Blessed are You, YHVH our Elohim, You have set us apart by Your commandments and have commanded us to actively study Your Torah. Please YHVH, our Elohim, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of all Your people Israel. May You open our eyes to see marvellous truths from Your Torah. Thank You for calling us who were once gentiles excluded from the citizenship of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise having no expectation and without Elohim- but now through the blood of Messiah we have gained access into the covenants and have obtained citizenship into the commonwealth of Israel. Blessed are You, YHVH, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. Amein
Only two sins on a national scale are singled out
during Israels’ wilderness journey that almost brought about their total
destruction: the sin of the golden calf – Shemot/Ex 32-34 and the rebellion of
the scouts sent out to spy the Promised- Land described in this week’s
parashah. Mosheh intervenes and pleads for YHVH’s mercy and YHVH withdraws His
Hand of destruction.
Aliyah Rishon 13:1-20
Num 13:1 And יהוה spoke to
Mosheh, saying,
Num 13:2 “Shelach lecha” – send! You send men to spy out the land of Kenaʽan,(Heb – a place of humiliation, where one is vanquished) which I am giving to the children of Yisra’ĕl. Send one man from each tribe of their fathers, everyone a leader among them.” (Its almost like YHVH is saying ‘’you send them to see for themselves because I’ve already told you what Canaan is like’’)
At the burning bush YHVH already told Mosheh that Canaan
was a fruitful land - Exo 3:8 “And I have come down to deliver them from the hand of the
Mitsrites, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to
a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Kena‛anites and the Ḥittites
and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Ḥiwwites and the Yeḇusites.
2Co
5:7 for we walk by belief, not by sight[a] – Footnote: aSee 2Co_4:18
and 1Co_2:14.
Our parashah begins by stating
that YHVH commanded Moshe to send out spies. Yet Devarim(Deut) 1:22-23 states
that sending out the spies was done by the request of the people.
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.
Was this a strategic mistake
that should have been avoided and will it be repeated again in the last days?
Num 13:3 And
by the command of יהוה Mosheh sent them from the Wilderness of Paran, all of them men
who were
heads of the children of Yisra’ĕl. (Paran is believed to be the same place as
modern day Petra)
Num 13:16 These are the names of the men whom Mosheh
sent to spy out the land. And Mosheh called Hoshĕa (a causative
imperative masculine singular) the son
of Nun, Yehoshua.
A “yud” is added to “Yoshua’s/Joshua’s” name. His name then becomes
“Yehoshua” the same Hebrew name was used for our Messiah. This name means that
“YHVH” will save. (Ex 17:9) Jewish
commentators say the basis for the name change is that Moses prayed for Joshua.
Indeed Rashi explains that if he prays he will be saved from the counsel of the
spies.
Num 13:17 And Mosheh sent them to spy out the land of
Kenaʽan, and said to them, “Go up here into the South, and go up to the
mountains,
Num 13:18 and see what the land is like, and the people
who dwell in it, whether strong or weak, whether few or many,
Num 13:19 and whether the land they dwell in is good or
evil, whether the cities they inhabit are in camps or strongholds,
Num 13:20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and
whether there are forests there or not. And you shall be strong, and bring some
of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first-fruits of
grapes.
Aliyah Sheni 13:21-14:7
Num 13:21 So they went up and
spied out the land from the Wilderness of Tsin as far as Reḥoḇ,
near the entrance of Ḥamath.
Num 13:22
And they went up through the South and came to Ḥeḇron. And Aḥiman,
Shĕshai, and Talmai, the descendants of Anaq, were there. Now Ḥeḇron had been
built seven years before Tsoʽan (built before Avraham) in Mitsrayim.
Num 13:23
And they came to the wadi Eshkol, and cut down from there a branch with
one cluster of grapes. And they bore it between two of them on a pole, also of
the pomegranates and of the figs.
Num 13:24
That place was called the wadi Eshkol, because of the cluster which the
men of Yisra’ĕl cut down from there.
Num 13:25
And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.
