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.)
This week’s Torah portion reminds us in one of the
strongest possible ways how fragile the Hebrew community really is.
Perhaps there is an unrealistic expectation among those who desire to seek and embrace the Hebraic restoration of the faith.
The sooner we come to terms with the fact that this
restoration is far from complete and is filled with many contradictions and
inconsistencies within its Hebrew family, the more shalom we will have.
We are encouraged however that there will be a
restoration of all things before Messiah returns.
Act 3:19 “Repent therefore and turn back, for the
blotting out of your sins, in order that times of refreshing might come from
the presence of the Master,
Act 3:20 and that He sends יהושע Messiah, pre-appointed for you,
Act 3:21 whom
heaven needs to receive until the times of restoration of all matters,
of which Elohim spoke through the mouth of all His set-apart prophets since of
old.
Before Messiah returns we can safely assume there is
going to be a lot of repentance and a lot of restoration.
This
Greek word for “restoration” refers to “put back again” and implies a
reconstitution or restitution of the government of YHVH’s Torah.
Let
us closely examine the beginnings of our Hebrew roots:
Beresheer/Gen 29:31 And יהוה saw that Lĕ’ah was unloved, and He opened her womb, but Raḥĕl was
barren.
From the very outset we can easily see the beginnings of
an extremely dysfunctional family.
One man, two wives and two concubines; one wife was
barren and the other unloved.
Gen 29:32 And Lĕ’ah conceived and bore a son,
and she called his name Re’uḇĕn, for she said, “For יהוה has looked on my affliction,
because now my husband is going to love me.”
Gen 29:33 And she
conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because יהוה has
heard that I am unloved, He gave me this son too.” And she called his name Shim’on.
Gen 29:34 And she
conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband is joined
to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So his name was called Lĕwi.
Gen 29:35 And she
conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now I praise יהוה.” So she
called his name Yehuḏah. And she ceased bearing.
Let us engage in a little midrash on these sons.
We know that the 12 gates of the New Yerusahalyim are
named after these 12 sons and they are the leaders of the 12 tribes of Yisrael.
Let’s not get too spiritual about this family. Let us
consider what was really going on in this household.
Reuven loses
his birthright because he tries to usurp his father’s authority by having
sexual intercourse with one his father’s concubines.
Shimeon and
Levi also lose the birthright because of their violence and murder of all the
males of Shechem.
Yehudah the
carrier of the Messianic line takes a Canaanite wife who dies (Beresheet 38:2)
Yehudah is eventually deceived by his daughter in law who poses as a prostitute
to continue the family line. Twins were born to Tamar and the Messianic
bloodline continued through Peretz.
Our experience and observation may prove that we have
been born again, we have seen the Son (Reuven), we may even hear (Shimeon) and
be joined to YHVH (Levi) and praise Him in all circumstances (Yehudah) but that
doesn’t mean that our lives are not filled with massive contradictions and
moral failures.
The church has not only sought to replace Yisrael but has
also created its own “Torah” and then measures her own performance according to
the rules and regulations of this “Torah.”
How would the average church council handle this kind of
behavior from its members?
Gen 30:1 And when Raḥĕl saw that she bore
Ya’aqoḇ no children, Raḥĕl envied her sister,
and said to Ya’aqoḇ, “Give me children,
or else I am going to die!”
Gen 30:2 And
Ya’aqoḇ’s displeasure burned
against Raḥĕl, and he said, “Am I
in the place of Elohim, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”
Gen 30:3 And
she said, “See, my female servant Bilhah; go in to her, and let her bear for
me, and let me be built up from her as well.”
Gen 30:4 So
she gave him Bilhah her female servant as wife, and Ya’aqoḇ went in to her.
Gen 30:5 And
Bilhah conceived and bore Ya’aqoḇ a son.
Gen 30:6 And
Raḥĕl said, “Elohim has
rightly ruled my case, and has also heard my voice and given me a son.” So she
called his name Dan.
Gen 30:7 And
Raḥĕl’s female servant
Bilhah conceived again and bore Ya’aqoḇ a second son.
Gen 30:8 And
Raḥĕl said, “With great
wrestlings I have wrestled with my sister, and I have overcome.” So she called
his name Naphtali.
Dan’s name means “judgement” We see that there are
times when YHVH will judge in our favour and sometimes He does not and
unrighteousness seems to prevail.
Then like
Naphtali you may think you have prevailed, but in reality you have not
prevailed.
Mat 5:23 “If, then, you bring your gift to the altar,
and there remember that your brother holds whatever against you,
Mat 5:24 leave your gift there before the altar, and
go, first make peace with your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
Mat 5:25 “Be well-minded with your opponent, promptly,
while you are on the way with him, lest your opponent deliver you to the judge,
and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.
