תרומה-terumah- heave offering

Exodus-25:1-27:19, 1 Samuel-15:1-34

 

Things to go over

1. Exodus-25:2- A study

A. What is this kind of offering is this offering?

B. How many different types of this offering exist in the torah, and what other information can we glean from them?

C. Why did the woman give materials in the construction of the tent service, and how can we relate this topic to woman’s rights today?

D. How should this practice be done today?

2. “You are temples of the most high?”- A study

A. Where did Paul get this, and what does it mean?

B. What is the lesson trying to teach?

C. Does this mean that the temple is never returning?

 

 

1. Exodus-25:2- A study

 

A. What is this kind of offering is this offering?

This offering is found in Exodus-25:2-

 

דבר אל בני ישראל ויקחו לי תרומה מאת כל איש אשר ידבנו לבו תקחו את תרומתי- Speak to the children of Israel, that they take for me a heave offering, from every man whose heart urges him, you will take my heave offering.

 

According to the context in verses-3-8-“And this is the contribution which you take up from them: gold, and silver, and bronze, and blue and purple and scarlet material, and fine linen, and goats’ hair, and rams’ skins dyed red, and fine leather, and acacia wood, oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense, shoham stones, and stones to be set in the shoulder garment and in the breastplate. “And they shall make Me a Set-apart Place, and I shall dwell in their midst.

 

They are gathering a heave offering for building the utensils, and priestly garments, and the house of YHVH.

 

The word itself is תרומה-terumah- it is actually a heave offering- an offering that is lifted up physically, because it comes from the word רום-rum- to lift up- verb.

 

This type of offering is given of your free-will- see verse-2.

 

B. How many different types of this offering exist in the torah, and what other information can we glean from them?

So there are 4 types of these offerings, including this one:

 

* The tabernacle free will offering- Exodus-25:2

* The tabernacle tax Exodus-30:11-16

* The tithes- Numbers-18:26-27

* Peace offering heave offering- Leviticus-7:14, 32, and Leviticus-8, and Exodus-29:27-28.

 

2 out of the 4 offerings are offerings you eat, which are the tithe, the ram of ordination, and the peace offering, like the other offerings you lift them up because of the name תרומה-terumah- they come from the root רום-rum to lift up.

 

They are also qorban offerings which means they have to be brought to the tabernacle to be slaughtered see Leviticus-17:3-4-“Any man from the house of Yisra’ěl who slays a bull or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or who slays it outside the camp, and does not bring it to the door of the Tent of Appointment, to bring an offering to יהוה before the Dwelling Place of יהוה, blood-guilt is reckoned to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people,

 

Also Deuteronomy-12:1-6-“These are the laws and right-rulings which you guard to do in the land which יהוה Elohim of your fathers is giving you to possess, all the days that you live on the soil. "Completely destroy all the places where the nations which you are dispossessing served their mighty ones, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree. “And you shall break down their slaughter-places, and smash their pillars, and burn their Ashěrim with fire. And you shall cut down the carved images of their mighty ones and shall destroy their name out of that place. “Do not do so to יהוה your Elohim, but seek the place which יהוה your Elohim chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His Name there, for His Dwelling Place, and there you shall enter. And there you shall take your ascending offerings, and your slaughters, and your tithes, and the contributions of your hand, and your vowed offerings, and your voluntary offerings, and the firstlings of your herd and of your flock. - They are not to be offered at any place you wish but rather at the place where YHVH chooses to place his name.

 

Also the offerings are supposed to be good to offer as well I cite Leviticus-22:17-25‘As for a bull or a lamb that has any limb deformed or dwarfed you do prepare as a voluntary offering, but for a vow it is not accepted.-And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to Aharon and his sons, and to all the children of Yisra’ěl, and say to them, ‘Any man of the house of Yisra’ěl, or of the strangers in Yisra’ěl, who brings his offering for any of his vows or for any of his voluntary offerings, which they bring to יהוה as an ascending offering, for your acceptance, is a male, a perfect one from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. ‘Whatever has a defect, you do not bring, for it is not acceptable for you. And when a man brings a slaughtering of peace offerings to יהוה, to complete a vow, or a voluntary offering from the cattle or the sheep, it is to be perfect to be accepted, let there be no defect in it. ‘Those blind or broken or cut, or having an ulcer or eczema or scabs, you do not bring to יהוה, nor make an offering by fire of them on the slaughter-place to יהוה. ‘Do not bring to יהוה what is bruised or crushed, or torn or cut, nor do it in your land. ‘And from a son of a stranger’s hand you do not bring any of these as the bread of your Elohim, for their corruption is in them, and defects are in them, they are not acceptable for you.’ ”

 

Each offering is not allowed to have defects within them, but you are to offer your best offering.

 

Now in light of Exodus-25:2- the heave offering being a free-will offering, not all heave offerings are free-will offerings, because remember the tithes are for the priests see Numbers-18:21- “And see, I have given the children of Lěwi all the tithes in Yisra’ěl as an inheritance in return for the service which they are serving, the service of the Tent of Appointment. -

 

Now in regards to these heave offerings not all of them are given voluntarily, but it is commanded that the children of Israel give it see Exodus-29:27-28- “And from the ram of ordination you shall set apart the breast of the wave offering which is waved, and the thigh of the contribution which is raised, of that which is for Aharon and of that which is for his sons. “And it shall be from the children of Yisra’ěl for Aharon and his sons by a law forever, for it is a contribution. And it is a contribution from the children of Yisra’ěl from the slaughters of their peace offerings – their contribution to יהוה.

 

Now these offerings cannot be done today, for starters the offering system cannot be done see Leviticus-17:3-4-“Any man from the house of Yisra’ěl who slays a bull or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or who slays it outside the camp, and does not bring it to the door of the Tent of Appointment, to bring an offering to יהוה before the Dwelling Place of יהוה, blood-guilt is reckoned to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people,- we need set-apart alters, and a temple, which doesn’t exist today.

 

The other heave offerings went into the construction of the house of YHVH, and we cannot do that because it is the messiah who measures the place to build the temple.

 

Also we cannot do the temple today, also the messiah builds the temple see Ezekiel-40:3-5-So He brought me there, and look, a man whose appearance was like the appearance of bronze, and a line of flax and a measuring rod in his hand, and he stood in the gateway. And the man said to me, “Son of man, see with your eyes and hear with your ears, and set your heart on all that I am showing you, for you were brought here in order to show them to you. Declare to the house of Yisra’ěl all that you are seeing.” And look: a wall all around the outside of the House, and in the man’s hand a measuring rod six cubits long, each being a cubit and a handbreadth. And he measured the width of the wall structure, one rod, and the height one rod.

 

C. Why did the woman give materials in the construction of the tent service, and how can we relate this topic to woman’s rights today?

 

דבר אל בני ישראל ויקחו לי תרומה מאת כל איש אשר ידבנו לבו תקחו את תרומתי-

 

Speak to the children of Israel, that they take for me a heave offering, from every man whose heart urges him, you will take my heave offering.

 

So in the hebrew YHVH wants every man to give, now here is something interesting see Exodus-35:29- כל איש ואשה אשר נדב לבם אתם להביא לכל המלאכה אשר צוה יהוה- All men and woman whose hearts urged them, to bring it for the creative work which YHVH commanded.

 

So this isn’t a big deal, they are trying to protect the passage in Exodus-35:29, the point is YHVH wanted the men to give, but that didn’t mean woman couldn’t give at all, they could. Now the question is why were the men supposed to give? The more then likely reason is because men have a hard time giving.

