Devarim/Deu 3:23-7:11
Why did Moshe plead with
YHVH to enter the land?
It is possible that Moshe
was enabled to look into the future Messianic realm and he desperately wanted
to be part of what he saw, however what Moshe saw was destined for the second
coming of the Messiah and the establishing of the Messianic rule on earth.
So Moshe the ‘great
prophet like unto our Messiah’ warns us and also comforts us with these words:
Deu 4:30 “In your
distress, when all these words shall come upon you in the latter days, then you
shall return to יהוה your Elohim and shall obey His
voice.
Moshe saw into the future and realized that only One was
worthy and able to take us (and keep us) in the promised land – Yahshua Ha
Mashiach – We learn from Moshe that a profound inner transformation will take
place in the midst of great distress that will by the power of YHVH’s Ruach
enable and prepare us to cross over into the millennial kingdom at the end of
this age.
This Torah portion lays the foundations for how this
transformation will take place in our lives.
Blessing for the Torah:
Baruch atah YHVH, Eloheynu, Melech ha-O’lam, asher
bachar banu m’kol ha-amim,
v’natan lanu eht Torah-to. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn
ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
you have selected us from among all the peoples, and
have given us your Torah.
Blessed are you, YHVH, giver of the Torah. Ameyn.)
Torah
Readings:
1. 3:23-4:4
2. 4:5-40
3. 4:41-49
4. 5:1-21(18 Heb.)
5.
5:22(19) – 6:3
6. 6:4-25
7. 7:1-11
Maftir: 7:9-11
Haftarah: Isaiah 40:1-26
Aliyah
Rishon 3:23-4:4
Deu 3:23 “And I pleaded (va etchanan) with יהוה at that time, saying,
Va'etchanan el-YHVH
And to the mercy/favour of YHVH I appealed,
ba'et hahi l’emor.
to that time, saying . . .
‘Ve etchanan’ is a verb
meaning he implored, he pleaded, or sought favour. It is a “hitpael” verb.
Hitpael verbs are reflexive verbs - the subject of the sentence performs the
action on itself. These verbs are intense verbs which imply that there is a
certain desperation attached to the action of the verb. It conveys the meaning that the action of the
verb will not stop until the action of the verb has come to pass. The root of
this verb is “favour” or “chanan” which means to show favour or pity. When this
verb is in the Hitpael it literary means “you continued to show favour to
yourself” understood in Hebrew as “pleading or imploring”. In hindsight we now believe that this favour
will become reality for Moshe rabbeinu (Moshe our rabbi) when the Messiah
returns.
The kindest thing you can
do for yourself is to continually plead for the favour and mercy that will be
poured out upon those who desire to witness and embrace the coming Messianic
kingdom.
The timing of this pleading also seems
significant in that it was taking place subsequent to YHVH’s destroying the
power of Yisrael’s enemies. We see here that Yisrael was not just taking for
granted that they were called to enter into the land of Yisrael.
In the context of this chapter we read about
the destruction of Og and Shihon. Note from the following verse how terrifying
this enemy actually was:
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.”
Note that the time to earnestly seek YHVH’s favour is
after He has taken care of your enemies. This happens because of deep impact
and awe that comes upon a people who have seen the Hand of YHVH.
Deu 3:24 ‘O Master
יהוה, You have begun to show Your
servant Your greatness and Your strong hand, for who is a mighty one in the
heavens or on earth who does according to Your works and according to Your
might?
Deu 3:25 ‘I pray,
let me pass over and see the good land beyond the Yardĕn, this good hill
country, and Leḇanon.’
Literal translation of vs 25 is as follows: “I will cross
over (because) and I have seen (perfect tense) the good land which is across
the Yarden, this, the good mountain and the Levanon.”
Rashi
comments “the mountain” (ha har in Hebrew) refers to the temple mount in
Yersushalayim. The Levanon too is an epithet for the set apart temple because
Levanon comes from the word “lavan” which means white because it makes white or
provides atonement.
It is possible that Moshe
could not cross over because the time for the Temple to be rebuilt, the service
restored and for Messiah to rule and reign over all the earth had not yet come?
