Bar’chu
et YHVH ha-m’vorach, Baruch YHVH ha-m’vorach l’O’lam va-ed!
Baruch
ata YHVH Eloheinu melech ha-olam asher bachar banu m’kol ha-amim, v’na-tan lanu
eht Torah-to. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Bless YHVH the blessed One; Blessed is YHVH, the
blessed One for all eternity. 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.)
In the entire Torah
scroll, “vayechi” is unique in that there is no extra space between it and the
preceding parashah, in contrast to the general rule that a new parashah begins
on a new line or is at least separated by nine empty spaces. Rashi, therefore,
describes “vayechi” as “closed.” Yakov wanted to tell his children the time of
the “end,” the Messianic age when Yisrael’s exile would finally end. This
revelation would be ‘’closed’’ for most people.
Jer 30:21 And his Prince shall be from him, and
his Ruler shall come from among him. And I shall bring him near, and he shall
approach(‘’nagash’’) Me, for who is this who pledged his heart to
approach(root
‘’nagash’’) Me?’
declares יהוה.
Jer 30:22 And you
shall be My people, and I shall be your Elohim.’ ”
Jer 30:23 See, the
storm of יהוה shall go forth in a rage, a whirling storm! It bursts upon the
head of the wrong.
Jer 30:24 The
burning displeasure of יהוה shall not turn back until He has done and
established the purposes of His heart. In the latter days you shall understand
it.[b] Footnote: bSee Jer_23:20.
Gen 47:28 And Yaʽaqoḇ lived (‘’vayechi’’)in
the land of Mitsrayim seventeen years. So the length of Yaʽaqoḇ’s life was one
hundred and forty-seven years.
These
seventeen years were the best years of his life -- years of prosperity,
goodness and peace. (Midrash; Baal HaTurim).
When
the child came home he asked his grandfather, Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi:
How can it be that our father Yacov, the greatest of the Patriarchs, lived the
best years of his life in pagan Egypt?
Replied
Rabbi Schneur Zalman: It is written that Yakov "sent Yahudah ahead of
him... to show the way to Goshen" (Genesis 46:28). The Midrash explains
that this was to establish a house of learning, where the sons of Yakov would
study Torah. When one studies Torah, one is brought close to G-d, so that even
in Egypt one can live a true "life." (HaYom Yom)
These would have been the
best years of Yahshua’s life. He would have had his bar mitzvah at age 13 and
17 years later he would enter into the ministry of his Father. These were years
where promising students would be trained for the ministry.
Why
should it be different today? Training for the ministry was to be trained in
Torah.
We
see a similar pattern repeated for the apostle Paul. If we look at Galatians
1:17,18 and Galatians 2:1 - It would
appear that Paul went through 17 years of preparation before he was released as
an apostle to the Gentiles.
Gen 47:29
And the time for Yisra’ĕl to die drew near, and he called his son Yosĕph
and said to him, “Now if I have found favour in your eyes, please put your hand
under my thigh, and show kindness and truth to me. Please do not bury me in
Mitsrayim,
Gen 47:30
but I shall lie with my fathers, and you shall take me up out of
Mitsrayim and bury me in their burial place.” And he said, “I do as you have
said.”
Gen 47:31
And he said, “Swear to me.” And he swore to him, and Yisra’ĕl bowed
himself on the head of the bed.
The dispersion “galut” can never be our true
home. We constantly sense that this is not our place, we constantly beseech
haShem to "carry us out of Egypt." (Rev 11:8)
The days of the righteous die, but they do not die... It does not say, " Israel drew
near to die," but "the days of Israel drew near to die."
(Midrash Rabbah)
Gen 48:1 And after these events it came to be that it
was said to Yosĕph, “See, your father is sick.” And he took with him his two
sons, Menashsheh and Ephrayim. (first time illness is mentioned in Torah)
First time there is a
mention of sickness in the scriptures. Previous parashah – ‘’vayigash’’) first
time mention is made of repentance. (Midrash on the law of first appearance.)
