Israel Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow–Torah Living Daily Challenge 29

As I came to the end of Parashah 47, I went over to the Haftorah reading that is found in Isaiah 54:11-55:5. What a heart-lifting passage of Scripture. And let me just say before I move forward with today’s Torah Living Daily Challenge: I do follow the course of reading that is outlined in Torah portions, contrary to some in our Hebrew Roots community who rail against this practice or system of Torah reading. Some in our community contend that Torah portions are inventions of Judaism and should be discarded as it was never put in place by the Father. Indeed, the Torah portion system of Torah reading is an invention of the Jew. But we must remember, that not everything the Jew has done that has touched our Faith is wrong or evil. We tend to always through the baby out with the bathwater, especially as it relates to our Faith. Torah portions is simply a system of reading and studying Torah—no different than the system that any naysayer of Torah portions probably employs when they study Torah. I find Torah portions to be an apt system to study Torah and it keeps me on track to go through the Torah systematically. Do I recommend this system of Torah reading to you: sure; I would say give it a try. If it works for you, then I say don’t let anyone judge you on how your study scripture. Those who seek to condemn the use of such systems always have their system off to the side to hand over to you once they’ve convinced you that the system you were once using is invalid or wrong. If Torah portions don’t jive with you, wonderful; Father has another system or format for you to work through His sacred Word. Bottom line Saints, we are compelled to study His Word regardless of the system or means by which we do so. So let us get off our high-horses and get to work on learning about Father and adopting His ways of righteousness. Amein? Amein.

Now back to this wonderful Haftorah passage of Isaiah. This was a familiar passage to me as I’m certain that it will be for many of you who are fans to Scripture. This Haftorah speaks to a time in the future when Israel will re-establish herself in the land of promise and return-or turn-to Yahovah Most High. It’s an inspiring passage that I will read in its entirety:

11 O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest, and not comforted, behold, I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay thy foundations with sapphires.

12 And I will make thy windows of agates (that is, rubies), and thy gates of carbuncles (that is, crystal-NAS; that is gem stones other translations) and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

13 And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD; and great shall be the peace of thy children.

14 In righteousness shalt thou be established: thou shalt be far from oppression; for thou shalt not fear: and from terror; for it shall not come near thee.

15 Behold, they shall surely gather together, but not by me: whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.

16 Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy.

17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

KJV Isaiah 55:1 ¶ Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.1

3 Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the people.

5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not, and nations that knew not thee shall run unto thee because of the LORD thy God, and for the Holy One of Israel; for he hath glorified thee.

(Isa 54:11-55:5 KJV)

I see in this passage a tremendous future promise, not just for those true Israelis currently residing in the land of Israel (indeed, not all of those residing in the land of Israel are true Israelis—but we won’t get into that in this episode), but for we who are spiritual Israelis (Romans 11:17-24). I say tremendous future promise because much of Isaiah’s writings speak to the pending “wrath of Yahovah” against Judah as we see in chapter 9:19. However, this passage portrays a bright and wonderful future for Israel. By the time of this writing, the northern tribes of Israel had been sacked and invaded by the Assyrian juggernaut. Unfortunately, the same Assyrian juggernaut molested Judah on a few occasions and it was Isaiah who encouraged Hezekiah to resist the Assyrians (reference 2 Kings 18:14-16; Isaiah 36:2-22; 37:8) which ultimately led to Judah defeating Sennacherib’s armies. (Reference 2 Kings 19) But history bears out that Judah, the lesser of the two apostate states, was ultimately besieged and sacked by Nebuchadnezzar’s Chaldean Armies in 598. It was during that siege that the finest of Judah were deported to Babylon, leaving a remnant behind which has often been referred as “the people of the land.” The people of the land suffered in despair, having to endure poverty and famine, while their brothers and sisters—the nobles—in captivity in Babylon, appeared to have faired much better. It appears as though Isaiah may have been addressing the land and the people who would be left behind after the invasion in 597. It was this despair that the Book of Lamentations was based.

We saw this terrible situation somewhat repeated in 68-C.E. (according to Rood) or 70-C.E., when the Romans sacked Jerusalem and exiled the Jews from the land in 135 C.E., never to truly return in any appreciable numbers until 1948. Many contend that the reformation of Israel as a nation in 1948 may be the fulfillment of this prophecy of Isaiah, while other commentators hold this prophecy to be more directed to the Christian Church (e.g., Matthew Henry). I tend to think that anyone who sees this Isaiah prophecy as referring to anyone or anything more than the Hebrew descendants is deluded in a “replacement-type theology.” Yahovah has not eternally forsaken His people and replaced them with us, the grafted in Israelites of the New Covenant. Indeed, Father Himself has stated: “’Briefly I abandoned you, but with great compassion I am taking you back. I was angry for a moment and hid my face from you; but with everlasting grace I will have compassion on you,’ says Adonai your Redeemer.”

As much as the fundamentalists contend that the Hebrews are done away with and they are the replacements of this failed people; or as much as many of us in Hebrew Roots elevate the Jew of today, in the nation of Israel as the end all to be all; I believe that this passage of Isaiah is addressing a different set of people. I see this being more of a redeemed Hebrew people in the future who will come to know the errors of their ways and the ways of their descendants, and come to Yahovah with outstretched arms and broken hearts. Notice that I said Hebrews, not just Jews. More so, Israelis. True Israelis, who Father will gather from all the corners of the world and gather them unto Himself back to the land of promise (reference Jeremiah 16). These will adopt the true Faith once delivered and become the kings and priests to the world that Father has always desired of us to be. As that beacon to the world, Jeremiah prophesied: “…the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth and shall say, surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity and things wherein there is no profit.” (reference 16:19) As it stands now, the modern nation of Israel is a zest-pool of secularism with a moderate Judaism base that continues to hold on to their man made religion abnd reject the true Messiah. I am all for supporting the nation of Israel, for Yahovah still loves Israel as He always has. Moses wrote of Israel the land: “A land which Yahovah thy God careth for; the eyes of Yahovah thy God are constantly upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.” (Reference Deuteronomy 11:12) Father has always had a problem with the people who have prided themselves as the people of Yahovah, but who have refused to obey Yahovah and His Torah. Father, however, speaks of a time when Israel and Jerusalem will be rebuilt and the people who inhabit the land will be true Hebrews—those who have crossed over to the true Faith once delivered. Israel and Jerusalem will become the mecca of truth as foretold by Zechariah who writes: “Yes, many peoples and powerful nations will come to consult Adonai-Tzva’ot in Yerushalayim and to ask Adonai’s favor. Adonai-Tzva’ot says, ‘When that time comes, ten men will take hold-speaking all the languages of the nations-will grab hold of the cloak of a Jew and say, ‘We want to go with you, because we have heard that God is with you.’” (Reference 8:22, 23)

As it stands now, modern-day Israel is not the mecca for truth. However, it is evident from the prophecies of Yahovah’s prophets of old, that a time is coming when the old guard that includes secular and religious Jews, will have their eyes opened to the truth and the nations of the world will journey to Jerusalem to receive that truth. Could this happen in our lifetime? Possibly. And if it does happen in our lifetime, where will we be? Will we be properly positioned to be a part of the final calling of the nations to come to the truth. We are positioned right now to be a part of a great harvest to come. Our challenge is to stay focused on the task at hand. And that task is to clean ourselves up and ready ourselves to be the vessels by which Father may use us to bring not just the Jew to an understanding of the Truth, but the rest of the world to the True Faith once delivered to the Saints.

May you be most blessed, fellow saints in training. Until next time, shalom.