Sections:

Section 1: Who Was Philo?

Section 2: Proof Philo Wrote the Old Testament Apocrypha book of The Wisdom of Solomon

Section 3: Proof Philo Wrote the book of Hebrews

Section 4: Answering Concerns

Section 5: Fruits of These Revelations

Section 6: Warnings: Translations and Infancy of His Earliest Writings

Section 7: Philo On Other Multiple Topics

Section 8: Manuscripts

Section 1: Who Was Philo?

Philo was a very important leader of the Jewish community in Alexandria, Egypt, which is a location that is extremely important to bible history. He kept and promoted the observance of the biblical festivals. He refused to worship the Roman emperor as god. He wrote many scrolls about the bible especially about Genesis, Exodus, the law, the nature of God, the soul of man, wisdom and most importantly, he wrote that "the Logos" of God (The Word of God) is the Son of God and is the High Priest! His works include references to the Son of God, the Word, sheep with no shepherd, fishermen letting down their nets, the woman taken in adultery, rising up in the air to be with the Lord, and being tested like gold by fire! Philos wrote in Dreams 1.XXXVII (1.215) "For there are, as it seems, two temples belonging to God; one being this world, in which the high priest is the divine logos, his own firstborn son." "Logos" is the Greek word in John 1 and other bible scripture verses translated as "the word" when referring to Jesus as being "the word" of God. Therefore, very clearly he believed in Jesus as God and wrote much about Jesus without actually using his name, until he wrote the book of Hebrews.

With all of these amazing facts, what I want to know, is why have most modern day church pastors failed to tell the church about Philo? In the first few centuries of the Christian church, he was well known and well respected, and rightfully so.

Early Church "Fathers" and Historians

John 10:16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Did you read the above scriptures in your personal paperback/hardback bible today or just only on this website?
If only online, I encourage you to please open your bible and read these verses both on our website and in your bible. There is power in reading the real bible. Also, did you pray before beginning to read about this specific subject today? If not, I encourage you to take the time now to pray for understanding of truth.

-Josephus said that Philo was "a man respected in every way". Antiquities 18.258.

-Early apologist Justin Martyr (100 AD) believed Plato spoke well in proportion to the share he had of the word. Source

-Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria (c. 150 – c. 215), an Alexandrian philosopher wrote in support of Philo and Plato. Clement specifically referred to Philo on 4 occasions, but quoted Philo's works even more often. Source = Why Does Clement of Alexandria Call Philo "The Pythagorean?" Vigiliae Christianae Vol. 49, No. 1 (Mar., 1995), pp. 1-22 by David T. Runia.

-Eusebius (AD 260/265 – 339/341) wrote much about Philo, respected him greatly and claimed that Philo had met Peter in Rome. That is extremely important, because if Philo had not yet learned about the identity of the divine Word and Son of God, he surely would have been told by Peter.

-Jerome (345-420 A.D.) lists him as a church Father.

Section 2: Proof Philo Wrote the Old Testament Apocrypha Book of The Wisdom of Solomon

Section 3: Proof Philo Wrote the Book of Hebrews

Date of Hebrews:

Prominent German theologian and church historian, Adolf Von Harnack (1851-1930) at one time believed that Hebrews was written around 65 A.D. before Matthew, Luke, Acts, John and many other books, maybe around the same time as Mark or even possibly before Mark. But later Harnack changed his mind and said that some of these books were older than Hebrews. Although he changed his mind, there was at least a time that he felt that there was evidence that Hebrews was earlier than most of the New Testament books. Some people place the book of Hebrews as early as 63 before all 4 gospels + Acts & Revelation, but not earlier than some of Paul's writings.
The fact that Hebrews was not well accepted by the Roman Catholic Church until 2 or 3 centuries after Christ, and the fact that author's name is hidden from the manuscripts, as well as these same similarities of anonymity and reluctance against the Old Testament Apocrypha book of "the Wisdom of Solomon", seems to indicate a relationship between the 2 books.