Num 13:26
And they went and came to Mosheh and Aharon and all the congregation of
the children of Yisra’ĕl in the Wilderness of Paran, at Qaḏĕsh. And they
brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the
fruit of the land.
Num 13:27
And they reported to him, and said, “We went to the land where you sent
us. And truly, it flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.
Num 13:28
“But the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are
walled, very great. And we saw the descendants of Anaq there too.
Num 13:29
“The Amalĕqites dwell in the land of the South, while the Ḥittites and
the Yeḇusites and the Amorites dwell in the mountains. And the Kenaʽanites
dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Yardĕn.”
Num 13:30 And Kalĕḇ silenced the people before Mosheh,
and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are certainly able
to overcome it.”
Num 13:31 But the men who had gone up with him said,
“We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.”
Num 13:32 And they gave the children of Yisra’ĕl an evil
report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we
have gone as spies is a land eating up its inhabitants, and all the people whom
we saw in it are men of great size.
What the spies said was
right, however their report is considered evil (Heb – ‘’debbah’’- to whisper an
evil report) because they intended to cause the people to rise up in rebellion
against Moshe and YHVH.
Num 13:33 “And we saw there the Nephilim, sons of Anaq,
of the Nephilim. And we were like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and so we were
in their eyes.”
The People Rebel
Num 14:1 Then all the
congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that
night.
Num 14:2 And
all the children of Yisra’ěl grumbled against Mosheh and against Aharon, and
all the congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of
Mitsrayim! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! (First the
Israelites express contempt towards YHVH then they begin to mock Him)
Num 14:3
“And why is יהוה bringing us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives
and children should become a prey? Would it not be better for us to turn back
to Mitsrayim?”
Num 14:4 And
they said to each other, “Let us appoint a leader, and let us turn back to
Mitsrayim.”
Num 14:5
Then Mosheh and Aharon fell on their faces before all the assembly of the
congregation of the children of Yisra’ěl.
Num 14:6 And
Yehoshua son of Nun, and Kalěḇ son of Yephunneh, who were among those who had
spied out the land, tore their garments,
Num 14:7 and
they spoke to all the congregation of the children of Yisra’ěl, saying, “The
land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land.
Num 14:8 “If
יהוה has delighted in us, then He shall bring us into this land and
give it to us, ‘a land which is flowing with milk and honey.’
Num 14:9
“Only, do not rebel (1Sam 15:23)against יהוה, nor fear (Prov 29:25)the people of the land, for they are our
bread. Their defence has turned away from them, and יהוה is with us. Do not fear them.”
Num 14:10
But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then the esteem of יהוה appeared in the Tent of Appointment before
all the children of Yisra’ěl.
1Co 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,
1Co 10:12
so that he who thinks he stands, let him take heed lest he fall. (almost
all people have been completely assimilated into the spirit of this world)
1Co 10:5 However,
with most of them Elohim was not well pleased, for they were laid low in the
wilderness.
1Co 10:6 And these
became examples for us, so that we should not lust after evil, as those indeed
lusted.
1Co 10:7 And do not
become idolaters as some of them, as it has been written, “The people sat
down to eat and to drink, and stood up to play.” Exo_32:6. (Christianity
is the golden calf of the gentiles)
1Co 10:8 Neither
should we commit whoring, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three
thousand fell,
1Co 10:9 neither let
us try Messiah, as some of them also tried, and were destroyed by
serpents,
1Co 10:10 neither grumble, as some of them also grumbled, and were destroyed by the destroyer.
For centuries the sages have pondered what would cause
the Yisraelites to behave in such perilous ways. Have things really changed in
our days? This tragic event of the evil report of the 10 spies happened on the
ninth day of the fifth month.
“Thus it came to pass that on the Ninth of Av -- a day which was to bode many tragedies for the people of Israel YHVH informed Moshe that the generation that received the Torah at Sinai was not fit to enter the Land of Canaan. He decreed that they shall live out their lives as wanderers in the desert until a new generation would take up the challenge of conquering the land of Canaan and developing it as a "Set Apart land”
What
Happened?
