Tag: parashah

Parashah Ki Thetze (Go Forth) Deuteronomy 21:10 – 25

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In this parashah there are many seemingly miscellaneous laws, dealing with everything from marrying a captured slave woman to how to divorce her, rights of the criminal, OSHA regulations (must have a parapet on the roof), mixing of different things (animals that are yoked, seeds in the field, cloths), what to wear, what not to wear, sparing the mother bird, adultery, tzitzis, holiness of the camp, kindness to animals, excessive punishment, providing for the poor and needy, accountability for sin, kidnapping, pledges, charging of interest, business dealings, and others.

Most of these laws are easy to understand, and some don’t seem to make sense. This parashah seems to have a little of all three types of laws: Miztvot (commandments), Mishpatim (regulations) and Chukkim (laws we don’t understand the reason or meaning of.)

The message I would like to get across today is this: let the Holy Spirit guide your interpretation.  We may not be able to understand all that we read in the Bible; in fact, we can’t understand all that we read in the Bible! That’s one of the things that is so great about reading it every day! No matter how many times I read it, I always find something new in there, something I have seen a hundred times but never understood before that reading.

And that is not of my doing- it comes from the understanding I receive through the Ruach HaKodesh, the Holy Spirit.

When I want to know what message God has for me, I “un-focus” my brain and leave it open to the Holy Spirit. It’s like when you find yourself staring directly at something but you don’t really see it because you haven’t focused your stare. I do that with my brain (most people who know me will tell you I do that a lot) and sort of open it up to the Holy Spirit to place what it wants in there. I am sure there are people who hear God talking to them, audibly, but I don’t. I get this little, still voice in the back of my head that just sort of “pops” something in there. And when it goes against what I was thinking I should do or say, or against what I thought I wanted, I can be certain that it is God. Especially because when I get that thought, it’s different from what I thought it should be and yet I know in my spirit that it is right, well…that’s gotta be the Big Guy leading me.

Today what I have for you is a short and simple lesson: let God’s spirit lead your interpretation and understanding when you read His word.

After all, who is better to explain what He means than the author, Himself?

Parashah Re’eh (Behold) Deuteronomy 11:26 – 16:17

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With this parashah we leave the First Discourse of Moses, the historical discourse,  and come into the Second Discourse of this book, which is the Rehearsal of the Code. Essentially, Moses reviews (as is pretty much what D’varim is- a review of all that has happened since leaving Egypt) the laws that God has given to the Israelites. These laws deal with religious institution and worship (although God doesn’t have any religion), criminal law, domestic life and concludes with tithing, first fruits and accompanying prayers.

The very first thing that God tells the people in this Parashah is that they have a choice, the freedom to choose for themselves, individually and corporately, whether or not they will obey the laws given to them. Obedience will bring blessings, and disobedience will bring curses. Seems easy enough, doesn’t it?

BTW…God doesn’t do bad things to people, but He does allow bad things to happen to those who reject His kippah (covering) of protection. God’s curses are not evil intentions designed to hurt us; those curses are actually self-inflicted. They are the direct result of “walking away” from God, which means leaving the protection He offers us from the world.

The world is a cursed place, full of evil and godlessness. When we obey God, it is like walking under an umbrella during a thunderstorm: we are protected from that which is all around us. Sure, our feet get wet, maybe from the knees down our pants are soaked, but overall we are not drenched by the rains. However, when we reject God’s laws, we are stepping away from the umbrella and showing that (to coin a phrase) we don’t have enough sense to get out of the rain.

The blessings are active actions, things God does on purpose to help and protect us. The curses are passive actions, things that happen to us when God is not protecting us. And it isn’t His choice to not protect us- we are the ones who choose to reject His protection.

Some may say, “Oh, yeah? Well, we aren’t really free, we don’t really have a choice because if we want the protection we have to do as God says.” That’s right- you do have to obey God to be protected. But the world has rules, too. Their rules are ones where you must conform, you must “take the mark” to be able to fit in with everyone else, and the world is not compassionate or understanding. If you screw up in the world, you’re dead meat.

God, however, is not like the world. If we should stumble and fall, He will move to cover us when we reach out to Him. He will bring the umbrella to where we are, lift us up, and let us come back under His protection. He will clean off the mud and the dirt and we will be able to keep walking with Him. Even when we totally walk away, we are always welcomed back when we realize our mistake and ask for His forgiveness and for His protection.

That ain’t happening in the real world.

So, yes- we do have a choice. As Yeshua said, we are all slaves to something, either to God or to sin. We choose, we decide, and we need to remember that to choose God is to choose a way that will  have us walking separately from the rest of the world, but under His kippah. If we choose the world, we will be uncovered in the storm. The problem is that once you get soaking wet, you don’t feel the rain anymore so you think you are OK. That’s how sin stays in our lives, and multiplies, until we get so soaked in disgusting things that the stench is no longer noticeable.

We do have a choice, we do have free will, and we do have the exact same options that the Israelites had some 3,500 years ago: we can choose blessings or curses, we can choose to obey or reject, we can choose life or death. And when we choose God, we choose His laws as He gave them- that means living within the rules of the Torah. The whole Torah, not just the parts we like.

The world will make you live with your choice, and God will always let you change your mind, either for the good or for the bad. His gift of blessings and salvation is irrevocable. That means it will not be taken back, but that doesn’t mean we can’t throw it away.

