I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments. (Ex 20:5-6)
There is an ongoing struggle within man between the spirit and the flesh, between the good inclination and the bad inclination, between our desire to do good and our actions which fail to produce our desire. Although we rarely pondered the matter, the scriptures seems to portray a struggle within God between His two natures, justice and mercy. For the Bible tells us that the LORD is “not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance,” (2 Pet 3:9), and He takes “no pleasure in the death of anyone,” (Ezek 18:32). At the same time, the scriptures tell us “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad,” (2 Cor 5:10).
When you think about it, justice and mercy are opposites. Justice requires payment for a violation of the law, while mercy seeks to delay and even abandon the payment required. God must constantly balance between these two characteristics of His nature without abandoning either. If God were to be only a God of justice, then “who can stand?” (Rev 6:17). Yet if the LORD is only a LORD of mercy, then there would be no fear of judgment. Yeshsua coupled these attributes together when he told the Pharisees, “You have neglected the more important matters of the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness,” (Matt 23:23).
As has been so appropriately brought out recently, the name “God” (Elohim in Hebrew) is understood to denote His aspect of judgment and “LORD” (Adonai),” His aspect of mercy. When the phrase “LORD God” is used in scripture, it is to be seen as the totality of the creator simultaneously reflecting both attributes of his divine nature, such as at creation, “the LORD God made the earth and the heavens,” (Gen 2:4). The Talmud reasons this to reflect the thoughts of the creator as follows, “If I create the world only with the attribute of mercy, sins will multiply beyond all bounds; if I create it only with the attribute of justice, how can the world last? Behold, I will create is with both attributes so that it might endure!” (Gen. R. 12:15).
So how does God balance His mercy while maintaining the justice of His nature? According to the Jewish Sages, the mercy of the LORD is 500 times greater than the justice of God. How can such an assertion be made? Listen to the reasoning that comes from Everyman’s Talmud, by Dr. A Cohen:
“This conclusion was deduced form the fact that in connection with punishment God described Himself as ‘visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and four the generation’ (Ex 20:5); but in connection with grace it is said: ‘And showing mercy unto the thousandth generation’ (Ex 20:6). The last phrase is, in the Hebrew, alafim, which is literally “thousands” and must indicate at least two thousand. Retribution, therefore, extends at most to four generations, whereas mercy extends to at least tow thousand generations (Tosifta Sot.IV.I)” (Everyman’s Talmud, page 18).
When I hear of a person who has been convicted of killing another, I am ready to have that person put to death immediately. Yet, when we delay the death for 10-15 years, we show mercy. Maybe in that time evidence will be produced to demonstrate the innocence of the individual or maybe the individual will become repentant saving his soul and making some restitution to the family and the world. To show mercy, even to those who act in the harshest manner toward us is to reflect the nature of God.
So how many times am I supposed to forgive my brother, up to seven times? “I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven,” (Matt 18:21). Seventy times seven equals 490, just 10 short of 500. I guess the Jewish Sages were just rounding up. So the question is not do I show mercy in my life, but is my mercy 500 times as great as my judgment?
Scott
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Friday, April 2, 2010
On This Very Day
“Then the LORD said to Abram, ‘Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years,” (Gen 15:13).
“The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:40-41)
“And God spoke to this effect-that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years,” (Acts 7:6).
So how long were the people of Israel in Egypt, 400 years or 430 years? If 430 years, was the LORD just approximating when He told Abraham that his descendants would be sojourners in a foreign land for 400 years? To further complicate the matter, the LORD told Abraham that his descendants would come out of Egypt and return to Israel, “in the fourth generation,” (Gen 15:16). When we reconstruct the lineage of Moses, Levy to Kohath (Ex 6:16), Kohath to Amram (Ex 6:18), and then Amran to Moses (Ex 6:20); we verify that only four generations lived in Egypt. Yet, the sum of ages of from these generations do not add up to even 400 years. Kohath was already alive when Israel journeyed to Egypt (Gen 46:11), but adding the entire age of Kohath’s life (133 years-Ex 6:18), Amram’s life (137 years-Ex 6:20), and the age of Moses at the time of the exodus (80 years old), we only reach 350 years. So what is wrong, the prophecy or our math? According to the Jewish Sages, neither.
All my life, I thought that the people of Israel lived in Egypt for 400 years, or maybe 430 years. The Rabbis understood this paradox and developed a different understanding of the passage in Genesis, “Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them 400 years,” (Gen 15:13, KJV). The Rabbis concluded that the “seed” began with the birth of Isaac and not the entry of Israel into Egypt. After all, Abraham was already a sojourner and foreigner (Gen 23:4) so Isaac was also at his birth. Therefore, the 400 years began with the birth of Isaac when Abraham was 100 years old.
So how do we get from 400 to 430 years? The extra thirty years was seen as the difference in time from when Abraham received the promise until Isaac was born. This concept of the Pharisees is reflected in the words of Paul, who said…
“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect,” (Gal 3:16-17)
Now Isaac was sixty years old when Rachel bore Jacob (Gen 25:26) and Jacob was 130 years old when he entered Egypt (Gen 47:9). Therefore, the time that Israel was in Egypt was closer to 210 years (400-190). Since Moses was eighty years old when he led the people out of Egypt, the time in Egypt before Moses’ birth was approximately 130 years. This period becomes a much more manageable timeframe between Moses and his grandfather.
There is one more interesting twist to the story. The people left Egypt, “At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:40-41), but what day is “that very day?” According to Moses, “that very day” is the 15th of Nisan, as is written, “And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your host out of the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:17).
Yet, the wording of the passage implies that the conclusion of the 430 years ended on the exact same day that the 430-year time period began. The NKJV states it this way, “And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years – on that very same day,” (Gen 12:41). If the beginning was the same day as the ending, the beginning would occur on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, as it is written, “And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your host out of the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:17).
Further, Isaac was born as the son of the promise (Gal 4:23), born “at the appointed time,” (Gen 21:2). “Appointed time” is translated from the Hebrew word “moed,” which is a reference to one of the seven feast times of the LORD, but which specific feast? Because the birth of Isaac is closely associated with the promise, the most likely “appointed time,” is Unleavened Bread, the date on which the original promise was given. So it is possible that the giving of the promise, the birth of Isaac, and the Exodus from Egypt all occurred on the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The giving of the promise is described this way in scripture, “Now it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there was a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,” (Gen 15:17-18). If this describes the day of the promise, what happened in preparation for the covenant on the day before the sun went down?
