Parashat 8 Portion 33 Vayishlach Gen 35:9-36:43 Is 61:2-9 + 62:1-3

Blessed are You, YHVH our Elohim, Creator of the universe, You have set us apart for Yourself through Your Covenant commandments and You have called us to internalize the words of Your Covenant. Please, YHVH, our Elohim, sweeten the words of Your Covenant in our mouths and in the mouths of Your people, the family of Israel. May we and our offspring and the offspring of Your people, the house of Israel – all of us – know Your Name and embrace Your Covenant so that we may deeply love one another and love You above all. Please uncover our eyes and open our hearts that we may carefully examine and receive the marvels and mysteries of Your Covenant. Blessed are You, YHVH, who enters into Covenant with Your beloved Bride - Israel.

Deu 32:9  “For the portion of יהוה is His people, Ya‛aqoḇ His allotted inheritance.

Deu 32:8  “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance (Gen 10 &Ps 82) When He separated the sons of Aḏam, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the children of Yisra’ěl. (or Elohim)

וירא אלהים אל־יעקב – and Elohim appeared to Jacob (Israel)

 

Gen 35:9  And Elohim appeared to Ya‛aqoḇ again, when he came from Paddan Aram, and blessed him. 

 

The verb ‘’vayera’’ (וירא) is a Niphal (Passive form) indicating that the initiative for YHVH appearing to Yakov came from YHVH – for covenant confirmation to Yakov and his descendants.

This is the third major divine encounter Jacob has at Bethel (the first was the ladder dream in Genesis 28; the second was YHVH’s command in Genesis 35:1 to go there and build an altar).

It indicates a direct, personal manifestation of YHVH - a theophany or visible manifestation of Himself, not a messenger, not merely an inner feeling or a distant voice – this is YHVH Himself.

 

Hebraic understanding holds that while YHVH having no physical existence, YHVH can manifest in ways humans can perceive, through a sense of His personal presence, as well as through sent messengers. (“No one can see YHVH and live” — Exodus 33:20)

Joh 4:24  “Elohim is Spirit, and those who worship Him need to worship in spirit and truth.” 

 

Whether a ‘’theophany’’ or a ‘’messenger’’ appears – it is as good as if YHVH Himself is appearing – In Gen 18:1 the messenger is called YHVH.

 

Rudolf Bultmann (1884–1976): Famous for existential interpretation, he described the doctrine of the pre-existence of Christ as well the doctrine of the trinity  "not only irrational but utterly meaningless".

 

More and more theologians argue that if Jesus truly pre-existed as a divine being, his human experience was not genuine. They maintain that for Jesus to be fully human, his existence must have begun at his conception.

These false teachings are not only offensive to YHVH but are a stumbling block to the house of Jacob.

 

1Jn 4:1  Beloved ones, do not believe every spirit, but prove the spirits, whether they are of Elohim, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 

1Jn 4:2  By this you know the Spirit of Elohim: Every spirit that confesses that יהושע Messiah has come in the flesh is of Elohim, 

1Jn 4:3  and every spirit that does not confess that יהושע Messiah has come in the flesh is not of Elohim. And this is the spirit of the anti-messiah which you heard is coming, and now is already in the world. 

 

‘’Some writers explicitly claim that the Trinity doctrine (formalized at Nicaea in 325 and Constantinople in 381) is the “mark” or “name” of the beast. They argue it replaces biblical monotheism (one God = the Father alone) with a “three-god” system of pagan origin. One detailed presentation links the Trinity directly to the “image of the beast” and the “mark,” claiming it was introduced as part of the beast’s deceptive power after the fall of pagan Rome.’’

 

Jas 3:1  Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, knowing that we shall receive greater judgment. Gal 1:7,8 – 2 Cor 11:3,4  https://trinities.org/blog/   

 

Gen 35:9  And Elohim appeared to Ya‛aqoḇ again, when he came from Paddan Aram, and blessed him. 

Gen 35:10  And Elohim said to him, “Your name is Ya‛aqoḇ, your name is no longer called Ya‛aqoḇ, but Yisra’ěl is your name.” So He called his name Yisra’ěl. 

Gen 35:11  And Elohim said to him, “I am Ěl Shaddai. Be fruitful and increase, a nation and a company of nations shall be from you, and sovereigns come from your body. 

Gen 35:12  “And the land which I gave Aḇraham and Yitsḥaq I give to you. And to your seed after you I give this land.” 

Gen 35:13  And Elohim went up from him in the place where He had spoken with him. 

Gen 35:14  And Ya‛aqoḇ set up a standing column in the place where He had spoken with him, a monument of stone. And he poured a drink offering on it, and he poured oil on it. 

Gen 35:15  And Ya‛aqoḇ called the name of the place where Elohim spoke with him, Běyth Ěl. 

 

 

The Deaths of Rachel and Isaac

Gen 35:16  Then they set out from Běyth Ěl. And it came to be, when there was but a little distance to go to Ephrath, that Raḥěl began to give birth, and had great difficulty giving birth. 

Gen 35:17  And it came to be, as she was having great difficulty giving birth, that the midwife said to her, “Do not fear, for it is another son for you.” 

Gen 35:18  And it came to be, as her life was going out – for she died – that she called his name Ben-Oni. But his father called him Binyamin. 

Gen 35:19  So Raḥěl died and was buried on the way to Ephrath, that is Běyth Leḥem. 

Gen 35:20  And Ya‛aqoḇ set a standing column on her burial-place, which is the monument of Raḥěl’s burial-place to this day. 

Gen 35:21  And Yisra’ěl set out and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Ěḏer. 

https://donnagawell.com/2020/12/17/away-in-a-manger-at-migdal-eder/

The primary (and most explicit) ancient Jewish source that connects Migdal Eder to the Messiah is the Targum Pseudo-Jonathan (also called Targum Yonatan ben Uzziel in some traditions), an Aramaic interpretive paraphrase of the Torah.

Its rendering of Genesis 35:21 reads approximately:

“And Jacob journeyed and spread his tent beyond the Tower of Eder, the place from whence the King Messiah is destined to be revealed at the end of days.”

