George M.
Lamsa,
Demons, Devils, Satans
and Aramaic Idioms
George M. Lamsa
published 21 books by the time of his death in 1975 and many can still
be found at many Christian bookstores across the nation. Lamsa
was born near the Turkish/Iraqi border about 1892 and lived there
until about 1915.
How Lamsa viewed
himself as a Bible translator and commentator can best be seen from
the introduction to his New Testament Light, published by
Harper & Row:
The author of
this book was born and reared in a unique civilization which had
remained static from the time of Noah to the dawn of the twentieth
century—in
a region where customs and manners remained unchanged and unaltered,
and where the people conversed in Aramaic the way the patriarchs and
Jesus and his disciples did. Moreover, they used the same
idioms and mannerisms of speech that were used in the Holy
Bible. They wore the same garments and ate the same food, and
used the same implements for plowing and threshing as did King
David. The area wherein they lived was like a little island in
a great ocean. They were surrounded by millions of
non-Christians and people who spoke alien languages. Nothing
new was introduced into this region until World War I...
Moreover, the
author was educated under the care of learned priests of the Church
of the East who knew no other language but Aramaic, and highly
educated Englishmen, graduates of Oxford, Cambridge and other famous
English schools. The author, through God's grace, is the only
one with the knowledge of Aramaic, the Bible customs and idioms, and
the knowledge of the English language who has ever translated the
Holy Bible from the original Aramaic texts into English and
written commentaries on it...
The purpose of
this book, like other works I have written, is to throw more light
on the obscure passages of Jesus and to elucidate what seems hard
and harsh to Western readers and to clarify and strengthen the
meaning of the Scriptures. I am a firm believer in the Word of
God and the miracles and wonders which were performed by the Hebrew
prophets and Jesus.
Lamsa's books
have become quite popular on account of many reasons:
First, his books
are engaging and very readable. Second, his comments on the life and
customs of Bible times are engrossing to twentieth century
Westerners. Third, people are intrigued and awed by Lamsa's claim
that he was reared in the same part of the world Jesus lived, thus
participating in biblical customs and language, and is hence
uniquely able to reveal the Bible's idioms,
translate the Bible accurately, and disclose its true meaning.1
But Lamsa's
writings are also stirring up controversy, not only due to his unique
claims and exalted view of himself and his mission, but also on
account of inconsistencies in his translations, the lack of scholarly
references that might corroborate his translations and views, his
distrust of anything Greek, and his questionable academic
credentials. Some critics have consequently labeled him as a
cult figure and thus dismiss many of his more controversial comments
and interpretations, describing them as "metaphysical, heretical,
and unscholarly teachings—not evangelical..."2
The question
therefore remains, was George M. Lamsa a liar and fabricator, who spun
together fanciful threads of idioms and Middle Eastern customs and
crafted them into imaginative new Biblical insights? Or was he
in fact a Christian scholar who was raised in an Aramaic community
that remained unchanged since the time of Jesus, and who has
brought to modern light idioms that have been misunderstood for
hundreds of years? It is surprising that no other Christian
scholar with a similar Aramaic background has ever come forward to
confirm or refute Lamsa's idiomatic interpretations. We are
therefore left wondering, could Lamsa have been right in much of what
he taught? We do not know for sure. All we can do is
present some of his writings and let the reader judge. What
follows is a list of Lamsa's notes regarding one of the more
controversial topics he wrote about: Demons, Devils, and Satans.
Matthew 4:8 -
High Mountain
Matthew 4:11 -
Angels Ministered
Matthew 8:29 -
Come To Torment Us
Mathew 8:31-32 -
Lunatics and the Swine
Matthew 16:23 -
Calling Peter "Satan"
Mark 1:23-25 -
Unclean Spirit
Mark 1:34 -
Casting Out Devils
Mark 3:11 - The
Insane Confess Jesus
Mark 5:9 - My
Name Is Legion
Mark 9:25 - The
Spirit of Dumbness and Deafness
Luke 4:41 -
Insane Men Confessing Jesus
Luke 8:2 - Seven
Devils
Luke 9:1 -
Insane, Lunatics
Luke 10:18 - I
Beheld Satan Falling
John 8:44 - The Devil Is A
Liar
John 12:31 -
Prince of This World
John 14:30 - The
Prince of This World
Acts 8:7 - Evil
Spirits
2 Corinthians 4:4
- God of this World
2 Corinthians
12:7-8 - Satan's Angel
Ephesians 2:2 -
The Prince of the Air
1 Timothy 4:1 -
Spirits
Revelation 2:9-10
- Synagogue of Satan
Revelation 2:13 -
Satan's Seat
Revelation 20:7 -
Satan Loosed
Article written and
compiled by: iPhilipi P. Kapustaii
1 Juedes, John P., George
M. Lamsa: Christian Scholar or Cultic Torchbearer?
2 Ibid.
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