The Use of Cheriographion in the Entirety of the Bible

     The term “cheirographion appears only once in all of the Bible. It does not appear in the Septuagint (LXX) translation of the Old Testament. Therefore, we do not have a scriptural witness to assist us in determining how the word was used during Paul’s lifetime.

Strong’s Number G5498

χειρόγραφον

          cheirographon khi-rog'-raf-on Neuter of a compound of G5495 and G1125; 

          something hand written (“chirograph”), that is, a manuscript 

          (specifically a legal document or bond (figuratively)): - handwriting.

According to Thayer’s Dictionary it is:

1) a handwriting, what one has written by his own hand

2) a note of hand or writing in which one acknowledges that money has either been deposited with him or lent to him by another, to be returned at the appointed time.”

Notice that Thayer's does NOT indicate in any way this is a reference to the Torah; the Law of Moses; the instructions of Yahweh; or the law of the Jews.

As I said, we do not have other Biblical evidence to help us determine the meaning of “cheirographion.” We can state with 100% assurance that it is NEVER used in the Greek translation (LXX) of the Old Testament to refer to the Torah of Moses; or its statutes; commandments; judgments; ordinances; or testimonies. 

What we DO have however is extra biblical evidence from documents written in Greek as to how the term was used thanks to research by Dr. Samuele Bacchiocchi in his discussion on Colossians from his monumental work From Sabbath to Sunday. No doubt some will curl their lips in disdain because Bacchiocchi was a Seventh Day Adventist. Here is my challenge to you. I recognize that some of their doctrine is patently false and has zero biblical footing. However it is not the doctrine that is false I am examining; but rather doctrine that has sound biblical footing attested to by the prophets (the Mission of the Messiah). We must not throw out the baby with the bath water. Please excuse the metaphor however I assert we must learn to "eat chicken and spit out the bones."

The cheirographion was a legal term that was used to refer to the written evidence of a person’s guilt in the courtroom. It was also used to refer to debt that was owed by a debtor. In the case of a person’s guilt even today in courtrooms across America those who are being prosecuted by the State for criminal actions have paperwork that lists the statutes or section of the State; or, Federal Law that have been violated (broken). The legal documents cite the “offense” by the “offender.” It tells them the law they have broken AND there is a description of the crime of the offender. What he or she did, and how they broke it. The “cheirographion” was the written record of the law broken. 

In the case of “debt” I find its use even more intriguing. When a debtor owed money to a creditor it would sometimes be recorded using a clay tablet also called the “cheirographion.” When the debtor satisfied or extinguished the debt through payment the creditor would drive a stake through the clay tablet which shattered the record effectively destroying it; or in other words taking it out of the way, removing it. The debt wasn’t always written on clay and could also be handwritten on papyrus, cloth or other medium. The clay tablet with the spike being driven through it just happened to be the most stimulating of the options which struck a chord as I was reading.

Since “cheirographion” was a legal term lets us consider it under the context of a legal courtroom. There you are standing before the King of Kings and to your right is the accuser, the prosecuting attorney so to speak, who is intent on winning his case and sending you to the slammer. He loves his job and happens to have an excellent memory citing every date, time and description of every offense you have ever committed against the Father by the transgression of the Torah of Moses "the law;" the instructions given by Yahweh which define sin; to distinguish between holy and profane; clean and unclean; righteousness vs wickedness. Unfortunately this record isn’t something fabricated, it is legitimate and Yahweh (the Father) being the judge that He is cannot and will not lie. He acknowledges that the record is the real deal. He already knows the who; what; when; where; and how of our offenses.

Fortunately for us we have a counselor who knows the Torah "the law" better than the adversary; and, He is our mediator; or, our Advocate.

          And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 1 John 2:1

You assert that the written Torah of Moses passed away. What we will find is that the phrase "handwriting of ordinances" is integral in understanding what "law" was passed away, or abolished. In fact what we will discover is that these "ordinances" are contained IN decrees and this phrase is NEVER used to describe the Torah of Moses.