 

Now in light of that lets focus on a topic that has to deal with woman’s rights but is slightly off topic in the case of woman serving in the military, before I came to the conclusion that woman were not allowed to serve in the military because of the verse in Deuteronomy-22:5 לא יהיה כלי גבר על אשה ולא ילבש גבר שמלת אשה – There will not come a warriors armor/ utensils upon a woman, and a warrior will not put on a woman’s garment.-

 

Basically יהיה- yihyeh means, she will not become- meaning a woman will not reverse roles to become a foot solider.

 

However in the light of Judges-4:9-11, I do believe woman can serve in the military but not as foot soliders see Judges-4:9-11-And she said, “I shall certainly go with you. Only, there shall be no esteem for you in the journey you are taking, for יהוה is going to sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deḇorah arose and went with Baraq to Qeḏesh. And Baraq called Zeḇulun and Naphtali to Qeḏesh. And he went up – ten thousand men under his command – and Deḇorah went up with him. And Ḥeḇer the Qěynite, of the children of Ḥoḇaḇ the father-in-law of Mosheh, had separated himself from the Qěynites and pitched his tent near the terebinth tree at Tsa‛anayim, which is beside Qeḏesh. - I will go into my reasons at a later date.

 

D. How should this practice be done today?

 

Basically in light of the mishpat in Exodus-22:22-24-“Do not afflict any widow or fatherless child. “If you do afflict them at all – if they cry out to Me at all, I shall certainly hear their cry, and My wrath shall burn and I shall kill you with the sword, your wives shall be widows and your children fatherless.

 

In order so that you enjoy giving to your fellow neighbor who is destitute, like what we see in verse-2 of chapter-25, is to treat them as equals, in other words you shouldn’t assign tables for them to eat at for shabbat meals, nor are you to treat people like them any less, and the reason is so that you guarding yourself to ensure that you enjoy giving to them when they need it, this is what it means to love your neighbor as yourself.

 

Another way is to do this is have families, or any practical way of loving your neighbor as yourself.

 

2. “You are temples of the most high?”- A study

 

A. Where did Paul get this, and what does it mean?

 

So according to ffoz (First Fruits of Zion) there was a midrash indicating that we are tabernacles of the of the most high, and they cited Exodus-25:8- ועשו לי מקדש ושכנתי בתוכם – And they will make for me a set apart dwelling, and I will dwell in their midst. - Now according to them it can be translated as: And they will make for me a miqdash, and I will dwell within them.

 

Now I can assure you it can be translated that way.

 

Now off that bunny trail, I wasn’t able to find that midrash

 

Now I do have to stress this whole thing that you are a tabernacle of the most high is only a metaphor, this doesn’t mean that the temple is coming, or the priesthood isn’t coming, etc. To say that is to say that Ezekiel was a false prophet, and so was Yeshua.

 

Now what is the proof that I offer that this is a metaphor.

 

Psalm-141:2- Let my prayer be prepared before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands as the evening offering.

 

Sacrifices

 

Jeremiah-7:21-23- Thus said יהוה of hosts, the Elohim of Yisra’ěl, “Add your ascending offerings to your slaughterings and eat meat. “For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Mitsrayim, about matters of ascending offerings or slaughterings. “But this word I did command them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I shall be your Elohim, and you be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, so that it be well with you.’

 

The Ark

 

Ezekiel-36:26-“And I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. And I shall take the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I shall give you a heart of flesh,- Because in the Ark goes the tablets of stone, of which have the 10 commandments, so you can infer that doing the 10 commandments causes your heart to be softened.

 

B. What is the lesson it is trying to teach?

 

Now remember since verse-8- of chapter-25- is talking about doing works for YHVH building his house, what you are essentially doing is loving god through your works. Now remember we don’t have a physical temple right now, and if you build his house by doing his torah, it is likened unto physical tabernacle which you build his house through your works of torah obedience, and praying to YHVH, and doing his deeds in his intrinsic nature choosing to help the poor of your fellow countrymen, and having families, or whatever.

 

C. Does this mean that the temple is never returning?

 

No it doesn’t, the reason why I say that is because in Ezekiel-40-48- Ezekiel has a vision of the temple to come, and priesthood, the sons of Tzadoq, all 8 chapters show all sorts of details of what the temple will look like etc. Now let me point something out about what the torah says regarding prophets:

 

Deuteronomy-18:15-22-“יהוה your Elohim shall raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brothers. Listen to Him, according to all you asked of יהוה your Elohim in Ḥorěḇ in the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of יהוה my Elohim, nor let me see this great fire any more, lest I die.’ “And יהוה said to me, ‘What they have spoken is good. I shall raise up for them a Prophet like you out of the midst of their brothers. And I shall put My Words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him. And it shall be, the man who does not listen to My Words which He speaks in My Name, I require it of him. But the prophet who presumes to speak a word in My Name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other mighty ones, even that prophet shall die.’ “And when you say in your heart, ‘How do we know the word which יהוה has not spoken?’ when the prophet speaks in the Name of יהוה and the word is not, or comes not, that is the word which יהוה has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him. -

 

So it has to happen, because it hasn’t yet, or he was a false prophet.

יתרו-Yitro-His excellency

Exodus-18:1-20:26, Isaiah-6:1-7:6, as well 9:5-6

 

Things to go over in the portion

1. The Judges- A study

A. Are the Judges allowed to make “community standards?”

B. How are the Judges appointed according to the torah?

C. Who are the Judges?

2. The firstborn priesthood- A study

A. Was there a firstborn priesthood?

3. Why would YHVH speak only to Mosheh his prophet?

4. The 10 statements- A study

A. What exactly do they mean, by historical context, and by language used?

B. What is the intent in each statement?

 

1. The Judges- A study

 

A. Are the Judges allowed to make “community standards?”

 

So before we dive into this study I want to warn to some, this study is going to smash some sacred pillars you hold dear to yourself. If you are a Hebraic it is going to tear apart your theology, now that I have warned you lets dive into this study:

 

So Lets start with the themattic study between Exodus-18:14-20, and Deuteronomy-17:9-11.

 

So Exodus-18:14-20- And when the father-in-law of Mosheh saw all that he did for the people, he said, “What is this that you are doing for the people? Why do you sit by yourself, and all the people stand before you from morning until evening?” And Mosheh said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to seek Elohim. “When they have a matter, they come to me, and I rightly rule between one and another, and make known the laws of Elohim and His Torot. And the father-in-law of Mosheh said to him, “What you are doing is not good. “Both you and these people with you shall certainly wear yourselves out. For the matter is too heavy for you. You are not able to do it by yourself. “Now listen to my voice. Let me counsel you and Elohim be with you: Stand before Elohim for the people, and you shall bring the matters to Elohim. “And you shall enlighten them concerning the laws and the Torot, and show them the way in which they should walk and the work which they do.

 

Now the words I have highlighted and underlined are the same words found within the passage of Deuteronomy-17:8-11- “When any matter arises which is too hard for you to judge, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, or between stroke and stroke – matters of strife within your gates – then you shall rise and go up to the place which יהוה your Elohim chooses, and shall come to the priests, the Lěwites, and to the judge who is in those days, and shall inquire. And they shall declare to you the word of right-ruling, and you shall do according to the word which they declare to you from that place which יהוה chooses. And you shall guard to do according to all that they instruct you. “Do according to the Torah in which they teach you, according to the right-ruling which they say to you. You do not turn to the right or to the left from the word which they declare to you.

 

All these words used in the Hebrew language, the word for seek and inquire are דרש-darash- to search- verb, and the other word torah and torot is the same word instruction, one is just pluralized.

