Before the World Was: Preexistence in Jewish Thought

Preexistence was not foreign to Jewish thought, but it did not always mean literal, conscious existence before birth. This study examines the Tanakh, Ketuvim haNotsrim, rabbinic writings, and selected noncanonical Jewish literature to show how preexistence could refer to divine foreknowledge, purpose, heavenly archetype, or—in some traditions—a personal heavenly existence. It also explains why preexistence, even when understood literally, does not by itself establish that the Messiah is The Almighty.

MESSIANIC JUDAISMJEWISH THOUGHTMESSIAHBIBLICAL INTERPRETATIONPREEXISTENCE