“So He said to him, ‘Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.’ Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in tow, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two,” (Gen 15:9-10). The day before Unleavened Bread is called Passover. So according to the Sages, almost 2000 years before Yeshua died on the cross, Abram prepared a blood path to enter into a covenant with the LORD, most likely, “on that very same day.” So the preparation of the animals, the last plague in Egypt, and the sacrifice of Yeshua all occur on the same day, with salvation following in the morning.
Hope this makes sense. The source for this is lesson 17 of Dan Lancaster's Galatians series.
Scott
“The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:40-41)
“And God spoke to this effect-that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years,” (Acts 7:6).
So how long were the people of Israel in Egypt, 400 years or 430 years? If 430 years, was the LORD just approximating when He told Abraham that his descendants would be sojourners in a foreign land for 400 years? To further complicate the matter, the LORD told Abraham that his descendants would come out of Egypt and return to Israel, “in the fourth generation,” (Gen 15:16). When we reconstruct the lineage of Moses, Levy to Kohath (Ex 6:16), Kohath to Amram (Ex 6:18), and then Amran to Moses (Ex 6:20); we verify that only four generations lived in Egypt. Yet, the sum of ages of from these generations do not add up to even 400 years. Kohath was already alive when Israel journeyed to Egypt (Gen 46:11), but adding the entire age of Kohath’s life (133 years-Ex 6:18), Amram’s life (137 years-Ex 6:20), and the age of Moses at the time of the exodus (80 years old), we only reach 350 years. So what is wrong, the prophecy or our math? According to the Jewish Sages, neither.
All my life, I thought that the people of Israel lived in Egypt for 400 years, or maybe 430 years. The Rabbis understood this paradox and developed a different understanding of the passage in Genesis, “Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them 400 years,” (Gen 15:13, KJV). The Rabbis concluded that the “seed” began with the birth of Isaac and not the entry of Israel into Egypt. After all, Abraham was already a sojourner and foreigner (Gen 23:4) so Isaac was also at his birth. Therefore, the 400 years began with the birth of Isaac when Abraham was 100 years old.
So how do we get from 400 to 430 years? The extra thirty years was seen as the difference in time from when Abraham received the promise until Isaac was born. This concept of the Pharisees is reflected in the words of Paul, who said…
“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect,” (Gal 3:16-17)
Now Isaac was sixty years old when Rachel bore Jacob (Gen 25:26) and Jacob was 130 years old when he entered Egypt (Gen 47:9). Therefore, the time that Israel was in Egypt was closer to 210 years (400-190). Since Moses was eighty years old when he led the people out of Egypt, the time in Egypt before Moses’ birth was approximately 130 years. This period becomes a much more manageable timeframe between Moses and his grandfather.
There is one more interesting twist to the story. The people left Egypt, “At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:40-41), but what day is “that very day?” According to Moses, “that very day” is the 15th of Nisan, as is written, “And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your host out of the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:17).
Yet, the wording of the passage implies that the conclusion of the 430 years ended on the exact same day that the 430-year time period began. The NKJV states it this way, “And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years – on that very same day,” (Gen 12:41). If the beginning was the same day as the ending, the beginning would occur on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, as it is written, “And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your host out of the land of Egypt,” (Ex 12:17).
Further, Isaac was born as the son of the promise (Gal 4:23), born “at the appointed time,” (Gen 21:2). “Appointed time” is translated from the Hebrew word “moed,” which is a reference to one of the seven feast times of the LORD, but which specific feast? Because the birth of Isaac is closely associated with the promise, the most likely “appointed time,” is Unleavened Bread, the date on which the original promise was given. So it is possible that the giving of the promise, the birth of Isaac, and the Exodus from Egypt all occurred on the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The giving of the promise is described this way in scripture, “Now it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there was a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. On the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram,” (Gen 15:17-18). If this describes the day of the promise, what happened in preparation for the covenant on the day before the sun went down?
“So He said to him, ‘Bring Me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.’ Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in tow, down the middle, and placed each piece opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in two,” (Gen 15:9-10). The day before Unleavened Bread is called Passover. So according to the Sages, almost 2000 years before Yeshua died on the cross, Abram prepared a blood path to enter into a covenant with the LORD, most likely, “on that very same day.” So the preparation of the animals, the last plague in Egypt, and the sacrifice of Yeshua all occur on the same day, with salvation following in the morning.
Hope this makes sense. The source for this is lesson 17 of Dan Lancaster's Galatians series.
Scott
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Paul's Favorite Verse
What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," (Rom 4:3).
In one of his recent lessons on the book of Galatians, Dan Lancaster alludes to the fact that the passage above must have been Paul’s favorite Hebrew text citation because he quotes it so often. I began to wonder if that was true and how many quotations of the Hebrew text appear in the New Testament.
According to people who research such matters, there are upwards of 300 quotations in the Greek text originating from 34 books in the Hebrew text. Only the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon are not quoted. The actual number of references may double when inferences are added to the direct quotations. With so many quotations and inferences, it makes me ashamed that I ever purchased those New Testament only books.
Almost one-half of the quotations appear in the gospel accounts including Acts, with the balance in the epistles. The most quoted scriptures appear to be:
Isa 6:9-10: “Go and tell this people: "'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." (Matt 13:14-15)(Mark 4:12)(Luke 8:10)(John 12:40)(Acts 28:26-27)
Ps 118:22-23: “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” (Matt 21:42)(Mark 12:10-11)(Luke 20:17)(Acts 4:11)(1 Pet 2:7)
Lev 19:18: "Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” (Matt 22:39)(Mark 12:31)(Rom 13:9)(Gal 5:14)(James 2:8)
Ps 110:1 “The LORD says to my Lord: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'" (Matt 22:44)(Mark 12:36)(Luke 20:42-43)(Acts 2:34-35)(Heb 1:13)
Gen 15:6: “Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Rom 4:3, 4:9, 4:22, Gal 4:22, James 2:23).