Virtually all the commentaries pose the
question: What happened? Where did they go wrong?
The spies dispatched by Moshe were no ordinary
individuals: "They were all men of distinction, leaders of the children of
Yisrael" (Bemidbar/Numbers 13:3). Furthermore, in all of history, it would
be difficult to find a generation whose lives were more saturated with miracles
than theirs. Mitsrayim/ Egypt, the most powerful nation on earth at the time,
was forced to free them from slavery when "the mighty hand" of YHVH
inflicted ten supernatural plagues. When Pharaoh's armies pursued them, the sea
split to let them pass and then drowned their pursuers. In the desert, miracles
were the stuff of their daily lives: manna from heaven was their daily bread,
sheltered from the desert heat and cold, clothed and shod, destroyed the snakes
and scorpions in their path, and flattened the terrain before them to ease
their way.
For these people to doubt YHVH's ability to conquer the "mighty inhabitants" of Canaan seems nothing less than ludicrous. Yet these were the people whose leaders said, "We cannot go up against these people, for they are mightier than we" and even He!
Mat 22:29 And יהושע answering, said to them, “You go astray, not knowing the Scriptures[c] nor the power of Elohim. Footnote: c Mar_12:24.
Where
did they go wrong?
Chassidic master Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi
explains that the problem was one of
excess spirituality.
The daily miracles experienced by the
generation of the Exodus did more than provide them with sustenance and
protection -- they shielded them from any and all involvement with the material
world. For the first generation of our existence as a people, they lived a
wholly spiritual life, free of all material concerns; the very food which
nourished them was "bread from heaven."
Indeed, it could not have been any other way.
Our sages have said that, "The Torah could have been given only to the
eaters of the manna." To properly receive and assimilate the divine
wisdom, one must be utterly free of the responsibilities and frustrations of
physical life -- something that is possible only in the kind of environment
which our ancestors enjoyed during their sojourn in the Sinai Desert.
This is why, says Rabbi Schneur Zalman, the Spies and their generation were loath to enter the land. Becoming a people with a land would entail plowing, sowing and harvesting; it would mean engaging in commerce and levying taxes; it would require a bureaucracy to run the land and an army to defend it. Their underlying problem with the land was, as the spies expressed it, that "it is a land that consumes its inhabitants" -- it consumes one's time and energy with its corporeal demands and infringes on one's capacity to study the divine wisdom of Torah and meditate upon its truths. They were unwilling to relinquish their spiritual utopia for the entanglements of an earth-bound life.”
If the "generation of the desert" would have themselves been
capable of making the transition into a people of the land, the transformation
of the material world into a home for YHVH would have been fully and perfectly
achieved in that very generation. If they would have believed in their
appointed destiny to "have it both
ways," their sanctification of the land would have combined their ultimate
apprehension of the divine truth with a full involvement with the natural
reality.
The generation of the desert failed to actualize the unique opportunity which presented itself at that particular juncture of our history: for there to be a single generation which straddled both worlds, a single generation which first inhabited a world of utter spirituality and then proceeded to apply it to a life on the land. Instead, they fell prey to the tendency of man to "compartmentalize" his life, to label his experiences and attainments as "material," "spiritual," "sacred," "mundane," "natural" and "supernatural," thereby delegating and confining them to their respective domains.
“A great majority of the physical mitzvot can
be implemented only in the Land of Yisrael, especially the agricultural laws
and the laws of the offerings brought to the Beit Ha Mikdash (Temple)... The
Spies, who were on a most lofty spiritual level, did not wish to lower
themselves to the level of physical action, preferring to remain in the desert,
where they received all their needs from above, and related to YHVH by means of
the loftier levels of thought and speech (i.e., study of Torah and prayer). They
desired to draw down all the Divine emanations into the "Land of
Yisrael" that exists in the realm of Malchut,(the kingdom) the world of
spiritual speech, where there also is a "Yerushalayim" and a
"Set Apart Temple." Regarding the physical Land of Yisrael, they
said: "It is a land that consumes its inhabitants"--if the Divine
light were to be drawn down into the physical world, our entire existence would
be nullified, they thought.