See also “Yarek oath” http://rexcurry.net/yarek-oath-praying-hands-kneeling-inner-thigh-circumcision.html
The Yarek oath would
have a profound impact on future generations. Breaking this oath would have
severe consequences on future generations.
Gen 48:2 And Yaʽaqoḇ was told, “See, your
son Yosĕph is coming to you.” And Yisra’ĕl strengthened himself and sat up on
the bed.
Gen 48:3 And
Yaʽaqoḇ said to Yosĕph, “Ěl
Shaddai appeared to me at Luz in the land of Kenaʽan and blessed me,
Gen 48:4 and
said to me, ‘See, I am making you bear fruit and shall increase you and make of
you an assembly of peoples,(un
taticha li kehal amim) and give this land to your seed after you as an
everlasting possession.’
YHVH will literally appoint Yakov to a company of
peoples – see also Ber 35:11 (Ber 12:3; 28:3)
How will this be accomplished?
“The answer to
this question the final blessing encompasses the fulfilment of the final
blessing of the Avrahamic covenant: “in you all the families of the earth shall
be blessed” (Ber 12:3; Gal 3:8))
YHVH’s own
sovereign power, would draw people from every people group and graft them into
the family of Yakov. Here in seed form is the method of blessing YHVH has
determined: THE NATIONS WOULD NOT BE BLESSED APART FROM YISRAEL, BUT BY RECOGNIZING
YISRAEL AS YHVH’S CHOICE.
Paul speaks to
this reality (Eph 3) when he writes that YHVH had revealed this plan in its
fullness to the Apostles. The gentiles would be drawn in by faith and would be
blessed as “fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers
of the promise in Messiah Yashua through
the good news (Eph 3:6)” YHVH’s promised blessing on all the families of the
earth would be fulfilled as they shared the covenant blessing promised to
Avraham. It was in this way that Yakov would become a congregation of
nations/peoples”
Gen 48:5 “And
now, your two sons, Ephrayim and Menashsheh, who were born to you in the land
of Mitsrayim before I came to you in Mitsrayim, are mine – as Re’uḇĕn and Shimʽon, they are mine.
Gen 48:6
“Your offspring whom you shall bring forth after them are yours, and let
them be called by the name of their brothers in their inheritance.
It is
significant to note that Yakov is passing on the covenant blessings to Yosef’s
two sons. It's almost as though it would be the descendants of Ephraim who
preserve the covenant blessing until the “fullness of the gentiles” has come.
The blessings Yakov gave the rest of his sons would only come into fulfilment
in the last days.
Gen 48:7
“And I, when I came from Paddan, Raḥĕl
died beside me in the land of Kenaʽan
on the way, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath. And I buried
her there on the way to Ephrath, that is Bĕyth Leḥem.”
This burial place of Rachel is believed by some
scholars to be the birthplace of Yahshua.
Gen 48:8 And
Yisra’ĕl saw Yosĕph’s sons, and said,
“Who are these?”
Isa 49:21 “And you shall say in your
heart, ‘Who has brought forth these for me, since I am bereaved and barren, an
exile, and wandering to and fro? And who reared them? See, I was left alone –
from where did these come?’ ” (final restoration of
Israel)
Gen 48:9 And
Yosĕph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom Elohim has given me in this
place.” And he said, “Please bring them to me, and let me bless them.”
Gen 48:10
And the eyes of Yisra’ĕl were dim with age, and he was unable to see.
And he drew them near him, and he kissed them and embraced them.
Gen 48:11
And Yisra’ĕl said to Yosĕph, “I had not thought to see your face. But
see, Elohim has also shown me your seed!”
Gen 48:12 So
Yosĕph brought them from between his knees, and he bowed down with his face to
the earth.
Gen 48:13
And Yosĕph took them both, Ephrayim with his right hand toward
Yisra’ĕl’s left hand, and Menashsheh with his left hand toward Yisra’ĕl’s right
hand, and brought them near him.
Gen 48:14
And Yisra’ĕl stretched out his right hand and laid it on Ephrayim’s
head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Menashsheh’s head, consciously
directing his hands, for Menashsheh was the first-born.