Those honorable mentioned passages include: Gen 2:24, The two will become one flesh [Matt 19:5, Mark 10:7-8, 1 Cor 6:16, Eph 5:31]; Psa 117:26, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the LORD [Matt 21:9, Luke 13:35, Luke 19:38, John 12:13]; Psa 95:7-11, Today if you hear His voice do not harden your heart [Heb 3:7-11, 3:15, 4:3-5, 4:7], and Psa 109:4, You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek [Heb 5:6, 5:10, 7:17:7:21]
It does appear that Gen 15:6 was Paul’s favorite verse as he quotes it four times and in two different espistles. James also quotes the same passage to argue a seemingly contradictory position to Paul. Oh well, on the one hand this and on the other hand that.
It is interesting to note that Paul does not continue to quote the same passages throughout the epistles. For example, Gen 15:6 does not appear in Paul’s later epistles. This may be due in part to differing matters that Paul was addressing or it may be a reflection of Paul’s continuing study of the Tanakh and new revelations from the Lord.
To put it another way, it appears that even Paul kept finding new material to preach on (2 Cor 12:7). This becomes an example to us to continually search out scripture to discern additional insights that God would have us know to be made into the image of Yeshua the Messiah.
In one of his recent lessons on the book of Galatians, Dan Lancaster alludes to the fact that the passage above must have been Paul’s favorite Hebrew text citation because he quotes it so often. I began to wonder if that was true and how many quotations of the Hebrew text appear in the New Testament.
According to people who research such matters, there are upwards of 300 quotations in the Greek text originating from 34 books in the Hebrew text. Only the books of Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon are not quoted. The actual number of references may double when inferences are added to the direct quotations. With so many quotations and inferences, it makes me ashamed that I ever purchased those New Testament only books.
Almost one-half of the quotations appear in the gospel accounts including Acts, with the balance in the epistles. The most quoted scriptures appear to be:
Isa 6:9-10: “Go and tell this people: "'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed." (Matt 13:14-15)(Mark 4:12)(Luke 8:10)(John 12:40)(Acts 28:26-27)
Ps 118:22-23: “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.” (Matt 21:42)(Mark 12:10-11)(Luke 20:17)(Acts 4:11)(1 Pet 2:7)
Lev 19:18: "Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.” (Matt 22:39)(Mark 12:31)(Rom 13:9)(Gal 5:14)(James 2:8)
Ps 110:1 “The LORD says to my Lord: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'" (Matt 22:44)(Mark 12:36)(Luke 20:42-43)(Acts 2:34-35)(Heb 1:13)
Gen 15:6: “Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Rom 4:3, 4:9, 4:22, Gal 4:22, James 2:23).
Those honorable mentioned passages include: Gen 2:24, The two will become one flesh [Matt 19:5, Mark 10:7-8, 1 Cor 6:16, Eph 5:31]; Psa 117:26, Blessed is he that comes in the name of the LORD [Matt 21:9, Luke 13:35, Luke 19:38, John 12:13]; Psa 95:7-11, Today if you hear His voice do not harden your heart [Heb 3:7-11, 3:15, 4:3-5, 4:7], and Psa 109:4, You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek [Heb 5:6, 5:10, 7:17:7:21]
It does appear that Gen 15:6 was Paul’s favorite verse as he quotes it four times and in two different espistles. James also quotes the same passage to argue a seemingly contradictory position to Paul. Oh well, on the one hand this and on the other hand that.
It is interesting to note that Paul does not continue to quote the same passages throughout the epistles. For example, Gen 15:6 does not appear in Paul’s later epistles. This may be due in part to differing matters that Paul was addressing or it may be a reflection of Paul’s continuing study of the Tanakh and new revelations from the Lord.
To put it another way, it appears that even Paul kept finding new material to preach on (2 Cor 12:7). This becomes an example to us to continually search out scripture to discern additional insights that God would have us know to be made into the image of Yeshua the Messiah.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
The End of Dispersion is the Beginning of the End
Then I, Daniel, looked, and there before me stood two others, one on this bank of the river and one on the opposite bank. One of them said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, "How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?"
The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, "It will be for a time, times and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed," (Dan 12:5-7, NIV)
The passage above is given at the conclusion of the book of Daniel to help answer the question, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?” The answer is somewhat veiled in generalities, “When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.” The fact that future prophecy is hidden, especially as it relates to the time of the end, is nothing new.
The Sages believed that the precise timing and events associated with the end was revealed to only two people in history, Jacob and Daniel. The LORD caused Jacob to forget so that he might not reveal the events as he was prophesying over his children. Daniel was instructed to veil the end time so that only the generation of the end time would understand. For this reason, according to some historians, the Book of Daniel was held in high regards during the first century. The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote, “He [Daniel] not only predicted the future, like the other prophets, but specified when the events would happen,” (Antiquities x. 268). Some even believe that Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy may have provided a catalyst for the Zealots to begin their war with Rome in 66 AD.
Yet, despite the apparent importance of Daniel, the apostles never referenced the book of Daniel to demonstrate that Yeshua is the Messiah foretold by the prophets. Daniel’s Seventy Weeks appears to align with the coming and crucifixion, yet no mention of this prophecy is given in the New Testament. Only Yeshua alludes to Daniel when He said, “When you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel – let the reader understand – then those who are in Judea flee to the mountains,” (Matt 24:15-16). According to historians, believers did flee to the mountains when the Romans pulled back at the death of Nero in 68 AD.
Unfortunately for the Zealots, the First Jewish Revolt (66 – 73 AD) resulted in the destruction of the temple, loss of the national wealth stored at the temple, the destruction of the nation, the death of many Jews, and the deportation of many surviving Jews to Rome. There is some evidence, that after the Jewish revolts, the book of Daniel was moved in the Jewish canon from among the prophets and placed with the writings. This reflected a change in attitude toward Daniel by the Sages who feared that the continued misinterpretation of the book would bring repeated judgments on the nation.
From that time forward, the Jewish Sages began a long history of warning against end time predictions, which seek to define a specific time for the coming of the Messiah (Sandhedrin 97b). According to the ArtScroll commentary on Daniel, “Rambam explains that the Sages were deeply concerned lest a predicted time come and go without the hoped for coming. Were that to happen, people of little sophistication and insufficient faith would think that he would never come…People might say that if the Messiah had not come when he was expected, perhaps the Divine bond with Israel had been severed and the promised coming had been annulled,” (page XLIX).