This Targum expands the plain text with a future-oriented, eschatological interpretation. It identifies Migdal Eder (“Tower of the Flock”) as the future site of the revelation (or manifestation) of King Messiah in the end times.

 

Connection to Micah 4:8

Jewish tradition often links Genesis 35:21 with Micah 4:8:

“And you, O tower of the flock (Migdal Eder), hill of the daughter of Zion, to you it shall come, even the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”

·         The Targum to Micah 4:8 interprets this verse messianically: “And you, O Messiah of Israel, who has been hidden because of the sins of the congregation of Zion, the kingdom shall come to you...”

·         The idea is that the hidden Messiah (a concept found in various midrashim) will be revealed from this symbolically significant “tower of the flock,” restoring the Davidic kingdom.

 

Migdal Eder was a real location near Bethlehem, on the road toward Jerusalem. The Mishnah (Shekalim 7:4 and related discussions in Kiddushin 55a) mentions flocks pastured in the area between Jerusalem and Migdal Eder as being suitable for Temple sacrifices. This led some (especially in Christian scholarship like Alfred Edersheim) to suggest these were special “Temple flocks” watched by Levitical-style shepherds — though the Mishnah itself does not explicitly call the shepherds “priestly.”

 

Gen 35:22  And it came to be, when Yisra’ěl dwelt in that land, that Re’uḇěn went and lay with Bilhah his father’s concubine. And Yisra’ěl heard about it.

 

In ancient Near Eastern culture, taking a father’s wife or concubine was often a symbolic act of claiming leadership or declaring the father unfit or “dead” as head of the family/clan.

This is the same pattern seen when Absalom publicly lay with David’s concubines to legitimize his rebellion and claim the throne (2 Samuel 16:21-22).

While sexual desire may have played a role, most commentators argue it was not the primary driver. The act carried heavy political and relational weight beyond mere lust.

 

 Now the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ were twelve: 

Gen 35:23  the sons of Lě’ah were Re’uḇěn, Ya‛aqoḇ’s first-born, and Shim‛on, and Lěwi, and Yehuḏah, and Yissasḵar, and Zeḇulun; 

Gen 35:24  the sons of Raḥěl were Yosěph and Binyamin; 

Gen 35:25  the sons of Bilhah, Raḥěl’s female servant, were Dan and Naphtali; 

Gen 35:26  and the sons of Zilpah, Lě’ah’s female servant, were Gaḏ and Ashěr. These were the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ who were born to him in Paddan Aram. 

Gen 35:27  And Ya‛aqoḇ came to his father Yitsḥaq at Mamrě, or Qiryath Arba, that is Ḥeḇron, where Aḇraham and Yitsḥaq had dwelt. 

Gen 35:28  And the days of Yitsḥaq were one hundred and eighty years. 

Gen 35:29  So Yitsḥaq breathed his last and died, and was gathered to his people, aged and satisfied of days. And his sons Ěsaw and Ya‛aqoḇ buried him. 

 

Esau's Descendants

 

The genealogy of Esau (who is also called Edom). This chapter closes Esau’s story in the Torah before shifting focus entirely to Jacob’s line in Genesis 37 onward.

 

The sages note that genealogies of the “non-chosen” line (Ishmael in Gen. 25, Esau here) are given before the chosen line (Isaac then Jacob) to “clear the stage” and show that the covenant promise flows exclusively through Jacob/Israel.

 

·         Esau receives material blessings and becomes a great nation with kings and chiefs (fulfilling Isaac’s blessing in Gen. 27:39–40: “by your sword you shall live... when you grow restless you shall break his yoke”).

·         However, the detailed list highlights that Esau’s line, though numerous and powerful, is separate from the spiritual covenant line of Abraham → Isaac → Jacob.

·         It also explains future biblical conflicts: Edom (Esau’s descendants) becomes a recurring adversary to Israel (see Obadiah, Psalms 137, etc.). Some midrashim and later commentators (e.g., Lekach Tov) identify Edom symbolically with Rome and later oppressive empires.

·         The chapter demonstrates God’s faithfulness even to the “rejected” line — Esau prospers greatly in this world.

 

Jacob is the chosen line through which the Abrahamic covenant flows (land, descendants, blessing to all nations). YHVH protects him repeatedly from Laban, from Esau, from famine and renames him Israel ("he struggles with YHVH") after their wrestling match (Genesis 32).   This is not the story of a mere opportunist; it's a flawed man YHVH refuses to abandon.

 

Jacob is often painted as a villain. The scriptures give him a "bad wrap" yes! Jacob was flawed as all humans are, yet YHVH's favour and covenant rest on him, exactly as it did with Abraham and Isaac. He becomes the father of Israel, the meek tent-dweller who studies Torah and wrestles with YHVH and prevails by clinging to the promise. That's a powerful picture of YHVH’s favour upon his life, Jacob was not a shrewd opportunist – he was mentored by his grandfather – Abraham – one of the meekest men on earth and some scholars believe Jacob was not trying to take or claim something that was not his – Jacob had no self seeking agenda – Jacob would have been content right throughout his life looking after sheep, living in his tent and studying the Torah and digging wells.

 

The wrestling scene especially captures Jacobs life, he refuses to let go without a blessing. Was this blessing primarily for Jacob? or was this was a blessing for a nation of peoples?

 

Gen 25:27  And the boys grew up. And Ěsaw became a man knowing how to hunt, a man of the field, while Ya‛aqoḇ was a complete (Heb ‘’tam’’)man, dwelling in tents. 

 

‘’tâm’’ (תּם) complete, morally innocent, having integrity an ordinary, quiet sort of person – Strongs 8535

 

Complete men don’t steal and deceive. There isn’t a verse in the scriptures where YHVH directly says, “Jacob is a deceiver” or a ‘’thief’’ as a formal label.

 

Did Jacob deceive Esau by buying his birthright? (3min)

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/jrOnuARGEFo

 

Isaiah 41:8-9 (ESV): "But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend..."

Isaiah 44:1-2 (NIV): "...do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen."

Psalm 135:4 (ESV): "For YHVH has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his own possession."

Romans 9:10-13 (ESV): Mentions "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated" to explain YHVH's sovereign choice. 

 

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.