The choice is yours, so choose well and remember this: whichever choice you make, the longer you stay with it, the easier it becomes to stay with it.

Those that have ears, let them hear.

Parashah Ekev (follow) Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25

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Most of D’Varim (Deuteronomy) is a discourse from Moses reminding the children of Israel all that has happened to them over the past forty years, reminding them of God’s commandments and encouraging them to obey God after they have gone into the land and conquered it.

This parashah starts with Moses continuing his discourse on the history of their journey. He reminds them of the wonderful ways God has protected and fed them, and also of the horrible ways they have rejected God and tested Him. Moses goes back and forth from what God has done, what He will do to help, and how He has kept His part of the covenant, then about how they have, for their part, broken the covenant because they refused to obey and what will happen to them if they continue to refuse.

He tells them they are to go in and take over the land, destroying all the pagan items and peoples, and that even though the people there are stronger and mightier than they are, God will go before them and battle for them.

Moses warns the people that they shouldn’t become complacent when God has done all these wonderful things, and begin to think that they deserved any of it. He is quite adamant that they don’t, and they better not forget that. They are getting the best not because they deserve it, but because God loved their ancestors, who did deserve it. They don’t. He wants them to continually be humble before the Lord- as should we all.

I  like how Moses tells them in chapter 10, verses 12-13 that all God requires is for the people to fear God, walk in His ways, love and serve Him. Sound familiar? Read Micah 6:8.

The message here for all of us is that we need to remember that God will do for us all that we could ever want, and when we walk in trusting faithfulness, He will be there, in front of us, protecting us and forging a path for us so we can complete the trip. He will smooth the path, place hedges on the right and the left to keep us straight, and destroy the enemies blocking our way. And if we fall, He will pick us up. If needs be, He may even carry us for a way. However, He won’t carry us all the way; there may be a smooth path but there will be hills to overcome and valleys to pass through. It won’t be easy, it won’t always be fun, but we must keep going.

That’s really the whole story, isn’t it? From beginning to end, the basic A-B-C’s of salvation are:

A– Accept your own sinfulness and need for God, Accept the rule of God, and Accept His Messiah;

B– Be obedient, Be dedicated, Be an example of God’s wonder and goodness;

C- Continue to work at being more of what God wants you to be so you can Complete the journey.

That’s all there is to Salvation: it’s easy to attain, it’s hard to keep, but it’s well worth having.

Parashah Va-ethchanan (I Pleaded) Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11

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This parashah continues the First Discourse of Moshe, which is the chronology of the travels of the Israelites and starts to go into the Second Discourse, the foundations of the covenant.

Moshe gives us in 6:4 – 9 the Shema and V’Ahavta, the watchword of Judaism: “Hear, oh Israel; the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.” The next statements tell us how to act everyday, to love the Lord with all our heart, soul and might, to talk of His laws when we rise, sleep, go out, come in, and to keep His commandments on our hearts and minds and doorposts of our houses.

These statements are repeated together at every Jewish Shabbat service. The most used interpretation of the word echad (one) at the end of the Shema is not what I think it should be, and that is because I agree with the interpretation of R. Rashbam, which is that ‘echad’ should be interpreted as “alone.”

To say that the Lord is one is not so different from the other paganistic religions of the day. I say that because we read in the bible that many pantheistic rulers agreed that the God of the Israelites was a powerful god and He was their god, indicating they believed that, geographically, Adonai was the god worshipped in Israel. If the Israelites say He is their god, and He is one, that simply means that Adonai is a singular god. He is one, not many.

But, if we interpret ‘echad’ as ‘alone’, then we have more than a statement of singular worship- we have a statement of monotheistic truth. The Lord is our God,  the Lord, alone. That meaning is, to me, much more clearly a statement that there isn’t any other God for us. It doesn’t insult or deny the religious beliefs of those nations surrounding Israel, but it does make the point that the jewish peoples do not recognize and will not worship any other gods. That is in keeping with the 2nd commandment about not worshipping any other gods.

The 2nd Commandment doesn’t really state that there aren’t other gods, for in fact, there were. Not that they existed in reality, but they existed in the culture and beliefs of the people surrounding the Jews. God didn’t tell us that He is the only god, He told us not to have any other gods before us. This may sound a little weird, almost as if I am acknowledging the existence of other gods, which I am NOT doing- I am saying that, as a form of tolerance for others, God did not deny their beliefs but simply told His people that they should worship Him, alone. Him, and only Him.

The history of Adonai’s blessing and power and miracles, when compared to the other, false gods of the nations, demonstrates that God, our God, is the only god.

So, I would prefer to use ‘alone’ at the end of the Shema. And, if I ever lead a congregation, I will.

Here’s something really interesting: first we need to know that in the Torah, the Ayin at the end of the word shema is written extra large, as is the Dalet at the end of echad. The Chumash I use (the Soncino Pentateuch and Haftorahs) notes this and says that this was to make sure the words were used correctly, i.e. ‘one’ for echad and ‘hear’ for shema (the difference between ‘hear’ and ‘perhaps’ is that the last letter for perhaps is an Aleph.)