 

Now one word is משפט-judicial decision- a noun, while the other is שפט- shaphat- to judge- verb, however I thematically linked it anyways because Mosheh was a Judge, and thats what they do make judicial decisions, which is what he was doing here in exodus-18.

 

Now also the word דבר-devar- is a matter and its in both places.

 

So can we both agree that these places are linked?

 

Now lets discuss a few words in Exodus-18:16- “When they have a matter, they come to me, and I rightly rule between one and another, and make known the laws of Elohim and His Torot.”

 

So the Hebrew word for know is ידע-yada- to know with your actions- (i.e. to experience, or acknowledge, to become skillful with.)

 

This is not knowledge you have in your brain, but the knowledge you gain via your actions. The verb conjugation is passive meaning he made them know or whatever the case is.

 

According to the context he was making them skillful with YHVH’s laws, and his torot see verse-20- “And you shall enlighten them concerning the laws and the Torot, and show them the way in which they should walk and the work which they do.

 

Now you could point out that the only they were only to make them know the torah is through the verdicts they made upon hearing a case by case basis, however this doesn’t work either, and here’s why:

 

Now I will provide some proof I will cite Deuteronomy-17:11- על פי התורה אשר יורך-do according to the oral torah which they teach you. - The words I have highlighted are interesting:

 

The word על- al- top, etc.

 

פי התורה- pi ha’torah- mouth the torah- So the idea is oral aspect of the torah

 

יורך- The root is ירה- to flow, or rather in this case instruct- it is in the causitive tense, so they are going to cause the instructions to go to you, i.e. to teach But never the less they are instructing this to you to follow these.

 

So Judges are allowed to make community standards, that the public has to follow otherwise it could result in the death penalty.

 

Also you will get further proof in next weeks torah portion mishpatim, when I discuss what a mishpat actually is.

 

B. How are the Judges appointed according to the torah? So I am of the persuasion that the Judges cannot be appointed at this time because application and here’s why:

 

For starters YHVH doesn’t allow for the children of Israel to break the laws of the land that you are in see Jeremiah-29:4-7-“Thus said יהוה of hosts, Elohim of Yisra’ěl, to all the exiles whom I exiled from Yerushalayim to Baḇel, Build houses and dwell in them, plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and bring forth sons and daughters. And take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, and let them bear sons and daughters, and be increased there, and not diminished. And seek the peace of the city where I have exiled you, and pray to יהוה for it, for in its peace you have peace.’

 

You are to seek the peace of the Nation where YHVH has exiled you, for if it has peace you shall have peace. In other words you are not to cause war, but in fact build families. With that said you are not to engage in vigilantism of the other Nations government.

 

Also Deuteronomy-4:27-29-“And יהוה shall scatter you among the peoples, and you shall be left few in number among the nations where יהוה drives you. “And there you shall serve mighty ones, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell. “But from there you shall seek יהוה your Elohim, and shall find, when you search for Him with all your heart and with all your being.

 

But also YHVH’s wants his people to have the chance to repent from their sins, and you can’t do that when you kill off people for infractions that maybe changed eventually.

 

So with all this said, I believe the time in which the Judges can logistically be appointed is when Israel is no longer under the control of other Nations, and when the Messiah is reigning, because of logistics.

 

Besides there are portions of the torah that we cannot do right because we do not have have a priesthood, and also we do not cities of refuge, much less alters, and a temple to do any sacrifices. Another thing to point out is since Israel is still technically not Israel because the torah is not rule of law in Israel right now because Israel has been conquered then the judges cannot be appointed either.

 

C. Are the Rabbi’s Judges?

 

Okay so I have to be clear the Judges are not rabbi’s, because the word rabbi is not mentioned in the torah at all, if they were meant to be then there would be verses that supported it, besides cannot be appointed at this time.

 

2. The firstborn priesthood- A study

 

2. The firstborn priesthood- A study

 

Exodus-19:6- ‘and you shall be to Me a reign of priests and a set-apart nation.’ Those are the words which you are to speak to the children of Yisra’ěl.”

 

Exodus-29:44- “And I shall set apart the Tent of Appointment and the slaughter-place. And Aharon and his sons I set apart to serve as priests to Me.

 

So you can thematically link these passages together, because the word in Exodus-29:44- to set-apart is קדש- qadash- to set apart-verb- can be thematically linked to Exodus-19:6- a קדוש-qadosh- set-apart- noun.- Basically YHVH made the Levites, like he did to the children of Israel in Exodus-19:6.

 

Also in Exodus-19:6- YHVH made them priests, the Hebrew word is כהן-kohen- priest- noun, this is thematically connected to Exodus-29:44- the Hebrew word is כהן-kahan- to do priestly duties. So they got the chance to do priestly duties.

 

Now the reason why I say the children of Israel got the chance to do priestly duties is because before the incident at the Golden calf the Levites became ordained to do the priesthood here is the proof:

 

Exodus-32:26-29- And Mosheh stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, “Who is for יהוה? Come to me.” And all the sons of Lěwi gathered themselves to him. And he said to them, “Thus said יהוה Elohim of Yisra’ěl: ‘Each one put his sword on his side, pass over to and fro from gate to gate in the camp, and each one kill his brother, and each one his friend, and each one his relative.’ ” And the sons of Lěwi did according to the word of Mosheh. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day. And Mosheh said, “You are ordained for יהוה today – since each one has been against his son and his brother – so as to bring upon you a blessing today.”

 

Also in Numbers-3:11-13-And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Now look, I Myself have taken the Lěwites from among the children of Yisra’ěl instead of every first-born who opens the womb among the children of Yisra’ěl. And the Lěwites shall be Mine, because all the first-born are Mine. On the day that I struck all the first-born in the land of Mitsrayim, I set apart to Myself all the first-born in Yisra’ěl, both man and beast. They are Mine, I am יהוה.” ‘

 

So as we see in 2 places in the torah there is support for a firstborn priesthood.

 

Also there was a priest who wasn’t a levite and it was Malkitzedekh see Genesis-14:18-And Malkitseḏeq sovereign of Shalěm brought out bread and wine. Now he was the priest of the Most High Ěl.

 

We also see this in Psalm-110:1-4- יהוה said to my Master, “Sit at My right hand, Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” יהוה sends Your mighty sceptre out of Tsiyon. Rule in the midst of Your enemies! Your people volunteer in the day of Your might, In the splendours of set-apartness! From the womb, from the morning, You have the dew of Your youth! יהוה has sworn and does not relent, “You are a priest forever According to the order of Malkitseḏeq.”

 

Plus kings tend to be firstborns.

 

 

3. Why would YHVH speak only to Mosheh his prophet?

 

So notice something in Numbers-12:6-8-And He said, “Hear now My words: If your prophet is of יהוה, I make Myself known to him in a vision, and I speak to him in a dream. “Not so with My servant Mosheh, he is trustworthy in all My house. “I speak with him mouth to mouth, and plainly, and not in riddles. And he sees the form of יהוה. So why were you not afraid to speak against My servant Mosheh?” - Why would YHVH only speak to Mosheh with his words, and not other prophets, well I am here to tell you the answer, it is found in Exodus-20:18-21-And all the people saw the thunders, the lightning flashes, the voice of the shophar, and the mountain smoking. And the people saw it, and they trembled and stood at a distance, and said to Mosheh, “You speak with us and we hear, but let not Elohim speak with us, lest we die.” And Mosheh said to the people, “Do not fear, for Elohim has come to prove you, and in order that His fear be before you, so that you do not sin.” So the people stood at a distance, but Mosheh drew near the thick darkness where Elohim was.