Additional midrash:

What’s the point? YHVH chooses a very special and precious people very close to His Heart on earth (‘’am segulah’’ – "peculiar treasure"  Ex 19:5/1 Pet 2:9)  it is a people a nation called Israel – called Jacob and YHVH will judge all mankind by the way they treat this nation He has chosen – this nation that is very precious to Him–but He has chosen them because He is YHVH and He has made up His mind to do so– the welfare of every nation and human being outside this chosen nation will be determined, judged or accepted by the way they treat this one nation – Israel.

Zec 2:8  For thus said יהוה of hosts (for the sake of esteem He sent me to the nations which plunder you): “For he who touches you touches the apple of My eye.a Footnote: a Deu_32:10.

However, this chosen nation has been very disobedient to Him.

For more in-depth study, you can explore the full text of Ezekiel 2-3, Isaiah 65:1-16, and Romans 10-11.

In Matthew 21:31-32, Jesus tells religious leaders (chief priests and elders) that "tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you" because they repented and believed John the Baptist, while the leaders did not. This indicates that humble repentance outweighs external religious appearance or even ethnicity – Joshua and Caleb!

Mat 21:28  “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go, work today in my vineyard.’ 

Mat 21:29  “And he answering, said, ‘I do not wish to,’ but afterwards he repented and went. 

Mat 21:30  “And having come to the second, he said similarly. And he answering, said, ‘I go, master,’ but he did not go. 

Mat 21:31  “Which of the two did the desire of the father?” They said to Him, “The first.” יהושע said to them, “Truly, I say to you that tax collectors and whores are entering into the reign of Elohim before you, 

Mat 21:32  for Yoḥanan came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but tax collectors and whores believed him. And when you saw it, you did not repent afterwards, to believe him. 

 

Ultimately only those grafted into Jacobs family will be called family and priests of the Most High Elohim.

 Jacob's Well

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srE_u9CmIso&t=9s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srE_u9CmIso

Parashat 8 Portion 32 ‘’Va yishlach’’ Gen 33:18 – 35:8 Nahum 1:12-2:6,14

Blessed are You, YHVH our Elohim, Creator of the universe, You have set us apart with Your commandments and You have called us to internalize the words of the Torah. Please, YHVH, our Elohim, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of Your people, the family of Israel. May we and our offspring and the offspring of Your people, the house of Israel – all of us – know Your Name and study Your Torah for its own sake. Please uncover our eyes and open our hearts that we may carefully examine and receive the marvels and mysteries of Your Torah. Blessed are You, YHVH, who teaches Torah to His people Israel.

ויבא

  ויבא יעקב שׁלם עיר שׁכם אשׁר בארץ כנען

Gen 33:18  And Ya‛aqoḇ came safely to the city of Sheḵem,  (modern day Nablus) which is in the land of Kena‛an, when he came from Paddan Aram. (also called Haran or the region in northern Mesopotamia/Aram where he lived with Laban) And he pitched his tent before the city. (modern day Nablus –(800 km journey lasting about 3 -4 years, which included an approximate stopover in Succoth of 18 to 36 months)

 

‘’The name "Shechem" specifically carries the connotation of a "shoulder" or "upper back," highlighting the city's geographical placement as a, representing a site of heavy, often crucial responsibility’’ (we see a similar patterns of departure from Egypt and from Paddam Aram, will we see a similar pattern for an end time called out people? – we are called out of an idolatrous world system – find shelter – Succoth – in the wilderness – Petra- after 42 months invited by Messiah into his kingdom)

 

Mat 11:29  “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble in heart, and you shall find rest for your beings.d Footnote: d Jer_6:16. Mat 11:30 Is 2:3) “For My yoke is gentle and My burden is light.” 

 

 "Yoke of the Torah," "yoke of the commandments," or "yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven" was a common rabbinic term and metaphor for submission to YHVH's authority and obedience to the Torah.

 

Shechem makes its first appearance in Scripture when Abraham enters the land of Canaan from Haran: (threshold covenant – entrance into the promised land is by invitation ONLY)

 

In Genesis 12:6–7, Abram travels “through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem” (also called the oak or terebinth of Moreh (אלון מורה) – a place of divine encounter and covenant confirmation) At that time, the Canaanites were still in the land.

 

There, YHVH appears to Abram for the first time in Canaan and gives the foundational promise: “To your offspring I will give this land.”

 

In response, Abraham builds an altar to YHVH—the first altar mentioned in the Promised Land – and enters a threshold covenant, common in ANE cultures) see Jn 3:5 – ‘’shvi shel Pesach’’)

This event marks Shechem as the initial entry point and a place of divine encounter and covenant confirmation right at the start of Abraham’s journey of faith in the land.

 

Jacob (Israel) at Shechem (where this weeks Torah portion begins)

About 200 years later (after Gen 12:6,7 -chronologically in the narrative), Jacob arrives at Shechem after his long exile in Paddan Aram and his ‘’reconciliation’’ with Esau.

 

In Genesis 33:18, Jacob “came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan,” pitches his tent before (or near) the city, and buys a parcel of land from the sons of Hamor (father of Shechem) for 100 pieces of silver/money.

 

He erects an altar there and names it El-Elohe-Israel (“The mighty El, the El of Israel”), deliberately echoing and continuing the worship tradition begun by his grandfather Abraham at the same location.

Jacob’s purchase represents one of the earliest recorded acquisitions of land in Canaan by the patriarchs (the other major one being Abraham’s purchase of the cave of Machpelah in Hebron for a burial site). It signals an intent to settle.

 

The bones of Joseph (Jacob’s favoured son) are eventually buried at Shechem in the very plot of ground Jacob had purchased- Josh 24:32

 

‘’Oak trees generally live for 100 to 300 years, though many species commonly survive for 600 years or more in ideal conditions. Some, like the English oak, can live over 1,000 years, while clonal colonies like the Jurupa Oak are estimated to be over 13,000 years old.’’) oak wood was extensively used to make ploughs in ancient times)

 

Under Joshua, the Israelites gather at Shechem for covenant renewal, where Joshua challenges the people: “Choose this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24). He sets up a stone as a witness under the oak, and the bones of Joseph are buried there—tying back to patriarchal roots.

