B’reishit (b-RAY-sheet)
פרשת בראשית
“IN THE BEGINNING GOD created the heavens and the earth”
This is HIS-story.
Are you HIS?
Then it's YOUR story, too.
Then it's YOUR story, too.
Haftarah: Isaiah 42:5 - 43:10
B’rit Chadash/New Covenant: John 1:1-14
Shabbat | 17 October 2020 | 29 Tishrei 5781
- GENESIS 1-6
- Everything from NOTHING
- The Superlative
- Upgrading Creation ~ Humanity 2.0
- Mature Fruit from Lies Planted in the Ancient Garden
- Adam and His Wife, Adam?
- The First Worship
- The First Murder
- The Blame Game
- Nephilim
- ...DID SATAN LIE IN THE GARDEN?
- WHAT IS A HELPMEET? Probably not what you think!
- Are You Ready for the HUMAN UPGRADE?
- The Internet (of Needful) Things Caused the DDoS Attack
- SPECIAL: THE GOSPEL IN GENESIS 5! FREE Downloadable Graphic
With joy we enter a new year of weekly Torah portions, keeping the rhythm of Israel for more than two millennia, anticipating fresh manna from our God and King as we come to His table. As followers of Messiah we have added a corresponding New Covenant portion reflecting the fulfillment and crown of the Torah.
Bar’khoo et Adonai ham’vo’rakh
Congregation responds:
Ba’rookh Adonai ham’vo’rakh lay’o’lahm vah-ed
Bless Adonai, who is to be blessed.
Congregation responds:
Blessed is Adonai, who is to be blessed, forever and ever.
Ba’rookh ah’ta Adonai,
El’o’hay’noo me’lekh ha'olam,
a’sher ba’khar ba’noo mee’kol hah’ah’meem v'nah’tahn lah’noo et torah’tow.
Ba’rookh ah’ta Adonai, no’tayn ha’torah.
Blessed are you Lord, our God, King of the Universe who chose us from all the peoples and gave to us His Torah. Blessed are You, Lord, giver of the Torah.
Genesis 1 בְּרֵאשִׁית בָּרָא אֱלֹהִים אֵת הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֵת הָאָֽרֶץ
EVERYTHING from Nothing!
As the magnificent tableau of creation unfolds, the words so familiar in English, the transcendent and sublime is too easily overlooked, and this singular Divine account becomes commonplace or little more than a Sunday school story.
In the original Hebrew language however, we find a treasure trove of hidden gems. Little wonder, as this is the very moment of conception of all that exists ... the grand creation of everything from nothing.
It is so unfortunate that the profound grandeur of these foundational texts are missed, and their authority diminished, even by Christians.
The enemy of God didn't miss the significance. He has been diligent, sowing deception and lies, luring mankind to defy God's design, order, and corrupt in every way, the image and knowledge of the Holy One in the earth.
The enemy of God didn't miss the significance. He has been diligent, sowing deception and lies, luring mankind to defy God's design, order, and corrupt in every way, the image and knowledge of the Holy One in the earth.
From ancient times, the sages have ascribed special sanctity to Hebrew, the original language of the Bible. It is said that the Holy One used the 22 characters of the Hebrew 'alephbet' as His raw material to create the heavens and the earth, and all that exists.
The Psalmist declares that, "By the word of the LORD the heavens were made." Psalm 33:6
v. 1 B’reishit bara Elohim et ha’shamayim v'et ha-aretz.
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
In the first sentence of Genesis we note the word, created. It is the Hebrew word, בָּרָא bara. This term is used uniquely for God.
God alone can CREATE something from nothing.
Throughout the Bible the term bara is never attributed to man, only to God. When man creates, he merely transforms and rearranges substance that already exists.
God spoke into nothingness
...and ALL MATTER THAT EXISTS TODAY CAME INTO EXISTENCE!
(Selah. Stop and ruminate on that elegant and stunning fact...)
Order from Chaos
Order from Chaos
v. 2 V’ha-aretz hayetah tow-hoo va-vo-hoo...
"The earth was without form and void..."
God is seen hovering over the face of the earth—the unformed material from which the universe is to be formed. The imagery is of the eagle hovering over her young.
The Hebrew word, תֹּהוּ tow-hoo is not adequately translated as void. Chaos is a more accurate meaning. Indeed there was no light, no life, no night or day—no order to the universe—chaos and darkness were upon the face of the deep.
vs. 3-4 God’s Definition of “Good” and a Mystery
“Then God said, “Let there be light; and there was light. God saw that the light was good.”
So from the very beginning, woven into the very fabric of Creation, we find that responding to God's commands is what He defines as, "good."
In a world of shifting values and shades of gray, there are some absolutes.
Did you miss the phrase, “Let there be light,” without pondering the stunning question: Where did this light emanate from, as the celestial bodies had yet to be created?
vs. 4-5 God Brings Order from Chaos
“...and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the darkness night, and the light He called Day. So the evening and the morning were the first day.”
No longer does chaos reign, but with LIGHT, order has come to the universe, and the rhythm of life that was yet to come.
Biblical time—Israel’s timekeeping to this day—will reflect this reckoning of time:
evening first—and then morning—to delineate a day, from sunset to sunset.
v. 14 Signs in the Heavens
“Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons*...”
LIGHT AND TRUTH are often linked idiomatically. And truly, with DIVINE LIGHT, spiritual darkness is dispelled and the seeking soul is enriched.
God's desire is that all would walk in light and truth, wholeness and holiness.
He has lit our path in a dark world and provided signposts along the way that lead to life.
His precious Word—"a lamp to our feet, and a light to our path," as Psalm 119:105 says,
is available to all. Yet, how little of it is embraced, treasured, walked in.
How much of it is delegated to the dustbin of history, fallen prey to the doctrines of men,
or simply "lost in translation?"
This verse is an essential key that identifies one of Adonai's principle signposts.
*The word we translate as "seasons" is actually mo'ed מוֹעֵד Hebrew.
It does not mean season, such as spring, summer, autumn, or winter.
Mo'ed is the word used in Leviticus 23:2 where Adonai announces His "appointed times."
