When Torah Becomes a Witness Against Us — My Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 148

by | Sep 6, 2024 | Blog, Podcasts

by Rod Thomas | The Messianic Torah Observer

These are my thoughts and reflections on Torah Reading 148. I’ve been led to entitle this discussion: When Torah Becomes a Witness Against Us.” Our reading this week is found in Deuteronomy/Devarim 31.14-30.

 

Key Themes and Concepts Found in our Parashah this Week

Yehovah Formally Commissions Yehoshua. Yah directs an official change in our human leadership (i.e. from Moshe to Yehoshua). Yah addresses Moshe and Yahoshua in the form of column of cloud at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting (aka “o’hel moedim“) (31.14-15). Why at the sanctuary’s entrance as opposed to any other place in the camp? Yah is consistent in all of His holy and righteous ways. Everything He does, He does in a purposeful and orderly fashion. Furthermore, by calling the two leaders out before the “o’hel moedim“, Yah was effecting this historic transfer of human leadership and power in view of the entire nation. I point you to this Torah passage for clarification: 9 ⌊And⌋ at the entering of Moses into the tent the column of cloud would descend and stand at the opening of the tent, and he would speak with Moses. 10 And all the people would see the column of cloud standing at the opening of the tent, and all the people would rise and bow in worship, each at the opening of his tent. 11 And Yahweh would speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his neighbor. And he would return to the camp, and his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not leave the middle of the tent. W. Hall Harris III, Elliot Ritzema, et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Ex 33:9–11.Transparency is the name of the game when it comes to our God. He leaves no doubt where He stands in the minds of His people. Thus, there would be no backdoor deals conducted in the dark — shifts in leadership and power that could easily lead to non-stop conspiracy theories such as that which we recently witnessed here in our nation’s government.

 

The Future Apostacy of Yisra’el. Yah informs Moshe that after his impending death (i.e., “sokeb“– death in this case conceived as him lying down to sleep with his ancestors), we would “arise” (i.e., “qam'” — that is, we would rebel) against Yehovah. And our rebellion against Yehovah would take the form of our taking up the worship of the Canaanite gods. Yah described our impending apostacy as “playing the prostitute” (i.e., “‘am zanah“) after foreign gods (i.e., “‘elohim“) (31.16). Yah’s description of our impending apostacy being likened unto prostituting ourselves plays heavily upon the realities associated with our marital relationship with Him. And in every metaphorical sense, when we take up foreign god worship, we are committing [spiritual] adultery. No marriage can truly remain intact when one or both parties engage in infidelity. Yah views our engagement in idolatry as forsaking Him. And despite the fact that the vast majority of people of faith do not engage in idol worship today per se, we must ask ourselves what things have we given ourselves to that equates to our forsaking our Heavenly Father and the covenant relationship we are supposed to share with Him? Pornography; fornication and adultery; drugs and alcohol; entertainment; personal possessions and the pursuit of wealth; the pursuit of fame.

 

Yah described Himself to us as being a jealous God who will not tolerate our engaging in foreign god worship of any form or fashion (Exo 34.13-14). In fact, so high was the risk that we would fall prey to the lure of adopting the Canaanites’ gods that Yah commanded us to not cut covenants with the inhabitants of the Land so as a preventative move (Exo 34.15-17). Clearly, associating with pagans and inquiring about their worship practices comes with tremendous spiritual risks. The penalty for any who would engage in false god worship is to cause Yah’s face to be hidden from us (31.18) and to incur Yah’s wrath against them and to be cut off from among the congregation of Yisra’el (31.17; Lev 20.5). And certainly, we did not listen, and we played the prostitute as Yah warned and prophesied (Jug 21.17; 8.33; Hos 1.2). But despite our stiffnecked and adulterous ways, Yah promised to remain true to the covenant He cut with us in order to honor the promises He made with our patriarchs and to bring glory to His holy and righteous Name (Hos 3.1).

 

Yah’s Reactions to our Spiritual Prostitution. There are natural consequences that come with abandoning Yah’s instructions in righteousness. Yah declares curses will overtake us when we elect to go our own way and reject His commandments (Deu 28.15-68). But that’s not where our problems end, because at the end of the day, beloved, we who are in a covenant relationship with Yah must contend with Him as a consequence of transgressing His Torah.

 

Bit by bit throughout His Torah (that must include the Prophets and the Writings), our Heavenly Father graciously reveals to us His steadfast and awesome nature and holy character. Here in our reading, Yah reveals to us what His reaction will be to our future idolatrous behavior:

  1. Yah Has a Righteous Temper. If we rebel against Him and “play the prostitute after foreign gods” of the land which we dwell, Yah declares that His anger will flare up against us. We then effectively become the object of Yah’s wrath. His wrath would bring “great harm and distress” upon us (Merrill, Eugene H.; Deuteronomy-NACDt). And we most certainly saw this come to fruition throughout our history in response to our stiffnecked persona and our failure to properly keep covenant with our Elohim. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown describes such an eruption of Yah’s anger toward us when we forsake Him for foreign gods as a “withdrawal of the divine favor and protection” (Brown, David et al; Commentary; 1997). And it will be through such harsh divine intervention that the realities of our evil ways will sink into our thick skulls.

 

  1. Yah Does Not Stay Where He’s Not Wanted. Part and parcel of Yah’s wrath against us will be that He forsakes us and Hides His face from us (31.17). As just mentioned, the natura; consequence of being on the receiving end of Yah’s holy and righteous wrath or anger is that His divine mercies are lifted or removed from us. In my commentary on the horrific October 7th invasion of Hamas terrorists against our Jewish cousins in the state of Israel, I mentioned I believed Yah had lifted His divine protection of her on that terrible day. Unfortunately, this concept seems to match up with what Yah has promised will happen when His people forsake the covenant He shares with them and they rebel and whore themselves after the ways of this world. And let us not be ignorant of the realities that the flaring of our Creator’s wrath and Him turning His face from us is not limited to the nation state of Yisra’el. Such calamity is certain to happen to each of us who abandons the covenant relationship He cut with us through Yahoshua and then pursue the ways of this world. We cannot afford to stand against the wiles of our archenemy without His presence. And to lose His presence because of our foolishness and our stubbornness is a total tragedy. So many in our faith community even today are currently enduring tremendous sufferings and trials and such and one who is on the outside looking in would have to wonder, why aren’t these individuals living the abundant life that Yahoshua Messiah promised them? But the answer to that question is quite simple to understand: Many of us who enter a true and substantive covenant relationship with the Creator of the Universe through the Person and ministries of our glorious Master Yahoshua Messiah eventually play the prostitute against the Great I Am by abandoning or violating the terms of our covenant agreement with Him. And when we abandon or violate the terms of that covenant agreement we have with Yehovah, we stand to incur His wrath and His distancing from us. Of this the Jewish scribe Ibn Ezra notes that we become ready prey for the enemy” (Carasik, M.; Deuteronomy: Introduction and Commentary-TCB JPS Dt). Cassik notes what I find to be a fascinating perspective on this key issue and concept of Yah turning His face from us when we turn away from Him for foreign gods: “Out of love, like a man whose son has sinned. He tells the son’s master to whip him but cannot bear to watch” (Bekhor Shor). “My Providence will abandon them, leaving them ready for disaster.” This threat is worse than any of the previous ones (e.g., curses and wrathful anger), since all the previously threatened evils would come to them by way of reproach; this is simply abandonment (Gersonides)” (ibid.).

Indeed, some challenges that members of our Faith community go through are tests — trials — designed to mold, strengthen, correct us throughout the time of our sanctification. However, there are those hardships and challenges that many of us face because we’ve elected to take on the yoke of this world and abandon Yah and the covenant we share with Him. That’s why it is so important that we stay close to Yah and operate in His Set-Apart Spirit. When we do so, we mitigate any chance of our straying from the terms of the covenant we share with Yah and we are not so easily drawn to the ways of this world that if we grab hold them will lead to a loss of Yah’s presence in our lives and the tragic effects of His anger that is revealed against us.

References to all that we’ve just discussed may be found in Deuteronomy/Devarim 6.15; Judges 2.14; 6.13; Isaiah 8.17; 59.2; 64.7; Eze 39.23; etc.

Consider this defining passage:

Now Azariah the son of Oded—the Spirit of God came upon him. 2 And he went out before Asa and said to him, “Hear me, O Asa and all of Judah and Benjamin! Yahweh is with you while you are with him. And if you will seek him he will be found by you. But if you forsake him he will forsake you. 3 Now Israel has been without the true God many days, and without a teaching priest, and without law, 4 but at its trouble he returned to Yahweh, the God of Israel. They sought him, and he was found by them. 5 And in those times there was no peace for the one going out and the one coming in, for great tumults were upon all the inhabitants of the lands. 6 Nation was crushed by nation, and city was against city, for God threw them into confusion by all sorts of trouble. 7 But as for you, be strong and let not your hands be weak, for there is reward for your labor.” W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), 2 Ch 15:1–7.

 

Our God Always Sees the End From the Beginning But He Still Cares. Knowing that after we take possession of the Land of Promise, we will quickly turn our backs to Yehovah in our pursuit of the gods of Canaan, He reaches out to us and gives us a tool that is intended to help mitigate our transgression of His Torah and the covenant we share with Him. He dictates to Moshe a song (a “si-rah”), and depending on which English translation you’re using, a hymn or poem, that He intended to be sung or recited by us “as a witness against us” when we would eventually stray from Him and His ways (31.19). This song or poem that Moshe and Yehoshua were to teach us (i.e., to put it this song in their mouths means to have us memorize it) (Tigay, Jeffrey; The JPS Torah Commentary on Deuteronomy) and it would become for us “an explanation of our betrayal of Yehovah our Elohim” (Faithlife Study Bible; John Barry et. al.). Now, we won’t get into this song or poem in this Torah Reading because it is reserved for Torah Reading 149.

 

This Torah concept of something being used as a “witness against us” forces us to appreciate the heaviness of the Prophetic Words of Yehovah. Because we did not always have at our ready disposal Yah’s Torah, such inventions as poems or songs served as perpetual memorials to us. According to Jeffrey Tigay in his JPS Torah Commentary on Deuteronomy, this song or poem would serve as proof “that events were foretold prevents their misinterpretation. The poem will testify that God had treated Israel with justice and kindness, but that Israel betrayed Him (see 32:1–18, esp. vv. 4–5). If the people’s words in verse 17 represent a complaint that God had violated His promise to remain with them, the poem will rebut their charge, showing that God abandoned them for just cause.” According to the Jewish sage Obadiah ben Ya’achov Sforno: “When the disaster comes, the poem will prevent them from thinking that it was an accident; when they realize that it was caused by their behavior, they will repent.”

 

When national songs are taken to heart by the people of a nation, they “stir up deep feelings” within the nation’s people (JFB et al.). And this is indeed what Yah desperately wanted from us in the inevitable event that we rebelled against Him and went prostituting ourselves after the Canaanite gods. When such times came, He wanted us to stop, take assessment of our transgressions against Him and His Torah, and return to Him.

 

Today, we don’t necessarily have to learn this and other poems and songs verbatim as a tool to help wake us up when we forsake Yah and His ways and the dire necessity for us to turn back to Him before tragedy strikes (31.21). We are blessed to have in our possession the whole of Yah’s Words of Life and Yah’s precious Ruach HaKodesh (aka His Set-Apart Spirit) to bring such things to our memory and to lead us back into Yah’s good graces when we stray.

