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Debating about the law and/or Torah is unprofitable and vain?

Titus 3:9-11

KJV: ???But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain. A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject; Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself.???

NIV: ???But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.???

Note: In the Greek, the word for ???contentions/arguments??? is ???eris???, referring to ???debates???.

Debating about the law (???nomikos???, derived from ???nomos???) or Torah is unprofitable and vain? Wow, that makes Jesus and Paul look quite silly doesn???t it?

Matthew 5:17-18
Do not suppose that I have come to weaken the law or the prophets; I have not come to weaken, but to fulfil. For truly I say to you, Until heaven and earth pass away, not even a yoth or a dash shall pass away from the law until all of it is fulfilled.

Romans 3:31
What, then? Do we nullify the law through faith? Far be it; on the contrary, we uphold the law.

The word in the Greek (nomos) and Aramaic (namusa) can mean ???law??? or ???Torah???.

Hebrews 7:12
Since there was a change in the priesthood, so also there was a change in the law.

Whichever the verses refer to, it is obvious that we have a ???new law??? as Hebrews 7:12 cannot be referring to the Torah (the Torah is a written document and cannot change, while the law can change).

2Timothy 3:16
All scripture written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness;

The message is clear from the New Testament that both the Torah (as part of the Scriptures) and the law are important to us (no matter what meaning is meant for the Greek nomos or the Aramaic namusa).

Yet the Greek has to go and contradict itself!

???But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.???

Of course, the Peshitta has a simple solution.

Lamsa: ???But avoid foolish questions and genealogies and contentions and the theological arguments of the scribes, for they are unprofitable and vain. After you have admonished the heretic once or twice, shun him, Knowing that he who is such is corrupt; he sins and condemns himself.???

The corresponding word in the Aramaic is 0rps (???sapra??? ??? ???scribes???). This makes far more sense, and eliminates the contradiction of the Greek. It isn???t the law or the Torah that is being badmouthed, it is the nasty Jewish group known as the scribes! There is a connection that can explain Zorba???s mistake. ???Scribes??? is related to ???lawyers???, which obviously is related to ???law???, translated as ???nomikos??? in the Greek.

Are we starting to see a trend here? It seems that the Greek Bible is actually against itself! First, we are told in 1Corinthians 1:21 how foolish the Bible is; now we are told that striving after the law/Torah is unprofitable and vain! Is Zorba trying to tell us something? That the Greek Bible is useless?

Given by Andrew Roth