serious question for jewish people- why do the jewish people not believe that Jesus is messiah, and?

Question

what are their beliefs as far as messiah is concerned?
this question is not meant to offend, but to answer some of my personal questions!

Answer 1

I'll be blunt: The reason Jews do not believe Jesus was the Messiah was the simple fact that he did not meet any of the criteria of the Messiah, other than being Jewish, and well, I and every other Jew in the world meet that requirement. The Jews have never believed in "immaculate conception," which is pretty clearly borrowed from pagan mythology. Rather, if the messiah is to be from King David's line, from the tribe of Judah, then he has to be a direct patrilineal descendant of David (i.e. if you keep going back along his father's father's father's side, King David has to be in there somewhere). If Jesus is the result of an immaculate conception, this is impossible. And even if you were to claim that Joseph was considered his father, well, the gospels don't even agree on Joseph's lineage!

So that's one problem. Another problem is that, all the passages from our scriptures that supposedly substantiate Christianity's claim require reading completely out of context, or erroneous translations. One such example is the passage that notes, in some translations, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive..." when in fact, the original Hebrew uses the word "alma" (young woman) - had the passage meant virgin, it would have used the word for virgin (besulah).

And if you ignore the fact that the very concept of the Messiah in Christianity is radically different from the original Jewish interpretation (the Messiah is to be a human being, a human being with a very special job to do, granted, but it was never taught that he would be G-d incarnate), and you ignore the fact that he meets none of the basic requirements of being Messiah, then all you have to contend with is the fact that he didn't accomplish any of the things the Messiah is supposed to accomplish. Under the Messiah's reign, the Temple will be restored. A few years after Jesus, the exact opposite happened. The Messiah will usher in a new age of world peace, where all will recognize the common brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of G-d. Well, the less said about that, the better.

And how did early Christian theologians respond to these irrefutable challenges? The doctrine of the "second coming" was invented. So when a Jew says: "But wait, Jesus didn't DO any of the things that would prove he was the Messiah," the Christian can respond "well, he gets a do-over - he's coming back, THEN he'll do all that Messiah stuff." But couldn't you say that about any Jew? Jesus therefore has no more claim to the title than Hillel, or Maimonides, or G-d forbid, Shabbatai Tzvi.

It never ceases to amaze me how many Christians (not all - and I'm not saying this is you or anything) will go, Bible in hand (this Bible is usually a poorly-made translation), and tell the religious Jew, whose whole life is dedicated to G-d and His Torah, who studies the Bible every day, in its ORIGINAL language, which is, in fact, his language, the Jew who understands not only the simple reading of the text, but the nuances of the language, and his understanding is further enhanced by thousands of years of commentary by our sages, who understood the nuances far better than we do, and who lived their lives with even greater dedication to Torah, who went through fire and water, and every form of sadistic torture at the hands of the modern Christian's predecessors, the so-called "true" or "spiritual Israel" who use their claim on G-d's word to slaughter a nation whose only crime is believing that G-d loves what he once loved... well, perhaps you can begin to understand the Jew's exasperation at questions like yours, however innocuous your intentions may be.

Don't get me wrong - I hold no grudge against the Christians of today (some do), at least the ones that aren't actively trying to convert me and my coreligionists, thereby contribuing to the spiritual annihilation of the Jewish people - and there are those who consider this worse than physical annihilation, in fact, I know a holocaust survivor (I would never be so presumptuous as to make such a statement on my own) who holds that the assimilation in America today is more tragic than what happened to our people in Europe during the war -- this from a man who lost his entire family to the Nazis. I think the best understanding we're going to reach, short of the Messiah coming (may it be soon) and sorting everything out is the idea of Dual Covenant Theology. A lot of Christians today hold that their "covenant" (the promises made by Jesus) and the Mosaic covenant are both still in effect - so it is sufficient for a Jew to be Jewish, and the Christian need not feel compelled to "save" him.

If the above doesn't fully answer your question, or you would like to study further the Jewish response to Christianity's claims, you can find some excellent material on the following websites:

http://www.jewsforjudaism.org
http://www.messiahtruth.com
http://www.simpletoremember.com

I hope you find this information useful.