Even Rambam and Ramban were compelled to violate their edicts during the days of intense prediction in their lifetimes. Predictions about the end always increase during difficult times because the “birth pains of the Messiah” are seen to precede the end times. “Rabbi Yochanan, speaking about these ‘pangs of the Messiah’ exclaimed: ‘Let [the Messiah] come, but may I not see it! (Sanhedrin 98b),” (ArtScroll – Daniel, page 319).
In the passage of Daniel above, the word translated as “power” (Dan 12:7) in the NIV version comes from the Greek word “naphats,” and is translated as “to scatter” in the KJV. The root word “naphats” means “to dash to pieces, or scatter,” as in the breaking of pottery. Or to use a New Testament passage, “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered,” (Matt 26:31). The KJV of Daniel reads as follows:
And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished, (Dan 12:7).
Young’s literal translates the passages as, “at the completion of the scattering of the power of the holy people.” Remember, the passage is in response to the question, "How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?" (Dan 12:6, NIV).
“When the power of the holy people has been finally broken," (Dan 12:7, NIV), does not give us much insight into the timing of these events. However, the translation, “at the completion of the scattering of the power of the holy people,” gives us the ability to make a connection between this prophecy and the scattering of the Jewish people. This scattering is called the “Dispersion” in scripture (John 7:35, NAS), but is often referred to as the “Diaspora” (Greek for Dispersion) in secular writings.
The prophecy of Daniel is implying that the beginning of the end time events spoken in Daniel will occur when the scattering has reached its zenith. Since 1948 when the modern nation of Israel was established, the process of scattering has been reversed and Jews are now being gathered to Israel. It is estimated that by the middle of this decade the population of Jews in Israel will exceed those living outside Israel for the first time in 2600 years. In our lifetime we are witnessing the regathering of Israel spoken in the 37th chapter of Ezekiel. Is 50% a magic number, we do not know. I guess we will find out in time. But one thing is certain, the Jews are no longer being scattered. In the words of the ArtScroll commentary on Daniel…
“It is inconceivable, therefore, that the Exile should not come to an end. Why does it still endure? Because the Attribute of Justice does not permit the Messiah to come while Israel is undeserving. Those who predicted the End erred because they thought that His mercy was at hand; it was not. But even the Attribute of Justice demands that the Messiah must come eventually, otherwise, the purpose of Creation would be disrupted. The exile will not endure forever, and we earn reward by having faith in that principle.
Therefore, although we remain without knowledge of the exact time of the End, we continue with the unquestioning conviction that we await him and God awaits us. The time will come: ‘today – if you heed His call,’” (ArtScroll – Daniel, page LVI).
As stated in Maimonides’ Thirteen Principles of Faith, “I believe with a perfect belief in the coming of the Messiah. Even though he may delay, I will wait every day for him to come.”
Although we might not be able to predict the day or the hour, the end of the dispersion would seem to be the beginning of the events leading toward the culmination of history. One thing remains certain, “Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed,” (Rom 13:11).
The man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, lifted his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and I heard him swear by him who lives forever, saying, "It will be for a time, times and half a time. When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed," (Dan 12:5-7, NIV)
The passage above is given at the conclusion of the book of Daniel to help answer the question, “How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?” The answer is somewhat veiled in generalities, “When the power of the holy people has been finally broken, all these things will be completed.” The fact that future prophecy is hidden, especially as it relates to the time of the end, is nothing new.
The Sages believed that the precise timing and events associated with the end was revealed to only two people in history, Jacob and Daniel. The LORD caused Jacob to forget so that he might not reveal the events as he was prophesying over his children. Daniel was instructed to veil the end time so that only the generation of the end time would understand. For this reason, according to some historians, the Book of Daniel was held in high regards during the first century. The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus wrote, “He [Daniel] not only predicted the future, like the other prophets, but specified when the events would happen,” (Antiquities x. 268). Some even believe that Daniel’s 70 weeks prophecy may have provided a catalyst for the Zealots to begin their war with Rome in 66 AD.
Yet, despite the apparent importance of Daniel, the apostles never referenced the book of Daniel to demonstrate that Yeshua is the Messiah foretold by the prophets. Daniel’s Seventy Weeks appears to align with the coming and crucifixion, yet no mention of this prophecy is given in the New Testament. Only Yeshua alludes to Daniel when He said, “When you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel – let the reader understand – then those who are in Judea flee to the mountains,” (Matt 24:15-16). According to historians, believers did flee to the mountains when the Romans pulled back at the death of Nero in 68 AD.
Unfortunately for the Zealots, the First Jewish Revolt (66 – 73 AD) resulted in the destruction of the temple, loss of the national wealth stored at the temple, the destruction of the nation, the death of many Jews, and the deportation of many surviving Jews to Rome. There is some evidence, that after the Jewish revolts, the book of Daniel was moved in the Jewish canon from among the prophets and placed with the writings. This reflected a change in attitude toward Daniel by the Sages who feared that the continued misinterpretation of the book would bring repeated judgments on the nation.
From that time forward, the Jewish Sages began a long history of warning against end time predictions, which seek to define a specific time for the coming of the Messiah (Sandhedrin 97b). According to the ArtScroll commentary on Daniel, “Rambam explains that the Sages were deeply concerned lest a predicted time come and go without the hoped for coming. Were that to happen, people of little sophistication and insufficient faith would think that he would never come…People might say that if the Messiah had not come when he was expected, perhaps the Divine bond with Israel had been severed and the promised coming had been annulled,” (page XLIX).
Even Rambam and Ramban were compelled to violate their edicts during the days of intense prediction in their lifetimes. Predictions about the end always increase during difficult times because the “birth pains of the Messiah” are seen to precede the end times. “Rabbi Yochanan, speaking about these ‘pangs of the Messiah’ exclaimed: ‘Let [the Messiah] come, but may I not see it! (Sanhedrin 98b),” (ArtScroll – Daniel, page 319).
