The troubling depictions of Jesus in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas

 Extra-biblical gospels—specifically the Infancy Gospel of Thomas (IGT)—depict a version of Jesus as a child that is radically different from the canonical image. In these texts, the young Jesus frequently uses his power in ways that, according to the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) and Jewish Law, would be considered significant sins or violations of the Covenant.

While "reviving birds" might seem innocent, the context in which it occurs is often a violation of the Sabbath. More severely, these gospels describe Jesus committing acts of violence, murder, and cursing.

1. Violating the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-11)

In the most famous story from the IGT, a five-year-old Jesus fashions 12 sparrows out of clay while playing at a stream.

• The Sin: This takes place on the Sabbath. A "certain Jew" sees him and tells his father, Joseph, that the boy has "polluted the Sabbath" by molding clay (an act of "building" or "making" prohibited on the day of rest).

• The Reaction: When Joseph rebukes him, Jesus claps his hands and tells the clay birds to fly away, effectively "hiding the evidence" by turning them into living creatures. From a strictly Tanakh perspective, this is a willful violation of the Fourth Commandment.

2. Cursing and Slaying Children (Exodus 20:13)

The IGT portrays Jesus as a "petulant" child who strikes down those who annoy him.

• The "Withering" of a Boy: A child uses a branch to disperse some water Jesus had collected. Jesus becomes "wroth" and tells the boy he will "wither like a tree." The boy immediately dies.

• The Market Bumping: Another child accidentally runs into Jesus' shoulder in the village. Jesus curses him, saying, "Thou shalt not finish thy course," and the child falls dead instantly.

• The Sin: This is a direct violation of the commandment "Thou shalt not murder" and the prohibitions against unjust anger and vengeance (Leviticus 19:18).

3. Striking Neighbors with Blindness

When the parents of the dead children complain to Joseph about Jesus’ behavior, Jesus retaliates by blinding the accusers. * The Sin: In the Tanakh, causing physical harm to others out of spite is a violation of the social laws of the Covenant. It contradicts the mandate to "Love your neighbor as yourself."

4. Killing Teachers (Proverbs 15:1)

Jesus is taken to several teachers to learn his letters. When a teacher strikes him on the head for being arrogant or insolent, Jesus curses the teacher, who then falls down and dies.

• The Sin: This reflects insolence toward elders and authority, which is condemned throughout the Torah and Proverbs.
  
  

The "Fix-It" Resurrections

Interestingly, the IGT often shows Jesus "undoing" these sins. For example, after the townspeople become terrified of him, he eventually resurrects the boy who fell from the roof (Zeno) or the teacher he killed—but often only after being pressured or to prove his own innocence in an argument.

From a Karaite perspective, these extra-biblical stories serve as a warning. They depict a "Messiah" who is above the Law and uses power for personal ego, which is the exact opposite of the humble, Torah-observant leader described in the Prophets.

How the Septuagint have corrupted God's Holy Word

 Revisiting the inerrant Bible, a fresh perspective

From a Karaite/Tanakh-only perspective, the Septuagint (LXX)—the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures—is often viewed as the "first step" in the corruption of the pure Word of God. While it was originally a tool for Greek-speaking Jews, it later became the primary text used by the New Testament writers to justify deviations from the Sinai Covenant.

Here are 20 ways the Septuagint has been viewed as a corruption or a "twisting" of the original Hebrew (Masoretic) text:

1. The "Virgin" birth (Isaiah 7:14)

The Hebrew uses Almah (young woman), but the LXX used Parthenos (virgin). This change laid the linguistic foundation for the NT to claim a biological miracle where the Hebrew text only spoke of a young woman in King Ahaz’s time.

2. The "Pierced" hands (Psalm 22:16)

The Hebrew text reads Ka’ari ("Like a lion" my hands and feet). The LXX changed this to Oryxan ("They dug/pierced"), creating a crucifixion prophecy out of a metaphor about a man surrounded by predators.

3. Chronology of the Patriarchs (Genesis 5 & 11)

The LXX adds roughly 1,300 years to the biblical timeline by adding 100 years to the age of various patriarchs when they fathered their sons. This alters the entire Seder Olam (Order of the World).