If the Torah of Moses is what passed away, then the instrument which God gave to Israel through His servant Moses no longer exists to DEFINE SIN. The Torah of Moses was not designed to save us from our sin; but rather was designed to identify behavior that God calls clean vs. unclean; holy vs. profane; righteous vs. wicked. If there is no longer a written record describing what sin is to mankind then how can we correct others? How can we define the RIGHT way to walk vs. the WRONG way to walk? If there no longer exists a document defining sin, then there is no longer ANY behavior which we can identify as sinful and NOBODY is considered righteous; likewise NOBODY is considered WICKED.

If the Torah of Moses passed away then it isn’t possible for mankind to sin, because the instructions of YHWH no longer stands to condemn ANYONE. If the Law is passed away then there is no longer a record of debt for Yeshua to extinguish; because by abolishing the very thing which you and I violated we become free to perform any and all manner of what was previously called SIN. There is no more clean or unclean; no more Holy or wicked; no more righteous or profane behavior. If the Torah of Moses has passed away then YHWH Himself is a liar because HE said frequently that the statutes; commandments; judgments; and ordinances were FOREVER. 

This is the message that our adversary wants mankind to believe. He desires that we believe we are free to act any way we please and we won't be held responsible. He is playing it out today and calling it "tolerance." We are to tolerate the transgender who wants to use the bathroom with our wives and children. We are to tolerate the pedophile. We are to tolerate the adulterer; the liar; the thief; the rapist; the murderer; we are to tolerate those of other religions who seek to kill us. Meanwhile those who are screaming the loudest for tolerance are frequently the MOST intolerant of others who don't share their viewpoint. 

If there is no longer any record of debt; because sin has passed way, then why do we need to preach the good word about Yeshua? If sin no longer exists then I have no need for salvation; or for a Messiah. The adversary would LOVE for you and I to fall victim to such a scam and sadly many already have. How then will the wicked be judged if the statutes; commandments; judgments; ordinances; and testimonies of YHWH the Torah of Moses "the Law" is passed away? If you say that they will be judged because they fail to believe in Messiah I ask you this. What need do they have to believe in a Messiah if the instrument defining their guilt has been extinguished? SERIOUSLY think about that for a minute. 

If the legal instrument that is used to define sin is set aside then you CANNOT be guilty of breaking it. If the state of California were to throw out all the traffic laws; and all the other laws as well; then you and I could drive as fast as we want; as recklessly as we want; run stop lights; ignore stop signs; plow through crowds in our cars killing whoever we want; rob banks; rape whoever we want; sexually assault a neighbors girlfriend or wife simply because we think she's hot and want to get our groove on with her. Never mind that she doesn't want to because it's ok now since the law doesn't apply. That awesome car you spent the last five years paying for; give it to me NOW because I WANT IT. Is THAT really the type of uncivilized society you want to live in?

We must correct our thinking. Yeshua has paid our penalty. He didn’t remove the laws you or I broke from existence, he paid the debt record. He extinguished the “cheirographion” by driving a stake through it as he hung on the cross paying the price for our disobedience; our rebellion; our state of apostasy.

Since the record has already been paid, when the adversary tries to admit the “cheirographion” as evidence against us it is declared inadmissible in court. Why? Because it has been blotted out, extinguished, already paid, and destroyed by the spike that shattered the brittle clay removing the record. He cannot lay his hands upon the physical debt record to produce it as evidence because it no longer exists!!!

The claim that the Law of Moses is what was nailed to the cross is simply a by-product of poor scholarship; AND, a lack of understanding of the Torah itself. It is a tactic used by the adversary to beguile mankind into forsaking the instructions of YHWH and staying out of the five most important books of the Bible, the very foundation. That idea reminds me of the following passage declared by a servant of YHWH in Psalms 11:3:

     If the foundations be destroyed what can the righteous do?