In the passage of Daniel above, the word translated as “power” (Dan 12:7) in the NIV version comes from the Greek word “naphats,” and is translated as “to scatter” in the KJV. The root word “naphats” means “to dash to pieces, or scatter,” as in the breaking of pottery. Or to use a New Testament passage, “I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered,” (Matt 26:31). The KJV of Daniel reads as follows:
And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished, (Dan 12:7).
Young’s literal translates the passages as, “at the completion of the scattering of the power of the holy people.” Remember, the passage is in response to the question, "How long will it be before these astonishing things are fulfilled?" (Dan 12:6, NIV).
“When the power of the holy people has been finally broken," (Dan 12:7, NIV), does not give us much insight into the timing of these events. However, the translation, “at the completion of the scattering of the power of the holy people,” gives us the ability to make a connection between this prophecy and the scattering of the Jewish people. This scattering is called the “Dispersion” in scripture (John 7:35, NAS), but is often referred to as the “Diaspora” (Greek for Dispersion) in secular writings.
The prophecy of Daniel is implying that the beginning of the end time events spoken in Daniel will occur when the scattering has reached its zenith. Since 1948 when the modern nation of Israel was established, the process of scattering has been reversed and Jews are now being gathered to Israel. It is estimated that by the middle of this decade the population of Jews in Israel will exceed those living outside Israel for the first time in 2600 years. In our lifetime we are witnessing the regathering of Israel spoken in the 37th chapter of Ezekiel. Is 50% a magic number, we do not know. I guess we will find out in time. But one thing is certain, the Jews are no longer being scattered. In the words of the ArtScroll commentary on Daniel…
“It is inconceivable, therefore, that the Exile should not come to an end. Why does it still endure? Because the Attribute of Justice does not permit the Messiah to come while Israel is undeserving. Those who predicted the End erred because they thought that His mercy was at hand; it was not. But even the Attribute of Justice demands that the Messiah must come eventually, otherwise, the purpose of Creation would be disrupted. The exile will not endure forever, and we earn reward by having faith in that principle.
Therefore, although we remain without knowledge of the exact time of the End, we continue with the unquestioning conviction that we await him and God awaits us. The time will come: ‘today – if you heed His call,’” (ArtScroll – Daniel, page LVI).
As stated in Maimonides’ Thirteen Principles of Faith, “I believe with a perfect belief in the coming of the Messiah. Even though he may delay, I will wait every day for him to come.”
Although we might not be able to predict the day or the hour, the end of the dispersion would seem to be the beginning of the events leading toward the culmination of history. One thing remains certain, “Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed,” (Rom 13:11).
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Everything Else is Commentary
Within each person are two opposing forces that seek control. One leads men toward good works and love for our fellow man (good inclination), while an opposing force leads men toward the sinful acts of self indulgence (evil inclination). God created Adam in balance between both inclinations, spirit and flesh, giving Adam freewill so that in his imperfection Adam might seek God by choice and not by nature. In the Garden, Adam and Eve succumb to the flesh as the appeal of the fruit was “pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom” (Gen 3:6). The consequences of Adam’s actions were death and descendants born in the image of Adam (Gen 5:3), no longer with balanced inclinations, but tilted toward a sin nature.
As the descendants of Adam committed sin, each succeeding generation became more sinful until the thoughts of their hearts “was only evil all the time” (Gen 6:5). It took 2000 years, but only ten generations, for man to go from being created in the image of God to total depravity and wickedness. In His mercy, God saved the world through the righteousness of a single person, Noah (Gen 7:1)(Ezek 14:14). Although wickedness was removed from the earth by the flood, the evil inclination remained in the descendants of Noah. Without the intervention of God, the repeated destruction of the world was assured to occur every ten generations or so.
For this reason, the LORD gave the Law through Moses to illuminate the world by revealing the nature of God through His word (Rom 7:14) to swing the balance of the world back toward righteousness. The obedience of the nation of Israel elevated the righteousness of the entire world so that the world would be sustained until the appointed time of the final redemption spoken through the prophets. By complete obedience to the law, the nation collectively and men individually can reach the state of perfection required to merit life in the world to come. However, few, if any, achieve this level of perfection on their own.
Therefore, God established, from the time of Noah, the principle that individuals can become righteous (Noah’s sons), not because of their own righteousness, but because of their close association with a righteous person (tzaddik). On this basis, the descendants of Jacob were saved from the famine and became as numerous as the stars because they drew near and believed that Joseph and Moses were righteous men of God. The ultimate fulfillment of this principle is seen through the Messiah, the tzaddik who became more highly perfected than any predecessor through His own suffering (Heb 2:10) so that He is capable of perfecting both His community and the entire world.
Yeshua ha Mashiach (Jesus the Christ in English), came as the highest tzaddik, the Living Word, who both suffered for righteousness sake and taught men from the commandments saying, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…And…Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:37). Through His own sacrifice, Yeshua has perfected for all time those who are drawing near to Him (Heb 10:14). To paraphrase the words of Hillel, everything else in the Tanakh and the Greek text is commentary. Therefore, go study and draw near to Yeshua.
As the descendants of Adam committed sin, each succeeding generation became more sinful until the thoughts of their hearts “was only evil all the time” (Gen 6:5). It took 2000 years, but only ten generations, for man to go from being created in the image of God to total depravity and wickedness. In His mercy, God saved the world through the righteousness of a single person, Noah (Gen 7:1)(Ezek 14:14). Although wickedness was removed from the earth by the flood, the evil inclination remained in the descendants of Noah. Without the intervention of God, the repeated destruction of the world was assured to occur every ten generations or so.
For this reason, the LORD gave the Law through Moses to illuminate the world by revealing the nature of God through His word (Rom 7:14) to swing the balance of the world back toward righteousness. The obedience of the nation of Israel elevated the righteousness of the entire world so that the world would be sustained until the appointed time of the final redemption spoken through the prophets. By complete obedience to the law, the nation collectively and men individually can reach the state of perfection required to merit life in the world to come. However, few, if any, achieve this level of perfection on their own.
Therefore, God established, from the time of Noah, the principle that individuals can become righteous (Noah’s sons), not because of their own righteousness, but because of their close association with a righteous person (tzaddik). On this basis, the descendants of Jacob were saved from the famine and became as numerous as the stars because they drew near and believed that Joseph and Moses were righteous men of God. The ultimate fulfillment of this principle is seen through the Messiah, the tzaddik who became more highly perfected than any predecessor through His own suffering (Heb 2:10) so that He is capable of perfecting both His community and the entire world.
