Blessing
for the Torah Reading:
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.)
This Torah portion reminds us
once again that in our own strength and understanding we will not be able to
come into the presence of YHVH, nor accomplish His purposes in our lives. We
need intercessors.
1Co 1:29 so that no flesh should boast in His
presence.
Yahshua spoke these words in
Matityahu 5:3
אשרי עניי רוח כי
להם מלכות השמים׃
Mat 5:3
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, because theirs is the reign of the
heavens.
According to a commentary the word “poor”
can mean “to crouch like a helpless beggar” This word provides an image of
someone in abject poverty, totally dependent on others for help.
Yahshua’s sermon on the mount reveals the
heart of one who has truly embraced the Torah of YHVH.
This Torah portion reveals once again the substance
of true intercession.
If we reject the Torah we reject the very
foundations upon which mediation is made available to us.
Pro 28:9
He who turns away his ear from hearing the Torah, Even his prayer is an
abomination1. Footnote: 1See also 15:29, Isa. 59:1-2,
John 9:31, 1 John 3:22.
If this is true of us how much more for
those who are called to be intercessors.
Isa 43:11 “I, I am יהוה, and besides
Me there is no saviour.
Saviour –“Moshiah”
Psa 98:1 Sing to יהוה a new song! For He has done wonders; His right hand and His
set-apart arm Have brought Him deliverance.
YHVH
chose a Mediator to make this redemption a reality. Yahshua acknowledges that
YHVH and YHVH alone has the power to save and so Yahshua offers up himself to
make this known and available to those who will receive the redemption of YHVH.
1Ti 2:5
For there is one Elohim,1 and one Mediator between Elohim and
men, the Man Messiah יהושע, Foornote: 11
Cor. 8:6, Eph. 4:6, Mk. 12:29-34.1Ti
2:6 who gave Himself a ransom for all,
to be witnessed in its own seasons,
1Co 8:5 For even if there are so-called mighty ones,
whether in heaven or on earth – as there are many mighty ones and many masters
–
1Co 8:6 for us there is one Elohim,1 the
Father, from whom all came and for whom we live, and one Master יהושע Messiah,
through whom all came and through whom we live. Footnote: 1Eph.
4:6, 1 Tim. 2:5, Mk. 12:32,34.
Gal 3:20 The Mediator, however, is not of one, but
Elohim is one.
Lit Greek – “The mediator of one is not but
Elohim is one.”
There are many different views on
the above scripture. I believe Yahshua is not One because he could not operate
on or by his own agenda – he came in the volume of the book – Torah –
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.
Contrary to Trinitarian teaching
Yahshua exists because YHVH caused him to exist. Yahshua’s existence was
planned by YHVH before the foundation of the world.
Yahshua’s very name means “Yahveh
is my salvation” or “salvation of Yah/Yahveh”. Yahshua and Yahshua alone is the
Chosen Mediator to bring us into the salvation of Yahveh.
Jud 1:3 Beloved ones, making all haste to write to
you concerning our common deliverance, I felt the necessity to write to you
urging you to earnestly contend for the belief which was once for all delivered
to the set-apart ones.
Jud 1:4 For certain men have slipped in, whose
judgment was written about long ago, wicked ones1 perverting the
favour of our Elohim for indecency, and denying the only Master יהוה and our Master
יהושע Messiah. Footnote: 1See Mt. 13,
2 Thess. 2.
Greek “contend” means to struggle
exceedingly to gain the prize….
This is the belief: Without mediation we are lost, without recognizing
our need for mediation we are in a pitiful spiritual condition.
It is going to cost us – parable
of the 10 virgins. It may be too late for some – this kind of truth cannot be
gained overnight – it takes a much longer time of perseverance and patience and
dedication to surrender your life to the Mediator of the faith and be
transformed into his image. Religion will deceive us to believe that somehow we
can make it on our own.
