Sep 4, 2007
Posted on Sep 4, 2007 in Apostolic Midrash, Yeshua | 0 comments
The problem: Exile – the state of being barred from one’s native country, typically for political or punitive reasons.
The solution: Mashiach
The question is, how does Mashiach affect the problem of exile?
The exile is foretold several places in the Tanakh. Here is but one passage that tells of the reason for the exile of Israel.
And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, `Why has the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ then you shall say to them: `Because your fathers have forsaken me, says the LORD, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn evil will, refusing to listen to me; therefore I will hurl you out of this land into a land which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.’ (Jeremiah 16:10-13, RSV)
In parashat Nitzavim, we see the promise to undo the effects of the exile once it has happened:
And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God has driven you, and return to the LORD your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you this day, with all your heart and with all your soul; then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes, and have compassion upon you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you. If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there he will fetch you; and the LORD your God will bring you into the land which your fathers possessed, that you may possess it; and he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. (Deuteronomy 30:1-5)
But still, how does Mashiach fit into all of this? Keep reading… (more…)
Aug 28, 2007
Posted on Aug 28, 2007 in Apostolic Midrash, Yeshua | 0 comments
The other day while preparing for this past Sabbath’s drash, I came across something which was—at least for myself—very exciting. I discovered a midrash of Yeshua of which I had not known.
Although my entire life I have been very familiar with Yeshua’s words in Matthew 4:19 in which he calls his disciples to be “fishers of men,” it has never had the impact as it has since my discovery.
When Yeshua tells his disciples, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men,” he is doing a remez on Jeremiah 16:16-18 in which the “fishermen” are literally fishers of men. However, in reading Jeremiah in context, it appears that these fishermen are a curse upon Israel. They will hunt down the men of Israel and haul them off into captivity.
Behold, I shall send many fishermen—the word of Hashem—and they will fish them out, and afterwards I shall send many trappers and they will trap them from atop every mountain and every hill and from the crevices in the rocks. For My eyes are upon all their ways; they are not hidden from before Me, and their sin is not concealed from before My eyes. I shall repay them first for the repitition of their [forefathers'] sin and transgression, for having desecrated My land; with their disgusting abominations and their detestations they have filled up My heritage.
However, in Yeshua’s use of the term “fishers of men” in regard to his disciples, he alludes to this passage in a different manner. His use is in the positive, rather than the negative sense. Instead of his disciples bringing their catch into captivity, they will bring them back from exile (first from spiritual exile). Yeshua does a very sophisticated remez in that he ties the terminology to both the proper context (by contrast) and to the previous statement by Jeremiah. He connects the “fishermen” with the return of the exiles, rather than the drawing away of the exiles, focusing on the previous verses which state:
However, behold—days are coming—the word of Hashem—when it will longer be said, “As Hashem lives, Who took out the Children of Israel from the land of Egypt,” but rather, “As Hashem lives, Who took out the Children of Israel from the land of the North and from all the lands where He had scattered them,” and I shall return them to their land, which I gave to their forefathers. (Jeremiah 16:14-15)
Yeshua opts for an alternative reading in which it can be read:
However, behold—days are coming—the word of Hashem—when it will longer be said, “As Hashem lives, Who took out the Children of Israel from the land of Egypt,” but rather, “As Hashem lives, Who took out the Children of Israel from the land of the North and from all the lands where He had scattered them,” and I shall return them to their land, which I gave to their forefathers. I shall send many fishermen—the word of Hashem—and they will fish them out, and afterwards I shall send many trappers and they will trap them from atop every mountain and every hill and from the crevices in the rocks. (Jeremiah 16:14-16)
No longer are the “fishers of men” those who would take Israel into captivity, but those who would end the exile through bringing the good news of the Kingdom and true t’shuvah through Mashiach HaTzeddik. May we be good fishermen and bring about the end of the exile in our lifetime.
Aug 6, 2007
Posted on Aug 6, 2007 in Yeshua | 0 comments
Last night I was reading to my children from the Gospel of Matthew a few mishnayyot of Yeshua in order to get across the point of how to deal with a person who is acting poorly (such as demanding, hitting, or wanting something you have). I read to them Matthew 5:39-42, after which we had a question and answer session (with M&M rewards!) and a role-play session to work on putting these principles into practice. In my reading to them, however, I stumbled across something for which I had had a hunch for the last few years, but was not sure I could back it. Fittingly, it corresponds to this week’s parasha. (more…)
Aug 5, 2007
Posted on Aug 5, 2007 in Apostolic Writings, Yeshua | 0 comments
This little phrase from the Haftarah of Va’etchanan (Isaiah 40:1) has become the focus of my attention this last week and a half. It has drawn me into a world of understanding the work of Messiah for which I have only seen glimpses. At this point, being able to express my research has turned into several pages and I hope to publish my finished examination in the next week or so entitled, “Mashiach – Restoring the Crowns to Israel.” This will by no means be a “complete” examination of the work of Messiah. However, at least for me, it has seriously broken new ground in understanding more about his purpose while among his people, as well as his eternal work—especially in relationship to some of the difficult sayings of Paul.
Here’s a teaser, and part of the premise of my research:
In a midrashic interpretation of Shemot 33:4-6 (the removal of adornments from the people prior to judgement), the spiritual crowns given to Israel on the mountain of G-d were taken from them. They were forfeited at the sin of the Egel Maseikhah (Golden Calf). Thus Israel was stripped of the Crowns of Freedom—freedom from death and freedom from exile. With this hope being foregone, the second comfort is Israel’s only hope in regaining these two lost crowns. They can now only be attained through the righteousness of Mashiach.
Your prayers are always appreciated.
Jul 22, 2007
Posted on Jul 22, 2007 in Apostolic Midrash, Apostolic Writings, FFOZ, Heresy, Judaism, Paul, Yeshua | 0 comments
Better late than never… Here are my notes from the “To Whom Shall We Go?” seminar last month. I hope they come in handy for someone. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about trying to decipher them.
Right-click (pc) or Control-click (mac!) to download:
