The Glory of the LORD Fills His Tabernacle! | Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei | By His EVERY Word

Parashat Vayakhel-Pekudei

פרשת ויקהל 

The Glory of the LORD Fills His Tabernacle! 

Torah: Exodus 35:1 - 38:20
Haftarah: 1 Kings 7:40 - 50 
B’rit Chadashah: 2 Corinthians 9:6-11

:: Shabbat HaChodesh ::

Shabbat | 13 March 2021 | 29th of Adar, 5781

In Hebrew, Vayak’hel וַיַּקְהֵל literally means “and he assembled,” as our parashah begins with Moses assembling all the “congregation of the sons of Israel” for instruction from the LORD regarding the Sabbath, the Tabernacle, and congregational life.

Pekudei פְקוּדֵי is translated “accounts," "sum” or “records.” This portion is added some years as a double portion, recounting the stunning generosity of the assembly in over supplying the building of the Tabernacle.

With these final portions we complete the book of Exodus. 

Adonai has formed His congregation of the Sons of Israel, who have devoted their resources, gifts, and talents to preparing a dwelling place on earth for His Divine Presence according to the heavenly blueprint SHOWN to Moses. (This account captivates the imagination! Exodus 25)

Upon completion of this holy enterprise, their efforts are rewarded as His awesome Shekhinah filled the Tabernacle, a celestial acceptance of their labor of love.

Adonai is STILL building His congregation until the final redemption when we will at last see the Heavenly Tabernacle, which is created by His eternal presence. 

As we take the time to read through the Torah, Haftarah, and B'rit Chadashah, we see His plan and pattern—lovingly, painstakingly, and oft times heartbreakingly, wrought in flesh through the millennia—generation to generation.

In these days of growing spiritual darkness...

“Chazak! Chazak! Be strong, be strong! And let us strengthen one another!” These words of the ancient warrior, paraphrased from 2 Samuel 10:12, are customarily  proclaimed upon completing the reading of each of the five books of the Torah—as in today’s parsha, as we complete the book of Exodus.

It is our personal message to each of our readers as well during these days of trial and tribulation. May you be strengthened in the LORD who gives you each breath, and has numbered your days, remembering He alone is your refuge and your fortress. And strengthen others with your certain hope! Under the shadow of His wings, take refuge—that you may not fear the terror by night, the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence, plague, or virus that walks in darkness! (Psalm 91)

The LORD bless and keep you, now and ever, in His perfect Shalom! (Health, well-being and peace)

—His EVERY Word Ministries

Join us now at the Father’s table as we keep the rhythm of Israel for more than two millennia, anticipating fresh manna from our God and King. As followers of Messiah we have added a corresponding New Covenant portion reflecting the fulfillment and crown of the Torah.
 

Exodus 35  The Holy Congregation—Assembled for a Holy Purpose

vv. 1-3 “Then Moses assembled all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and said to them, 'These are the things that the LORD has commanded you to do: For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy day, a sabbath of complete rest to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the sabbath day.'” 

The Hebrew word assembled is 'kä·hal קהל, meaning to assemble, to gather, to call together.

From kahal is derived the word kehillah, the Hebrew word for ASSEMBLY, SYNAGOGUE, or CONGREGATION. Kahal is also the Old Testament Hebrew equivalent of the Greek word ἐκκλησία or ekklēsia. 

Most are familiar with its English usage in the New Testament: CHURCH—an assembly or gathering of “the called” among the Jews or Gentiles who believed in Yeshua.

Most are familiar with the admonishment in James 2:2-4, regarding treating the wealthy better than the poor:

“...if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?”



However, very few realize that the described scenario—involving believers in Yeshua—takes place in a synagogue.

The word assembly in James 2:2 is συναγωγή synagōgē. It is the Greek word for kehillah from the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Tenakh, the Old Testament). 

In the B’rit Chadashah/New Covenant/New Testament, synagogue generally refers to the assembling of the Jews, and ekklesia or church generally speaks to the assembly of believers—Jews and Gentiles. However, in first century lingo, ekklēsia and synagōgē were used interchangeably.

We find another very familiar verse in Hebrews 10:25 that most can quote by heart. Yet it may surprise some to find out it utilizes the word synagogue, not church:

“...not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” 


This is ἐπισυναγωγή episynagōgē, which also occurs in 2 Thessalonians 2:1: “Now we request you, brethren, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him...”

Many have a myopic view built around the word “church.” Even those who know the word church does not mean a building that people go to on Sunday, but rather the people who are called [out of the world, together for worship] assembling together, often have somewhat of a skewed or narrow view. This view paints a picture of the glorious church, birthed at Pentecost as an entirely new and unique thing, as contrasted with "the corrupt synagogue of the Jews," an idea graphically portrayed on the edifices of some of the grand cathedrals of Europe in the characters of Ecclesia and Synagoga.

There is no dispute that “the church,” the Body of Messiah, the assembly of believers is a glorious thing! 

Entirely new, however? Not entirely.
For thousands of years, 

Adonai has been forming His Congregation. 

As we take the time to read through the Torah and Haftarah,
we see His plan and pattern—lovingly, painstakingly,
and ofttimes heartbreakingly,
wrought in flesh—generation to generation.

Israel in the wilderness at Mt. Sinai is referred to as "the church" in Acts 7:38 in the KJV, again using the Greek word for church/assembly/congregation: ἐκκλησία ekklēsia.


Something Old, Something New


The believers were together “in one place” on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, oft noted as the “birth of the church.” The reason they were together was not a new thing—this was the ancient practice of the “congregation of the sons of Israel.” Exodus 35:1

In the New Covenant, Shavu’ot is called by the Greek word, Pentecost, but it is the pilgrimage festival from Leviticus 23:15-22, when the men of Israel were called by Adonai to come up to Jerusalem fifty days after Passover. Paul continued to observe this rich festival as noted in Acts 20:16 and I Corinthians 16:8.

The believers were “...continuing with one mind in the Temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.” Acts 2:46-47

The life of faith is meant to be shared, as exemplified in this week’s parasha. Each member, alone being limited, contributes an essential piece for the vitality of the “...whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.” Ephesians 4:16

Observe the Sabbath, Do Not Create Fire

In Exodus 35, we see Moses assembling the congregation together to hear the Word of the Lord:



vv. 2-3 “For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy day, a sabbath of complete rest to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the sabbath day.” 

The issue of the Sabbath seems to be one of extreme importance to Adonai, as often as He revisits the subject! Embodied in the Sabbath observance is a weekly demonstration of TRUST for provision, thus recognizing and testifying to the world that the LORD God is a faithful provider. How many times do the Scriptures entreat, exhort, and admonish those who fear the LORD to trust the LORD, as in Psalm 115:11? 



It is also a reminder and testimony of His magnificent work of Creation. Why would Adonai command us not to kindle a fire on the Sabbath? 

Making light is an act of creation. God rested from His work of creation on the seventh day, and sanctified it for man to rest with Him. Therefore observant Jews prepare for the Sabbath, lighting their candles before sunset, turning on lights, preparing foods, etc., that they may rest with their Creator on this blessed day—His first appointment with His beloved in the Leviticus 23 list of mo’edim, or "appointed times."

No Fundraising Schemes ... Receive from Those Who Had a Heart to Give

vv. 5-9 “Take from among you a contribution to the LORD; whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as the LORD'S contribution: gold, silver, and bronze, and blue, purple and scarlet material, fine linen, goats' hair, and rams' skins dyed red, and porpoise skins (or tanned skins), and acacia wood, and oil for lighting, and spices for the anointing oil, and for the fragrant incense, and onyx stones and setting stones for the ephod and for the breastpiece.” 