The interesting thing is that when you put these two letters together, Ayin followed by Dalet, you get the word “ed”, which means ‘witness’. So, the last letter of the first word in the Shema and the last letter of the last word of the Shema, together form the word “witness”, which is exactly what the Shema is- a witness to the singularity and uniqueness of the Lord God, Almighty. And every time we repeat it we are all witnesses to the fact that Adonai is our God, and He is the only God.

One last thought for the day: God tells us to worship Him alone, and the Shema reminds us that He is the one, true God, Him alone. It doesn’t tell us we are to tell everyone else that their gods are false or that they are wrong. That won’t win anyone over. Today there aren’t that many pantheistic religions left, but there are monotheistic religions that are not teaching the truth about God. When trying to win people over to the truth about the salvation we have through Messiah Yeshua, we need to demonstrate it by being living examples of His love, mercy, compassion, power, and unique ability to change lives. We need to show what being Born Again did for us and not to tell others what they believe is wrong. Let them see in your life and how you live the truth of God’s salvation.

Parashah D’Varim (the words) Deuteronomy 1 – 3:22

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We are in the last of the 5 books of the Torah. This is where Moshe (Moses) reviews with the people the last 40 years of wandering, their laws and regulations, the history of their travels, warnings to stay true to God and His teachings (the correct meaning of the word, “Torah”) and his song and blessing of the people.

It has been nearly 41 years (this discourse starts on the first day of the eleventh month of the 40th year) since the rebellion at Horeb when the people refused to enter the land, and Moses recounts the fact that he assigned judges over the people to help him, the rebellion at entering the land, the decades of wandering and then, as they re-approached the land the Lord’s command that the Israelites should not battle against certain of their brothers (the Edomites, for example) but will destroy others, such as Og and Sihon. Then he told how those lands were given to the tribes of Gad, Reuben and the half tribe of Manasseh but they would still fight with Israel in the land until all the land was settled. He told Joshua to be brave and to boldly enter the land knowing that God would go before them to conquer the peoples so that Israel would inherit and rule the land.

This final book is the epilogue of the life’s work of the greatest prophet in Judaism. Throughout it we will review all that happened to the children of Israel during their wanderings, constantly reminding them of the way that God had taken care of them despite the many times they rebelled and showed faithlessness. This is a review, a warning, a condemnation and a confirmation of the unique and blessed position that the children of Israel have with God.

What is important here, I believe, is that when anyone who worships God reads this, they should think of their own life. We wander through life, don’t we? Whereas the Israelites wandered at the command of God, we wander at our own command. We go from job to job, house to house, and (unfortunately, in today’s society) we also go from marriage to marriage. We wander, often aimlessly and not even knowing it, just as the Jews wandered in the desert.

And, just like them, we have God protecting and providing for us. However, the Israelites could see the rock give water, the birds gather, and the manna on the ground every morning. They saw the sea split open and the Glory of God on Mount Sinai. They could clearly and unmistakably see the miracles of God happening in their lives.

We don’t. Really, when was the last time you saw a rock split open so you could drink? Do you think that you would eat something off the ground while walking to work? Probably not.

But that doesn’t mean God isn’t providing for you. If you sit down and think, you might come to the same conclusions I have for my own life:

* when I was going from job to job, God provided all those jobs;

* when I was going through divorce, even though I wasn’t a Believer, He still kept me sane (OK, that is an arguable point), provided enough for me to survive and see my children 2 states away every weekend;

* when I met Donna God brought us together despite the worst first date ever;

* when I changed careers, God provided good people to mentor me;

* over 18 years ago, when I sought Him out, God showed me that I can be a Jew, and saved, and still be a Jew. God’s leading my wandering led me to people who helped me realize who and what Yeshua is, and that Yeshua saved me. God also led me to Messianic Judaism, which is what kept me saved. God provided all that for me. Baruch Ha Shem!!!

* God has given me salvation, the marriage I wanted with a wife whom I love more than life, a good job, financial and emotional security, friends, and even though there is still Tsouris in my life, God has carried me through it all.

This is what we can learn from this parashah; in fact, from this entire book of the Torah: God is always there, He is always helping and providing, and He will continue to do so. We may wander here and there, to and fro, but God is steady. He is always watching, never sleeping, and will care for those who care for Him. Even when we are in rebellion and He punishes us, it is not so much punitive as it is restorative- God punishes us so that we will turn back to Him. I know it sounds a little crazy, I mean really? You want me to come back to you so you send trouble on me? Yes, that is how it works with God because the reason for our rebellion is that we think we are in charge. We think that we can get it done on our own, taking care of “Numero Uno”, and all that garbage. God pulls the rug out from under us and makes us fall on our back so that the only way we can look is up-  at Him. And while there, trying to catch our breath and hurting, we have to look at Him and maybe, just maybe, doing that will remind us that it is God who can lift us up and keep us up, and that even though we wander, if we wander the way God wants us to go (meaning obeying Torah as we go) He will be there to protect and provide.

Do you ever just stop and review your life? Never, never, never do so with regrets or wondering about , “What if I had…..” because that will never move you forward. We need to remember the past, but try to filter out the dreck and recall mostly the stuff that helps us to keep going. Don’t dwell on the bad things but remember them as having passed, and recognize that you got through it because God was helping you through it.

Review your life and remember the good with the bad, but remember the bad as what God helped you through and the good as what God has, and will continue, to do for you.