The sun, the moon, the stars are tools for us to keep time by—not just in a practical sense—night and morning comprising a day—but for HIS APPOINTED TIMES, the feasts and observances of Adonai!This will reveal the rhythm of His redemptive cycle of observances, as well as major prophetic events throughout time, i.e., Joel's prophecy regarding the sun and the moon. (cf. Joel 2:31)Now we can understand why the enemy of God changed the biblical calendar in the early years of the Roman church, and the Bible gives this as a clear sign of the antichrist.How can we be watching for His return when we are on the wrong calendar and no longer keep the biblical observances, nor even know when they are?
"Then God said, 'Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind;' and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good."
DESIGN STANDARDS. Thus the Creator HARD-CODED into His creation the design and order of life. And pronounced His design GOOD.
Unregenerate man however, does not concur. We stubbornly hold onto a belief in evolution, and search tirelessly for that transitional species to prove God wrong (and justify our "faith!"), holding up one erroneous or fraudulent "discovery" after another, only to be disproved down the line. Press releases disproving our pet theories, however, are announced much more quietly!*
"It is one of the best-known stories in science: the evolution of mankind from ape-like creatures to modern humans via knuckle-grazing cave-dwellers. Now it has been blown apart by the first comprehensive study of all the fossils, which has revealed that they are probably all variants of Homo sapiens." Read here: UK TELEGRAPH 12.26.04 THEY'RE ALL THE SAME SPECIES
AND, we are very busy creating our own mixed species. More about that later.
“So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them...”
FROM NOTHING, OUR CREATOR HAS PRODUCED THE VASTNESS OF THE UNIVERSE, from immeasurable chaos and darkness, with such atomic and molecular precision that life teems on the third planet in orbit around a volatile sun, sustained by a miraculously fragile atmosphere awaiting the pinnacle of His handiwork.
One the sixth day, God created mankind—beings in His own image, and blessed them.
And the Divine Creator spoke to man!
HOW CAN WE BEGIN TO GRASP THE WONDER ... We mortal beings, drawn from the base substance of the ground are superbly crafted by the Divine Master's own hand ... And in His image!
For those who know their Creator and Redeemer, the abominable and ludicrous TRANSGENDER LIE is TRANSparent!
"Did God REALLY say He created them MALE and FEMALE?!"
It's the same old ploy satan used in the garden ... he really isn't very original in his relentless pursuit to deceive us into joining his rebellion against the Master of the Universe.
He is a defeated foe; his weapons are not his own—they are our own sin nature: vanity, narcissism, greed, anger, lust, rebellion against God. To satisfy our own desires, we foolishly grasp at the seductive deceptions he offers.
"Desire fulfilled is sweet to the taste,
but to turn from evil is detestable to fools."
Proverbs 13:19
It is in our nature to try to emulate and look like celebrities ... We will buy about anything bearing the name or endorsement of a famous person, as if it will transform us into THEIR IMAGE.
YET WE FIRMLY GRASP THE FLIMSY DARWINIAN THEORY OF EVOLUTION—and stubbornly cling to it, despite a total lack of scientifically provable evidence more than a century later—and CHOOSE TO "BELIEVE" we were formed IN THE IMAGE OF AN APE, rather than the DIVINE MASTER OF CREATION.
CERN and the "God Particle"
One of the most active and largest research projects today involves "Dark Matter," and "Dark Energy," mysterious and unseen, these immeasurable items comprise possibly 95% of our universe and are responsible for the energy that keeps solar systems spinning, and gravitational force "gluons" (hypothesis) that holds it all together.
THE MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL LIE It serves well the plans and purposes of the ancient deceiver to sow this lie—a despicable degrading claim—that we are no different than the primates we watch in the zoo eating their own waste.
And the lie is not challenged. It is embraced! Why? The lie also serves the purpose of mankind that wants to be free of the "shackles" of rules, and the notion of right and wrong.
I REALLY DO LOVE SCIENCE, and it's difficult not to appreciate the stunningly brilliant advances we have seen in recent decades. Yet, in man's quest to find an alternative history to the biblical account, we have stepped beyond the threshold of what is beneficial to serve mankind. We do this in spite of the fact that we have a plethora of highly-credentialed scientific minds who have found that the physical evidence actually authenticates the Biblical record.
WE ARE DEGRADING THE NOBLE CREATION THAT IS SINGULARLY HUMAN. Science has departed from the strict rigors of being an "empirical" field. The scientific method is no longer a meticulous process of gathering and analyzing data based on physical, mathematical and theoretical norms.
Some of the leading scientists of our generation have applied vast intellectual and financial storehouses of resources to PLUMBING THE MYSTERIES OF THE SUPERNATURAL REALM.
Cutting edge "science" has come to mirror, in many ways much of what comes out of Hollywood as Science Fiction. Disclaimer: Yes, the idea the world was round—and later, that the earth was not the center of the solar system—was opposed by organized religion.
The field of research and development needs brilliant and vibrant minds, capable of thinking "outside the box," both creatively as well as critically. Ethics, however, must always be an essential axiom.
Cutting edge "science" has come to mirror, in many ways much of what comes out of Hollywood as Science Fiction. Disclaimer: Yes, the idea the world was round—and later, that the earth was not the center of the solar system—was opposed by organized religion.
The field of research and development needs brilliant and vibrant minds, capable of thinking "outside the box," both creatively as well as critically. Ethics, however, must always be an essential axiom.
CERN and the "God Particle"
One of the most active and largest research projects today involves "Dark Matter," and "Dark Energy," mysterious and unseen, these immeasurable items comprise possibly 95% of our universe and are responsible for the energy that keeps solar systems spinning, and gravitational force "gluons" (hypothesis) that holds it all together.
Consider the Large Hadron Collider at Cern, Switzerland. This is where they discovered the Higgs-Boson particle, dubbed the "God Particle," and theorize it is the source of creation—the key to understanding how mass appeared shortly after the Big Bang.
This is the largest, most extensive scientific facility in the world. Designed and operated by leading scientists across many disciplines and from several cooperating countries. Although the modern scientific method was developed by scientists who believed in the Bible, such as Sir Isaac Newton, Francis Bacon, Kepler, Pascal and others, today you would reasonably expect to find pragmatists ... agnostics ... atheists.
This is the largest, most extensive scientific facility in the world. Designed and operated by leading scientists across many disciplines and from several cooperating countries. Although the modern scientific method was developed by scientists who believed in the Bible, such as Sir Isaac Newton, Francis Bacon, Kepler, Pascal and others, today you would reasonably expect to find pragmatists ... agnostics ... atheists.
