Tuesday, March 4, 2025

It is the 4th of March 2025, Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

I am going to start this show by getting ahead of the mailbag question: Messianic Judaism as a movement comes from the 19th century renaissance in Hebrew studies while the “Jews of Jesus” movement is a part of this but specifically from Southern California and the 1970s.

And if you’ve spent any time reading in that movement, or if you’ve studied the Old Testament you have very likely come across the name Franz Delitzsch— one half of the team behind the “Keil-Delitzch Commentary on the Old Testament”. March the 4th belongs to Franz who was baptized on this day in 1813 AND died on this day in 1890 at the age of 77.

He was born in Leipzig at an opportune time for a future Hebrew scholar as Napoleon’s army had recently been turned back and the town became a cosmopolitan center known for its town fair that introduced an Eastern European Jewish community and lead to Leipzig becoming one of the places in Western Europe where Jewish people could live and become citizens.

The Delitzch family were Lutheran by the accidents of time and place- his father was a tinker and day laborer- they were not a particularly religious home- in fact, his baptism (which was perfunctory for many) had a curiosity- his Godfather was listed as Franz Julius (the name the young man would take) but was also named Levi Hirsch- he was a Jewish boarder in the Delitzsch home and would become Julius’ benefactor.

By the time Julius left for the University of Leipzig, he was a convinced rationalist, but through the influence of a college friend and through a personal and mystical experience, came to embrace the faith into which he was baptized. He would write: “Henceforth I became a theologian, and familiar with students who had been awakened by the mercy of God … the years from 1832 to 1834, my last three years at the university, were the happiest of my life; they were the spring of my spiritual life, the days of my first love.”

And it was at the Leipzig fair, which had introduced a Jewish community, that he met two men from the London Society for Promoting Christianity Among the Jews. With his connection to his godfather he began studying Hebrew and by the end of his 20s had taken his degree in the Old Testament (at this time the Hebrew language had not yet had it’s late 19th c. Renaissance rendering his work in the Hebrew texts all the more difficult and valuable).

He would serve on the faculties at Rostock, Erlangen, and then back at Leipzig. His commentary on the Old Testament with C.F. Keil is notable for being the product of modern 19th century scholarship, but, unlike much of the work coming out of Germany in that century, their work held to a high view of the inspiration of Scripture. Delitzsch would not completely dismiss some of the work on dating and sources (for instance, seeing a later interpolation in both the books of the prophet Isaiah and Daniel, for example) but his adherence to the Lutheran church helped keep his approach to the Old Testament Christo-centric.  

And his work was not “just” academic. From his godfather and meeting the evangelists to Jews in Leipzig, he began to work on a translation of the New Testament into Hebrew. He began by translating what he considered the most “Jewish” of New Testament books, Matthew, James, Hebrews, and Revelation (remember, Revelation quotes the Old Testament more than any other New Testament book). By 1877 he would publish the complete New Testament in Hebrew, and this text is still updated and annotated and is a favorite in the community of Messianic Jews. Hear from Delitzsch’s own preface to the book of Romans in his “Brit HaHadashah”:

“The great practical aim we had before our eyes is to provide to Israelites knowledge and experience of the New Testament writings in a more attractive, easier, more thorough manner than before … We hope that the persuasive power of the Gospel will prove effective on one or other of these noble spirits who will read it in the Hebrew tongue, but we leave this up to God and renounce unworthy tricks in order to force such an outcome.”

Known for his lecturing, warm personality, and evangelical zeal, he was mourned in Leipzig when he was called home on this, the 4th of March in 1890. Born in 1813, Franz Delitzsch was 77 years old.

The Last word for today comes from the daily lectionary, the last day before the Lenten season. We are in Acts 10:

27 While talking with him, Peter went inside and found a large gathering of people. 28 He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. 29 So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. May I ask why you sent for me?”

30 Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me 31 and said, ‘Cornelius, God has heard your prayer and remembered your gifts to the poor. 32 Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, who lives by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you immediately, and it was good of you to come. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 4th of March 2025 brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man wondering where all the Cornelius’ have gone, he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man vetoed by his wife when he suggested Cornelius (a family name) as the middle name for our youngest son- I’m Dan van Voorhis.

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.