Parashah Mattot (Tribes) Numbers 30:2 – 32

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God has Moses tell the tribes that any man who makes an oath to the Lord is bound, totally, to that oath. If a woman who is a minor or married makes an oath, she is bound by it so long as the father or husband, the very first time he hears it (no matter how long after it was made) doesn’t disallow it. If she is a widow living on her own she is bound by it, period.

If the husband or father hears the oath, doesn’t disallow it, then later changes his mind and voids it, the woman is free and forgiven of it but the husband will be held guilty for breaking the vow.

The next section tells of the Lord’s command to the people to revenge themselves against Midian for the trouble it caused at Ba’al-Peor, and there were 5 kings of Midian killed, along with Balaam. The Israelites still didn’t learn, as they took all the women and children as bounty instead of destroying them, as God commanded. Moses chewed out the commanders of the army, then ordered all the captive males and the females that were not virgins to be slain.

The final section tells of Gad, Reuben and half of the tribe of Manasseh asking for the land east of the Jordan because it was good for cattle, which was their livelihood. Moses gave them ‘what-for’, reminding them that the last time some of the people refused to go across the Jordan the entire nation had to wander in the desert for 40 years. These tribes then promised to fight with Israel on the west side until all the land for the people was conquered before settling down for good. They said they would build sheep pens and homes, and after their promise to fight with their brothers, Moses gave permission but he reversed their statements, and told them to build homes, then sheep pens. This showed that Moses knew where the priorities should be: God first (obey His commandment to conquer the land), family next, then job!

The lesson I would like to discuss with you today is about the taking and honoring of vows. Even though the vows discussed here are to the Lord, since it is always about God, any and every vow we take, whether to God or to another person, should be honored. Because the failure to honor our vows is a sin against the Lord (remember what David said after his adultery with the wife of Uriah and then having killed Uriah to cover it up: he said he sinned against God, and God alone) we should be very careful when we make a vow.

Since vows are so important, let’s make sure we are all on the same page; a vow is a promise, pledge, or personal commitment. In simple terms, when you say you will do something, you have made a vow. There is no such thing as a “maybe” or “if I remember” in the kingdom of God.

How would you like it if you came before the Lord and he said he didn’t remember telling you you were saved? Or maybe He says, “Oh, yeah, the “call on my name” thing. Well, uh, you see…that was said in haste. Things have changed so here’s the SPF 5000 and an umbrella- have a nice afterlife!”

We are commanded not to lie. Yeshua says we shouldn’t even make an oath, and there is nothing for us to swear by, anyway- the heavens, earth and everything else belong to God so we can’t swear by them, and we shouldn’t swear by God, either, unless we really, really, REALLY mean it. That’s because we will be held liable.

I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with making an oath, but I do think Yeshua warned us, just as God does in this Parashah, that because an oath or vow is so binding, we shouldn’t even make one (knowing how weak and prone to sin we are.)

A very valuable lesson I learned when in Sales is this:

People don’t mean what they say, they mean what they do.

There is a wisdom in that statement that goes all the way back to this parashah. That’s why we are to be people who obey God, who keep our word, no matter how important or even how unimportant it is. If I promise to help someone move, or if I tell my spouse I will take out the garbage- if I can’t be trusted with a simple vow, how can I be trusted with an important one? Think of the parable of the talents, where the men that did well with a little were given more, and the one who did nothing with the little he had had even that taken from him. A promise is a vow, is an oath, is no different than when we just say we will do something. It is better not to promise than to promise and renege.

No excuses. One of the saddest lessons I learned in Sales was that I could almost guarantee the one sale that will cancel before the paperwork hits the office was the one I made with a “Christian” family. They would listen, we would talk and they would sign. Before I got back to the office they had cancelled, always with the explanation that they “prayed on it” and God told them this wasn’t the right time. I would remind them that Yeshua said to let your ‘nay be nay and your yea be yea’; seems to me that if God tells us to honor our oaths then He would be the last one to tell us to cancel a deal. It is the law of the land that says they have three business days to cancel, not God! God says do what you say you will do.

I am just as guilty as anyone else in that I say I will do something, fully and honestly meaning to do it, then I forget. I don’t think God allows age-related memory issues to be a factor in promising to do something.

Let’s all try to make promises that we will keep, and if we aren’t sure then we should just say no instead of maybe. Make a stand for righteousness and honesty, with God and with each other. If you say you will do something, do it; and if you aren’t sure you will do it, or not sure you want to do it, then just say, “I’m sorry- I won’t do that.” The person may be upset with you, but it is better to be honest with God and people than to lie. And don’t make excuses for that- if you say you will do something and you don’t, whether or not you meant to, you lied. It is a matter of history, not of intention. Do, or don’t do, say you will, or say you won’t, but do not say you will and then not do so.

Yeshua says, in Matthew 25:40, that which we do the least of His brethren, we do to Him. When you make a promise, give a vow, or just say you will take care of something, you are talking directly to Yeshua, and He is the direct link to God.

Remember that the next time you are asked to do something.

Parashah Pinchas Numbers 25:10 – 30:1

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The plague was just stopped by the zealousness of Pinchas, the grandson of Aaron, when he killed a prince of Israel who was with a Midianite woman (also of high birth) and blatantly showing disdain and rebellion against Moses’s command to not have any relations (especially physical ones) with the Midianites. God makes a covenant with Pinchas that throughout his generations his seed will serve in the Priesthood.