But Yehoshua/Joshua and Calev/Caleb said,
"The Land is very, very good." It is specifically in the Land of
Yisrael down below, and specifically by means of the mitzvot implemented by
physical action, that the truly infinite light of YHVH is drawn down--a light
that includes both the spiritual and the material, which is why it is
"very, very" good. (Rabbi Schneur Zalman of Liadi)
Based on the teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson
The possibility of a nation embracing reality that no other nation on earth has ever embraced.
Further Midrash – it has been speculated that the spies (prominent
leaders) were sent out to see how desperately overwhelming the circumstances
were in the land. The implication is that only a series of major miraculous
interventions from YHVH would be able to save them from being destroyed by the
inhabitants of the land. Today present day Israel needs another great miracle
to save them from the descendants of these same Kanaanites – the Palestians –
especially Hamas and Hezbollah.
When the pharaohs ruled Egypt and the ancient Greeks built their first
cities, a mysterious people called the Canaanites dominated the Near
East. Around 4000 years ago, they built cities across the Levant, which
includes present-day Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, and part of Syria
Who did the
Canaanites worship? Baal, god worshipped in many ancient Middle
Eastern communities, especially among the Canaanites, who apparently considered
him a fertility deity and one of the most important gods in the pantheon.
What are the
7 Canaanite nations?
When
enumerated separately, one of the seven nations is called Canaanites, while the
others are called the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hittites,
the Hivites, the Jebusites and the Perizzites.
What is
Canaan called today?
The land
known as Canaan was situated in the territory of the southern Levant, which
today encompasses Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, and
the southern portions of Syria and Lebanon.
A Chosen People
Deu 7:1 “When יהוה your Elohim brings you into the land which you go to possess, He shall also clear away many nations before you: the Ḥittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Kena‛anites and the Perizzites and the Ḥiwwites and the Yeḇusites, seven nations greater and mightier than you.
Deu 7:2 “And when יהוה your Elohim gives them over to
you, you shall strike them and put them under the ban, completely. Make no
covenant with them, and show them no favour.
Deu 7:3 “And do not intermarry with them – you do not give your
daughter to his son, and you do not take his daughter for your son,
Deu 7:4 for he turns your sons away from following Me, to serve other mighty ones. Then the displeasure of יהוה shall burn against you and promptly destroy you.
Vs 4-15 give the names of the leaders of the tribes. The tribe of Levi is excluded because YHVH was their inheritance. We must remember that these leaders did not bring back false reports, what they saw was real, they failed to embrace the spiritual discernment to obey YHVH – See Lev 10:10.
We need to be in the land so that He can conquer our enemies.
We need to be in the land so that the world can see a generation of set
apart people who know how to function spiritually and physically in a way that
honours YHVH.
The world is yet to see a people who genuinely enjoy the physical and spiritual blessings of YHVH. This may initially include only an exceedingly small remnant of humanity.
It is clear from the
prophets that there will one day in the future be a greater exodus to the land
of Yisrael of all house of Yisrael.
Jer 23:7
“Therefore, see, the days are coming,” declares יהוה, “when they
shall say no more, ‘As יהוה lives who brought up the children of Yisra’ĕl out of the land
of Mitsrayim,’
Jer 23:8 but, ‘As יהוה lives who brought up and led the seed of the house of Yisra’ĕl out of the land of the north and from all the lands where I had driven them.’ And they shall dwell on their own soil.”
When will those waiting to return to the land know
when it is time to go? I believe there is a key for us to understand when and
how we must return to the promised land.
When we realize as we look
back over our lives and see that everything significant that has happened to us
has all happened to us to prepare us for the greatest moment of our lives: the
return along with a remnant to the land of Yisrael. Been able to embrace reality may be the only way to
survive in the last days – a kind of reality that has not been embraced by any
people at any other time in history.
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 – Amein.
Further Midrash as to why the 10 spies brought back a negative report. Giants and evil spirits – an end time preparation for an end time remnant. (Scriptures to meditate on)
Deu 3:1 “Then we
turned and went up the way to Bashan. And Oḡ sovereign of Bashan came out
against us, he and all his people, to battle at Eḏre‛i.
