- The Way Biblical Fellowship: And This Blessing (Torah Portion: V'zot Haberakhah) 2015 - 2016
- Rob Skiba Virtual House Church
- 2013 Broadcast
Scriptures in Week 54:
TORAH:
Deuteronomy 33:1-34:12
PROPHETS:
Joshua 1:1-18
NEW TESTAMENT:
Matthew 17:1-9;
Mark 9:2-10;
Luke 9:28-36; 22:44-53; 24:1-53;
2 Peter 3;
Jude 3-4; 8-10;
Revelation 22:1-5
TORAH
The last Torah portion guys! We made it! Its has been such a great year studying the Torah for the first time in my life and i cannot wait for next year cycle to go deeper and deeper into His word of life! We need to celebrate that we are so blessed to have our eyes and ears open to the Torah every week. Lets remind ourselves of how blessed we are and celebrate the Torah - our gift from the Father:
"Deuteronomy 4:7-8 World English Bible (WEB)
7 For what great nation (Israel - Believers) is there that has a god so near to them as Yahweh our God is whenever we call on him? 8 What great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law which I set before you today?"
"Deuteronomy 33:1 World English Bible (WEB)
33 This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death."
This is the only time in the Torah that Moses is called a man of God. When Judgement comes in the future, as it did to Sodom and Gomorrah, oh how there will be so many people who will wish they had lived as men and women of Elohim. We are not like the rest of the world because we are totally different. We are aliens and are incompatible.
"1 Peter 2:9 King James Version (KJV)
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;"
Tony Robinson - The main theme is YHWH's gift of the Torah borne out His love for the people.We can strengthen the notion that the Torah was given as a gift by making another thematic connection concerning the phrase, “all His saints are in Your hand.” Isaiah 49:16 states the following: “Behold, I have engraved you (Am Yisrael—The People of Israel) on the palms of my hands.” In context, these verses are speaking of Adonai’s profound love for Am Yisrael; that He would never forget them! This thematic connection strengthens the notion that Devarim 33:1-4 recounts the giving of the Torah within the context of Adonai’s great love for the people! The Torah is not a curse. Nor was it given as a curse upon Am Yisrael. It was given as a gift of love, from a loving Creator to the creation He loves.
"Deuteronomy 33:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 And he said, The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them." So was it just YHWH that came to Moses? Just like we read in Enoch 1, YHWH has His hosts with Him as well.
"Deuteronomy 33:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 Yea, he loved the people; all his saints are in thy hand: and they sat down at thy feet; every one shall receive of thy words." Notice the Messianic numbers - 333. This is why i titled my series - Era of 303.
Moses describes Torah as an 'inheritance' (morashah) passed down to the 'congregation of Jacob'. To understand this inheritance, we will first take a look at the more common Hebrew word for inheritance - (nachalah). Nachalah is related to (nachal), a word for a river or a stream. It signifies something passed down automatically across the generations, as a river's water flows downstream.
The sages make a beautiful observation. They point out that by a simple change in pronunciation - turning a shin (sh) into a sin (s), inheritance becomes betrothal.
"Deuteronomy 33:4 Tree of Life Version (TLV)
4 Torah Moses commanded us—
a betrothal for the community of Jacob."
"Hosea 2:19-20 World English Bible (WEB)
19 I will betroth you to me forever.
Yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness, in justice, in loving kindness, and in compassion.
20 I will even betroth you to me in faithfulness;
and you shall know Yahweh."
"Isaiah 54:5 World English Bible (WEB)
5 For your Maker is your husband; Yahweh of Armies is his name.
The Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer.
He will be called the God of the whole earth."
The physical inheritance of the Torah has a final fulfilment for the betrothed:
"Revelation 21:1-3 World English Bible (WEB)
21 I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. 2 I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. 3 I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God."
The land and the Torah belongs to YHWH. No generation can cause it to cease , or cut off its character as a morashah - an eternal heritage - for all of YHWH's people. TORAH is to be passed down from generation to generation. And just as foreigners were to be permitted to live in the land of Israel, dwelling amidst YHWH's people; so foreigners of the few nations YHWH spares after the Judgement (2 Baruch 72:2) are to be permitted to share the morashah, to share Torah and the word of life (Isaiah 2:3). Torah is a gift. It is our betrothal covenant. It is the truth.
The name Jeshurun (pronounced Yeshurun in Hebrew) derives from the Hebrew root ישר, like the word yashar (recall the Book of Jasher), meaning “straight” or “upright.” Yeshurun as a name for Israel would then signify “Upright Nation.”Rashi explains that YHWH is Israel's king in the most complete sense only when the people are united/together (yachad). Just as a unified (yachad) Israel accepted the Torah on Mount Sinai, so once again YHWH will reign only over a nation that maintains a sense of harmony in belief and action. YHWH is one (echad) and unity among His chosen is exactly how He demands that we serve Him.
Although the word yachid (the root word to yachad) translates to an only child, we know that Abraham had another son named Ishmael. Yachid can also be used to describe a child who is unique, unparalleled or incomparable. Of course this anticipates the Messiah in His unique relationship to the Father who claims Him as my beloved son. We live through this one son to be one with Him.
"Exodus 24:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do."
FROM ARDELLE - Each tribe is blessed according to its personality and its
responsibilities. The translations of these blessings vary substantially. Even Hebrew language scholars are challenged as there are Hebrew words and phrases in these blessings that appear nowhere else in the Bible. It is one of the rare places in the Hebrew Scriptures where there aresome differences between the oldest Hebrew manuscripts.
Jeffrey Tigay puts it like this: it is full of rare words, syntactic difficulties, grammatical inconsistencies and opaque allusions. With that said, let’s take a look at a few of the tribal blessings. Reuben receives the first blessing:
Devarim 33:6 "Let Reuben live, and not die, nor let his men be few." Seems pretty short and sweet, but what does it mean? Moses blesses the tribe of Reuben with “life”. There’s a bit of grace in this blessing as it was Reuben who took his father Jacob’s concubine and lay with her. Here is what Torah had to say about that:
Vayikra/Leviticus 20:11 'The man who lies with his father's wife has uncovered his father's nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. Now perhaps the reason why he was pardoned for this offense was that Torah had not yet been given from Mt. Sinai. There also may be other reasons for blessing Reuben with “life”. Remember that Reuben had already been given territory on the east side of the Jordan. Was Moses concerned that the Reubenites would therefore not survive as an official tribe outside of the Promised Land? Or, Jewish sages offer a military explanation. In return for the land on the east of the Jordan, the Reubenite men had promised to take the front line in the battles to conquer the Promised Land. Moses prays a blessing of “life” over them in light of this dangerous mission. Judah was next to be blessed:
Devarim 33:7 And this he said of Judah: "Hear, hwhy, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people; Let his hands be sufficient for him, and may You be a help against his enemies." Judah, of course, is the main tribe of the Jews. It seems that Moses is asking for help in war-time for Judah. “Hear”…that is, shema, the voice of Judah. Is this Judah sending up prayers? Daily, Jews pray for the regathering of ALL of Israel. The Kibbutz Galuyot (gathering of exiles) is the tenth blessing of the daily Amidah prayers wherein they make the appeal to the Almighty to return Israel from the affliction of the exile: “Sound the great shofar for our freedom and raise a banner to gather our exiles and unite us together from the four corners of the earth. Blessed are You, Adonai, who regathers the scattered of His people Israel.” The Levites, who are the set-apart priests and teachers, are given a rather long blessing focused on their ability to provide spiritual leadership. The tribe of Levi would be scattered among the various tribes in order to serve as teachers throughout the country:
Devarim 33:8 And of Levi he said: "Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your holy one, Whom You tested at Massah, And with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah, 9 Who says of his father and mother, 'I have not seen them'; Nor did he acknowledge his brothers, Or know his own children; For they have observed Your word And kept Your covenant. 10 They shall teach Jacob Your judgments, And Israel Your Torah. They shall put incense before You, and a whole burnt sacrifice on Your altar. 11 Bless his substance, hwhy, And accept the work of his hands; Strike the loins of those who rise against him, And of those who hate him, that they rise not again." Verse 9 is referring to the golden calf incident in Shemot/Exodus 32. Without regard for family ties, the Levites slew those who worshipped the golden calf:
Shemot/Exodus 32:26 then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, "Whoever is on hwhy's side -- come to me." And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. 27 And he said to them, "Thus says hwhy Elohim of Israel: 'Let every man put his sword on his side, and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.' " 28 So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day. 29 Then Moses said, "Consecrate yourselves today to hwhy, that He may bestow on you a blessing this day, for every man has opposed his son and his brother."
