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- 1 John 1:1; 2:1-2
“Tzaddik” - Rabbi, Righteous One
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- Given to a person who is considered righteous
- Maimonides - “One whose merit surpasses his iniquity is a Tzadik.”
- One who has submitted his very nature and inclinations to holiness, so he can experience only love and awe of God, without material temptations
- A vehicle to God
- No ego or self-consciousness
- Can not be attained, must be granted from on High or born with it
Tzadikim Nistarim - Hidden Righteous Ones
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- Talmud - 36 anonymous tzadikim living among us at all times
- Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism
- Gematria 36: lamed = 30 and fav = 6. Known as “Lamed Vavniks”
- Purpose is to justify humankind in the eyes of God
- Concept is similar to Sodom and Gomorrah - Ge 18:26
- World would come to an end without all of them
- Identities unknown to each other
- If one realizes his true purpose, he will not reveal it
- If a person thinks there one, then they are not
- Since a person does not know that they are one, all people should act as if they are one
- Some Hasidic stories consider Rabbis to be one of the Lamedvavniks
- One of the 36 could be the Jewish Messiah
- Hasidim believe there is a person born each generation that could be the Jewish Messiah, if the Jewish people warrant his coming
Zealot
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- A person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political, or other ideals
- A member of Jewish society aimed at a world Jewish theocracy and resisting the Romans in 1st century
- Fought at Masada, 1,000 persons
- Zealous on behalf of God
- Sect formed by Judas of Galilee in 6 CE after tax reform by Romans
“Dikaion” - Secular
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- 6th century Greek
- Difficult to determine sense of the term
- Scholars interpreted it as denoting the council of a monastery
- A legal person
- A Korean law firm
“Dikaios”
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- Righteous, Just
- Conformity to God’s own being, his will, standard of righteous
“Dikaiosune’”
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- Approval of God
- Refers to what is deemed right by the Lord
- What is approved
Individual Responsibility To Live Righteous Life
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- Ez 18:1-32
- Repent and Live - v. 32