The Israelites are at the end of their wandering, and God has already demonstrated His support as they have defeated two kings and taken their lands. Now He has them take another census, and after 40 years of living in a desert, the difference in the size from when they came out of Egypt and now is less than 3/10 of 1%. Essentially, there are as many now before entering the Land as there were when they left Egypt. Some of the tribes are less but the nation, as a whole, is the same size.

The rules for inheritance are stipulated and God reminds the people about the regulations for sacrifices, Joshua is appointed as Moses’s replacement and Moses is allowed to view the land, although he is still not to cross over and enter it.

Isn’t it amazing that when the Jews were in Egypt as slaves, with plenty of food, water and shelter they were able, despite their slavery, to grow into a great nation, and then after 40 years in a desert, devoid of food, water and shelter, they were still able to maintain their great size? Well, maybe it is amazing to someone who is secular minded, but to me it is just what I would expect from God. He said that the generation which had rebelled would die in the desert, and they did, but still we read in this parashah that not only did God maintain the size of His people, but even the descendants of Korach have survived (26:11) to enter the land.

Now, as God prepares the people for what is to come, He reviews the laws for the daily sacrifice and the holy convocations, since these were first given to the prior generation (Leviticus) before they were to enter the land. They didn’t get in, though, and it has been 40 years, so God is reminding them what to do when they enter.

The lesson I see here is simple: God’s plans, whatever they are, will be accomplished. He is flexible enough to make it seem to us, with our limited ability to understand, that He changes His mind or doesn’t accomplish what He said, but what is really happening is that the ship is moving. We may have to take a round-a-bout way to avoid some reefs and rough waters that weren’t on the chart, but it is always going to the place it is sailing to.

God’s plan of salvation has been working itself out since before Adam was created. The Israelites in the desert got to see miracles daily, and these have been recorded for us because we are too “sophisticated” and too “scientifically wise” to see the miracles that are still happening today, every day. We think that just because we can explain how an event occurs that knowing how it happens makes it less of a miracle. I can describe how the digestive system works, but does that make it less of a miracle? Could anyone of us design that system? Could any one of us make a stomach? Can we create a physical being that can spontaneously create hydrochloric acid inside itself and not burn itself to death from the inside out?

God needed a nation to enter the land that was big enough and strong enough (and faithful enough) to be His weapon of judgement against the nations that had been defiling His land for centuries. The first group didn’t meet that criteria, so God got rid of them and had the second group, just as large but more faithful, do the job. When all was said and done, what God wanted was accomplished. Oh, yes, not all of the baddies were destroyed and, yes, the people screwed up royally and ended up being thrown out of the land, also. But has that stopped God’s plan? No, of course not: God is this very day actually completing His plan. We see the regathering of the people back to the land and the land becoming a fruitful garden, again. And we see the world starting to suffer the judgement that God promised would happen through the words of the Prophets and in Revelations.

This parashah shows us that whatever God plans to do gets done. Maybe not when it was first started, maybe not with the people that it was first intended to use, but it will be done, one way or another. That is something that the enemies of God should find totally frightening, and the children of God should find totally encouraging.

The generations we are reading about in today’s parashah got to see God up close; they saw Him on the mountain when they were children, they have been miraculously fed and watered by him in a desert for forty years, and now they see Him supporting them in their battles, allowing them to defeat bigger and stronger nations, easily. They saw His plan to free them from slavery and lead them into the land evolve and succeed. We, today, are also seeing His plan evolve and succeed. We have seen the Messiah overcome sin, we have seen the gathering of the people back to the land happening for the past 60 years, and we are seeing the earth being judged and in turmoil, weather-wise, politically and spiritually. The enemy is on the move, this is his time and we are seeing it happen. We need to steel ourselves against what is to come because it will come! Don’t listen to the prophets that advised Ahab, or the ones that told Zedekiah everything is fine. We are coming into the End Days, and it won’t be pretty.

Take hope, no matter how bad it gets, in the knowledge and the proven, historical evidence that God’s plan WILL be done, and the promises He made and the ones He will make are all absolutely trustworthy.

And also remember that you are responsible to do your part- God will keep His word to you, but you need to hold up your end of the bargain.

Parashah Balak Numbers 22:2 – 36

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Here we have one of the more celebrated stories of the Bible. I expect most readers know the story: Balak, the king of the Moabites, calls upon Balaam, who is a well-known sorcerer and diviner, to curse the Israelites so as to protect Balak’s kingdom. Balaam, however, is also a prophet of the true God, Adonai, and at first he properly requests of Adonai what he should do. God tells Balaam that the people are His people and blessed, and that he (Balaam) is not to curse them or go with the king’s envoy. This is the first word that God gives to Balaam, but Balak is insistent and sends another envoy to Balaam, promising him even more riches than at first. This time Balaam asks God again, which he really shouldn’t have done since God is the same today, yesterday and tomorrow. If these are God’s people, which God said they were, then they will always be God’s people until God, Himself, says they aren’t (do you hear that, Replacement Theologists?)