Yeshua seems to be addressing this kind of loyalty in the book of Luke:
Luke 14:25 Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. “Hate” is an intense word and probably makes you squirm a bit, but its meaning is different than our usual interpretation. It is used in this verse in a comparative sense, where your loyalty to Yeshua should make everything else pale in comparison. If your parents, wife, or children insist that you have nothing to do with your Master, then you must disregard their wishes (not them). It is not an excuse for walking away from family responsibilities, but rather remaining faithful to the One who has called you. Next is the blessing over Benjamin:
Devarim 33:12 Of Benjamin he said: "The beloved of hwhy shall dwell in safety by Him, Who shelters him all the day long; And he shall dwell between His shoulders." Benjamin was the only one of the 12 who was actually born in the land of Israel. The Temple in Jerusalem would later be located in Benjamin’s territory.
We will stop here with the tribes, except to mention the absence of the tribe of Simeon. We have discussed Simeon’s troubles before. Remember Jacob’s negative deathbed blessing over his sons Simeon and Levi because of the slaughter of the men of Shechem:
Bereshith/Genesis 49:5 "Simeon and Levi are brothers; Instruments of cruelty are in their
dwelling place. 6 Let not my soul enter their council; Let not my honor be united to their
assembly; For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox. 7
Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in
Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
Simeon and Levi are both the recipients of what reads as more of a curse than a blessing, but Levi,
as mentioned previously, redeemed himself after the golden calf incident. Both tribes were
“scattered” in Israel as verse 6 indicates. Levi did not receive any tribal territory, but they were
rewarded for their faithfulness in standing by Moses after the golden calf:
Devarim 18:1 "The priests, the Levites -- all the tribe of Levi -- shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the offerings of hwhy made by fire, and His portion. 2 "Therefore they shall have no inheritance among their brethren hwhy is their inheritance, as He said to them. But the tribe of Simeon, however, continued to make mistakes. They suffered as a result of one of their leaders who took a Midianite woman into the tabernacle to have sex with her (Bemidbar/Numbers 25:6-14). A resultant plague killed many from their tribe as indicated by a census in Bemidbar 26. So….as we follow Simeon through the Scriptures, they will end up with a circle of territory completely surrounded by Judah. Eventually they were absorbed by Judah and pretty much vanished as an identifiable tribe. Now I would like to quote several paragraphs from Thomas Bradford concerning the tribe of Simeon (emphasis mine): “Here is what I find interesting: we have Moses’ last words in Deuteronomy 33 as spoken to the 12 tribes, but one of the tribes (Simeon) had been cursed and so is left out, leaving 11 tribes. It has always been noticed that just as there were 12 original tribes of Israel, there were the 12 original disciples of Jesus. One of these disciples was an infamous man named Judas Iscariot. There is some argument over what “Iscariot” means; some say it is referring to a geographical region called K’riot. Others say it is a play on the word “Sicarri”. Recall that Judas was a fundamentalist militant who was trying to foment another Jewish rebellion against its oppressor, Rome. Judas’ actions show just how radical he was in turning in Yeshua when he decided that Yeshua was not going to be the Savior of Israel Judas had hoped for, because Jesus simply was not a military leader with insurrection on His mind. Judas was a Zealot; Zealot was the name of a Jewish political party. They might be compared with Zionists today; people who feel that only Jews should occupy and/or govern the Holy Lands. One faction of the Zealot party was called the Sicarri; these men were out and out assassins who tried to enforce their brand of Judaism and patriotism on everyone else by intimidation…. Where did Judas come from, and who was his family? Most of the other disciples were Galileans, but not much is known about Judas; yet we do find a very tantalizing piece of information in John 13:26. Yeshua answered, “It’s the one to whom I give this piece ofmatzah after I dip it in the dish.” So he dipped the piece of matzah and gave it to Y’hudah Ben-Shim’on (Judas son of Simeon) from K’riot. What makes this tantalizing is that we find that Judas is the son of Simon, or as here in the CJB, Shim’on. Here’s the thing: Simon, Shim’on, and Simeon (as in the tribe of Simeon) are all the same Hebrew name, just transliterated into variant English spellings. It was the norm in the Bible era to identify a person by his tribe, so a Hebrew with the family name of Shim’on was usually attached by heritage to the tribe of Shim’on, Simeon. You wouldn’t, for example, name a person Levi if they were of the tribe of Ephraim, or Manasseh if they were from Dan. So almost certainly Judas was from the tribe of Simeon, long ago absorbed into the Judah tribe, but still remembering its family heritage by use of the family name Simeon. Ok, with that background, watch this: Moses was giving his final words to the 12 tribes only hours before his death. And in his final words (that amounts to a series of individual prophetic blessings) Moses mysteriously leaves out Simeon who had been given a cursed prophetic future by Jacob. So the blessing of Moses was only upon 11 of the 12 tribes. We fast-forward 13 centuries to the time of Yeshua. The night before He is to die, Jesus is giving His final words to His disciples, by means of offering blessings at the Passover table. All 12 disciples are there, but one, Judas, disappears and fetches the Temple Guard who arrests Jesus and turns him over to the Romans to be tried and killed. Judas who is from the tribe of Simeon (as his family name implies) is cursed by his act then commits suicide, and now there are 11 disciples. Knowing the power of patterns, it is difficult for me not to see the prophetic pattern established in the blessing of Moses over the 12 tribes carried forward into the blessings of Jesus over the 12 disciples. The circumstances are eerily familiar, the fact that Moses and Jesus were both blessing 12 is the same, that it was immediately before their deaths that is the same, that one of the 12 was removed is the same, and that the one who was removed is associated with the Simeon tribe, the cursed tribe is the same.” (end of quote)
By mystery leaving our Simeon, it foreshadows he will be given a cursed future in which would involve Zionism. It could be that Simeon might be in league with Edom as well as the Super soldiers from Dan. However, in Revelation 7, Simeon is listed in the 144000 which means that they are redeemed. Simeon - one who hears. If we refuse to listen to YHWH, if we insist on doing what is right in our own eyes, then we miss out on the blessing all together. Who are you hearing?
