Avraham Gileadi

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Avraham Gileadi (born 1940) is a Latter-day Saint (Mormon) Hebrew scholar and literary analyst specializing in the Book of Isaiah.

He was born in the Netherlands during World War II. In the course of the war, his father served in the Dutch resistance, whose local chapter helped a New Zealand pilot escape to England. After the war, many emigrated from wartorn Europe to new lands of opportunity. Although his father prospered, idealism led him to emigrate to New Zealand.

In New Zealand, Avraham Gileadi went through a period of introspection, reevaluating his priorities and internalizing spiritual principles by returning to his Catholic roots. After becoming religiously active and involved, he yet "sensed a lack of spiritual fulfillment." Israel's history in the Old Testament became the focus of his attention. He recognized what he believed to be "a partial fulfillment of prophecy in the modern State of Israel," which led to his desire to participate in it.^[1]

In 1968, Avraham Gileadi left New Zealand to settle in Israel, where he lived five years. Life in Israel soon involved him deeply in the Old Testament and its religious ties to Judaism. He states that "Judaism attracted me because of the unique manner in which the Jews view the Law and the Prophets. Among the Jews, I felt a depth of understanding that, as a Gentile, I had not hitherto known." In Israel, he settled in Jezreel. His studies in Israel also took him to an orthodox religious kibbutz, at which time he was formally received into the Jewish faith and became an Israeli citizen. The climax of his life as an orthodox Jew came when he studied at Yeshivat Hatfutzot, a rabbinic school in Jerusalem.

While visiting a library in Israel, the librarian handed him a copy of the Book of Mormon and suggested he read it. Gileadi took the book to be polite and studied it out of curiosity, which led to his conversion to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was baptized a member of the LDS Church in the Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed a blind man by having him wash his eyes in the pool. (John 9:5-7)^[2]

In 1981, he received his doctorate in Ancient Studies from Brigham Young University, with Hugh Nibley as chairman, and taught Hebrew and several Religion courses and an Honors Philosophy class at BYU. He also sought out and studied with Professor R. K. Harrison, a renowned Old Testament scholar of Wycliffe College, University of Toronto, Canada, who was noted for his conservative theological position. He was hired by BYU to produce footnotes clarifying translation problems in the Old Testament for the Latter-day Saint edition of the Bible, and he revised the Hebrew translation of the Book of Mormon for the Church's Translation Division.

Dr. Gileadi has made substantial contributions to LDS thought. Being fluent in Hebrew, he worked with the Hebrew Masoretic Text, the Dead Sea Scroll of Isaiah and Septuagint Version, to provide a translation of the Book of Isaiah into intelligible English that remained true to the Hebrew. He used lexical tools constantly in order to catch every nuance of meaning in the original language. He finished this new translation of Isaiah during his Ph.D. program.

He has since written The Literary Message of Isaiah, a ground-breaking scholarly work, and Isaiah Decoded: Ascending the Ladder to Heaven. These, together with The Book of Isaiah: A New Translation with Interpretive Keys from the Book of Mormon and The Last Days: Types and Shadows from the Bible and the Book of Mormon, have been his most influential books to date. Current works can be purchased in many bookstores, from Amazon.com, and through the Hebraeus Foundation at its website, IsaiahProphecy.com.

Contents 1 Publications 2 Testimonials 3 Notes 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Publications

• The Apocalyptic Book of Isaiah (Provo: UT: Hebraeus Press, 1982), ISBN 0-910511-00-4;

• The Book of Isaiah: A New Translation with Interpretive Keys from the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1988), ISBN 0-87579-076-3;

• The Last Days: Types and Shadows from the Bible and the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1991), ISBN 0-87579-287-1; reprinted in a new edition with foreword by Hugh Nibley (Orem, UT: Book of Mormon Research Foundation, 1998);

• The Literary Message of Isaiah (New York: Hebraeus Press, 1994), ISBN 0-9626643-1-6;

• Analytical Commentary of Isaiah (Escondido, CA: Hebraeus Press, 2001)—twenty-four cassettes in two folders with study guides, translation, and Gileadi’s verse-by-verse commentary of the book of Isaiah;

• Isaiah Decoded: Ascending the Ladder to Heaven (Escondido, CA: Hebraeus Press, 2002), ISBN 0-910511-07-1.