 

Indeed, Yah knows the end from the beginning. He told us: “For I know their inclination that they are having ⌊today⌋ before I have brought them into the land that I swore.”W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Dt 31:21. It is only human nature to erroneously think that we are immune to erring in our walk (aka our halachah). But Yah knows how we are and He knows what we are capable of doing. And so, in giving us a reason for the song or poem He was about to give Moshe and Yehoshua, He prophesied: “For when I bring them into the land that I swore to their ancestors, a land flowing with milk and honey, ⌊they will eat their fill⌋, and they will become fat, and then they will turn to other gods, and they will serve them, and they will spurn me, and they will break my covenant” W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Dt 31:20.

 

Why is it that when we are find ourselves abundantly blessed of Yah that we are the most prone to sinning? I guess it comes down to an erroneous belief that we’ve somehow arrived and that we have nothing to worry about. Then there’s the relative boredom that comes with affluence and contentment. Many of us, when we are doing well in life, develop what I like to refer to as an “itchy ear syndrome” whereby we become prone to search out the latest and greatest teachings and practices that catch our attention and appeals to our flesh. And I say that it is during these well-to-do times in our lives and in our halachah (aka walk) that we stay ever so buried in the Word and ensure that our ears, minds, and hearts are in tune to the still-small-voice of our glorious Elohim.

 

Be Strong and Courageous. Yah turns His attention to Moshe’s protégé and speaks to him the admonishment that we read in last week’s Torah Portion: “Be strong and be courageous, for you shall bring the ⌊Israelites⌋ into the land that I swore to them, and I will be with you” W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Dt 31:23.

 

I AM With You — Yah’s Abiding Presence. Here Yah doesn’t just admonish Yehoshua/Joshua to be strong and courageous as he takes on the leadership over the nation, He pledges to Joshua that He will be with him (31.23). Let us not forget the consistency of Yah here. We find back in Exodus/Shemote 3.12 where Abba Yah promised this same supportive relationship as He promised Moshe: 10“And now, come, I am sending you to Pharaoh, to bring My people, the children of Yisra’ěl, out of Mitsrayim.” 11And Mosheh said to Elohim, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the children of Yisra’ěl out of Mitsrayim?” 12And He said, “Because I am with you. And this is to you the sign that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Mitsrayim, you are to serve Elohim on this mountain.” The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Ex 3:10–12.

 

The same One True God/Elohim giving His two leaders the same assurance of His abiding presence throughout the course of their leadership journeys. Yah’s abiding presence with Yehoshua was an obvious guarantee of success in His mission to lead us as a nation to the Land of Promise. And for any leader who has been tapped to do Yah’s work and to lead Yah’s people, there is no better situation to be in. So, when we extend this scenario of Yah’s abiding presence over to those of us who are in the service of Yah and of His Kingdom, especially when we factor in the coming persecutions that many of us will endure as we await our Master’s appearing, we have Yehoshua’s promise of “lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world” (Mat 28.20; KJV).

 

Preserving Yah’s Torah. Finally, Moshe gets to the place in his leadership role where he finishes writing or recording Yah’s Word in a book or on a scroll (31.24). The reference to Moshe completing his writing assignment seems to refer specifically to the content that is contained in the Book of Deuteronomy or Devarim. Eugene H. Merrill, in his commentary on Deuteronomy, writes that the phrase or “expression the words of this law…is technical language referring specifically to” chapters 5 to 28 (Deuteronomy — NAC Dt). He further states that chapters 1-4 of Deuteronomy make up the book’s prologue while chapters 29-34 constitute the book’s epilogue.

 

Such speculation is okay in my opinion, but I do not believe we should be too dogmatic about such things. And the reason I say this is that I recall just a few years ago, there was a segment of our Faith Community who were promoting dogma as it related to what made up Torah and what did not make up Torah; specifically what laws we kept and what laws we weren’t responsible for keeping, and so forth. So the term Torah became somewhat of a divisive term within a faith community that was supposed to promote Torah-living. I do not care to split hairs on such things or, as Merrill suggests, get technical. For the bottom line is that Moshe finished recording that which Abba Yah directed him to record. And when he finished his writing assignment, he commended those documents to the Levites for safekeeping and posterity, to be kept in the Ark of the Covenant (31.24-25).

 

Why did Moshe command the Levites to store his record of Yah’s Word in the Ark of the Covenant? Why did Moshe command the Levites to store his record of Yah’s Word, along with the 10-Commandments and Aharon’s Rod, in the Ark of the Covenant? Thus, besides being the central implement of the Tent of Meeting where the presence of Yah would take place, the Ark of the Covenant served as a lockbox for the Torah — for Yah’s instructions in Righteousness (31.26). And Yah went further to explain that the storing of His Word in the Ark would serve as a witness against us. Apart from those things we discussed earlier in verse 19, where Yah instructed Moshe to jot down the song/poem that He gives him to serve as a witness against us when we enter the Land of Promise and take up pursuing Canaanite gods. The preservation of the Torah in the Ark of the Covenant by Moshe and the Levites was more of a lesson-reminder to future generations to not repeat the errors of our fathers and forefathers than simply an indictment against us, more than a “see I told you that you would mess us.” What many modern denominationalists cannot recognize in this and countless other such passages that address the witness that the Torah served against us is that the provision of preserving the Torah the way Yah commanded Moshe and the Levites to do was a manifestation of Yah’s grace and provision. Of this provision of grace, Shaul wrote: 4For whatever was written before was written for our instruction, that through endurance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have the expectation. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Ro 15:4.

11And all these came upon them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us, on whom the ends of the ages have come, 12so that he who thinks he stands, let him take heed lest he fall. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), 1 Co 10:11–12.

 

And yet our denominationalist cousins are steadfast in their rejection of living a Torah-honoring/obedient life. Therefore, in great part, that the Church Triumphant is enduring such chaos and hardships and apostacy. They have been indoctrinated to adhere to a replacement doctrine and the modern day grace perversion that throws the very Words of our Father into the trash bin of religious history. It’s a horrific tragedy that has and continues to lead generations down a road to destruction. This very Torah that Moshe was instructed of Yah to have safely stored in the Ark of the Covenant, along with the example and teachings of our Master Yehoshua haMashiyach, as the keys to the Malchut Elohim — that is, the Kingdom of God. We, who have entered a covenant relationship with the Great I Am through His Messiah Yeshua, are exceptionally blessed to recognize the very things about Yah’s Torah that Shaul wrote about to his Roman and Corinthian readers. For the rest of the world, however, spiritual scales continue to obscure the eyes of the denominationalists and even some of our Jewish brethren of this crucial reality. For Torah teaches us how to walk in righteousness and how to love our God and love one another as Yah has instructed.

 

Let us not be naïve to the reality that most of the civilized world today does not directly engage in idol worship. Notice that I said, “does not directly engage in idol worship.” Indeed, times have changed and we who are of the modern world have come to recognize carved/graven/molten images for what Yah described them to be over and over in His Word. They are nothing more than crafted expressions of either imagined gods of the elements or representations of the fallen ones who were demigods to the ancient peoples of Mesopotamia. Idols have no wherewithal to do anything for those that foolishly and blindly worshiped them through millennia. However, we today still engage in a form of idolatry which, when we engage in such worship, still incites His wrath against us and causes Him to turn His face from us. And what is this form of idolatry that I’m referring to? Most of which makes up life for us today.

 

Modern life offers us countless things and activities that have the potential of turning our hearts away from Yah and on to those things and activities. And as an article written by the United Church of God puts it, anything that we value more than we value god is idolatry (beta.ucg.org/learn/bible-study-tools/bible-questions-and-answers/what-idolatry.) For some, it’s food and for others it’s sex and entertainment. Material possessions, wealth, fame and fortune capture the hearts, minds, and souls of many others. Then there are inappropriate relationships that cause an unequal-yoke situation for Yah’s people. And let’s not forget the worship of people and nation and culture that causes so many of us to turn our eyes, hearts, and minds away from Yehovah our Elohim. All these and more make up the gods of this modern world. Sadly, most of us don’t even realize just how close we get to prostituting ourselves to the gods of this modern world.

 

But praise Yah from Whom all blessings flow. He has made for us a witness to such dangerous shenanigans. We have access to Yah’s instructions in righteousness, the example and teachings of Yehoshua Messiah, and the indwelling gift of His Set-Apart Spirit to aid us in not falling prey to the lure of modern-day idolatry. Thus, it behooves us to keep our noses buried in scripture, our ears keenly turned to “the still small voice” of Yehovah, and the leading of Yah’s Holy Spirit to keep us on the straight and narrow, neither erring to the right or left; neither taking away nor adding to His eternal Words of Truth. But rather, that we may walk upright and perfectly before Him so that we may glorify Him on the earth and advance His glorious Kingdom to come. Oh Father in Heaven, hallowed be your holy Name. Thy Kingdom come and Your glorious and perfect will be done, over and in our lives, as well as on this earth, as it is in heaven.

 

There is no better time than now, beloved, for us to straighten up and fly right in anticipation of our Creator’s glorious Kingdom being firmly and eternally established here on earth. As we progress through this 6th Month of Yah’s biblical calendar year, let us reflect on His goodness; His mercies; His grace; and His righteousness. Our Master testified and informed that His Father is looking for true worshipers who endeavor to worship Him in Spirit and in Truth (Joh 4.23). In said worship, there is no room for idolatry of any form or fashion. The true worshiper that Yah seeks is one who has stripped off the veneer of paganism and worldliness from his/her soul and put on our Master’s righteous garments. This is about a profound inward change of heart, mind, and soul that obediently seeks the Creator’s kingdom and His righteousness. Our worship is guided by the Holy Spirit and our obedient faith, rather than being governed by sight — that is the things that we see, feel, and hear — that tickle our fancy — that give us warm and fuzzies. And we are guided by His eternal Words of Truth and Life.

 

Our religious Jewish cousins view and treat the 6th month of Yah’s calendar year as a time of “introspection and personal stock-taking in preparation of the High Holy Days starting with Yom Teruah and ending with Yom Kippur” (Tim Hegg of Torah Resource). That being said, let us not squander this new month despite it not containing any mandated feasts or moedim of Yah. Let us dedicate ourselves to engaging in an inventory of our day-to-day walk with and in Messiah. Are we doing everything we should and can to ensure the integrity of our covenant relationship with the Almighty? Do we possess righteous intentions towards one another and do we possess the mind of Messiah? If we discover we are not worshiping Yah in Spirit and in Truth, are we willing to make some really hard decisions on how we conduct our lives? Are we willing to turn our back on the idols that we have given license to govern our lives? We know what needs to be done. All that’s left is for us to give our all to He who loved us before we were ever born.

 

Shabbat Shalom — Shavu’tov — May you be most blessed fellow saints in Training. Take care.

 

Be Strong and Courageous — My Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 147

by | Aug 30, 2024 | Blog

Greetings saints of the Most High.  Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to fellowship with me here on this blessed day of rest in Yeshua Messiah. And as always, it is my hope, trust, and prayer that this installment of the Messianic Torah Observer finds you, your families, and your fellowships well and blessed.

As I am posting these thoughts and reflections, it is Preparation Day, A-gust 30, 2024.

These are my thoughts and reflections on Torah Reading 147. Our reading is found in Deuteronomy/Devarim 31.1-13; Isaiah 48.17-19; and 2 Timothy 3.12-17.

My apologies for not providing an audio recording of my thoughts and reflections for this reading as I do not have immediate access to my recording equipment. Abba willing, I plan to resume weekly audio posting next Shabbat.