Now to move on, Jewish commentator Mordekhai Sabato points out two words in Devarim
33:27-28 which detail the expulsion of the enemy and Israel’s return to reside in the land:
Devarim 33:27 The Elohim of old is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms;
He will cast out (vr,g"ôy>w :) the enemy from before you, And will say, 'Destroy!' 28 Then Israel shall dwell (!Kov.YIw:) in safety, The fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine;
His heavens shall also drop dew.
• vr,g"ôy>w: - He will cast out out
• !Kov.YIw: - He shall dwell
The combination of these verbs appears in only one other location in the Torah: Bereshith/Genesis 3:24 So He drove out (vr,g"ôy>w : )the man; and He caused to dwell (!Kov.YIw:) cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. The location of these two verbs, in these two circumstances, is not coincidental. The Torah is making an association between the banishment of Adam from the Garden (beginning of the Torah) and Israel returning to the land to settle (end of the Torah). Thus we see the Almighty’s plan for restoring mankind after his exile. The inheritance of the land closes the circle that began when man was expelled from the Garden of Eden. Obviously, Israel is not yet dwelling in the land in perfect safety, in a Garden of Eden-like existence.
"Isaiah 51:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 For the Lord shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."
But we see the patterns described in Devarim 33:27-28 and Bereshith 3:24 reoccurring in Revelation. We see our Deliverer using that sword that protected the garden, to cast out the enemy:
Revelation 19:11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war… 13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of Elohim. 14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. 15 Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations…
Jeremiah gives us a picture of what it will be like when the tribes return to the land. Compare some of the words with Devarim 33:28:
Jeremiah 31:11 For hwhy has redeemed Jacob, And ransomed him from the hand of one stronger than he. 12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, Streaming to the goodness of hwhy -- For wheat and new wine and oil, For the young of the flock and the herd; Their souls shall be like a well-watered garden, And they shall sorrow no more at all. 13 "Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, And the young men and the old, together; For I will turn their mourning to joy, Will comfort them, And make them rejoice rather than sorrow. 14 I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says hwhy."
Deuteronomy 33:14 King James Version (KJV)
14 And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon," Wait! I through the moon is a reflector! Not according to God. The Moon produces a cold light. Could also these precious things brought forth form the moon be in reference to the fruits of the calendar.
The Ephraim Awaking is confirmed in how Ephraim is said to have 10,000's Just like David had slain 10000s and Saul and Manasseh had 1000. So the total number is 2,730 years for their punishment. To figure out where this timing takes us, we first must subtract 721 years because the punishment started in 721 BC. There is no year "0", so we take the remaining years to see when the Father started bringing the prophecy of Hosea 6:1 and 2 into
fullness. This takes us to the year 2009. We find it interesting that it was between the years of 2008 and 2010 that the truth of Torah, YHWH’s law, started gaining understanding all over the world at an exponential rate.
Moses saw a panorama of Israel’s future territory from Mount Nebo. Some parts of the land
are not viewable from this mountain. The verse actually tells us that hwhy showed him, thereby
giving him a perspective that otherwise would have been impossible. So since hwhy was giving
him eyes to see, which can also imply a spiritual vision, what else might Moses have actually
perceived? There is an interesting phrase in Devarim 34:2:
the western sea - (hayam ha’acharon)
That phrase can also be interpreted – the last day (see Nehemiah 8:18). Insert that interpretation back into the verse and you see that hwhy showed him all the land….as far as the last day.
To see the conquest and the ultimate victory of the Messiah – a Messiah who would walk the Promised Land, die and resurrect from the dead. To see the children of Israel return to their land of paradise. To borrow a phrase from Passover…dayeinu – it would have been enough. Devarim 34:5 So Moses the servant of hwhy died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of hwhy. It is no surprise to us that Moses is called the “servant of hwhy”. Yet it may be a surprise to you that this is the very first time in the Torah that he is given this title. The word for servant literally means “slave”. Moses was designated to be the property of His Master with no identity of his own. He lived his life devoted to the one he loved. It was most likely Joshua (Yeshua type) who penned these final words of the Torah. It was the highest possible compliment that could have been paid to Moses to call him a servant of hwhy. Welcome to the Hall of Faith Moses!
"Hebrews 11:24-26 King James Version (KJV)
24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward."
I do not know about you, but when i read about Moses' death on MT Nebo it instantly reminds me of the peaceful death scene of Luke Skywalker from Star Wars 8.
Moses was not sick or weak when he died:
Devarim 34:7 Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim nor his natural vigor diminished.
Yet it was part of the plan that Moses would have to die before Israel could enter the Promised Land. Devarim 18:15 promised another prophet like Moses:
Devarim 18:15 "hwhy your Elohim will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear,
This Prophet, who is our Adonai and Messiah Yeshua, also had to suffer death before His people would be able to enter the Promised Land and claim the promises.
The first letter of the Torah is a b (bet). It is a picture of a “house”. The last word of the Torah is lae (Israel). A house is a Hebraic picture of a family. Israel is that bride chosen to dwell in His house. That is the story of Torah. And there’s even more. The first and last letters of the Torah spell (lev). That means heart. Torah is the revelation of the heart of the Father. And for some unknown reason, He has chosen us to dwell in His House. Oh, let our own hearts respond to that undeserved and incredible gift of love!
"Deuteronomy 4:7-8 World English Bible (WEB)
7 For what great nation (Israel - Believers) is there that has a god so near to them as Yahweh our God is whenever we call on him? 8 What great nation is there that has statutes and ordinances so righteous as all this law which I set before you today?"
"Deuteronomy 33:1 World English Bible (WEB)
33 This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death."
This is the only time in the Torah that Moses is called a man of God. When Judgement comes in the future, as it did to Sodom and Gomorrah, oh how there will be so many people who will wish they had lived as men and women of Elohim. We are not like the rest of the world because we are totally different. We are aliens and are incompatible.
"1 Peter 2:9 King James Version (KJV)
9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;"
Tony Robinson - The main theme is YHWH's gift of the Torah borne out His love for the people.We can strengthen the notion that the Torah was given as a gift by making another thematic connection concerning the phrase, “all His saints are in Your hand.” Isaiah 49:16 states the following: “Behold, I have engraved you (Am Yisrael—The People of Israel) on the palms of my hands.” In context, these verses are speaking of Adonai’s profound love for Am Yisrael; that He would never forget them! This thematic connection strengthens the notion that Devarim 33:1-4 recounts the giving of the Torah within the context of Adonai’s great love for the people! The Torah is not a curse. Nor was it given as a curse upon Am Yisrael. It was given as a gift of love, from a loving Creator to the creation He loves.