The Wisdom of Solomon, written by Philo, was the very last book of the Old Testament written. Whereas, I believe that Hebrews was the very first book written of the New Testament, or at least the first book of the New Testament not written by Paul. The Wisdom of Solomon, and then the book of Hebrews, both serve as a bridge for Jews to cross over from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant and the acceptance of the promised Messiah.
Many people date Hebrews as being as late as 65 AD because the last few verses declare that Timothy was just released from prison. Bible scholar Raymond Brown (1928 – 1998) notes that in the year 64, Paul left Timothy at Ephesus, to govern that church. Therefore, it's possible that Timothy could have been arrested as early as the year 64-65. However, it's not impossible for the date to have been earlier. And the dates of the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are also debated. We simply don't know the exact dates of the writing of Hebrews, the date of Philo's death or the writings of other books of the New Testament. Therefore it would be wrong to say with absolute certainly/surety that Hebrews was written after Philo died. His traditional death date of 50 A.D. is only a mere conjuncture which can't be proven and I have not seen any proof of that decade at all. All solid evidence of writing style, words used, context, comparisons with the Wisdom of Solomon and with Philo's acknowledged writings, all prove that Philo wrote the book of Hebrews, as well as the Wisdom of Solomon. Therefore I believe that either Hebrews was written before 50 AD, or that Philo lived until at least 65 AD, or both. And neither can be proven wrong.

Significance of The Title of Hebrews

Outline of Hebrews' Chapters Compared With Philo's Teachings

Comparisons of Hebrews with Philos:
Both Philo and the Author Of Hebrews Used Many Previously Unknown Words And Also "Compound Words".

Philo was the first extant writer of many previously unknown Greek words and phrases and also used many compound words. Source:
Philo and the Church Fathers: A Collection of Papers. By Douwe (David) Runia. Chapter 5 Pages 102-103.

Of all registered nouns and verbs it is important to notice that in the Letter to the Hebrews, 81.04 percent of them are also recognizable in the writings of Philo and in relation to all lemmas in the entire New Testament they represent 15.27 percent. Source= Fuglseth, K. (2003). Common Words in the New Testament and Philo.

Both Philo Posterity XVIII 64 and Hebrews 4:4 quote Gen.2:2 by adding "The Theos in", despite no there is no known manuscript of the Septuagint of Gen.2:2 that include these words.

Hebrews 8:5 and Leg. III., 102. quote of Exodus 25:40 where both authors add the Greek word #3956 panta (all things).

Hebrews 13:5 and Confusion XXXII. 166 quote of Joshua 1:5 conflated with several other scriptural passages, Deut. 31:8 and possibly Gen 28:15. Both texts employ this composite text in almost the same form “οὐ μή σε ἀνῶ οὔδ’ οὐ μὴ σε ἐγκαταλίπω.” Ibid 12 says the same!

The Image of God

Wisdom 7:25-26 "For She (Wisdom) is a breath/word of the power (1411) of God, and an emanation/brightness (G541) of the pure glory of the Almighty (Majesty on high), on account of which no polluted thing can enter into her: for [she] ["wisdom"—v. 24] is the brightness/effulgence (G541) of the eternal light; and a spotless mirror of the power of God and image of His goodness."

G541 = effulgence; refulgence; brightness; the shining-forth; brilliant radiance" etc. Only used here and Heb 1:3.
Only used in these two places in the entire Greek Bible!
Both Wisdom 7:25-26 and Hebrews 1:3 also use Greek 1411 for power (as well as many verses in the bible do.)
Both also refer to image and breath/word and glory although they use different words for these.

Colossians 1:12-19
12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist (hold together).
(Paul learned this from Philo. Philo said in "On Flight And Finding" (Yonge’s title: A Treatise on Fugitives) XX. 112 "for the word of the living God being the bond of every thing, as has been said before, holds all things together, and binds all the parts, and prevents them from being loosened or separated.)
18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

On The Confusion Of Tongues XXVIII. (Translated by I Saw The Light Ministries 2020)
(146) And even if there be not as yet any one who is worthy to be called a son of God, nevertheless let him labour earnestly to be adorned according to his first-born word, the eldest of his messengers, as the great arch messenger of many names; for he is called, 'the authority, and the name of God, and the Word, and man according to God’s image, and he who sees Israel'. (147) For which reason I was induced a little while ago to praise the principles of those who said, “We are all one man’s sons.”{43}{Genesis 42:11.} For even if we are not yet suitable to be called the sons of God, still we may deserve to be called the children of his eternal image, of his most sacred word; for the image of God is his most ancient word.

Dreams 1. XXXVII. (1.215) “There are 2 temples of God, and one is this cosmos, wherein the High Priest is the Firstborn Son, the Divine Logos.”

God Sword By Himself, Moses Faithful in His House

Hebrews 3:1-2 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house.