Deu 3:26 “But יהוה was enraged with me, for your sake,
and would not listen to me, and יהוה said to
me, ‘Enough of that! Speak no more to Me about this matter.
“enough of that” or “this is too much for you” YHVH was
telling Moshe that he was not able to permanently lead Yisrael back into the
land for them to settle there until the completion of this age and the coming
age of the Messianic kingdom. Only Messiah would succeed with such a mission.
There is a veiled reference to Messiah in the mentioning of Yehoshua. Yehoshua
was the very same name that the Messiah would have when he appeared 2000 years
ago. (The “e” en Yehoshua was originally an “a”.)
Deu 3:27 ‘Go up to
the top of Pisgah, and lift up your eyes westward, and northward, and
southward, and eastward, and look with your eyes, for you do not pass over this
Yardĕn.
Deu 3:28 ‘But
charge Yehoshua, and strengthen him and make him brave, for he shall pass over
before this people and causes them to inherit the land which you see.’
Deu 3:29 “And we
dwelt in the valley opposite Bĕyth Pe’or.
Beth Peor points us to the seed of our destruction but
also to the seed of our restoration.
Beth Peor or “place of the
opening” – destruction comes with receiving a “mixed seed”. Restoration comes
with the receiving of the “pure seed” of YHVH’s Torah.
In the following verses we see
YHVH’s original plan and solution for mankind’s dilemma – the tree of Life –
The Torah.
Deu 4:1 “And now, O
Yisra’ĕl, listen to the laws and the right-rulings which I am teaching you to
do, so that you live, and shall go in and possess the land which יהוה Elohim of your fathers is giving
you.
Deu 4:2 “Do not
add to the Word which I command you, and do not take away from it1,
so as to guard the commands of יהוה your Elohim which I am commanding you. Footnote: 1See
also 12:32, Prov. 30:6, Rev. 22:18-19.
Deu 4:3 “Your eyes
have seen what יהוה did at Ba’al Pe’or, for יהוה your Elohim has destroyed from your
midst all the men who followed Ba’al
Pe’or. (Master of the opening).
Our eyes will once again see
in the latter days what YHVH will do to those who have opened up their hearts
to receive the seed of mixture that has hindered them from obeying the Torah.
The sages believe that Moshe
was equating idol worshippers with those who denied the divine origin of the
Torah and our obligation to embrace all of its instruction.
Deu 4:4 “But you
who are clinging to יהוה your Elohim are alive today, every
one of you.
Aliyah Sheni 4:5-40
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 4:9 “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.
Deu 4:10 “The day
when you stood before יהוה your
Elohim in Ḥorĕḇ, יהוה said to
me, ‘Assemble the people to Me and I make them hear My Words, so that they
learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth and teach them to
their children.’
Deu 4:11 “And you
came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with
fire to the heart of the heavens – darkness, cloud, and thick darkness.
Deu 4:12 “And יהוה spoke to you out of the midst of
the fire. You heard a voice of words, but saw
no form, you only heard a voice.
Deu 4:13 “And He made
known to you His covenant which He commanded you to do, the Ten Words, and
He wrote them on two tablets of stone.
Deu 4:14 “And יהוה commanded me at that time to teach
you laws and right-rulings, for you to do them in the land which you pass over
to possess.
Deu 4:15
“Therefore, diligently guard yourselves, for you saw no form when יהוה spoke to you at Ḥorĕḇ out of the
midst of the fire,
Deu 4:16 lest you
should do corruptly and shall make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure – the likeness of
male or female,
We see man’s propensity to want to worship any “form”
that represents the fullness and the mightiness of YHVH. We sadly see this in
Christianity who have confused the son of YHVH with YHVH Himself. That is why
this Torah portion continues to define YHVH and the watchword of our faith
- Devarim 6:4
Deu 4:17 the
likeness of any beast that is on the earth or the likeness of any winged bird
that flies in the heavens,
Deu 4:18 the
likeness of any creature that creeps on the ground or the likeness of any fish
that is in the water under the earth;
Deu 4:19 and lest
you lift up your eyes to the heavens, and shall see the sun, and the moon, and
the stars – all the host of the heavens – and you be drawn away into bowing
down to them and serving them, which יהוה your Elohim has allotted to all the
peoples under all the heavens.