"Deuteronomy 33:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 And he said, The Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them." So was it just YHWH that came to Moses? Just like we read in Enoch 1, YHWH has His hosts with Him as well.
"Deuteronomy 33:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 Yea, he loved the people; all his saints are in thy hand: and they sat down at thy feet; every one shall receive of thy words." Notice the Messianic numbers - 333. This is why i titled my series - Era of 303.
Moses describes Torah as an 'inheritance' (morashah) passed down to the 'congregation of Jacob'. To understand this inheritance, we will first take a look at the more common Hebrew word for inheritance - (nachalah). Nachalah is related to (nachal), a word for a river or a stream. It signifies something passed down automatically across the generations, as a river's water flows downstream.
The sages make a beautiful observation. They point out that by a simple change in pronunciation - turning a shin (sh) into a sin (s), inheritance becomes betrothal."Deuteronomy 33:4 Tree of Life Version (TLV)
4 Torah Moses commanded us—
a betrothal for the community of Jacob."
"Hosea 2:19-20 World English Bible (WEB)
19 I will betroth you to me forever.
Yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness, in justice, in loving kindness, and in compassion.
20 I will even betroth you to me in faithfulness;
and you shall know Yahweh."
"Isaiah 54:5 World English Bible (WEB)
5 For your Maker is your husband; Yahweh of Armies is his name.
The Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer.
He will be called the God of the whole earth." The physical inheritance of the Torah has a final fulfilment for the betrothed:
"Revelation 21:1-3 World English Bible (WEB)
21 I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth have passed away, and the sea is no more. 2 I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. 3 I heard a loud voice out of heaven saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with people, and he will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God."
The land and the Torah belongs to YHWH. No generation can cause it to cease , or cut off its character as a morashah - an eternal heritage - for all of YHWH's people. TORAH is to be passed down from generation to generation. And just as foreigners were to be permitted to live in the land of Israel, dwelling amidst YHWH's people; so foreigners of the few nations YHWH spares after the Judgement (2 Baruch 72:2) are to be permitted to share the morashah, to share Torah and the word of life (Isaiah 2:3). Torah is a gift. It is our betrothal covenant. It is the truth.
The name Jeshurun (pronounced Yeshurun in Hebrew) derives from the Hebrew root ישר, like the word yashar (recall the Book of Jasher), meaning “straight” or “upright.” Yeshurun as a name for Israel would then signify “Upright Nation.”Rashi explains that YHWH is Israel's king in the most complete sense only when the people are united/together (yachad). Just as a unified (yachad) Israel accepted the Torah on Mount Sinai, so once again YHWH will reign only over a nation that maintains a sense of harmony in belief and action. YHWH is one (echad) and unity among His chosen is exactly how He demands that we serve Him.
Although the word yachid (the root word to yachad) translates to an only child, we know that Abraham had another son named Ishmael. Yachid can also be used to describe a child who is unique, unparalleled or incomparable. Of course this anticipates the Messiah in His unique relationship to the Father who claims Him as my beloved son. We live through this one son to be one with Him.
"Exodus 24:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do."
FROM ARDELLE - Each tribe is blessed according to its personality and its
responsibilities. The translations of these blessings vary substantially. Even Hebrew language scholars are challenged as there are Hebrew words and phrases in these blessings that appear nowhere else in the Bible. It is one of the rare places in the Hebrew Scriptures where there aresome differences between the oldest Hebrew manuscripts.
Jeffrey Tigay puts it like this: it is full of rare words, syntactic difficulties, grammatical inconsistencies and opaque allusions. With that said, let’s take a look at a few of the tribal blessings. Reuben receives the first blessing:
Devarim 33:6 "Let Reuben live, and not die, nor let his men be few." Seems pretty short and sweet, but what does it mean? Moses blesses the tribe of Reuben with “life”. There’s a bit of grace in this blessing as it was Reuben who took his father Jacob’s concubine and lay with her. Here is what Torah had to say about that:
Vayikra/Leviticus 20:11 'The man who lies with his father's wife has uncovered his father's nakedness; both of them shall surely be put to death. Their blood shall be upon them. Now perhaps the reason why he was pardoned for this offense was that Torah had not yet been given from Mt. Sinai. There also may be other reasons for blessing Reuben with “life”. Remember that Reuben had already been given territory on the east side of the Jordan. Was Moses concerned that the Reubenites would therefore not survive as an official tribe outside of the Promised Land? Or, Jewish sages offer a military explanation. In return for the land on the east of the Jordan, the Reubenite men had promised to take the front line in the battles to conquer the Promised Land. Moses prays a blessing of “life” over them in light of this dangerous mission. Judah was next to be blessed:
Devarim 33:7 And this he said of Judah: "Hear, hwhy, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people; Let his hands be sufficient for him, and may You be a help against his enemies." Judah, of course, is the main tribe of the Jews. It seems that Moses is asking for help in war-time for Judah. “Hear”…that is, shema, the voice of Judah. Is this Judah sending up prayers? Daily, Jews pray for the regathering of ALL of Israel. The Kibbutz Galuyot (gathering of exiles) is the tenth blessing of the daily Amidah prayers wherein they make the appeal to the Almighty to return Israel from the affliction of the exile: “Sound the great shofar for our freedom and raise a banner to gather our exiles and unite us together from the four corners of the earth. Blessed are You, Adonai, who regathers the scattered of His people Israel.” The Levites, who are the set-apart priests and teachers, are given a rather long blessing focused on their ability to provide spiritual leadership. The tribe of Levi would be scattered among the various tribes in order to serve as teachers throughout the country:
Devarim 33:8 And of Levi he said: "Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your holy one, Whom You tested at Massah, And with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah, 9 Who says of his father and mother, 'I have not seen them'; Nor did he acknowledge his brothers, Or know his own children; For they have observed Your word And kept Your covenant. 10 They shall teach Jacob Your judgments, And Israel Your Torah. They shall put incense before You, and a whole burnt sacrifice on Your altar. 11 Bless his substance, hwhy, And accept the work of his hands; Strike the loins of those who rise against him, And of those who hate him, that they rise not again." Verse 9 is referring to the golden calf incident in Shemot/Exodus 32. Without regard for family ties, the Levites slew those who worshipped the golden calf:
Shemot/Exodus 32:26 then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, and said, "Whoever is on hwhy's side -- come to me." And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him. 27 And he said to them, "Thus says hwhy Elohim of Israel: 'Let every man put his sword on his side, and go in and out from entrance to entrance throughout the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.' " 28 So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day. 29 Then Moses said, "Consecrate yourselves today to hwhy, that He may bestow on you a blessing this day, for every man has opposed his son and his brother."
