What is the Jewish Targum?

TL;DR:

The Jewish Targum is a paraphrase translation of and commentary on Old Testament texts. While the Targum can be useful for understanding the historical context of certain passages, it should never be considered on par with God’s Word.

what does the bible say?

The Bible indicates that believers should read, study, and meditate on God’s Word. Resources like study Bibles, commentaries, and the Jewish Targum are some ways to gain more insight into Scripture, but those resources should never be put on par with the inspired Word of God.

Several parts of the Bible indicate that we should read God’s word carefully as it serves as guidance for our lives. When God gave the Israelites the Law, He exhorted them to know it well and meditate on it (Deuteronomy 6:6-7; Joshua 1:8). Likewise, in the New Testament, Paul writes to Timothy about the divine inspiration of Scripture and how important it is to use it to guide our lives (2 Timothy 3:16-17). But the Bible also contains warnings to differentiate humankind’s wisdom from God’s. The Lord noted this distinction through the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 55:9-10). Jesus chastised Jewish religious leaders of His day for adding their own content to the Law and, in the process, subverting the spirit of the Law (Matthew 23; Mark 7:8). Though many useful Bible resources exist, none of them is above the Word of God.

from the old testament

Jewish editions of the Hebrew Bible that contain commentary still tend to print the Targum alongside the text. In scholarly studies, the Targum helps modern readers learn how a biblical passage has been understood historically. In this sense, the Targum is one way to study God’s word, as God commanded the Israelites to do: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Joshua 1:8).
Resources like the Targum can provide helpful insight to one way a passage of Scripture can be understood and applied but should not be put on the same level as God’s word. Isaiah 55:8-9 points out the difference between humankind’s ideas and the mind of God: “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

from the new testament

The Targum is an interpreter's personal reflection on the Scripture and is not itself the Word of God. This means that the Targum writers could be wrong in what they present. Jesus criticized the Jewish religious leaders of His day for “leav[ing] the commandment of God and hold[ing] to the tradition of men” (Mark 7:8). Commentaries on Scripture can never have the authority of Scripture.
Paul tells Timothy that the Bible is “profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). We should study and meditate on God’s Word, using extra-biblical resources as needed, but never considering it as inspired Scripture.

implications for today

“Can’t see the forest for the trees”—you’ve probably heard that and may have even said it. The idea is that sometimes we’re so into something that we lose perspective on it and can’t see the bigger picture. It’s like standing nose-to-canvas in a museum; you wouldn’t know what the painting depicted because you’re standing too close to it.

This can happen with Bible study as well. We can do a whole lot of extrabiblical study—-devotionals, Bible podcasts, commentaries—without immersing ourselves in the most important text: the Bible itself.

For Jewish students of the Old Testament and for some Christians, the Targum may be one of those extrabiblical resources. The Targum, which began as Aramaic translations of Hebrew texts moved beyond that to include commentary that helps modern readers learn how a biblical passage has been understood historically. But that means that it’s an interpreter's personal reflection on the Scripture and is not itself the Word of God—comparable to The Living Bible or The Message today. Those are different authors’ paraphrases of Scripture rather than more exact word-for-word or phrase-for-phrase translations of the original Hebrew or Greek texts. The Targum can provide helpful insight to one way a passage of Scripture can be understood and applied but should not be seen as the definitive or only way to understand that part of God's holy Word.

understand

The Targum is an Aramaic paraphrase and commentary on the Old Testament.
The Targum offers historical insight but is not inspired Scripture.
The Bible itself remains the ultimate authority for faith and practice.

reflect

How often do you rely on extra-biblical resources, and how careful are you to let God’s Word remain your ultimate authority?
How might you be tempted to value human interpretations over the Bible itself, and how can you guard against that?
How can you use resources like the Targum or commentaries to enhance your understanding without putting them above God’s Word?

engage

How do we discern between helpful insights from commentaries like the Targum and the authority of God’s Word?
How might relying too heavily on human interpretations distort our understanding of what the Bible says?
How can our study habits ensure that the Bible itself remains central, even while using other resources for context?