So Balaam is told that if he is summoned to the king he can go. Balaam goes, but in his heart he intends to do as the king asks. On the way God sends an angel to keep Balaam from getting to his destination and Balaam is blind to the angel’s intervention. His ass, however, is not and purposefully leaves the road to avoid the angel standing in the way. Balaam, not understanding what is happening, is angry at the beast and beats her. This happens two more times: the second time to move out of the way the ass crushes Balaam’s leg against a stone wall and gets beaten, and the third time because the angel is in such a narrow place there is no way to go around, the ass just drops to the ground and refuses to move. This time as Balaam starts to beat the animal with his staff, she looks up at him and speaks to him, asking why he was treating her so badly.

Remarkably, Balaam seems to take this miraculous event in stride and, maybe because he was so angry he doesn’t even realize he is talking with his ass, he simply answers the ass back. The ass is quite well spoken, and points out to Balaam that she has been his ride for many years and never before was so obstinate, and he cools down enough to realize she is right. Just as this happens God allows Balaam to see what the ass has been seeing- an angel with drawn sword standing just out of reach, ready to kill him. The angel told Balaam that he knew Balaam was going to do what he had been told not to do, and if it hadn’t been for the animal moving out of the way these three times, Balaam would already be dead and the ass would be alive.

Balaam confesses his sin and is ready to return, when the angel tells him to continue but say only what God tells him to say, resulting in some of the most beautiful blessings and poetry of the entire Bible. In fact, one of the blessings is sung every Shabbat when we sing the Mah Tovu.

After blessing Israel three times, in accordance with what God tells Balaam to say, Balak is understandably upset with Balaam, doesn’t pay him a red penny ( or silver shekel, as the case may be) and sends him back to his own home. Before he goes, however, Balaam has a prophecy of destruction for each of the different kings gathered there with Balak.

Balaam was a very important man, revered, feared and sought after. He was a bit of a conundrum, too, in that although he is generally renown within the Rabbinical circles as an evil man, he knew God, was able to talk with God, and was used by God. He was not totally a pagan, yet he worked with pagans and performed pagan rituals.

I liken him to many people today who think they can pick and choose what they want, and think God will just go along with them. Buffet Believers, I call them; they are willing to enthusiastically worship God by obeying those laws and regulations that please them, but if there is something they don’t like, well, that particular requirement isn’t needed. It is only for men, or for women, or for Jews, or is outdated and no longer valid, or maybe it isn’t really a sin, at least it shouldn’t be, yadda-yadda-yadda. In other words, they love what they love and what they don’t want to do, isn’t required. Buffet Believers- take what you like, leave what you don’t.

Sorry to bust your bubble, but everything on God’s table is good for you: you don’t need to worry about there being any gluten-free foods, there ain’t no substitute sugar or decaf coffee; it is all real, it is all good for you, and it is all required.

Balaam though he could fool God, and he almost lost his life trying to. There are many like this throughout the Bible. In Jeremiah and Ezekiel God, in visions, shows these prophets important men in secret rooms doing sinful things and thinking that God doesn’t know about it. God knows: believe me, He knows. So when Balaam’s ass saw the angel and turned aside, did Balaam think this strange? After all, the ass was correct when she said she had never done anything like this before, so why didn’t Balaam stop and think about what is happening? How often do each of us, in the midst of doing something we are (pardon the expression) hell-bent on getting done, stubbornly refuse to see what is happening around and to us while we are rushing forward to our goal? Balaam was thinking only of the riches he was to receive, and as such was blind to not just the angel of God, but even to the actions of his trusted and life-long friend who was actually saving his life!

Have you an experience that is similar? Have you ever found yourself to be so stubbornly obsessed by something you want, even though in your heart you know it may not be right, that you rush headlong into a brick wall, all the time cursing and hurting those who love you and are trying to stop you from hurting yourself?

I have. If you think you haven’t, well, if you haven’t that is great. But I think you are fooling yourself; it is almost a basic aspect of human nature that we sometimes (oftentimes?) do that which is bad for us, and I’ll bet that most everyone reading this right now can say they have done something like what Balaam did.

I believe that God is in charge of everything and in control of everything, but that doesn’t mean He does control everything. Sometimes He lets us do our own thing, and sometimes He intervenes. If you are finding that your friends, family, workmates, anyone is “in your way” and trying to stop you from doing something you really want to, maybe, just maybe, you should stop for a second and think about it. Maybe you are rushing headlong into something that is not good for you but you can’t see the angel in the road ahead of you. Maybe you should take a short break: smoking lamp is lit so light ’em if you got ’em, and rethink what you want to accomplish. You may be on the right path; but, if there are people that you have known and trusted and these people are leading you off the path you are on, you need to stop dead in your tracks and listen to them.

You should always be willing to listen to others because you never know who God will use to help you.

Even if the one you are listening to is an ass.

Parashah Chukkot (Statutes) Numbers 19 – 22:1

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Where do I even start? The Red Heifer rules? The death of Miriam? The death of Aaron? The defeat of Sihon and Og? What about the incident at Meribah, which made God so angry with Moses and Aaron that He refused to let them enter the Land? And the snakes, which caused Moses to make the brass snake that we hear about later in 2 King, 18:4 (I speak of that in my book.)

The Chumash speaks of the Red Heifer regulations as the most mysterious in the Torah; in all scripture, for that matter. That which defiles everyone involved in the making of it also purifies all those who partake of it. The lesson the Rabbis give us is simply that there are many things that we can not understand, and it is not our understanding that is required by God, but our faithful obedience.