Adonai must have had faith in His People and His plan, as He didn’t employ persuasive or clever fundraising principles to raise the resources needed to build His Tabernacle!

Let Each Joint Supply Accordingly and Liberally

vv. 10-29 “Let every skillful man among you come, and make all that the LORD has commanded: the tabernacle, its tent and its covering ... the ark and its poles, the mercy seat ... the table and its poles ... the lampstand also for the light ...the oil for the light ... the woven garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest and the garments of his sons, to minister as priests. 

“Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel departed from Moses' presence. Everyone whose heart stirred him and everyone whose spirit moved him came and brought the LORD'S contribution for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments. Then all whose hearts moved them, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings and signet rings and bracelets, all articles of gold; so did every man who presented an offering of gold to the LORD.” 

Skins—cloths of Tekhelet blue and scarlet were brought by every man who had them in his possession, and all who could contribute silver, bronze, and acacia wood brought it forth. 

Women whose hearts were stirred, spun fine linen, goats’ hair, and materials in Tekhelet blue, scarlet, and purple. The onyx stones, and precious stones for the ephod and breastpiece were contributed by the rulers. All that was needed, was given by a “freewill offering to the LORD.” v. 29

vv. 30-33 Moses proclaimed that the LORD had called by name, Bezalel of the Tribe of Judah, filling him “with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding and in knowledge and in all craftsmanship; to make designs for working in gold and in silver and in bronze, and in the cutting of stones for settings and in the carving of wood, so as to perform in every inventive work.” 

vv. 34-35 Not only was Bezalel gifted to do the work, but Adonai “also has put in his heart to teach, both he and Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan,” filling them with “skill to perform every work of an engraver and of a designer and of an embroiderer...” 

Here we see a practical application of the Congregation working together—each one utilizing his skill, and teaching and equipping others—to build the earthly dwelling place for the LORD. Isn’t this an apt picture of Ephesians 4:16 where, “...every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part?”

This is the Body, formed by Adonai to build a habitation for His Divine Presence on earth ... then and now. In the time of Moses, His Glory would reside in the Tabernacle and then the Temple crafted by human hands—“the congregation of the sons of Israel.” Today, Adonai dwells in tabernacles of flesh and blood, who together form His Body for His Kingdom purposes on earth.

Exodus 36  Sufficient Unto His Purpose

Just as in verse 1, where we are told, “Bezalel and Oholiab, and every skillful person in whom the LORD has put skill and understanding to know how to perform all the work in the construction of the sanctuary, shall perform in accordance with all that the LORD has commanded,” each member of His Body performs an essential function for Adonai's eternal purposes.

There are those who seek to know what God has for them to enhance their own life, and those who conform the Scriptures to what is comfortable, palatable, culturally relative, or popular. There are those who “go to church” on Sunday and then live the rest of the week for themselves—although they may pray for theirs’ and others’ needs, and seem very "spiritual." 



God, however, is forming a Body for His purposes. A body that only puts forth a foot or an eye for service—on its own terms—and even then, only one day a week is seriously handicapped.

God is seeking a Holy Tabernacle from which His Holy Presence may penetrate this dark world as a beacon, exposing the deadly deceptions of wickedness, compromise, and rebellion. 

He is defining the Way that leads to Life. If we are conformed to the darkness of this age, we have dimmed that light. “If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!” Mark 6:23

As we are yielded to HIS purposes, HIS desires, and seek HIS will—not ours, we will be sufficiently supplied to fulfill His purposes through the lives He has given us. 

And that chief purpose is this: that God be glorified—in His people ... in the earth.

Dayeinu! It is Sufficient!

v. 7 As suspected, Adonai knew what He was doing in taking an offering from His People “as stirred by their heart.” 

They gave ... and gave ... and gave! In fact, they gave sufficient materials for the entire Tabernacle, and even “more than enough for all the work, to perform it.” 

Have you ever heard of such a thing? Without a fundraising strategy or clever gimmicks—the people gave more than was needed! 

Moses had to issue a command and a proclamation to circulate throughout the camp, saying, “Let no man or woman any longer perform work for the contributions of the sanctuary” (v. 6) to restrain the people from bringing any more!

The Passover Seder (traditional supper) contains a song called Dayeinu (pronounced die-ā-noo), a Hebrew word דַּיֵּנוּ, meaning “it would have been sufficient.”

The song has 14 verses recounting the many wonderful things Adonai did for our people in the Exodus story, “If He had brought us out from Egypt, and had not carried out judgments against them ... Dayeinu! It would have been sufficient! If He would have supplied our needs in the wilderness for forty years, but not given us manna ... given us the Shabbat, but not brought before Mount Sinai, etc., etc. ...Dayeinu!”

Dayeinu is formed from the Hebrew word dai די in verse 7: “they gave sufficient materials...” This is the same word translated as overflows in Malachi 3:10: “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this," says the LORD of hosts, "if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.”

Exodus 37-39  The Tabernacle Constructed

According to Adonai’s meticulous instructions, with the over-abundant supply of

materials and willing craftsmen, the Wilderness Tabernacle is constructed.

An interesting insight from the Jewish commentaries on Exodus 38:8: “Moreover, he made the laver of bronze with its base of bronze, from the mirrors of the serving women who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting.”

In keeping with the theme of consecration for the service of the LORD, it is thought these women sacrificed their mirrors—essentially renouncing their vanity—as a demonstration of their devotion to Adonai and His service. 

“So the sons of Israel did all the work according to all that the LORD had commanded Moses. And Moses examined all the work and behold, they had done it; just as the LORD had commanded, this they had done. So Moses blessed them.” Exodus 39:42-43

Moses had been given a view of the Heavenly Tabernacle—the Divine Blueprints for Adonai’s dwelling place among His People. (Exodus 25:9) He was able to bless the congregation for their zealous dedication to the sacred task of preparing God’s Tabernacle in the Wilderness.

Exodus 40  The Glory of the LORD Fills His Tabernacle































vv. 1-16 “Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘On the first day of the first month you shall set up the tabernacle of the tent of meeting.’ ...You shall put the holy garments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister as a priest to Me. You shall bring his sons and put tunics on them; and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing will qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.’ Thus Moses did; according to all that the LORD had commanded him, so he did.” 

The Tabernacle had been scrupulously prepared for the Almighty.
The priesthood is now to be prepared with holy garments.

Holy garments represent consecration unto Adonai, being undefiled, and separated unto Him for His service and glory. 

“Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
And who may stand in His holy place?
He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood
And has not sworn deceitfully.”
Psalm 24:3-4

vv. 17-34 “Now in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected. ...He erected the court all around the tabernacle and the altar, and hung up the veil for the gateway of the court. Thus Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD  filled the tabernacle.” 

Some may say that God is too demanding.

Why so many details?

But this was the reward for the generosity and months of dedication
 in the desert for the congregation of the sons of Israel—the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle they had built for Him!

The awesome Divine Presence was His seal of approval on their completed work.

How many long to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Matthew 25:21

v. 35 “Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.”

Shekhinah

The Hebrew sages spoke of the manifest Divine Presence as the Shekhinah שכינה (Pronounced: sheh-kee-nah), which has been adopted by Christianity. 

The word Shekhinah does not appear in the the Bible, but is likely derived from the word, shakhan שכן, translated as settled in verse 35. Shakhan is also translated abide, dwell, tabernacle. 