Yet, the logo for CERN is SHIVA, one of the main deities of Hinduism, known as the “destroyer of the world” or "transformer." This pagan statue adorns the entrance mall and was welcomed by a ritual Shiva dance among the staff. Destroyer ... Pagan ritual, very nice...
But let's look at their operating models and goals. Hard science or occult science fiction?
But let's look at their operating models and goals. Hard science or occult science fiction?
ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE REVEALED | Sydney Morning Herald | 5 July 2015:
"'This goes beyond the origin of life. This is the origin of the universe.'"
“SCIENTISTS have taken a giant leap in their understanding of how the universe was formed, with a joint announcement in Geneva and Melbourne last night that a new particle has been discovered.
"The discovery has significant implications, as physicists say it is consistent with the elusive Higgs boson, or ''God particle''. In what will prove a milestone in the history of modern science, the revelation ends almost five decades of searching for the subatomic particle. The search included constructing - for almost $10 billion - the Large Hadron Collider ... to conduct experiments in conditions similar to those existing just seconds after the big bang."
GATEWAYS TO PARALLEL UNIVERSES Quoting from Forbes/Tech | May 4, 2015 | How To Find A Parallel Universe | John Paulsen: "Another major project for the particle-smashing LHC is to search for tiny black holes, which might be gateways to parallel universes and new dimensions. If they succeed, these tests could confirm a reality far different from the one most of us are aware of — but familiar in some ways to fans of Star Trek and Isaac Asimov.
DARK MATTER/PARALLEL WORLD | FROM CERN: "Here's a sobering fact: The matter we know and that makes up all stars and galaxies only accounts for 5% of the content of the universe! But what is dark matter? One idea is that it could contain "supersymmetric particles" – hypothesized particles that are partners to those already known in the Standard Model. Experiments at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) may provide more direct clues about dark matter. One theory suggests the existence of a “Hidden Valley”, a parallel world made of dark matter having very little in common with matter we know. If one of these theories proved to be true, it could help scientists gain a better understanding of the composition of our universe and, in particular, how galaxies hold together."
(The Bible speaks to this question: "He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." Colossians 1:17)
(The Bible speaks to this question: "He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." Colossians 1:17)
DARK ENERGY/CHAMELEON PARTICLES | FROM CERN: "For two years, the collaboration, which involves around 70 researchers from 20 or so institutes, has also been searching for another type of hypothetical particle: chameleons. These were postulated to solve the problem of dark energy. Dark energy, which, as its name suggests, remains mysterious and undetectable, is thought to represent around 70% of the universe's energy and to cause the acceleration of the expansion observed in the cosmos. Theories have postulated that this dark energy may be due to a fifth force and that chameleon particles could prove the existence of this force. They were named after the reptile because they are thought to interact differently according to the density of material encountered." CERN COURIER | CAST: enlightening the dark
So much more can be said, but let's take a cursory look at what is being done in the field of genetics—beyond that which we all know from the news, involving the horrifically immoral trafficking of aborted babies for spare parts, and what that says about our state of callousness, stemming from a society obsessed with SELF...
As it is too extensive to cover, but highly cogent, we urge you to do a little research on Transhumanism—from reputable sources. It is real. And controversial. Much dialogue is taking place due to our current and very near capabilities to create human/machine hybrids. "Should We Evolve Ourselves?" "Can Transhumanism and Christianity coexist?" are a couple of the hot topics.
Unfortunately, most Christians don't know their Bible well enough, discount the authority of God's Word, or are simply so immersed in worldliness, self-improvement, self-pursuit, and avoiding death, that they will not know this is an abomination.
SURELY YOU WILL NOT DIE ... A Lie?
Unwittingly spurred on by the original lie from the ancient serpent in the Garden of God's Delight, "Then the serpent said to the woman, 'You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God...'” (Genesis 3:4-5) man has been searching for the secret to immortality and ultimate power ever since.
Genesis 2:17 / Galatians 6:8 LAW OF PHYSICS
SUCH FUTILITY. HERE AGAIN, THE MASTER DESIGNER HARD-CODED THE RELENTLESS MARCH OF DETERIORATION AND RANDOMNESS INTO CREATION (at the fall.)
We are mutations, victims of cellular information loss, generation after generation. Our rural landscapes are littered with the dilapidated wooden structures of past generations, falling prey to this physical law. Our fossil record reveals a vast number of species that once existed, and no longer do—the opposite of evolution. Matter deteriorates. Our bodies are deteriorating.
Yet, in ever increasing measure, our focus is ON OUR BODY. Whether it be health (and the astronomical explosion of fraudulent alternative "cures," taking sad advantage of a public made desperate by an avalanche of continual advertising: YOU SHOULDN'T AGE OR SUFFER—YOU SHOULD BE HAPPY!), or everything and anything to transform us into beings that populate our society (even our churches) looking like something that would only have been found in the pages of adult magazines not long ago.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: INHUMAN The Next and Final Phase of Man is Here
A new investigative documentary from the internationally acclaimed team at SkyWatch TV. INHUMAN travels the globe to unveil for the first time how breakthrough advances in science, technology, and philosophy—including cybernetics, bioengineering, nanotechnology,machine intelligence, and synthetic biology - are poised to create mind-boggling game-changes to everything we have known until now about Homosapiens.
As astonishing technological developments push the frontiers of humanity towards far-reaching morphological transformation (which promises in the very near future to redefine what it means to be human), an intellectual and fast-growing cultural movement known as transhumanism intends the use of these powerful new fields of science and technology as tools that will radically redesign our minds, our memories, our physiology, our offspring, and even perhaps—as Professor Joel Garreau, Lincoln Professor of Law, claims—our immortal souls.
Without comprehending what is quickly approaching in related disciplines of research and development, vast numbers of individuals could soon be paralyzed by the most fantastic—and widespread—implications. The destiny of each individual—as well as the future of their families—depends on their knowledge of this new paradigm, an extraordinary time in the earth's history already being called the "Hybrid Age."