Key Themes and Concepts Found in our Parashah this Week

Change in Leadership

Moshe cites he is a son of Yisrael at the ripe old age of 120-years at the time he was delivering this parashah. Let us bear in mind that Moshe was 80-years old when he, through Yehovah, led us out of Egypt. And now, some 40-years having passed, he points to his age being one of two mitigating factors in him not making it into the Land of Promise as our leader. The other contributing factor is that Abba Yah told him he could not enter the Land (31.1-2; a reference to 1.37; 3.27; 4.21-22).

No Need to Fear for Yehovah is With We Who Trust and Obey Him

In our being poised to receive the Land of Promise, Moshe declares two important realities to us that will profoundly affect our lives from now on: (1) We need not be afraid of the inhabitants of the Land of Promise because Yehovah our God was going before us to fight for us and help us take possession of the Land. (2) Since he, Moshe, would not be accompanying us into the Land, his able assistant Yahoshua/Joshua, son of Nun, would replace him as our political and military leader. No doubt the reality of Moshe not leading us to take possession of the Land would have been extremely concerning to us. Moshe had become the human bedrock and Yah appointed leader of our nation for over four-decades. We’d grown to trust him and fear him as Yah’s intercessor between us and Yehovah. Yes, we knew Joshua well. He had proven his metal throughout our nation’s wilderness sojourn. But for him to become Moshe’s replacement was going to be a significant paradigm shift for us as a nation (31.3).

Thus, Moshe reassures us — we being the second generation Exodus Hebrews — that there would be no need to fear the nations we were about to face in our taking possession of the Land. All we needed to do to ease our fears would be to hearken back in our minds to what Yah did to defeat Sihon and Og, former Amorite kings. In fact, all that would be required of them was to obey Yah’s instructions. And if they were indeed obedient to Yah’s instructions, Yah would destroy their enemies and deliver the Land of Promise into their hands (31.4-5).

Amid him delivering to us Yah’s instructions in righteousness and updating us on the change in leadership for the nation, Moshe delivered to us one of the most enduring and poignant admonishments ever given to the people of Yehovah: “Be strong and be courageous...” (31.6). In so saying, Moshe circles back around to the central point of his teachings (that which he had given us in chapters 29 and 30): We did not need to fear the nations we were going to face in our taking possession of the Land of Promise. Our trusting, obedient faith in the Great I Am would guarantee His abiding presence and help in their midst. He would not leave nor forsake us (31.6). After Moshe’s admonishment to us as a nation to be strong and courageous, he then delivers this same admonishment to Joshua/Yahoshua in the nation’s sight (31.7-8).

And let’s be clear here: It is Yehovah whom we were to trust and obey. Yah was the one who was going to cross over before us. Yes, we were to accept Joshua as our leader, who was set to replace Moshe. But just as we revered Moshe as our human leader, it was always supposed to be Yehovah Whom we were to trust and Whose Words we were to obey first and foremost. And it is here where our Haftarah of Isaiah/YeshaYahu 48.17-19 comes into play:

17 Thus says Yahweh, your redeemer, the holy one of Israel:

“I am Yahweh your God, ⌊who teaches⌋ you to profit,

leads you in the way you should go.

18 O that you had listened attentively to my commandments!

Then your prosperity would have been like a river,

and your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

19 And your offspring would have been like the sand,

and the descendants of your ⌊body⌋ like its grains.

It would not be cut off, and its name would not be destroyed from my presence.”W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Is 48:17–19.

Our destiny will always rest upon Yehovah and His Word. We prosper and succeed in this life only when we trust and obey Him. Without Him, no number of would be Moshes or Joshuas can save us. For its when we take our eyes off of Him we fail and are destroyed (Isa 48.19; LEB).

The Importance of Constancy in Receiving Yah’s Set-Apart Words that Lead to Life

Having completed his recording of Yah’s Torah (i.e. the oracles of Yah), Moshe handed it over to the Levitical priests for safekeeping and as the constitutional document from which the priests would teach us as Yah’s chosen people (31.9). In so handing this written Torah to the Levitical Priests, Moshe instructed them to read it to us during the pilgrimage feast of Sukkot every Sabbatical or Shmittah Year (31.10-11). In so doing, no Torah observant citizen of Yisra’el would be exempt from receiving Father’s instructions in righteousness, including every Yisra’elite man, woman, child and non-Hebrew Torah observant citizen of our nation. The aim of this regulation was to ensure that every citizen of Yisra’el would receive Yah’s instructions in righteousness on a recurring basis and learn to fear and obey Yah all the days of their lives in the Land (31.12-13). Let us not overlook the fact that we are abundantly blessed to have direct access to Yah’s instructions, whereas our ancient cousins had to receive instructions through Yah’s anointed and select priests at appointed times of Yah’s biblical calendar year.

And this is where our Apostolic Reading comes into play for this Sabbath. As Shaul writes to his young protege Timothy about his impending leadership role, we learn about the vital role of scripture in the life of every believer. The Apostle enlightens Timothy about the impending persecution of the Body of Mashiyach and the necessity of every believer remaining grounded in the Word. He reminds Timothy how much the scriptures meant to him as a child in that Timothy recognized that scripture made one wise unto salvation through faith in Messiah Yahoshua and that the Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings are profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, instruction in righteousness in the son and daughter of Yah may be competent and thoroughly equipped unto all good works (2 Tim 3.12-17).

Practical Messianic Halachah

Other than being a pivotal event in our nation’s history, what are we, the redeemed of Yah and set-apart disciples of Yahoshua, supposed to make of our parashah? Well, we are to make quite a bit out of this.

As members of the Body of Messiah, we will experience a periodic change in the leadership of our fellowships and congregation. We are to take such transitions, as painful and uncertain as they may seem to us at the time they occur, as God ordained and necessary in Yah’s grand plan of Salvation, Restoration, and Redemption. Nevertheless, it is not the person who Yah chooses to lead us whom we must set our eyes on. But rather, our eyes must remain steadfast upon Yah. It is Yehovah Whom we must trust and obey. For when we place all our chips on our human leaders, we are bound to at some point become disappointed and lose heart. But when we are steadfast in our hope and trust and obedience to Yah and His Word, we will never be disappointed nor lose heart. He will always be with us and fight for us through thick and thin. It is even more essential that we come to terms with this reality considering what the future holds for we who are the chosen and elect of Yah. Persecution and tribulation are coming and no human leader will match Yah’s abiding presence and guidance and deliverance. So, let us stay grounded in the Word, and let us be steadfast in our obedience and trusting faith in Yah. Now is the time, while it is still day, to strengthen our covenant relationship with Yehovah so that when the night cometh we will be able to stand against the wiles of the devil and withstand that evil day (Eph 6.11-13; KJV).

May you have a restful and blessed day of rest in Yeshua Messiah.

Faithfully,

Rod

6 Be strong and be courageous; you should not be afraid, and you ⌊should not be in dread from their presence⌋, for Yahweh your God is the one going with you; he will not leave you alone and he will not forsake you.” W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Dt 31:5–6.

 

Operating in Set-Apart Community Relationships — Torah Reading 142 Thoughts and Reflections

by | Jul 27, 2024 | Blog, Podcasts

by Rod Thomas | The Messianic Torah Observer

Shalom and Greetings

Greetings saints of the Most High. Rod Thomas coming to you on a warm by beautiful Sabbath in the DFW. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to fellowship with me here on this blessed day of rest in Yeshua Messiah. And as always beloved, it is my hope, trust, and prayer that this installment of the Messianic Torah Observer finds you, your families, and your fellowships well and blessed.

As I am recording and posting this installment of TMTO, it is July 26, 2024. It is the 20th Day of the 4th Month of Yah’s Calendar Year. And this is the 142nd parashah of our 3-year Torah Reading Cycle, which is contained in Deuteronomy/Devarim 21.10-22.7; with the Haftorah in Isaiah/Yeshiyahu 54.1-10 and the Apostolic in Galatians 3. 11-14. I’ve been led to title this teaching: “Operating in Set-Apart Community Relationships.”

 

Justification for Weekly Torah Studies (Even When the Individual Mitzvot Don’t Seem to Apply to us Today)

Now, I want to mention before we dive into today’s teaching that these mitzvot (i.e. these laws or instructions) are overwhelmingly dismissed and viewed as archaic, even “harmful and dangerous” by denominationalists and not too few members of our Messianic Faith Community. I’ve previously mentioned on this platform that a good many people who claim to be people of faith or people of the Book (in some way or another) reject Yehovah and His Torah because neither the Father or His Torah fit their personal righteous sensibilities. Some of these erroneously refer to Yehovah as the “God of the Old Testament” Whom they unapologetically reject because His ways seem archaic, harmful, and dangerous to them. These go a little further to say that they prefer and love the “God of the New Testament,” Whom they specifically identify as Jesus Christ. They love this God of the New Testament because His ways and teachings resonate with them. But little do these misguided — judgment-bound — disparagers of Yehovah and His Ways realize that their God of the New Testament (i.e. Yeshua HaMashiyach), Whom they revere or love so much, was and is in lockstep with His Heavenly Father (aka the God of the Old Testament Whom they despise and reject – personal experience). For Yeshua our Master was clear when He stated that He and His Father were and are One — that is, He and His Father are united in all things and in all Ways (Joh 10.30; 17.21). Furthermore, the Master taught His inner core of disciples to not misunderstand His position on His Father’s Torah, and that He had in no way come to destroy or annul the Torah and the Prophets, but He came to clarify them and take them to their fullest meaning and potential (Mat 5.17). Certainly, if Master had a problem with Torah, He had every opportunity during His earthly ministry to speak out against it. But He instead not only endorsed Torah, but He also walked and talked it.

Those who hold such a contrary worldview of Torah are too blind of eyes, deaf of hearing, and confused of mind and heart to realize that Yeshua possesses the fullness of His Father’s character (Col 2.9). Yes, we saw the compassionate side of our Creator through His Son when He came the first time as the Suffering Messiah. But wait until Messiah returns as the conquering King who will establish and reign over His Daddy’s Kingdom here on earth (Dan 2.44; 7.14, 27; Rev 11.15). Halleluyah indeed! It will be during the time leading up to the Kingdom Age (so to speak) that the world and all Creation will see the full character of Yehovah on display in the Person and King, Yahoshua HaMashiyach. He will destroy all vestiges of the Kingdom of Darkness and forcibly restore Paradise Lost! Amein and Amein. And He will dismiss from His presence any who have and would reject Him and His Father’s righteousness; their Torah-based government, citing that they’ve never known them (Mat 7.23). From that day forward, everything will be done in accordance with His Way or they will be done His Way. Period. Case closed!

