed it to my servant Abraham in the night

between the portions of the victims. And again I showed it also to Moses on Mount Sinai when
I showed him the likeness of the tabernacle and all its vessels”

At this time in history the temple had been destroyed and the Jews were wrestling with the problem of
why God allowed such a thing to happen. In this passage, it states that it isn’t the physical temple
that Baruch need be concerned with, but the one that will come later, which was prepared from the
moment he created paradise, revealed to Adam and Abraham, and the likeness of which was shown
to Moses.

To the Hebrew mind of the second temple period, through the late 6 th or 7 th century CE, preexistence
was only conceptual or notional, not literal. Things were believed to have preexisted their literal
manifestation in the mind of Yahweh, only to be later manifested when their due time came.

Summary

To sum up the above I believe the scriptures, when exegeted properly, not being interpreted
through the eyes of doctrines many of us carried out of traditional Christianity, are clear that any form
of preexistence found is only conceptual in nature, not literal. When read using this Hebraic
understanding of preexistence, scriptures that are often considered proof texts for the preexistence of
Yeshua become clearer. Like many other doctrines, when the texts themselves are studied in their
original languages and translated or interpreted according to the thought processes of their
contemporaries, the doctrine of the literal preexistence of Yeshua falls apart. The perfect and
complete plans of Yah, like those of an architect before raising a great edifice, contain in them all
things necessary to the end He wants to bring to about. Even as the later aspects of a building don’t
come into existence immediately, such as the color of the paint or types of light fixtures, so the plans
of Yahweh come into existence at the perfect time of their manifestation. They only existed
conceptually beforehand, not literally. Such is how it is with Yeshua. He was foreknown and
foreordained in the perfect plans of Yah, but only manifested in creation at the perfect time, in what
the scriptures call the last age.

Having said all the above, it is important to note that I, personally, do not find this topic to be
salvific in nature. In the past ten years of us hosting the feast I, and others in our fellowship, have
largely stayed away from discussions on or teachings about this topic due to its highly controversial
nature. However, I have decided to bring it up here in open forum in an attempt to focus not on the
preexistence of Yeshua exclusively, but the overall general concept of preexistence in the Hebrew
mind and the text of the scriptures. It is my prayer and hope that our ensuing discussions will remain
fruitful, that others will be permitted to voice their opinions openly, agreeing or disagreeing, and that
we will be able to walk out of this room just as we walked in – brethren in Yeshua who love Yah and
love one another.

HOME