 

So Because of their fear YHVH, and since they were in disobedience YHVH never spoke to them since. Now you could point out that you are responsible for your own sin, and thats true, however since Mosheh was trustworthy in all his house in Numbers-12:8, I wonder if that also has something to do with it as well.

 

Because in this scene why were they afraid it is probably because they violated the commands in exodus-19:10-15- And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Go to the people and set them apart today and tomorrow. And they shall wash their garments, and shall be prepared by the third day. For on the third day יהוה shall come down upon Mount Sinai before the eyes of all the people. “And you shall make a border for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves that you do not go up to the mountain or touch the border of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall certainly be put to death. ‘Not a hand is to touch it, but he shall certainly be stoned or shot with an arrow, whether man or beast, he shall not live.’ When the Yoḇel sounds long, let them come near the mountain.”And Mosheh came down from the mountain to the people and set the people apart, and they washed their garments. And he said to the people, “Be prepared by the third day. Do not come near a wife.”

 

So in these 2 scenes it is likely they didn’t stay away from their wives, also since Mosheh was obedient with all YHVH’s house it seems more likely it has to do with obedience, and hearing his voice.

 

4. The 10 statements- A study

 

A. What exactly do they mean, by historical context, and by language used?

 

So before I dive into this I am just going to translate the Hebrew and write my notes down later on in the next question in this study:

 

Exodus-20:2-3- I am YHVH your mighty-one who brought you out of Egypt from the house of Slavery, there will not arise mighty-ones of others to you, over me.

 

Exodus-20:4-6- You will not make for yourself an idol, and every image which is in the heavens above, and which is in the earth below, and which is in the waters beneath to the earth. You will not cause yourself to bow down to them and serve them, for I am YHVH your mighty-one am a Jealous mighty-one, overseeing the perversity of the fathers, to the sons, upon the 3^rd and 4^th generations, of those who hate me, and doing loving kindness to those that love me, and that guard my commandments.

 

Exodus-20:7- You will not lift the name of YHVH your mighty-one to vanity, for YHVH will not cleanse will him who lifts his name to vanity.

 

Exodus-20:8-9-Remember the sabbath day to set it apart, six days you shall serve, and do all of kingly service.

 

Exodus-20:12-Honor your father and your mother, so that your days maybe prolonged upon the land that YHVH your mighty-one gives to you.

 

Exodus-20:13-You shall not Murder

 

Exodus-20:14-You shall not commit adultery

 

Exodus-20:15-You shall not steal

 

Exodus-20:16-You will not testify against your neighbor as a false witness

 

Exodus-20:17-You will not desire your neighbor’s house, or the wife of your neighbor, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his Bull, and his male donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

 

B. What is the intent in each statement?

 

In Exodus-20:2-3- YHVH let’s you know he is your mighty-one, and you are not to have other mighty-ones of others to you, that also includes your own Judges if they are ruling unjustly, because then they are no longer apart of Israel, what they are doing is making another God by making other new commandments that have no basis in the torah.

 

In Exodus-20:4-6- You are to not make an image, but also an image doesn’t have to be a picture or what you make, it can be a similitude of a human being, or what ever, we see this in Deuteronomy-4:12-16. So you are not bow down to the image of a human being, an Angel, a fish, nothing on the earth, even in the heavens as well. This is why I believe YHVH will not appear on earth at all.

 

In Exodus-20:7- To lift the name of YHVH your mighty-one to vanity is basically to vow/ make an oath falsely, it is also to pollute his offerings, and it is not do the torah in his intrinsic nature either we see this in Leviticus-19:2.

 

In Exodus-20:8-9- the word for kingly service is מלאכה- mela’akhah- which is very specific the kind of service the messenger of a king does. In this case according to its intent a king can be a person in authority over you, like a boss, yourself, etc. It also has to do with creative work, (i.e. work that requires some form of creativity) we see this in Genesis-1:1-2:3, when YHVH ceased from his creating.

 

Exodus-20:12- The word to Honor is כבד-kabed- to make heavy- verb- it is also in the causitive tense, so you are to make them heavy in your life, make their names heavy to the community because that is the intent in the torah.

 

Which means you follow what the parent says as long as they do not become a mighty-one over you than YHVH.

 

It also means doing torah as well, and practicing justice, and showing mercy to the masses, as well.

 

The next 3 are very straight forward.

 

In Exodus-20:16- So in this context you are not lie in a court of law, and you are not to display to others in you community that you are not walking in his covenant, because Israel is his witness to the covenant see Isaiah-43:10-“You are My witnesses,” declares יהוה, “And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you know and believe Me, and understand that I am He. Before Me there was no Ěl formed, nor after Me there is none.

 

Finally in Exodus-20:17- The word for desire is חמד- chamad- to desire, take pleasure in, according to (BDB) it is a Chaldean Aramaic loan word, and made its way to Israel, the idea is to have an inordinate amount of pleasure for things, and people. So what this means is you have to be happy with what you have, or strive for more. We also see this in Deuteronomy-28:47-“Because you did not serve יהוה your Elohim with joy and gladness of heart for all the plenty,

משפטים

-Mishpatim- Judicial rulings

Exodus-21:1-24:18, Isaiah-66:1-24

 

Things to go over

1. The torah itself- A study

A. What is the difference between the commandments, and statutes, and instructions, and Mishpatim?

B. What does it actually mean to “not add to the commandments, and not to take away?”

C. How far should these community standards be taken?

2. Dealing with Slavery?- A Study

A. What is actually the terms regarding this issue?

B. Does this practice have to be done today?

3. Honoring your parents

A. How do you curse your parents

B. How should this practice be done today, and how can you relate this to the rebellious son?

4. Regarding issues such as other Gods- A study

A. What does Exodus-23:13- mean concretely?

B. What does this mean in regards to music?

5. Marriage- A Study

A. Are you allowed to marry people who don’t follow your God?

 

1. The torah itself- A study

 

A. What is the difference between the commandments, and statutes, and instructions, and Mishpatim?

 

According to Genesis-26:5- because Aḇraham obeyed My voice and guarded My Charge: My commands, My laws, and My Torot.”

 

So we learn that inside the torah there are commandments, statutes, and instructions, now let’s find out what exactly these are:

 

* Commandment- מצוה-mitzvah- according to BDB- it comes from the root צוה-tzavah- to enjoin, lay on a charge, basically it is the verb form of to command, when someone orders you to do something, that is what this is. Also it would be something that you know you ought not to do see Leviticus-4:22- ‘When a ruler sins, and by mistake has done against any of the commands of יהוה his Elohim which are not to be done, and shall be guilty,

 

Also Leviticus-4:2- “Speak to the children of Yisra’ěl, saying, ‘When a being sins by mistake against any of the commands of יהוה, which are not to be done, and shall do any of them:

 

And Leviticus-4:13- ‘And if the entire congregation of Yisra’ěl strays by mistake, and the matter has been hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done against any of the commands of יהוה, which are not to be done, and shall be guilty,

 

Something like this would be the sabbath, or also do not murder, and do not make graven images. Basically these are the “You will not,” or “You will do.”

 

 

* Statute- חקה- chuqqah- according to the BDB- It means to carve, represent, imitate, border, limit.- The idea of this word is to carve out/ inscribe a set of boundaries in stone, or on land, or in law, basically this is like district law/ state law in our time, either that or laws that are enacted later on in another time period. I am of the persuasion that these are laws enacted by YHVH in other time periods we see a concept like this with the Tzi-tziot in Numbers-15:37-41-And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying, “Speak to the children of Yisra’ěl, and you shall say to them to make tzitzit on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue cord in the tzitzit of the corners. “And it shall be to you for a tzitzit, and you shall see it, and shall remember all the commands of יהוה and shall do them, and not search after your own heart and your own eyes after which you went whoring, so that you remember, and shall do all My commands, and be set-apart unto your Elohim. “I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, to be your Elohim. I am יהוה your Elohim.”