2 DVD Set | Approx. 3 hours
FEATURING:
Dr. Thomas Horn - CEO, Defender Publishing: best-selling author
Dr. James J. Hughes - executive director, Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies; past President, World Transhumanist Association
Dr. William B. Hurlbut - U.S. President's Council on Bioethics; Consulting Professor of Neuroscience, Stanford University
Dr. Hugo de Garis - retired director of Artificial Brain Lab (ABL), Xiamen University, China;
author, The Artilect War
Dr. Natasha Vita-More - faculty, University of Advancing Technology; chairman, Humanity+;
fellow, Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies
Wesley J. Smith - senior fellow, Discovery Institute; special consultant for the Center for Bioethics and Culture
Sharon Gilbert - biologist; futurist
Dr. Chuck Missler - technologist; founder, Koinonia House
https://www.skywatchtvstore.com/products/the-inhuman-special-offer
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: INHUMAN The Next and Final Phase of Man is Here
INHUMAN The Next and FINAL Phase of Man is Here
As astonishing technological developments push the frontiers of humanity towards far-reaching morphological transformation (which promises in the very near future to redefine what it means to be human), an intellectual and fast-growing cultural movement known as transhumanism intends the use of these powerful new fields of science and technology as tools that will radically redesign our minds, our memories, our physiology, our offspring, and even perhaps—as Professor Joel Garreau, Lincoln Professor of Law, claims—our immortal souls.
Without comprehending what is quickly approaching in related disciplines of research and development, vast numbers of individuals could soon be paralyzed by the most fantastic—and widespread—implications. The destiny of each individual—as well as the future of their families—depends on their knowledge of this new paradigm, an extraordinary time in the earth's history already being called the "Hybrid Age."
2 DVD Set | Approx. 3 hours
FEATURING:
Dr. Thomas Horn - CEO, Defender Publishing: best-selling author
Dr. James J. Hughes - executive director, Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies; past President, World Transhumanist Association
Dr. William B. Hurlbut - U.S. President's Council on Bioethics; Consulting Professor of Neuroscience, Stanford University
Dr. Hugo de Garis - retired director of Artificial Brain Lab (ABL), Xiamen University, China;
author, The Artilect War
Dr. Natasha Vita-More - faculty, University of Advancing Technology; chairman, Humanity+;
fellow, Institute for Ethics & Emerging Technologies
Wesley J. Smith - senior fellow, Discovery Institute; special consultant for the Center for Bioethics and Culture
Sharon Gilbert - biologist; futurist
Dr. Chuck Missler - technologist; founder, Koinonia House
https://www.skywatchtvstore.com/products/the-inhuman-special-offer
We have forgotten how to blush. Adam and Eve at least KNEW THEY WERE NAKED before a holy God, and KNEW enough to be ASHAMED.
Jeremiah 6:15 speaks of such a people: "Are they ashamed because they have done such shameful things? No, they are not at all ashamed. They do not even know how to blush! So they will die, just like others have died. They will be brought to ruin when I punish them," says the LORD."
But wait, there's more! Beyond moral degradation and defiling the Divine image that we who bear the Divine Name carry, the Bible speaks to LIVING FOREVER and THE HEART SET ON THE FLESH.
"...those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For THE MIND SET ON THE FLESH IS DEATH, but THE MIND SET ON THE SPIRIT IS LIFE and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and THOSE WHO ARE IN THE FLESH CANNOT PLEASE GOD." Romans 8:5-8
And again, Galatians 6:7-8, "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life."
WE DO LIVE FOREVER...
THE INSIDIOUS NATURE OF SATAN'S LIE IS THAT WE DO LIVE FOREVER! NOT OUR FLESH, however. Our flesh profits nothing (John 6:63) except corruption/destruction. Galatians 6:8
MADE IN HIS IMAGE, WE ARE ETERNAL BEINGS. That intangible essence which defines each individual human being does LIVE FOREVER. And this is why Adonai has provided a remedy for sin. His Kingdom is LIGHT and HOLINESS. When this jar of clay in which we reside temporarily decays back to earth, you and I will nonetheless LIVE FOREVER...
"These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:46
IN DEFIANCE of Genesis 1:24, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind," we are using our knowledge and abilities gained from decoding DNA to mix the genetic substance, not only ANIMAL WITH ANIMAL, BUT ANIMAL WITH HUMAN.
Certainly inspired to "do good" for mankind, medicine is spawning a host of ethical dilemmas and even "dis-ease" among those working in the field of crossing human and animal DNA.
Scientists Create Animals that are Part Human | Stem Cell Experiments Leading to Genetic Mixing of Species | AP | 29 April 2013
"Particularly worrisome to some scientists are the nightmare scenarios that could arise from the mixing of brain cells: What if a human mind somehow got trapped inside a sheep’s head?
The “idea that human neuronal cells might participate in 'higher order' brain functions in a nonhuman animal, however unlikely that may be, raises concerns that need to be considered,” the academies report warned.
Biological mixing of species
But the biological co-mingling of animal and human is now evolving into even more exotic and unsettling mixes of species, evoking the Greek myth of the monstrous chimera, which was part lion, part goat and part serpent.
Mice with human brains
In January 2005, an informal ethics committee at Stanford University endorsed a proposal to create mice with brains nearly completely made of human brain cells. Stem cell scientist Irving Weissman said his experiment could provide unparalleled insight into how the human brain develops and how degenerative brain diseases like Parkinson’s progress.
Stanford law professor Hank Greely, who chaired the ethics committee, said the board was satisfied that the size and shape of the mouse brain would prevent the human cells from creating any traits of humanity. Just in case, Greely said, the committee recommended closely monitoring the mice’s behavior and immediately killing any that display human-like behavior.
The Center for BIOETHICS and Human Dignity | EXPLORING THE NEXUS OF BIOMEDICINE, BIOTECHNOLOGY, and OUR COMMON HUMANITY | Ligers, Tigons, and Splice: Human-Animal Hybrids | 20 May 2011 | Paige Comstock Cunningham, JD | Stem Cell Research
Hybrids, Human Cybrids and Nominalism
"Most people believe that there is a difference, a qualitative difference, between a human being and a tortoise, or even a circus-trained chimpanzee. Christians in the US would describe this as “human dignity.” In the UK, “full moral status” is more commonly used. Both expressions signal that human beings are exceptional, distinct from other creatures.
Human exceptionalism is a difficult problem for biologists who are nominalists. Nominalist theory concludes that only concrete things exist, and that abstract ideas, such as “species,” do not. To illustrate: the nominalist biologist points out that there is no single, universal DNA sequence among human beings; there is no conclusive standard for determining the species of an organism based on its DNA sample. Or, they tout the evolutionary connection of human beings with a common ancestor. According to this perspective, human beings are nothing more than dust and ashes, a particularly clever architecture of molecules and cells.