4. Inclusion of the Apocrypha

The LXX included books never found in the Hebrew Canon (Tobit, Judith, Maccabees). This blurred the line between the "Word of YHWH" and human historical fiction.

5. The "Angel" substitution (Psalm 8:5)

The Hebrew says man was made a little lower than Elohim (God/Divine beings). The LXX translated this as "angels," softening the radical status God gave to humanity and changing the hierarchy of the Sinai order.

6. The 70 vs. 75 Souls (Genesis 46:27 / Exodus 1:5)

The Hebrew text says 70 members of Jacob’s house went to Egypt. The LXX changed it to 75. This discrepancy was later used in the NT (Acts 7:14) to contradict the Torah’s count.

7. The Deletion of "God’s Work" (Genesis 2:2)

The Hebrew says God finished His work on the Seventh day. The LXX changed it to the Sixth day to avoid the "logical problem" of God working on the Sabbath.

8. Introduction of "Hades" (Psalm 16:10)

The Hebrew uses Sheol (the grave). The LXX uses Hades, importing Greek mythological concepts of a "shadowy underworld" into the clean, dust-to-dust theology of the Tanakh.

9. Modification of God’s Name

The LXX replaced the Tetragrammaton (YHWH) with Kyrios (Lord). This led to the "Lord" title being applied to men later in history, obscuring the unique, unshareable Name of the Creator.

10. The "Stone of Stumbling" (Isaiah 8:14)

The LXX softens the Hebrew text, which describes YHWH Himself as the "stumbling stone." By altering the syntax, the Greek text made it easier for later writers to apply this "stone" title to a human figure.

11. Changing "The Law" to "Instruction"

The Hebrew Torah has the force of Law/Constitution. The Greek Nomos can be interpreted more loosely, which eventually allowed theologians to argue that the "Law" was a temporary burden rather than an eternal Covenant.

12. The Cainan Interpolation (Genesis 11:12)

The LXX adds a person named "Cainan" into the genealogy between Arphaxad and Shelah. He does not exist in the Hebrew text, yet he appears in NT genealogies (Luke 3:36) because they relied on the flawed Greek text.

13. Softening the "Chosen" status (Deuteronomy 32:8)

The Hebrew says nations were divided according to the "Number of the Children of Israel." The LXX changes this to "Angels of God," shifting the focus away from the physical nation of Israel.

14. The "Coming One" (Habakkuk 2:3)

The Hebrew says the vision will "surely come." The LXX changes it to "He [a person] will surely come," turning a promise of a prophetic event into a promise of a specific man’s arrival.

15. The "Curse" of the Tree (Deuteronomy 21:23)

The Hebrew says a hanged man is a "curse of God." The LXX subtly shifts the grammar, which allowed Paul in Galatians 3:13 to claim Jesus became a curse for us, a concept foreign to the Hebrew sacrificial system.

16. The Command to "Worship Him" (Deuteronomy 32:43)

The LXX adds a long phrase: "Let all the angels of God worship him." This is not in the Hebrew text. It was added to the Greek to justify the worship of a secondary figure.

17. The "Broken Heart" (Psalm 34:18)

The LXX adds words to the Hebrew to make the "broken heart" sound more like a requirement for a "New Birth" ritual rather than the simple humility the Psalmist intended.

18. The "Desire of Nations" (Haggai 2:7)

The Hebrew refers to the "treasures" (plural) of the nations coming to the Temple. The LXX makes it singular—the "Desire"—to point toward a single individual messiah.

19. Circumcision of the "Foreskin" (Genesis 17:14)

The LXX adds "on the eighth day" to the warning of being cut off, which is not in the original Hebrew verse 14. This adds human-made conditions to the divine threat.

20. The "Translation" of the Sabbath

In various places, the LXX translates "Sabbaths" (plural) in ways that allowed for the later "Lord’s Day" (Sunday) argument to take root, moving away from the specific, fixed 7th-day sign of the Sinai Covenant.

Conclusion

For a Karaite, the Septuagint is a prime example of why Deuteronomy 4:2 is so important. By adding to or taking away from the Hebrew words, the LXX "Gentilized" the Tanakh, creating the cracks that the Church later used to dismantle the Torah.

