Daniel's Literal Translation and Commentary
The Perpetuity of the Torah and Prophets
"17 Do not suppose that I come to dislodge the Torah or the Prophets. I do not come to dislodge, but to fill. 18 Amen, indeed, I am saying to ye, at least till should pass the heaven and the earth, yud one, or one horn by no means can pass from the Torah. 19 At least until all these things should happen, whoever then should pull down one of the least of these commandments and may teach likewise to men, least will be called in the Kingdom of Heaven. Whoever yet may do and may teach, likewise, great will be called in the Kingdom of Heaven." (DLT: torahtimes.org, Mat. 5:17-19).
___
The word 'suppose' from νομιζω is the verb form of νομος. It means "1. to follow or practice what is customary, have in common use....2. to form an idea about something but with some suggestion of tentativeness or refraining from a definitive statement, think, believe, hold, consider" (BDAG, 3rd. edition 675, νομιζω). The idea is "don't become accustomed to thinking ..."
___
The word "dislodge" is a functional equivalent for καταλυσαι, which is a compound word, κατα + λυω. Λυω literally means to "loose" something. The prefix κατα is like putting the word "un" with it, but κατα also means "down", such that the sense is "take down", "throw down, detach of a stone from a building" (BDAG, pg. 521).
___
There is no doubt that νομος means "Torah" (תורה) in Judeo-Greek, though it has a much wider range of meaning in Koine Greek based on the idea of whatever is "customary". Most significantly the Aramaic bible uses a loan word from the Greek here: נמוסא, namusa, which is clearly derived from the Greek νομος. The Syriac does the same thing in Paul's letters. If anything this shows that the Aramaic was made from Greek exemplars after any original Hebrew or Aramaic texts were destroyed by the Romans, and only when it became legal again. Even so the Syriac Church abandoned the Chaldee Script. There can be no doubt that Yeshua uttered the word Torah here. He would not have used the Aramaic equivalent nor any other word but the pure Hebrew תורה, a word with which every Jew is familiar and uses even when they speak another language as their first language.
___
The word "fulfill" has been totally ruined by its quasi technical use by the lawless Church, to mean "4 to bring to a designed end, fulfill " (BDAG, def. 4). What they have done is fill up πληροω with their own meaning. After all, if the text does not say what you want it to, then redefine the language. However, Lexicon's often advocate for theologies and definitions that are contrary to the context of the original faith. Here are the legitimate definitions, "1 to make full, fill (full) .... 2. to complete a period of time, fill (up), complete ... 3. to bring to completion that which was already begun, complete, finish " (BDAG). This also shows why one needs to have a sense of the basic linguistic meaning of a word and the will to reject Church tradition.
___
Yeshua means that he came to 1. uphold the Torah, 2. teach the Torah, 3. bring prophecies in the Torah and Prophets to realization, 4. and magnify the Torah (cf. Isaiah 42:21), and 5. to keep it. This is what Yeshua's audience would have taken for granted, and he knew that this is the meaning they would place on the words כי אמ־למלאת. = αλλα πληρωσαι. The knee jerk mental substitution of Christians with the word "fulfill" was never thought of except later as a cultic eisegesis of the text, much like Mormons or ancient Gnostics redefined the terms so that they are really speaking a different language.
___
The word "Amen", αμην, is a Hebrew loan word in Greek, אמן. It means "affirmedly". For what other reason it is not translated into the usual loan word in English "Amen" than to de-Judaize the Apostolic Writings I do not know.
___
The "yud" is the smallest consonant in the Hebrew alphabet, corresponding to the Greek letter ιωτα. In transliteration into Greek, in fact י = ι. The "horn" (κεραια) mentioned by Yeshua refers to the smallest decorations that scribes would put on certain letters in the text. "lit. 'horn', anything that projects like a horn, projection, hook as part of a letter, a serif " (BDAG, 3rd ed).
___
Since this ornamentation was traditional, it is clear that Yeshua is using hyperbole here. Yeshua had to use this hyperbole, because "yud" was a principle vowel letter, and it was often inserted or omitted from the text leaving the reader to remember it. Anyone familiar with BHS will be able to observe variant spellings with or without this letter. Yeshua's point then is not the perpetual preservation of the written text at all times, nor even the correct translation of it (i.e. the LXX). Man is deprived of the word of God due to sin, but God steps in to restore and redeem. Yeshua's point is that however men may forget the Torah, it still remains perpetually valid in the form that God gave it.
___
Yeshua says "at least until", εως = עד. In the Hebrew (and Aramaic too) this word does not have the sense of "termination" when the point in time is reached. That is just a side effect of English "until". It only means at least as far as the limit signified, but it has no comment about has far past the limit is meant. So Yeshua is not saying that the Torah and Prophets will cease in their validity if heaven and earth pass away. He is only saying that they are valid at least as long as heaven and earth are still here. No doubt Yeshua's statement concerning heaven and earth was made with passages like Jeremiah 33:17-22 in mind.
___
The last clause of vs. 18 should begin the sentence in vs. 19. In the context "Until all these things happen" refers to heaven and earth passing away. It is redundant to put it at the end of vs. 18. The only reason this was done by the translators, it appears, is so that they can adjust it to be a limiting clause on Yeshua's statement in the sense of nothing shall pass from the Law, that is "until it is fulfilled". They then interpret the text to mean that Yeshua fulfilled it all, and therefore, the limiting clause terminates the validity of the main clause. The ESV is a particularly bad case, "Not a dot will pass from the Law until all is accomplished." This makes it sound like it will pass away as soon as it is accomplished. But really "accomplished" (γενηται) refers directly to heavean and earth passing away. It is the introduction to vs. 19, "At least until all these things should happen, whoever then should pull down one of the least of these commandments...."
___
Finally, to prove that the law can never be completely fulfilled, I merely cite the commandment, "And thou shalt love YHWH thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might" (Deut. 6:5). Is there every any end to filling up this commandment? No, because it needs to be refilled every day. The obligation always remains to love God anew. It can never be kept once and then terminated once it is kept. (DLC: torahtimes.org, Mat. 5:17-19.)
Daniel's Literal Translation and Commentary: (http://www.torahtimes.org/translation/mat0517.html)
All Rights Reserved, 2009 by Daniel Gregg. No part of this article may be copied without including the above reference to the author's original: torahtimes.org. It is preferable only to include what is in the boxes, however the live link in the second box may be omitted if necessary.