Deut/Devarim
1:1 – 3:22
Ivrim/Heb 11:1 And belief (faith) is the substance of what
is expected, the proof of what is not seen.
Heb 11:2
For by this the elders obtained witness.
Faith is not just expressed in words but in
actions. The title of this Torah portion affirms the idea of faith that pleases
YHVH. The Hebrew word “devarim” can mean “words” or “things”.
The
teaching and message of this Torah portion seem to have a connection with the
tragic events of Tisha b Av. Bnei Yisrael may have been saying the right
“words” but their actions were not in harmony with their words.
Tisha b Av – the ninth day of Av is coming once again this week. There
can be no doubt that on this day the saddest, most tragic events have occurred
in the history of YHVH’s people. What makes this day more sad and tragic was
not only the destruction of both Temples and many other tragedies that have
occurred during this time, but that most
of those who claim to belong to YHVH are quite content not to embrace His Torah
as demonstrated by His sent forth Messiah. Many who call themselves believers
need to first experience tragedy and calamity before they truly return to YHVH.
Baseless
hatred and idolatry were, and remain some of the causes of these calamities
that have come to be associated with Tisha b Av.
The
gematria of the number 44 includes Hebrew words such as “ dam (blood) taleh
(lamb) chul (pain) and ha geulah (the redeemer)”
This book called “words” is also called the
“Mishnah Torah” the repetition and explanation of the Torah in the words of
Moshe.
Everyone who has been called to be a
citizen of the common wealth of Yisrael through the blood of Messiah (Eph 2 )
is called to be a living Torah. Every member of YHVH’s household is uniquely
called to relive and retell the Torah in their own unique and special way with
their words and with their deeds.
Messiah
Yahshua came and showed us the way and gave us a perfect “halacha” (example of
how to walk in the Torah of YHVH). The Torah became flesh and dwelt amongst us.
Yahshua’s Talmadim (disciples) have given us the Second Writings (we used to
call it New Testament) to show us and establish the Torah in our lives.
Tehillim/Psa 40:7 Then I said, “See, I have come; In the scroll
of the Book it is prescribed for me.
Psa 40:8
I have delighted to do Your pleasure, O my Elohim, And Your Torah is
within my heart1.” Footnote: 1Ps. 37:31, Ps. 119:11, Isa.
51:7, Heb. 10:7-9.
Blessing for the Torah:
Baruch atah YHVH, Eloheynu, Melech ha-O’lam, asher
bachar banu m’kol ha-amim,
v’natan lanu eht Torah-to. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn
ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
you have selected us from among all the peoples,
and have given us your Torah. Blessed are you, YHVH,
giver of the Torah. Ameyn.)
Torah
Readings:
- 1:1-11
- 1:12-21
- 1:22-38
- 1:39 – 2:1
- 2:2-2:30
- 2:31 – 3:14
- 3:15-22
- Maftir: 3:20-22
Haftarah: Yeshayahu/Isaiah 1:1-27
Aliyah Rishon
Deu 1:1 These are the words which Mosheh spoke to all
Yisra’ĕl beyond the Yardĕn in the wilderness, in the desert plain opposite
Suph, between Paran and Tophel, and Laḇan, and Ḥatsĕroth, and Di Zahaḇ,
The Hebrew root word for “devarim” is
“davar” which can mean a word or a thing. The Hebrew mind is very much aware of
a concrete reality behind each word. This is not entirely true of the “Greek” (Hellenistic)
way of thinking that has deeply influenced our faith, and often seeks to
express spiritual truth in lofty concepts and abstract thought.
According to the Sifri, (midrash halachah)
the numerous place names listed here are not landmarks indicating where Moshe
spoke these words -- indeed, some of these places do not even exist as
geographical locations. Rather, these are words of rebuke by Moshe to the
people of Israel. Instead of mentioning their sins outright, he alluded to them
with these place names:
"In the desert" -- the time they
complained "if only we would have died in the desert" (Shemot/Exodus
17:3)
"In the Arava (Plain)" – their worship of
Baal Peor in the Plains of Moav (Bemidbar/Numbers 25)
"Opposite Suf" -- the trouble they made
at the shores of Yam Suf, the Red Sea (see Shemot/Exodus 14:11 and Rashi
on Shemot/Exodus 15:22)
"Paran" -- the sin of the Spies, who were
dispatched from Paran (as recounted in Bemidbar/Numbers 13 and later in our own
Parshah)
"Tofel" and "Lavan" (meaning
"libel" and "white") -- their libeling the white manna
(Bemidbar/Numbers 21:5)
"Hazerot" -- where Korach’s ministry against
Moshe took place.
"Di Zahav" (literally "too much
gold") -- the sin of the Golden Calf. (Sifri; Rashi; et al)
We
gather from these names a list of the seven deadly sins of Yisrael:
Disobedience, Murmuring, Idolatry, Unbelief, Rebellion, Ungratefulness and
finally seeking their own means of righteousness by the worship of the golden
calf.
I Co 10:11 And all these came
upon them as examples, and they were written as a warning to us, on whom the
ends of the ages have come.
Dev/Deu 1:2
eleven days’ journey from Ḥorev by way of Mount Sĕ’’r to Qaḏĕsh
Barnĕa.
What a sobering
reminder that a journey of 11 days actually took Yisrael 38 years. We too are
reminded that this pattern repeats itself again and again in our own lives. In
the wilderness we are occupied with how to survive and often don’t find enough
time to do what we prefer. The wilderness is however a time of deep reflection
over our lives and relationships.
Kadesh Barnea which is
located near present day Petra can also mean a “set apart son of desert
wondering”
Deu 1:3 And
it came to be in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of
the month, that Mosheh spoke to the children of Yisra’ĕl according to all that יהוה had commanded him concerning them,
Deu 1:4 after he
had smitten Siḥon sovereign of the Amorites, who dwelt in Ḥeshbon, and Oḡ
sovereign of Bashan, who dwelt at Ashtaroth in Eḏre’i.
Deu 1:5 Beyond the
Yardĕn, in the land of Mo’av, Mosheh undertook to declare this Torah, saying,
Deu 1:6 “יהוה our Elohim spoke to us in Ḥorĕv, saying, ‘You have dwelt long enough at this
mountain.
Deu 1:7 ‘Turn and
set out on your way, and go into the mountains of the Amorites, and to all the
neighbouring places in the desert plain, in the mountains and in the low
country, and in the Negev and on the seacoast, to the land of the Kena’anites and to Leḇanon, as far as the great
river, the River Euphrates.
The Israelites had not yet travelled as far as the
Euphrates River and this could be a veiled reference to the coming of the
Messianic age.
(The Lubavitcher Rebbe)
“The mountain we're talking about is Mount Sinai,
scene of the most monumental event in human history: YHVH's revelation of His
wisdom and will to man. Still YHVH says: "You've been hanging around this
mountain long enough. Move on!"
In our lives, we also have moments, days or years
of revelation, times when we learn and grow and are enriched. But the purpose
most always is to move on, move away, and carry the enlightenment and
enrichment to someplace else -- some corner of creation that awaits
redemption”.
Deu 1:8 ‘See, I
have set the land before you. Go in and possess the land which יהוה swore to your fathers, to Avraham,
to Yitschaq, and to Ya’aqov, to give to them and their seed after them.’
Deu 1:9 “And I
spoke to you at that time, saying, ‘I am
unable to bear you by myself.
Deu 1:10 ‘יהוה your Elohim has increased you, and
see, you are today as numerous as the stars of the heavens.
Deu 1:11 ‘יהוה Elohim of your fathers is going to
add to you a thousand times more than you are, and bless you as He has spoken
to you! (Messianic age)
We can understand from these
verses why so many today are still longing to return to the land of Yisrael. Yisrael
has not been replaced by the church. We see that a great victory will first be needed
to be secured before we can enter into the land. “Sihon” means “warrior” this
word comes from an unused root word meaning to “wipe out” we can therefore
expect fierce opposition in returning to the land, an opposition that may want
to “wipe us out” who themselves will be “wiped out” by YHVH
Bemidbar/Num
15:15 ‘One law is for you of the
assembly and for the stranger who sojourns with you – a law forever throughout your generations. As you are, so is the
stranger before יהוה.
Num 15:16 ‘One Torah and one right-ruling is for you
and for the stranger who sojourns with you.’ ”
Note also how Moshe refers to the borders of Yisrael; these
are future borders which will most probably only appear in the Messianic age.
Moshe is clearly speaking of the last days before Messiah returns.
Aliyah
Sheni 1:12-21
Deu 1:12 ‘How do I bear your pressure and your burden
and your strife, by myself?
Deu 1:13 ‘Choose men, wise and understanding, and
known to your tribes, and let me appoint them as your heads.’
“The
word va'asimaim ("and I will appoint them") is written in the
Torah lacking the letter Yud, so that the word can also be read as va'ashamam,
"and their guilt." This comes to teach us that the faults of a
generation rest with its heads and leaders”.
(Talmud;
Rashi)
(Rabbi Yosef
Yitzchok of Lubavitch)
When someone comes to a Rebbe and seeks his counsel and assistance in
dealing with a spiritual malady, the Rebbe must first find the same blemish, if
only in the most subtle of forms, in his own soul; only then can the Rebbe help
him to refine and perfect his self and character. This is the deeper
significance of that which our sages have said, "the faults of a
generation rest with its heads and leaders".
Deu 1:14 “And you answered me and said, ‘The word
which you have spoken to us to do is good.’
Deu 1:15 “And I took the heads of your tribes, wise
men and known, and made them heads over you, leaders of thousands, and leaders
of hundreds, and leaders of fifties, and leaders of tens, and officers for your
tribes.
Deu 1:16 “And I commanded your judges at that time,
saying, ‘When hearing between your brothers, judge righteously between a man
and his brother or the stranger who is with him.
Deu 1:17 ‘Do not show partiality in right-ruling, hear
the small as well as the great. Do not be afraid of anyone’s face, for the
right-ruling belongs to Elohim. And the case which is too hard for you, bring
it to me, and I shall hear it.’
Deu 1:18 “And I commanded you at that time all the
words which you should do.
Some of
the sages believe that Moshe never really had the kind of leadership support
necessary to lead B’nei Yisrael (sons of Israel) into the Promised Land. In
these last days YHVH is preparing an army of believers and leaders who are
becoming more and more uncompromising on issues of Torah observance, deep
repentance and refusal to mix pagan customs with the true worship of YHVH.
There is
a great reward awaiting these faithful persevering believers.
Aliyah
Shlishi 1:22-38
The sages have no doubt that the events of
the exodus will repeat themselves again in the generations to follow. I believe
it is possible that there will once again be a window of opportunity for an end
time generation to return to the land of Yisrael. There will be negative spies
to warn of all the dangers. This time however many will make use of a unique
end time opportunity to return to the land. YHVH will provide and only those
who will take a huge step of faith and CROSS OVER will receive their
inheritance.
Those
who refuse to enter may find themselves in an extremely hostile wilderness of
the great tribulation. The “rapture” (the lifting up in the air to meet Yahshua “immediately
after the distress of those days – Matt 24:29,30) may only be a brief event
that will follow at the end of the great tribulation.
Devarim/Deu 1:22 “And all of you came near to me and said,
‘Let us send men before us, and let them search out the land for us, and bring
back word to us of the way by which we should go up, and of the cities into
which we would come.’
Deu 1:23 “And the matter was good in my eyes, so I
took twelve of your men, one man from each tribe.
Deu 1:24 “And they turned and went up into the
mountains, and came to the wadi Eshkol, and spied it out.
Deu 1:25 “And they took some of the fruit of the land
in their hands and brought it down to us. And they brought back word to us,
saying, ‘The land which יהוה our Elohim is giving us is good.’
Deu 1:26 “But you
would not go up and rebelled against the mouth of יהוה your Elohim,
Deu 1:27 and
grumbled in your tents, and said, ‘Because יהוה was hating us, He has brought us out of the land of Mitsrayim
to give us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us.
Deu 1:28 ‘Where
are we going to? Our brothers have made our hearts melt, saying, “The people
are greater and taller than we, the cities are great and walled up to the
heavens, and we saw the sons of the Anaqim there too.” ’
Deu 1:29 “Then I
said to you, ‘Have no dread or fear of them.
Deu 1:30 ‘יהוה your Elohim, who is going before
you, He does fight for you, according to all He did for you in Mitsrayim before
your eyes,
Deu 1:31 and in
the wilderness, where you saw how יהוה your Elohim has borne you, as a man
bears his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.’
Deu 1:32 “Yet in
this matter you are putting no trust in יהוה your Elohim,
Deu 1:33 who is
going before you in the way to seek out a place for you to pitch your tents, to
show you the way you should go, in fire by night and in a cloud by day.
Deu 1:34 “And יהוה heard the voice of your words, and
was wroth, and took an oath, saying,
Deu 1:35 ‘Not one
of these men of this evil generation shall see that good land of which I swore
to give to your fathers,
Deu 1:36 except
Kalĕḇ son of Yephunneh. He shall see it, and to him and his children I give
the land on which he walked, because he followed יהוה completely.’
Deu 1:37 “And יהוה was enraged with me for your sakes,
saying, ‘You do not go in there, either.
Deu 1:38 ‘Yehoshua
the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there. Strengthen him,
for he shall cause Yisra’ĕl to inherit.
Aliyah
Reviee 1:39-2:1
This
aliyah could be addressing an end time generation who failed to return to the
land because of safety concerns they had for themselves and their families. The
consequence of their lack of trust will be that the thing they feared will come
upon them. They came very close to enter into the land but at the last moment
refused to enter and were turned back to face a very hostile and uncertain
future with no guarantee of safety.
Deu 1:39 ‘And your little ones and your children, who you say are for a prey, who today
have no knowledge of good and evil, they are going in there. And to them I give
it, and they are to possess it.
Deu 1:40 ‘But
you, turn and take your journey into the wilderness by the Way of the Sea of
Reeds.’
Deu 1:41 “Then you answered and
said to me, ‘We have sinned against יהוה. We ourselves are going up, and we
shall fight, as יהוה our Elohim commanded us.’ And when
each one of you had girded on his battle gear, you were ready to go up into the
mountain.
Deu 1:42 “And יהוה said to me, ‘Say to them, “Do not
go up nor fight, for I am not in your midst, lest you be smitten before your
enemies.” ’
Deu 1:43 “So I
spoke to you, but you would not listen and rebelled against the mouth of יהוה, and acted proudly, and went up
into the mountain.
Deu 1:44 “Then the
Amorites who dwelt in that mountain came out against you and chased you as bees
do, and drove you back from Sĕ’ir to Ḥormah (devoted to utter destruction).
Deu 1:45 “And you
returned and wept before יהוה, but יהוה would not listen to your voice nor
give ear to you.
Deu 1:46 “So you
dwelt in Qaḏĕsh many days, according to the days that you dwelt.
Deu 2:1
“Then we turned and set out into the wilderness, the way of the Sea of
Reeds, as יהוה spoke to me, and we went round Mount Sĕ’ir, many days.
Aliyah
Chamishi 2:2-2:30
During the great tribulation when end time believers discover
that they have not been raptured they will find important information in this
and the following aliyah’s to survive and understand the great tribulation.
Many believers seeing their error to not enter into the land will be grieved
but they will have to endure the wilderness for a short season before they will
be given another opportunity. It is possible that many will die in the process.
Rev 13:7 And it was given to him to fight with the
set-apart ones and to overcome them. And authority was given to him over every
tribe and tongue and nation.