 

As much as Torah may seem an affront/insult/conflict to our modern-day, western sensibilities, it, Torah, educates us about Yehovah’s exceeding standards and the expectations He has for any who would desire to “enter into an intimate covenant relationship with Him” (Hegg, T.; Commentary on Deuteronomy; p. 141). And as tough as some of these mitzvot (aka laws or instructions) may be for us to swallow today, they, collectively, serve as our lifeline. For the world around us is generally ignorant of the Person Yehovah — Who He truly is; what He likes and dislikes; what He expects from His chosen ones; His plans to restore His human creation back to how He originally intended it to function and exist. The world’s deadly ignorance as it relates to Yah and His holy and righteous ways, unfortunately, is going to lead to its catastrophic end, unless it does a true course correction and turns to Him and His Ways. For Yah cared enough for us—that of our wellbeing and eternal security — that He provided us these safeguards or protections — His Torah — so that we may walk “the path of life to enjoy the blessings Yah intends for His children” (ibid., p. 141). All other paths lead to certain destruction; all other ground is “sinking sand.” Thus, Yehovah has gifted us His Torah. And it is Father Yah’s gifting of Torah that is evidence of just how loving a Father He truly is to us. Our sense of personal, flawed righteousness and justice when compared to Yah’s righteousness and justice are as soiled, disgusting rages (Isa 64.6). In fact, it is our personal, flawed sense of righteousness that will usher us down a path towards destruction. Yah does not want that for us. So, He gave us His loving instructions in righteous living to guard or safeguard against our self-destruction. If we are blessed with the proper, spiritual eyes, ears, heart, and mindset to understand Yah’s Torah from this “loving instructions” perspective, we will have indeed crossed over from death into life. And Yah requires more than us coming into and remaining in this positive, proper mindset towards Torah. Yah requires that we diligently seek His righteousness on His terms and His terms only. That means learning of Him and His Ways in Spirit and in Truth (Joh 4.23-24; 14.17; 16.13) and then walk in those learned ways, neither erring to the right or left — but walk steadfastly and uprightly before Him, as Yeshua our Master taught and modeled for us.

Due to the length of our reading today and our limited time together, we will not read through the parashah. Please read through the parashah as you are so led. We will confine ourselves to commenting and drawing out the salient physical and  spiritual points of each.

The Torah of Hebrew Combatants Taking unto Themselves Foreign Wives (aka War Brides) (21.10-14)

Abba Yah permitted us to take unto ourselves as wives of those distant nations whom we conquered. Father Yah required that the taking of foreign war brides by Hebrew combatants be done in such a way as to reduce the influences of combatants’ base, carnal passions (aka lust), and to employ morality towards our conquered enemies.

The would-be foreign war bride (21.14) must go through a regimen of purification that involves shaving her head, trimming her nails, discarding her native clothes, and then be allowed to mourn her loses (21.12-13) in the Hebrew captor’s home for a month (reference Lev 14.8-9; Num 6.9). Then she may become the Hebrew captor’s wife. Interestingly, Rabbinic commentators such as Rashi, Abravanel, and R. Akiba challenged the motivation behind this precept. They contend that Yah intended for the would-be war bride who entered this purification and mourning period to be made to look unappealing to her would be captor husband (reference Rashi ad loc.; Abravanel, 202; R. Akiba’s Sifrei 212). However, from a contextual standpoint, Yah’s desire is to always mitigate the possibilities that His set-apart people who bare His Name would not be led astray or influenced by the religious and cultural practices of these foreign women. Thus, the purpose behind this mitzvah was to physically and spiritually distance the would-be foreign captive wife from her former religion and culture and in the process not influence her would be husband to adopt her former religious practices and culture. It was also designed to give Yah glory and honor as these foreign captive women would see for themselves the love and compassion and justice of the God of Avraham, Yitschaq, and Ya’achov.

The so-called Jewish sages reckoned that the instruction that the would-be war bride discard her native clothes and don Hebrew attire; shave her hair, and cut her nails with Jewish conversion in mind. Now, I don’t buy into such Rabbinic twisting of Yah’s Torah. But suffice to say, the month of purification and mourning provided the would-be war bride an adjustment period whereby she would learn and adapt to her future husband’s Hebrew culture. This period also served as a time of testing our motivations towards our would-be war bride. Were our motivations pure and just? Are our motivations controlled by our love for Yah and respect for human life and the understanding that every man, woman, and child, regardless of whether they were kinsmen of ours, or our enemies in war, were created in the image of our Creator? “Respect for the personhood of captive ones” must be shown.

It is understood that the would-be captor husband would not engage in a sexual relationship with the would-be war bride during this month-long purification, mourning, and adjustment period. To engage in a sexual relationship with the captive woman during her month of mourning before taking her to be his wife would violate Yah’s Torah prohibiting fornication and would also commit him to marry this woman, even if he had a change of heart towards her during that adjustment period.

It must be understood, however, that this mitzvah relating to Hebrew combatants engaging in marriage with foreign captive women did not pertain to those women of the Canaanite nations that were marked or devoted to destruction (see our Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 141). Because those nations’ sins had become so abominable in the sight of Yah, they had become irredeemable. The abominable religious and cultural practices of these Canaanite nations posed an existential spiritual threat to us, and Yah was not willing to chance us turning away from Him over our failure to expunge the Land of its evil. The non-Canaanite nations, however, did not pose such a spiritual threat to us, and thus Yah permitted our intermarrying with those nations if we did so within the confines of His laws. Indeed, there was always the chance that those men who intermarried would be swayed to pursue the ways of their foreign wives, but as long as Torah was the definitive rule of our nation, the influence of paganism would be mitigated. Recall that just a couple or three readings ago, our Torah reading required our community leaders to be intolerable to any paganism within our communities, even to the point of capital punishment being employed to stem the proliferation of such evil within our communities.

If, after the captive woman’s purification, mourning, and observation period, the Hebrew captor decides not to take her as his wife, he must release her with no conditions. He cannot sell her into slavery nor mistreat her because she had already gone through terrible turmoil; she has been humbled and shamed already. Thus, the compassion of Yehovah for woman is shown and manifested through His Torah. It then falls to man to carry out Yah’s instructions in righteousness so that His righteous compassion may be manifested on the earth.

Not to be deprived of the opportunity to add to and subtract from Yah’s perfect Torah, the Rabbis enacted their own laws as related to Jews entering into such foreign marriages. Under the auspices of their so-called “oral-torah,” would be war brides were required to convert, not to the Hebrew Faith of our patriarchs mind you, but to Judaism (i.e. sectarian halachah). Furthermore, the Rabbis strongly discouraged combatants taking unto themselves captive foreign wives. The Rabbis believed that the combatants’ motivations to marry their captive women would be carnal (aka lust-based) (see above regarding the purification and mourning requirements for the captive women; cf. Sifrei 213; Rashi’s comments on verses 12-13 of our Reading; and Maimonides’ Hilkhot Melakhim 8.5). This idea of the combatant taking such a captive foreign woman to be his wife solely because of a physical attraction he held towards her seems to have been a preoccupation of the rabbis. And much of the Rabbinic thinking as it relates to this mitzvah holds that any marriage that a male Jew enters into solely because he is physically attracted to his would-be wife will ultimately fail for obvious reasons. So, the lesson is for Jewish men not to marry solely because of physical attraction.

Probably the biggest Spirit and Truth take-away for me as it relates to this mitzvah would be the importance of choosing a helpmeet wisely; of being equally yoked with either a would-be wife or husband who will walk with us on our Faith journey. Choosing a life-partner who will forsake their former life of sin or religiosity and walk in covenant relationship with Yehovah by our side. It behooves us to question our motivations towards the woman or man that we are contemplating entering into a marriage covenant with: Are our motivations based on our fleshly desires, or are they based on a true love for that person, and is that person willing to enter into a covenant relationship with the Creator of the Universe through the Person and Ministries of Yeshua Messiah? Or maybe the one who Yah has chosen for us is already in a covenant relationship with Him, making such a union blessed and a holy one. Yah’s will must take precedence above and ahead of our personal preference. To mitigate the chance for marital strife, Yah recommends that we be equally-yoke with a would-be spouse (2 Cor 6.14).

 

The Torah of the Firstborn in Polygamous Relationships

In the event of a polygamous marriage where the Hebrew husband prefers one of his wives over the other, both wives having borne their husband sons and that man’s firstborn is of the least preferred wife, that firstborn must receive the benefit of being the firstborn (i.e. the birthright). He is to still receive a double-portion inheritance over his siblings because “he is the first of his [the Hebrew head of household’s] vigor.” Thus, the established rights of the firstborn (i.e. birthright or “bekhorah” or primogeniture) cannot be superseded by such extraneous factors as, for example, his father preferring the younger mother over his older or least preferred mother. However, there are biblical exceptions to this rule as evidenced in the stories of the patriarchs Avraham and Yitschaq/Isaac. In Avraham’s case, his firstborn was Ishmael and his second-born was Yitschaq/Isaac. Yah’s covenant would be with Yitschaq/Isaac, not Ishmael, and thus, Ishmael did not receive the double-portion inheritance of Avraham. And in the case of Yitschaq/Isaac, through Ya’achov/Jacob’s fool-doggery, he received the firstborn benefits over his brother Esau; not to mention that Yehovah chose Ya’achov/Jacob to perpetuate His covenant as opposed to Esau. So, there are exceptions to the firstborn rules. But in the case of a husband conferring the firstborn rights to the son who is not his firstborn, solely because he prefers the mother of the son who is not his firstborn over the mother of his firstborn, did not fly with Yah.

The firstborn son was viewed by some as “proof of his father’s potency and a token of future fertility” (Tigay, Jeffrey H.; JPS Torah Commentary-Deuteronomy; cf. Gen 38.27-28; 49. 3; Psa 78.51; 105.36; Job 18.12).

This is just one of the many downsides to polygamy. A husband will invariably prefer one wife over the other, and that naturally breeds contempt among the women in that man’s household. Yah did not prohibit polygamy, but He certainly did not encourage it for these and other reasons.

Clearly, the mitzvah of granting the husband’s firstborn son the birthright without bias was, in a sense, a safeguard against the serious deficiencies and challenges that are common to polygamous family structures. However, I strongly disagree with commentators like Torah teacher and author Tim Hegg’s position that polygamy in and of itself is a sin. For if it was a sin, it seems pretty logical, at least it does to me, that Yah would have outright condemned polygamy if it offended His holy and righteous character, as He prohibited the acts of adultery, fornication, idolatry, and rebelliousness. Again, this doesn’t mean that Yah condones polygamy as a family life choice for Hebrews. The practice is certainly fraught with a great deal of challenges to the integrity of the God-ordained institution of marriage. (If you’ve not already read or listened to my post on polygamy entitled “Polygamy and the Bible” and you are so led to do so, here is the link to that post for your convenience.)

Polygamy here in the U.S. is illegal. So, some may question this mitzvah’s relevance to us today. The relevance to us today is clear: we must always do the right thing in relationships, even when doing the right thing may not be convenient or comfortable to us at the time. For indeed we all make a great many choices throughout our lives, some of which are wise ones, while others are not so wise. In living through the fallouts that are associated with those unwise choices we’ve made, the Netzer/Yisra’elite must always do the right thing. Righteousnesss must always be our NorthStar, regardless or despite the consequences of the mistakes we’ve made in life.

 

The Torah Regarding the Handling of Evil, Rebellious, Disobedient Children (The Most Controversial Mitzvah of our Reading Today)

If a couple has an uncontrollable, evil, rebellious, disobedient son, both father and mother are to bring him before the city’s elders and state their case against their son. (This Torah applied to a child’s disrespect or injury to either or both mother or father.) Torah required that both parents agree to take their unruly, disrespectful, and evil child before the elders. And presuming the elders ruled in favor of the mother and father, the men of that city are to purge evil from their midst/their community by stoning that child.

Certainly, a hard mitzvah for many of us to contemplate. But this mitzvah served the purpose of upholding order and peace in the Hebrew household and deter children from disrespecting and harming their parents. Thus, it is imperative that every Hebrew child, from their earliest ability to understand, be taught and filled with Torah so as to reduce, if not eliminate, the chance of him or her devolving into an unredeemable rebellious son or daughter. The writer of Proverbs counseled: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it” (22.6).

