Page 14 - Attractive Deception - The False Hope of the Hebrew Roots Movement

There are two versions of the Gemara, the first originating in Palestine, while the latter was
developed in Babylonia. Depending on which version of the Gemara is coupled to the Mishna, the
resulting body of teaching is referred to either as the Jerusalem Talmud, or the Babylonian Talmud.
The Babylonian Talmud holds a place of ascendancy, and is what is primarily being referred to today
when Jewish people refer to “the Talmud.”

The Babylonian Talmud

It strikes me as significant that the Talmud would come to have the word “Babylonian” attached to
it. The word Babel, from which the name Babylon is derived, means “confusion.” Truly, no better
description could be given to this body of man-made traditions than “confusion,” for it leads people
away from the truth of God’s word.

It is important to understand the tremendous veneration the Jewish people have given to these man-
made traditions over the centuries. For nearly a millennia prior to Christ, and up to 200 A.D., the
Oral Torah was accorded great honor. When it was codified as the Mishna two centuries after Christ,
and expanded through the addition of the Gemara in following centuries, it was regarded by
Orthodox Jews as being more valuable then the Tanakh (Old Testament). Nesta Webster, in her book
Secret Societies and Subversive Movements, writes:

The Talmud itself accords to the Bible only a secondary place. Thus the Talmudic treatise Soferim
says: 'The Bible is like water, the Mischna is like wine, and the Gemarah is like spiced wine.'"

Reverend I. B. Pranaitis adds to this testimony.

An important point to note is that [the Talmud] has always been regarded by the Jews as holy. They
have always held it, and still hold it, as more important than the Sacred Scriptures. The Talmud
itself shows this very clearly:

In the tract Babha Metsia, fol. 33a, we read:
"Those who devote themselves to reading the Bible exercise a certain virtue, but not very much;
those who study the Mischnah exercise virtue for which they will receive a reward; those, however,
who take upon themselves to study the Gemarah exercise the highest virtue..."