HEBREW WORD STUDY – LAWYERS – SAPHRA (ARAMAIC) ספרא
Luke 11:52: “Woe unto you, lawyers! for ye have taken away the key of knowledge: ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered.”
Some translations says: “Woe to you experts in law,” others say “law scholars” or “teachers in law.” The word in Greek is nomikois which is one who is an expert in the law, specifically the laws of the Old Testament. In the Aramaic the word is saphra where we get the word scribe. The Scribes were the lawyers of their day. Actually, anyone who was literate, that is could read or write was a saphra and automatically held a leadership rule in his community. He could interpret Scripture because he could read it. Others had to just listen to it being read, but a saphra could study it.
In a real sense what Jesus is talking about is religious intimidation. Because the saphra’s could read they had the key to knowledge but many saphra’s never really studied Scripture in depth, they faked it and who could prove them wrong as no one else could read. If someone came up with some deep knowledge the saphras would shoot it down by saying: “Well, I have studied this in the Hebrew.” By doing this Jesus said they hinder others from entering into knowledge from God that God may have revealed to them without their ability to read. Nobody dared to disagree with a saphra because the intimidation really worked. Jesus condemned this in no uncertain terms.
I wonder how many pastors with seminary degrees or Bible College teachers with PhD’s have used their diplomas to intimate the uneducated? Don’t look my way because I just raised my hand.