Yeshua seems to be addressing this kind of loyalty in the book of Luke:
Luke 14:25 Now great multitudes went with Him. And He turned and said to them, 26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. “Hate” is an intense word and probably makes you squirm a bit, but its meaning is different than our usual interpretation. It is used in this verse in a comparative sense, where your loyalty to Yeshua should make everything else pale in comparison. If your parents, wife, or children insist that you have nothing to do with your Master, then you must disregard their wishes (not them). It is not an excuse for walking away from family responsibilities, but rather remaining faithful to the One who has called you. Next is the blessing over Benjamin:
Devarim 33:12 Of Benjamin he said: "The beloved of hwhy shall dwell in safety by Him, Who shelters him all the day long; And he shall dwell between His shoulders." Benjamin was the only one of the 12 who was actually born in the land of Israel. The Temple in Jerusalem would later be located in Benjamin’s territory.
We will stop here with the tribes, except to mention the absence of the tribe of Simeon. We have discussed Simeon’s troubles before. Remember Jacob’s negative deathbed blessing over his sons Simeon and Levi because of the slaughter of the men of Shechem:
Bereshith/Genesis 49:5 "Simeon and Levi are brothers; Instruments of cruelty are in their
dwelling place. 6 Let not my soul enter their council; Let not my honor be united to their
assembly; For in their anger they slew a man, And in their self-will they hamstrung an ox. 7
Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; And their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in
Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
Simeon and Levi are both the recipients of what reads as more of a curse than a blessing, but Levi,
as mentioned previously, redeemed himself after the golden calf incident. Both tribes were
“scattered” in Israel as verse 6 indicates. Levi did not receive any tribal territory, but they were
rewarded for their faithfulness in standing by Moses after the golden calf: Devarim 18:1 "The priests, the Levites -- all the tribe of Levi -- shall have no part nor inheritance with Israel; they shall eat the offerings of hwhy made by fire, and His portion. 2 "Therefore they shall have no inheritance among their brethren hwhy is their inheritance, as He said to them. But the tribe of Simeon, however, continued to make mistakes. They suffered as a result of one of their leaders who took a Midianite woman into the tabernacle to have sex with her (Bemidbar/Numbers 25:6-14). A resultant plague killed many from their tribe as indicated by a census in Bemidbar 26. So….as we follow Simeon through the Scriptures, they will end up with a circle of territory completely surrounded by Judah. Eventually they were absorbed by Judah and pretty much vanished as an identifiable tribe. Now I would like to quote several paragraphs from Thomas Bradford concerning the tribe of Simeon (emphasis mine): “Here is what I find interesting: we have Moses’ last words in Deuteronomy 33 as spoken to the 12 tribes, but one of the tribes (Simeon) had been cursed and so is left out, leaving 11 tribes. It has always been noticed that just as there were 12 original tribes of Israel, there were the 12 original disciples of Jesus. One of these disciples was an infamous man named Judas Iscariot. There is some argument over what “Iscariot” means; some say it is referring to a geographical region called K’riot. Others say it is a play on the word “Sicarri”. Recall that Judas was a fundamentalist militant who was trying to foment another Jewish rebellion against its oppressor, Rome. Judas’ actions show just how radical he was in turning in Yeshua when he decided that Yeshua was not going to be the Savior of Israel Judas had hoped for, because Jesus simply was not a military leader with insurrection on His mind. Judas was a Zealot; Zealot was the name of a Jewish political party. They might be compared with Zionists today; people who feel that only Jews should occupy and/or govern the Holy Lands. One faction of the Zealot party was called the Sicarri; these men were out and out assassins who tried to enforce their brand of Judaism and patriotism on everyone else by intimidation…. Where did Judas come from, and who was his family? Most of the other disciples were Galileans, but not much is known about Judas; yet we do find a very tantalizing piece of information in John 13:26. Yeshua answered, “It’s the one to whom I give this piece ofmatzah after I dip it in the dish.” So he dipped the piece of matzah and gave it to Y’hudah Ben-Shim’on (Judas son of Simeon) from K’riot. What makes this tantalizing is that we find that Judas is the son of Simon, or as here in the CJB, Shim’on. Here’s the thing: Simon, Shim’on, and Simeon (as in the tribe of Simeon) are all the same Hebrew name, just transliterated into variant English spellings. It was the norm in the Bible era to identify a person by his tribe, so a Hebrew with the family name of Shim’on was usually attached by heritage to the tribe of Shim’on, Simeon. You wouldn’t, for example, name a person Levi if they were of the tribe of Ephraim, or Manasseh if they were from Dan. So almost certainly Judas was from the tribe of Simeon, long ago absorbed into the Judah tribe, but still remembering its family heritage by use of the family name Simeon. Ok, with that background, watch this: Moses was giving his final words to the 12 tribes only hours before his death. And in his final words (that amounts to a series of individual prophetic blessings) Moses mysteriously leaves out Simeon who had been given a cursed prophetic future by Jacob. So the blessing of Moses was only upon 11 of the 12 tribes. We fast-forward 13 centuries to the time of Yeshua. The night before He is to die, Jesus is giving His final words to His disciples, by means of offering blessings at the Passover table. All 12 disciples are there, but one, Judas, disappears and fetches the Temple Guard who arrests Jesus and turns him over to the Romans to be tried and killed. Judas who is from the tribe of Simeon (as his family name implies) is cursed by his act then commits suicide, and now there are 11 disciples. Knowing the power of patterns, it is difficult for me not to see the prophetic pattern established in the blessing of Moses over the 12 tribes carried forward into the blessings of Jesus over the 12 disciples. The circumstances are eerily familiar, the fact that Moses and Jesus were both blessing 12 is the same, that it was immediately before their deaths that is the same, that one of the 12 was removed is the same, and that the one who was removed is associated with the Simeon tribe, the cursed tribe is the same.” (end of quote)
By mystery leaving our Simeon, it foreshadows he will be given a cursed future in which would involve Zionism. It could be that Simeon might be in league with Edom as well as the Super soldiers from Dan. However, in Revelation 7, Simeon is listed in the 144000 which means that they are redeemed. Simeon - one who hears. If we refuse to listen to YHWH, if we insist on doing what is right in our own eyes, then we miss out on the blessing all together. Who are you hearing?
Now to move on, Jewish commentator Mordekhai Sabato points out two words in Devarim
33:27-28 which detail the expulsion of the enemy and Israel’s return to reside in the land:
Devarim 33:27 The Elohim of old is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms;
He will cast out (vr,g"ôy>w :) the enemy from before you, And will say, 'Destroy!' 28 Then Israel shall dwell (!Kov.YIw:) in safety, The fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine;
His heavens shall also drop dew.
• vr,g"ôy>w: - He will cast out out
• !Kov.YIw: - He shall dwell
The combination of these verbs appears in only one other location in the Torah: Bereshith/Genesis 3:24 So He drove out (vr,g"ôy>w : )the man; and He caused to dwell (!Kov.YIw:) cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. The location of these two verbs, in these two circumstances, is not coincidental. The Torah is making an association between the banishment of Adam from the Garden (beginning of the Torah) and Israel returning to the land to settle (end of the Torah). Thus we see the Almighty’s plan for restoring mankind after his exile. The inheritance of the land closes the circle that began when man was expelled from the Garden of Eden. Obviously, Israel is not yet dwelling in the land in perfect safety, in a Garden of Eden-like existence.