Deu 4:20 “But יהוה has taken you and brought you out
of the iron furnace, out of Mitsrayim, to be His people, an inheritance, as it
is today.
Deu 4:21 “And יהוה was enraged with me because of your
words, and swore that I would not pass over the Yardĕn, and that I would not
enter the good land which יהוה your
Elohim is giving you as an inheritance.
Deu 4:22 “For I am
to die in this land, I am not passing over the Yardĕn, but you are passing
over, and shall possess that good land.
Deu 4:23 “Guard
yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of יהוה your Elohim which He made with you, and shall make for
yourselves a carved image in the form of whatever יהוה your Elohim has forbidden you.
Deu 4:24 “For יהוה your Elohim is a consuming fire, a
jealous Ěl.
Deu 4:25 “When you
bring forth children and grandchildren, and shall grow old in the land, and
shall do corruptly and make a carved image in the form of whatever, and shall
do what is evil in the eyes of יהוה your
Elohim to provoke Him,
Deu 4:26 “I shall
call the heavens and earth to witness against you on that day, that you soon
completely perish from the land which you pass over the Yardĕn to possess – you
do not prolong your days in it but are completely destroyed.
Deu 4:27 “And יהוה shall scatter you among the
peoples, and you shall be left few in number among the gentiles where יהוה drives you.
Deu 4:28 “And
there you shall serve mighty ones, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone,
which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.
Deu 4:29 “But from
there you shall seek יהוה your Elohim, and shall find, when
you search for Him with all your heart1 and with all your being.
Footnote: 1Jer. 29:13.
Deu 4:30 “In your
distress, when all these words shall come upon you in the latter days, then you
shall return to יהוה your Elohim and shall obey His
voice.
This is as clear as it can get. Could we be part of a
people who are calling to YHVH in the latter days to deliver us from the galut
(exile)?
Deu 4:31 “For יהוה your Elohim is a compassionate Ěl,
He does not forsake you, nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your
fathers which He swore to them.
Deu 4:32 “For ask
now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that Elohim
created man on the earth, and ask from one end of the heavens to the other end
of the heavens, whether there has been a Word as great as this, or has been
heard like it. (Torah)
Deu 4:33 “Has a
people heard the voice of Elohim speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you
have heard, and live?
Deu 4:34 “Or has
Elohim tried to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of a nation by
trials, and by signs, and by wonders, and by battle, and by a strong hand and
an outstretched arm, and by great fearsome deeds, according to all that יהוה your Elohim did for you in
Mitsrayim before your eyes?
Deu 4:35 “You have
been shown it, to know that יהוה Himself
is Elohim; there is no one beside Him.
Deu 4:36 “From the
heavens He let you hear His voice, to instruct you, and on earth He showed you
His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire.
Deu 4:37 “And
because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their seed after them, and
brought you out of Mitsrayim with His Presence, with His great power,
Deu 4:38 to drive
out from before you nations greater and stronger than you, to bring you in, to
give you their land as an inheritance, as it is today.
Deu 4:39 “And you
shall know today, and shall recall to your heart that יהוה Himself is Elohim in the heavens
above and on the earth beneath; there is none else.
Deu 4:40 “And you
shall guard His laws and His
commands which I command you today, so that it is well with you and with
your children after you, and so that you prolong your days on the soil which יהוה your Elohim is giving you for all
time.”
Aliyah Shlishi 4:41-49
Deu 4:41 Then Mosheh separated three cities beyond the
Yardĕn, toward the rising of the sun,
The establishing of these three cities of refuges is
stated in the future tense (root -badal – javdil) vs 41 should read that Moshe
WILL establish three cities of refuge sometime in the future. The sages have various
explanations for this. We must therefore assume that the instruction of this
Torah portion is also meant for a future fulfillment.