Answer 2

J*sus was everything the messiah was not supposed to be. He fits the definition of a false messiah according to the Torah. Also, we believe that a messiah has to fulfill every single one of the prophecies before dying, a short list of which can be found here:

Is there universal knowledge of one G-d? (Jeremiah 31:33, Zechariah 8:23, 14:9, 14:16,
Isaiah 11:9, Isaiah 40:5, Zephaniah 3:9)
Were all Jews returned to Israel? (Isaiah 43:5-6, Isaiah 11:12, Isaiah 27:12-13)
Did he bring world peace? (Isaiah 11:6, Micah 4:3)
Were all weapons destroyed? (Ezekiel 39:9)
Did all warfare cease? (Isaiah 2:4)
Was the Temple rebuilt in it's place? (Ezekiel 37:24-28 Ezekiel 40-48, Isaiah 33:20, Micah
4:1)
Did he bring physical restoration to all who are sick or disabled in any way? (Isaiah
35:5-6)
Was he preceded by Elijah? (Malachi 3:23-24-- 4:4-5 in KJV)
Did the nations help the Jews materially? (Isaiah 60:5, 60:10-12, 61:6)
Does eternal joy and gladness characterize the Jewish nation? (Isaiah 51:11)
Are Jews sought for spiritual guidance? (Zechariah 8:23)
Is the Egyptian river dry yet? (Isaiah 11:15)
Do trees in Israel yield new fruit every month? (Ezekiel 47:12)
Did each tribe receive it's inheritance? (Ezekiel 47:13-14)
Is the enemy buried? (Ezekiel 39:12)
Did he accomplish these tasks without tiring or failing? (Isaiah 42:4)
Did death cease? (Isaiah 25:8)
Are the dead resurrected? (Isaiah 26:19, Daniel 12:2, Ezekiel 37:12-13)

We believe the messiah will be a mortal, non-divine man, fully versed and completely 100% observant in Jewish law, who fulfills all the prophecies.

This site also has some useful information:
http://www.moshiach.com/questions/topten/jesus_as_the_messiah.php

Peace

Answer 3

Jews don't believe Jesus was the messiah because we don't have peace on earth for all mankind. The messiah will be a normal human being just like you and me -- we will know who he is when there is peace on earth. No peace -- no messiah.

The messiah will not be divine. He will not create a "hell" of eternal torment, and he will not limit "heaven" to any particular people. All the righteous of the nations will have a share in the world-to-come -- Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Muslims, etc. etc. The Jewish afterlife is not exclusive to Jews.

Belief in a man-made god is the ultimate heresy.
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Answer 4

They don't believe the Jesus is the messiah, nor do they believe any of the hundreds of other false messiahs is the real one (including the recently deceased Rabbi Schneerson), mainly because none of them fullfill the predictions and requirements stipulated in the Bible..... especially in that the kingdom of God doesn't seem to have come upon us in the last 2,000 years. ///// and according to the old testament, the Messiah will just be a rather ordinary guy who leads the way and definitely would not be God himself, or his son, daughter, ghost or pet cat. So..... better keep on waiting till the real guy shows up.

Answer 5

Isiah 53 goes on to portray the Messiah as a suffering servant. Jewish people believe that the Messiah would set up the kingdom of God here on earth when He returns.
Everything the prophets of old did were a foreshadow of what Jesus fulfilled. The sacrifices that were performed only covered up their sin, it did not remove it. Jesus' sacrifice was the ultimate atonement. He is our High Priest. He fulfilled the law.

A man, a mortal like you and I could never pay for our sins, for they have also sinned. Only a divine, Holy God could achieve total redemption for mans' sin.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and became flesh and dwelt among us.

Answer 6

In the OT there are two pictures of the messiah 1 that would come to rule and reign in power and the 1 described by the prophet Isaiah the one who would be rejected by man and who would suffer our inequities. They were seeking the 1 who would deliver them and lead the people in power and majesty, instead what they got was the lamb to the slaughter. The messiah of power and majesty they were looking for will be the messiah who returns. Those scriptures are speaking of the Christ of the second coming who will come and redeem his people with all authority in heaven and earth given unto him.