• Studies in the Book of Mormon (2005) ISBN 0-910511-10-1.

In addition, Gileadi edited a Festschrift in honor of his mentor R. K. Harrison, Israel’s Apostasy and Restoration: Essays in Honor of Roland K. Harrison (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 1988), ISBN 0-8010-3830-8.^[1]

[edit] Testimonials

Dr. Gileadi is the only LDS scholar I know of who is thoroughly competent to teach the words of Isaiah—Professor Hugh Nibley, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. (1. 6. 2003)

Dr. Gileadi has achieved a major breakthrough in the investigation of a book of such complexity and importance as the Book of Isaiah—Professor David Noel Freedman, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Dr. Gileadi’s work will render obsolete almost all the speculations of Isaiah scholars over the last one hundred years . . . enabling scholarship to proceed along an entirely new line . . . opening new avenues of approach for others to follow—Professor Roland K. Harrison, Wycliffe College, Toronto, Canada.

Only one who is truly at home not only with the Hebrew but with the ancient manner of biblical thought could have produced such an insightful and ground-breaking book—Professor S. Douglas Waterhouse, Andrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan.

Avraham Gileadi’s unsealing of the Book of Isaiah will forever change people’s understanding of Judeo-Christian religion, lifting it to heights hitherto known only to prophets and saints—Arie Noot, corporate executive, Edmond, Oklahoma.

Isaiah Decoded is a huge breakthrough for the seeker of truth—Jew, Christian, Moslem, and agnostic. From an ancient writing, Gileadi has brought to light eternal truths about the nature of God and our relationship to him that have lain buried for centuries in the dust of time—Guy Wins, fifth-generation Jewish diamond dealer from Antwerp, Belgium.

Gileadi is the only scholar I know who’s been able to express the Jewish expectation of the Messiah in relation to the life and mission of Jesus of Nazareth—Daniel Rona, Israeli tour guide, Jerusalem, Israel.

Dr. Gileadi has clearly demonstrated his mastery of the Book of Isaiah and of the scholarly literature dealing with it—Professor Ronald Youngblood, Bethel Theological Seminary, San Diego, California.

Dr. Gileadi has produced a translation of the Book of Isaiah which is modern in its linguistic approach, but which also preserves all the values of more traditional renderings. His translation is excellent: it is sensitive, and manages to capture in English the vigor of the Hebrew idiom. This new and distinctive translation constitutes an advance upon other modern translations—Professor Roland K. Harrison, Editor-in-Chief, The New King James Version of the Bible.

Dr. Gileadi’s translation [of the Book of Isaiah] is clear and smooth, allowing the reader to appreciate the power and beauty of Isaiah as conveyed in the Hebrew original—Professor Herbert M. Wolf, Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois.

Gileadi has attained a fine balance of inspiration and intellect in translating and interpreting Isaiah—Ellis T. Rasmussen, Dean Emeritus Religious Instruction, Brigham Young University.

Avraham Gileadi’s work on Isaiah represents a powerful, innovative use of rhetorical methods for analyzing text. His work is at the forefront of the new biblical scholarship which is making use of literary analysis. This student’s comment is typical: ‘I’ve had several of the best teachers on campus—teachers of the year. I learned more from Dr. Gileadi than from any of the others. He really teaches you how to think and has tremendous knowledge of his subject matter’—Dennis J. Packard, Department Chairman, Department of Philosophy, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah.

Avraham Gileadi’s books and tapes take the casual observer of Isaiah’s words and transform him into an enlightened and lifelong student of the Word of God—Allan and Nancy Pratt, LDS mission president, Toulouse, France.

Dr. Gileadi has awakened a whole new depth of my understanding of Isaiah’s prophetic message. His books and tapes illuminate the urgent relevance of Isaiah’s writings to our own day—Becky Douglas, supervisor and sponsor of three orphanages in India, Atlanta, Georgia.

Gileadi has uncovered an amazing message written in a divine code by the prophet–poet Isaiah. This will give comfort, hope, and joy to masses of people as they cope with the perplexing events now unfolding before their eyes—Fenton Tobler, thirty years elementary school principle, Las Vegas, Nevada.

[edit] Notes