Parshat 32/ Parashat 33 - Behar – Bechukotai

Parashat 32 -  Behar – “on  the mountain” Vayikra/Lev 25:1 – 26:2.

One of the single most significant events of all time was the giving of the Torah.

The coming of the “Moshiach” was the confirmation of this event.

Ivrim/Heb 10:7  “Then I said, ‘See, I come – in the roll of the book (Torah) it has been written concerning Me – to do Your desire, O Elohim.’ ”

 

       The message of the Moshiach and the message of Moshe is One and the same message.

      In fact when Messiah returns, he will teach the Torah from Mount Tzion in Yerushalayim to all nations.

        Yeshayahu/Isa 2:2  And it shall be in the latter days that the mountain of the House of יהוה is established on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills. And all nations shall flow to it.

       Isa 2:3  And many peoples shall come and say, “Come, and let us go up to the mountain of יהוה, to the House of the Elohim of Ya’aqov, and let Him teach¹ us His ways¹, and let us walk in His paths¹, for out of Tsiyon comes forth the Torah¹, and the Word¹ of יהוה from Yerushalayim.” Footnote: ¹His ways, His paths, the teaching and the Word of יהוה are used synonymously.

The sages note that Moshe has returned to Mount Sinai to receive this very important instruction about the “shmittah’ and the ‘yovel” years. YHVH did not speak to Moshe from the Tabernacle but from Mount Sinai regarding these instructions. It was like YHVH had something very important to say and He wanted Moshe to hear it on Mount Sinai. The importance of the words of these instructions is repeated in the last verse in the book of Vayikra:

 Vayiqra/Lev 27:34  These are the commands which יהוה commanded Mosheh for the children of Yisra’ĕl on Mount Sinai.

Mount Tzion and Mount Sinai will always remain the two pivotal centers for the proclamation of YHVH’s Truth to all nations and the messages will never change or contradict each other. The Word and the Spirit will always go together.

The message of this Torah portion clearly implies that YHVH is the owner and creator of all things and we are merely the tenants who are called to exercise faithful stewardship over His land and His people, and when we obey these instructions we will truly begin to live in freedom.

Just as at Mt. Sinai the trumpet blast called the redeemed community to receive the Torah (on the first Shavuot), so the trumpet blast of the Jubilee Year also calls us back to our roots of freedom. During this time of the counting of the Omer we are one again counting the 49 +1 days ( 50 days) to the receiving of our freedom, the giving of the Torah as well as the receiving of Ruach Ha Kodesh at Shavuot (Pentecost).

Ya’akov/James 1:25  But he that looked into the perfect Torah, that of freedom,¹ and continues in it, not becoming a hearer that forgets, but a doer of work, this one shall be blessed in his doing of the Torah. Footnote: ¹See 2:12.

Yes/Isa 56:6  “Also the sons of the foreigner who join themselves to יהוה, to serve Him, and to love the Name of יהוה, to be His servants, all who guard the Sabbath, and not profane it, and hold fast to My covenant –

Isa 56:7  them I shall bring to My set-apart mountain, and let them rejoice in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their slaughterings are accepted on My altar, for My house is called a house of prayer for all the peoples.”

Isa 56:8  The Master יהוה, who gathers the outcasts of Yisra’ĕl, declares, “I gather still others to him besides those who are gathered to him.”

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,

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.      25:1-13

2.      25:14-18

3.      25:19-24

4.      25:25-28

5.      25:29-38

6.      25:39-46

7.      25:47-54

8.      Maftir: 25:55 – 26:2

Haftarah: Jeremiah 32:6-27

Aliyah Rishon 25:1-13

Lev 25:1  And יהוה spoke to Mosheh on Mount Sinai, saying,

Lev 25:2  “Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl, and say to them, ‘When you come into the land which I give you, then the land shall observe a Sabbath to יהוה.

These opening verses seem to imply that the first thing that happens when Yisrael returns to the land, they enjoy a one year sabbatical rest.

This seems to be the Hebraic way of doing things – first we rest then we work -  We normally switch the order around. The sages teach us in this regard that our hearts first rest before they beat. This shows us the importance of reflecting and meditating before we start acting and doing.

It is in these times of rest that we learn the importance of obedience and how to please YHVH in all our actions.

It is in these times we learn one of the most important lessons in life – when to do and when not to do –

The concept of “Shemittah” (resting the land every seventh year) implies that we withdraw from the land.

The sages also believe that YHVH began His creation of existence--including the creation of time—on a Yom Rishon (Sunday), which is called the "First Day." The sages believe that there was a primordial Shabbat which preceded creation--a Shabbat existing not in time but in the mind of YHVH as a vision of a completed and perfected world.

Lev 25:3  ‘Six years you sow your field, and six years you prune your vineyard, and gather in its fruit,

Lev 25:4  but in the seventh year the land is to have a Sabbath of rest, a Sabbath to יהוה. Do not sow your field and do not prune your vineyard.

Lev 25:5  ‘Do not reap what grows of its own of your harvest, and do not gather the grapes of your unpruned vine, for it is a year of rest for the land.

“In verse 3 we read: "You shall sow your field six years, and you shall prune your vineyard six years, and shall gather its produce." "Produce", or "fruit" is "t'vua", of the root “bo” (vet/bet, vav, alef), meaning to "come, come in or go in"; but also, in another conjugation, to "bring". Thus, the term "produce" does not convey the idea of something, which results naturally from man's own productivity or effort, but rather it is that which "comes" or is "brought" to him from an outside source. (In other words we don’t cause fruit to grow)
Some of the types of un-gathered harvest mentioned here include "unpruned vine” (v. 5, 11), called here "ee'nvey ("grapes of") nezire'cha". The latter term is rooted in the word "nazir" which is the Nazarite, whose restrictive vows included abstention from wine drinking or eating grapes. Why, then, are these grapes qualified by the term "nazir"? The connection is thought to be the Nazarite's hair, which was to be left uncut and unkempt, much like these grapes. This is reinforced by the first part of the verse, which speaks of "that which grows of itself". These two prohibitions (namely, "to reap that which grows of itself" and to "not gather the grapes of your unkempt vine") no doubt refer to harvesting for profit making”.
Perhaps one the most important reasons one took a Nazarite vow was because such a one did everything they could to follow and walk in the Torah but realized that in many areas of this walk they were of themselves unable to so. In desperation they “withdrew” from all forms of “self -effort” and cast themselves on the mercy of YHVH to do for them what they could not do for themselves. Somehow they wanted to rest in YHVH’s Ruach and allow Him to do for them what they could not do for themselves. They wanted the Word to have its full impact upon their lives without their interference.
The Hebrew words “Natzareth, netser and nazir” are significantly connected with our Messiah. He came from “Natzareth” which can mean “guarded,” he was also described as from the root (netzer) of David and he was a “nazir” he was like one who was separated.
Yochanan/Joh 5:19  Therefore יהושע responded and said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son is able to do none at all by Himself, but only that which He sees the Father doing, because whatever He does, the Son also likewise does.

Lev 25:6  ‘And the Sabbath of the land shall be to you for food, for you and your servant, and for your female servant and your hired servant, and for the stranger who sojourns with you,

Lev 25:7  and for your livestock and the beasts that are in your land. All its crops are for food.

Lev 25:8  ‘And you shall count seven Sabbaths of years for yourself, seven times seven years. And the time of the seven Sabbaths of years shall be to you forty-nine years.

Lev 25:9  ‘You shall then sound a ram’s horn to pass through on the tenth day of the seventh month, on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) cause a ram’s horn to pass through all your land.

Lev 25:10  ‘And you shall set the fiftieth year apart, and proclaim release throughout all the land to all its inhabitants, it is a Jubilee for you. And each of you shall return to his possession, and each of you return to his clan.

Lev 25:11  ‘The fiftieth year is a Jubilee to you. Do not sow, nor reap what grows of its own, nor gather from its unpruned vine.

Lev 25:12  ‘It is a Jubilee, it is set-apart to you. Eat from the field its crops.

Lev 25:13  ‘In the Year of this Jubilee let each one of you return to his possession.

We need to consider the agricultural impact of leaving the lands fallow for one year as was the case with the “shmittah” and two years as was the case with the “yovel” or year of jubilee. (Why two years by the Yovel year? The 49^th year will also be the Shmittah year of the  7^th year of the 49year cycle and thus the 49^th year will be a Shabbat year and then the 50^th year will be the “yovel” year of rest). In both cases one would only be able to harvest a crop after two years (Shmitta) and three years (Yovel) respectively. It served as a reminder that only YHVH could sustain these “missing harvests” due to the absence of sowing the lands (see vs 21) .

This serves as one of the greatest lessons to teach us that there are certain things in this life that we will never be able to accomplish without His help and intercession.

Some of the modern Jewish scholars believe that the year 5768 was a “shmittah” year. That would imply that the 2014 would be the following “shmittah”. According to forecasts given by “nasa” some interesting lunar activity will occur in the year 2014.

It is said that four lunar eclipses will occur on:

Pesach/Passover, April 15, 2014
Sukkot/The Feast of Tabernacles, October 8, 2014
Pesach/Passover, April 4, 2015 and
Sukkot/The Feast of Tabernacles, September 28, 2015

Aliyah Sheni 25:14-18

Lev 25:14  ‘And when you sell whatever to your neighbour or buy from the hand of your neighbour, do not exploit one another.

Lev 25:15  ‘According to the number of years after the Jubilee you buy from your neighbour, and according to the number of years of crops he sells to you.

Lev 25:16  ‘According to the greater number of years you increase its price, and according to the fewer number of years you diminish its price, because he sells to you according to the number of the years of the crops.

Lev 25:17  ‘And do not oppress one another, but you shall fear your Elohim. For I am יהוה your Elohim.

Lev 25:18  ‘And you shall do My laws and guard My right-rulings, and shall do them. And you shall dwell in the land in safety,

Every 48^th year (48 is the gematria of “yovel” or jubilee) you have two years vacation and now not only are your debts written off but your lost inheritance and ancestral property is returned to you if you had lost it through some failed commercial venture and misfortune.

Yahshua came to proclaim the year of Jubilee.

Isa 61:1  The Spirit of the Master יהוה is upon Me, because יהוה has anointed Me to bring good news to the meek. He has sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim release to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound,

Isa 61:2  to proclaim the acceptable year of יהוה

Many believe Messiah will return during a year of Jubilee on the day of Yom Kippur.

Aliyah Shlishi 25:19-24

Lev 25:19  ‘and the land shall yield its fruit, and you shall eat to satisfaction, and shall dwell there in safety.

Lev 25:20  ‘And since you might say, “What do we eat in the seventh year, since we do not sow nor gather in our crops?”

Lev 25:21  ‘Therefore I have commanded My blessing on you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth the crop for three years.

Lev 25:22  ‘And you shall sow in the eighth year, and eat of the old crop until the ninth year. Eat of the old until its crop comes in.

Lev 25:23  ‘And the land is not to be sold beyond reclaim, for the land is Mine, for you are sojourners and settlers with Me.

Lev 25:24  ‘And provide for a redemption for the land, in all the land of your possession.

Aliyah Reviee 25:25-28

Lev 25:25  ‘When your brother becomes poor, and has sold some of his possession, and his redeemer, a close relative comes to redeem it, then he shall redeem what his brother sold.

The Hebrew implies that the brother himself may have been sold. This once again reminds us that there were consequences to our actions. Debt was only written off during a Jubilee, until such a time YOU REMAINED ACCOUNTABLE FOR MAKING BAD DECISIONS, and could be redeemed by some kind relative, otherwise you had to pay back your debt even if it meant selling yourself to your creditors. Today we simply declare ourselves insolvent and start again.