 

* instruction- תורה-torah- these are basically directions on how to do something, or what to do, we see this in Leviticus-7:2- because YHVH gives them directions on how to do the guilt offering, and Leviticus-11:46- Because YHVH gives directions on what is good, and not good to eat.

 

So with this said, this is why how something is worded is extremely important, now also lets dive into what a mishpat is

 

Now last week I have pointed out that the Judges have the power to enact community standards, let’s discuss exactly why I said that:

 

In Exodus-21:1- “These are the right-rulings which you are to set before them:

 

The Hebrew word in question is משפט-mishpat- which concretely is a ruling a Judge does, because the root is שפט-shaphat- to Judge- verb- Now each decision done here if you look at each decision is dealing situations in life, and giving directions on how you are to deal with it, these are not cases of where Judges are rendering a verdict in a case. Now you can point out that YHVH was the only one who declared what ought to be done regarding these issues, but there’s a problem:

 

In Deuteronomy-15:12-18-“When your brother is sold to you, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, and shall serve you six years, then let him go free from you in the seventh year. “And when you send him away free from you, let him not go away empty-handed. “You shall richly supply him from your flock, and from your threshing-floor, and from your winepress. With that which יהוה has blessed you with, give to him. “And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Mitsrayim, and יהוה your Elohim ransomed you. Therefore I am commanding you this word today. “And it shall be, when he says to you, ‘I do not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, because it is good for him with you, then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Do the same to your female servant. “Let it not be hard in your eyes when you send him away free from you, for he has been worth a double hired servant in serving you six years. And יהוה your Elohim shall bless you in all that you do.

 

Now the parts I have underlined show basically the same connections to Exodus-21:2-6, however the part I have highlighted and underlined, show an addition from Deuteronomy-15, and Exodus-21:2-6. Now why did they choose to add this? Could they add this?

 

Also there’s another problem what about Deuteronomy-15:1-3- “At the end of every seven years you make a release of debts. “And this is the word of the release: Every creditor is to release what he has loaned to his neighbour, he does not require it of his neighbour or his brother, because it is called the release of יהוה. “Of a foreigner you could require it, but your hand is to release whatever is owed by your brother. - Now a question where in Leviticus-25- does it talk about the shmetta being a release of debt’s?

 

So as we can see there has to be some room for community standards, that the Judges enact upon a community. You can say that YHVH gave it to them, and it just isn’t written down however I doubt that because there is no evidence of that, also would YHVH choose to not forgive an entire people group because of an understanding? No! Besides we are told by YHVH to guard the commands of YHVH see Deuteronomy-4:2, and 12:32.

 

B. What does it actually mean to “not add to the commandments, and not to take away?”

 

Now I know what your going to point out what about “don’t add, and don’t take away from the commandments of YHVH your mighty-one see Deuteronomy-4:2- “Do not add to the Word which I command you, and do not take away from it, so as to guard the commands of יהוה your Elohim which I am commanding you.

And Deuteronomy-12:32- “All the words I am commanding you, guard to do it – do not add to it nor take away from it.

 

Well notice something in regards to this all it says is do not make up commandments, and don’t diminish from the commandments either.

 

Now inside the torah there is commandments, statutes, and instructions, and judicial decisions. Now I want to point something out regarding these “Judicial decisions.”

 

Why does the indentured servant go free on the seventh year? It is because of the command to not have other mighty-ones before YHVH. Now of course the reason why they have indentured servitude in the first place is so that no man steals from their neighbor in owing a debt.

 

Another thing is the concubine, is not allowed to go free on the seventh year, because the text supposes that she is eventually going to wind up the wife of someone within that family (i.e. the father or son). That money of the bridal price is being used to keep a father and mother of that concubine from going into debt, that was an act of honoring your father and mother.

 

Plus upon having sex that is a covenant act, so to leave is to bring YHVH’s name in vain.

 

Another thing is that in Exodus 23:13- to not make remembrance of other mighty-ones, is a way to make YHVH your mighty-one.

 

My point is these community standards are based upon commandments of YHVH, doing them within the intrinsic nature that YHVH intended. These are practical applications of how to love your neighbor and love YHVH. With this said the Judicial authority has limits, they only have the ability to make community standards that are not in conflict with the commandments of YHVH. Basically the decisions they are only allowed to make is how to do practical applications of the torah commandments, that is all they can do. Basically in regards to Deuteronomy-4:2, and Deuteronomy-12:32, a Judge is not allowed to make up a commandment of YHVH that stipulates “Thou Shalt put on your right shoe first, but not tie it, and go over and put on your left shoe then tie it, and go over and tie your right shoe, nor are you allowed to make a community standard that people are supposed to wear a yamakhah either, with all this said when the Judges disbanded they lost that authority to have the death penalty weight on these community standards.

 

So the rabbis cannot make community standards upon all the children of Israel since they disbanded in the 2^nd century, and they will not be able to until they do the messiah comes.

Now I do have to be fair to the Orthodox, they are doing these community standards, and adding more to them knowing they don’t have any weight to them, however these are rules that each of their communities are living by, we do that in regards to our fellowships in the Hebraic roots, if you don’t want to follow the rules of the community then you don’t belong.

 

C. How far should these community standards be taken?

 

So let me be frank, I believe there are upsides and downsides to these community standards, and I will tell you why, the strength and the weakness is you make the torah concrete.

 

Now why that is a strength is because then you know what is illegal and what isn’t, what is okay, and whats not.

 

The problem is when that occurs then you have people whose hearts are not for your fellow man, can find loop holes within the laws to get out of loving their neighbor, we see this problem within not only subsets of the Hebraic roots, but also here in America today as well. The mob gets away with bloody murder because a Judge doesn’t sign a search warrant or a man like David can get away with murder of his friend by putting his friend on the front lines where the fighting is fiercest.

 

So how do you correct that?

 

Well there I do believe Community standards should be implemented to a certain degree, for instance when it comes to the fact that property is governed through inheritances, I believe it should be a community standard that almost everyone get married in a torah compliant society, unless a man is castrated. Another instance would be marriages would done as Arranged marriages, another situation would be if whether indentured servitude will be done or not.

 

Where I don’t see the aspect of community standards is in regards to the tzi-tziot, or if a man should be ordained as a prophet or not, or whether a man has joined the covenant by signing some paper.

 

But also I believe that some of the community standards should also worded concretely but in several interpretations, like for instance like worshiping graven images, would be either bowing down to any picture or image, or showing reverence to an Idolatrous sign, like a play boy bunny.

 

More so then that there should be teachers that teach the spirit of the torah as well, before the messianic age, so that way people can choose to do the right thing in the messianic age see Jeremiah-31:31-34-“See, the days are coming,” declares יהוה, “when I shall make a renewed covenant with the house of Yisra’ěl and with the house of Yehuḏah, “See, the days are coming,” declares יהוה, “when I shall make a renewed covenant with the house of Yisra’ěl and with the house of Yehuḏah, “For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra’ěl after those days, declares יהוה: I shall put My Torah in their inward parts, and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people. “And no longer shall they teach, each one his neighbour, and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know יהוה,’ for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares יהוה. “For I shall forgive their crookedness, and remember their sin no more.”