Torah made allowance for parents to discipline their children (Pro 29.15; 23.13-14; 13.24 speaks to flogging or spanking one’s misbehaving child with a rod to deter them from evil and self-destructive behavior) but prohibited parents from executing them. Yah gave the authority of executing a couple’s rebellious child to the community/city elders, and the actual carrying out of the execution order to the community citizens.

Now, the text implies that the elders who hear the parents’ case against their insubordinate/rebellious child conduct an inquiry into the validity of their complaint. This mitzvah does not demand that all parental claims against their children result in the death of the offending child. It falls to the elders to lean to exercise wisdom and determine whether the home situation is salvageable enough to reconcile the child back to their parents without having to resort to summary execution of the child. In most cases, mediation would be the order of the day with summary execution when all else fails. And if execution is warranted, the parents are absolved of any responsibility in their child’s execution.

Torah demands that children respect and obey their parents at every conceivable level (Exo 20.12; Lev 19.3). Furthermore, Torah requires that a couple’s children care for their parents in the wanning years of their lives (Deu 5.16).

Insubordination and or rebelliousness on the part of children towards their parents (our text cites examples of gluttony and drunkenness; cf. Pro 23.20-21; 28.7) disrupts and undermines the integrity of the God-ordained family unit and order. But it is disobedience that warrants the greatest attention. Disobedience or rebelliousness against one’s parents are, in the sight of the Almighty, a capital offense. Why? Because the family unit and order is one foundation upon which our Hebrew Faith rests. And the Hebrew family unit is the conduit by which we perpetuate the image of Yehovah in the world. Insubordination and rebelliousness by children in the home and in the community “threatens the community’s stability and the penalty of stoning” serves as a deterrent against that evil (Tigay, J.H.; The JPS Torah Commentary-Deuteronomy).

Our western sensibilities cannot fathom such a thing. Instead of seeing the child and their behavior as evil, western society sees Yah’s instructions here as evil. But Yah’s original intent behind this troublesome mitzvah is well stated in 20.21: “So you shall purge the evil from your midst, and all Israel will hear of it and fear” (LSB). Clearly, if this mitzvah were to be followed in our western societies today, we would not see the extent of evil that we see taking place in our streets today. The children/young people of western society have become so evil that they have made many western communities unlivable for their parents and the rest of society. The young people of western society have no respect for the rule of law, nor do they respect human life or their elders. They are not held accountable for their actions. So, they feel free to perpetuate evil and live their lives outside the righteous ways of the Almighty.

And of course, the Rabbis got their grubby little fingers on this mitzvah as well, causing it to be “subjected … to an exceedingly narrow reading, according to which it could hardly ever be carried out. Several rabbis held that it was never actually applied, but was stated in the Torah only for educational purposes” (Tigay, Jeffrey H.; JPS Torah Commentary-Deuteronomy; Mish. Sanh. 8.1-4; Sanh 71a; Maimonides, Hilkhot Mamrim 7).

There is indeed a significant spiritual application to be had from this mitzvah that goes beyond the hard realities of rebellious children in Hebrew homes being punished for their evil. Scripture in multiple places records that Yehovah viewed and called Yisra’el His son (even His firstborn son — Exo 4.22). And scripture also documents in multiple places that Yisra’el was sitffnecked in his demeaner (i.e. Yisra’el would not trust and obey his Father, Yehovah) and rebellious (i.e. he repeatedly engaged in spiritual adultery against his Father by giving themselves over to idolatry — Psa 78.8; Isa 30.1; 65.2; Jer 5.23; Hos 4.16; Zec 7.11). And because His son Yisra’el persisted in his stubborn and rebellious ways, Yah punished and dispatched him from the Land.

Yehovah asserts that rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft (1 Sam 15.23). And we know the penalty for witchcraft: Death (Exo 22.18).

Even Hebrew adults who rebelled against the authority of Yah’s sanctioned Hebrew courts were subject to execution (Deu 17.12).

The other thing we as Yah’s elect must do is to train our children in Torah and when necessary, not spare the rod of correction when they stray or transgress our righteous house rules. And in the rare cases where those children persist in their evil, rebellious ways and they threaten the integrity, peace, and safety of our homes and the communities we live in, we must make some very hard decisions regarding their future with us, within the confines of the laws of the communities we reside in. Again, for the sake of our homes and the communities we reside in, in those extreme unredeemable situations, they may have to be removed from our midst.

 

The Curse of the Criminal Hung on a Tree (21:22-23)

A community’s executed criminals may be hung from a tree or wooden stake so as to bring disgrace to their memory and to deter any future proliferation of their evil in the community (Gen 40.19; Jos 10.26; Est 9.6-14). Many English renderings of this text describe the act of hanging a criminal from a tree or wooden stake as “impaling” them. The heinous act of impaling the remains of a criminal seems to have originated or have been tied to the Assyrians and was not a practice that we engaged in. Criminal remains were simply suspended or hung on a wooden pole or tree. And let’s be clear: Not every criminal’s remains were hung from trees or poles. In fact, the practice is believed to have been an uncommon one. But some cultures did engage in this practice (e.g. Gen 40.19). These cultures, however, would not permit the criminal’s remains to be buried. In such cases, the bodies were left hanging to rot in the sun and were given over to flying predators to consume. This gruesome practice is an affront to our Elohim.

Yah instructed us to not allow the remains of one who has been executed to remain hung on a tree overnight. The soul who was executed and hung on a tree is deemed as cursed by the Almighty. To leave such a one hanging from a tree overnight is to defile the Land that Yah has given us. Thus, Yah instructed that the body be removed from the tree and buried before sundown on the same day it was hung on the tree. And thus, to a greater or lesser extent, this is where the Hebrew practice of burying their dead on the same day they died came from. The only exception to this practice is, of course, when more time is needed to provide the deceased special honor before their community and nation.

Interestingly, the ancients believed that leaving one’s remains unburied led to that soul not “finding rest in a future world” (Hegg, T.; Commentary on Deuteronomy; p. 147). Even the so-called Jewish sages recognized that the executed criminal was created in the image of Yehovah, and thus their remains must be treated with dignity.

We can clearly see the spiritual implications that were associated with hanging a criminal’s remains from a tree or stake. The executed criminal that was hung from a tree or pole was considered cursed. And it is this idea or understanding of an executed soul hanging from a tree or stake being cursed that Paul, in our Apostolic reading, teaches us the significance of our Master Yeshua’s death. The apostle wrote: 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12 But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”–14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith. (Gal 3:11-14 ESV)

Yeshua, our Redeemer, became cursed of Yah when He was crucified on the stake, not that He deserved to be cursed of His Father because He was sinless, but rather, to vicariously bare or take on our cursed state. In other words, Yeshua died in our stead and became cursed of Yah so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (Hegg, T., Commentary on Deuteronomy; p. 147; reference 2 Cor 5.21). And out of an obedience to this mitzvah, Nicodemus had our Master’s body removed from the cross and buried.

 

Various Mitzvot (22.1-7)

Return of Lost [Animal] Property

If we see that our neighbor’s livestock has strayed from our neighbor’s property, we must make every effort to return that animal to its owner if known (cf. Exo 23.4-5). If we don’t know who that animal’s owner is, we must take that animal in and care for it (as if it were our own) until the animal’s owner is made known to us, at which point we are to hand the displaced animal over to its original owner. It is understood, of course, that the finder in some way or another publicizes that he/she found the stray/lost animal and its owners, when claiming it, would give some proof that the stray creature belonged to them. And this principle applies to both animal and other material possessions. Found items must be returned to their original owner once we learn who that owner is. This is love for one’s neighbor as ourselves and respect for Yah’s animal creation in action (22.1-3). We must seek to minimize any suffering that the lost animal may incur, as well as spare the owner (i.e. the neighbor whom we are to love) of any potential “economic loss” (Tigay; JPS Torah Commentary-Deuteronomy). That the owner of the lost animal belongs to one of our kinfolks automatically displaces the excuse that we should ignore or take advantage of the situation, even if the owner-kinsman is a personal enemy of ours (cf. Exo 23.4-5; Lev 5.20-26).

Helping our Neighbor Restore Their Animal to Wholeness

If we see that our neighbor’s animal (specifically any beast of burden such as an ox or ass–Exo 23.5) has found itself in a difficult way (e.g. fallen into a ditch or hole or collapsed under a load or burden) we are required to help our neighbor restore his animal to wholeness. This is love for one’s neighbor as ourselves and respect for Yah’s animal creation demonstrated (22.4). We as Yah’s set apart ones are compelled to prevent or mitigate suffering of any kind, be it human or animal suffering (cf. Tractate Bava Metsia; BM 32a-b; Maimonides, Sefer Ha-Mitsvot, positive nos. 202-203; idem, Hilkhot Rotseah 13.1-2, 13).

These mitzvot transcend one’s personal view of their neighbor as they must be obeyed, even when the owner is our enemy. We must love our neighbors, regardless of the personal misgivings we have towards them. Thus, we must love them as much as we love ourselves.

Prohibition Against Transvestitism

Yah sees transvestite (cross-dressing) practices as abominable, and it is not to be tolerated in our midst (22.5). There are at least two very good reasons why Yah may have enacted this prohibition and why He despises transvestism: (1) Yah abhors homosexuality, which we can easily see how the practice of transvestism would be a conduit for homosexual activity; and (2) it was a common practice in various Babylonian pagan cultural and worship activities (reference Tigay; JPS Torah Commentary-Deuteronomy).

This mitzvah is timely as we see in the popularity of “drug shows” and so-called “drag queens” exploding in and around the communities we reside in. We even see occurrences of these in supposed places of worship.

Such activity is an abominable violation of Torah. It must not be tolerated in our fellowships, nor in our midst, despite how unpopular it may be to take such a stand against it in our “woke” culture and communities. Drag shows and the practice of transvestism is evil and it must not be given place in our midst, especially in our set-apart gatherings.

Separating a Mother Bird from Her Babies

If we come across a nest where the mother bird is tending to her babies, we are to release the mother. This mitzvah is intricately linked to Yah’s instructions of Leviticus 22:27-28: “When an ox or a sheep or a goat is born, it shall stay seven days with its mother, and from the eighth day on it shall be acceptable as an offering. No animal from the herd or from the flock shall be slaughtered on the same day with its yew.” The one who brazenly violates this mitzvah is cruel or unkind and does not reflect the compassionate and caring character of their Creator.

We must chase or shoo away the mother before we may take the babies into our possession (21.6-7). This, according to Jeffrey H. Tigay in his commentary on this parashah, “spares the mother the painful sight of seeing her offspring taken away” (cf. Maimonides, Guide 3.48). Tigay clarifies, however, that it is impossible to determine the extent that the mother experiences pain at the loss of her young. But the salient point to this mitzvah is the prohibition against the “callous acts themselves” (ibid.). We must not give ourselves over to callous behavior against one another and against Yah’s animal creation, but always give caring consideration to the ramifications of all that we may do.

This is natural justice. Yah requires that His chosen ones respect the natural order and care after the animal creation. When we do so, Yah prolongs our days on this earth.

 

Concluding Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 142

The Spirit and Truth of our Torah Reading today can be summed up in our Master’s admonition that we love one another, especially within our set-apart communities. To love one another, as we discussed in last week’s reading, is to be loyal to the covenant relationship we have with the Almighty. For we truly love one another as we love ourselves, and we love Yehovah with our whole being, when we are obedient to Yah and His instructions in righteousness. And when we are individually and collectively loyal to the covenant relationship we share with the Almighty, Father Yah blesses us and our families. We then become a light to this corrupt and evil world because we bare and demonstrate Yah’s righteous character to the world. Let us then not grow weary of righteous living as we await the glorious return of our master and soon coming King.