Deu 3:2 “And יהוה said to me, ‘Do not fear him, for I have given him and all his people and his land into your hand. And you shall do to him as you did to Siḥon sovereign of the Amorites, who dwelt at Ḥeshbon.’
Deu 3:11 “For only Oḡ
sovereign of Bashan was left of the remnant of the Repha’ites. See, his
bedstead was an iron bedstead. Is it not in Rabbah of the children of Ammon?
Nine cubits is its length and four cubits its width, according to the cubit of
a man.
In the Hebrew Bible, "Rephaites" or "Rephaim" can describe an ancient race of giants in Iron Age Israel
Rephaim have also been considered the residents of the Netherworld (Sheol in the Hebrew Bible) in more recent scholarship. Possible examples of this usage appear as "shades", "spirits", or "dead" in various translations of the Bible. See: Isa 14:9, 26:14, 26:19; Ps 88:10; Prov 2:18, 9:18, 21:16; Job 26:5, and possibly 2 Chron 16:12, where Repha'im may be read as “dead ancestors” or "weakeners", as opposed to Rophe’im, “doctors”. The Heb. root רפא means “heal”, and thus the masculine plural nominalized form of this root may indicate that these “deceased ancestors” could be invoked for ritual purposes that would benefit the living.[9][10][11] Quote Wikipedia.
Deuteronomy 3.11 (the length of the
giant King Og's bed) is 'nearly 14 feet', which is approximately ‘four
metres'.
Imagine facing these giant soldiers? Today
there are claims in China of genetically enhanced soldiers.
In
the book of Revelation, there are very real creatures lurking in an abyss. At
the appointed time, they will be released to terrorize and kill people around
the world.
We are introduced to some of these creatures in Revelation 9, which describes the first and sixth trumpet judgments—the first and second woes.
Rev 16:13 And I saw coming
out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of
the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, as frogs,
Rev 16:14 for they
are spirits of demons, doing signs, which go out to the sovereigns of the
entire world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of יהוה the Almighty.
Luk 21:25 “And there
shall be signs in the sun, and moon, and stars, and on the earth anxiety of
nations, in bewilderment at the roaring of the sea, and agitation,
Luk 21:26 men
fainting(Gk ‘’breath out’’ or
‘’fail’’) from fear and the
expectation of what is coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens
shall be shaken. Hag_2:6, Hag_2:21.
Luk 21:27 “And then
they shall see the Son of Aḏam coming in a cloud Dan_7:13 with
power and much esteem.
Luk 21:28 “And when these matters begin to take place, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.
We have little or no idea whatsoever of the horrors and destruction of the last days.
Isa 11:11 And it
shall be in that day that יהוה sets His hand again a second time to recover the
remnant of His people who are left, from Ashshur and from Mitsrayim, from
Pathros and from Kush, from Ěylam and from Shin‛ar, from Ḥamath and from the
islands of the sea.
Isa 11:12 And He
shall raise a banner for the nations, and gather the outcasts of Yisra’ěl, and
assemble the dispersed of Yehuḏah from the four corners of the earth.
Isa 11:13 And the
envy of Ephrayim shall turn aside, and the adversaries of Yehuḏah be cut off.
Ephrayim shall not envy Yehuḏah, and Yehuḏah not trouble Ephrayim.
Isa 11:14 But they
shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west; together
they plunder the people of the east, their hand stretching forth on Eḏom and
Mo’aḇ, and the children of Ammon shall be subject to them.
Isa 11:15 And יהוה shall
put under the ban the tongue of the Sea of Mitsrayim, and He shall wave His
hand over the River with the might of His Spirit, and shall strike it in the
seven streams, and shall cause men to tread it in sandals.
Isa 11:16 And there shall be a highway for the remnant of His people, those left from Ashshur, as it was for Yisra’ěl in the day when he came up from the land of Mitsrayim.