Deu 4:42 for him who killed someone to flee there, he
who kills his neighbour unintentionally, without having hated him in time past,
and might flee to one of these cities and live:
Deu 4:43 Betser in the wilderness in the level land
for the Re’uvĕnites, and Ramoth in
Gil’aḏ for the Gaḏites, and Golan in Bashan for the Menashshites.
Deu 4:44 And
this is the Torah which Mosheh set before the children of Yisra’ĕl.
Deu 4:45
These are the witnesses, and the laws, and the right-rulings which
Mosheh spoke to the children of Yisra’ĕl after they came out of Mitsrayim,
Deu 4:46
beyond the Yardĕn, in the valley opposite Bĕyth Peʽor, in the land of
Siḥon sovereign of the Amorites, who dwelt at Ḥeshbon, whom Mosheh and the
children of Yisra’ĕl had smitten after they came out of Mitsrayim.
Deu 4:47 And
they took possession of his land and the land of Oḡ sovereign of Bashan, two
sovereigns of the Amorites, who were beyond the Yardĕn, toward the rising of
the sun,
Deu 4:48
from Aroʽĕr, which is on the bank of the wadi Arnon, even to Mount
Siyon, which is Ḥermon,
Deu 4:49 and
all the desert plain beyond the Yardĕn as far as the Sea of the Araḇah, below
the slopes of Pisgah.
Aliyah Reviee 5:1-21
Deu 5:6 ‘I am יהוה your Elohim who brought you out of
the land of Mitsrayim, out of the house of bondage.
Deu 5:7 ‘You have
no other mighty ones against My face.
Deu 5:8 ‘You do
not make for yourself a carved image, any likeness of which is in the heavens
above, or which is in the earth beneath, or which is in the waters under the
earth,
Deu 5:9 you do not
bow down to them nor serve them. For I, יהוה your Elohim, am a jealous Ěl,
visiting the crookedness of the fathers upon the children to the third and
fourth generations of those who hate Me,
Deu 5:10 but
showing kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and guard My commands.
Deu 5:11 ‘You do
not bring1 the Name of יהוה your Elohim to naught, for יהוה does not leave him unpunished who
brings His Name to naught. Footnote: 1Or lift up, or take.
Deu 5:12 ‘Guard
the Sabbath day, to set it apart, as יהוה your Elohim commanded you.
Deu 5:13 ‘Six days
you labour, and shall do all your work,
Deu 5:14 but the
seventh day is a Sabbath1 of יהוה your Elohim. You do not do any work
– you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female
servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your
stranger who is within your gates, so that your male servant and your female
servant rest as you do. Footnote: 1See footnote at Ex. 20:10.
Deu 5:15 ‘And you
shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Mitsrayim, and that יהוה your Elohim brought you out from
there by a strong hand and by an outstretched arm. Therefore יהוה your Elohim commanded you to
observe the Sabbath day.
Deu 5:16 ‘Respect
your father and your mother, as יהוה your
Elohim has commanded you, so that your days are prolonged, and so that it is
well with you on the soil which יהוה your
Elohim is giving you.
Deu 5:17 ‘You do
not murder.
Deu 5:18 ‘You do
not commit adultery.
Deu 5:19 ‘You do
not steal.
Deu 5:20 ‘You do
not bear false witness against your neighbour.
Deu 5:21 ‘You do
not covet your neighbour’s wife, nor do you desire your neighbour’s house, his
field, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, his ox, nor his donkey, or
whatever belongs to your neighbour.’
If we
take the first five sayings (right hand side tablet) and compare them
with the second group of five sayings (left hand side tablet) we see the second
five are physical manifestations of the first five. The first five reflect our
love for YHVH and the second five reflect our love for our neighbor.
For
example take the first saying “I am יהוה your Elohim who brought you out of the land of
Mitsrayim, out of the house of bondage.” Compare this to saying number six
“You do not murder.” We can conclude that our failure to believe and trust that
only YHVH is able to make our freedom possible can be compared to bringing
destruction upon ourselves and others (murder).