 

It later becomes a city of refuge, a Levitical city, and plays roles in the period of the Judges (e.g., the story of Abimelech) and the divided monarchy.

 

And much later it became a meeting place for an encounter between the Messiah and a Samaritan woman – John 4 - This is believed to be the  first, most direct, and explicit declaration by Yahshua that He is the Messiah (the Anointed One) to any individual – to a ‘’sinful’’ rejected gentile woman. (about 1500 years after burial of Joseph)

 

Gen 33:19  And he bought the portion of the field where he had pitched his tent, from the children of Ḥamor, Sheḵem’s father, for one hundred qesitah.a Footnote: aA monetary unit of uncertain value, perhaps in the form of a lamb. 

Gen 33:20  And he set up a slaughter-place there and called it Ěl Elohě Yisra’ěl. 

 

The Defiling of Dinah - The story remains one of the most ethically complex in the Torah.

 

Gen 34:1  And Dinah, the daughter of Lě’ah, whom she had borne to Ya‛aqoḇ, went out to see the daughters of the land. 

Gen 34:2  And Sheḵem, son of Ḥamor the Ḥiwwite, prince of the land, saw her and took her and lay with her, and humbled her. 

 

Gen 34:3  And his being clung to Dinah the daughter of Ya‛aqoḇ, and he loved the girl and spoke kindly to the girl. 

Gen 34:4  And Sheḵem spoke to his father Ḥamor, saying, “Take this girl for me for a wife.” 

Gen 34:5  And Ya‛aqoḇ heard that he had defiled Dinah his daughter. Now his sons were with his livestock in the field, so Ya‛aqoḇ kept silent until they came. 

Gen 34:6  And Ḥamor, the father of Sheḵem, went out to Ya‛aqoḇ to speak with him. 

Gen 34:7  And the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ came in from the field when they heard it. And the men were grieved and very wroth, because he had done a senseless deed in Yisra’ěl by lying with Ya‛aqoḇ’s daughter, which should not be done. 

Gen 34:8  But Ḥamor spoke with them, saying, “My son Sheḵem’s being longs for your daughter. Please give her to him for a wife. 

Gen 34:9  “And intermarry with us, give us your daughters and take our daughters for yourselves, 

Gen 34:10  and dwell with us, and let the land be before you. Dwell and move about in it, and have possessions in it.” 

Gen 34:11  And Sheḵem said to her father and her brothers, “Let me find favour in your eyes, and whatever you say to me I give. 

Gen 34:12  “Ask of me a bride price and gift ever so high, and I give according to what you say to me, but give me the girl for a wife.” (maybe Chamor was a ‘’good’’ Hivvite)

Gen 34:13  But the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ answered Sheḵem and Ḥamor his father, and spoke with deceit, because he had defiled Dinah their sister. 

Gen 34:14  And they said to them, “We are not able to do this matter, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised, for that would be a reproach to us. 

Gen 34:15  “Only on this condition would we agree to you: If you become as we are, to have every male of you circumcised, 

Gen 34:16  then we shall give our daughters to you, and take your daughters to us. And we shall dwell with you, and shall become one people. 

Gen 34:17  “But if you do not listen to us and be circumcised, we shall take our daughter and go.” 

Gen 34:18  And their words pleased Ḥamor and Sheḵem, Ḥamor’s son. 

Gen 34:19  And the young man did not delay to do this because he delighted in Ya‛aqoḇ’s daughter. Now he was more respected than all the household of his father. 

Gen 34:20  And Ḥamor and Sheḵem his son came to the gate of their city, and spoke with the men of their city, saying, 

Gen 34:21  “These men are at peace with us, so let them dwell in the land and move about in it. And see, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters for us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. 

Gen 34:22  “Only on this condition would the men agree to dwell with us, to be one people: if every male among us is circumcised as they are circumcised. 

Gen 34:23  “Their herds and their possessions, and all their beasts, should they not be ours? Only let us agree with them, and let them dwell with us.” (was this deceitful?)

Gen 34:24  And all who went out of the gate of his city listened to Ḥamor and Sheḵem his son; every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city. 

Gen 34:25  And it came to be on the third day, when they were in pain, that two of the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ, Shim‛on and Lěwi, Dinah’s brothers, each took his sword and came boldly upon the city and killed all the males. 

Gen 34:26  And they killed Ḥamor and Sheḵem his son with the edge of the sword, and took Dinah from Sheḵem’s house, and went out. 

Gen 34:27  The sons of Ya‛aqoḇ came upon the slain, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister. 

Gen 34:28  They took their flocks and their herds, and their donkeys, and that which was in the city and that which was in the field, 

 

According to Genesis 49:5-6, Jacob’s sons Simeon and Levi hamstrung bulls (or oxen) during their vengeful attack on the men of Shechem. This act of crippling animals was done in anger following the rape of their sister, Dinah, and was condemned by their father, Jacob, as a reckless act of violence and wanton destruction. 

 

Gen 34:28  They took their flocks and their herds, and their donkeys, and that which was in the city and that which was in the field, 

Gen 34:29  and all their wealth. And all their little ones and their wives they took captive, and they plundered all that was in the houses. 

Gen 34:30  And Ya‛aqoḇ said to Shim‛on and Lěwi, “You have troubled me by making me a stench among the inhabitants of the land, among the Kena‛anites and the Perizzites. And I am few in number, they shall gather themselves against me and shall strike me, and I shall be destroyed, my household and I.” 

Gen 34:31  But they said, “Should he treat our sister like a whore?” 

 

Many midrashim and commentators defend the brothers’ zeal: Shechem committed a capital crime (rape of an Israelite woman), and the entire city was complicit by not protesting or judging the wrong (a form of collective responsibility under Noahide laws, according to some views).

Rashi on 34:25 notes they are called “Dinah’s brothers” specifically because they risked their lives for her honor.

Some sources (e.g., in Jubilees, which influences some rabbinic thought) portray Simeon and Levi’s action more positively, as righteous zeal.