The events of our parasha clearly
portray Mount Sinai as the model after which the Mishkan and then the Beit Ha
Mikdash (tabernacle and temple) would be constructed. There are three distinct
zones in our parasha; the foot of the mountain; an intermediate ascent upon the
mountain and the top of the mountain where the presence of YHVH resided,
covered by a thick cloud. The people remain at the foot of the mountain while
representatives of the people ascend to the intermediate area or zone. Moshe
alone continues to ascend to the top of the mountain where he alone speaks to
YHVH. These three zones compare to the courtyard of the tabernacle where the
people came; the Set Apart place of the tabernacle where only the priests
served and finally the most set apart place where only the High Priest entered
into once a year. It was now on this most set apart place on top of the mount
Sinai where the initial enactment of YHVH covenant would become a pattern for
His redemptive plan throughout the ages for mankind.
So Shaul/ Paul gives us an answer
for why we need the Torah:
Gal 3:19
Why, then, the Torah? It was added because of transgressions, until the
Seed should come to whom the promise was made. And it was ordained through
messengers in the hand of a mediator.
The words “because of transgressions” has
been misunderstood as to mean the “punishment of transgression” However what
Paul is saying is the Torah covenant is given “with regard to transgressions”
that is that this is the way that YHVH deals with our transgressions – all
pointing to the ultimate offering of Messiah as our atonement.
Our Torah portion begins.
Exo 24:1 And to Mosheh He said, “Come up to יהוה, you and
Aharon, Naḏaḇ and Aḇihu, and seventy of the elders of Yisra’ĕl, and you shall
bow yourselves from a distance.
Exo 24:2 “But
Mosheh shall draw near to יהוה by himself,
and let them not draw near, nor let the people go up with him.”
Exo 24:3 And
Mosheh came and related to the people all the Words of יהוה and all the right-rulings. And all the
people answered with one voice and said, “All the Words which יהוה has spoken we shall do.”
These words refer to the words given in the previous two
parashiot – the ten words – aseret divrot -
and the right rulings – mishpatim.
Exo 24:4 And
Mosheh wrote down all the Words of יהוה, and rose up
early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and
twelve standing columns for the twelve tribes of Yisra’ĕl.
Note the words are given to YYisrael – the renewed
covenant is once again only made with YYisrael – (Yer 31:33)
Let us remind ourselves that YHVH did not make these
covenants with the church. He made them with YYisrael and all those who are
called to be grafted into YYisrael.
Eph 2:11 Therefore remember that you, once gentiles1
in the flesh, who are called ‘the uncircumcision’ by what is called ‘the
circumcision’ made in the flesh by hands, Footnote: 11 Cor. 12:2.
Eph 2:12 that at that time you were without Messiah,
excluded from the citizenship of Yisra’ĕl and strangers from the covenants of
promise, having no expectation and without Elohim in the world.
Eph 2:13 But now in Messiah יהושע you who once
were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah.
Eph 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and
foreigners, but fellow citizens with the set-apart ones and members of the
household of Elohim,1 Footnote: 1Rom. 11:17-24, Isa.
14:1.
The church was never meant to be some new innovation
separated from its Hebraic root.
And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All
the Words which יהוה has spoken we
shall do.”
There is a view that the people who uttered these words
did so brashly not realizing that they would never be able to keep them. There
is another view that they uttered these words of agreement because they knew
that MEDIATION formed one of the key elements of the covenant. They understood
from the very beginning that the Torah taught that if you lost your way there
was instruction on how to make teshuvah and find your way back to the heart of
YHVH.
Exo 24:5 And he
sent young men of the children of Yisra’ĕl, and they offered burnt offerings
and slaughtered peace slaughterings of bulls to יהוה.
Exo 24:6 And
Mosheh took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he
sprinkled on the altar.
Exo 24:7 And he
took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they
said, “All that יהוה has spoken we
shall do, and obey.”
Exo 24:8 And
Mosheh took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “See, the blood
of the covenant which יהוה has made with
you concerning all these Words.”
The blood always pointed to mediation and ultimately to
the Mediator himself – Yahshua. Half of the blood was sprinkled on the words of
the covenant and the other half on the people. YHVH reminding us that no
covenant can be made without blood and that the people in being sprinkled with
blood acknowledged they themselves had to receive the blood of the covenant to
be able to have atonement of sin.
Heb 9:16 For where a covenant is, it is necessary for
the death of the covenanted one to be established.