Before I leave you today, beloved, I want you to be aware that we will be on a 3-week hiatus, as we must take care of some important business out on the West Coast. Abba willing, we’ll return sometime around 8/24/2024.

Until then, Shabbat Shalom, Shavu’atov, take care beloved of Messiah.

 

 

 

The Realities of the Messianic’s Ongoing War Against this World — Torah Reading 141 Thoughts and Reflections

by | Jul 20, 2024 | Blog, Podcasts

by Rod Thomas | The Messianic Torah Observer

As I am recording and publishing this installment of TMTO, it is July 20, 2024. It is the 13th Day of the 4th Month of Yah’s Calendar Year.

 

So much is going on in the world today. And if you miss a news cycle, you stand a good chance of missing some earth-shattering event that has the potential to affect millions of people in some way or another. The pace of unfolding turmoil and chaos is occurring at a rapid pace. There is little to no room or opportunity for us to sit off to the side of this life and allow the unfolding turmoil and chaos to go on without us having to make a choice how we are going to deal with or handle that chaos and turmoil. Are we going to take a side and voice our concerns? Will we feel strongly enough about what’s going on around us to in some way involve ourselves in address those unfolding situations? Do we stick our individual or collective heads in the sand and let the turmoil and chaos, hopefully, pass us by? Or do we do as Yehovah instructed the Hebrew prophet of old to convey to remnant Yisra’el during one of that nation’s darkest moments in her history?

 

Write the vision, and that plainly on a tablet, that he that reads it may run. 3 For the vision is yet for a time, and it shall shoot forth at the end, and not in vain: though he should tarry, wait for him; for he will surely come, and will not tarry.  4 If he should draw back, my soul has no pleasure in him: but the just shall live by my faith. (Hab 2:2-4 LXA)

 

I would hope that you would agree with me that the last option is Yah’s preferred, if not required, option for His set apart people to do in response to the unraveling chaos and turmoil of this world. We must do what Yah has instructed us to do and not get in the way of or involved in the world and what the world is doing. And this reality that I’m talking to you about here is what this week’s Torah Reading addresses. I’ve been led to entitle this discussion: “The Realities of the Messianic’s Ongoing War Against this World.” It will be my thoughts and reflections on the 141st reading of our 3-year Torah Reading Cycle. The Torah Reading itself is contained in Deuteronomy/Devarim 20:10-21:9; the Haftorah reading is contained in Joshua/Yahoshua 24:1-15; and the Apostolic reading is contained in 1 John/Yochanan 2:15-17.

 

Now, because our Torah Reading is somewhat lengthy, I would ask you to read, study, and meditate on it as you are so led. However, we will read portions of the Haftorah and the Apostolic for clarity.

 

The Torah for Hebrews engaging in Yah-ordained warfare (20:10-20)

War (The Torah for Hebrews engaging in Yah-ordained warfare). If Yah ordains it, one must conduct war in a judicial and ethical manner. The waging of such must place a value or preciousness to human life and Yah’s creation. Unlike the warfare that is waged in our present day, where there is little to no concern for human life and Yah’s creation.

 

Peace (The Hebrew must seek a peaceful resolution to war when engaging in an enemy that is separated by distance). Tributaries (20:10-11) or taxes levied against peace-seeking enemies. (cf. 1 Mac 1.29). Conversely, the Hebrew is required to besiege the non-peace-seeking enemy until YHVH gives her over to them (20.12-14). In such cases, the Hebrew forces were to slay all males with the sword and save the women and baggage (i.e. their children and the livestock). The spoils of that warfare (aka the Booty) would belong to the Hebrew combatants.

 

Then we have the fortified cities of Canaan. These Abba Yah “devoted to destruction (20:17-18) — extermination with extreme prejudice (If you are so led, either listen to or read my post entitled “Obedience to Torah — Marked for Destruction” where I went into the details and reasoning behind Yah’s instructions regarding those cities that were marked for destruction) (20:15). Why did Yah mark/mark certain Canaanite fortified cities and its people for destruction? These nations — the Hittites (descendants of Heth); the Amorites (descendants of Canaan); the Canaanites; the Perizzites; the Hivites (descendants of Canaan and sons of Ham); and the Jebusites (residents of Jebus) — practiced [forms of] paganism where the people engaged in acts that Yehovah would no longer allow to continue. Their religious and cultural practices were abominable to Yah (e.g., Moloch and child sacrifice worship). If these nations were not eliminated and the people and their abominable pagan ways were allowed to continue in our presence, they would inevitably entice us to partake in their horrendous abominable practices or syncretize/blend/attach some of their abominable worship practices into our worship of Yehovah. Of course, this would completely undermine and ruin our covenant relationship with Father Yah. 

 

Of course, Yah’s instructions related to those cities and peoples that He marked/devoted to destruction would seem unreasonably harsh to any who were not in a covenant relationship with the Creator of the Universe. To suggest that we would exterminate these Canaanites with extreme prejudice seems to defy our western sensibilities of rightness, tolerance, humanity, and so forth. But did not Father reveal to us in His Word that our righteousness was, in all reality, as if it were filthy [disgusting] rags (Isa 64.6)? And it is within the realm of human self righteousness, as it relates to the cities that were marked/devoted to destruction were concerned, that the so-called Jewish sages come into play here. These took it upon themselves to question Yah’s mindset and reasoning as it related to Yah’s instructions regarding how His people were to deal with or treat such abhorrent nations and peoples. The sages believed Yisra’el must seek a peaceful existence with all nations, including the abhorrent ones. Their thinking was such that all nations and peoples should be offered the opportunity to abandon their paganistic ways and submit to the so-called Noachide Laws (i.e. Sifrei 202; t. Sota 8:7; b. Sota 35b; Ramban’s Hilkhot Melakim 6:1).

 

But the truth of the matter is that Yah abhors all iterations or forms of paganism/idolatry to such a degree that He requires that it not be tolerated by us, and that it be eradicated from our midst. For our God is not only a jealous God (Exo. 20:5; 34:14; Deu 4:24; 5:9; 6:15:Jos 24:19), but more so, He abhors the idolatrous-evil-abominable behavior that comes out of pagan worship and culture. Consequently, paganism/idolatry potentially undermines Yah’s covenant relationship with His set-apart people. Unfortunately, the pagan practices and culture of the nations that Yah devoted/marked to destruction were, for all intents and purposes, irredeemable. This being the case, Yah’s set apart people cannot tolerate the presence of such nation peoples in our midst. Why? Because “a little leaven leaventh the whole lump” (1 Cor 5.6; Gal 5.9). Yah knows that and He expected that we would understand this reality. Further more, Yehovah does not tolerate “syncretism” to any degree. And syncretism is the religious “soup de jour” in Catholicism and Denominationalism. Not by mistake, mind you. Syncretism was intentionally added to the so-called early Church so that Christianity would be more appealing to the masses.

 

Sadly, however, our ancient Hebrew cousins failed to obliterate those marked/devoted nation peoples as Yah commanded, which consequently led to us engaging in syncretistic worship of Yehovah, which then led to Yah’s judgments and punishments against us.

In engaging our enemies in battle, Yah commanded us to spare the fruit-bearing trees (20:19-20). In other words, Yah forbade us from engaging in wanton destruction of the land’s agricultural resources.

 

Canaan’s productive agriculture was to be spared from wanton/unjustified destruction because it had nothing to do with the abominable culture and practices of the land’s evil people. For all agriculture serves a God-ordained, created purpose that we must respect even in the heat of battle.

 

You see, when the elements of Yah’s creative order are fulfilling their respective purpose and the will of its Creator, Yehovah blesses and promotes their continued function in His creative order. However, when these elements fail to fulfill their purpose and the will of their creator — and we’re talking human, animal, and plant life — they stand to be eliminated from the creative order (e.g. Yeshua curses the fig tree — Mat 21).

 

Godly Justice related to the shedding of innocent blood in a Hebrew community (21.1-9).

 

The Levitical Priests were required to inquire and resolve every complex legal dispute. Every case of assault would be subject to their ruling. The council of elders of the town where the remains of a murdered soul was found would be required absolve itself of the shedding of innocent blood by washing of that town’s leaders’ hands over the carcus of a hamstrung/slaughtered heifer to be placed in a dry riverbed.

 

This ritual would be required of the involved community’s leaders in the event that there was no identified or known murderer. The leaders of the community who, before the ears and sight of Yehovah, would profess that they knew nothing about the demise of the innocent victim. Their profession of innocence was to be bolstered by performing this “heifer” ritual.

 

The point of this ritual, despite its seeming futility and pointlessness, was meant to officially address and acknowledge that there was indeed a shedding of innocent blood in their community. Thus, Yah’s continued support and promotion of the value of human life, which, as Tim Hegg of Torah Resources points out, is contrary to our modern secular views and treatment of human life (e.g. the prevalence of abortions; euthanasia; murder; violence; hatred at all levels; etc.; Hegg; Commentary on Deuteronomy; p. 136). The devaluing of life is self-perpetuating. It will always lead to continued and increased incidents of violence and murder in any society if it is not properly checked.

______________________________________________________________________

Haftorah Reading 141: The Renewal of the Mosaic Covenant Under Joshua — Joshua’s Appeal to Yisra’el to only serve Yehovah (Jos 24:1-15).

 

After the conquest of the Land of Promise, our leader, Joshua, son of Nun, called every Yisra’eli Tribe  to assemble at Shiloh. He set each tribe’s elders, scribes, and judges before Yehovah (Jos 24.1-15):

Before the nation and her tribal representatives, Joshua reaffirms the Mosaic Covenant after briefly rehashing the nation’s history: 14 And now, fear the Lord and serve him in uprightness and in righteousness, and put away the foreign gods that our fathers served in the region beyond the river and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if it is not pleasing to you to serve the Lord, choose for you yourselves today whom you will serve, whether the gods of your fathers in the region of them beyond the river or the gods of the Amorites among whom you live upon their land. I and my household will serve the Lord because he is holy.’ ”Rick Brannan, Ken M. Penner et al., The Lexham English Septuagint, Second Edition. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020), Jos 24:14–15.

 

Here we have an official rejection of paganism/idolatry of any form and an irresistible call for us to serve Yehovah with a “wholeness of heart” (Hegg; p. 136). This whole-hearted service to Yah is tightly linked to this week’s Apostolic reading.

 

Apostolic Reading for 141: We are not to covenant with the World

15Do not love the world nor that which is in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16Because all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17And the world passes away, and the lust of it, but the one doing the desire of Elohim remains forever. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), 1 Jn 2:15–17.

 

The overriding concept of our Apostolic Reading is the contrast of “love” (i.e. agapao) for this world and the things of this world, versus “love” for Yehovah and His Ways.

The Koine Greek term Agapao means to be fond of or to prize someone or certain individuals or something or certain things that are associated with this world or with our God. Consequently, the Apostle points out the realities of there being a distinct contrast between the love (i.e. the agapao) that we may have for the world and its trappings, as well as for the love we may have Yehovah and His Ways. And clearly, at the expense of stating the obvious, the overwhelming majority of folks on this planet love this world and all that this world has to offer them (Joh 3.19). Of course, this is unacceptable to the Creator who demands that His chosen/elect ones instead love Him and His ways unequivocally.

