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Approx. reading time: 12 minutes
(a.k.a. The Lord’s Teaching
Through the Twelve Apostles
to the Nations)
Introduction
The Didache (Greek Διδαχή, did-ah-khee, teaching or instruction; corresponds to Hebrew תּוֹרָה, to-raw', teaching, instruction, direction) is a brief anonymous early Messianic treatise written in Koine Greek, dated by modern scholars to the first (or less commonorly, the second) century CE. Although my personal belief is that most, if not all, of the Messianic Writings (the so-called “New Testament”) were originally penned in Hebrew and later translated into Greek for distribution too the Believers in the Diaspora, I accept that the Didache was most probably originally penned in Greek, as its intent was to serve as a “catechism” (or better, a “primer”) of introductory lessons for Goyim (Gentiles) who had come to faith in Yeshua and were living in a Torah-centric Jewish milieu.[1]
The common name of the document is derived from the first line, which reads “Διδαχὴ Κυρίου διὰ τῶν δώδεκα ἀποστόλων τοῖς ἔθνεσιν” and translates as “instruction (didache) of the Lord (Kurios) through (dia) the twelve (dodeka) apostles (apostolon) to the Gentiles (tois ethnesin).” It seems obvious to me, then, that this brief document became the tool through which the decision of the Jerusalem Council (described in Acts 15:6-31, discussed here) to admit the Goyim to fellowship in the Messianic Jewish Community without a formal conversion to Judaism was implemented.
The burning issue of the time was that pagans who had no prior knowledge of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were coming to faith in the Jewish Messiah. Their lifestyle was totally abhorrent to the Torah-pursuing Hebrews, yet through the ministry of the Apostles the Holy Spirit was washing over the Gentile nations and bringing them to faith. The Messiah had revealed to Rabbi Sha'ul (the Apostle Paul) that it was not necessary for these pagans to be circumcised and go through a conversion to Judaism in order to be “saved” and to be admitted to the Messiah’s Holy Community. Sha'ul had traveled to Jerusalem and presented his case to the Messianic Beit Din, that “God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith” (Acts 15:8-9, NASB95).
After much discussion, the Messiah’s brother Ya'akov, who was the leader of the Beit Din, announced their decision:
“Therefore, my opinion is that we should not put obstacles in the way of the Goyim who are turning to God. Instead, we should write them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from fornication, from what is strangled, and from blood. For from the earliest times, Moshe has had in every city those who proclaim him, with his words being read in the synagogues every Shabbat.” (Acts 15:19-21, my emphasis)
With the provision that the Torah was to be taught in the synagogue every Shabbat (Acts 15:21), the Apostles sent the following letters to the Goyim:
From: The emissaries and the elders, your brothers
To: The brothers from among the Gentiles throughout Antioch, Syria and Cilicia
Greetings!
24We have heard that some people went out from among us without our authorization, and that they have upset you with their talk, unsettling your minds. 25So we have decided unanimously to select men and send them to you with our dear friends Bar-Nabba and Sha’ul, 26who have dedicated their lives to upholding the name of our Lord, Yeshua the Messiah. 27So we have sent Y’hudah and Sila, and they will confirm in person what we are writing.
28For it seemed good to the Ruach HaKodeshthe Holy Spirit and to us not to lay any heavier burden on you than the following requirements: 29to abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will be doing the right thing.
Shalom! (Acts 15:23-29)
It is my carefully considered opinion that the clear intent of the Beit Din was that if the formerly pagan Goyim would abstain from these four particularly detestable habits, with proper instruction from the Torah and from the teaching of the Messiah that had been handed down through the Apostles, they could learn over time how to live a proper Messianic lifestyle. This document was, I believe, created as a “study guide” for one-on-one instruction in the halakhah [the way to walk] of the Messianic Community, enabling the Goyim to live in harmony with their Jewish bretheren while gradually learning the balance of Torah which they would hear taught every Shabbat.
It is not a treatise on theology, it contains no teaching of doctrine. Rather, it is a set of instructions concerning the proper way a new believer is to act within the Messianic commmunity. From antiquity the Jewish community is far more concerned with the way one acts than with what one believes. It is thought that if one’s lifestyle is in keeping with rabbinic interpretation of Torah, what one believes is best left as a matter to be settled between the individual and HaShem.[GN] [MORE HERE]
Many Gentile Christian scholars hold that the document constitutes the oldest extant written, orderly statements of Christian beliefs. However, a more careful examination of the text reveals that virtually nothing is said about what one is expected to believe; rather, it is about proper conduct within the fledgling Messianic Community.
The text has three main sections dealing with (a) Messianic ethics, (b) rites such as tevliah (immersion) and liturgical brachot (blessings or prayers), and (c) community organization.
The opening chapters describe the virtuous Way of Life and the wicked Way of Death. The Disciples’ Prayer (commonly known as the Lord’s Prayer) is included in full. Tevilah is to be by immersion, or by affusion if immersion is not practical. Fasting is ordered for Wednesdays and Fridays. Two primitive brachot (liturgical prayers or blessings) are given. Formal organization of the Messianic Community was at an early stage of development.