 

2. Dealing with Slavery?- A Study

 

A. What is actually the terms regarding this issue?

 

Well now lets dive into this issue in Exodus-21:2-6- If you get sold into this, then basically you serve 7 years, and you are allowed to go free then. The master is allowed to give you a wife, and if you choose to leave your wife stays as your masters.

 

Basically the master has several options of a wife to give you, to marry off his daughter to you, or to buy a concubine and marry her off to you, that is why they stay his. A man in Israel is not allowed to kidnap a woman, also if a man is going to marry off some other family’s daughter to you then he has no legal claim to her.

 

If he marries off his daughter to you then you become his son in law, in which case you have a legal standing to his inheritance.

 

Also if the master adopts you as his son like what we see in Genesis-15:3- And Aḇram said, “See, You have given me no seed, and see, one son in my house is my heir!”

 

Then he can give you his inheritance as well.

 

All in all if you choose to leave, and the master provided a wife and children to you then then you must divorce them, because they are literally his.

 

During your service he must take absolute care of you, he cannot beat you, or make you serve with harshness, see Exodus-21:26-27- “And when a man strikes the eye of his male or female servant, and destroys it, he is to let him go free for the sake of his eye. “And if he knocks out the tooth of his male or female servant, he is to let him go free for the sake of his tooth.

 

The same is found in Leviticus-25:39-43- ‘And when your brother who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, do not make him serve as a slave. ‘But as a hired servant, as a settler he is with you, and serves you until the Year of Yoḇel. ‘And then he shall leave you, he and his children with him, and shall return to his own clan, even return to the possession of his fathers. ‘And then he shall leave you, he and his children with him, and shall return to his own clan, even return to the possession of his fathers. ‘Do not rule over him with harshness, but you shall fear your Elohim.

 

B. Does this practice have to be done today?

 

Since Community standards can be changed over the course of time, and since this is a community standard, and since there isn’t a command in the torah that stipulates “Thou shalt do indentured servitude,” then NO! It doesn’t have to be done, at all these days.

 

But I will challenge you in light of our system today since people go into debt, lose their homes, and lose their spouses, and families split apart. I challenge you to come up with a better system in which a person can maintain their dignity, gain a trade skill, maybe obtain a family, or even no matter who you are get out of debt quicker than most here in America.

 

3. Honoring your parents

 

A. How do you curse your parents

 

In Exodus-21:17- The word for curse is קלל-qalal- to be swift- verb

 

Basically this is a person who slights their parents, this can take the form of insults, it can also take the form of not having respect for your parents and in their things as well. It can also be giving them a bad name, through your acts as well.

 

B. How should this practice be done today, and how can you relate his to the rebellious son?

 

Well since we have such a problem with our kids today, all these issues speak even for today. Basically what this sort of implies is the rebellious son does acts like such, he insults his parents, costs his immediate family the inheritance, and doesn’t live a life honoring YHVH. The Hebrew word rebellious מורה- contentious one- also implies all these issues, even fighting, etc.

 

4. Regarding issues such as other Gods- A study

 

A. What does Exodus-23:13- mean concretely?-

ובכל אשר אמרתי אליכם תשמרו ושם אלהים אחרים לא תזכירו לא ישמע על פיך-

 

You will Guard in all that I have said to you, and the fame of mighty-ones of others, you will not bring to remembrance, they will not be heard on your lips.

 

Okay so the reason why I translated שם- shem- as fame, and not name is as follows

 

In Leviticus-20:1-2-And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,“Say to the children of Yisra’ěl, ‘Any man of the children of Yisra’ěl, or of the strangers who sojourn in Yisra’ěl, who gives any of his offspring to Moleḵ, shall certainly be put to death. The people of the land shall stone him with stones. - Did YHVH cause Mosheh to violate this mishpat?

 

Or how about in 1 Kings-18:21- And Ěliyahu came to all the people, and said, “How long would you keep hopping between two opinions? If יהוה is Elohim, follow Him; and if Ba‛al, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word. - Now Eliyahu said Ba’al so did he break the mishpat.

 

Now you can say the priests are given extra responsibilities/ things they are able to do that we are not. The same thing here, so the prophets and Mosheh are allowed to violate this command.

 

The Problem I have with that is the command in Exodus-21:1-“These are the right-rulings which you are to set before them: - Before who?

 

In Exodus-20:22-26-And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Say this to the children of Yisra’ěl: ‘You yourselves have seen that I have spoken to you from the heavens. ‘You do not make besides Me mighty ones of silver, and you do not make mighty ones of gold for yourselves. ‘Make a slaughter-place of earth for Me, and you shall slaughter on it your ascending offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your cattle. In every place where I cause My Name to be remembered I shall come to you and bless you. ‘And if you make Me a slaughter-place of stone, do not build it of cut stone, for if you use your chisel on it, you have profaned it. ‘Nor do you go up by steps to My slaughter-place, lest your nakedness be exposed on it.’ -

 

This is who he is addressing, before he launches into Exodus-21:1-“These are the right-rulings which you are to set before them:- My point is this mishpat is for everyone in Israel, the prophets, Mosheh everyone, so I ask again did YHVH make those people violate that mishpat?

 

Anyways the point is this mishpat is about declaring the fame of another mighty-one, whether it be a Judge, singing praises about another god, or swearing in their name, or something like that, but you have to vocalize it, it can also be manifested as fear of another mighty-one as well.

 

B. What does this mean in regards to music?

 

In regards to music you cannot play music thats sings praise to things such as other gods, this basically means concretely:

 

Christian music is a good example- if the music Glorifies Jesus as God in the flesh, or if the music glorifies his “doing away of the torah.”

 

Or human sacrifice, then these are examples of Idolatry.

 

Another good example would be stuff like Lordi's “Hard rock, Hallelujah”

 

If the music gives to much power to the other god, or mighty hero, or king, then avoid it, even if it is fear.

 

Now this doesn’t necessarily mean you give up facts either, and it doesn’t mean you can’t have righteous anger for an Idol in a song, nor does it mean that you cannot convey emotion in a song for a symbol or something that isn’t YHVH.

 

Now the reason why you shouldn’t listen to those pieces of music, is because when you listen to music you enjoy, you get comfortable, and start singing it yourself, and if it glorifies another god, then you have given glory to another god, and violated this mishpat.

 

The same goes for a song writer as well, because you put in a lot of work into it, and it is your music basically.

 

What this means in regards to music to listen to, listen to music that at least gives praise to YHVH’s ways, a good example would be disturbed, or system of a down, Mudvayne, be careful of Dimmu Borgir and other black metal bands and check the lyrics, the same goes for Lordi, most of their songs don’t praise YHVH, or his ways at all.

 

With this said I am of the mindset that new music is needed, a reformation is needed, music that glorifies YHVH, and his ways, and also embraces the emotion that secular music gives.

 

5. Marriage- A Study

 

A. Are you allowed to marry people who don’t follow your God?

 

This is a tough question, because this goes into some tough questions. For starters was the torah established back before Sinai?

To my belief it was established before Sinai and I will cite Genesis-26:5-because Aḇraham obeyed My voice and guarded My Charge: My commands, My laws, and My Torot.”

 

Now I do believe they had the command to not have other mighty-ones before YHVH, and my proof text is Genesis-35:1-2- And Elohim said to Ya‛aqoḇ, “Arise, go up to Běyth Ěl and dwell there. And make a slaughter-place there to Ěl who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Ěsaw your brother.” And Ya‛aqoḇ said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign mighty ones that are among you, and cleanse yourselves, and change your garments.