 

Later Consequences and Broader Themes

Jacob’s deathbed rebuke (Genesis 49:5–7): “Simeon and Levi are brothers; instruments of violence are their swords... Cursed be their anger... I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.” The sages connect this directly to the Shechem incident — their uncontrolled zeal led to tribal dispersion (Levi became scattered as priests; Simeon’s territory was absorbed into Judah)

Some midrashim add positive or redemptive elements: e.g., Dinah later married Job, or bore a daughter Asenath (who married Joseph and became mother of Ephraim and Manasseh). These fill in Dinah’s otherwise silent story.

Overall theme: The story warns against intermarriage and assimilation with Canaanites, stresses the danger of “going out” unprotected into foreign culture, and grapples with balancing justice/zeal versus prudence and peace. It also shows family dysfunction and the cost of unchecked anger.

 

The question scholars have is ‘’was this incident commanded by YHVH or was it mans effort to attempt to solve a serious transgression and to seek justice, or simply an act of revenge’’?

 

Why would Mose later pass a law that the Hivites were to be exterminated? – Midrash!

 

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. 

Deu 7:5  “But this is what you do to them: Break down their slaughter-places, and smash their pillars, and cut down their Ashěrim, and burn their carved images with fire. 

Deu 7:6  “For you are a set-apart people to יהוה your Elohim. יהוה your Elohim has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a treasured possession above all the peoples on the face of the earth. 

 

YHVH Blesses and Renames Jacob

Gen 35:1  And Elohim said to Ya‛aqoḇ, “Arise, go up to Běyth Ěl and dwell there. And make a slaughter-place there to Ěl who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Ěsaw your brother.” 

Gen 35:2  And Ya‛aqoḇ said to his household and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign mighty ones that are among you, and cleanse yourselves, and change your garments. 

Gen 35:3  “And let us arise and go up to Běyth Ěl, and let me make there a slaughter-place to Ěl, who answered me in the day of my distress, and has been with me in the way which I have gone.” 

Gen 35:4  So they gave Ya‛aqoḇ all the foreign mighty ones which were in their hands, and all their earrings which were in their ears. And Ya‛aqoḇ hid them under the terebinth tree which was near Sheḵem. 

Gen 35:5  And they departed, and the fear of Elohim was upon the cities that were all around them, and they did not pursue the sons of Ya‛aqoḇ. 

Gen 35:6  And Ya‛aqoḇ came to Luz, that is Běyth Ěl, which is in the land of Kena‛an, he and all the people who were with him. 

Gen 35:7  And he built there a slaughter-place and called the place El Běyth Ěl, because there Elohim appeared to him when he fled from the face of his brother. 

 

Bethel (or El-beth-el) in Genesis 35:7 is not Jerusalem, nor is the altar Jacob built there located on the future Temple Mount. (Jacob's Ladder is a dream recorded in Genesis 28:10-22)

Biblical Bethel lay approximately 10–12 miles north of Jerusalem.

The very same Bethel from Genesis 35:7 (Jacob's altar site) later became one of the two primary symbols of idolatry for the ten northern tribes. Its strategic location made it a convenient alternative to Jerusalem, but the Bible portrays this as a great spiritual failure that contributed to the northern kingdom's eventual downfall. The patriarchal “House of YHVH” ironically turned into a house of rival, calf-based worship.’’

 

What Happened at Bethel

‘’After King Solomon's death (around 931 BC), the kingdom split. The ten northern tribes followed Jeroboam I as their king, while Judah and Benjamin remained loyal to Rehoboam in the south (with the Temple in Jerusalem).

Jeroboam feared that if his people continued traveling south to worship at the Jerusalem Temple, their loyalty might shift back to the Davidic line. To prevent this, he established two rival worship centers:

One at Dan (in the far north)

One at Bethel (near the southern border of his kingdom, about 12 miles north of Jerusalem)

He made two golden calves, placing one in each location, and declared: “Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” He also appointed non-Levitical priests, built an altar, and instituted new festivals’’ (Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?)

 

The prophets strongly condemned it:

Amos (who ministered in the north) denounced the altar and rituals at Bethel (Amos 3:14; 4:4; 5:5–6), calling the people to seek YHVH instead of relying on the shrine.

Hosea referred to it critically, sometimes playing on the name as “Beth-aven” (“House of Wickedness” or “House of Evil”) instead of “Bethel” (“House of YHVH”) due to the idolatry there (Hosea 4:15; 5:8; 10:5, 15).

 

Gen 35:8  And Deḇorah, Riḇqah’s nurse, died, and she was buried below Běyth Ěl under the terebinth tree. So the name of it was called Allon Baḵuth.

 

Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman (in Genesis Rabbah 81:5) explains that “allon” in Greek means “another.” While Jacob was still mourning Deborah, news arrived of his mother Rebekah’s death. Thus, the place became “Allon-bacuth” “the oak of another weeping.”

Jacob never saw his mother again after fleeing from Esau, and the Torah never explicitly records Rebekah’s death or burial (why?) The sages say the family kept her death relatively quiet (to avoid public embarrassment involving Esau, “the one who came forth from her womb”). Because of this, Scripture alludes to it indirectly through the mourning for Deborah’’

 

Maybe ‘’another’’ meaning of Allon Baḵuth would point to how the 10 northern tribes of Israel would be dispersed among the nations and even ‘’divorced’’ by YHVH for their unrepented of idolatry. (Jer 3:8) Not an oak where a covenant was made but an oak where the covenant was broken.

 

Perhaps this points to another important message this Torah portion teaches us:

 

‘’From the garden to the grave’’ mankind’s idolatry (doing what is right in your own eyes) has produced enormous suffering and death on earth – and in these last days it will become so out of control that YHVH will almost have to totally destroy mankind on earth.

 

The survivors of this apocalyptic destruction along with the resurrected set apart ones will rule the earth with Messiah for 1000 years – where no form of idolatry will be allowed or tolerated.

 

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 –

Additional Midrash on suffering:

Why is life so hard? Why do YHVH’s children suffer so much?

Joh 16:33  “These words I have spoken to you, that in Me you might have peace. In the world you have pressure,( Thlipsis- θλίψις) but take courage, I have overcome the world.” 

meaning θλίψις -Literal Meaning: It refers to a physical pressing together or narrowing (like a narrow place that "hems someone in").