Thus, in Judaic tradition, Shekhinah is defined as the Divine Presence of the Almighty.

Follow Me!

vv. 36-37 “Throughout all their journeys whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the sons of Israel would set out; but if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was taken up.” 

Thus the congregation of the sons of Israel would learn to follow the LORD in the wilderness. Again, we find  a parallel—something old, something new. 

And much like Israel, who had to learn to follow Adonai so many generations ago, we too, are called to follow. For Yeshua entreats us: “follow me!” “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (John 10:27) “If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” (John 12:26) Do you hear His voice today?

v. 38 For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel.”

When we finally see the Heavenly Tabernacle, which is the LORD Almighty Himself, we will finally walk perfectly by His Divine Light...

“The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.” Revelation 21:27

With This We Complete the Book of Exodus!

Chazak! Chazak! Be strong, be strong! And let us strengthen one another! These are the words of the ancient warrior paraphrased from 2 Samuel 10:12, and are customarily  proclaimed upon completing each of the five books of the Torah.

To be continued...

Haftarah Vayak’hel 1 Kings 7:40-50

Well, here we are again with more information on the Tabernacle being given in our Torah portion of Scripture. That which we have already seen in Exodus is a preliminary to what God is going to do when He has Solomon build the first permanent Temple. In the Exodus 35:1-38:20 portion there are some things of note that reflect upon this week’s Haftarah and B’rit Chadashah. First though, some dissimilarities between the Torah (Tabernacle) and Haftarah (Temple) passages.

The first is that the opportunity to contribute to the construction of the Tabernacle was extended to all of the congregation. (Exodus 35:4-5) That’s everyone. “Moses spoke to all the congregation...”(v.4) With Solomon’s Temple there was no contribution of wealth from the people. David had either provided it prior to his death or it came from taxation. 

The second is that the giving for the Tabernacle was done willingly and not out of compulsion. “...whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring...” (v.5)  Moses was quite clear on both of these points when he spoke to the people. “This is the thing which the LORD has commanded, saying, ‘Take from among you a contribution to the Lord; whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as the Lord’s contribution: gold, silver, and bronze...’” (Exodus 35:4-5) Significant here is that the laborers on Solomon’s Temple were not voluntary, but conscript.

And the third dissimilarity is that this giving to the Tabernacle's construction seemed to just pour out of the proverbial horn of plenty. It just never stopped. “They received from Moses all the contributions which the sons of Israel had brought to perform the work in the construction of the sanctuary. And they still continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.” (36:3) This could be summed up by saying that with the Tabernacle God’s children were invited to participate and willingly did so; whereas with the building of the first Temple they were commanded to. They had no choice in the matter. Ouch, that must have hurt. And so...

I Kings 7:40-50 is the Haftarah selection of Scripture to which we are comparing the Torah. While these verses deal solely with some construction issues of Solomon’s Temple there are unspoken points of similarity. What might some of them be? Why would the Sages have chosen these verses as a compliment—or substitutionary reading—to the Torah portion?

Perhaps the most obvious link the Sages saw between this and the Torah portion is that both speak of the collection of materials for, and the construction of God’s House. But beyond that, this process was to make a place for God to meet His people, and be a place from which God’s people would offer their sacrifices to Adonai.

We must not forget as well that both the Tabernacle and Temple reflected the best that could be given to the task of creating these structures at that time.

At this point, let’s hold off making any application for now and move on to our B’rit Chadashah portion. I think we’ll see the application there.

B'rit Chadashah Vayak’hel
II Corinthians 9:6-11

As we move into our B’rit Chadashah passage of II Corinthians 9:6-11 we are introduced to a portion of the doctrine concerning New Testament giving. As you read these verses see if your able to find similarity and contrast with the previous Tabernacle and Temple passages. Here we go.

“Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, ‘HE SCATTERED ABROAD, HE GAVE TO THE POOR, HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS ENDURES FOREVER.’ Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God.”

The Apostle Paul was on a mission. The believers in the Jerusalem church were in financial need and Paul was committed to meeting that need through offerings from other churches. So he writes to the Corinthian church regarding a commitment they had made to contribute to this circumstance. “So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead to you and arrange beforehand your previously promised bountiful gift, so that the same would be ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness.” II Corinthians 9:5

With the thought of an impending collection in mind Paul pulls out some of those Tabernacle giving principals. 

• First of all, the opportunity to contribute was extended to all the saints in Corinth. In 8:1 Paul addresses the “brethren.” Paul has been speaking to the whole church in this letter and goes right on doing so as he launches into this portion on giving. No one was to be excluded from this opportunity. All were invited to share in the blessing.

• Secondly, Paul wanted only what was going to be given willingly and not because one felt they had to. In 9:7 he says, ”Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

As the Holy Spirit brought these points to Paul’s thinking for the process of the divinely inspired act of pen to paper, this educated Pharisee’s mind had to leap back to the process whereby the Tabernacle was “funded.”  Both of these points must have reminded Paul of Exodus 35:4-5. Remember how... “Moses spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, ‘This is the thing which the LORD has commanded, saying,  'Take from among you a contribution to the LORD; whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as the Lord’s contribution: gold, silver, and bronze...’ ” And 35:21 then goes on to say, “Everyone whose heart stirred him and everyone whose spirit moved him came and brought the Lord’s contribution for the work of the tent of meeting and for all its service and for the holy garments.”

• The third point could be no different in the Apostle’s thinking. He must have recalled how Moses, in recounting this Tabernacle event, wrote of those giving, “They received from Moses all the contributions which the sons of Israel had brought to perform the work in the construction of the sanctuary. And they still continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.” Exodus 36:3

These giving Israelites, one and all, were first, offered the opportunity to give. Then they were, instructed how to give. It had to be out of a willing heart. And lastly the fruit of this was that they just didn’t stop giving.

What a contrast we see when we consider the construction of Solomon’s Temple. Let’s first understand though, that the building of the Temple was of the Lord. God had instructed King David to prepare much of what would be needed. He just could not do the building himself. Solomon, his son and the next King, was to use what had been assembled along with other materials acquired largely from a foreign country. This was God’s plan. It was a blessed and divinely led endeavor. But there were major differences.

These differences centered around the interaction of the Jewish people with the project of building the Temple. 

• First, there was no offer made to them to contribute goods or wealth to the project. 
• And so, secondly, there could be no giving out of that willing heart so openly seen in the construction of the Tabernacle. 
• This meant that, third, there was no continual giving and no consequential blessing in their lives which would have come as a result of that giving.

As we move on in the story of the Temple building we see that it was successfully finished and it was the grandest of structures. Not only had David planned and then Solomon erected the Temple, but they completed many other building projects in each of their respective reigns. 

The Temple itself was seven years in the making and then after that there was another thirteen years to build Solomon’s house. And after that there was more building.  

II Chronicles 8:1-6 tells us that Solomon built city after city. How this was accomplished was warned of by Samuel. Let’s visit that.

It is in I Samuel 8 that the children of Adonai come to Samuel and ask for a king to  rule over them. Up until then they had what would be called a theocratic kingdom. In other words, God was their King. He ruled over them through appointed representatives. But these Israelites wanted to be like all the other folks and do things the way everyone else did, the world’s way. Samuel warned them of the bad consequences of this desire. We find it in I Samuel 8:1-22, especially verses 9 and 16.