By keeping us out of the foundation Satan and his workers keep men ignorant of the truth, and unaware of the timing of Christ’s return, and the many blessings that belong to us if we are willing to be obedient and lay our pride at the feet of the King as we ask Him to change our hearts so that we may observe the very instructions YHWH written with His own finger when the Tables of Stone were given to Moses on Mt. Sinai.

If the Law of Moses was to be done away with then why did Yeshua tell the woman at the well to “go and sin no more?” If the Law of Moses was to be done away with then why did the Prophets of YHWH lament that the people and the priests had departed from it?

The version where Yeshua does away with the Law of Moses, the instructions of YHWH makes him sound like a slick lawyer, a Johnny Cochran that manipulates the instructions of YHWH by finding and exploiting a legal loophole to throw a wrench in the plans of His Father! Seriously! Think about it. Yeshua does away with the Law of Moses which He consistently pointed to as His defense? That makes ZERO sense. The Torah was the very thing He consistently and repetitively walked out in His life. It was His desire to show us how to walk it out ourselves. To think that Messiah abolishes the very thing he said NOT TO THINK HE DID is foolishness. If Messiah extinguished the Torah of Moses then how are the wicked not considered to be righteous?

If the law is gone and nothing defines sin then nobody is wicked, neither is anyone righteous either. If what he nailed to the cross was the Torah of Moses, then he didn’t nail your sin to the cross but the thing that defines what sin is. Why would He eliminate or cancel, or do away with, or make old, or void the very thing that shows you what sin is?

Let us consider the case of a man who is accused today of sleeping with his neighbor’s wife. Then, to make things worse he lies about it, discovers her pregnancy and then tries to cover it by paying for an abortion. Unfortunately this will do irreparable damage to his marriage once discovered and it may not survive even if he gives his life to the King of Kings. This man violated the Torah by coveting, then committing adultery, then lying, then committing murder. He has violated the trust of his wife, his neighbor and the Law of Moses all at the same time. In the course of actions he has violated BOTH of the two greatest commandments. He has not loved his neighbor as himself, nor has he loved God with all his heart, soul, and mind.

Does his coming to Yeshua eliminate the laws he has broken? Are you to insist that Yeshua did away with the commandment not to covet? Are you to insist that Yeshua did away with the commandment to Love my neighbor as myself? Are you to insist that Yeshua did away with the commandment not to commit adultery? Are you to insist that Yeshua did away with the commandment not to lie? Are you to insist that Yeshua did away with the commandment not to Murder? If these things are true then Yeshua has come to bring chaos which will reign supreme and destroy the earth. I assert to you that you have been taught a lie. And I seek to correct it because I love you. 

In an article written by Stephen W. Kraner titled What is the Cheirographion: The Handwritten Record of Debt, Kraner writes the following about an extra biblical record of the term Cheirographion:

          ‘In Judaism,’ as stated by E. Lohse, ‘the relationship between man and God was often

          described as that between a debtor and his creditor.’ For example a Rabbi said, ‘When a man 

          sins, God writes down the debt of death. If a man repents, the debt is canceled (i.e. declared 

          invalid). If he does not repent, what is recorded remains genuine (valid).’ 

          Tanhuma Midrash 140b; cf.SB III p. 628

It is interesting to consider that the roots of Christianity are Jewish; yet, most Christians reject the study of anything Jewish out of fear they will be converted to a Peyote wearing, Orthodox Jew who straps a Tefillin to their head and rocks back and forth as they pray at the western wall while being pelted above from Palestinian children throwing rocks. Or even worse they are repelled by the Anti-Semitism that already exists within their own heart, that springs forth from false teaching within “the church” itself! This repulsion at all things Jewish is what robs them of knowing even better the character and mannerisms of the one whom they claim to love and serve. The very one whose back was laid open in our stead. The very one whose beard was ripped from His face, who was mocked and spit upon, beaten, and tortured in a way I cannot fathom. Let us not forget that He too was Jewish, in fact even the King of the Jews. We should not despise what is "Jewish," we should love what Messiah loved, study it and TEST it. Friends I am going to assert to you there is a stark distinction between Phariseeism (which still exists today in Orthodox Judaism); and obeying the commandments of YHWH.