Gen 48:15
And he blessed Yosĕph, and said, “The Elohim before whom my fathers Aḇraham and Yitsḥaq walked, the Elohim
who has fed me all my life long to this day,
Gen 48:16
the Messenger who has redeemed me from all evil – bless the youths! And
let my name be called upon them, and the name of my fathers Aḇraham and Yitsḥaq. And let them
increase to a multitude in the midst of the earth.”
Gen 48:17
And when Yosĕph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of
Ephrayim, it was evil in his eyes; and he took hold of his father’s hand to
remove it from the head of Ephrayim to the head of Menashsheh.
Gen 48:18
And Yosĕph said to his father, “Not so, my father, for this one is the
first-born, put your right hand on his head.”
Gen 48:19
But his father refused and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also
becomes a people, and he also is great. And yet, his younger brother is greater
than he, and his seed is to become the completeness of the nations.”
Rom 11:25 For I do not wish you to be ignorant of this
secret, brothers, lest you should be wise in your own estimation, that
hardening in part has come over Yisra’ĕl, until the completeness of the
gentiles1 has come in. Footnote: 1Gen. 48:19.
What does the
“mello goyim” or fullness of gentiles mean? I personally believe it means when
the full number of Torah observant ex –gentiles are in the world, this will
trigger off the end time events that prepare the way for the dispersed to come
together and for the Messiah to return. 9Mt 5:17-19)
Gen 48:20 And he blessed them on that day, saying, “In
you Yisra’ĕl shall bless, saying, ‘Elohim make you as Ephrayim and as
Menashsheh!’ ” Thus he put Ephrayim before Menashsheh.
Gen 48:21
And Yisra’ĕl said to Yosĕph, “See, I am dying, but Elohim shall be with
you and bring you back to the land of your fathers.
Gen 48:22
“And I, I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I
took from the hand of the Amorite with my sword and with my bow.”
Gen 49:1 And Yaʽaqoḇ called his sons and
said, “Gather together, so that I declare to you what is to befall you in the
last days:
Whenever the Torah speaks
about the “achariet hayamim” (the last days) it should serve as an extremely
important call for our full attention. This term appears a few times in the
Torah and is once again proof that the Torah has not been done away and remains
significant in our understanding of the last days prior to the Messianic age.
The Hebrew word for “call and befall” come from the
same root word “kra” meaning “what will call you in the last days”.
Gen 49:2
“Gather together and hear, you sons of Yaʽaqoḇ, and listen to
Yisra’ĕl your father.
Gen 49:3
“Re’uḇĕn, you are my
first-born, my power and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of
exaltation and the excellency of power.
Gen 49:4
“Boiling like water, you do not excel, because you went up to your
father’s bed, then you defiled it – he went up to my couch.
In the last
days, those who are able to hear the call for the family reunion, will hear the
call to sexual purity. The teachings of the church have not helped in bringing
a sexual purity to believers. Many believers struggle in this area.
The Hebrew word “totar” implies that dysfunctional
sexuality will cause one not to excel in life.
Before the Messiah returns there will be a remnant
who will experience the full blessing of sexual fulfilment within the
instructions of Torah.
Gen 49:5
“Shimʽon and Lĕwi are
brothers, their weapons are implements of violence.
Gen 49:6
“Let my being not enter their council, let my esteem not be united to
their assembly; because they slew a man in their displeasure, and they lamed an
ox in pleasure.
Gen 49:7 “Cursed
be their displeasure for it is fierce, and their wrath for it is cruel! I
divide them in Yaʽaqoḇ and scatter them in
Yisra’ĕl.
The sages claim
that Shimon and Lewi killed the men at Schechem with Esav’s sword. This may
have been a foreshadowing of things to come. It is believed by some modern day commentators
that the descendants of Levi have been responsible for the developing of
weapons of mass destruction. Note the use of “implements of violence” in verse
5.
An end time remnant will not rely on such kind of
“implement” of destruction to accomplish YHVH’s end time purposes.
Zec 4:6 And he answered and said to me, “This is the
word of יהוה to Zerubbaḇel,
‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ said יהוה of hosts.