Here God says to Samuel, “Now then listen to their voice; however you shall solemnly warn them and tell them of the procedure of the king who will reign over them” (v.9). And then Samuel says to the people speaking of these kings they want, “He will also take your male servants and your female servants and your best young men and your donkeys and use them for his work.” v.16

The people would be used to serve the king. But they insisted, and so God allowed the institution of the monarchy. This system was oppressive and was abused. When Israel finally divided into two separate  kingdoms the specific reason given for initiating its division was the oppressive labor forced on the people by Solomon.

You’ll see this in I Kings 12:1-16. In verse four, Jeroboam, soon to be the first king of the new Northern Kingdom, says to Rehoboam, at that point the next king of Israel after his father Solomon, “Your father made our yoke hard; now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, and we will serve you." Ultimately this agreement was not reached and Israel was thus divided into two separate kingdoms.

Suffice it to say that where the Tabernacle was concerned there was much blessing. Where the Temple was concerned that blessing which comes from giving did not exist. Two ways of building, two different outcomes when it comes to the blessing of giving or not giving. The way of blessing came because the process of building the Tabernacle was done under God’s rule, done His way. The missed blessing happened because the people were under a King’s rule and things were just done differently.

So where does all of this lead us? Hopefully as believers in Yeshua and therefore members of the Body of Messiah, it impresses upon us the necessity of giving in a Biblical way.

There are many gimmicks, schemes, programs, rallies, and the like to get believers to give.  Let's recognize them for what they are; man-made substitutes for giving God’s way. But God’s way, the right way, is found in Scripture—a bit of it in our II Corinthians passage.

Why don’t we just stick with that. The opportunity to give is open to all. Those that give willingly and not out of compulsion will be blessed. 

And our God will supply the need, even meet it with excess.

Have a blessed Shabbat!

In Messiah's Love,
His EVERY Word Ministries

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Pandemic Times...Have We Reaped the Whirlwind?

Parashat Tazria~Metzora

פרשת  תזריע־מצרע

“She Concieved”

Torah Portion: Leviticus 12:1—13:59

Haftarah: Ezekiel 45:16—46:18

B'rit Chadashah/New Covenant: Matthew 8:1 - 4

Shabbat | 25 April 2020 | 1st of Iyyar, 5780, 16th Day of the Omer

This week’s Torah portion opens with the disconcerting pronouncement that a woman shall be considered unclean following childbirth. 

How can one make sense of this? Children are a blessing from God, after all! The key, as always, is CONTEXT and PERSPECTIVE. 

There is Adonai’s viewpoint, which is high and lifted up, and then there is ours... 

LIFE IS HOLY. And there is no aspect of the life—of those who carry the Divine Name—that is left to serendipity. 

Like the beautiful Temple, built to house the Holy Presence of God, each and every detail conforms—jointly fitting together for His Glory. 

Even Tzara’at:

Leprosy, 

Mildew,

and Mold... (Oh my!)

What’s a Torah Portion, why are we commenting on it, and what relevance does it have to anything?

In a nutshell ... Luke 24:27 tells us that Yeshua (Jesus) revealed Himself through the Old Testament Scriptures, beginning with Moses and the Prophets.  From the time of Ezra, the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) has been read in a yearly rotation by Israel, and this tradition is still observed today. 

In Yeshua’s time, a complimentary portion from the Prophets—the Haftarah portion—was added to the weekly rotation of readings. Thus, for over two millennia, the children of Abraham have kept this unifying rhythm of studying the same Scriptures year by year, week by week, along with commentaries from the sages, including those who influenced the Apostle Paul, such as Hillel. It is therefore enriching and enlightening to delve into these foundational treasures, unearthing the riches of hidden insights revealed in the original Hebrew language or “listening” through the ears of Yeshua’s contemporaries to gain a fresh understanding of this faith sprung from Hebraic soil, and purchased with Jewish blood, by a Son of Israel, the King of the Jews. 

Join us now at the Father’s table as we keep the rhythm of Israel for more than two millennia, anticipating fresh manna from our God and King. As followers of Messiah we have added a corresponding New Covenant (Testament) portion reflecting the fulfillment and crown of the Torah.

Leviticus 12:1-8  Life is Holy

“Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the sons of Israel, saying: ‘When a woman gives birth and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean for seven days, as in the days of her menstruation she shall be unclean. On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Then she shall remain in the blood of her purification for thirty-three days; she shall not touch any consecrated thing, nor enter the sanctuary until the days of her purification are completed. But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean for two weeks, as in her menstruation; and she shall remain in the blood of her purification for sixty-six days.’” vv. 1-5

From Adonai’s Viewpoint, Reproduction is Not a Merely Biological Function

Israel will learn to see life as a miracle from the Hand of the Almighty. From the Matriarchs; Sarah, Rebecca, and Rachel, to Hannah and the Shunamite woman, Adonai taught Israel’s mothers to look to Him, the Author of Life, for their children. And throughout their history, Israel has rarely had the luxury to take life or survival for granted. It doesn’t just happen. 

So why is the mother of this grand miracle of creation called unclean? We have to understand that she has not become “detestable” to Adonai like “unclean” animals for food, although there is a correlation.

While the “clean” and “unclean” animals we just studied in our last parsha were “unfit” as food, they were not "unfit" or "unclean" as creations in themselves. Each was created by the Almighty for a purpose.

In the same way, for a period of time, while a new mother has an issuance of blood, she is “ceremonially unfit.” Thus, she must stay home with her new baby. (Is this such a bad thing?!)

In reading Jewish commentaries on this difficult to understand Scripture, I found many wonderful insights: 

• Adonai mandated a special time for the mother to recover, preserving life which is sacred and holy—an entirely revolutionary concept in the ancient world!
• The mother and child had a special time to bond
• The mother and child were kept safe from infection during these first vulnerable weeks (protecting LIFE which is sacred and holy)
• Some psychologists propose that a mother and son bond more readily than a mother and daughter, therefore... Adonai gave extra time for the mother to be with her daughter, the mother of the next generation ... brilliant!

I found a contemporary commentary particularly inspiring: 

“It is as if God were saying to the mother: for 40 days in the case of a boy, and doubly so in the case of a girl (the mother-daughter bond is ontologically stronger than that between mother and son), I exempt you from coming before Me in the place of holiness because you are fully engaged in one of the holiest acts of all, nurturing and caring for your child.

"Unlike others you do not need to visit the Temple to be attached to life in all its sacred splendour. You are experiencing it yourself, directly and with every fibre of your being. Days, weeks, from now you will come and give thanks before Me (together with offerings for having come through a moment of danger). But for now, look upon your child with wonder. For you have been given a glimpse of the great secret, otherwise known only to God.

"Childbirth exempts the new mother from attendance at the Temple because her bedside replicates the experience of the Temple. She now knows what it is for love to beget life and in the midst of mortality to be touched by an intimation of immortality.”

—Rabbi Lord Sacks, Chief Rabbi of Great Britain, Aish.com 

Don't you love that? We read through these Torah passages and so often find them dry because we miss the Heart of the Divine beyond the standards of the structure He is building. I think Adonai would desire that we would  find delight and awe even in the very difficult or most mundane of passages.

Leviticus 12:6-8 specifies the offering the new mother is to bring to the priest for him to offer on her behalf before the LORD. We may ask again, does Adonai look at the young mother as sinful? She has just fulfilled the highest of commands—to be fruitful and bring forth children in His own image! 

The sages of Israel also looked at this from many perspectives. Some were content to relegate it to the category of no earthly reason at all, but, “the Almighty Wills it, blessed be His Holy Name!”  Others see the young mother as having been apart from the life of the community while her affections were entirely directed toward her child. This mother of Israel now re-consecrates herself to the service of the congregation of Israel and Adonai through the acts of sacrifice, sanctification, and atonement. Nothing is “slip-shod.” Adonai touches all aspects of life, because life is sacred and holy. It matters.