Although it is not accepted in the Biblical cannon the Apocalypse of Elijah was a work penned in both Hebrew; and, Greek which interestingly enough has a description of an angel who holds a book which is explicitly called a “cheirographion” in which sins are recorded. The interesting thing about this literature (although it is  questionable in origin) is that it indicates from a time period much closer to when Yeshua actually walked the earth that the "cheirographion” was considered to be a debt record of sin and NOT the statutes; commandments; judgments; ordinances; and testimonies of YHWH also known as the "Law of Moses."

If one really takes the time to examine the Law of Moses closely it cannot ever be considered to be a debt record of the sins of mankind. It is simply the instructions to us as to how we may walk and avoid falling into the snare of sin. The Law of Moses is a standard by which man is measured. It shows us what is sin and what it not sin. It tells us what is clean or unclean; what is Holy and what is profane; what is righteous and what is wicked. When we discover for example that lying is sinful then it should goad us to live a lifestyle where we strive to be truthful! Telling the truth doesn’t become legalism, it is a way to stay within the bounds of the instructions and not reap the curse that comes when we break it. For when we obey the law it brings about a blessing, but when we break it, it brings about a curse. Deuteronomy 11:26-28:

          "Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the 

          commandments of the LORD your God which I commanded you today; and  

          the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from 

          the way which I command you today..."

You may say "yes but no one can keep the law!" Apparently that is not what God thought. Turn to Deuteronomy 30: 11-16:

          For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, 

          nor is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will ascend into heaven or us and 

          bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?' Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 

          'Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?' 

          But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it. 

          See I have set before you today life and good, death and evil in that I command you today to 

          love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, and to keep His commandments, His statutes, 

          and His judgments, that you may live...I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, 

          that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore chose life, that both 

          you and your descendants may live; that you may love the LORD your God, that you may 

          obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days...

I never fail to hear Christians declare the following passage from the New Testament as they assert glorious victory over sin. Turn to  Philippians 4:13 please:

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Really? Do you REALLY believe that? Because if you do then how can you say it is impossible to be obedient to the instructions of the Father? Wouldn't "all things" include keeping Torah? Are you saying that your Messiah is unable to strengthen you to be obedient? Friends you should seriously chew on this. Do Christians not realize each time they assert that "no one can keep the law" they are declaring that Messiah is unable to strengthen them to do so?

Pay close attention to what Samuele Bacchiocchi has to say from his book: From Sabbath to Sunday, A Historical Investigation of the Rise of Sunday Observance in Early Christianity.

          “What Paul then is saying by this daring metaphor is that God has ‘wiped out,’ ‘removed,’ and 

          ‘nailed to the cross’ through the body of Christ (which in a sense represents mankind’s guilt), 

          the cheirographon, the instrument for the remembrance of sin... [W]hat God destroyed on the 

          cross was not the legal ground (law) for our entanglement into sin, but the written record of 

          our sins. By destroying the record of sins, God removed the possibility of a charge ever being

          made against those who have been forgiven.” (pg 348-350)

Keep in mind that in giving his comments on the term “cheirographion” Dr. Bacchiocci is doing exactly what Greek Lexicons do; they look to antiquity to determine the usage and meaning of words. In addition to Rabbinic Literature and other Greek literature the term “cheirographion” comes up in the text of the Apocryphal book of Tobit. Although it is not included in Scripture it is nevertheless ancient literature. In the article Understanding Colossians 2:16 it is quoted by Eric Matthew Janzen from MinistersNewCovenant.org as he cites the two passages. See the uses of the word as it appears twice in Tobit the first of which appears in 4:20-5:3:

          “And now I signify this to thee, that I committed ten talents to Gabael the son of Gabrias at 

          Rages in Media. And fear not my son what we are made poor: for thou has much wealth, if 

          thou fear God, and depart from all sin, and do that which is pleasing in His sight. ¹ Tobias 

          then answered and said, Father I will do all things which though hast commanded me:

            ² but how can I receive the money, seeing I know him not? ³ Then he gave him the

          handwriting [cheirographion], and said unto him, seek thee a man which may go with thee
          and I will give him wages while I yet live: and go and receive the money.

http://www.ellopos.net 

has a copy of Tobit in Greek and English side by side

which can be compared with your own eyes.