Alleg Interp3.LXXII.
(203) Accordingly he speaks with reference to the perfect man Abraham in the following manner: “By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, that because thou hast done this thing and hast not withheld thy son, thy beloved son from me, that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven, and as the sand which is on the shore of the sea.”{103}{Genesis 22:16.} He says this, and having confirmed his promise solemnly and by an oath, and by an oath, too, such as could alone become God. For you see that God does not swear by any other being than himself, for there is nothing more powerful than he is; but he swears by himself, because he is the greatest of all things. (204) But some men have said that it is inconsistent with the character of God to swear at all; for that an oath is received for the sake of the confirmation which it supplies; but God is the only faithful being, and if any one else who is dear to God; as Moses is said to have been faithful in all his house.{104}{Numbers 12:7.}

The Faith Chapter

Hebrews 11:4-23: Abel with Cain, Enoch, Noah, Abraham/Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses.
Wisdom 10 doesn't list the names as we see in Hebrews 11. But it does describe each of the same persons in the same order.
The exceptions would be Lot and Enoch which are not listed in parallel in both. Nevertheless, all of the names listed are in the exact same order, in only one chapter in both Old and New Testament and does include not just 1, 2 or 3 names, but 6 names of people who showed great faith and wisdom.

Abraham and the other testimony witnesses of faith did not yet receive the promises, but expected the afar off.
Hebrews 11:8-13
8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.
12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.
13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Faith of Noah Pg. 1492 Questions and Answers on Genesis 2, Section 11
Abraham.IX IX. (43) And Moses speaks very cautiously, inasmuch as he defines not the present time but the future in the promise which he records, when he says, "Not that which I do show you, but that which I will show You;" as a testimony to the faith with which the soul believed in God, showing its gratitude not by what had been already done, but by its expectation of the future; (44) for being kept in a state of suspense and eagerness by good hope, and thinking that even what was not present would beyond all question be present immediately, on account of its most certain faith in him who had promised, it found a reward, the perfect good; for in another passage it is said that Abraham believed in God. Compare Gal. 3:6

Philo basically called The Son of God the resurrection and Jesus said that He was the resurrection.

Luke 1:78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring (G395 - anatolē, rising) from on high hath visited us.
G395 - anatolē translated as rising in Rev. 7:2.

John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

Rev.22:16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

Malachi 4:2 But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

Hebrews 13:24 Mentions Italy

Why Apollos Can't Be Author of Hebrews

Section 4: Answering Concerns

Concerns About Platonism

https://geekychristian.com/christianitys-platonic-heaven/
Early apologist Justin Martyr (100 AD) believed Plato “spoke well in proportion to the share he had of the spermatic word”. While recognizing that there were clear differences between the two teachings, Justin did find much similarity between Platonic philosophy and Christianity. This admiration for Plato was shared by other apologetic writers, especially Athenagoras. They had a reverence for Platonic teaching, and made frequent reference to it, sometimes quoting entire passages from Plato while making a defense of the Christian faith.

http://aaronsimms.com/plato-and-socrates-christians/
It may come as a surprise that many of the early Christian apologists viewed the Greek philosophers Plato and Socrates very highly. Justin Martyr, in his First and Second Apologies (written mid-2nd century AD) mentions both philosophers many times, as do Tertullian and Athenagoras in their apologies of the same time period.

http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0259-94222011000100068
'On Earth as it is in Heaven ...' The heavenly sanctuary motif in Hebrews 8:5 and its textual connection with the 'shadowy copy' of LXX Exodus 25:40. According to Plato, the earthly priests were only serving in a shadowy copy of the heavenly sanctuary. This Platonic concept that the earthly is a shadow of the reality (cf. Plato Resp. 7.515a–b), that is, his theory of ideas and then the particular use of u(podei/gmati kai\ skia|~ (copy and shadow) (Heb 8:5) by Hebrews, led scholars to believe that we have Platonic influence here (Attridge 1989:219; Weiss 1991:437; Sowers 1965:109–110), or new Platonic thoughts via Philo. However, some scholars are skeptical and have formed another opinion (e.g. Wilson 1987:135). Ellingworth (2000).