 

This “agapao” is framed in what Greek scholars refer to as the “present active imperative.” According to Torah teacher and author Tim Hegg, of Torah Resources, the present active imperative that agapao/agapate as framed in our text  is “something that the believer must constantly be on guard against” (Hegg, T.; A Commentary on the Johannine Epistles; Torah Resources; p. 94). Of this, Hegg continues by quoting a Martin M. Culy, of McMaster Divinity College: “The imperfective (present tense) should not be pressed to imply that the readers were currently loving the world and needing to stop…Rather, it is the natural choice for prohibiting an action that is viewed as a process…” (I, II, III John: A Handbook on the Greek Text; Baylor Univ. Press; 2004; p. 42). And so, if I’m understanding Mr. Culy correctly, he is saying that John was counseling his readers to always be on guard that they do not get caught in the snare of falling in love with this world and the things of this world. For the truth of the matter is that “friendship with the world is enmity with Elohim” and that “whoever therefore intends to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of Elohim” (Jas 4.4; The Scriptures ISR).

 

The Hebrew understanding of “love” (aka agapao) is inextricably embedded in the Hebrew concept of “covenant.” Recall that a “covenant” (aka berit) is a “binding agreement “between “two or more parties.” The involved parties to the covenant mutually “pledge” that they will abide in the “relationship” that the cut agreement stipulates. Each covenant has stipulated “actions” that are incumbent upon each party engaging in, as well as each covenant has “consequences” if either party fails to keep their end of the agreement (Hegg, T., p. 95). And so, covenant, in and of itself, denotes a “binding relationship” that each signatory to the agreement has entered into and who has determined to continue acting in accordance with the terms of that covenant agreement. When covenants involve Yehovah and His chosen people, Yah is always steadfast or faithful in keeping His end of the covenant agreement, even when His people fall short as it relates to their keeping the terms of the covenant (Isa 54.10; Psa 89.28). (This is why those who adhere to the tenets of “Replacement Theology” find themselves in gross error and in opposition to the God of Avraham, Yitschaq, and Ya’achov. Yah had declared that He will stay faithful to His covenant with Yisra’el and He will redeem and restore them despite their failures to keep covenant with Him.) Our love for Yehovah is then defined by our demonstrated faithfulness/steadfast loyalty and whole-hearted keeping of the terms of the covenant that Yah cut with us back in the day (i.e. keeping His Torah and the terms of the marriage covenant He cut with us at Mount Sinai). Our faithfulness/loyalty/steadfastness to the keeping of the whole covenant we cut with Yah is demonstrative of our love for Yehovah and His Son Yeshua. Is this not how Master Yeshua defined what His disciples’ love for Him looked like: “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments…The one who has My commandments and keeps them, that one is the one who loves Me. And the one who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will reveal Myself to him…If you keep My commandments, you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My father’s commandments and remain in His love” (Joh 14.14, 15; 15:10; LEB).

 

Contextually, this is what the Apostle meant by us “not loving this world or the things of this world” and believers “possessing the love of the Father” in our Apostolic Reading (1 Joh 2:15). He is reminding his readers to not fall prey to forgetting Who and what they are covenanted to. Netsarim/Nazarene Yisra’elites are covenanted to Yehovah and His ways, not to this world and its ways and cultures. For when we become loyal to the world, its ways, and its culture, we have effectively fallen out of covenant with the Almighty and have failed our Master Yeshua. The Apostle is reminding us to not compromise our stake and position in the covenant relationship we share with Yah through the Person and ministries of Yahoshua Messiah. Master Yeshua provided us with all we need to remain compliant with the terms of the covenant agreement we have with His Father (i.e. we possess His Father’s Holy Spirit and we have His Father’s instructions in righteousness), so that our relationship with Abba Yah is not adversely impacted. All of which means that we must not become yoked/bound with or joined to the things of this world (e.g., its music, politics, ways of thinking, dress, attitudes, practices, sports, movies, inappropriate human relationships, etc.). There is no room for divided loyalties, syncretism, or compromises in our walk with Messiah. Yah abhors all of these things. Consider for example the Master’s critical message to the Messianic Assembly in Laodicea:

 

15“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I would that you were cold or hot. 16“So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am going to vomit you out of My mouth. 17“Because you say, ‘Rich I am, and I am made rich, Hosh. 12:8 and need none at all,’ and do not know that you are wretched, and pitiable, and poor, and blind, and naked. 18“I advise you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, so that you become rich; and white garments, so that you become dressed, so that the shame of your nakedness might not be shown; and anoint your eyes with ointment, so that you see. 19“As many as I love, I reprove and discipline. So be ardent and repent. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Re 3:15–19.

 

Beloved, it’s not that we can never enjoy some of the appropriate things of this world from time-to-time such as a wholesome movie or a beautiful song and music. Such things, however, become a problem when we cross that Rubicon and give all of our time, attention, and resources to the world and the things of this world. And so, it behooves us to always seek the Spirit’s leading and guidance when contemplating what things of this world are appropriate and to what extent should we engage in them. We must be able to answer the burning question of “are those things of the world that we are being drawn to conducive or detrimental to my covenant relationship with Yah? Will my delving into those questionable things of this world create a shared loyalty situation, or will it cause me to compromise my relationship with the Almighty? Who and what has my steadfast loyalty: Yah and His Son Yahoshua, or the world and its trappings? John and Joshua, as noted in our reading today, encourage us to engage in a perpetual soul searching to determine who and what possesses our loyalties so that we may make informed decisions as to Whom we will serve this day.

 

The enemy (aka hasatan) knows that if he is to be successful in undermining the plans and purposes of the Creator of the Universe, he must sway the hearts, minds, and souls of the citizens of this planet to not love Yehovah and His ways, but rather, to love this world and the things of this corrupt world. And having had many millennia to study people and their inherent weaknesses, the enemy has come to know all too well how to sway the hearts, minds, and souls of Yah’s human creation away from their Creator over to the world and its ways. The enemy accomplishes the bulk of his work, according to John, by pinging upon an individual’s innate longing for things that satisfy the desires of their flesh; those things that appeal to their eyes; and their lust for material possessions. Recall that all three temptation elements were deployed against Adam and Eve by the enemy in Gan Eden (aka the Garden of Eden-Gen 3.5-6). And recall further that the enemy attempted to turn Yeshua away from His Father by pinging on these three temptation elements (Mat 4.1-11). But we saw how the Master rebuffed each temptation element by standing firmly upon His Father’s Torah and throwing those elements back at the enemy.

 

When these longings and the pursuit of fulfilling these longing take over the hearts, minds, and souls of an individual, the love that Father Yah demands from them become eclipsed and He is effectively kicked to the curb, so to speak. Needless to say, Yah does not appreciate it when His human creation loves this world and the things of this world over loving Him and His ways. And what makes this all the more a challenging and complex dilemma is that Yah is not willing to share loyalties with anyone or anything: it’s becomes a choice of loving Him and His ways, or sticking with loving this world and the things of this world. Consequently, loving this world and the things of this world comes at a steep price. Loving this world demands loyalty and allegiance to it. But the paradigm that Yah has in place for His chosen/elect ones does not provide for shared allegiances and loyalties with this world. Because we are still human, we must exist in this world. But Yeshua requires His chosen/elect ones to be Not of this World (i.e. to not be in covenant with this world and its systems-Joh 17). And this, I think we would all agree, is a hard pill for the vast majority of peoples on this planet to swallow. To be of this world is antithetical to belonging (i.e. being in covenant with) the Holy One of Yisra’el. And if the unredeemed to make a course correction and abandon their loyalties to this world, they will sadly be “devoted to destruction” (i.e. I never knew you: depart from Me, ye worker of iniquity/lawlessness-Mat 7.23).

 

Anything that is outside of Yah’s Word, or that is not in alignment with Yah’s instructions in righteousness, belongs to the enemy. There are eternal benefits for loving Father Yah over loving this world. When we love Yehovah with our whole being and we obey Him and walk exclusively in His ways exclusively through Faith in the Person and ministries of Yeshua our Messiah, we are then gifted with eternal life.

 

Our covenant relationship with Abba Yah through Yeshua Messiah mandates we make definitive life and spiritual choices that have eternal ramifications attached to them. In making those choices, we are required to avoid those things of this life that may compromise the covenant relationship we have with the Almighty. Both the Apostle and Master Yahoshua warn us to be “on guard” of this reality:

 

34“And take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down by gluttony, and drunkenness, and worries of this life, and that day come on you suddenly. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Lk 21:34.

 

12Fight the good fight of the belief, lay hold on everlasting life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession before many witnesses. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), 1 Ti 6:12.

 

Indeed, remaining loyal to our covenant relationship with Yah is often a struggle and to a greater or lesser extent, it is a war that we wage against this world each and every day. But we know that we have the wherewithal to overcome the challenges and inticements of this world.

 

Master taught: 33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world. The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Jn 16:33.

 

And,

 

4 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world. 4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), 1 Jn 4.

 

And with that beloved, we will bring this installment of TMTO to an end. I pray that you were blessed as much as I was blessed this week in my preparations for sharing this word with you. My prayer is that you have a blessed rest of your Sabbath and that you have an overcoming week in Yeshua Messiah. And until next time, may you be most blessed fellow saints in training. Until next time, take care.

 

Operating in a Set-Apart-Kingdom Fashion– Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 140

by | Jul 13, 2024 | Blog, Podcasts

by Rod Thomas | The Messianic Torah Observer's Sabbath Thoughts and Reflections

Greetings saints of the Most High. This is Rod Thomas coming to you from the DFW on a rather steamy but blessed Sabbath. I want to thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to fellowship with me here on upcoming day of rest in Yeshua Messiah. And as always, it is my hope, trust, and prayer, that this installment of the Messianic Torah Observer finds you, your families, and your fellowships well and blessed.

 

As I am recording and publishing this installment of TMTO, it is July 13, 2024. Just five days ago we entered the 4th Month of Yah’s Biblical Calendar Year. And for those of you who are new to this Faith-walk, or new to Father’s reckoning of time, there are no mandated moedim or feasts of the LORD this month. Thus, we spend these non-feast months working the fields and producing good fruit, in anticipation of the soon arrival of our King, Yeshua Messiah, and Him ushering in His Father’s eternal Kingdom.

 

I’ve chosen to entitle this teaching “Operating in a Set-Apart-Kingdom Fashion: Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 140.” It is the 140th reading of our 3-year Torah Reading Cycle, and is contained in Deuteronomy/Devarim 18:1-20:9.

 

Given the length of this week’s reading, we will not read the text, but instead reserve that privilege for you all to do as you are so led. And so, what follows is my thoughts and reflections on the reading. It is my hope that each of you will conduct your own study and meditate on this reading according.

 

Yehovah Will be the Levitical Priests’ Inheritance! (18:1-8)

The Tribe of Levi would not receive the promised inheritance of Land that the rest of their Israeli brethren were to receive. Yehovah would be their inheritance. How so and why? It doesn’t seem fair, does it? After all, weren’t the Levites also descended from Avraham, Yitschaq, and Ya’achov like the rest of their brethren? Weren’t they also entitled to receive and enjoy the fatness of the Land of Promise?

 

The Promise of the Land to our ancient cousins served several purposes. But the one purpose that stood out among any other is that the promise of Land provided every son of Ya’achov the wherewithal to make a viable and secure living for himself and his family. This land ownership has always been about in the Ancient Near East: Having the God-given wherewithal to provide for one’s self and family under the reign of Yehovah Elohim.