"Isaiah 51:3 King James Version (KJV)
3 For the Lord shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."
But we see the patterns described in Devarim 33:27-28 and Bereshith 3:24 reoccurring in Revelation. We see our Deliverer using that sword that protected the garden, to cast out the enemy:
Revelation 19:11 Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war… 13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of Elohim. 14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. 15 Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations…
Jeremiah gives us a picture of what it will be like when the tribes return to the land. Compare some of the words with Devarim 33:28:
Jeremiah 31:11 For hwhy has redeemed Jacob, And ransomed him from the hand of one stronger than he. 12 Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, Streaming to the goodness of hwhy -- For wheat and new wine and oil, For the young of the flock and the herd; Their souls shall be like a well-watered garden, And they shall sorrow no more at all. 13 "Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, And the young men and the old, together; For I will turn their mourning to joy, Will comfort them, And make them rejoice rather than sorrow. 14 I will satiate the soul of the priests with abundance, And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says hwhy."
Deuteronomy 33:14 King James Version (KJV)
14 And for the precious fruits brought forth by the sun, and for the precious things put forth by the moon," Wait! I through the moon is a reflector! Not according to God. The Moon produces a cold light. Could also these precious things brought forth form the moon be in reference to the fruits of the calendar.
The Ephraim Awaking is confirmed in how Ephraim is said to have 10,000's Just like David had slain 10000s and Saul and Manasseh had 1000. So the total number is 2,730 years for their punishment. To figure out where this timing takes us, we first must subtract 721 years because the punishment started in 721 BC. There is no year "0", so we take the remaining years to see when the Father started bringing the prophecy of Hosea 6:1 and 2 into
fullness. This takes us to the year 2009. We find it interesting that it was between the years of 2008 and 2010 that the truth of Torah, YHWH’s law, started gaining understanding all over the world at an exponential rate.
HERALDRY:THE CLUES TO HISTORY – EPHRAIM THE UNICORN
We have considered the origins of Heraldry and Bri tish and European armorial bearings in particular, with emphasis on the heraldic and symbolic Lion of the tribe of Judah. The second supporter on the royal coat of arms is the Unicorn, represented nowadays as a kind of horse with one twisted horn. This beast seems as mythical as the dragons and gryphons of legend , but we shall examine its origins and see whether our trail will lead once more to ancient Israel.
What does the Bible tell us? Turn to Jacob’s blessings as recorded in Deuteronomy 33: v. 17:
“His glory is like the firstling of his bullock, and his horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth: and they are the ten thousands of Ephraim and the thousands of Manasseh “.
This is Jacob’s prophetic blessing of the sons of Joseph, in which he likens the tribe to an Ox and a Unicorn.
This seems a far cry from a horse-like creature with a twisted horn, but remember that one of the sins of the Israelites in the Wilderness was to set themselves up a Golden Calf to worship, thus proving that they had a special reverence for an Ox or Bull. The twisted horn of the Unicorn could be the two horns of the Bull, which can be imagined in profile, “pushing the people together to the ends of the earth”. This is precisely what the Tribes of Israel did after their escape from their captivities, for in their outward spread from the Caucasus, they pushed the indigenous tribes out of the territories which they entered. Another symbol of Joseph was a horn, so we can see how the symbols have combined to give the fabled Unicorn.
The Ox or Bull was the emblem of the Saxons during their long journey across Europe. Today it is used in districts of Denmark and in Iceland, which was colonised from Denmark. It is an emblem in Swedish heraldry, and in Scottish and English armorial bearings, most notably in the Royal Arms. The horn had a special significance for the Nordic invaders of these islands, and York Minster treasures a very ancient horn. It is large and has a carving of a Vine and what appears to be a Lion and a Unicorn. Authorities seem to think that this horn is of Eastern origin. Objections have been raised that the Lion appears to have wings like an Assyrian lion, but this is even more significant in view of the fact that the Northern House was taken captive by the Assyrians, and may logically have been expected to have adopted some of the Assyrian conventions. After all, they would have been surrounded by such representations during their stay in Assyria. The Vikings, who colonised York, used horns for drinking wine and the symbolism was a feature of their mythology. The Vine was another lsraelitish symbol, referred to by Jesus in His Parables.
A significant fact which adds another piece to the puzzle, is that “John Bull” is the nickname for the English.
From a study of the history of Israel as told in the Old Testament we discover that the symbols had become typical of the Northern and Southern houses of Israel after Solomon’s death, when they had split into two Kingdoms. The emblem of the Southern House of Judah was a Lion and that of the Northern House, which went into Assyrian captivity before the Southern House, was that of the Unicorn.
In Numbers ch. 23: 22-24 and Numbers ch. 24: vv. 8, 9, the heathen prophet, Balaam, refers to the two Kingdoms separately under their emblems of a Lion and a Unicorn. The Northern House of Ephraim had erred before in their history in setting up a Golden Calf for worship, and after Solomon’s death they soon rejected the Royal House of David and became heathen; but the Southern House remained loyal to the House of David, and therefore retained the Lion as their symbol.
Descendants of the Northern and Southern Houses of Israel found their way to these British Isles after many years of wandering and conquest, and eventually the two Kingdoms were re-united in the person of James VI of Scotland who became James I of England, the two Kingdoms thus becoming Great Britain.
Another interesting point is that the ancient Hebrew for the emblematic Ox was eng!, which is very similar to Angle. In Hosea 8:5 we read:
“Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off”
and in v. 6
“..but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces”.
Strong’s Concordance has “calf” as egel in each case and this word has the gl root. In Hebrew there are no written vowels, and the spoken vowels often have to be inferred. The g may be “soft” or “hard”, giving a ng sound, such as we have in “singing” for the soft consonant. Samaria was the area from which the Northern House was taken captive to Assyria. Herodotus the historian mentions a tribe in Bactria called the Aegli. Bactria was an ancient name for the area in Central Asia between the Amu Darya river and the Hindu Kush mountains. The Northern House of Israel disappeared from view en route to the Caucasus, which is between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Furthermore, in ancient times the Crimea was known as Taurica and Tauric Scythia. This would mean the land of the Bull, or Bull Scythia. The Scythians (a name which is very similar to “Scots”) settled in the Black Sea area until they began their westward journey. Another significant point is the bull worship of the ancient Cretans. Some believe that they were Israelites who broke away from the main body round about the time of the Exodus.
The Angles were a tribe which gave their name to England. They settled here from areas near present day Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark, landing mostly in Kent and East Anglia.
We have examined some more clues to our very ancient roots, but there are more of the tribes of Israel to study and to see where their emblems lead us. In isolation, the tracing of each symbol may seem to be mere coincidence, but the sum of the whole is extremely significant to those who have eyes to see.
The tribe of Dan has been a topic i have been looking into in depth for a while and it has fantasised me. "Deuteronomy 33:22 King James Version (KJV)22 And of Dan he said, Dan is a lion's whelp: he shall leap from Bashan." Bashan is where Dan settles and is the location of MT Hermon - ground zero for Fallen Angel activity. I highly urge you to read this whole article about Dan. It was gold for my studies.