This can also be seen in the sin of Moses at the rock at Meribah. There are a few different commentaries, but (essentially) the way Moses acted showed faithlessness in front of the people, and for that God was not given all the honor He expected Moses to give Him. In Judaism it is believed that the greater the man, the stricter the standards by which he is judged.  This is repeated, in a way, in James 3:1-2 where it says, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” The total and complete obedience of Gods commands are what God expects and demands from us. Moses did not just speak to the rock to show God’s miraculous intervention, he struck it (twice!) with the staff that God told him to take with him. That staff represented the miracle that God caused (Parashah Korach)  and I believe that God wanted Moses to take it, not to strike the rock, but to have it there to remind the people of God’s choice of Moses and Aaron as His representatives and their leaders. Moses used the staff in a totally wrong way, which brought no honor to God at all.

In Chapter 21, verses 4 – 9 (inclusive) we are told of another time the people grumble against Moses. This is at the end of their journey- Miriam and Aaron have died- yet after all these years of God’s miraculous intervention and provision, they still kvetch about everything! Oy! No wonder God was so angry that he sent snakes to kill the people. Yet, when they repented, He told Moses to make a brass serpent and place it high on a pole, high enough that all the people, no matter where they were in the camp, could see it. And when they were bitten, they only need look to the snake and they would not die.

Yeshua said, in John 3:14, that He would be lifted up like the snake in the desert. I see a double-prophecy in this statement, one prophecy to be fulfilled currently and the other aspect to be a far-future event. The current meaning was that Yeshua was going to be placed up on a pole, i.e., He was to be crucified. The future meaning of this prophecy would be that Yeshua (Jesus) would be worshipped instead of God, as the snake (called Nehushtan) was in 2 Kings during the time of King Hezekiah. When Moses placed the snake on the pole, it was to represent the salvation of God- the people still suffered for their sin (they were still being bitten by snakes, and that doesn’t feel very good) but instead of dying they could look to the representation of God’s salvation, the brass snake, and the consequence of their sin (death) was avoided. Today, and for many years, the image of Yeshua, a graven image on a pole (cross) that is displayed in some churches, is worshipped in lieu of God.  Just as the representation of Gods salvation was turned into an idol during the time of Hezekiah, today the “church” has turned Yeshua into an idol- an image and a person to be prayed to directly for salvation and to answer prayers. Yeshua told us to pray in His name; He was telling us to pray to God and to invoke His name. It’s somewhat like when someone wanted to enter a Speakeasy during Prohibition days, when they were stopped at the door they would say, “Joe sent me”, or some other code, that gave them recognition and entry.  When we pray to God, praying in the name of Yeshua is a means to gain entry, to have our prayers recognized and seen as righteous: not because of who we are, but by the righteousness of Him who we are referring to when we come before the Lord. The snake stopped being a representation of God’s salvation and replaced God as an idol, in and of itself. An idol is anything that we worship instead of God. So, too, today the image and the very personage of Yeshua has become an idol, something that is prayed to instead of God. Just as He said He would be.

God, and God alone, is who we worship, who we pray to, and who we obey. God, and no other. Yeshua is our Messiah and, as such, he sits at the right hand of God. At the right hand of God, NOT on the throne of God! So we should pray to God, and ask what we ask in the name of Yeshua; as intercessor to God, not as His replacement.

From all there is in this parashah, let’s remember this: God is the only God, God is supreme, and whatever God tells us to do, whether we understand why or not, we should do. That means E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G God tells us to do, as much as it is possible for us to obey.

And if you want to know everything that God tells YOU to do, read the Torah. Read the Mitzvot (commandments), read the Chukkot (regulations/statutes) and read the Mishpatim (rules).  All of the laws, rules, statutes, commandments, and regulations in there are expected to be obeyed by anyone and everyone who worships El Elyon, Adonai, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the father of Jesus.

There is just so much in this parashah, but if I were to put it in a nutshell, so to speak, I would say that the lesson here for us is to recognize that God isn’t concerned with how well we understand His laws and regulations, just that we show Him our love and worship through obedience.

Yeshua said that if we love Him we will obey Him: like Father, like Son.

Parashah Korach (Korach) Numbers 16 – 18

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This parashah starts with Korach, a Levite, coming together with Dathan and Abiram (both from the tribe of Reuben) against Moshe and Aaron, especially Moshe. They accuse Moshe of going too far and placing himself above them. Korach has organized another 250 men who stand with him. When Moshe hears this accusation he falls on his face, then he tells them to gather their people the next day at the Tent of Meeting and to bring their censors with incense and fire before the Lord, and that he and Aaron will do so, also. Then God will choose who is holy and can come before Him. Moshe goes on to remind Korach that the Levites were chosen by God to be separated and given special privileges to serve God and the people, but now they aren’t happy with that, so they seek the priesthood, too! He tells them they have gone too far.

The next day they all come to the tent with their censors and incense. When Dathan and Abiram refuse to come, Moshe goes to their tents and Abiram and Dathan rebel against, and insult, Moshe even more, going as far as to blame Moshe for the people not having received the land they were promised.  At the Tent of Meeting God speaks to Moshe and says to separate himself from the community as He is going to destroy them, but Moshe asks why should all the people suffer for the sins of a few? He uses the same argument Abraham used when trying to save Sodom, except the other-way around: Abraham asked if a few righteous should be killed for the many sinners, and Moshe is asking why the many righteous (innocent) should be killed for the sins of a few men. Same argument- please don’t kill the “innocent” with the guilty.

