Aramaic Word Study – Almost – Baqalil – Beth Qop Lamed Yod Lamed
Acts 26:28: “Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.”
Note this study, as many others from the New Testament Aramaic, is found in Chaim’s book: Aramaic Word Study.
I always loved this story of King Agrippa and how he was almost persuaded by Paul to become a Christian. Whenever my father gave the message at the rescue mission in Chicago that he helped to found he would ask me to play on the piano an invitation hymn at the conclusion and I would play that old hymn: “Almost Persuaded.”
Then one day I heard a sermon that blew the wind out of my sails when this preacher said that in the Greek this really meant that King Agrippa was not almost persuaded to become a Christian but that he was telling Paul; “Do you think you could persuade me to become a Christian with such a little argument.” I mean I was devasted and swore that one day I would study the Greek and figure this one out for myself.
Actually, no one has really figured it out. You will find different translations that say King Agrippa was almost persuaded or he was not persuaded at all by Paul’s arguments. In the Greek the words are En oligo me peitheis with so little me do you persuade. Well, that is one way to translate it from the Greek. I translate it as: “Except for a very little I am persuaded.” That could be rendered in English as “You have nearly convinced me that Christianity is true.” The argument is strong from both sides. But let’s check this out in the Aramaic which reads: baqalil madam maphim which could read” It is very near that you persuade me.”
Ok, I am fudging on this translation, it could also read that King Agrippa is saying the opposite. So, what is it? Was he almost persuaded or was he not moved at all and considered Paul’s arguments very weak? There is no way to be absolutely sure from the Greek or Aramaic. So, let’s look at the context and what little we know about King Agrippa. Could he have had a softened heart for God? There is something very revealing in the prior verse where Paul states: “King Agrippa, believe you the prophets? I know that you believe.” Paul would never be so bold as to tell a king what he believes or not, so King Agrippa must have believed the prophets or maybe he was just pretending to be a believer in the prophets.
Let’s go a little bit into the history of the kings of Judea prior to and after Jesus walked the earth. Around 134-104 BCE about a hundred years before Jesus was born Judea conquered Edom and forced the Edomites to convert to Judaism. For those in my Torah Study on Saturday mornings on our Learning Channel, you may recall that the Edomites were descended from Esau the twin brother of Jacob. Over the next 100 years, the Edomites gradually integrated into the Judean nation with some of them reaching high-ranking positions. The Edomite Antipas was appointed governor of Edom and his son Antipater was the chief advisor to the Hasmonean dynasty which was an Edomite dynasty that established a co-ruling government over Judea with the Seleucidans who were established by Alexander the Great and defeated by the Maccabeans of Chanukah fame. However, John Hyrcanus of the Hasmonean dynasty who was an Edomite worked his way into becoming a high priest and managed to establish a good relationship with the Roman Empire who was extending their influence over Judea about 50 years before Jesus was born. This came after their conquest of Syria. During this time a civil war broke out between the Jews and the Edomite Hasmonean dynasty which was quelled by Rome. Julius Caesar appointed Antipas as governor and Anipater as chief advisor to John Hyranus II. Antipater was the Father of Herod the Great who was an Edomite and converted to Judaism. Followers of Herod were called Herodians and declared Herod the Great to be the King of the Jews. This started a conflict where the Pharisees sought to restore the kingdom to the line of David where the Herodians wanted to keep the house of Herod ruling. After Herod was removed from office by the Roman government there was a brief interval before the Herodians persuaded Rome to allow the grandson of Herod Agrippa I to be king who was followed by King Agrippa II. His father Agrippa I, in order to please the Jews had James the son of Zebedee beheaded and even tried to kill Peter (Acts 12:1-2). Tensions were rising between Rome and the Jews and this Christian faction was not helping.
King Agrippa II was educated in Rome and was well-tutored in Jewish law and traditions. He wanted to win the favor of Jewish authorities. He was Edomite by race, and Jewish by faith. His grandfather Herod the Great was hated by the Jews because of his leanings to the Roman government. There was a great division between the Sadducees who did not believe in a resurrection and wanted greater influence from the Roman government and the Pharisees who believed in the resurrection and wanted complete independence from Rome. The Pharisees were the most powerful group in Judea, but Rome was the most powerful influence.
In the seventeenth year of King Agrippa II’s reign, during the reign of Nero war was beginning to break out with Rome. Agrippa tried desperately to keep the Jews from revolting against Rome and failed. This was about the time that Paul met with King Agrippa. War broke out between Rome and the Jews and King Agrippa sent 2,000 soldiers to aid the Roman general Vespasian thus saving his own gizzard. He later accompanied Titus on some of his campaigns after the Jewish war of seven years between 66-73 where the Jews were forced to scatter throughout the world. The temple and Jerusalem were laid in ruins by the Romans. The Apostle Paul was executed by the Romans during the war between the Romans and the Jews. Although a Christian he was still considered a Jew by Rome, but as a Christian it did give Rome some pause to consider a faction of the Jews that were not nationalist. The Pharisees, of which Paul was, would make him a nationalist which was a threat to Rome, but a Pharisee converting to this new sect might have been intriguing to Rome as a way to avert war.
Could it be that with the war pending King Agrippa might have seen a path to a solution to the Jewish problem with Rome? Could he even consider being a Christian as a way to influence others to follow and maybe divert a war? I guess we will never know. As far as King Agrippa’s heart? Was he tender to God or just politically minded? We will never know either, one day we will know.
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