Science cannot answer why any biological organism is of greater value than another. Admittedly, “species boundary” is a difficult problem, particularly from a biological perspective, but the mere fact of difficulty does not mean that species identities and boundaries do not exist.
True hybrids are created by integrating some genetic material from one species into an animal of a different species, perhaps by fertilizing the egg of the former with sperm from the latter. Human “cybrids” are hybrids created by a cloning process: human DNA is inserted into a non-human egg that has been enucleated (the animal nucleus has been removed), usually from a cow or rabbit. Cybrids contain more than 99% human DNA; the rabbit or cow mitochondrial DNA in the cytoplasm surrounding the nucleus remains. The United Kingdom, one of few places to permit cybrid research, requires the cybrid embryo to be destroyed after fourteen days.
Chinese scientists apparently created a human animal hybrid by inserting human DNA into rabbit eggs for the purpose of extracting the embryonic stem cells.
HA hybrids are produced for a variety of purposes: to observe how transplanted cells differentiate in the host (What kinds of cells do they become?), to test human cells (Are these early cells pluripotent?), to find out what cells will do (Will these become cancerous?), to reveal how these cells are affected by different control systems, to test new drugs for medical treatment, and to grow replacement tissues or organs for xenotransplantation. As the Chinese have claimed, embryonic stem cells might be harvested from cybrid embryos. Their research, which has not been proven elsewhere, would produce human embryos in bulk, to create made-to-order tissues for patients."
You can now grow a human brain in a petri dish, or at least scientists can | Lulu Chang | 25 August 2015 | DIGITAL TRENDS
While your high school petri dishes may have contained little more than agar and some bacteria cultures, scientists from Ohio State University have cultured something quite different and rather revolutionary. Last week, a press release from the university announced that a team of researchers successfully grew a 99 percent complete human brain to the size of a pencil eraser, about as mature of an organ as you would find in a 5-week-old fetus. The brain is not conscious (the team notes that “[the brain] has no sensory input whatsoever, so largely it is a living tissue that replicates the brain), but scientists believe that this impressive feat could revolutionize the study of certain neurological diseases, like Alzheimer’s.
Grown from human skin cells, the complex organ supersedes previous attempts by scientists to engineer the brain. While “cerebral organoids” have been achieved, they did not contain all aspects (including genes and cell types) normally found in the structure, and were only partial representations of the whole. This time, however, Anand claims, “It not only looks like the developing brain, its diverse cell types express nearly all genes like a brain.” It even includes a spinal cord, signaling circuitry, and a retina.
Growing the brain in the petri dish took about 12 weeks, and the team’s next step is to “attempt to build the vasculature,” or the blood supply to the brain. This, Anand says, “will allow us to ask questions about disorders that are in the dementia category.”
Said Anand, “I think it’s ethical, because it will make greater predictions of what is going to happen to a patient who is given a drug, both on the efficacy side and on the side-effect side. You won’t have to jump straight from rodents into humans. It will drop the cost of clinical trials dramatically — this is a lot cheaper to do than clinical trials. I think its predictive capacity will be phenomenal because it is human.”
(Ed. As noted, all done for "good" purposes from a "humanitarian" perspective.)
There is a common joke that illustrates the tension created by our extreme level of advancement. We have the illusion of having decoded the origin of the universe and the ability to create life.
Mankind, after advancing to a point where they believe they are on a par with God,
selects one of their lead scientists to tell Him that He is no longer needed.
“God,” the scientist says, “we no longer are in need of your services.
We are your equal.”
“I see,” replies God. “You feel you can do anything I can do?”
“Yes,” says the scientist.
“Alright. I will challenge you to a contest. We will both create
life, and we will see who is a better creator. Do you accept?”
“I accept,” says the scientist. He reaches down to the ground and
scoops up a pile of dirt.
“Not so fast,” says God. “You have to use your own dirt.”
vs. 27-28 "God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, 'Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'"
It almost seems too obvious to mention how precisely Romans 1 speaks to currents events, and how we in the western world have raised our fist in rebellion against God with the radical shift from honoring the traditional family and marriage.
From "kind, humanitarian tolerance," has come vile and virulent persecution against those who still hold to the biblical model—the only model that can BE FRUITFUL AND MULTIPLY.
But the ENEMY OF LIFE is not interested in that, is he? His fingerprints are all over this philosophy and legislation. Why is it not roundly rejected by those calling themselves followers of Adonai?
One further note, man was given rule over the earth, yet in this utterly fallen generation we see that, too, lost. Through lies and deception, such as global warming, we have been ensnared in another of satan's ploys, and slipped back to paganism.
In lofty, sophisticated terms, we are attributing deified characteristics to the earth, worshiping the created, and subjugating God's highest creation—mankind, to lowliest among creatures—expendable to save the earth.
"...even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen." Romans 1:21-25
v. 31 The Superlative
“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.”
Up until now, as stupendous and wondrous His feat of Creation, God’s assessment had been merely, “And God saw that it was good.” Now, however, God has created mankind—the great drama has begun, and His heart is beating toward His creation. He looks at what He has made, and finds it is indeed VERY good!
Genesis 2
vs. 2-3 The Sabbath
After six days, God accomplished His work of Creation, save the creation of a day of rest, the Sabbath—for mankind and for all living things. God endowed the Sabbath with a blessing, and sanctified this day Himself, as it plays an enduring role in His redemptive plan throughout the ages.
The seventh-day Sabbath would be established as one of the Ten Commandments and a covenant for all time for Israel, and testifying to the rest to come in the Messianic Redemption.
When Messiah Jesus came, He revealed Himself as, “the Lord of the Sabbath,” and also that the SABBATH WAS MADE FOR MANKIND (ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos). (Mark 2:27-28)
The seventh-day Sabbath would be established as one of the Ten Commandments and a covenant for all time for Israel, and testifying to the rest to come in the Messianic Redemption.
When Messiah Jesus came, He revealed Himself as, “the Lord of the Sabbath,” and also that the SABBATH WAS MADE FOR MANKIND (ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos). (Mark 2:27-28)
v. 4 The Unutterable Name of God יְהֹוָה
"This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made earth and heaven."
THIS IS THE FIRST INSTANCE OF THE TETRAGRAMMATON (a Greek word meaning the Name of four letters) appearing in Scripture, God’s Name as He presented Himself to Moses in burning bush. As he Hebrew does not contain vowel markings in the original, it is not known how to pronounce the four letters: יְהֹוָה yood-hay-vahv-hay.
v. 8 The Garden of God’s Delight
“And the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.”