Heb 9:19 For when, according to Torah, every command
had been spoken by Mosheh to all the people, he took the blood of calves and
goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book
itself and all the people,
Heb 9:20 saying, “This is the blood of the covenant
which Elohim commanded you.”
Heb 9:21 And in the same way he sprinkled with blood
both the Tent and all the vessels of the service.
Heb 9:22 And, according to the Torah, almost all is
cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
Heb 10:28 Anyone who has disregarded(Greek means
unplacing or repudiating – arorist active) the Torah of Mosheh dies without
compassion on the witness of two or three witnesses.
Heb 10:29 How much worse punishment do you think shall
he deserve who has trampled the Son of Elohim underfoot, counted the blood of
the covenant by which he was set apart as common, and insulted the Spirit of
favour?
Many people today who
call themselves believers scorn the reintroduction of the temple service and
the offerings. There seems to be an attitude that this was once necessary but
no longer required. This is a grave error and ignores the critical issue that
without mediation we cannot receive the progressive working of His atonement
nor ever come into the presence of YHVH.
Exo 24:9 And
Mosheh went up, also Aharon, Naḏaḇ, and Aḇihu, and seventy of the elders of Yisra’ĕl,
Exo 24:10 and they
saw the Elohim of Yisra’ĕl, and under His feet like a paved work of sapphire
stone, and like the heavens for brightness.
Exo 24:11 Yet He
did not stretch out His hand against the chiefs of the children of Yisra’ĕl!
And they saw Elohim, and they ate and drank.
These verses are used by many to prove the existence of a
pre incarnate Messiah. (I disagree)
See the influence of Mithraism over Christianity:
Exo 24:12 And יהוה said to Mosheh, “Come up to Me on the
mountain and be there, while I give you tablets of stone, and the Torah and the
command which I have written, to teach them.”
Exo 24:13 And
Mosheh arose with his assistant Yehoshua, and Mosheh went up to the mountain of
Elohim.
Exo 24:14 And he
said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. And see,
Aharon and Ḥur are with you. Whoever has matters, let him go to
them.”
Exo 24:15 And
Mosheh went up into the mountain, and a cloud covered the mountain.
Exo 24:16 And the
esteem of יהוה dwelt on Mount
Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. And on the seventh day He called
to Mosheh out of the midst of the cloud.
Exo 24:17 And the
appearance of the esteem of יהוה was like a
consuming fire on the top of the mountain, before the eyes of the children of
Yisra’ĕl.
Exo 24:18 And
Mosheh went into the midst of the cloud and went up into the mountain. And it
came to be that Mosheh was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
These verses point us to Yahshua after he was mikvey ed (immersed
in water) in the Yarden river by Yochanan the immerser. The Ruach descended
upon him and then led him into the wilderness for 40 days.
Mat 3:16 And having been immersed, יהושע went up
immediately from the water, and see, the heavens were opened, and He saw the
Spirit of Elohim descending like a dove and coming upon Him,
Mat 3:17 and see,
a voice out of the heavens, saying, “This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I did
delight.”
Mat 4:1 Then יהושע was led up by
the Spirit into the wilderness to be tried by the devil.
Mat 4:2 And after
having fasted forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.
The
Number Forty - Trial and Testing
The
establishing of the Covenant comes about through great conflict and anguish of
soul by those who are truly willing to lay down their lives for others.
Selfish
self centered leaders and people will never be able to establish truth on
earth.
- Yisrael 40 years in the wilderness
- Yisrael under David's rule 40 years
- Yisrael mourns for Ya'akov 40 days
- Yonah preaches 40 days
- Saul rules 40 years
- Shlomo/Solomon rules 40 years
- Yisrael in wilderness 40 years
- Yisrael under the Philistines 40 years
- Mosheh in Mitsrayim/Egypt 40 years
- Mosheh in Midian 40 years
- Mosheh at Mt. Sinai 40 days
- Eliyahu/Elijah 40 days
- Yechezk'el lays on right side 40 days
- Yahshua tempted 40 days
- Yahshua spoke of Kingdom of Elohim 40 days (Acts
1:3)
- time of Noach - rained 40 days and 40 nights
·
Goliath
defied Yisrael 40 days
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 YHVH, 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, YHVH 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.