Concerns About Philo's Opinion of Females

Concerns About God Not Being A "Being"

Concerns About Pagan Gods

Concerns About Angels

Concerns About Female Wisdom Referring to God

The only thing that Philo is doing is using the same gender of wisdom that Solomon did in Proverbs, and then referring to God has being the very essence of all wisdom, since God is the source of all wisdom, righteousness and law. Philo is not claiming that God is female or half female or bisexual. And he's not really calling God a mother. But rather just continuing Solomon's analogical usage of wisdom as a female/sister/mother. It's all symbolism, not literal. Therefore, there's no real need for such concern.

Concerns About Trinity and Multiple Gods
The Logos Explained

Philo also referred to God as the "logos", "wisdom", "the firstborn", "the image", "the high priest", etc. But it's clear that he wasn't promoting many creator gods. He was writing about the many attributes and roles and manifestations of God. However, he correctly taught that before the creation of physical things including angels, God had to first create a vessel of his own glory, a way to speak to the angels and to mankind in a way that they would be able to understand. God basically had to create for Himself a "speaker phone", a translator, a word, a logos, a mediator between God and creation. But the logos/word/Jesus was/is still God the creator. The logos was God and the logos was with God, John 1. The logos was the vessel/instrument/mediator voice that God created for Himself within Himself, as part of Himself, even thousands or millions or billions of years before the birth of Christ. The logos is not a 2nd or 3rd person or 2nd or 3rd god head. There's no such trinity. The logos is the same as if we had never before spoken out loud, and had never heard anyone else speak in our entire life, and then we decided in our mind to make sound and speak intelligently for the first time from within our own vocal cords without previous training or teaching. But we would speak only gibberish, but God spoke intelligently. If Jesus prayed to the Father, then why can't the Father say "Let us make man in our image"? But He didn't say let us make man in our images. Our image is still referring to one God, and the verb form in these verses all refer to a singular subject. The verses do not prove a trinity, but rather prove that Jesus existed within The Father, while still being The Father, Creator of the universe. Philo never wrote the word "trinity", nor did he ever write that God is three persons or three beings or three spirits.
The logos is a vessel of God's presence and is not a separate person. Therefore God did not create a new person or new spirit or new being. The logos is not a separate person/being/spirit. "Us" in Genesis is not persons/beings/spirits, or even gods, but rather parts and manifestations of the single one God. When Philo uses the word "assistants", that's technically correct (except for the plural form of the word) because the logos was a vessel/instrument of assistance. The problem with the plural could be a mistranslation, which I will look into. Or it could be a temporary moment in lapse in judgment on Philo's part. We are all guilty of contradicting ourselves at some times and having those "senior moments". But I believe that overall, Philo's teachings are mostly correct. I admit that I have not read every word of all of his writings, which is on my "to do" list. And I will be editing and adding onto this article over the next few days, weeks and months. This article will remain a work in progress, as I read.

Philo explains The Logos in On The Creation: VI 24 to VIII 31. In that section, he explains that The Logos, which is the image of GOD, which is the water of life, the breath of life and the light of the world, is the divine reasoning of GOD, which he also calls "the idea of ideas" or the image of images. Many people do not like the traditional bible translation of the Greek word "logos" as "the word" in John 1 and other places. Many present many different possible alternative translations. And we are never going to be able to satisfy everyone. I have always felt that "the word" is truly the best translation. Now upon much further study and revelation and understanding and learning, I now declare that "The Logos" is still best translated as "The Word", but could also be translated as the "outward manifestation/vessel of speech and/or appearance" or to be much more brief, "The Vessel". The Vessel functions at times as a bull horn (megaphone, loudspeaker), and other times as an image, and He also functioned as the Passover Lamb of GOD. He was King Melchizedek, and the pillar of cloud and pillar of fire, the fire at the burning bush and the one whom Jacob wrestled with. He is coming back as The King of kings and The Lord of lords. "The Word" is still the best one word translation because God created the world via his breath and with spoken speech. Most of the time when The Vessel is manifested to mankind, He is manifested so that He can speak to us in a way that won't kill us. The word "logos" when not referring to GOD but rather the speech of humans all throughout the bible, is correctly translated as "word" or "spoke", etc. Therefore the people who try to demand that the bible translate The Logos of GOD as "reasoning", "mind" or other words, are being unreasonable and stubborn. "The Word" is the best translation considering all things.

Section 5: Fruits of These Revelations

Section 6: Warnings: Translations and Infancy of His Earliest Writings

English Translations:

Old Covenant Theology

Wrong Doctrine of Angels Giving The Law

Section 7: Philo On Other Multiple Topics

Section 8: Manuscripts

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