Answer 7

Jesus did not fulfill the Messianic requirements. For one thing, he was born in the wrong month.

For some really interesting reading, try Bloodline of The Holy Grail. It's really opened my eyes to a lot of things. It's a non-fiction book.

Answer 8

OK, I'm not Jewish, but here's what I know:
They believe Jesus was just telling when the next Messiah is coming. He just hasn't come yet

Answer 9

They believe in a messiah but they think he hasn't come yet.
They will actually see him during the second coming along with evryone else

Answer 10

Because Jesus NEVER fullfil the messianic duties.

Judge for yourself:
Did Jesus fulfill ALL these criteria?

The Jewish tradition of "The Messiah" has its foundation in numerous biblical references, and understands "The Messiah" to be a human being - without any overtone of deity or divinity - who will bring about certain changes in the world and fulfill certain criteria before he can be acknowledged as "The Messiah".

First of all, he must be Jewish - "...you may appoint a king over you, whom the L-rd your G-d shall choose: one from among your brethren shall you set as king over you." (Deuteronomy 17:15)

He must be a member of the tribe of Judah - "The staff shall not depart from Judah, nor the sceptre from between his feet..." (Genesis 49:10)

To be a member of the tribe of Judah, the person must have a biological father who is a member of the tribe of Judah.

He must be a direct male descendant of King David and King Solomon, his son - "And when your days (David) are fulfilled, and you shall sleep with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who shall issue from your bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will make firm the throne of his kingdom forever..." (2 Samuel 7:12 - 13)

The genealogy of the New Testament is inconsistent. While it gives two accounts of the genealogy of Joseph, it states clearly that he is not the biological father of Jesus. One of the genealogies is through Nathan and not Solomon altogether!

He must gather the Jewish people from exile and return them to Israel -"And he shall set up a banner for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." (Isaiah 11:12)

Are all Jews living in Israel? Have all Jews EVER lived in Israel since the time of Jesus?

He must rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem - "...and I will set my sanctuary in their midst forever and my tabernacle shall be with them.." (Ezekiel 37:26 - 27)

At last check, there is NO Temple in Jerusalem. And worse, it was shortly after Jesus died that the Temple was DESTROYED! Just the opposite of this prophecy!

He will rule at a time of world-wide peace - "...they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore." (Micah 4:3)askyourself...

Have you seen a newspaper lately? Are we living in a state of complete world peace? Has there ever been peace since the time of Jesus?



He will rule at a time when the Jewish people will observe G-d's commandments - "My servant David shall be king over them; and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall follow My ordinances and be careful to observe My statutes." (Ezekiel 37:24)

The Torah is the Jewish guide to life, and its commandments are the ones referred to here. Do all Jews observe all the commandments? Christianity, in fact, often discourages observance of the commandments in Torah, in complete opposition to this prophecy.

He will rule at a time when all people will come to acknowledge and serve one G-d - "And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, says the L-rd" (Isaiah 66:23)

there are still millions if not billions of people in the world today who adhere to paganistic and polytheistic religions. It is clear that we have not yet seen this period of human history unfold.

All of these criteria are best stated in the book of Ezekiel Chapter 37 verses 24-28:

And David my servant shall be king over them; and they shall all have one shepherd. they shall also follow My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. And they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Yaakov my servant, in which your fathers have dwelt and they shall dwell there, they and their children, and their children's children forever; and my servant David shall be their prince forever. Moreover, I will make a covenant of peace with them, it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, which I will give them; and I will multiply them and I will set my sanctuary in the midst of them forevermore. And my tabernacle shall be with them: and I will be their G-d and they will be my people. Then the nations shall know that I am the L-rd who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary will be in the midst of them forevermore.

If an individual fails to fulfill even one of these conditions, then he cannot be "The Messiah." A careful analysis of these criteria shows us that to date, no one has fulfilled every condition.

Certainly NOT Jesus.