Yeshua ha Mashiach (Jesus the Christ in English), came as the highest tzaddik, the Living Word, who both suffered for righteousness sake and taught men from the commandments saying, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind…And…Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:37). Through His own sacrifice, Yeshua has perfected for all time those who are drawing near to Him (Heb 10:14). To paraphrase the words of Hillel, everything else in the Tanakh and the Greek text is commentary. Therefore, go study and draw near to Yeshua.
Saturday, January 2, 2010
The Rapture Begins in Israel
When the time for Israel to die drew near, he called his son Joseph and said to him, "Please, if I have found favor in your sight, place now your hand under my thigh and deal with me in kindness and faithfulness. Please do not bury me in Egypt, but when I lie down with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Egypt and bury me in their burial place." And he said, "I will do as you have said." He said, " Swear to me." So he swore to him. Then Israel bowed in worship at the head of the bed." (Gen 47:29-31)
Among the reasons cited for Jacob’s desire to be buried in Jerusalem was his belief that the resurrection of the dead will begin in Israel. According to the Jewish Artscroll commentary on Genesis, “The Midrash notes that the Patriarchs were anxious to be buried in Israel because those buried there will be first to enjoy the resurrection in the Messianic era. This is deduced from Isaiah 42:5, ‘He gives breath (i.e., restores life) to the people upon it (Israel)’” Unfortunately, for us, “those who are buried outside of Israel will not come to life until they roll through the earth to Israel.” That sounds a little painful.
We know from history that the Sages were correct in regards to the resurrection. It did begin in Israel, specifically in Jerusalem when Yeshua came out of the grave as the “firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15:20) and then “the tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection” (Matt 27:52-53). If the first resurrection stands as a pattern of the future resurrection, where will it begin and whom might be the first person to be resurrected? Where is there a pattern for this in scripture?
And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth." 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. 6 These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire. (Rev 11:3-6)
The account in Revelations depicts two witnesses that sound very much like Moses and Elijah. These two witnesses are subsequently killed at the completion of their testimony, “their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city (Jerusalem)” (Rev 11:8) until “after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them…and they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, ‘Come up hear.’ Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them” (Rev 11:11-12). Just like Yeshua, these two men ascended into heaven from Jerusalem and were received up into the cloud. Could it be possible that Moses will lead the resurrection and rapture of the saints ushering us into to the Millennial Kingdom?
One problem with this scenario is that “Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord” (Deut 34:5). Yet of Jacob’s death, scripture says he was “gathered to his people” (Gen 49:33), but this reference is not made of Moses. This may simply mean that Moses never made it into the land of Israel or there might be other implications. In Jewish understanding, three individuals reached a state of spiritual maturity that allowed them to avoid death and translate directly into the presence of God. These three men were Enoch, Elijah, and Moses. But if Michael “disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses” (Jude 9), doesn’t that demonstrate that Moses was dead? Maybe or maybe not. Why did Michael need to dispute with Satan? Could Satan have been coming as the death angel to take the body of Moses when Moses was headed to be with the LORD? In any case, the LORD did not appear to be finished with Moses at the time Moses left this earth.
So it remains that the resurrection of the two witnesses from Jerusalem, as spoken by John in Revelations, is consistent with the pattern originally established when Yeshua rose as the firstfruits from the grave almost 2000 years ago. Could one of these witnesses be Moses? Only time will tell, but some day the saying will come to fulfillment, “Next year in Jerusalem”.
Happy New Year - Scott
Among the reasons cited for Jacob’s desire to be buried in Jerusalem was his belief that the resurrection of the dead will begin in Israel. According to the Jewish Artscroll commentary on Genesis, “The Midrash notes that the Patriarchs were anxious to be buried in Israel because those buried there will be first to enjoy the resurrection in the Messianic era. This is deduced from Isaiah 42:5, ‘He gives breath (i.e., restores life) to the people upon it (Israel)’” Unfortunately, for us, “those who are buried outside of Israel will not come to life until they roll through the earth to Israel.” That sounds a little painful.
We know from history that the Sages were correct in regards to the resurrection. It did begin in Israel, specifically in Jerusalem when Yeshua came out of the grave as the “firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15:20) and then “the tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection” (Matt 27:52-53). If the first resurrection stands as a pattern of the future resurrection, where will it begin and whom might be the first person to be resurrected? Where is there a pattern for this in scripture?
And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth." 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way. 6 These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire. (Rev 11:3-6)
The account in Revelations depicts two witnesses that sound very much like Moses and Elijah. These two witnesses are subsequently killed at the completion of their testimony, “their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city (Jerusalem)” (Rev 11:8) until “after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them…and they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, ‘Come up hear.’ Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them” (Rev 11:11-12). Just like Yeshua, these two men ascended into heaven from Jerusalem and were received up into the cloud. Could it be possible that Moses will lead the resurrection and rapture of the saints ushering us into to the Millennial Kingdom?
One problem with this scenario is that “Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord” (Deut 34:5). Yet of Jacob’s death, scripture says he was “gathered to his people” (Gen 49:33), but this reference is not made of Moses. This may simply mean that Moses never made it into the land of Israel or there might be other implications. In Jewish understanding, three individuals reached a state of spiritual maturity that allowed them to avoid death and translate directly into the presence of God. These three men were Enoch, Elijah, and Moses. But if Michael “disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses” (Jude 9), doesn’t that demonstrate that Moses was dead? Maybe or maybe not. Why did Michael need to dispute with Satan? Could Satan have been coming as the death angel to take the body of Moses when Moses was headed to be with the LORD? In any case, the LORD did not appear to be finished with Moses at the time Moses left this earth.
So it remains that the resurrection of the two witnesses from Jerusalem, as spoken by John in Revelations, is consistent with the pattern originally established when Yeshua rose as the firstfruits from the grave almost 2000 years ago. Could one of these witnesses be Moses? Only time will tell, but some day the saying will come to fulfillment, “Next year in Jerusalem”.