 

Well, as it would pertain to our Levitical brethren, having no Land inheritance meant that someone else would have to provide for all their physical needs. And that someone else would be Yehovah, who, through the Tabernacle sacrificial system, would provide for every physical need (and the needs of their families as well) of our Levite kin. For Yah declared through Moshe that YHVH is his (i.e., the Levite’s) inheritance (18:2). And so, the Levites would receive an allotted portion of the meat of certain qualified sacrifices for their meat; a portion of the firstfruits of the peoples’ grain offering for their vegetables and bread, and the fleece of the sheep offerings made by the people for their clothing and such.

 

Why did Yah set up such a system? He stated through Moshe: “For יהוה your Elohim has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to serve in the Name of יהוה, him and his sons forever. The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Dt 18:5. The ministerial work of the Levite was a full-time job, leaving no time for agricultural work to physically sustain them. Yah required of his priests that they dedicate their lives entirely to Him; to serve Yah and act as intermediaries between Yehovah and the people.

 

Now the question challenging or facing our beloved faith community is, since the Levitical priesthood is on a temporary hiatus — at least until the Kingdom age let’s say (Eze 45:5; 48:11-13) – are we Netsarim priests operating in place of our retired ancient Levi cousins? Does our Master’s Exalted role as the Cohen Gadol/High Priest over the Michaelian priestly order demand, by spiritual default, that we somehow assume priestly offices and duties today? Did not Yah declare that we, his chosen-elected ones were destined to become a royal nation of priests and a holy nation (Exo 19:5-6; Isa 61:6; 66:21; 1 Pet 2:9)? Was this in fact Abba Yah’s intent and purpose for us from the beginning?

 

We know that the Church Triumphant took this concept to heart when they began developing and employing a cadre of so-called priests to oversee the affairs of their hijacked, bastardized version of the true faith once delivered. Clearly, there is some iteration of the “every believer is a priest” through Yeshua’s Melchizedekian High Priesthood Doctrine that is true. John foresaw in his revelation of Yeshua the essence of this reality, did he not (Rev 1:6; 5:10)? He most certainly did. Unfortunately for us today, we’re seeing how this priesthood, especially in the Kingdom realm, is going to actually play out through “a glass darkly.” But we believe it must come to pass, somehow, some way. Right? At least for the time being, we are obliged to operate in the semblance of a priest. As the Levitical priests of old Ministered to the High Priest/Cohen Gadol and to Israel/Yisra’el, we must do likewise in this dispensation. We are called to serve the Master Who is presently operating in the heavenly Temple/Mishkan as our High Priest, as well as serve one another. Yeshua commanded us to love one another (Joh 13:34). In this sense — the sense that our lives reflect or epitomize priestly character – it stands to reason that we must certainly operate as a nation of priests being members of the Netsari Faith Community.

 

No, we are not offering animal sacrifices to Yehovah on behalf of the nation, but rather, we are offering unto Yah, as Paul/Shaul described it, sacrifices of praise (Heb 13:15) and producing fruit that is worthy of our priestly calling. The question, however, is are we doing these priestly things, or are we simply sitting on our hands waiting for the Master to return, having done little to nothing to increase the number of talents that He left us with when He ascended on high (Mat 25:14-46)? If we are indeed a kingdom/nation of priests as the Apostle Peter/Kefa declared, then we have work to do. Our Melchizedekian High Priest is counting on us to support Him and operate in our God-given Kingdom function and purpose. If we don’t operate in our kingdom priestly purpose and function, we stand the very good chance of being denied entry into our Master’s glorious Kingdom when He returns (Mat 7:21-23).

 

So, for now, we are compelled to operate in our priest-like function and purpose the best we can, in fear and in trembling (Psa 2:11; Phi 2:12) and be careful as to not fall prey to the Dispensationalists’ snare of Replacement Theology thinking. Our priestlike function in the Kingdom – that being the Kingdom that exists in each of us who are in a true covenant relationship with Abba Yah – does not mean that Yah abolished His holy and eternal Torah and all of its provisions and structures such as the Levitical Priesthood. For us, we are simply following the lead of Yah’s walking-talking-Torah: doing what He instructs us to do. As far as we must be concerned, Yah’s Torah remains as our constitution and the foundation of our covenant relationship with the Creator of the Universe. We are not, then, replacements to the Levitical Priesthood, but rather, priestly servants to our Melchizedekian High Priest. Because of our High Priest Yahoshua, we enjoy a direct covenant relationship with the Creator of the Universe. Yeshua Messiah is the only means – He is the bridge – that we have to Abba Yah. Without Yeshua, as Torah Teacher Tim Hegg so beautifully puts it, we “have no entrance into the Holy Place” (Hegg, T.; Commentary on Deuteronomy; p. 127). This is in great part the reason we customarily conclude our petitionary prayers with the adage “in Yeshua’s Name I pray, Amein” (ibid., p. 127).

 

Our reading’s instructions as it relates to the support that Yah incorporated into His Torah to provide for His Levitical Priesthood should translate over to how our Netsari leaders and teachers are cared for, in Spirit and in Truth of course. Our faith community leaders; and teachers’ day-to-day needs, like the Levitical Priests of old, should be taken care of by those of us who they feed. Our faith community leaders and teachers, if at all possible, should not be forced to work secular jobs to take care of themselves and their families. They, like the apostles of the Jerusalem Assembly, should be afforded the opportunity to operate in “Yah’s word and not tend to tables” so to speak (Act 6:2). This is not in the least to suggest that our faith community leaders should use their blessed positions to gain material wealth, power, and influence in the community. On the contrary, they must be at the proper place physically and spiritually to serve their Master Yeshua and their brethren in the community. They must abhor and avoid the pursuit of accumulation of mammon.

Prohibitions Against Adopting the Religious-Pagan Practices and Ways of the Nations (18:9-14)

The religious, pagan practices and ways of the Canaanites were detestable to Yehovah, and He vehemently declared that we were never to imitate or adopt any of those nation’s ways. In part, it was for the reason of the wholesale paganism of the Canaanites that Yah was driving them out of the Land before us (18:12).

 

For Yehovah, it wasn’t enough that we not adopt the ways and religious practices of the Canaanites, but that we walk “blameless before Yehovah” our God (18:13). This was in fact the same instruction that He gave our patriarch Avraham: And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect (aka “tamim,” to be complete in all your ways). The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Ge 17:1.

 

Yah demands that we walk blamelessly before Him, turning neither to the right nor left in our ways (Deu 28:10). We are to stay within the confines of His instructions in righteousness. And Yah gives this instruction in conjunction to the potentiality that we might “go after other gods to serve them” (Deu 28:14). Of this reality, Yah declared: 9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me…The Holy Bible: King James Version, Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version. (Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 2009), Dt 5:9–6:15.

 

The Canaanites, according to Yehovah, had given themselves to their gods. They effectively belonged to the Canaanite pantheon of gods. But Yah redeemed us from the gods of Mitsrayim (aka Egypt) and from any other gods of this world (Deu 7:8; 9:26; 13:5). We belong to Him. This being the case, we are compelled to do as He commands (Deu 24:18).

Yah’s Prophets and the Prophet to Come Whom We Must Shema (18:15-22)

Moshe prophesied Yehovah was going to raise up unto us a prophet, somewhat like Moshe, whom we must listen (aka “Shema”-to hear, listen, and obey). That prophet we know would be none other than our Master Yahoshua Messiah. We refused to hear from Yehovah’s mouth directly as we stood before His presence back at Horeb. Yah honored our cries of fear and instead would deliver His words to us via His designated prophet, Moshe. But to hammer this reality even further, Yah promised to raise up Yeshua, the ultimate Prophet, again very much like Moshe, Whom Yah would place my words into his mouth, and he shall speak to them ⌊everything that I command him⌋. 19 ⌊And then⌋ the man that will not listen to my words that he shall speak in my name, I will hold accountable. W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012), Dt 18:18–19. If we fail or refuse to listen to The Prophet whom Yah will raise up in our midst, Yah would hold us accountable and we would perish. If we refuse to walk in the ways of Yeshua Messiah, we will indeed perish.

This prophetic utterance prompted Moshe to comment about those kinsmen who, on their own accord, claim to speak having Yehovah’s authority but not having received any words whatsoever from the Almighty. In particular, Moshe singles out those who would come from among us who would claim to be speaking on behalf of Yah, but who seek to turn the people to the worship and ways of pagan gods would, by necessity, be executed. That prophet is not of Yehovah. Anyone who dares to sway the hearts, minds, and souls of the people to go after other gods is to be marked for destruction.

 

The test of a prophet who claims to be operating under the authority and direction of Yehovah — claiming that Yah placed His Word in their mouth — but that which he foretells does not come to pass, is not a sanctioned prophet of Yehovah. That individual was acting under his own motivations or the influence of the enemy. That one is not to be feared nor followed.

 

Now, as it relates to 18:15, Yah’s Torah regarding His raising up a Prophet like Moshe from our midst and of whom we must hearken, should in no way be limited, at least in our minds, to the Person of Yeshua HaMashiyach. For as clearly as this passage points directly to Mashiyach/Messiah, the Spirit and Truth of 18:15 most certainly applies to any would be prophet who has ever claimed to have been called of Yah to declare “Thus saith the LORD.” Certainly, the same proofs and restrictions and rules that we read about in the Parsa that is before us today, must apply to any and all would be prophets.

 

We know that Yah’s true prophets of old spoke the words to Yisra’el that Yah placed in their mouths. These were holy emissaries of the Most High Elohim. Their foretelling when heeded by us led to Yah sparing us from His wrathful judgments. But when we refused to heed their foretelling, then their forthtelling function came online and we became subject to Yah’s wrathful judgments.

 

Do we have true prophets in operation today? I believe we most certainly do. So, does Yah’s Torah regarding these modern-day prophets still apply to us and to them? Absolutely. Those present-day prophets who direct us to abandon and reject Yah’s Way of Life (i.e. Yah’s holy Torah and Yeshua’s instructions) must be rejected and treated as an anathema within our community. However, those would be prophets whose words have been shown to be consistently true and that align perfectly with scripture, we should Shema them as the Holy Spirit operating within us directs.

The Torah Regarding the Setting Aside Cities of Refuge in the Land of our Inheritance (19:1-20)

Please either read or listen to our post entitled “The Torah of the Cities of Refuge — Thoughts and Reflections on Torah Reading 125.” In that post, we did a detailed study on the workings of and the spiritual implications of the Cities of Refuge that Yah commanded us to set aside in the Land of Promise.

Our God Will Fight For Us as we Take Possession of our Inheritance (20:1-9)

Yah through Moshe instructed us to not fear the battles that were ahead of us and the enemy that stood in the way of our taking possession of the Land of Promise. Yah adamantly declared that He would do the heavy lifting on our behalf for “יהוה your Elohim, who brought you up from the land of Mitsrayim, is with you.” The Scriptures, 3rd edition. (Northriding: Institute for Scripture Research, 2009), Dt 20:1.

 

If Yah be for us, Who then can stand against us? For even the appearance of the numbers of armored and weaponed enemy, arrayed with their horses and chariots, is not to be of any concern to us (20:2).

 

Because this generation was operating within the exacting confines of Yah’s purpose and will, when they would finally take possession of the Land, they would be under the Almighty’s divine protection and provision. Thus, they would have no need to fear the enemy and the battles that were ahead of them were already won.

 

Of course, the Spirit and Truth application to this instruction should be apparent. When we abide in the will and purpose of Yehovah our God, and obediently operate in our Kingdom function, we need not fear any man, as Yehovah, our Elohim has promised that He will fight for us.