John 19:19 (YHWH?)

[Dawid]

Shlama all,

Well, it seems to me that if a 1st or 2nd century Jew complained , "Why Aramaic? In the Holy Land, let them speak Hebrew or Greek." , it is plain that the language being spoken in the Holy Land was not Hebrew or Greek.
It also means that Aramaic was not Hebrew, nor was Hebrew, Aramaic.
It also means that Aramaic was the one language common to Israel; Israel was not bilingual, speaking Aramaic and Hebrew, or Hebrew & Greek, or trilingual, speaking Aramaic,Hebrew & Greek!.

Just a thought.

Dave Bauscher

I beg to differ. This was during the Hebrew revival. Hebrew was being brought back to life, and this was an argument for speaking Hebrew. Much like the later Hebrew revival, it took a while. It was a contention to those who were speaking Aramaic that they ought to join those speaking Hebrew.