Itinerant apostles and prophets are important, serving as “chief priests.” Meanwhile, local overseers (congregational leaders) and shammashim (deacons, servants, assistants, from Hebrew שָׁ֫מֶשׁ (shem-ash') also have authority and seem to be taking the place of the itinerant ministry.
The Didache reveals how Messianic Jews saw themselves and how they adapted their halakhah for Gentiles who had come to faith in Yeshua. Thus we may consider the document to be an introduction to Gentile halakhah within the Messianic Jewish Community.[2]
The opening chapters, which also appear in numerous other early Messianic texts, are likely derived from an earlier Hebrew source. The Didache is similar in several ways to the Gospel of Matthew, perhaps because both texts originated in similar communities, or (more likely, in my opinion) because those who formulated the Didache possessed a copy of Matthew’s original Hebrew Gospel account.
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With the exception of The Way of Life by Toby Janicki, virtually every English translation of the Didache that I have been able to find has been translated and interpreted with a distinct bias toward a Gentile Chistian (i.e., Replacement Theology) world view, especially chapters 9, 10, 12, 14, and 15. The reason is not malicious at all; the simple fact is that it is impossible to translate anything from one language to another without inserting the interpretation of the translator, and virtually all Christian theologians and translators have been trained and heavily immersed (as I was) in Replacement Theology.[3]
In the pages which follow I have attempted to provide an interpretation and commentary from a distinctly Messianic Jewish world view, sometimes slightly altering the translation from Christian vocabulary to Messianic Jewish vocabulary. I have tried to place myself in the position of a first-century Jewish Yeshua-follower who has been assigned the task of tutoring a person who until very recently was a pagan, worshiping the Roman Pantheon, with no knowledge of the God of Abraham Isaac, and Jacob, who has just come to faith in my Messiah and has received the gift of Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit). What would that person’s questions be like and how would I answer them?
Some scholars believe that the Didache was written as early as 50 BCE, so I believe the Didache was likely written relatively soon after the Jerusalem Council’s decision to admit Goymim to the Faith,[4] and was quite likely written as a guide to the implementation of that decision. It thus predates most of the Apostolic writings. I have cross-referenced the instructions in the Didache to the passages in the Tanakh, the Apostolic Writings, and a few extra-Biblical Jewish sources which contain the same or similar teaching, and based my interpretation of the Didache primarily upon my understanding of those references. Whether or not they had been committed to writing at the time of the Didache, they may well have been a well-known part of “the instructions of Yeshua through the Apostles” very early on.
There are some instructions within the Didache that do not have a clear counterpart in either the Tanakh or the Apostolic Writings. When they have been encountered, with the last sentence of John’s Gospel in mind (John 21:25), I have assumed that they are nevertheless of apostolic origin and authority.
Other than a few brief paragraphs, I have not read Janicki’s book prior to my first round of interpretation, as I do not want my thoughts to be influenced by his at this point. (And I do not want to be guilty of any unintentional plagiarism.) Thumbing though his work I find it to be quite scholarly (as are all his works) and based upon extensive research into the writing of numerous other authors on the subject.
After I have added my first round of notes and comments, I will read Toby Janicki’s book. If he changes my mind at any point I will revise the content of this section and credit him accordingly.
My brief study of the Didache is intended only to whet the reader’s appetite for the subject. For further study I enthusiastically refer the reader to Janicki.
The original text before I began my commentary is HERE.
1. Some material in this article has been edited from the Wikipedia article accessed 12 June 2022. [BACK]
2. Within the modern Messianic Jewish movement, there is till considerable debate about which provisions of Torah Messianic Gentiles are to be concerned with. Please read “Why Should I Obey Torah” for my opinion on the matter. [BACK]
3. In my experience, having been trained in a seminary whose theological position was based in Dispensational and Replacement Theololgies, and having embraced those theologies for over 30 years, I find that much Christian interpretation of both the Apostolic Writings (“New Testament”) and the writings of the early “Church Fathers” simply assumes, with no factual basis, that first and early second-century followers of Yeshua had abandoned the Torah and their Jewish traditions. I believe that their assumption that early Jewish sect of Yeshua-followers bore any resemblance at all to their understanding of “the early Church” is anachronistic and unfounded. [BACK]
4. “The Didache picks up right where the Apostolic Decree leaves off, teaching and clarifying for Gentiles their relationship to the Torah and place in Messianic Judaism. It was written by the early Jewish believers in Yeshua and contains teaching that claims to have its origin with the twelve apostles. Some scholars feel its earliest version might have been written as early as 50 CE, which places it within the first generation of disciples of Yeshua. It may even contain material older than many of Paul’s epistles and the Gospel of John. It also contains teachings of Yeshua that are not found in the canonical Gospels.” (FFOZ’s description of Janichi’s The Way of Life) [BACK]
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ANXIOUSLY WATCHING FOR MASHIACH’S RETURN,
SPEEDILY AND IN OUR DAY. MARANA, TA!