Clearly, therefore, Micah is much older than Jonathan. Indeed, it would appear that the exact opposite situation developed, whereby the young man actually became as one of Micah’s own sons. That being the case, what does he mean by requesting that the Levite become a father to him? I would suggest that this is to be understood in a religious sense of the term. We all are quite familiar with the title father as it is applied by ecclesiastical institutions. That typically Roman Catholic word, however, long pre-dates the founding of that church organization. It was only borrowed from much earlier pagan sources, one of which we can read about in the 17th chapter of Judges!
And so this corrupt would-be Levite lands a paying job as Micah’s personal hired priest, and you just have to know by Micah’s reaction what his real motives actually are in the entire matter, when you read the following verse:
“Then said Micah, Now know I that the Lord will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest” (Judg. 17:13).
Now enter the tribe of Dan into this unusual, almost bizarre story. The Danites needed land, because their inheritance bordered one of
“And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray you, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous” (Judg. 18:5).
They too were far more interested in getting what was their’s, and perhaps even what wasn’t their’s, than they were in worshiping and serving the true God as He had commanded them to do. They were willing to sell themselves into idolatry in order to secure the blessings of the gods. And so, they appropriated the services of the young Levite, enticing him to leave Micah, and become their priest, indeed the priest for all the land-dwelling Danites, an offer the money-grubbing cleric simply couldn’t refuse!
When Micah protested their action, the Danites explained the facts of life to the hapless Ephraimite, who suddenly decided it was a whole lot better to be without a personal religious shrine, complete with his own priest, and remain alive, than it was to push the issue any farther and end up dead! Jonathan the Levite quickly accepted the offer and blessed the Danite warriors, who grabbed up the graven image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image, and with the priest in tow, absconded with them northward in search of a people whom they could easily victimize, and whose land they could confiscate for themselves.
Their objective was not long in being achieved, for they happened upon the peaceful little
A third negative characteristic of this tribe also became immediately evident, indeed if it wasn’t already well accounted for among the Danites, for we read in Judges 18:29-31 the
“And they took the things which Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people that were at quiet and secure: and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire. And there was no deliverer, because it was far from
The city of
The problems associated with Dan are quite evident just in this single incident involving the destruction of Laish. Perhaps the most significant of them all was the fact that the tribe of Dan embraced idolatry and false worship more readily than any of the other children of
The choice of territory in which the Danites ultimately settled is, in itself, quite strategic. First of all, it put them as far away as possible from the rest of the nation, and especially from Shiloh, where the center of Yahweh-worship in
In aligning themselves with the descendants of Esau, the Danites in effect became the avowed enemies of Yahweh and the true Messiah that was to come through Jacob and Judah. Esau vowed to kill his brother to whom he had sold the birthright, and to regain what he had lost through the treachery of Jacob. From this early conflict stems the great struggle between the descendants of these two individuals. Not only did the false worship center established in northern Israel by the Danites for hundreds of years vie directly with Shiloh for the spiritual allegiance of the people, there is evidence that this evil system may have had a direct connection with the crucifixion of Yahshua, for we read in that famous Messianic passage of Psalms 22:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?...Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help. Many bulls have compassed me: strong BULLS OF BASHAN have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion” (Psa. 22:1, 11-13).
We know for a fact that at least the opening words of this Psalm were indeed specifically spoken by the Messiah while hanging on the cross. It is very plausible that some of the other verses were also quoted by the Savior on this horrible occasion. Whether this is so or not, the 22nd Psalm is unquestionably about the dying Messiah. Note it is said that “strong bulls of
Who were these bulls of
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the western sea - (hayam ha’acharon)
That phrase can also be interpreted – the last day (see Nehemiah 8:18). Insert that interpretation back into the verse and you see that hwhy showed him all the land….as far as the last day.
To see the conquest and the ultimate victory of the Messiah – a Messiah who would walk the Promised Land, die and resurrect from the dead. To see the children of Israel return to their land of paradise. To borrow a phrase from Passover…dayeinu – it would have been enough. Devarim 34:5 So Moses the servant of hwhy died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of hwhy. It is no surprise to us that Moses is called the “servant of hwhy”. Yet it may be a surprise to you that this is the very first time in the Torah that he is given this title. The word for servant literally means “slave”. Moses was designated to be the property of His Master with no identity of his own. He lived his life devoted to the one he loved. It was most likely Joshua (Yeshua type) who penned these final words of the Torah. It was the highest possible compliment that could have been paid to Moses to call him a servant of hwhy. Welcome to the Hall of Faith Moses!
"Hebrews 11:24-26 King James Version (KJV)
24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter;
25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward."I do not know about you, but when i read about Moses' death on MT Nebo it instantly reminds me of the peaceful death scene of Luke Skywalker from Star Wars 8.
Moses was not sick or weak when he died:
Devarim 34:7 Moses was one hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim nor his natural vigor diminished.
Yet it was part of the plan that Moses would have to die before Israel could enter the Promised Land. Devarim 18:15 promised another prophet like Moses:
Devarim 18:15 "hwhy your Elohim will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear,
This Prophet, who is our Adonai and Messiah Yeshua, also had to suffer death before His people would be able to enter the Promised Land and claim the promises.
The first letter of the Torah is a b (bet). It is a picture of a “house”. The last word of the Torah is lae (Israel). A house is a Hebraic picture of a family. Israel is that bride chosen to dwell in His house. That is the story of Torah. And there’s even more. The first and last letters of the Torah spell (lev). That means heart. Torah is the revelation of the heart of the Father. And for some unknown reason, He has chosen us to dwell in His House. Oh, let our own hearts respond to that undeserved and incredible gift of love!
PROPHETS AND NEW TESTAMENT
Caesarea Philippi is the place in northern Israel next to MT Hermon is where Yeshua reveals Himself. This place is very suspicious for many clear reasons because this is ground zero for Satan's ultimate endgame plan and it is the place where Yeshua declared that Peter was the rock, that Yeshua was going to die and resurrect and where He was transfigured. It is also connected to when Yeshua said that the New Jerusalem will have its centre over MT Hermon. I believe in the spiritual realm, Yeshua utterly obliterated and disabled the powers that have been attached to this place for 4000 years. Some people believe that the event when Yeshua revealed who He was to Peter happened on Yom Kippur or on one of the 10 days of Awe. This only makes sense when later on on Tabernacles (Sukkot) when Yeshua is transfigured, Peter says he would like to make a Sukkot for Yeshua, Moses and Elijah. Here is a summary of the many strange things this counterfeit MT Zion is associated with.
