𝐀 𝐉𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐅𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐡: 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚’𝐬 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐆𝐞𝐫

For centuries, the Jewish world has drawn a firm theological boundary between God and man. Yet, ancient Jewish texts, rabbinic debates, and modern scholarship suggest that the idea of a divine Messiah was not foreign to Jewish thought. Many assume that belief in Yeshua’s divinity is purely a Christian innovation, but historical evidence challenges that notion.

If the concept of a Messiah with divine attributes was present in Jewish tradition, then Yeshua’s followers—both Jewish and non-Jewish—must reconsider whether their faith in Him is idolatrous or deeply rooted in the evolving streams of Jewish belief. And what does this mean for those who are Ger Toshav or Ger Tzadik—righteous Gentiles who wish to walk in the ways of Torah but do not fully convert to Judaism?

Let's explore:

• The ancient Jewish belief in a divine Messiah

• The arguments against Yeshua being merely a man

• The role of the righteous Ger in Torah and Messianic faith

• A proposed category: Ger Tzadik Yeshua, a righteous non-Jew devoted to the God of Israel through Yeshua

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐉𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭

𝐃𝐢𝐝 𝐀𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐉𝐮𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐚 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐡?

Jewish tradition largely defines the Messiah as a righteous, human king who will restore Israel. However, several texts in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible), Talmud, and Midrash suggest that some Jews did, in fact, anticipate a Messiah with divine attributes.

𝟏. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐥 𝟕

Daniel 7:13-14 describes a figure called the “Son of Man” who comes “with the clouds of heaven” and receives eternal dominion and worship (𝑝𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑐ℎ in Aramaic, a term used only for divine service). Rabbi Akiva later debated whether this figure referred to the Messiah or a purely divine being (Sanhedrin 38b). Some early Jews saw this as a prophecy of a heavenly Messiah, not merely a human king (Boyarin, 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐽𝑒𝑤𝑖𝑠ℎ 𝐺𝑜𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑙𝑠, 2012).

𝟐. 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐚𝐡’𝐬 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐲: 𝐀 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞?

Isaiah 9:6 (9:5 in Hebrew) speaks of a coming child whose name will be "Mighty God" (El Gibbor) and "Everlasting Father." Jewish commentators struggled with this passage—if the Messiah is a mere man, why is he called El Gibbor, a title otherwise reserved for God Himself?

𝟑. 𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐡

Rabbinic sources such as Pesikta Rabbati 36 and Sanhedrin 98b state that the Messiah was created before the world—suggesting His preexistence, a trait usually reserved for God (Sommer, 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝑜𝑑𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐺𝑜𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝐴𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐼𝑠𝑟𝑎𝑒𝑙, 2011).

If Jewish tradition itself entertained the idea of a Messiah with divine attributes, then believing in Yeshua as more than just a man is not a betrayal of Judaism but rather a revival of an older theological stream.

𝐀𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚 𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 “𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐧”

Some argue that Yeshua was a righteous teacher, but not divine. However, this view struggles against the following:

𝟏. 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲

Yeshua did not merely preach Torah—He spoke as if He had authority equal to God:

"Before Abraham was, I AM" (John 8:58), referencing Exodus 3:14, where God revealed His name to Moses.

"I and the Father are one" (John 10:30).

If Yeshua was a mere man, these claims would be blasphemous—yet His Jewish disciples worshiped Him (Matthew 28:9, John 20:28).

𝟐. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐌𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐲

Deuteronomy 6:4 declares: "Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad." Many argue that Echad (one) implies an absolute unity, but the word also allows for composite unity (Genesis 2:24 – "the two shall become one flesh"). Kabbalistic teachings on the Sefirot (emanations of God) similarly present a divine complexity (Elijah Zvi Soloveitchik, 𝐶𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑦 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐺𝑜𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑙𝑠).

𝟑. 𝐉𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐌𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐆𝐨𝐝

Dr. Benjamin Sommer argues that the idea of God appearing in bodily form is deeply Jewish:

• God wrestled Jacob (Genesis 32).

• God appeared to Abraham as a man (Genesis 18).

• The Memra (Word) of God in the Targums functions as a divine intermediary (Sommer, 𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝑜𝑑𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐺𝑜𝑑).

If biblical Judaism accepted God taking physical form, then the Incarnation is not foreign to Jewish theology.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐆𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐭𝐨 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚

The Torah speaks of two categories of righteous Gentiles:

𝐆𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐨𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐯 (Resident Alien) – A non-Jew who rejects idolatry and follows the moral laws of Torah but does not fully convert (Leviticus 25:6, Numbers 15:14-16).

𝐆𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐳𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐤 (Righteous Convert) – A full proselyte who undergoes conversion and joins Israel completely.

For those who accept Yeshua but do not become Jewish, where do they stand?

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐳𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐤 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚

If a Ger Toshav follows the God of Israel but remains a non-Jew, and a Ger Tzadik fully converts, what about those who:

• Accept Yeshua as the Messiah of Israel

• Reject pagan idolatry

• Follow Torah as appropriate to non-Jews

This proposed category, Ger Tzadik Yeshua, would define righteous non-Jews who accept the Messiah but do not assimilate into Judaism.

𝐀𝐫𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐈𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬?

𝐈𝐟 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚 𝐈𝐬 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐧

If Yeshua was only a man, then Ger Tzadik Yeshua followers are not idolaters—they simply revere a righteous Jewish teacher. Their faith in Yeshua would be similar to revering Moses, David, or the Lubavitcher Rebbe.

𝐈𝐟 𝐘𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐚 𝐈𝐬 𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞

If Yeshua is divine and this belief aligns with Jewish theological streams, then Ger Tzadik Yeshua is also not idolatrous. If Daniel, Isaiah, and the Talmud entertained a divine Messiah, then worshiping Yeshua as an extension of God’s presence is not foreign to Jewish faith.

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧: 𝐀 𝐉𝐞𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐌𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐜 𝐅𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐑𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐬

The question of Yeshua’s divinity is not a Christian problem—it is a Jewish question. If early Jewish thought allowed for a divine Messiah, then rejecting Yeshua’s divinity may be more about reactionary theology than biblical truth.

For those who are Ger Toshav or Ger Tzadik Yeshua, the question of idolatry must be weighed carefully:

If Yeshua is only a man, then following Him is no different than revering a great prophet.

If Yeshua is divine, and Jewish thought allows for this, then following Him is not idolatry but covenant faithfulness.

Perhaps, the true challenge is not whether faith in Yeshua is idolatry—but whether we are ready to reconsider the long-lost Jewish debate over the nature of the Messiah.

B"H