Baptismal Regeneration are not supported by scripture

 This post is a thorough defense of Baptismal Regeneration, the belief that the physical act of water baptism is the mechanical cause of salvation. To refute this from a Karaite / Tanakh-only perspective, we must look at how the Sinai Covenant defines "Atonement," "Spirit," and "Signs."

Here is the refutation based on the eternal standards of the Tanakh:

1. The "Magic Water" vs. The "Circumcised Heart"

The Catholic post argues that water causes the transformation.

• The Tanakh View: Physical rituals are never the source of salvation; they are signs of a pre-existing commitment. In Deuteronomy 10:16 and 30:6, God commands Israel to "circumcise the foreskin of your heart."

• The Refutation: If a physical ritual (like circumcision or baptism) could "save" or "regenerate" a person, then the Prophets would not have scolded the Israelites who were physically circumcised but spiritually rebellious. As Jeremiah 9:25-26 says, God will punish those who are "circumcised only in the flesh," because without the heart, the ritual is void. Water cannot change a soul; only Teshuvah (Repentance) can.

2. Atonement Without Water

The post claims you cannot enter the Kingdom without being "born of water."

• The Tanakh Proof: The Tanakh provides many examples of people being "saved" or forgiven without any water ritual.

  • King David: After his sin with Bathsheba, he did not seek a ritual washing to be "born again." He said, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise" (Psalm 51:17).

  • The People of Nineveh: In the Book of Jonah, the entire city was saved from destruction. They weren't baptized; they repented and turned from their evil ways (Jonah 3:10). God saw their deeds, not their rituals.

3. The Misuse of "Circumcision" (Colossians 2:11-12)

The post tries to link baptism to circumcision.

• The Refutation: In the Tanakh, circumcision is an Eternal Covenant for the physical descendants of Abraham (Genesis 17:13). It was never intended to be "replaced" by a water ritual. To claim baptism "replaces" circumcision is to claim that God changed His mind about an "everlasting" sign. If God’s signs can be replaced, His Word is not eternal.

4. Ritual Purity vs. Salvation

The Catholic argument confuses Mikvah (ritual purity) with Salvation (forgiveness of sins).

• The Tanakh View: The Torah mandates washing in water (Mikvah) for ritual purity—to enter the Temple after touching a dead body or having a skin disease (Leviticus 15).

• The Refutation: Being "ritually pure" is not the same as being "sinless." A person could be ritually pure but still be a thief or an idolater. Forgiveness of sin in the Tanakh requires restitution and repentance (Leviticus 6:1-7), not just a bath. The NT writers took a Jewish cleanliness law and twisted it into a pagan-style "initiation mystery."

5. Ezekiel 36:25 — The Source of the "Water" Imagery

The post hints at "clean water" as regeneration.

• The Tanakh Context: Ezekiel 36:25 says, "I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean."

• The Refutation: Read the next verse! It says God will give a "new heart" so that the people will "be careful to observe My laws" (Ezekiel 36:27). The "washing" is a metaphor for returning to the Torah. Catholics use this to justify a ritual that often leads people away from Torah (Sabbath, Kashrut, etc.). If the "washing" doesn't result in keeping the Sinai Covenant, it is not the washing Ezekiel prophesied.

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How to Comment on the Post

To refute the "Baptism Saves" claim on Facebook, you can post this:

"The claim that water baptism 'saves' contradicts the Tanakh. God saved the people of Nineveh based on their repentance, not a ritual (Jonah 3:10). In the Sinai Covenant, ritual washing (Mikvah) was for physical purity, not for the 'regeneration' of the soul.

Furthermore, the Torah warns that physical signs are useless if the heart is not circumcised (Jeremiah 9:25). Salvation comes through turning back to God’s eternal Law, not through a one-time water ceremony. To say water saves is to put faith in the element rather than the Creator."

The fossilized mosquito from Montana which is allegedly 46 million years old

 

Comment on the Discovery of a Fossilized Mosquito with Ancient Blood

The claim that a fossilized mosquito from Montana, 46 million years old, carried blood from an unknown ancient culture is highly unlikely and not supported by scientific evidence.