This will become normative for the life of Israel. Women will be circumspect regarding the rhythms of their physiology, carefully preserving the ritual purity of those around them, and visiting the mikveh (ritual pool of running water) throughout the year.

This is why it was such a shock to Yeshua (Jesus) when the woman who had the issue of blood reached up and touched the tzitzit, the fringes or tassels of His garment. (Matthew 9, Mark 5, Luke 8) A Jewish woman at that time (as the Orthodox Jewish woman of our time) will not touch a man other than their husband. 

This poor, desperate woman, who had been hemorrhaging for twelve years, just couldn’t help herself! However, she didn’t touch Yeshua ... she reached out and touched the edge of His tallit, or garment. Yes, His clothing would have been rendered “unclean” according to Leviticus 15 and would need to be washed, however, there is something greater to be understood here.

First, defined for us is the reason for the tremendous emphasis on the prohibitions against the eating of blood, and being defiled by the issue of blood as found in Leviticus:

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.” Leviticus 17:11

LIFE. It’s about Life—the sacredness and holiness of life. Adonai created life, but sin in the nature of man cost His perfect creation the shedding of innocent blood. We ought not mock this or take it lightly. 

The heathen world mocks God (and His gracious and heartbreaking provision of the sacrifice as a remedy for our sin) by consuming the blood of animals. It is abhorrent and detestable. 

Pagans believe they can harness the essence of the beast through consuming their blood. Why the intense fascination with vampires in this era of gross darkness? Vampires are the epitome of mocking Adonai and all that’s holy in their brand of “eternal life”—the consumption of human blood.

Hear the Word of the LORD regarding the consuming of blood:

“Therefore I said to the sons of Israel, ‘No person among you may eat blood, nor may any alien who sojourns among you eat blood.” Leviticus 17:12 

Interesting? Not only Israel, but the non-Jews who sojourn with Israel. This is such an abominable practice, that it defiles the household, the community, and the land.

Why is this so important? Again: “For the life of every creature is the blood of it; therefore I have said to the people of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any creature, for the life of every creature is its blood; whoever eats it shall be cut off.” Leviticus 17:14

Israel learned to abhor the things Adonai called detestable. Of course, that served to further alienate Israel from the church, once the church fully embraced the principle of transubstantiation. This debate began during the reign of Constantine, and wasn’t fully rejected until the Protestant Reformation.

The Temple sacrifices were a temporary solution for an eternal problem: The law of sin = death.  

Yeshua came to bring life—life abundant, extraordinary, beyond measure... John 10:10

Now back to our poor woman who had been hemorrhaging for twelve years. Why would she have done the unthinkable just to touch the edge of Yeshua’s garment?

Malachi 4, believed by the Jewish People to be about the coming of the Messiah, also contains a promise of healing: “...to you who fear My name, The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings.” Malachi 4:2

The word “wings” here is a play on words. It is kanaph כנף in Hebrew, "wings," which is being used poetically such as in Psalm 17 and 36, being under the shadow of God’s wings. But kanaph literally means border or edge of a garment. The tzitzit, or tassel on the edge of an observant Jew’s garment represents the Word of God.

“It shall be a tassel (Hebrew, tzitzit  ציצת) for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes...” Numbers 15:39

Can you imagine being in this woman’s place? There is an electric undercurrent of excitement ... could this rabbi be the long-awaited Messiah? And here He comes, passing by within reach... 

Perhaps she was a bold person, or perhaps she was a frail little woman, ravaged by her infirmity, only able to summon the strength for this one last daring move by which God be glorified in this moment recorded for all time... 

The text reveals this woman seized the moment! “...for she was saying to herself, ‘If I only touch His garment, I will get well.’” Matthew 9:21

And rather than rebuke her for defiling His garment, Yeshua said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well.” Matthew 9:22

At once she was healed! Yeshua said she was healed because of her faith—in Greek: 
πίστις pē'-stēs, meaning faithfulness—not a passive belief—but a deep, abiding, steadfast conviction that is evidenced by fidelity, character, and action. 

Yet what of Yeshua’s garment being defiled? We aren’t told. The common answer from many “New Testament Believers” would be that Jesus came to do away with “The Law.” Really? That’s a bit simplistic—and borders on Marcionism*, a serious heresy. 

It's common to view the Torah as little more than an oppressive set of commandments, statutes, and regulations that God imposed on the Jews as a system unto salvation. This is error. First, the Torah was given to an already redeemed people (redeemed out of Egypt by God's grace and mercy), to teach (the meaning of the word Torah) them how redeemed people live in the Kingdom of God. They still needed the atonement of the sacrifices for the problem of sin—as we do today. Adonai provided the temporary remedy of bulls, goats, and birds until Messiah. Hallelu-Yah, blessed be His Holy Name!

Although we are learning week by week, that Adonai’s Kingdom is built upon very specific blueprints, His principal goal is Life.  

God is not constructing a grand prison so that he may preside as Celestial Warden. (Actually, that is the convoluted deception of satan—he offers “freedom” to indulge whatever your carnal nature desires—but that “freedom” leads to an eternity of misery with no hope of pardon.)

There is something in the nature of man that rankles at the idea of rules. But there is really no avoiding them. Even the antichrist, the “man of lawlessness” (or Torah-lessness), has rules. His, however, lead to ultimate destruction.

Adonai does not put the rules of His Kingdom above His beloved children, however. This is something that Yeshua sparred with religious authorities on. Many of them did not understand. Most of them were not even spiritual leaders—they were political puppets, capitulating to Rome—blind and lifeless.

They thought they had caught Yeshua breaking the Sabbath, but He left them speechless.

“Jesus said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.’” (Mark 2:27-28) “And He said to them, ‘Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?’ But they kept silent.” Mark 3:4

        פיקוח נפש   It's About Life!  פיקוח נפש

Most Gentiles don’t know about Pikuach Nefesh, which is the overriding law in Judaism. Established during Jesus' time, it says life is so sacred and holy that saving a life supercedes every commandment in the Torah (as long as to do so doesn’t lead one into forbidden relationships, such as murder, idol worship, etc.) 

Pikuach nefesh is an idiom meaning to open one’s eyes—or to supervise or oversee the matters of the soul, such as guard another’s life. It is a sacred duty. “Love your neighbor...” 

Through the ages, with much prayer and study, the Hebrew sages came to believe that in the heart of the Almighty the holiness of the human soul is greater than the holiness of adhering to the commandments. This is why there is an obligation to break Shabbat for the sake of a human life or welfare. 

Pikuach nefesh is derived from the biblical verse, “...you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD.” (Leviticus 19:18) According to pikuach nefesh a person must do everything in their power to save the life of another, even donate bodily organs.

The laws of Shabbat may also be deferred for a woman who has just given birth within the last three days, to provide more comfort. A patient is allowed to eat non-Kosher food if it is essential for recovery and, on Yom Kippur, a sick person is forbidden to fast if it will impair their recovery and health.

This is what Yeshua was trying to impart—not lawlessness or irreverence for Adonai and the Torah, but the point of it all—Life! 

He came to reveal the Father’s Heart, to heal the sick (even on the Sabbath), to rightly interpret (fulfill, fully preach, Greek: pleroo) the Torah, and bring life! He came to set the captives free by changing the equation that sin = death for those who are redeemed under the New Covenant, ratified by His blood! Bless the Name of the LORD!