This also is a theme that we see develop as time goes by: God is more willing to relent destruction of the children for the sins for the father, and vice-versa.

God says He will only destroy the rebellious ones, and Moshe is told to have everyone in the camp physically separate themselves from the tents of Korach, Dathan and Abiram. As the people draw away, Moshe says that if these men die a normal death than God did not send Moshe, but if the earth were to split open and swallow them all alive into Sheol, then everyone will know that Moshe is God’s chosen representative and that these men have rebelled against God. No sooner does Moshe finish then the ground splits open and swallows Dathan, Abiram, and Korach, as well as their family and possessions.

Then fire comes from heaven and incinerates all of the 250 men. The censors, which are all that is left of the men, at God’s command are beaten into a cover for the altar so everyone will see it and remember. However, the very next day the people accuse Moshe of killing the Lord’s people, and the cloud of the glory of the Lord comes onto the Tent of Meeting. God again warns Moshe to get away from the entire community because He is going to destroy them, but Moshe again intercedes. However, a plague has already broken out from God’s fury, and Moshe tells Aaron to burn incense and make atonement for the people. Aaron runs right into the middle of the plague, standing between the dead and the living, and stops the plague.

God now provides another demonstration of his choice of Aaron through the miracle of making Aaron’s staff grow not just buds, but flowers and ripe almonds, as well. Now the people finally “get it’ and they are frightened of God and the tent of Meeting, crying that they are all dead men because all who come before the tent die.

Oy! How blind can you be? They just don’t see their own sin is causing their destruction.

The last part of this parashah reviews the rights of the priests with regards to what portion of the sacrifices brought before God they are allowed to keep for themselves, and reminds the Levites that they are to keep the common people away from the Tabernacle to protect them, from themselves.

What we see here are two tribes, both of which feel slighted. The Levites (specifically Korach and his followers) aren’t satisfied attending to the tabernacle and carrying the tent; they want to be in charge of the service and attend to God, directly. The Reubenites feel slighted because Reuben was the firstborn, but did not receive the blessings or rights of the firstborn. Of course, maybe they forgot it was because Reuben had disgraced his father, Jacob, by sleeping with one of his father’s concubines. That’s not going to get you any points, believe-you-me!

It seems that they also forgot that the people were the ones who refused to enter the Land, and so it was their fault, not Moshe’s, that they didn’t have their own property, as promised. In fact, it was the people who told Moshe that he should be the only one to talk with God. Go back to Sh’Mot (Exodus) 20:19: the people assign Moshe the position of intercessor and leader. Now they accuse him of putting himself in charge!

When I read this story, it seems to me we are being shown that we should be grateful for anything we receive, and not be jealous of what God has done for others, or think we deserve more than what we have. God knows what we need, and that is all we should ask from Him. This is an attitude of humility and faithful thankfulness, and that is what God asks from us. Just trust in Him and be thankful for whatever we have.

In the 23rd Psalm, David says that the Lord is our shepherd and we shall not want. Maybe “want” doesn’t mean ‘want’ as in a desire for something, but ‘want’ as meaning to have needs, as “the poor want for food.” If we trust God, we will not want, in other words, we won’t be in want.  He can, and will, provide for everyone who trusts in Him. Not only did Korach, Dathan, Abiram and the other men not trust in God or have an attitude of humility, but they rebelled against God and accused Moshe of doing exactly what they were doing- placing themselves above others. Moshe was doing as God told him, but the others weren’t- they were doing as they wanted to do. And, since God had told them what their job was already, by wanting something else they sinned, and they suffered for it.

The sad part is that the sin of Korach, Dathan and Abiram caused not just their wives, children and the other 250 men to die, but the plague that came killed another 14,700 people. Three men sinned, and nearly 15,000 died from it.

Sin always has consequences, and more often than we realize, it is the innocent who suffer for the sins of the guilty. This is why it is so important to avoid sin, avoid people that sin, and be trusting and thankful to God. It’s not that hard to do. Don’t be covetous: it’s OK to have ambition to be better, to want to provide more for your family, but not to the point where you accuse others because they have more and want what others have just to have it.

I have driven by many beautiful homes and thought, “What a nice place to live.” Then I remind myself of what it says in Proverbs 15:17 (Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred) and also Proverbs 17:1 (Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife.) Not that everyone in a beautiful house is living in a loveless family, but just because something looks great to have doesn’t mean it is great to have. We must be happy with what God has provided and not concern ourselves with how much happier we would be with more of what someone else has.

That’s the problem with wanting more: there is always more to want. Always wanting more is a self-defeating proposition and you will never be satisfied.  On the other hand, people who appreciate what they have are happy and satisfied.

This doesn’t mean that just going through life accepting whatever happens is right. There are things we can’t change, things we can, and we need to ask God to show us to know which is which, and to strengthen us to do what we need to.

It is all about God and all for God: if doing more can glorify His name, do more. If being content can glorify His name, then be content.

It isn’t easy to know the difference, is it? I depend on the Ruach haKodesh to show me what is growth in the Lord and what is selfish ambition.

I don’t always get it right.