Happy New Year - Scott
Thursday, December 31, 2009
The Messiah Our Redeemer: Part 12 of 12
XII. The Appointed Time Of The Messiah
Because the Messiah descends from the line of David, a genealogy must be demonstrated through David. Since genealogy records were stored in the Temple during the Second Temple period and that Temple was destroyed in 70 CE, an argument can be made that the Messiah, Yeshua or another, had to come before the destruction of the Second Temple. Even improvements in DNA mapping may not be sufficient to restore a complete lineage back to David for any future individual claiming to be the Messiah. Further, the prophecy of Malachi cannot be fulfilled absent a Temple, as it is written, “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the LORD you are seeking will come to his temple” (Mal 3:1).
Jewish tradition holds that man will exist on the earth for a maximum of 6000 years, beginning with Adam, before the arrival of the Messiah. The Jewish Talmud further subdivides the six thousand years into three separate 2000 years periods (Sanhedrin 97)
First 2000 years – Desolation
Second 2000 years – Torah flourished
Third 2000 years – Messianic era
The Jewish Talmud records the following commentary in relation to this matter.
Kattina said: Six thousand years shall the world exist, and one [thousand, the seventh], it shall be desolate, as it is written, And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. Abaye said: it will be desolate two [thousand], as it is said, After two days will he revive us: in the third day, he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. It has been taught in accordance with R. Kattina: Just as the seventh year is one year of release in seven, so is the world: one thousand years out of seven shall be fallow, as it is written, ‘And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day,’ and it is further said, ‘A Psalm and song for the Sabbath day’, meaning the day that is altogether Sabbath — and it is also said, ‘For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past’. The Tanna debe Eliyyahu teaches: The world is to exist six thousand years. In the first two thousand there was desolation, two thousand years the Torah flourished; and the next two thousand years is the Messianic era, (Sanhedrin 97a)
According to Jewish thought, the Messiah can come anytime before the year 6000 if the righteousness of the nation merits it.
“Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi asked, ‘It is written (Isa 60:22) “in its time” and is written, “I will hasten it”. He answered, “If they merit it, I will hasten it (HASHEM will bring the promised redeemer before the appointed time). But if they do not merit it, he will nevertheless come at the appointed time."‘"
What would the nation have to do to “merit” the arrival of the Messiah. The Jewish Sages determined that if the nation of Israel would keep the Sabbath perfectly for two consecutive Sabbaths, then “I will hasten it” would follow. Therefore it follows in Jewish tradition that the hastening of the Messiah can be accomplished through righteous behavior.
The Talmud further teaches that the Messiah should have come at the beginning of the last two thousand years (around the beginning of the first century). According to the Jewish calendar, the world is in year 5769-70 (2009), but there is an inconsistency with the Gregorian calendar of 165-190 years making the possible dating of the calendar to as late as 5934-5959, making the days of the Messiah very near. Regardless of the time the Messiah returns, He will come for each one of us at the time of our death.
Orthodox Jews and Gentile believers in Yeshua are in agreement. The Messiah is coming for each and everyone of us, as it is written, “I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth” (Job 19:25). Among the fourteen ways Maimonides list for a Jew to lose their share in the world to come is for a Jew to deny the resurrection of the dead and the coming of the Messiah.
So the only question that really matters in our life remains, “Is Yeshua, who suffered as Messiah the son of Joseph, returning as Messiah the son of David, or in the words of John the Baptist, “Are you the Expected One, or shall we look for someone else?”
(Matt 11:3).
****************************************************************************
In the beginning, God created man to have fellowship with the creator. In the garden, Adam and Eve had access to the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. One tree brought life, the other tree brought death. Unfortunately, when given the choice, Adam and Eve chose death instead of life.
Over two thousand years later, the law was given, and it came with the same choices, as it is written,
“I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him” (Deut 30:19-20).
Again, not everyone chose life. After saving the people out of the land of Egypt, the LORD subsequently destroyed all those who did not believe.
Four thousand years after Adam, Yeshua came to the nation proclaiming,
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
A third time in the history of the world, the choice was given, and continues to this day, life or death. The foundational principle of man’s free determination dictates that each person is responsible to make this decision on their own behalf, life or death? This choice is not made for us, but must be made by us, as Joshua has said…
“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD” (Josh 24:5)
Choosing life begins with three steps. First a person must learn of the LORD, His unfailing love, and His promises through His word, as it is written,
"Open my eyes that I may perceive the wonders of Your teaching" (Psa 119:18, JPST)
The word of God is the way to life, as the Sages quoted Amos to summarize the entire Torah saying, “Seek the LORD and live” (Amos 5:6).
Second, a person is called to repent (teshuva), as it is written, “Repent and live!” (Ezek 18:32). Repentance, by definition, causes a person to turn (shuv) from a direction that leads to death and to a path leading toward the LORD, as it is written…
“When you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey Him with all your heart and with all your soul…then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you” (Deut 30:2-3)
Knowledge and Repentance, by the LORD’S design, lead to faith, prayer, and action, as Habakkuk came and established the entire Torah in one commandment,
“The righteous will live by faith“ (Hab 2:4).
This faith will be established by placing our trust in a single Jew, Yeshuah, and living a life in obedience to the commandments of God that flow from that trust. As Messiah son of Joseph, Yeshua both offered His life to redeem our life from sin and He stands as our representative before God. For there is one and only one God, and one mediator also between God and men, Yeshua the Messiah (1 Tim 2:5). Yeshua said of Himself,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6-7)
This passage draws on the pattern of the Temple High Priest, who alone could approach God above the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies. This one person was appointed by God as a representative for the entire nation to reconcile the nation to God. The Priest could only approach God after he first offered sacrifice for himself and then for the people. The High Priest then becomes a pattern of the Messiah, our Redeemer, as a single pathway to reconcile the Jew and the Gentile to God the Father.
Yeshuah is the prophet whom Moses foretold, as is written, “you shall listen to him” (Deut 18:15). He is the Servant of the LORD who “bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isa 53:12). Yeshua is returning as the son of David, to reign as King on the throne of David forever and our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek, who was both a King and priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18). As a High Priest…
“Salvation (Yeshua) is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12)
Therefore, believe the words of Moses and “choose life” (Deut 30:19) because,
“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:16-17).