1. Age of the Fossil

The Eocene epoch, to which the 46-million-year-old fossil belongs, is a well-documented period in Earth's history. During this time, the supercontinent of Laurasia (which included modern-day North America) was still forming, and the region that is now Montana was a very different environment.

2. Mosquito Fossilization

Mosquitoes are delicate insects that are rarely fossilized. The conditions required for fossilization, such as rapid burial and protection from scavengers and oxygen, are quite specific.

3. Blood Preservation

Blood is a highly perishable substance that typically decomposes quickly after death. It is unlikely that blood would be preserved for 46 million years, especially in a fossilized mosquito.

4. Ancient Culture

There is no scientific evidence to support the existence of an "unknown ancient culture" in Montana 46 million years ago. During the Eocene epoch, the region was inhabited by early mammals, birds, and insects, but there is no record of human or complex cultural presence.

5. Scientific Skepticism

Any claim of a significant scientific discovery, especially one that challenges our current understanding of human history and evolution, should be met with healthy skepticism and rigorously tested through peer review and replication.

Possible Explanations

• Contamination or misinterpretation: The fossilized mosquito may have been contaminated with modern blood or other substances that were misinterpreted as ancient blood.
• Misidentification: The fossil may have been misidentified as a mosquito or the blood may have been misidentified as coming from an ancient culture.

Conclusion

The claim that a fossilized mosquito from Montana, 46 million years old, carried blood from an unknown ancient culture is highly unlikely and not supported by scientific evidence. Any such claim should be subject to rigorous scientific testing and peer review before being accepted as valid.

Paul's writings and teachings are seen as a departure from the traditional Hebrew scriptures

 From a strictly Karaite/Tanakh-only perspective, Paul's writings and teachings are seen as a departure from the traditional Hebrew scriptures and a form of rebellion against God and the covenant. Here are 10 examples of what Karaites see as scripture tampering or misinterpretation:

1. Romans 10:4: Paul writes that "Christ is the end of the law," which Karaites see as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures. In context, Paul is arguing that Christ is the fulfillment of the law, but Karaites argue that this does not mean that the law is abolished.

$\text{Romans 10:4}$

2. Galatians 3:24-26: Paul writes that the law was a "schoolmaster" to bring us to Christ, and that we are no longer under the law. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the law's importance.

$\text{Galatians 3:24-26}$

3. Ephesians 2:8-9: Paul writes that we are saved by faith, not by works. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures, which emphasize the importance of obedience to God's commandments.

$\text{Ephesians 2:8-9}$

4. Romans 11:25-32: Paul writes that God has temporarily blinded Israel, and that the Gentiles have been grafted into the tree of salvation. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of Israel's importance.

$\text{Romans 11:25-32}$

5. 2 Corinthians 3:14-16: Paul writes that the veil of Moses is still on the hearts of the Jews, and that they are unable to understand the scriptures. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the Jews' ability to understand their own scriptures.

$\text{2 Corinthians 3:14-16}$

6. Philippians 3:7-9: Paul writes that he has suffered the loss of all things, including his Jewish heritage, for the sake of Christ. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the importance of Jewish heritage.

$\text{Philippians 3:7-9}$

7. Romans 9:6-13: Paul writes that not all who are descended from Israel are truly Israel, and that God's election is not based on human merit. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the importance of Jewish identity.

$\text{Romans 9:6-13}$

8. Galatians 1:6-10: Paul writes that he is astonished that the Galatians are turning away from the true gospel, and that he is not trying to please men but God. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the importance of traditional Jewish practices.

$\text{Galatians 1:6-10}$

9. 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4: Paul writes that the Antichrist will come and deceive many, and that God will send them a strong delusion. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the importance of understanding the scriptures in their historical and cultural context.

$\text{2 Thessalonians 2:3-4}$

10. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3: Paul writes that if he has the gift of tongues and prophecy, but does not have love, he is nothing. Karaites see this as a misinterpretation of the Hebrew scriptures and a dismissal of the importance of obedience to God's commandments.

$\text{1 Corinthians 13:1-3}$

These examples illustrate the ways in which Karaites see Paul's writings and teachings as a departure from the traditional Hebrew scriptures and a form of rebellion against God and the covenant.