 

And it is sort of implied in Genesis-46:31-34- And Yosěph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, “I am going up to inform Pharaoh, and say to him, ‘My brothers and those of my father’s house, who were in the land of Kena‛an, have come to me. And the men are shepherds, that they have been men of livestock, and they have brought their flocks and their herds, and all that they have.’ “And it shall be, when Pharaoh calls you and says, ‘What is your occupation?’ that you shall say, ‘Your servants have been men of livestock from our youth even till now, both we and also our fathers,’ so that you dwell in the land of Goshen, for every shepherd is an abomination to the Mitsrites.” - He wanted them separated from the Egyptians, why? Because they didn’t serve YHVH, and they weren’t going to live there forever.

 

Now with this said I will point out there were several instances that the children of Abraham, were not to marry Idolaters, and my proof text is basically as such:

 

Genesis-24:1-6- And Aḇraham was old, advanced in years. And יהוה had blessed Aḇraham in every way. And Aḇraham said to the oldest servant of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please, put your hand under my thigh, so that I make you swear by יהוה, the Elohim of the heavens and the Elohim of the earth, that you do not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Kena‛anites, among whom I dwell, but to go to my land and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Yitsḥaq.” And the servant said to him, “What if the woman refuses to follow me to this land? Do I then take your son back to the land from which you came?” And Aḇraham said to him, “Beware lest you take my son back there!

 

The parents of Esav were not happy with Esav that he had a couple of wives from the Canaanites, see Genesis-26:34-35-And when Ěsaw was forty years old, he took as wives Yehuḏith the daughter of Be’ěri the Ḥittite, and Basemath the daughter of Ělon the Ḥittite. And they were a bitterness of spirit to Yitsḥaq and Riḇqah.

 

Now this is where things get weird in Genesis-41:45-And Pharaoh called Yosěph’s name Zaphnath-Pa‛něaḥ. And he gave him as a wife Asenath, the daughter of Poti-Pherah priest of On. And Yosěph went out over all the land of Mitsrayim. - Here Yoseph Married a woman who served another god.

 

So how do we reconcile these issues?

 

Well according to Leviticus-20:22-26-‘And you shall guard all My laws and all My right-rulings, and do them, so that the land where I am bringing you to dwell does not vomit you out. ‘And do not walk in the laws of the nation which I am driving out before you, for they do all these, and therefore I loathed them. ‘But I say to you, “You are going to possess their land, and I Myself give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am יהוה your Elohim, who has separated you from the peoples. ‘And you shall make a distinction between clean beasts and unclean, and between unclean birds and clean. And do not make yourselves abominable by beast or by bird, or whatever creeps on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean. ‘And you shall be set-apart to Me, for I יהוה am set-apart, and have separated you from the peoples to be Mine. -

 

The point is YHVH scattered those nations as a result of their conduct, and since they didn’t honor YHVH and the beautiful land he has. Now the reason why this has to do with Marriage is because of morality, you cannot divorce morality from the god you serve, which is what these passages are dealing with as well.

 

Basically I believe the point is that Yoseph knew that he was going to die in Egypt, but he had no one that knew the commands that was a girl to marry. So it was better to marry an Egyptian, to at least have someone, because it is more weightier matter to get married, especially since in light of Genesis-48- when his children got adopted into the family. We see the same thing in the book of Nehemiah, after the Babylonian exile they married foreign woman, although they didn’t stay together, granted, they still never the less married foreign woman.

 

So what we learn from it all is in light of all this it is better to try and find a spouse from the children of Israel, however if you cannot, then also look for a spouse outside this understanding that can be happy with your life choice.

בשלח-beshallach- when sent out

Exodus-13:17-17:16, Judges-4:4-5:31

 

Things to discuss

1. YHVH the author and finisher of your faith- A study- What exactly is that?

2. Can you believe in a person? And if so how?- A study

3. Chapter-16- A study

A. What exactly was going on in this scene?

B. What do we learn about YHVH’s character attributes here?

C. What else can we glean about the shabbat?

 

 

1. YHVH the author and finisher of your faith- A study- What exactly is that?

 

So I noticed something very interesting here in this weeks torah portion, which I want to show you, in Exodus-13:17-And it came to be, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that Elohim did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, though that was nearer, for Elohim said, “Lest the people regret when they see fighting, and return to Mitsrayim.”

 

The word for fighting is מלחמה-milchamah- Battle

 

Now in Exodus-15:3- “יהוה is a man of battle, יהוה is His Name.

 

The word for battle is מלחמה-milchamah- battle- as we well

 

Now a question how was YHVH the man of battle? Verse-4 tells you-“He has cast Pharaoh’s chariots and his army into the sea, and his chosen officers are drowned in the Sea of Reeds.

 

The point is YHVH did this so that he could gain esteem over the Pharaoh and cause the children of Israel to trust himself and Mosheh, because they were in fear of freedom as we see in chapter-13:17.

 

The evidence that confirms my theory is found that he had to gain esteem over the pharaoh is found in chapter-14:2-4-“Speak to the children of Yisra’ěl, that they turn and camp before Pi Haḥiroth, between Miḡdol and the sea, opposite Ba‛al Tsephon – camp before it by the sea. “For Pharaoh shall say of the children of Yisra’ěl, ‘They are entangled in the land, the wilderness has closed them in.’ “And I shall strengthen the heart of Pharaoh, and he shall pursue them. But I am to be esteemed through Pharaoh and over all his army, and the Mitsrites shall know that I am יהוה.” And they did so.

Now as a result of the wondrous act YHVH did for the children of Israel executing the Pharaoh like that, the children of Israel trusted YHVH and in Mosheh see verse-31- And Yisra’ěl saw the great work which יהוה had done in Mitsrayim, and the people feared יהוה, and believed יהוה and His servant Mosheh.

 

The point is YHVH did works, to cause the children of Israel to trust him, that’s how he causes us to trust him, its through works, basically that is how is the author and finisher of our faith, because as a result of his act here the children of Israel were ready for war in chapter-17:8-10-And Amalěq came and fought with Yisra’ěl in Rephiḏim. And Mosheh said to Yehoshua, “Choose for us men and go out, fight with Amalěq. Tomorrow I am stationing myself on the top of the hill with the rod of Elohim in my hand.” And Yehoshua did as Mosheh said to him, to fight with Amalěq. And Mosheh, Aharon, and Ḥur went up to the top of the hill.

 

Now as to how YHVH does that, its his prerogative, but the point is YHVH does works to nudge us in the right direction, he will not interfere with our free will, which we see a concept like this when YHVH treated Pharaoh’s heart cruelly. But basically his act is his alone, and we have the choice to decide how we will re-act, but the credit goes to YHVH not to us, because it is his works that he himself did.

 

Now in regards to this application of what YHVH did here, It is my opinion to treat people on how they treat you, if they wrong you, wrong them, if they are nice, be nice, etc. etc. We see this in 2 Samuel-22:25-28- “And יהוה repays me according to my righteousness, According to my cleanness before His eyes. “With the lovingly-commited ones You show Yourself lovingly-commited, With the perfect one You show Yourself perfect, “With the clean You show Yourself clean, And with the crooked You show Yourself twisted. “For You save the humble people, But Your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low.

 

2. Can you believe in a person? And if so how?- A study

 

Since we see in chapter-14:31- And Yisra’ěl saw the great work which יהוה had done in Mitsrayim, and the people feared יהוה, and believed יהוה and His servant Mosheh. - So after the work they trusted YHVH, and in Mosheh, so what work did Mosheh do?

 

So what acts did Mosheh do? He just said YHVH’s words and they trusted his words that YHVH was going to bring to a good land then, and they trusted it, in my opinion.