Figurative Meaning: It refers to the internal pressure that causes someone to feel confined, burdened, or without options.

Acts 14:22 - YHVH’s people have their trials.( θλίψις) It was never designed by YHVH, when he chose his people, that they should be an untried people. They were chosen in the furnace of affliction; they were never chosen to worldly peace and earthly joy. Freedom from sickness and the pains of mortality was never promised them.

Heb 5:8  though being a Son, He learned obedience by what He suffered. 

"Made Perfect" (Teleioo): This Greek term means to complete a task, achieve a goal, or bring to maturity—not to fix a moral defect.

Experiential Obedience: He learned what obedience costs by obeying YHVH under extreme suffering, making Him a sympathetic High Priest.

Why many called few chosen – Mat 22:14

The verse is Isaiah 48:10, which reads: "Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested [or chosen] you in the furnace of affliction" It signifies that YHVH refines and selects His people through trials, hardships, and suffering, treating affliction as a purifying process. 

Isa 53:7  He was oppressed and He was afflicted, but He did not open His mouth. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, but He did not open His mouth. 

How well do you and I suffer?

2Co 4:7  And we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the excellence of the power might be of Elohim, and not of us – 

2Co 4:8  being hard pressed on every side,b but not crushed; being perplexed, but not in despair; Footnote: bSee 1Co_1:8. 

2Co 4:9  being persecuted, but not forsaken; being thrown down, but not destroyed; 

2Co 4:10  always bearing about in the body the dying of the Master יהושע, that the life of יהושע might also be manifested in our body. 

2Co 4:11  For we, the living, are always delivered to death for the sake of יהושע, that the life of יהושע might also be manifested in our mortal flesh, 

2Co 4:12  so that death indeed is working in us, but the life in you.

2Co 4:16  Therefore we do not lose heart, but even if our outward man is perishing, the inward man is being renewed day by day. 

2Co 4:17  For this slight momentary pressure is working for us a far more exceeding and everlasting weight of esteem. 

2Co 4:18  We are not looking on what is seen, but on what is not seen. For what is seen passes away, but what is not seen is everlasting.c Footnote: cSee 2Co_5:7, Rom_8:24, Heb_11:1 and Heb_11:13. 

Parashat 8 Portion 31 ‘’Vayishlach’’ ‘’and he sent’’ Gen 32:3-33:17 Joel 4:12-31, Joel 1:11-12

 Blessed are You, YHVH our Elohim, Creator of the universe, You have set us apart with Your commandments and You have called us to internalize the words of the Torah. Please, YHVH, our Elohim, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of Your people, the family of Israel. May we and our offspring and the offspring of Your people, the house of Israel – all of us – know Your Name and study Your Torah for its own sake. Please uncover our eyes and open our hearts that we may carefully examine and receive the marvels and mysteries of Your Torah. Blessed are You, YHVH, who teaches Torah to His people Israel.

Deu 4:5  “See, I have taught you laws and right-rulings, as יהוה my Elohim commanded me, to do thus in the land which you go to possess. 

Deu 4:6  “And you shall guard and do them, for this is your wisdom and your understanding before the eyes of the peoples who hear all these laws, and they shall say, ‘Only a wise and understanding people is this great nation!’ 

Deu 4:7  “For what great nation is there which has Elohim so near to it, as יהוה our Elohim is to us, whenever we call on Him? 

Deu 4:8  “And what great nation is there that has such laws and righteous right-rulings like all this Torah which I set before you this day? 

Deu 4:9  “Only, guard yourself, and guard your life diligently, lest you forget the Words your eyes have seen, and lest they turn aside from your heart all the days of your life. And you shall make them known to your children and your grandchildren.

 

 Moses is addressing the Israelites, (including those grafted into Israel) reminding them that keeping these laws – this Torah - shows their wisdom and understanding to the world today, in the last days and in the world to come.

 

The prophets remind us again and again – if there is any word, any truth – and it does not agree with the words of this Torah as faithfully lived out by an obedient Apostolic community to which these words were entrusted – these words are dark, deceptive and dangerous – Is 8:20

 

The apostolic community of Yahshua agreed with and taught all of the words of the Torah with the realization in their hearts that only Yahshua in us makes it possible for us to walk in the righteousness of the Torah.

 

וישׁלח – “and he sent’’

Gen 32:3  And Ya‛aqoḇ sent messengers before him to Ěsaw his brother in the land of Sě‛ir, the field of Eḏom 

Why did Jacob send messengers? Yahshua gives us the answer - 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. Mat 5:26  “Truly, I say to you, you shall by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny. 

Gen 32:4  and he commanded them, saying, “Say this to my master Ěsaw, ‘Your servant Ya‛aqoḇ said this, “I have sojourned with Laḇan and stayed there until now. 

Gen 32:5  “And I have bulls, and donkeys, flocks, and male and female servants. And I have sent to inform my master, to find favour in your eyes.”

Gen 32:6  So the messengers returned to Ya‛aqoḇ, saying, “We came to your brother Ěsaw, and he also is coming to meet you, and four hundred men with him.” 

Gen 32:7  And Ya‛aqoḇ was greatly afraid and distressed. So, he divided the people that were with him, and the flocks and herds and camels, into two groups, (Jacobs strategy of dividing his flock may be repeated in the last days – Rev 12)

 

It is possible that Laban also sent a messenger to inform Esau of his brothers returning to the land? Labans intention was to bring harm on Jacob and his family.

 

Gen 32:8  and he said, “If Ěsaw comes to the one group and strikes it, then the other group which is left shall escape.” 

Gen 32:9  And Ya‛aqoḇ said, “O Elohim of my father Aḇraham and Elohim of my father Yitsḥaq, יהוה who said to me, ‘Return to your land and to your relatives, and I do good to you,’ 

 

Gen 32:10  “I do not deserve the least of all the loving-commitment and all the truth which You have shown Your servant, for I passed over this Yarděn with my staff, and now I have become two groups. (note Jacobs’s attitude – even though YHVH chose him and blessed him – Jacob did not feel entitled to YHVH’s protection or blessings – Luke 21:36)

Gen 32:11  “Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Ěsaw, for I fear him, lest he come and shall strike me and the mother with the children. 