As a point of interest, it bears noting how deeply Israel has been impacted by the Torah commandments regarding life, blood, and flesh, to this day...

Following a terror attack in Israel, you may have seen a specialized response team carefully gathering the remains of the victims. This is “ZAKA,” Zihuy Korbanot Ason, which translates to Disaster Victim Identification. 

The members of ZAKA are volunteers and mostly Orthodox Jews. They assist the ambulance crews and first responders to ensure that all the physical remains and blood of Jewish victims are handled properly and recovered as it is considered sacred.

The founders and members of ZAKA prefer to call the organization and their work Chesed shel Emet (חסד של אמת - Grace of Truth). 

After acts of terrorism, ZAKA volunteers also collect the bodies and body parts of non-Jews, including homicide bombers, for return to their families. The phrase Chesed shel Emet refers to doing "kindness" for the benefit of the deceased, which is considered to be “true kindness,” because the deceased who benefit cannot return the kindness.

Among the observant, the Torah has produced a Jewish culture that values LIFE. 

The other side of the coin is the tragedy of the culture that serves Allah, a god who says the highest form of worship is to be a martyr killing the Jews. 

The internet is replete with photos of Arab Palestinians climbing into vehicles of dead leaders or putting their children in, to get the blood on them or grab a piece of flesh (I will not show those photos) of these “shahids,” martyrs for Allah.

A Note on Circumcision
Perhaps Father Knows Best...

“On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.” v. 2

Granted, no one really likes to talk about circumcision ... with good reason. To the Jewish People, it is a sacred tradition—it is the sign of the Covenant. If there were no earthly health benefit, it would be held to just as tenaciously forever.

Every once in a while, a fringe group will try to push legislation through banning it as cruel child abuse, and claiming it is without any health advantage. More often than not, the group is revealed to be rabid, anti-semitic activists, and the furor winds up eliciting a cavalcade of solid and impartial medical support for this ancient rite.

Is that why Adonai instituted it? We just don’t know. Certainly He would not have instituted a practice that would be harmful. Recently a friend related a story of her early marriage many years ago. After the initial honeymoon, this young bride found “married life” terribly painful. As it turned out, over time, repeated infections were causing problems for health and happiness. Finally her doctor discovered the issue—her husband was uncircumcised. After this brave young husband submitted to the procedure, the problem was solved! So, perhaps “Father” simply does know best! 

Leviticus 13:1-59  Tzara’at~Leprosy, Mildew, and Boils, Oh My!

The Torah Concerning Leprosy

“Then the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling or a scab or a bright spot, and it becomes an infection of leprosy on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests. The priest shall look at the mark on the skin of the body, and if the hair in the infection has turned white and the infection appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is an infection of leprosy; when the priest has looked at him, he shall pronounce him unclean.” vv. 1-3

“...it is an infection of leprosy, in Hebrew tzara’at צרעת leprosy:

a) in people, malignant skin disease Lev. 13-14

b) in clothing, a mildew or mold Lev. 13:47-52

c) in buildings, a mildew or mold Lev. 14:34-53

This is one of those chapters that we tend to just skim over without really reading! Up to verse eight, the priest is observing the early symptoms of this dreaded disease that we don’t want to read about ... picture ... or think about. Symptom by symptom, scab by scab, the priests are instructed how to observe and diagnose until verse eight when the hatchet falls: “...then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is leprosy.” v. 8

“When the infection of leprosy is on a man, then he shall be brought to the priest. The priest shall then look, and if there is a white swelling in the skin, and it has turned the hair white, and there is quick raw flesh in the swelling...If the leprosy breaks out farther on the skin, and the leprosy covers all the skin of him who has the infection from his head even to his feet, But whenever raw flesh appears on him, Or if the raw flesh turns again and is changed to white, When the body has a boil on its skin...” vv. 9,10,12, 14, 16, 18

Ugh! On and on it goes. Interminable details of leprous skin lesions, boils, and infection—from head to toe... 

How relentless and merciless the corrupting influence of sin! Has it been so long since man and woman walked with God in the Garden of His Delight and all was “good”...a time when death had not yet come into the world...

Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s Disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Skin lesions are the primary external symptom. If not treated, permanent damage can occur to the skin, nerves, limbs and eyes. Leprosy has two common forms: tuberculoid and lepromatous. Both forms produce sores on the skin. However, the lepromatous form is most severe. It causes large lumps and nodules. 

This was a terrifying disease, and it must not be allowed to spread throughout the camp. Because Adonai instructed the priests so meticulously on this subject—on every physiological presentation of the disease, as well as the corresponding diseases of dwellings and clothing, the congregation of Israel would not panic. All was under control!

There have always been disputes over whether leprosy is given as a judgment, referring back to the incident where Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, and Miriam became, “...leprous, white as snow.” (Numbers 12:10) It has been said that leprosy is the result of lashon hara, the evil tongue. 

Whether leprosy was a curse or not, Adonai still had mercy on His People, providing a remedy. Though a diseased man may be “unclean” for a period of time, they were overseen by the priest, and when their time of healing and internment was complete, sacrifice was made for their re-entry into communal life. 

Yeshua however, demonstrated the Father’s love to be even deeper and broader than ever realized. He was moved with compassion when approached by a leper who fell before Him on his knees. He knew Yeshua could make him whole, make him “clean,” or “fit” as the word means. “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”  Matt. 8:2

Yeshua was without sin—by His own words He did not come to annul or destroy the Torah, but to fulfill—rightly interpret, fully preach—demonstrate the Father’s Heart through it...  

Man was not created to serve the Torah, Torah was given to sustain mankind... Just like the laws of the physical universe that Adonai created to sustain life... It’s about LIFE! Because God so loved the world that He gave His Son (Yeshua) that we would have LIFE! 

Yeshua, as High Priest, moved with love, stretches out His Divine hand, and touches the leper, saying to him, "I AM willing; be cleansed.” Mark 1:40-41

This is the LOVE of the, “I AM,” 

pronouncing a leper “CLEAN” 

with an entirely new process! 

This process was LOVE...

But this is surpassing LOVE...

Our Maker's form of “Beyond Love!” 

........................................

*Marcionism is the dualist belief system that originated in Rome from the teachings of Marcion of Sinope around the year 144AD. Marcion affirmed Jesus as the Savior, and Paul as his chief apostle, but he rejected the Hebrew Bible and YHVH (Yahweh), asserting Him to be only the Jewish, wrathful god of the Old Testament. 

Marcion declared that Christianity was distinct from and in opposition to Judaism. 

He rejected in its entirety the Hebrew Bible and declared that the god of the Hebrew Bible was a lesser demiurge—asserting that he had created the earth—but was the source of evil.

The premise of Marcionism is that most of the teachings of Christ are incompatible with the god of the Jewish religion. 

According to Tertullian, Marcion was the first to separate the New Testament from the Old Testament. Marcion is said to have juxtaposed the Jewish Scriptures against the sayings and teachings of Jesus in a work entitled The Antithesis. Focusing on the Pauline traditions of the Gospel, Marcion felt that all other concepts of the Gospel, and especially any association with the Old Testament religion, were opposed to, and backsliding from the truth.

He further saw the arguments of Paul regarding law and gospel, wrath and grace, works and faith, flesh and spirit, sin and righteousness, and death and life as the essence of religious truth.
He ascribed these aspects and characteristics to two principles: 

~the wrathful god of the Old Testament, and a second God of the Gospel,
who he believed to be quite unknown before Christ, who is only love and mercy.

