Who is Mammon whom Jesus warned of in Sermon of the Mount?
score:2
Before I give my suggested answer I would like to draw your attention to:
1.Mammon is a wrong spelling. The correct spelling is mamon. If you are familiar with Aramaic, it's probably a Greek scribal error of Aramaic: m mon
2.Various bible translations render it either money or gold or riches or wealth or just keep it as it is, mammon , sometimes with capital M and sometimes without( please notice there is no capitalization in the written Semitic languages such as Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic).
3.It's interesting that Greek manuscripts kept the Aramaic word, written Mamonas, as if though it's a personification.
4.German linguist and theologian Gesenius thinks it is derived from Hebrew word "maṭmon" ("treasure").
I agree with the conclusion that mamon is a transliteration of the Aramaic word mmon and close to Mishnaic Hebrew mmon and both mean wealth (sited in The Economics of Happiness: Building Genuine Wealth).For in Sheḥrī language, (a modern Semitic with no alphabet), related strongly to ancient Aramaic, the word mmol means wealth, usually referring to cattle and she-camels; it's the strongest case for translation Mammon to wealth.
That said, I get the feelings that Jesus Christ is referring to something more than just mere wealth (but not to Shatan, the evil one; he would have certainly said so since the names of the evil one in both Hebrew and Aramaic is not mammon). My theory: he is referring to false gods (wealth, power, influential persons, materiel means and so forth) in which one cling to in their heart (trust) when their heart trust should be solely placed in God (Allaha in Aramaic of Jesus time and today). I am reminded of what is written on the back of USD: in God we trust!
Upvote:7
From Wikipedia
Scholars do not agree about its etymology, but it is theorized that Mammon derives from Late Latin mammon, from Greek "μαμμωνάς", Syriac mámóna ("riches"), Aramaic mamon ("riches, money"), a loanword from Mishnaic Hebrew 'ממון (mmôn) meaning money, wealth, or possessions;[8] although it may also have meant "that in which one trusts".
And Gregory of Nyssa calls Mammon the evil one:
My Brethren, what is the force of these words? It seems to me that the Lord names the evil one in many varying and differing ways according to his evil operations [lit. energies]. Thus, He calls him the "devil" (diabolos-false accuser), "Beelzebub," Mammon," "prince of this world," "man killer," "evil one," "father of lies," and other similar names. Perhaps, then, another name for him is also "temptation" (Gr. peirasmos).
More post
- 📝 John 14:2: a literal house / temple or heaven
- 📝 How do various traditions define the term "sufficient grace"?
- 📝 Is it possible to be without grace?
- 📝 The names of our god and meanings
- 📝 How do opponents of Penal Substitution explain God's declaration that He "will not leave the guilty unpunished"?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, is Jesus a man, or does He rather have a human nature without being a man?
- 📝 What is "Christ Consciousness"?
- 📝 Why is wine associated with St. John the Apostle?
- 📝 Do any denominations read Matthew 24:5 as meaning believers in Christ using his good name to deceive many?
- 📝 How are Supererogative acts even possible in Catholicism?
- 📝 What is the Biblical basis for the belief that separation from God is in itself sin?
- 📝 2 Chronicles 28:3 vs Genesis 22:2
- 📝 Why is Jeremiah 31:31-34 interpreted by Catholic Christians to point toward Jesus?
- 📝 How do I know when to cross myself during Mass (Novus Ordo)?
- 📝 What is the name of the view that the Earth is 4 billion years old, but God inserted human beings 5000 years ago?
- 📝 Do the Gnostic Gospels exist online anywhere in original Coptic?
- 📝 Can the Pope speak ex cathedra about the return of Christ?
- 📝 What is the basis for the argument that Jesus DID have the ability to give in to temptation?
- 📝 Why is the Exsultet so keen on bees?
- 📝 What's the Greek manuscripts of John with the oldest discovery date?
- 📝 Why cannot I believe in other religions as a Christian?
- 📝 How do Biblical Unitarians understand "the glory of the Father's own self" that Jesus claims he had before the world was?
- 📝 Does the Bible require us to vote?
- 📝 Is there any Christian theological model for a non-literal ark?
- 📝 Joseph Smith Translation of verses in Isaiah 42 vs the Great Isaiah Scroll
- 📝 What is the meaning of the stained glass above the altar at Votivkirche in Wien with the Portuguese Quinas on it?
- 📝 Why is the use of certain common words offensive?
- 📝 What is theological root of global warming skepticism?
- 📝 How did "credibile est, quia ineptum est" become "credo quia absurdum"?
- 📝 How long was David on the run from Saul?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Who is Mammon whom Jesus warned of in Sermon of the Mount?
- 📝 Who were the "scribes" whom Jesus often disputes against in the canonical gospels?
- 📝 Sermon on the mount by Jesus Christ
- 📝 Why did the apostle John call himself, "the disciple whom Jesus loved"?
- 📝 Who resurrected Jesus - the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 To whom should we pray? To the Father or the son Jesus or the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 According to Protestantism, what is the significance of Jesus and the Mount of Transfiguration?
- 📝 For people who believe in Jesus and not the devil, what happened in the desert?
- 📝 When was Jesus anointed and who did the anointing?
- 📝 What does the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints teach about who Jesus is and where He came from?
- 📝 Who could have watched the veil of the temple tear when Jesus died?
- 📝 Do people who adhere to the Immaculate Conception of Mary believe that Mary and Jesus were both conceived in the same fashion?
- 📝 If only those who died after Jesus death are among the ones that go to heaven, how do JWs view the ascension of Elijah?
- 📝 How does the Jehovah’s Witness view of who Jesus Christ is differ from Protestant Trinitarian Christology?
- 📝 On what basis was Jesus’ death sufficient for redemption according Non-Trinitarians who maintain that Jesus was not eternal God as God the Father is?
- 📝 Who is Jesus referring to when he is speaking to the daughters of Jerusalem?
- 📝 Since there is only one God who is not formed then how can the Jehovah’s Witnesses claim that Jesus is a created god?
- 📝 How do those who interpret John 10:30 as a claim to full divine equality by Jesus also interpret John 10:29, which says the Father is greater?
- 📝 Do preterists who profess the two-age model believe that Jesus is still with us?
- 📝 Is the sermon on the mount intended for unbelievers?
- 📝 How was Jesus the Seed of David if Jesus is God who created Man (Adam), and David is the seed of Adam?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, does Jesus condemn those who don't believe?
- 📝 For those who deny the Immaculate Conception, why did Jesus not have original sin?
- 📝 According to Jehovah's Witnesses and Unitarians and all who deny that Jesus is the Almighty God, how can He be in you and live in you?
- 📝 Why didn't Jesus want the demon possessed people to tell who he was?
- 📝 Was Pilate also the father of the son who was healed by Jesus in John 4?
- 📝 Why did Jesus confront the official who had slapped Him in the presence of the High Priest?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, whom does Jesus refer to as the “ruler of this world” in Jn 16:11?
- 📝 For those who deny the deity of Jesus Christ how do you explain Isaiah seeing Christ/Messiah with his physical eyes at Isaiah 6:1?
- 📝 How do those who hold Jesus = God in the Trinitarian sense account for Paul's reticence to state this clearly and consistently?