Because the Messiah descends from the line of David, a genealogy must be demonstrated through David. Since genealogy records were stored in the Temple during the Second Temple period and that Temple was destroyed in 70 CE, an argument can be made that the Messiah, Yeshua or another, had to come before the destruction of the Second Temple. Even improvements in DNA mapping may not be sufficient to restore a complete lineage back to David for any future individual claiming to be the Messiah. Further, the prophecy of Malachi cannot be fulfilled absent a Temple, as it is written, “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the LORD you are seeking will come to his temple” (Mal 3:1).
Jewish tradition holds that man will exist on the earth for a maximum of 6000 years, beginning with Adam, before the arrival of the Messiah. The Jewish Talmud further subdivides the six thousand years into three separate 2000 years periods (Sanhedrin 97)
First 2000 years – Desolation
Second 2000 years – Torah flourished
Third 2000 years – Messianic era
The Jewish Talmud records the following commentary in relation to this matter.
Kattina said: Six thousand years shall the world exist, and one [thousand, the seventh], it shall be desolate, as it is written, And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. Abaye said: it will be desolate two [thousand], as it is said, After two days will he revive us: in the third day, he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. It has been taught in accordance with R. Kattina: Just as the seventh year is one year of release in seven, so is the world: one thousand years out of seven shall be fallow, as it is written, ‘And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day,’ and it is further said, ‘A Psalm and song for the Sabbath day’, meaning the day that is altogether Sabbath — and it is also said, ‘For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past’. The Tanna debe Eliyyahu teaches: The world is to exist six thousand years. In the first two thousand there was desolation, two thousand years the Torah flourished; and the next two thousand years is the Messianic era, (Sanhedrin 97a)
According to Jewish thought, the Messiah can come anytime before the year 6000 if the righteousness of the nation merits it.
“Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi asked, ‘It is written (Isa 60:22) “in its time” and is written, “I will hasten it”. He answered, “If they merit it, I will hasten it (HASHEM will bring the promised redeemer before the appointed time). But if they do not merit it, he will nevertheless come at the appointed time."‘"
What would the nation have to do to “merit” the arrival of the Messiah. The Jewish Sages determined that if the nation of Israel would keep the Sabbath perfectly for two consecutive Sabbaths, then “I will hasten it” would follow. Therefore it follows in Jewish tradition that the hastening of the Messiah can be accomplished through righteous behavior.
The Talmud further teaches that the Messiah should have come at the beginning of the last two thousand years (around the beginning of the first century). According to the Jewish calendar, the world is in year 5769-70 (2009), but there is an inconsistency with the Gregorian calendar of 165-190 years making the possible dating of the calendar to as late as 5934-5959, making the days of the Messiah very near. Regardless of the time the Messiah returns, He will come for each one of us at the time of our death.
Orthodox Jews and Gentile believers in Yeshua are in agreement. The Messiah is coming for each and everyone of us, as it is written, “I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth” (Job 19:25). Among the fourteen ways Maimonides list for a Jew to lose their share in the world to come is for a Jew to deny the resurrection of the dead and the coming of the Messiah.
So the only question that really matters in our life remains, “Is Yeshua, who suffered as Messiah the son of Joseph, returning as Messiah the son of David, or in the words of John the Baptist, “Are you the Expected One, or shall we look for someone else?”
(Matt 11:3).
****************************************************************************
In the beginning, God created man to have fellowship with the creator. In the garden, Adam and Eve had access to the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. One tree brought life, the other tree brought death. Unfortunately, when given the choice, Adam and Eve chose death instead of life.
Over two thousand years later, the law was given, and it came with the same choices, as it is written,
“I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live and that you may love the LORD your God, listen to his voice and hold fast to him” (Deut 30:19-20).
Again, not everyone chose life. After saving the people out of the land of Egypt, the LORD subsequently destroyed all those who did not believe.
Four thousand years after Adam, Yeshua came to the nation proclaiming,
“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).
A third time in the history of the world, the choice was given, and continues to this day, life or death. The foundational principle of man’s free determination dictates that each person is responsible to make this decision on their own behalf, life or death? This choice is not made for us, but must be made by us, as Joshua has said…
“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD” (Josh 24:5)
Choosing life begins with three steps. First a person must learn of the LORD, His unfailing love, and His promises through His word, as it is written,
"Open my eyes that I may perceive the wonders of Your teaching" (Psa 119:18, JPST)
The word of God is the way to life, as the Sages quoted Amos to summarize the entire Torah saying, “Seek the LORD and live” (Amos 5:6).
Second, a person is called to repent (teshuva), as it is written, “Repent and live!” (Ezek 18:32). Repentance, by definition, causes a person to turn (shuv) from a direction that leads to death and to a path leading toward the LORD, as it is written…
“When you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey Him with all your heart and with all your soul…then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you” (Deut 30:2-3)
Knowledge and Repentance, by the LORD’S design, lead to faith, prayer, and action, as Habakkuk came and established the entire Torah in one commandment,
“The righteous will live by faith“ (Hab 2:4).
This faith will be established by placing our trust in a single Jew, Yeshuah, and living a life in obedience to the commandments of God that flow from that trust. As Messiah son of Joseph, Yeshua both offered His life to redeem our life from sin and He stands as our representative before God. For there is one and only one God, and one mediator also between God and men, Yeshua the Messiah (1 Tim 2:5). Yeshua said of Himself,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6-7)
This passage draws on the pattern of the Temple High Priest, who alone could approach God above the Mercy Seat in the Holy of Holies. This one person was appointed by God as a representative for the entire nation to reconcile the nation to God. The Priest could only approach God after he first offered sacrifice for himself and then for the people. The High Priest then becomes a pattern of the Messiah, our Redeemer, as a single pathway to reconcile the Jew and the Gentile to God the Father.
Yeshuah is the prophet whom Moses foretold, as is written, “you shall listen to him” (Deut 18:15). He is the Servant of the LORD who “bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isa 53:12). Yeshua is returning as the son of David, to reign as King on the throne of David forever and our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek, who was both a King and priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18). As a High Priest…
“Salvation (Yeshua) is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12)
Therefore, believe the words of Moses and “choose life” (Deut 30:19) because,
“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:16-17).
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