Rev 12:11 “And they
overcame him because of the Blood of the Lamb, and because of the Word of their
witness, and they did not love their lives to the death.
Rev 12:12 “Because
of this rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the earth and the
sea, because the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, knowing that
he has little time.”
Rev 12:13 And when
the dragon saw that he had been thrown to the earth, he persecuted the woman
who gave birth to the male child.
Rev 12:14 And the
woman was given two wings of a great eagle, to fly into the wilderness to her
place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, Dan_7:25,
Dan_12:7 from the presence of the serpent.
Rev 12:15 And out of
his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river after the woman, to cause her
to be swept away by the river.
Rev 12:16 And the
earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the
river which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.
Rev 12:17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to fight with the remnant of her seed, those guarding the commands of Elohim and possessing the witness of יהושע Messiah.
To the Church in Smyrna
Rev 2:8 “And to the
messenger of the assembly in Smurna write, ‘This says the First and the
Last, Isa_44:6, Isa_48:12 who became dead, and came to
life:
Rev 2:9 “I know your
works, and pressure, and poverty – yet you are rich – and the blasphemy of
those who say they are Yehuḏim and are not, but are a congregation of
Satan.
Rev 2:10 “Do not be
afraid of what you are about to suffer. See, the devil is about to throw some
of you into prison, in order to try you, and you shall have pressure ten days.
Be trustworthy until death, and I shall give you the crown of life.
Rev 2:11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the assemblies. He who overcomes shall by no means be harmed by the second death.” ’d Footnote: dSee Rev_20:6.
Isa 10:20 And in that day it
shall be that the remnant of Yisra’ěl, and those who have escaped of the house
of Ya‛aqoḇ, never again lean upon him who struck them, but shall lean upon יהוה, the
Set-apart One of Yisra’ěl, in truth.
Isa 10:21 A remnant
shall return, the remnant of Ya‛aqoḇ, to the Mighty Ěl.
Isa 10:22 For though
your people, O Yisra’ěl, be as the sand of the sea, yet a remnant of them shall
return – a decisive end, overflowing with righteousness.
Isa 10:23 For the Master יהוה of hosts is making a complete end, as decided, in the midst of all the earth.
Jer 15:2 “And it shall be, when they say to you, ‘Where do we go?’ then you shall say to them, ‘Thus said יהוה, “Those for death, to death. And those for the sword, to the sword. And those for scarcity of food, to scarcity of food. And those for captivity, to captivity.” ’
2Co 3:6 who also
made us competent as servants of a renewed covenant, not of the letter but of
the Spirit, for the letter kills but the Spirit gives life.
2Co 3:7 But if the
administering of death in letters, engraved on stones, was esteemed, so that
the children of Yisra’ěl were unable to look steadily at the face of Mosheh
because of the esteem of his face, which was passing away,
2Co 3:8 how much
more esteemed shall the administering of the Spirit not be?
2Co 3:9 For if the administering of condemnation had esteem, the administering of righteousness exceeds much more in esteem.
Rom 9:13 as it has
been written, “Ya‛aqoḇ I have loved, but Ěsaw I have hated.” Mal_1:2-3.
Rom 9:14 What, then,
shall we say? Is there unrighteousness with Elohim? Let it not be!
Rom 9:15 For He says
to Mosheh, “I shall favour whomever I favour, and I shall have compassion on
whomever I have compassion.” Exo_33:19.
Rom 9:16 So, then,
it is not of him who is wishing, nor of him who is running, but of Elohim who
shows favour.
Rom 9:17 For the
Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this same purpose I have raised you up, to
show My power in you, and that My Name be declared in all the earth.” Exo_9:16.
Rom 9:18 So, then,
He favours whom He wishes, and He hardens whom He wishes.
Rom 9:19 Then you
shall say to me, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His
counsel?”
Rom 9:20 But who are
you, O man, to talk back to Elohim? Shall that which is formed say to him
who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Isa_29:16, Isa_45:9.
Rom 9:21 Does not
the potter have authority over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel
for value and another not for value?