 

So can a man do this, absolutely! In fact I will show you that the king of Israel will be a symbol for unification for all the tribes found in Isaiah-11:10-11-And in that day there shall be a Root of Yishai, standing as a banner to the people. Unto Him the nations shall seek, and His rest shall be esteem. And it shall be in that day that יהוה sets His hand again a second time to recover the remnant of His people who are left, from Ashshur and from Mitsrayim, from Pathros and from Kush, from Ěylam and from Shin‛ar, from Ḥamath and from the islands of the sea.

 

There is a real crime in the word I have highlighted and underlined יהוה- so it doesn’t say that in the hebrew at all, it actually is אדני-adonai- which means lord- now in this context it is only referring to the messiah. He himself shall recover the peoples from all those nations, whether it is done through conquering or through trust I don’t know, but he he will cause unification somehow.

 

3. Chapter-16- A study

 

Before I get into this study, I have to mark out exactly how this will be formatted, in the first section of this study, “A,” will be divided into several sections marked by *, and a conclusion at the bottom of “A,” then the rest of the other questions in this study will come later.

 

A. What exactly was going on in this scene?

 

* So notice something in chapter-16:28- And יהוה said to Mosheh, “How long shall you refuse to guard My commands and My Torot?

 

My question is what command, and what set of instructions did they violate?

 

Well first off the set of instructions that they violated are found in verses-4-5-And יהוה said to Mosheh, “See, I am raining bread from the heavens for you. And the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, in order to try them, whether they walk in My Torah or not. “And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily.”

 

Now the reason why I know that these are instructions is because of the usage of the word torah, it is used in Leviticus-7:1-3- ‘And this is the Torah of the guilt offering – it is most set-apart. ‘The guilt offering is slain in the place where they slay the ascending offering, and its blood is sprinkled on the slaughter-place all around. ‘Then he brings from it all its fat: the fat tail and the fat that covers the entrails,

 

It’s usage here is giving you instruction on how the priest is to conduct the guilt offering.

 

Also in Leviticus-11:46-‘This is the Torah of the beasts and the birds and every living being – the creeping creature in the waters, and of every being that swarms on the earth,

 

Now the context of this passage is the instruction of what is good to eat, and what is not good to eat.

 

Anyways according to its usage in Exodus-16:4-5- these are instructions of what is to be done on getting food it isn’t a straight forward command though. If it was a command, it would be written as such:

 

Exodus-20:3-“You have no other mighty ones against My face.- This is flat out you will not do this.

 

Or in Exodus-20:13- “You do not murder. - This is flat out you will not do this at all.

 

So what was the commandment they broke? Well the command they broke was shabbat, because what is work? מלאכה- mela'akhah- work you do for a king. - But the concept here of a king is that whoever you place upon the throne of your heart.

 

Basically YHVH wants us to put him on the throne of our hearts on this day, as opposed to serving yourself like they were doing here. Expecting YHVH to create from nothing and violate his own character which was to rest on that day.

 

Now why do I say that because he rested on the seventh day in the creation account YHVH rested from his Mela’akhah- creative work on the seventh day, in genesis- 1:1-2:3.

 

* So in chapter-16:28-29- And יהוה said to Mosheh, “How long shall you refuse to guard My commands and My Torot? “See, because יהוה has given you the Sabbath, therefore He is giving you bread for two days on the sixth day. Let each one stay in his place, do not let anyone go out of his place on the seventh day.”

 

Anyways here I have highlighted and underlined a few words in this small passage of scripture, the word to guard is שמר-shamar- to guard, watch intently, almost like the idea of a guard watching for upcoming threats, a question though? How were they supposed to guard the command, or his instructions?

 

So the way they were supposed to guard the commandments according to what the word means it most literally means putting up a guard post to guard something specific.

So in the case of commandments, and instructions, it means putting up a community standard to guard commandments and instructions. So the best way that I understand to guard the commandments of YHVH/ instructions here in Exodus-16 is ensuring that you enjoy what YHVH has given you we see wisdom like this in Deuteronomy-28:47- “Because you did not serve יהוה your Elohim with joy and gladness of heart for all the plenty.

 

Now did they not enjoy the command and instructions? Absolutely! See Exodus-16:20-21-And they did not listen to Mosheh, so some of them left part of it until morning, and it bred worms and stank. And Mosheh was wroth with them. And they gathered it every morning, each one according to his need. And when the sun became hot, it melted.

 

* Conclusion is that the command they violated was the shabbat, and the instructions that YHVH gave in chapter-16:4-5. Because they didn’t ensure they’re desires were congruent with YHVH’s desires (i.e. his shabbat.) Because they didn’t do the works needed to make themselves happy. As the orthodox Jew Denis Prager it is a moral obligation for you to be happy. The reason why they were not to leave their places is because it was the community standard set up by Mosheh to guard the command/ instructions and that’s it. The reason why they were to cook on the 6^th day it is because it isn’t a command from YHVH, but rather a community standard as to how these instructions will be followed.

 

B. What do we learn about YHVH’s character attributes here?

 

So notice in chapter-16:21-22-And they gathered it every morning, each one according to his need. And when the sun became hot, it melted. And it came to be, on the sixth day, that they gathered twice as much bread, two omers for each one. And all the rulers of the congregation came and told Mosheh.

 

So YHVH provided a double portion of manna on the 6^th day, so my question is why does YHVH want to provide a double portion on that day?

 

You can camp on the surface level and say it is because YHVH wants them to be prepared, however I don’t believe that is the only case these people had flocks and herds when they left out of Egypt – See Exodus- 13:2- “Set apart to Me all the first-born, the one opening the womb among the children of Yisra’ěl, among man and among beast, it is Mine.”

 

Also they looted the Egyptians see Exodus-12:36- And יהוה gave the people favour in the eyes of the Mitsrites, so that they gave them what they asked, and they plundered the Mitsrites.

 

So why does he want to give them a double portion? It is because it is in his character to give, and we see all throughout the torah he gives to the less fortunate. But also notice that what he gave requires work as well to maintain, we also see the same idea in Deuteronomy-16:10-17- “And you shall perform the Festival of Shaḇuʽoth to יהוה your Elohim, according to the voluntary offering from your hand, which you give as יהוה your Elohim blesses you. “And you shall rejoice before יהוה your Elohim, you and your son and your daughter, and your male servant and your female servant, and the Lěwite who is within your gates, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are in your midst, at the place where יהוה your Elohim chooses to make His Name dwell. “And you shall remember that you were a slave in Mitsrayim, and you shall guard and do these laws. “Perform the Festival of Sukkot for seven days after the ingathering from your threshing-floor and from your winepress, and you shall rejoice in your festival, you and your son and your daughter, and your male servant and your female servant, and the Lěwite, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates. “For seven days you shall celebrate to יהוה your Elohim in the place which יהוה chooses, because יהוה your Elohim does bless you in all your increase and in all the work of your hands, and you shall be only rejoicing! “Three times a year all your males appear before יהוה your Elohim in the place which He chooses: at the Festival of Matzot, and at the Festival of Shaḇuʽoth, and at the Festival of Sukkot. And none should appear before יהוה empty-handed, but each one with the gift of his hand, according to the blessing of יהוה your Elohim which He has given you.

 

The point is YHVH does give, and give generously, however it comes as with notion that you will work for your blessing, basically YHVH doesn’t bless a mess. It is your responsibility to ensure that you obtain his blessings.

 

We also learn that YHVH likes to give, and so should we, it is also a command as well see Exodus-22:22-24- “Do not afflict any widow or fatherless child. “If you do afflict them at all – if they cry out to Me at all, I shall certainly hear their cry, and My wrath shall burn and I shall kill you with the sword, your wives shall be widows and your children fatherless.