Every person would experience at least one Jubilee in their lives. So each person would have at least one chance to start all over again.

Lev 25:26  ‘And when the man has no one to redeem it, but he himself becomes able to redeem it,

Lev 25:27  then let him count the years since its sale, and return the remainder to the man to whom he sold it, that he shall return to his possession.

Lev 25:28  ‘And if his hand has not found enough to give back to him, then what was sold shall remain in the hand of him who bought it until the Year of Jubilee. And it shall be released in the Jubilee, and he shall return to his possession.

Aliyah Chamishi 25:29-38

Lev 25:29  ‘And when a man sells a house in a walled city, then his right of redemption shall be at the end of the year after it is sold. His right of redemption lasts a year.

Lev 25:30  ‘But if it is not redeemed within a complete year, then the house in the walled city shall be established beyond reclaim to the buyer of it, throughout his generations. It is not released in the Jubilee.

Lev 25:31  ‘The houses of villages, however, which have no wall around them are reckoned as the field of the country. A right of redemption belongs to it, and they are released in the Jubilee.

Lev 25:32  ‘As for the cities of the Lĕwites, and the houses in the cities of their possession, the Lĕwites have a right of redemption forever.

Lev 25:33  ‘And that which is redeemed from the Lĕwites, both the sale of a house and the city of his possession shall be released in the Year of Jubilee, because the houses in the cities of the Lĕwites are their possession in the midst of the children of Yisra’ĕl.

Lev 25:34  ‘But the field of the open land of their cities is not sold, for it is their everlasting possession.

Lev 25:35  ‘And when your brother becomes poor, and his hand has failed with you, then you shall sustain him, and he shall live with you, like a stranger or a sojourner.

Lev 25:36  ‘Take no interest from him, or profit, but you shall fear your Elohim, and your brother shall live with you.

Lev 25:37  ‘Do not lend him your silver on interest, and do not lend him your food for profit.

Lev 25:38  ‘I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, to give you the land of Kenaʽan, to be your Elohim.

Aliyah Shishi 25:39-46

Lev 25:39  ‘And when your brother who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, do not make him serve as a slave.

Lev 25:40  ‘But as a hired servant, as a settler he is with you, and serves you until the Year of Jubilee.

Lev 25:41  ‘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.

Lev 25:42  ‘For they are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Mitsrayim, they are not sold as slaves.

Lev 25:43  ‘Do not rule over him with harshness, but you shall fear your Elohim.

Lev 25:44  ‘And your male and female slaves whom you have from the nations that are around you, from them you buy male and female slaves,

Lev 25:45  and also from the sons of the strangers sojourning among you, from them you buy, and from their clans who are with you, which they shall bring forth in your land, and they shall be your property.

Lev 25:46  ‘And you shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession, they are your slaves for all time. But over your brothers, the children of Yisra’ĕl, you do not rule with harshness, one over another.

Aliyah Sheviee 25:47-26:2

Lev 25:47  ‘Now when a sojourner or a settler with you becomes rich, and your brother with him becomes poor, and sells himself to the settler or sojourner with you, or to a member of the sojourner’s clan,

Lev 25:48  after he has been sold, there is a right of redemption to him – one of his brothers does redeem him,

Lev 25:49  or his uncle or his uncle’s son does redeem him, or anyone who is a close relative to him in his clan does redeem him, or if he is able, then he shall redeem himself.

Lev 25:50  ‘And he shall reckon with him who bought him: The price of his release shall be according to the number of years, from the year that he was sold to him until the Year of Jubilee; as the days of a hired servant it is with him.

Lev 25:51  ‘If there are yet many years, according to them he repays the price of his redemption, from the silver of his purchase.

Lev 25:52  ‘And if few years are left until the Year of Jubilee, then he shall reckon with him, and according to his years he repays him the price of his redemption.