Rom 9:22 And if
Elohim, desiring to show wrath, and to make His power known, with much patience
tolerated the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,
Rom 9:23 and that He
might make known the riches of His esteem on vessels of compassion, which He
had prepared beforehand for esteem,
Rom 9:24 even whom
He called, not only us of the Yehuḏim, but also of the nations?
Rom 9:25 As He says
in Hoshěa too, “I shall call them My people, who were not My people, and her
beloved, who was not beloved.” Hos_2:23.
Rom 9:26 “And it
shall be in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ there
they shall be called sons of the living Elohim.” Hos_1:10.
Rom 9:27 And
Yeshayahu cries out on behalf of Yisra’ěl, “Though the number of the
children of Yisra’ěl be as the sand of the sea, the remnant shall be saved.
Isa_10:22, Gen_22:17, Hos_1:10.
Rom 9:28 For He
is bringing a matter to an end, and is cutting it short in righteousness,
because יהוה shall cut short a matter on the earth.” Isa_10:23.
Rom 9:29 And as Yeshayahu said before, “If יהוה of hosts had not left us a seed, we would have become like Seḏom, and we would have been made like Amorah.”b Isa_1:9, Deu_29:23. Footnote: bSee Jer_49:18, Jer_50:40, Amo_4:11.
Zec 14:20 In that
day “SET-APART TO יהוה"
shall be engraved on the bells of the horses. And the pots in the House of יהוה shall be like the bowls before the
slaughter-place.
Zec 14:21 And every
pot in Yerushalayim and Yehuḏah shall be set-apart to יהוה of hosts. And all those who slaughter shall come and take them
and cook in them. And there shall no longer be a merchant in the House of יהוה of hosts, in that day.
1Th 5:23 And the Elohim of peace Himself set you completely apart, and your entire spirit, and being, and body - be preserved blameless at the coming of our Master יהושע Messiah!
Lev 27:30 ‘And all
the tithe of the land – of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree –
belongs to יהוה. It is
set-apart to יהוה.
Lev 27:31 ‘If a man
indeed redeems any of his tithes, he adds one-fifth to it.
Lev 27:32 ‘And the
entire tithe of the herd and of the flock, all that passes under the rod, the
tenth one is set-apart to יהוה.
Lev 27:33 ‘He does
not inquire whether it is good or spoilt, nor does he exchange it. And if he
exchanges it at all, then both it and the one exchanged for it are set-apart,
it is not redeemed.’ ”
Lev 27:34 These are the commands which יהוה commanded Mosheh for the children of Yisra’ěl on Mount Sinai.
Robbing Elohim
Mal 3:6 “For I am יהוה, I shall
not change,a and you, O sons of Ya‛aqoḇ, shall not come to an end. Footnote: a Jas_1:17.
Mal 3:7 “From the
days of your fathers you have turned aside from My laws and did not guard them.
Turn back to Me, and I shall turn back to you,” said יהוה of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what shall we
turn back?’
Mal 3:8 “Would a man
rob Elohim? Yet you are robbing Me! But you said, ‘In what have we robbed You?’
In the tithe and the offering!
Mal 3:9 “You have
cursed Me with a curse, for you are robbing Me, this nation, all of it!
Mal 3:10 “Bring all
the tithes into the storehouse, and let there be food in My house. And please
prove Me in this,” said יהוה of hosts, “whether I do not open for you the windows of the
heavens, and shall pour out for you boundless blessing!
Mal 3:11 “And I
shall rebuke the devourer for you, so that it does not destroy the fruit of
your ground, nor does the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” said יהוה of
hosts.
Mal 3:12 “And all
nations shall call you blessed, for you shall be a land of delight,” said יהוה of
hosts.
Mal 3:13 “Your words
have been strong against Me,” said יהוה, “but you have said, ‘What have we spoken
against You?’
Mal 3:14 “You have
said, ‘It is worthless to serve Elohim. And what did we gain when we guarded
His Charge, and when we walked as mourners before יהוה of hosts?
Mal 3:15 And now we
are calling the proud blessed – not only are the doers of wrongness built up,
but they also try Elohim and escape.’ ”