Gen 32:12  “For You said, ‘I shall certainly do good to you, and shall make your seed as the sand of the sea, which are too numerous to count.’ ” 

Gen 32:13  And he spent the night there, and took what came to his hand as a present for Ěsaw his brother – 

Gen 32:14  two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, 

Gen 32:15  thirty suckling-camels with their colts, forty cows and ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals. 

Gen 32:16  And he gave into the hand of his servants, every drove by itself, and said to his servants, “Pass over before me, and put some distance between drove and drove.” 

Gen 32:17  And he commanded the first one, saying, “When Ěsaw my brother meets you and asks you, saying, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going? And whose are these in front of you?’ 

Gen 32:18  then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Ya‛aqoḇ’s. It is a present sent to my master Ěsaw. And see, he also is behind us.’ ” 

Gen 32:19  So he commanded the second, and the third, and all who followed the droves, saying, “Speak to Ěsaw this same word when you find him, 

Gen 32:20  and you shall say, ‘Also look, your servant Ya‛aqoḇ is behind us.’ ” For he said, “Let me appease him with the present that goes before me, and after that see his face. He might accept me.” 

Gen 32:21  And the present passed over before him, but he himself spent the night in the camp. 

 

Pro 21:14  Privately given gifts pacify wrath, and payments made secretly appease great anger. 

 

Jacob Wrestles with YHVH

Gen 32:22  And he rose up that night and took his two wives, and his two female servants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford of Yabboq. (emptying – the dark night of the soul)

 

Hearin lies a very important end time message – when you think things cannot get worse, they become more worse than you could ever have imagined.

 

Gen 32:23  And he took them and sent them over the stream and sent over what he had. 

Gen 32:24  And Ya‛aqoḇ was left alone. And a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. 

Gen 32:25  And when He saw that He did not overcome him, He touched the socket of his hip. And the socket of Ya‛aqoḇ’s hip was dislocated as He wrestled with him. 

Gen 32:26  And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.” But he said, “I am not letting You go until You have blessed me!” 

 

The apostle Paul understood this - 2Co 4:8  being hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; being perplexed, but not in despair; Footnote:

2Co 4:9  being persecuted, but not forsaken; being thrown down, but not destroyed;

2Co 4:16  Therefore we do not lose heart, but even if our outward man is perishing, the inward man is being renewed day by day. 

2Co 4:17  For this slight momentary pressure is working for us a far more exceeding and everlasting weight of esteem.

 

If you expand the meaning of verse 8 into a more modern vernacular – it would sound something like this: ‘’We face serious challenges from all sides – yet we are not trapped and even when we feel trapped with nowhere to go, He shows us a way out’’

 

1Co 10:13  No trial has overtaken you except such as is common to man, and Elohim is trustworthy, who shall not allow you to be tried beyond what you are able, but with the trial shall also make the way of escape, enabling you to bear it. 

 

‘’The “man” (ish) who wrestles with Jacob is almost universally identified by the sages as the guardian messenger (sar) of Esau (or sometimes called Samael, the accusing messenger associated with Esau/Edom). Samael can be understood as the embodiment of the Severity of Elohim – fallen messenger.

Why this identification? Every nation has a heavenly “prince” (Ps 84) or ministering messenger who represents its interests before YHVH. Esau/Edom’s messenger comes to block or harm Jacob as he returns to the land and prepares to face Esau.

Some sources add mystical depth: the struggle represents the cosmic or spiritual battle between the forces of Jacob (Israel) and Esau (symbolizing Rome, oppression, or the “material world” in later interpretations).’’

 

‘’Jacob himself experiences it as encountering YHVH (or divine presence), which is why he names the place Peniel (“face of El”) and says, “I have seen Elohim face to face and my life was spared” (32:30). The sages hold both ideas together: the visible opponent is Esau’s messenger, but the power and blessing ultimately come from YHVH.’’

 

Gen 32:27  So He asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Ya‛aqoḇ.” 

Gen 32:28  And He said, “Your name is no longer called Ya‛aqoḇ, but Yisra’ěl, because you have striven with Elohim and with men, and have overcome.” Footnote: Yisra’ěl means “to strive with Ěl; to overcome with Ěl; to rule with Ěl”. 

Gen 32:29  And Ya‛aqoḇ asked Him, saying, “Please let me know Your Name.” And He said, “Why do you ask about My Name?” And He blessed him there. 

Gen 32:30  And Ya‛aqoḇ called the name of the place Peni’ěl, “For I have seen Elohim face to face, and my life is preserved.” 

Gen 32:31  And the sun rose on him as he passed over Penu’ěl, and he limped on his hip. 

 

‘’Don’t trust any man who doesnt walk with a limp’’ Bob Mumford.

 

Gen 32:32  That is why the children of Yisra’ěl to this day do not eat the sinew of the hip, which is on the socket of the thigh, because He touched the socket of the thigh of Ya‛aqoḇ, in the sinew of the hip. (the sciatic nerve (sinew) is a thick piece of ‘’gristle’’ in the rear part of the animal hind quarters (rump) which is very difficult to chew)

 

Jacob Meets Esau

Gen 33:1  And Ya‛aqoḇ lifted his eyes and looked and saw Ěsaw coming, and with him four hundred men. And he divided the children among Lě’ah, and Raḥěl, and the two female servants. 

Gen 33:2  And he put the female servants and their children in front, and Lě’ah and her children behind, and Raḥěl and Yosěph last. 

Gen 33:3  And he himself passed over before them and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother. 

Gen 33:4  And Ěsaw ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him, and they wept. 

Gen 33:5  And he lifted his eyes and saw the women and children, and said, “Who are these with you?” And he said, “The children with whom Elohim has favoured your servant.” 

Gen 33:6  Then the female servants came near, they and their children, and bowed themselves. 

Gen 33:7  And Lě’ah also came near with her children, and they bowed themselves. And Yosěph and Raḥěl came near, and they bowed themselves. 

Gen 33:8  Then Ěsaw said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?” And he said, “To find favour in the eyes of my master.” 

Gen 33:9  But Ěsaw said, “I have enough, my brother, let what you have remain yours.” 

