ARAMAIC WORD STUDY – LAST DAYS – ‘ECHADI ZAVANA’ אחדי זבנא Aleph Cheth Daleth Yod  Zayin Beth Nun Aleph

II Timothy 3:1,5: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. (5) Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.”

My great great grandfather, so I am told, came to America from Germany because of the wars and rumors of ward and found himself in the American Civil war. He thought it was the last days. My great grandfather struggled with poverty and plagues convinced he was living in the last days.  My grandfather fought in World War I and was convinced they were living in the last days.  My father grew up during the Great Depression and then served in World War II and faced the threat of nuclear war and was convinced, without doubt we were living in the last days.  I grew up during the time of the cold war, the race riots, Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society sending our country into billions of dollars of debt with such socialist programs as welfare, Medicaid, Medicare and other social programs  caring for the elderly and poor as Jesus taught.  I was told this would bankrupt our country within ten years (It didn’t, we only prospered). But, I was convinced we were living in the last day. Here we are again with political unrest, threat of civil war (although not nearly on the scale of 1862) socialist programs that will bankrupt this country, pandemics and people are crying out we are living in the last days.

I would just like to address the elephant in the room here.  Doesn’t it seem like we are always living in the last days? There seems to have always been wars, rumors of wars, civil unrest, threats of national bankruptcy (Roosevelt the godfather of all free spending on socialist programs) and political crisis?  Just what makes up the last days?  Perilous times?  You don’t think the 15th century plagues, the crisis in the church during the 16th century reformation, the many wars that practically wiped out Europe were perilous times?.   Frankly, I will take our present perilous times over the perilous times of the 30 year war in Europe or the our present covid 19 pandemic over the bubonic plague of 14th Century which killed over half the population of Europe.  Just what makes us think our perilous times are any indication of last days than the perilous times throughout history which were obviously not the last days?  

Of course, we could say the last days began with the resurrection of Jesus.  Who is to say that in God’s eyes the last days could be 2,000 years.  One day with the Lord is as a thousand years.  Last days or last times in Greek is  eschatais hemerais or extreme to the end days meaning literal sun up to sun down days.  This is followed by the words enstesontal kairoi which literally has the idea of presenting opportunities. Kairoi is traditionally rendered as times or seasons but it could also mean opportunities followed by the word for hard or difficult, perhaps referring to difficult opportunities.  These last days could really be days of great opportunity if not difficult.

Let’s examine this in the Aramaic, the language that was the writer’s native tongue. Last days is echadi zavana’.  The word echadi means one but it also means to be unique or special. The word times is zavana’ which carries the definite article from echadi and means to sell off or sell out, to bargain.  It has the idea of selling and buying, negotiating a deal.  It is also a word for compromise. In other words last days could be rendered as a unique time of compromise or buying selling. 

Verse 2-4 speak of people during these unique times who will be lovers of self, money, proud, arrogant and so forth.  People have always been this way. But verse 5 tells us what people these are, they are believers who have a form of godliness but deny the power of God.  The word power in Greek is dynamin which is miraculous power.  In the Aramaic it is chayl which is similar to the Hebrew for dancing with joy and strength.  In that Aramaic it means that as well as  a word for supernatural strength so it does not contradict the idea of miraculous power but expands on it by including the idea of joyfulness.

I believe that is what is important here. In the last days believers are not just going to find it difficult to discover the joy of the Lord, but at they will deny there is such a thing.  What I see happening today is something called progressive Christianity which teaches that you do not really feel the presence of the joy of the Lord, you are only feeling the natural excitement of spiritual music and working yourself up into a sense of joy like you do at an athletic event. But what you feel is not God.  These preachers who call themselves evangelicals actually deny the chayl the joy, celebration and physical manifestations of God.  Ok, there have always been those who teach this, they used to be called liberals and/or neo-othodox, but the idea of last days in the Aramaic would be a unique time of sell off, but and sell.  Perhaps it is not the last days but a time of unique opportunities when Christianity seeks to become acceptable to society.  So as not top be accused of hate speech or be offensive they seek what is not offensive to  non believers.  They don’t talk of the blood of Jesus, blood is offensive, or hold up a cross that is offensive to those who are not Christians.  Oh, and Heaven forbid that you should tell someone they are a sinner, why that is hate speech. By the way it any sane person knows not to tell you children they could go to hell if they do not accept your view of the Gospel, that will scare them and that is child abuse.

I believe we are living in such unique times, last days – maybe, but definitely times when we are strongly tempted to buy and sell our faith for acceptance in society.  We will not be offensive and talk of a hell, sin or the need for an atonement.  We don’t want to offend someone and in fact we may be using hate speech and for that we would be guilty of a criminal offense which would send us to prison.  With that threat you may be tempted to water down the Gospel and say that it doesn’t matter what you believe, God is love, he will understand, have that abortion so you can enjoy life, go ahead and get drunk or curse if it make you feel good after all God wants you to be happy. 

For myself, I believe in a heaven and hell, I believe in Jesus who is the Son of God who died and rose from the dead and that He is the atonement for our sins and we are all sinners and must receive God’s gift of salvation which is through Jesus Christ alone lest we go to hell when we die.  If social media shuts me down for declaring that, accusing me of hate speech for saying they are going to hell without accepting Jesus as their Savior, then they can just take one flying leap and when  they land they will receive a very warm (hot) welcome.

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