Agree with (ἴσθι εὐνοῶν) Lit., be well-minded toward; inclined to satisfy by paying or
compromising.
You can win an
argument but lose a friend forever. We must learn when to pursue justice and
when not to.
We must also
learn how to come to terms with great reversals and set- backs in our lives.
This is what happens when we become part of the Yisraelite family.
Gen 30:9 And Lĕ’ah
saw that she had ceased bearing, and she took Zilpah her female servant and
gave her to Ya’aqoḇ as wife.
Gen 30:10
And Lĕ’ah’s female servant Zilpah bore Ya’aqoḇ a son.
Gen 30:11
And Lĕ’ah said, “With Gaḏ!”
So she called his name Gaḏ.
Gen 30:12
And Lĕ’ah’s female servant Zilpah bore Yaʽaqoḇ a second son.
Gen 30:13 And Lĕ’ah said, “I am blessed, for the
daughters shall call me blessed.” So she called his name Ashĕr.
Now Leah also gives her concubine to Yakov to produce children. Leah
thought this time these children would bring “favour and contentment” yet we
see later this was not the case.
Gen 30:14 And Re’uḇĕn
went in the days of wheat harvest and found love-apples in the field, and
brought them to his mother Lĕ’ah. And Raḥĕl
said to Lĕ’ah, “Please give me some of your son’s love-apples.”
Gen 30:15
But she said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my
husband? Would you take away my son’s love-apples too?” And Raḥĕl said, “Therefore
let him lie with you tonight for your son’s love-apples.”
Gen 30:16
And when Ya’aqoḇ came out of the field
in the evening, Lĕ’ah went out to meet him and said, “Do come in to me, for
indeed, I have hired you with my son’s love-apples.” And he lay with her that
night.
Gen 30:17
And Elohim listened to Lĕ’ah, and she conceived and bore Ya’aqoḇ a fifth son.
Gen 30:18
And Lĕ’ah said, “Elohim has given me my hire, because I have given my
female servant to my husband.” So she called his name Yissasḵar.
Gen 30:19
And Lĕ’ah conceived again and bore Ya’aqoḇ a sixth son.
Gen 30:20
And Lĕ’ah said, “Elohim has presented me with a good present. Now my
husband is going to dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” So she
called his name Zeḇulun.
Gen 30:21
And afterward she bore a daughter, and called her name Dinah.
Leah strikes a bargain with Rachel so that she may
have intercourse with her husband. Rachel may have been willing because “love
apples” may have been a kind of aphrodisiac and she may have felt that this would
be a way to assist her in falling pregnant.
“
Mandrakes were thought of as aphrodisiacs and fertility aids, and were
sometimes called “love apples,” and therefore were much desired. The mandrake
produced a beautiful flower and a desirable red fruit, and the tuber or root
was similar to a potato, but was shaped with shoots like arms and legs that
made it look similar to a human body.”
Yissaskar
means “this is my hire” and Zevulun
means “good endowment.”
The question remains however if Leah truly received
the fruit of all her labours while she was still alive.
Restoration.
All of the Torah points us to Messiah – only in him
will completeness and restoration of all things come.
In Reuven – see the Son of Man will hear (Shimeon)
YHVH and will be joined to Him (Levi). The Son causes everything that has
breath to praise YHVH (Yehudah).
YHVH will appoint His son to bring judgment on all
matters (Dan) and Messiah will prevail and overcome the evil one on our behalf
(Naphtali)
Fortune and favour (Gad) will be poured out on all
mankind because of Messiah that will bring contentment (Asher) to those who
come to the Father through him. Those in Messiah will receive great reward
(Yissaskar) and will be content with their portion (Zevulun).
There are some Messianic leaders who believe that
the restoration of the Patriarchal family will play a key role in the
restoration of all things in the last days.
Our Hebraic family started with a patriarchal
family and may well find a fulfilment there again.
This does not mean that all Messianic Hebraic
families will be polygynous, it does however imply that polygynous type
families may well return again.
This idea is vehemently opposed by the church and
much of modern society. One needs to question the source of this spirit.
There does seem to be a small group of woman who
are willing to embrace this kind of lifestyle should it be so required to bring
about the establishing of the kingdom of YHVH on earth and usher in the return
of Messiah.
“Baruch atah YHVH,
Eloheynu, Melech ha-‘Olam, asher natan lanu Toraht-emet, v’chay-yeh o’lam
nata-b’tochenu. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Blessed are you Yahweh,
our Elohim, King of the Universe, you have given us your Torah of truth, and
have planted everlasting life within our midst. Blessed are you, Yahweh giver
of the Torah – Ameyn)
Please note these notes
are under construction and are subject to correction and are in no way a final
authority on any subject.
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