Due to his anti-Trinitarian, dualistic theology he was finally denounced as a heretic. Marcionist ideas have survived, however, and influenced theology throughout the centuries in various forms—in its most virulent, spawning Christian anti-Semitism as seen in Europe, it laid the foundation for the Holocaust.

To be continued...

Haftarah  Tazria~Metzora

Ezekiel 45:16 - 46:18

It behooves us to consider regularly the grander of our Creator. He is  an intimately involved God, from the personal details of each of our individual lives on  up to  the pinnacle of the corporate worship of Himself, His just due.

Consider our torah portion for this week. In it we saw YHVH’s care of each and every new mother in the nation of Israel. For this segment of Jewish society God set aside their required religious observance and gave time for personal rest, and bonding with newly arrived children.

Further on in this week’s Torah portion much more attention was paid to personal disease. Considered was the individual again, but this time  it was both the single person who was sick and the protection of those who were not.  After reading the prescribed course of action in the case of lepersey one might feel they had had an introductory medical school course in the care and prevention of that particular disease.

Coming to our selected Haftarah portion I had to put my thinking cap on as I considered what the connection might be between the scheduled weekly Torah reading of Leviticus 12:1-15:33 and the sages’ choosing of Ezekiel 45:16-46:18 for the Haftarah reading. On the one hand we’ve got moms and kids, and prevention and treatment of the ailing. And on the other we have the monumental reshaping of the earth culminating in worship of the Messiah Himself in what will be at that time the ultimate Temple. What could one have to do with the other? Well, let’s think about the latter of these two extremes for a moment. Perhaps that will help.

I consider the book of Ezekiel one of the most exciting books of the Tenakh. (For you newbies to this—like me, that’s just the Old Testament.) Our God had Ezekiel write some fantastic stuff in it, not to mention that the theological giants find it a great place to disagree with one another.  So step into the water with me for a bit and enjoy the swim. 

Our author starts the book off with a vision he had. Some have seen the genesis of UFO’s in it. Ezekiel says he saw living beings in wheels, wheels with rims full of eyes all around. Ezekiel 1:4-21, esp. vv. 18, 20-21

And of course there are many prophecies: of judgement, of restoration, and future Millennial reign by the Messiah Himself. Ezekiel  even predicts a future time when  Israel  will be given a new heart and will be careful to obey all of God’s ordinances. (36:24-28; cf. Jeremiah 31:31-34) But controversy is never far from the Bible’s interpreters.

Let’s identify just two camps of folks right now.

One is that of the allegorist. He takes those passages that don’t fit into his preconceived view of how things will end up and does not see them for what they simply say. To him these passages can end up meaning just about anything he wants them to; from the elimination of god’s promises to the nation of Israel, even to the elimination of the nation itself. Allegorizing is a wonderful tool for making the Bible say what you want it to say and ignoring what it simply says.

The other camp is that of the literalist. While he allows for the artistic value of the written word, where obvious, he believes that what God says in the Bible, God means. No, God does not have wings as you may have read. That is there for artistic value. But, God does judge sin, and forgives sinners as well. That’s literal. When God speaks of a six day creation, He means He did it in six days. When God speaks of a future for His Israel, why, He means it. And when God says that not one letter or stroke will pass away from the Law until the recreation of the heavens and earth occurs (Matthew 5:18) that means none of it has passed away yet, unless of course we somehow slept through that recreation. Well, the problem is that even some  that claim to be literalists aren’t quite 100% on that one. I think they better look out. Messiah said, “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and so teaches others, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven”(Matthew 5:19). And I think that is obviously quite literal.

In case you haven’t guessed yet I am in the literalist camp. And being there Ezekiel ends up with some exciting things that I literally believe are going to happen.

Let’s understand first that much if not all of the earth’s surface is going to be reworked by God as the Tribulation ends and the Millennium begins. Check out Isaiah 2:2-4, 27:13, 56:6-8, 66:20, and Micah 4:1-2. These passages literally say that the single highest mountain in the world will be raised up in the land of Israel. And on top of that mountain the fourth Temple, which will be one mile square in size, will be placed by God. It will become the center of Jewish and Gentile worship. Ezekiel gives us most of our information regarding the Mountain of Jehovah’s House. Read about it in 17:22-24, 20:40-41, 40:1-4, 45:1-8, and 48:8-22. And in our Haftarah portion we see how some of the intricacies of this new Temple worship will work.

This piece opened with asking for consideration of the grander of our Creator, pointing out how intimately involved He is with the details of each of our lives, but He does not stop there.  He will in the future establish on this earth, in Israel, upon the the highest mountain in the world, His fourth Temple,. This will facilitate, up to that point in time, the pinnacle   of corporate human worship of Himself. This is worship He deserves because He is Almighty God.       And this, Ezekiel tells us He will do in His Temple, in the Millennium.

So, how is it God can be so uniquely involved with us individually and yet do the really big things as well? The answer for me is, I don’t know.  I just, don’t, know...

But what I do know is that He is God, and He DOES ... All things well.

Oh, the depth of the riches 

both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!

How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! 

For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, 

OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? 

Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM 

THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? 

For from Him 

and through Him 

and to Him 

are all things. 

To Him be the glory forever.

 Amen.

Romans11:33

To Him be the glory…

To Him is due 

ALL 

the glory.

Amen.

B'rit Chadashah  Tazria

Matthew 8:1-4

Our B’rit Chadashah portion of Scripture, Matthew 8:1-4, carries on with the subject of leprosy. So let’s stop for a moment and take a closer look at what we are talking about. 

The word itself, leprosy, is used 68 times in the Bible. We find it's used 55 times in the Old Testament and another 13 times in the New. In the Old Testament leprosy could refer to any one of a number of skin or surface conditions. Clothing and walls of a house could have this condition. And obviously people as well. It was characterized as a scaly condition of the skin or of inanimate objects. Leviticus 13 lists seven forms of this condition. What is most important to know about this condition is that it was a socially ostracizing disease, often associated with sin. In Biblical times those who had it had to live outside the camp or town and when others came around the leper had to cry out, “Unclean, unclean.” 

In Matthew 8 the short story of a healing from leprosy is told—but what had happened to account for the incident? In the early portions of Matthew we see Jesus baptized, and the Holy Spirit descend from heaven and come upon Jesus to empower Him. He then separates Himself for forty days in the wilderness where He fasts, and then is tempted by the devil. His ministry is thus officially inaugurated. 

After hearing of John the Baptist being arrested He goes to Capernaum. It is then that we read in Matthew 4:17,  “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.'” 

• His public ministry had begun (“From that time...”)
• He was preaching about His coming Kingdom (“...the Kingdom of Heaven...”)
• He was saying it is now here (“...the Kingdom...is at hand.”)

As we read the concluding verses of Matthew 4 we are told that He is beginning to add to His inner circle of men who we know carried on after Jesus was taken to Heaven some three years later. Now though, He heals. He teaches. And He draws great multitudes who follow Him.

Having drawn this initial following of, “great multitudes,” Jesus goes up on a mountain and presents if you will the Magna Carta of the Kingdom of Heaven. The majority opinion of evangelical Christendom holds that the teachings of Matthew 5-7 are for believers in this “dispensation of the church,” to be lived today—and I would agree.

The truths presented in this “Sermon on the Mount” are not only adjunct to, but expansion of Torah, the Covenant, the Law as it was given to Moses. 

Jesus did not change any of the Law. He lifted it up and embellished it. It was through Him that richer meaning was given to older truths. This teaching of His was radical and it would be all the harder to accept if not authenticated by its Author. 

