SB Introduction
If men could get saved by teaching before the cross, then the cross would not be needed. God taught in a way that men would not understand, believe and get saved. After the cross, he opened the understanding of the disciples to finally understand the teaching of the cross in the Old Testament.
▸ ± Lu 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.
What did Jesus teach on the road to Emmaus? He taught them to approach the teaching as little children. To play word-games and solve riddles. If you wish to hide something in plain sight, hide it in riddles.
You would think that the church would have preserved the miraculous understanding of scripture given to those men. He has.
Unfortunately, the Nicolaitans (conquerors of the laity) took over rule in the church and quickly hid the mystery hidden from the beginning. Augustine taught that the Greek translation of the Bible was more reliable than the original Hebrew. He taught that there was no mystery, and the Bible should be read literally as a history. If men read the scriptures the way Jesus intended, it would challenge their authority.
You will read some extraordinary claims. They require extraordinary proofs. Proofs can be given in tedious detail. You would get bored quickly since a knowledge of pre 600 AD Hebrew would be required. This does not mean that it is beyond your grasp.
Consider the old riddle: Why did the chicken cross the road? You have heard many humorous answers to it. Out of all the answers, you will recognize the proper one when you hear it. The answer is not "To get to the other side [of the road]". "The other side" is a euphemism for dying and going to heaven. You ask the riddle when you see a dead chicken in the road. He crossed the road to get to the other side. You know this is the correct answer because it is superior as a riddle to the many stupid answers you have heard.
For two thousand years we have read riddle as it is were literal. When you read it as riddle you will recognize the answer because you already know it. From time to time I will use and teach the ancient Hebrew when it is helpful to the discussion.
The first priority is to give you ample examples of a proper interpretation so that you can gain confidence in it. Method hints and helps with be interspersed. We will try to add them to an Appendix to put them in one place. You can help me by keeping me honest in that. Then, perhaps we will get into formal lessons in the methods. Finally, I will teach the ancient Hebrew word formations.