Gen 33:10  And Ya‛aqoḇ said, “No, please, if I have now found favour in your eyes, then receive my present from my hand, because I have seen your face like seeing the face of Elohim, and you were pleased with me. 

Gen 33:11  “Please, take my blessing that is brought to you, because Elohim has favoured me, and because I have all I need.” And he urged him, and he took it. 

Gen 33:12  And he said, “Let us depart and go, and let me go before you.” 

Gen 33:13  But he said to him, “My master knows that the children are weak, and the flocks and herds which are nursing are with me. And if the men should drive them hard one day, all the flocks shall die. 

Gen 33:14  “Please let my master go before his servant, and let me lead on slowly according to the pace of the livestock that go before me, and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my master in Sě‛ir.” 

Gen 33:15  And Ěsaw said, “Please let me leave with you some of the people who are with me.” But he said, “Why this? Let me find favour in the eyes of my master.” 

Gen 33:16  And Ěsaw returned that day on his way to Sě‛ir. 

 

 

Jasher Says (Chapter 32)

Jacob sends messengers to Esau with words of supplication and humility (similar to Genesis).

Esau responds with pride and contempt. He has not forgiven Jacob for the blessing and birthright. Jasher portrays Esau as actively advancing with hostile intent — coming to destroy or harm Jacob and his household, accompanied by 400-armed men from the children of Seir (the Horites).

Jacob prays earnestly to YHVH for deliverance.

YHVH intervenes supernaturally and sends three messengers from heaven. These messengers appear to Esau and his men as two-thousand-armed horsemen, divided into four camps (with chiefs leading them).

The angelic “camps” repeatedly charge at Esau’s group in a terrifying manner (one camp at a time, four times total). This causes great fear: Esau falls off his horse in alarm, his men scatter, and they are filled with anguish and astonishment.

The messengers declare (in effect): “We are servants of Jacob, the servant of YHVH — who can stand against us?” They warn Esau that they would have destroyed him and his men if not for Jacob.

As a result, Esau becomes greatly afraid of Jacob. His heart is temporarily changed through fear, and instead of attacking, he goes to meet Jacob in peace (though Jasher notes he still concealed hatred in his heart).

 

Gen 33:17  And Ya‛aqoḇ set out to Sukkoth, and built himself a house, and made booths for his livestock. That is why the name of the place is called Sukkoth. 

 

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. 

 

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 –

Let us attempt to build and end time outline from Yahshua’s teaching on the last days:

Signs of the End of the Age

Mat 24:3  And as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the taught ones came to Him separately, saying, “Say to us, when shall this be, and what is the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” 

Mat 24:4  And יהושע answering, said to them, “Take heed that no one leads you astray. 

Mat 24:5  “For many shall come in My Name, saying, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and they shall lead many astray. 

The first sign Yahshua gives his disciples is about the deception in the world regarding his identity. We have often said that if you get Yahshua wrong, you get everything wrong.

Prof John Lennox calls this “the greatest deception in history” because it is sophisticated, widespread, and targets the very people who think they are following Christ.

Yahshua here in vs 4 is talking about how he himself would be misrepresented – 2 Cor 11:3,4

The confusion as to the true identity of Yahshua will most probably trigger the great tribulation of the last days, when the ‘’abomination of desolation’’ makes himself known -

Mat 24:6  “And you shall begin to hear of fighting’s and reports of fighting. See that you are not troubled, for these have to take place, but the end is not yet. 

Mat 24:7  “For nation shall rise against nation, and reign against reign. And there shall be scarcities of food, and deadly diseases, and earthquakes in places. (Rev 6)

Mat 24:8  “And all these are the beginning of birth pains. (Rev 6)

Mat 24:9  “Then they shall deliver you up to affliction and kill you, and you shall be hated by all nations for My Name’s sake. (Rev 6:5)

Mat 24:10  “And then many shall stumble, and they shall deliver up one another, and shall hate one another. 

Mat 24:11  “And many false prophets shall rise up and lead many astray. 

Mat 24:12  “And because of the increase in lawlessness, the love of many shall become cold. 

Mat 24:13  “But he who shall have endured to the end shall be saved.a Footnote: aSee Mat_10:22. 

Mat 24:14  “And this Good News of the reign shall be proclaimed in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come. 

At the end of the first 3 ½ year period the people will be praying for death to come upon them –

Rev 6:15  And the sovereigns of the earth, and the great ones, and the rich ones, and the commanders, and the mighty, and every slave and every free one, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 

Rev 6:16  and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us Hos_10:8 from the face of Him sitting on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, 

Rev 6:17  because the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?” 

 

The Abomination of Desolation – this is the beginning of the last 3 ½ year period called the great tribulation – our final journey to the promised land – millennial kingdom. Rev 8-15 trumpet judgments and related issues – first resurrection)

Luk 21:36  “Watch then at all times, and pray that you be counted worthy to escape all this about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Aḏam.” 

Mat 24:15  “So when you see the ’abomination that lays waste,’b Dan_11:31 spoken of by Dani’ěl the prophet, set up in the set-apart place” – he who reads, let him understand – Footnote: bSee also Dan_9:27 and Abomination that lays waste in Explanatory Notes. 

Mat 24:16  “then let those who are in Yehuḏah flee to the mountains. 

Mat 24:17  “Let him who is on the house-top not come down to take whatever out of his house. 

Mat 24:18  “And let him who is in the field not turn back to get his garments. 

Mat 24:19  “And woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing children in those days! 

Mat 24:20  “And pray that your flight does not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. 

Mat 24:21  “For then there shall be great distress,c such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. Footnote: cOr great pressure, or great affliction. 

Mat 24:22  “And if those days were not shortened, no flesh would be saved, but for the sake of the chosen ones those days shall be shortened. 

Mat 24:23  “If anyone then says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe. 

Mat 24:24  “For false messiahs and false prophets shall arise, and they shall show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones. 

Mat 24:25  “See, I have forewarned you. 

Rev 3:10  “Because you have guarded My Word of endurance,(Torah Mat 5:17-19) I also shall guard you from the hour of trial which shall come upon all the world, to try those who dwell on the earth.