Why teach Hebrew?

Scott continues to teach Hebrew online to several students in Ecuador. You might ask whether it’s worth the investment. Not every Christian needs to know the biblical languages, right? Yes, that’s true both in our own culture as well as in Ecuador. Nevertheless, we think there are some good reasons to teach Hebrew in Ecuador right now.

• Thankfully we have the scriptures in both English and Spanish, and we can study it well in these languages. However, there should be some people who can study it to a deeper level. Not everyone should be an expert, but some should be.
• Ecuador needs its own theologians. Imagine if the only experts on the Bible were people outside of our culture. Imagine if there were almost no theologians in the United States, or if the only really trustworthy Christian academics were German speakers. Would you have confidence that we had a good handle on the truth? Might you want a greater voice for biblical interpretation from those who spoke your language and understand your situation?
• There are several Spanish versions of the Bible. Spanish speakers sometimes have the same question that you and I have: How do I know which one is right? Why can we sometimes say that two different expressions are both good translations of the same original text. Even if we can’t read the original, we have greater confidence if we know an expert can do a thorough job of comparing the differences. Ecuador needs to have a handful of people who can build the confidence of others, and in some cases argue for the preference of a certain frase over another in particular verses.
• Sometimes commentaries “prove” their interpretations based on the original language, and yet one commentary still arrives at a different conclusion than another. Someone needs to be available who can help churches evaluate the relative strength of opposing arguments.
• Currently there are false teachers in Ecuador who are spreading their doctrine with support from fallacious arguments from Hebrew. If nobody knows Hebrew, it’s hard to prove that these supposed experts are wrong. Ecuador needs mature followers of Christ who can defend true doctrine with the legitimate use of the biblical languages.
• Ecuador is beginning to send missionaries to other parts of the world. There are still many languages that do not have their own translation of the Scriptures. Some Ecuadorian missionaries can become Bible translators if they learn Greek and Hebrew. Two of Scott’s students have aspirations along this line.

These are a few of the reasons Scott is heavily investing his time in the teaching of Hebrew. We believe Ecuador has a need, and God has equipped Scott to help for such a time as this.

Recently, two of Scott’s students sent him an encouraging audio message. You can enjoy this one-minute video with subtitles in English to see how excited they are:

One of Scott’s newest students is a Venezuelan pastor who connects to his class online along with another man in his church. Sometimes technology is effective at breaking down barriers in interesting ways. At this point we aren’t necessarily targeting people in other Latin American countries, but we are open to allowing God to use this ministry in any way he sees fit. Pray that Scott’s Hebrew classes will be an effective tool to strengthen churches in Ecuador and beyond.