Ask:

By Gary L. Fiscus, 2024

 

            “I am not sure I understand the difference between a proselyte and a Hellenist. Can you explain?”

          A proselyte is anyone who converts to a new religion. The word proselyte comes from the Greek meaning “one who comes or draws near.”  The idea and meaning is exemplified in Ex. 12:49, “One law shall be to him that is home-born, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.”  A “sojourner” is defined by at least three specifics:

          1) To turn aside from the road

          2) To shrink or fear

          3) To gather, assemble, stand in awe.

 

          The idea is that one would join himself to a group or circumstances that would distinguish him as a part of that assembly.  A proselyte would be anyone shifting from one group or cause to another. A Hellenist in particular would be a Hebrew who practiced Greek tradition and followed Greek culture.

 

          At Matt. 23:15, we read, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is become so, ye make him twofold more a son of hell than yourselves.” Then at Acts 2:10 and 6:5 the reading is, “In Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt and the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and sojourners from Rome, both Jews and proselytes. . .  And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus a proselyte of Antioch.”

 

The above Exodus 12:49 scripture helps us to understand that an Old Testament person became a proselyte when he was converted to the Mosaic law, no longer being identified with the paganism of the Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, etc.  The Matthew 23 and Acts 6 references tell us that New Covenant folks were called proselytes when they became followers of Christ. Is being a proselyte important?

 

  • When one is converted to the Lord it means that he has “put off the old man,” (Eph. 4:22 & Col. 3:9). By his conversion and his becoming a Christian he shows the world that God loves all men and women and wants them all to love and obey Him in order to be saved.
  • The proselyte’s allegiance to Jesus shows that he has faith in a religion that is not superstitious but has divine blessings, (Acts 17:22ff). The word “religion” in the Acts passage is defined as “being TOO superstitious,” with emphasis on the word “TOO.” Mr. Strong, in his dictionary, says that superstition also means faithLESS and fearful. Superstitious is also inclusive of the distribution of fortunes, demons and/or having a bad nature. The Acts 17:22 scripture is also the only time in the New Testament the word is used. The divine blessings mentioned above might be in the form of protection from evil as one allows the Spirit of God to dwell in him through His word. It is as Paul said in Gal. 2:20, “It is not I who live, but Christ lives in me.”
  • By being a proselyte, one demonstrates to others his commitment; that may, in turn, influence someone else to come to the Savior. This formula is expressed by Paul to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2, “And the things which thou hast heard from me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” It is again revealed at Galatians 6:6, “But let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.”

          Back to our original question and answer, “If a proselyte is one who converts to a new religion or philosophy, generally speaking, then what is a Hellenist?” Greek cities referred to themselves as Hellenes. They named their country Hellas.  Actually, the official name for Greece is The Hellenic Republic. A citizen of Greece is actually a Hellene.

 

          Some Bible versions translate Hellenists as Grecian Jews. They are not Grecian Jews but Jews who follow the Greek way of life. The NASB uses Hellenists to refer to Jews, but that needs some clarification. A Jew outside of Palestine might be called a Hellenist, again, if he follows not the Hebrew way but the Grecian way.

 

          The mingling of Jew and Gentile cultures began with Alexander the Great. We are told that he moved 8,000 Jews into Egypt. This was done to populate his city of Alexandria. Secular history also adds that Jews were spread throughout northern Africa by various rulers. Two of the more prominent leaders were Seleucus Nicantor and Antiochus Epiphanes. (Epiphanes was the emperor who sacrificed the sow. (female hog) on God’s altar, circa 156. B.C. after the Maccabean Revolt.)  I mention this only because of the involvement of the Hellenized Jews during this war. The main phase of the revolt lasted from 167 to 160 B.C.  It ended with the Seleucids in control of Judea. The conflict between the Maccabees, Hellenized Jews, and the Seleucids continued until 134 BCE. The Maccabees eventually gained their independence.

 

To conclude, a Hellenist was a Jew who followed Greek philosophy instead of Hebrew practices. A proselyte is one who rededicates his/her faith in another religion or philosophy. The Acts 17:22 scripture has the apostle warning the Greeks of Athens that their paganism was superstition. Being a Christian is a matter of faith and obedience, not faithLESSness. It is imperative that we understand why Paul said in another place, “Take heed lest there shall be anyone that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ” (Col. 2:8). Ask yourself if you are simply a dedicated Christian through faith and obedience to the cause of Jesus or if you are merely superstitious and place faith in nothing but that which is demonic and fiendish, perhaps involved in the distribution of fortunes?