The Lord placed His beloved creation in a place referred to in Hebrew as Gan Eden,
the Garden of His Delight.
v. 18-25 ADAM'S RIB?
“...It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him ... And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.”
THE CREATION OF THE WOMAN AND THE MEANING OF "HELP MEET," ARE AGAIN VERY PROFOUND, FOUNDATIONAL PORTIONS OF SCRIPTURE, lost in translation and over-simplified.
First, we have to appreciate the nature of the woman’s creation: she was not formed of the dust of the earth, but taken from Adam’s side. The word “rib” is a poor translation here. “Side” is more apropos to the text. God opened Adam’s side to form the woman.
When man and woman are joined in marriage, as God intended—as exemplified in verse 24, man is once again made complete—man and woman become ONE FLESH.
THE HEBREW WORD,עֵזֶר EZER MEANS HELPER, BUT IT IS A SPECIFIC WORD USED TO DESCRIBE "THE LORD, OUR STRONG HELPER," containing the nuance of strength, armed men, even savior (Ex. 18, Deut. 33, Ps. 20, 33, 70, I Sam. 4, 5, 7 Eben ha’Ezer, Ez. 12: armed men).
It is combined with כְּנֶגְדֹּֽו k'negedo (translated as “for him”) yet actually means: in front of, straight forward, parallel to, what is conspicuous, surround, and also “against”—such as when you look in a mirror—to reflect the good and the bad, that he will be able to gauge his condition before God.
The woman is designed to be a man’s complement—jointly fitted not only physically, but perhaps more importantly, spiritually—in every way to be a completer—to enhance life.
A word must be said here about that mystery of man and woman becoming “one flesh.” This is a very special privilege reserved for a man and a wife as revealed here in the very beginning our Creation account. It is mentioned in just a very few other biblical passages.
However, there is a stern warning found in I Corinthians 6:16: “...do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For "the two," He says, "shall become one flesh."
However, there is a stern warning found in I Corinthians 6:16: “...do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For "the two," He says, "shall become one flesh."
Genesis 3
v. 1-11 Hey, This Looks Good!
EVEN Living in Paradise, the Garden of God’s Delight—perfection—where she lacks nothing, the woman still falls prey to what becomes a very common and effective strategy of “the serpent” or “satan” throughout the Bible, and indeed, against mankind to this day.
In Psalm 32:8, God says: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.”
But satan, the enemy of your soul, is very busy with his program: “HEY, LOOK OVER HERE! Check THIS out! Look at THAT! CLICK THIS LINK! Doesn’t this look good?! Why shouldn’t YOU have it? You NEED it! You DESERVE it! Who will know...? Who’s it gonna hurt...? Just this once... Does God’s Word REALLY say SPECIFICALLY that? Don’t be so LEGALISTIC and NARROW-MINDED! God knows your weaknesses after all ... He will forgive you ... AGAIN ...”
“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that was pleasant to the eyes and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” Genesis 3:6
And for a taste of the only fruit in the garden that they were forbidden, their eyes were opened—they forfeited their innocence and tasted the sting of shame. They now hid from their benefactor, Creator, and gracious Lord.
Psalm 34:8 says, “Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him!”
Tragically, Adam (mankind/the man and the woman) had lost the sweetness of the relationship they had enjoyed with Adonai.
There really is nothing new under the sun.
God asks Adam, “‘Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?’ Then the man said, ‘The woman whom You gave to be with me, SHE gave me of the tree...’” Genesis 3:12 Emphasis mine.
Does this sound like our children? (Maybe even like us?)
But it doesn’t end there.
Adonai is not impressed. There will be consequences. Long range consequences—for all mankind.
A Pandora’s Box has been opened that will not be closed until the final redemption.
v. 15 The Proto-Evangelion—THE FIRST MESSIANIC PROPHECY
“...he shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.” Genesis 3:15
From Koine Greek euangélion, Genesis 3:15 is often referred to as the proto-evangelion, or pre-gospel.
Within this cryptic text the promised Redeemer is revealed—born of the woman—intimating the virgin birth. This Redeemer may sustain a wound, but it is merely a non-lethal injury, in contrast to satan’s head being crushed, defeated.
v. 20 Adam and His Wife ... “ADAM”?
“And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all living.” Genesis 3:20
TWO VERY INTERESTING FACTS COME TO LIGHT IN THIS VERSE:
1. Most are not aware that both the man and the woman were initially called Adam.
“He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind (Hebrew, אָדָם ä·däm') in the day they were created.” Genesis 5:2
2. It is also little known that it is the man, not God, that named his wife Eve—after the fall. Her name in Hebrew, חַוָּה Chavvah, means living, which is also most curious, as it is through her sin that death entered the world!
Could this indicate the man understood that through her seed, the Redeemer, the Messiah, would also come to restore life?
v. 21 God’s Unfailing Love
“...for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them.” Genesis 3:21
In spite of Adam and Eve’s rebellion against God, and the list of curses and consequences He has just pronounced upon them and all mankind to follow, He still demonstrates His love and care for them, providing a covering for their nakedness—drawing the first blood in His pristine universe that had known no death.
With this simple act, Adonai has demonstrated the profound cost of sin.
Chaos from Order
Chaos from Order
vs. 23,24 Paradise Lost
“...the LORD God sent him out of the garden of Eden to till the ground from which he was taken. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.” Genesis 3:23-24
Sin tragically drives man from God’s presence—from the “Garden of God’s Delight.” The precious Tree of Life must be protected from fallen mankind until the final restoration.
Genesis 4
v. 1 Yada, Yada, Yada...
“Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain...” Genesis 4:1
Just for fun ... the Hebrew word for “knew” in this verse is יָדַע yada`.
vs. 3-4 The First Worship
In the record of Cain and Abel bringing offerings of their produce to the Lord, we see the first example of worship. However, the language describing Abel’s offering indicates Able brought the best and richest of his flock, whereas Cain simply brought “an offering of the fruit of the ground,” not his “first fruits” or the best he had to offer.
vs. 5-26 The First Murder
“...sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” Genesis 4:7
With innocence lost, jealousy, anger, and murder is unleashed in the heart of man. God gives a powerful warning not only for Cain but for mankind. Cain murders his brother and is driven from the presence of the Lord and the heart of his family.