How was He to do this? The answer would lie in proving that He was the Son of David, the King that was to sit on the Davidic throne in the Millennial state, God Himself.

Time after time, for the three years of His public ministry, Yeshua performed miracles. He healed the sick. He cast out demons. He fed the multitudes. He raised the dead. He prevailed over nature. He did all of this, why? 

The answer is that He was about the business of authenticating the message He had come to give. And that message was first that He was here to offer the Kingdom, if the Jews would accept it ... And then that He was here to die for the sins of man.

Note the turning point in Yeshua’s public ministry in Matthew 16:21. “From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.” Note that it was not before this point in His public ministry (It was, “From that time...”). It is just now that He begins to give the death and resurrection message ("...Jesus began to show...that He must...be killed and be raised...”)

So, just after the giving of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus gets to the business of authenticating His message, once again. He had already been successful at this. Read Matthew 4:23-25: 

“Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with various diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, paralytics; and He healed them. Large crowds followed Him from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond the Jordan.”

And then He preached His Sermon on the Mount, because He had proven to these that He was for real. He had authenticated His message. 

When we come to our B’rit Chadashah portion there is no guessing as to what was going on. Jesus had just finished His Sermon on the Mount, and there where still more Jews to convince of who He really was, many more. 

A leper comes to Yeshua and asks Him to cleanse him of his disease and of course Yeshua does. We don’t know if this man was afflicted because of sin or if he had this affliction so that the works of God might be displayed in him. The latter was the case with the man born blind in John 9. Verses 1-4 show us that physical afflictions are sometimes used to bring to light the character of our God. 

“As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?' Jesus answered, 'It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work.'”

Yeshua did many works to prove that He was God in the flesh. Here the work that is presented is that of healing one afflicted with leprosy. There are many principles that could be drawn from this story of Him healing the Leper. Perhaps we might focus on just one...

Yeshua does have the power to heal. He proved that time and again. But, not all of His children are healed of the afflictions they have. Some will not be healed soon and perhaps never be healed, but will live out the balance of their days with their affliction. This was the Apostle Paul’s situation. In II Corinthians 12:1-10 Paul speaks of his, as he puts it, “...thorn in the flesh.” He prayed that God would remove it but God would not. Notice:

“...there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.” vv. 7-10

A personal note now if I may. I have a loved one that has, “a thorn in the flesh.”  I believe that all that can be done medically is being done, and yet relief is still not theirs. Much prayer has been made for this dear saint, that this thorn would be taken away and yet it has not. What then are we to make of this. It’s only God’s words that make any sense, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” It is not known what the outcome of this thorn will be for them. But of this we are sure, when weak then we are strong. 

Yes, Yeshua does heal, but not always. 

Sometimes He choses to demonstrate His great power
through the weaknesses He allows into our lives. 

In the end we do not ask why this affliction. 

Rather we ask, how...

How can I glorify the Master by using His power in my weakness?

Shabbat Shalom in His Love,

His EVERY Word Ministries

...Pandemic Times...

Something Old, Something New ... 

What has been is what will be,

and what has been done will be done again.

There is nothing new under the sun. 

—Ecclesiastes 1:9 TLV

With each circuit of reading, and each year of living, this text seems more profound.

Slings and Arrows... This week’s Torah portion remind us of how powerful our words are. With them, we may heal a broken heart or tear down a nation. 

The sages reveal deep connections between inner corruption and external contagion ... how sin becomes leprous, enlarging itself to damage an entire community. This is both physical and metaphysical! Thus, the remedy of isolation for a period of time, introspection and inspection is also insightful and profound. 

Biblical history brings lashon hara, the evil tongue, into sharp focus. Does it have haunting application to present day? The heart of Adonai is deeply grieved over slander, deceitful speech and malice. Scripture is replete with this sentiment as well as recounting disasters brought about by the evil tongue.

Hateful, slanderous speech has spread like a ravaging plague across our land, even as the Wuhan Coronavirus has become what many have called “a plague of biblical proportions.” 

Tzara’at, often being an outward sign of inward rot, we must ask ourselves; have we reaped the whirlwind?

Watching the daily Presidential Coronavirus Task Force conferences held daily for the press, one may be reminded of Jeremiah 9:2-7:

”They bend their tongue like a bow.

    Lies, not faithfulness, prevail in the land.

...Everyone deceives his neighbor

    and does not speak the truth.

    They taught their tongue to speak lies.

    They wear themselves out doing wrong.

...Their tongue is a deadly arrow,

    speaking deceit.

    With his mouth

    each says shalom to his neighbor,

    while inwardly setting a trap for him.”

Can we not discern the familiar spirit that moved Miriam and Aaron as well, to speak against Moses in Numbers 12? (Not that the American President is an anointed prophet of Adonai, but He does raise up leaders and calls us to be obedient to the ruling authorities as long as they are not telling us to violate His Law. This President and his Administration have been the most biblically supportive in modern history, so surely there is no call for rebellion.)

Adonai’s anger burned against that couple who opposed Moses’ Divinely appointed authority, and Miriam was stricken with tzara’at —she became leprous! Moses appealed to Adonai for her forgiveness, and she was healed after being restricted outside the camp for seven days. Although she would be forgiven and healed, she had engaged in sowing division, and she would suffer a time of being divided out from the community, perhaps to help her remember the sting of isolation—to that it would not be a lesson easily forgotten...

And, lest we forget, Adonai reminds us in Deuteronomy 24:8-9: “Take care in the plague of tzara’at—be very careful to do all that the Levitical kohanim instruct you, just as I commanded them, so you are to take care to do. Remember what Adonai your God did to Miriam, along the way when you were coming out from Egypt.”

Ya’acov (James, the brother of Yeshua, Jesus) powerfully illustrates the gravity and consequence of our words in the Apostolic Scriptures. His words beautiful echo the Hebrew sages and rabbis’ teachings of the ages: 

“...the tongue is a small member—yet it boasts of great things. 

See how so small a fire sets a blaze so great a forest!

And the tongue is a fire.

The tongue is a world of evil placed among our body parts. 

It pollutes the whole body and sets on fire the course of life—and is set on fire by Gehenna.

For every species of beasts and birds, reptiles and sea creatures, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no human being can tame the tongue.

It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

With it we bless our Adonai and Father, and with it we curse people, who are made in the image of God. 
From the same mouth comes blessing and cursing.

My brothers and sisters, these things should not be.

A spring doesn’t pour out fresh and bitter water from the same opening, does it?” 

James 3:5-11

By His word, the Master of the Universe spoke all that exists into existence. By His word, the Eternal One established His eternal covenants with mankind. By His Word, Light came into the world and that Light was the Life of mankind. By our words, we respond to His invitation and pass from death to life. 

Thus, Proverbs 18:21 says: “Death and life are in the control of the tongue.” 

We choose whether to spread deadly poison with our tongue, and set alight destructive wildfires with hateful words and malicious slander ... or sow to life ... to be as fresh water, able to bless and refresh others.

“Who is the one who delights in life,

and loves to see good days?

Keep your tongue from evil,

and your lips from speaking treachery.”

Psalm 34:13-14

Could Adonai be calling for men to turn to Him in sincere repentance? 

Do we find salvation and comfort in the angry words of our congressional leaders?

Does our tell-a-vision have the Words of Life?

“Come, and let us return to the LORD;

For He has torn, but He will heal us;

He has stricken,

But He will bind us up.”

Hosea 6:1