The Greeks called this place Panias, and the cave was the main attraction for Hellenistic pagan worship. Animal sacrifices were thrown into the bottomless pool inside. If the sacrifices sank, the gods were appeased. Next to the Pan cave are five niches with indented scalloped areas cut into the face of the cliff for their idols. These niches had elaborate temples attached to worship Pan, Zeus, Aesculapius (who brought Orion/Nimrod back to life), Hera, Athena Aphrodite, Ares, Nemesis, and a sanctuary to the cult of the “dancing goats.” Pan was the god of the goats and his pipe music would entice the goats to dance, and make their fertility assured (he is also linked to sex, lust, and bestiality). It was so wicked, a sin city like today’s Las Vegas, that rabbis forbade a good Jew to come here. Still, Jesus brought his men here anyway and revealed to them that He was the promised Messiah (Matthew 16). Why here? It was a simple way to let the world, both seen and unseen, know that there would be a coming battle for the souls of men. At the foot of this debauched mountain, the gauntlet was thrown at Satan’s feet; his time was over. This mountain’s other significance is as the traditional site of the Transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1-8). Interesting again to note that He chose “Satan’s turf” to proclaim His glory to His disciples. No one knows the exact spot on Mount Hermon where this glorification occurred, but most believe that it was indeed here. Today you can see this cave, the rubble of the temples, and the shrines that were carved into the cliffs where Jesus acknowledged Peter’s revelation at Caesarea Philippi (today called Banias, most likely an Arab corruption of Pan, Panias). There are huge sections of carved stone from the Temple all around the area, and King Agrippa’s Palace nearby. Overall, a fascinating stop that even brought Mark Twain here in 1867. He described Caesarea Philippi like this: “…scattered every where, in the paths and in the woods, are Corinthian capitals, broken porphyry pillars, and little fragments of sculpture; and up yonder in the precipice where the fountain gushes out, are well-worn Greek inscriptions over niches in the rock where in ancient times the Greeks, and after them the Romans, worshipped the sylvan god Pan.” The ancients believed that water symbolized the abyss and death, so the spring that flowed out of the Gate of Hades made Jesus’ promise about His Church’s supremacy all the more poignant. “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the Gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:17-20). How perfect that one of the most sinful places in Israel was where He revealed Himself to be the true God of Israel.
- Occupied by the apostate tribe of Dan (aka the super soldiers of the Antichrist's Black Awakening army.) Shelomith is the mother of the son's wife the blasphemed YHWH's name, was from Dan. Jezebel - the most wicked woman in the Bible, is said to have come from this tribe. They were also the Spartans which became the first garrison state that practised eugenics in which later inspired the Nazis super race projects of creating Nephilim.
- The landing place of the 200 Fallen Angels in the book of Enoch in the days of Jared (4562 BC).
- Was known as the "gates of Hades' (Hell) or in Greek mythology the Doors of Death.
- It was a large cultic site where worshippers of the Hellenic god Pan (Azazel) would flock to worship.
- Augustus Caesar built a temple to himself here, reigning from 27 BC - 14 AD.
- Nimrod (the first and the last Antichrist) built a fortress nearby on MT Hermon during his Sumerian empire from c. 2258 - c.1700 BC.
The Greeks called this place Panias, and the cave was the main attraction for Hellenistic pagan worship. Animal sacrifices were thrown into the bottomless pool inside. If the sacrifices sank, the gods were appeased. Next to the Pan cave are five niches with indented scalloped areas cut into the face of the cliff for their idols. These niches had elaborate temples attached to worship Pan, Zeus, Aesculapius (who brought Orion/Nimrod back to life), Hera, Athena Aphrodite, Ares, Nemesis, and a sanctuary to the cult of the “dancing goats.” Pan was the god of the goats and his pipe music would entice the goats to dance, and make their fertility assured (he is also linked to sex, lust, and bestiality). It was so wicked, a sin city like today’s Las Vegas, that rabbis forbade a good Jew to come here. Still, Jesus brought his men here anyway and revealed to them that He was the promised Messiah (Matthew 16). Why here? It was a simple way to let the world, both seen and unseen, know that there would be a coming battle for the souls of men. At the foot of this debauched mountain, the gauntlet was thrown at Satan’s feet; his time was over. This mountain’s other significance is as the traditional site of the Transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1-8). Interesting again to note that He chose “Satan’s turf” to proclaim His glory to His disciples. No one knows the exact spot on Mount Hermon where this glorification occurred, but most believe that it was indeed here. Today you can see this cave, the rubble of the temples, and the shrines that were carved into the cliffs where Jesus acknowledged Peter’s revelation at Caesarea Philippi (today called Banias, most likely an Arab corruption of Pan, Panias). There are huge sections of carved stone from the Temple all around the area, and King Agrippa’s Palace nearby. Overall, a fascinating stop that even brought Mark Twain here in 1867. He described Caesarea Philippi like this: “…scattered every where, in the paths and in the woods, are Corinthian capitals, broken porphyry pillars, and little fragments of sculpture; and up yonder in the precipice where the fountain gushes out, are well-worn Greek inscriptions over niches in the rock where in ancient times the Greeks, and after them the Romans, worshipped the sylvan god Pan.” The ancients believed that water symbolized the abyss and death, so the spring that flowed out of the Gate of Hades made Jesus’ promise about His Church’s supremacy all the more poignant. “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the Gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:17-20). How perfect that one of the most sinful places in Israel was where He revealed Himself to be the true God of Israel.
The road of Emmaus is the road we must take to understand the Scriptures. We should have a heart-burn for Him when we read the Torah and the Old Testament because they all wrote about Yeshua.
"27 Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself." Luke 24:27
As we have seen this year, Yeshua is revealed all over the Torah. He is the Torah. So many references get revealed to me about Him in the Torah, i could not possibly mention all of them in the blogs. It is very exciting each week at how we discover the Messiah at the foundation of His word.
"27 Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself." Luke 24:27
As we have seen this year, Yeshua is revealed all over the Torah. He is the Torah. So many references get revealed to me about Him in the Torah, i could not possibly mention all of them in the blogs. It is very exciting each week at how we discover the Messiah at the foundation of His word.
Moses was buried in a valley in Moab."9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee."
I. The Testament of Moses is quoted in Jude 9
1. "But Michael the archangel, when he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against him a railing judgment, but said, “The Lord rebuke you!”" (Jude 9)
2. Perhaps the reason why the Testament of Moses is quoted by the Holy Spirit in Jude 9 is because the early Christians used this Jewish document to prove Jesus was the Christ.
a. The document did correctly predict the Messiah to come around 29 AD.
b. The story of the dispute over the body of Moses likely stems from an oral prophet, was widely known and was recorded in the Testament of Moses as a manmade record.
3. “The dispute referred to by Jude was recorded in the now lost ending of an apocryphal Jewish work called the Assumption of Moses. But the tradition can be reconstructed from references to that account in a number of early Christian writings (see Bauckham, pp. 65–76). Satan laid claim to the corpse of Moses for his kingdom of darkness because Moses had killed an Egyptian (Exod. 2:12). He was therefore a murderer, however virtuous his subsequent achievements, and so was unworthy of honorable burial. Satan, in his ancient role of accuser of God’s people (Rev. 12:10), was seeking to prove Moses’ guilt. In response to the charge, Michael did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against Satan. Barclay (DSB, p. 188) expresses the opinion of most commentators that Jude means: “If the greatest of the good angels refused to speak evil of the greatest of the evil angels, even in circumstances like that, surely no human being may speak evil of any angel.”” (UBCS 1-2 Pe/Jud, Jude 9, 1992 AD)
Be strong! Be strong! And may we be strengthened!
Shabbat Shalom
Jonathon Karagiannis - 19/10/19
Jonathon Karagiannis - 19/10/19
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