Adam and Eve have lost their paradise in the Presence of the Lord. Now they have lost their sons. With the birth of Seth, God provides another son for the loss of Adam’s son, Abel. When Seth bore his son, Enosh, the text records, “Then men began to call on the name of the LORD,” (Genesis 4:26) which had possibly waned during the lamentable years which preceded his birth.
We tend to gloss over the story of Cain and Abel, but it is profound and contains timeless truth and insight. (Why else would Adonai include it?)
Without spiritual eyes to see the Master’s perspective—and the entire tableau of mankind yet to unfold ahead—replete with challenges, valleys and mountains—we are left questioning.
Why did God prefer one sacrifice over another, creating an untenable situation? Wasn’t this unfair? Why was Cain marked and sent off into the world, a marked man? Why, why, why???
Not surprisingly there is less confusion when read in Hebrew.
Cain brought מִנְחָה minchâh —an offering of the fruit of the ground. Genesis 4:3
Whereas Abel brought בְּכוֹרָה bᵉkôwrâh —the FIRSTBORN of his flocks. Genesis 4:4
Abel’s offering—which was the best he had to offer, the firstborn—caught the gaze of the LORD first.
He looked שָׁעָה shâʻâh upon Abel’s offering and not Cain’s.
Was this a test? For Cain immediately became angry.
And the LORD asked him why. He reassured him and gave him wise counsel: “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.” Genesis 4:7
A story as old as time. This is woven into the fabric of mankind! Anger, jealousy, jealous rage, narcissism... and here in the very beginning our Creator gives us simple, yet profound advice — Advice rarely heeded: SIN CROUCHES AT THE DOOR. IF WE DON’T RULE OVER IT, IT WILL RULE OVER US. And the example of its destructive force is clear.
And we know how well Cain heeded the wise counsel of the LORD ... He allowed the jealousy to grow into rage and conceived a murderous hatred. He slew his brother. Genesis 4:8
Amazingly, the LORD gave him the same opportunity to confess and repent that He gave to his parents after their sin in the Garden. He asked where Abel is (as if He didn’t know!) and Cain gives the chilling response: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Genesis 4:9
Perhaps more chilling is Adonai’s response: And He said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.“ Genesis 4:9
Grace and Mercy for Cain?!
Adonai pronounces judgment upon Cain: “So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. A fugitive and a vagabond you shall be on the earth.”
Hmm...not a death sentence? Well, He knows the end from the beginning after all and He alone tries men’s hearts...
The English translation of Genesis reads: “And Cain said to the LORD, ‘My punishment is greater than I can bear!‘
But it doesn’t say that in the ORIGINAL HEBREW TEXT. It says: ‘My iniquity/sin עֲוֹנִי is greater than I can bear!‘ Cain has seen his sin — This is repentance.
“Surely You have driven me out this day from the face of the ground; I shall be hidden from Your face; I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth, and it will happen that anyone who finds me will kill me.” And the LORD said to him, “Therefore,[fn] whoever kills Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold.” And the LORD set a mark on Cain, lest anyone finding him should kill him. Genesis 4:11-15\
Yes, there are still CONSEQUENCES in his life for his grievous sin — That’s what sin does to our lives, but he has been forgiven by God and no MAN will have the authority to avenge Abel’s death. He bears the mark of God’s forgiveness. This is so profound.
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We were blessed by a short crash on this portion of text by Ben Shapiro of The DAILY WIRE Podcast. It’s worth watching/listening to. His commentary comes up at the very end of his commentary on the Trump and Biden Townhalls 10/15/20. It can be accessed on YouTube: https://youtu.be/0zNAHGE5dmI
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Genesis 5
vs. 1-21 The Record of Man ... and a bread crumb ...
“This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God.” Genesis 5:1
MORE APTLY PUT, THIS IS THE RECORD OF MAN. All humankind traces its lineage back to Adam, who Adonai created in His own likeness. (Not in the likeness of an ape.)
vs. 22-24 Enoch is Translated
“And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” Genesis 5:24
The Hebrew commentaries record that Enoch walked in the fear of the LORD, therefore God spared him a painful and natural death, granting him a supernatural transition into His Presence.
vs. 28-29 THE BIRTH OF NOAH COMFORT AND A NEW ERA
“And he called his name Noah, saying, "This one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD has cursed.” Genesis 5:1
NOAH WAS THE FIRST MAN BORN AFTER ADAM'S DEATH. Interestingly, Lamech names his son נֹחַ Noach, which in Hebrew means “rest,” believing, as the Hebrew commentaries say, that he would presage a new era of mankind, bringing rest and comfort from the curse that was pronounced on the earth due to Adam’s sin, now that Adam has died.
And in a sense he would. The earth was about to experience a colossal change.
(If you stick with us to the end of this article, you will find a surprise message hidden in Genesis 5!)
Genesis 6
vs. 1-6 Adonai Grieves Over His Creation
“...the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose...There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward...Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart [was] only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart.”
The escalation of evil in the earth is monstrous—and spawns monsters—giants, called the Nephilim in Hebrew. Most biblical scholars believe these to be the offspring of fallen angels, or literally "sons of gods," and “the daughters of men.”
The word Nephilim is mentioned in only one other text, Numbers 13:33: “There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”
All humankind but Noah’s family perished in the flood. Apparently the Nephilim did not perish, having a supernatural component, or they come about by the same means at other times in history—the text doesn't seem to be clear.
What is clear ... Adonai is deeply grieved over the creation that He had pronounced was “very good” and blessed in the Garden of His Delight just a very short time ago, for it responded when He called forth substance from the void, light from the darkness, order from chaos, and life ... expressing His desire to provide a perfect dwelling place for His beloved within His Presence.
Haftarah
Isaiah 42:5-43:10
Lest we become overwhelmed with how badly mankind has perverted our Master’s creation let’s consider for a moment the everlasting greatness of that very Creator.
This Haftarah portion has written just before it, but within the overall context, one of the Bible’s grandest declaration’s of God’s majesty, His rulership over everything, His ever abiding strength for those belonging to Him.
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
And marked off the heavens by the span,
And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure,
And weighed the mountains in a balance
And the hills in a pair of scales? v.12
With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding?
And who taught Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge
And informed Him of the way of understanding?
Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales;
Behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust. vv.14,15
All the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless. v.17
Do you not know? Have you not heard?
Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?
Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
It is He who sits above the circle of the earth,
And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers,
Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain
And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. vv.21,22
“To whom then will you liken Me
That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the strength ofHis power,
Not one of them is missing. vv.25,26
Though youths grow weary and tired,
And vigorous young men stumble badly,
Yet those who wait for the LORD
Will gain new strength;
They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired,
They will walk and not become weary. vv.30,31
Our Haftarah portion speaks to His people, Israel, specifically. In the midst of this sin laden world they are to be, “...a light to the nations.” Isaiah 42:6
Israel is to know that no matter how bad the world around them gets or how far they may stray from YHVH, He WILL HAVE His way. And it is a “good” way. “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know. In paths they do not know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them and rugged places into plains. These are the things I will do, and I will not leave them undone.” Isaiah 42:16
Israel is to be a witness to her Maker. “'You are My witnesses,’ says the LORD, ‘And My servant whom I have chosen, That you may know and believe Me, And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no God formed, Nor shall there be after Me.’” Isaiah 43:10
Israel has been chosen as a witness to the world, a witness to the creation of the Creator, the only true God of all. Whether she is living in faithfulness or rebellion, in the Land promised to her by God or scattered to the four corners of the earth, her existence testifies to the veracity of the Holy Writ and the God who promised to preserve her as His enduring witness.
He will be known as the “Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 43:3), and show Himself faithful on Israel’s behalf to the end—for His own Name’s sake!
Our prayer for this this people is that they live as the witness to the world that God would have them be. And our prayer for each other should be that we will do the same.
B’rit Chadashah John 1:1-14
The third and final section of the weekly Torah reading is called the B’rit Chadashah which is Hebrew for the New Covenant (or the New Testament). Each week a portion of Scripture from the B'rit Chadashah is to be read along with the Torah and Haftarah portions, the three complimenting each other. This latter portion was compiled much later with the amazing birth of the Messianic community in the late 1960s. The list of New Testament passages have been organized by Dr. David Stern, a Messianic Jewish Believer in Yeshua. Stern is an Israel-based theologian and a prolific writer, best-known for the Complete Jewish Bible, the Jewish New Testament, and his Jewish New Testament Commentary.
Given that the two Old Testament portions are of some length and ripe with gems for our spiritual wealth let’s just focus in for a moment on Genesis 1:3. It reads, “Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” This was God’s next creative act following the creation of the heavens and the earth. It is however the first time He says of His creation that, it was good. Of the remaining six times that God states that a particular act of His creation was good it’s noteworthy that light upon what was then formless and void is mentioned first as being good. Light upon creation opens up the Old Testament, and so it does in the introduction of Yeshua’s or Jesus’ ministry as presented in the Gospel of John. And that, too, is good.
John 1:1-5 tells us that in the beginning the Word was with God and the Word was God. John further says that the Word was responsible for bringing all things into being. Among the numerous profound truths embodied in these verses is that there is at least one other person in the Godhead, called here, the Word. The Word was with God and was God. (A third person in the Godhead is later identified as the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19) And this Word was the creator of all things. Colossians 1:15-17 tells us that this Creator not only did the creating, but is presently responsible for holding that creation or material universe together.
John 1:4 says, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” Here we have that mention of light again, each at a beginning, and each “good.” In Genesis that light was was shone on that which was formless and void. It was good for many reasons, one of which was to reveal the final touches of that creation, something which was new and all of which was good. In John 1:4 it is good (my input) because it is the light of men and once again shines in the darkness. In both Genesis and John the light which is Yeshua shines in the darkness. And in both something good is brought out of it.
John goes on to say of this Word, “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only Begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 3:19 says, “And this is the judgement, that light came into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil.” The truth of the matter is that Yeshua came into the world as the light that revealed the evil deeds of darkness that condemned mankind to hell. And that is “good.” For if this had not been done the path to heaven would not have been seen as necessary.
And now, a special treat! The Gospel message from our Torah portion!
Genesis five, written by Moses, is not only a lineage but a presentation of the gospel as well. For the Hebrew reader, the message is understandable, and my wife Sarah knows Jewish People who came to faith in Yeshua (Jesus) by having this profound testimony pointed out to them. We wanted to share this with our readers and make it available for download as well! Please feel free to copy and save the graphic ... and share it with a Hebrew-speaking person that comes across your path. Isn't Adonai amazing?!
Adam אדם
Adam means man, mankind. (Genesis 1:26) Interestingly both the first man and the first woman were “Adam.” (Genesis 1:27) Eve was not named until after the fall. (Genesis 3:20)
Seth שת
Adam's son was named Seth, which means appointed. Eve said of her son: “"For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed."” (Genesis 4:25).
Enosh אנוש
Seth's son was called Enosh, meaning mortal. From the root anash, it speaks of an incurable wound, grief, sickness, or wickedness.
Kenan קינן
Enosh's son was named Kenan, which is believed to mean sorrow. (It is believed that Kenan is synonymous with Cainan.)
Mahalalel מהללאל
Kenan's son was Mahalalel. Ma’halal means blessed or praise; and El in Hebrew is God. Thus, Mahalalel means the Blessed God. Biblical names often include El, the name of God, as Daniel, which means, “God is my Judge.”
Jared (Ya’red) ירד
Mahalalel's son was named Ya’red. The Hebrew word, yaradh, means shall come down.
Enoch (Chanoch) חנוך
Jared's son was named Enoch⎯Chanoch in Hebrew, which means teaching. “Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” (Genesis 5:24). He did not see death, Hebrews 11:5 tells us, for he pleased God. Jude 1:14-15 also mentions Enoch prophesying the return of Yeshua: “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”
Methuselah מתושלח
Enoch was the father of Methuselah, who died the year of the great flood. His name means His death shall bring.
Lamech למך
Methuselah's son was named Lamech, meaning despairing. The root word forms our own English word, lament or lamentation.
Noah (Noach) נח
Lamech is the father of Noah. Noah means rest or comfort, for Lamech said when naming him, “This one will comfort us...” (Genesis 5:29) The Hebrew word for comfort is nacham נחם, and not only means comfort or rest, but interestingly, it also means repentance.
Putting it all together:
“Man [is] appointed [to] mortal sorrow; [but] the Blessed God shall come
down teaching; His death shall bring the despairing rest, or comfort.”
We encourage you to enjoy the following video teaching by the late Chuck Missler explaining this profound portion of text:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jl2sVxBl9I for more insight.
We pray you have been enriched by this weekly journey with us!
Love and blessings,
His EVERY Word Ministries