Gen 49:8
“You, Yehuḏah, your brothers
praise you; your hand is on the neck of your enemies; your father’s children
bow down before you.
Gen 49:9
“Yehuḏah is a lion’s cub;
from the prey you have gone up, my son! He bowed down, he crouched like a lion.
And like a lion, who does rouse him?
Gen 49:10
“The sceptre shall not turn aside from Yehuḏah, nor a Lawgiver
from between his feet, until Shiloh comes, and to Him is the obedience of
peoples.
Gen 49:11 “Binding
his donkey to the vine, and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he washed his
garments in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes.
Gen 49:12
“His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk.
Rev 1:14 And His head and hair were white as white
wool, as snow, and His eyes as a flame of fire,
Rev 19:12 And His eyes were as a flame of
fire, and on His head were many crowns, having a Name that had been written,
which no one had perceived except Himself – b Footnote: bSee Rev_2:17.
Rev 19:13 and having been dressed in a robe
dipped in blood – and His Name is called: The Word of יהוה.c
Footnote: c Joh_1:1 and Joh_1:14.
The gematria of
“Shiloh comes” in the Hebrew is 358 which is the same as the gematria for the
Hebrew word “Messiah”.
It is clear that
Yehudah was destined for leadership and royality, the Davidic dynasty and
Messiah. When Yakov addresses Yehudah, he is still a lion’s cub however in the
future he will be a full grown lion and king.
The sceptre
shall not depart from Yehudah. The use of the word “until” could also mean
“including” and therefore when Messiah comes Yehudah keeps its position of
leadership under the leadership of Messiah. In contrast to this imagery
of a lion the Torah goes on to describe a donkey. The sages knew this referred
to the coming of Messiah on a donkey. Today
we know that this is true of Messiah’s first coming.
The present day Messianic Hebrew roots awakening has come as a result of
a handful of faithful rabbi’s who have dared to stand for the truth of who
Yahshua is – The Jewish Messiah.
See biographies of
24 rabbi’s who came to know Yahshua as Messiah:
Gen 49:13
“Zeḇulun dwells at the
seashore, he is for a haven for ships, and his border is unto Tsiḏon.
Gen 49:14
“Yissasḵar is a strong donkey
lying down between two burdens,
Gen 49:15
and he saw that a resting place was good, and that the land was
pleasant, and he inclined his shoulder to bear a burden, and became a subject
to slave labour.
Gen 49:16
“Dan rightly rules his people as one of the tribes of Yisra’ĕl.
Gen 49:17
“Dan is a serpent by the way, an adder by the path, that bites the
horse’s heels so that its rider falls backward.
Gen 49:18 “I
have waited for your deliverance, O יהוה!
Gen 49:19 “Gaḏ, a
raiding band raids him, but he raids its heel.
Gen 49:20 “Bread
from Ashĕr is rich, and he gives delicacies of a sovereign.
Gen 49:21
“Naphtali is a deer let loose, he gives words of elegance.
Gen 49:22 “Yosĕph
is an offshoot of a fruit-bearing tree, an offshoot of a fruit-bearing tree by
a fountain, his branches run over a wall.
Gen 49:23 “And the
archers have bitterly grieved him, shot at him and hated him.
Gen 49:24 “But his
bow remained in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the
hands of the Mighty One of Yaʽaqoḇ – from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Yisra’ĕl –
Gen 49:25 from the
Ěl of your father who helps you, and by the Almighty who blesses you with
blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies beneath,
blessings of the breasts and of the womb.
Gen 49:26 “The
blessings of your father have excelled the blessings of my ancestors, up to the
limit of the everlasting hills. They are on the head of Yosĕph, and on the
crown of the head of him who was separated from his brothers.
Gen 49:27
“Binyamin is a wolf that tears, in the morning he eats prey, and at
night he divides the spoil.”
Dan 12:4 “But you,
Dani’ěl, hide the words, and seal the book until the time of the end.[a]
Many shall diligently search and knowledge shall increase.” Footnote: aSee Dan_12:9.
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 Yahveh, 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.)