Here is the Greek text for chapter 5 verses 1-3 for comparison. You may find this online at the following address:

http://www.ellopos.net/elpenor/greek-texts/septuagint/chapter.asp?book=18&page=5

          ΚΑΙ ἀποκριθεὶς Τωβίας εἶπεν αὐτῷ· πάτερ, ποιήσω πάντα, ὅσα ἐντέταλσαί μοι·

          ² ἀλλὰ πῶς δυνήσομαι λαβεῖν τὸ ἀργύριον καὶ οὐ γινώσκω αὐτόν; ³ καὶ ἔδωκεν 

          αὐτῷ τὸ χειρόγραφον καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ· ζήτησον σεαυτῷ ἄνθρωπον, ὃς 

          συμπορεύσεταί σοι, καὶ δώσω αὐτῷ μισθὸν ἕως ζῶ· καὶ λαβὲ πορευθεὶς τὸ 

          ἀργύριον.

Janzen notes specifically the following. In this passage, Tobias was to collect money from Gabael, but worried about how he would accomplish this, seeing he did not know Gabael. Tobias’ Father then gives Tobias the “cheirographion,” i.e. written bond/certificate of debt. Tobias could show this to Gabael and receive the money previously lent to him by Tobias’ Father. The other usage of the term is in Tobit 9:1-5:

          ¹ Then Tobias called Raphael, and said unto him, ² Brother Azarias, take with thee a servant, 

          and two camels, and go to Rages of Media to Gabael, and bring me the money, and bring him 

          to the wedding. ³ For Raguel hath sworn that I shall not depart. ⁴ But my father counteth the 

          days; and if I tarry long, he will be very sorry. ⁵ So Raphael went out and lodged with 

          Gabael and gave him the handwriting [cheirographion] who brought forth bags which were 

          sealed up, and gave them to him.

Again referring to the Greek Text we see the comparison in verse 5.

          5 καὶ ἐπορεύθη Ραφαὴλ καὶ ηὐλίσθη παρὰ Γαβαήλ, καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ τὸ 

          χειρόγραφον· ὃς δὲ προήνεγκε τὰ θυλάκια ἐν ταῖς σφαγῖσι καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ.

In the second case the “cheirographion” was given to another in order to receive something due from them, Money. Therefore based upon examining the currently available data from antiquity regarding the usage of “cheirographion” we can plainly see it was used to refer to a debt or a bond which was owed. Please be clear I am NOT suggesting that Tobit is scripture. I am NOT suggesting that a doctrine should be based upon Tobit. What I am suggesting is that it was an ancient book written at a time when men KNEW what Cheirographion was referring to. Whether it be legitimate or fantasy is completely beside the point. 

FRIENDS THAT IS A HUGE CLUE

Within the context of Colossians 2 the other interesting thing to note is that the Greek term which is most recognized as almost exclusively referring to the Law of Moses; the Torah “nomos” Strongs # G3551 is not only absent from Colossians chapter two but from the entire book itself!

How then can it possibly be speaking about the statues; commandments; judgments; ordinances of the Law of Moses; the Torah of YHWH? The view that it was the Torah nailed to the cross is erroneous when we read what  says about His instructions throughout the TaNaK (the Old Testament in Hebrew). I Colossians 2:13 it indicates the Cheriographion is "cancelled" or "wiped out" while the Greek term used (G1813) means "to blot something out." In a later Chapter we will discover what the BIBLE says is blotted out you may be surprised to learn it ISN'T the Torah.