Through the Lens of an Ancient Yisra’elite Bible Study
Through the Lens of an Ancient Yisra’elite Bible Study is a revealing, comprehensive work of biblical analysis.
Benjamin Nieves Carrasquillo Jr.’s thorough work of biblical hermeneutics Through the Lens of an Ancient Yisra’elite Bible Study examines biblical language through the lens of the ancient cultures that produced it, stripping away “modern traditions and philosophies” that colored other interpretations of the religious texts.
Serving primarily as a list of “corrections” to common, “incorrect” interpretations of scripture, the book focuses on linguistics, etymology, and the long history of translation. It argues that many translations “warped” understandings of biblical terms and scripture itself. As a partial course correction, it uses “Yahusha” for Jesus, “Yahweh” for God, and “Yisra’el” for Israel, alongside a number of other transliterations to the original Hebrew.
The linguistic discussions are reliant on intimate knowledge of Hebrew as a language, other languages including Greek and Aramaic, and broader understandings of the practices of linguistics and historical translation. Nonetheless, the book’s “corrections” have a conspiratorial, oppositional air: The “incorrect” interpretations of scripture are attributed to translators’ incompetence, malice, and intentional deception by authorities (the latter of which are defined in vague terms).
The prose varies in quality. Some portions exhibit poor grammar, have incomplete sentences, and make use of contradictory language. Because of the casual, conversational tone, these sections are still intelligible, but as one of these chapters is the introduction, and as the text itself is so invested in correct translation and interpretation, the initial impressions that the book makes are not confidence building.
The layout is at once informal and academic, combining heavy citations with a conversational tone and flow of topics. After the introduction, the study proper opens with a helpful description of the analytical methods employed to remove bias and cultural baggage when engaging with scriptures. This discussion of hermeneutics and lenses of perspective is an effective precursor to the dense analyses to follow. Subsequent chapters hold layers of citations and references, demanding a high level of biblical literacy. However, they are helped along by the casual writing style and structure; the book moves from topic to topic within and between chapters. Together with the comprehensive glossary of terms, the result is an in-depth but still accessible text.
There are also a number of graphics and visuals used to illustrate the concepts discussed. Many of these are phonetic or alphabetical diagrams used to illustrate the evolution of language or translation of terms over time, making the dense linguistic terminology more clear. Other visuals are used to illustrate the arguments of the text, from lunar calendars to versions of the “iceberg” infographic template. These other visuals vary in their usefulness, though.
Through the Lens of an Ancient Yisra’elite Bible Study demystifies the translation, historical interpretations, and cultural context of the Hebrew Bible.
Reviewed by
Brendan McKelvy
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book and paid a small fee to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. Foreword Reviews and Clarion Reviews make no guarantee that the publisher will receive a positive review. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
