Weekly Torah Portion Reading | Hebrew Nation Online: Recent Episodes
Hebrew Nation Online | Weekly Torah Portion Reading
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The Time Traveler’s Quick Guide to ArmageddonPart Two |
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| Hello, again, time travelers. It is, was, and will be good that you’re back with us for our journey through time with Abraham, Moses, Deborah, and…well…Yeshua. We don’t have the names of the major players at the final Armageddon, but all we need to know is that Yeshua will be there.Last week we looked at the prophetic cycling of particular place names that threaded into Deborah’s dilemma with the kings of the east, Jabin and Sisera. By rolling through the Torah scrolls, she read the prophecies, and with a Divine directive, she used the Torah lessons to guide the Israelite army to victory alongside Barak. This week we’ll gather some more clues in our quest for understanding Armageddon. I guess we better make that Har Megiddo, my brave Israelite warriors and scholars!Let’s take a look at a couple more of the geographical locations of our heroes against the kings of the east. Alongside her Torah scrolls, Deborah holds the land title descriptions handed down from Joshua. Just for a quick trip, time travelers, set your time machine to the time of Joshua’s (Yehoshua’s) conquest west of the Jordan River. You’ll need those maps you taped to your steering wheel last week. Locate the one from the time of Joshua’s conquest and/or the time of the Judges, just don’t study your maps while you’re flying through time. I’m not sure what you might hit.Okay, here we are. Take a good look at the tribal boundaries from Joshua’s conquest. Each tribe’s territory is described in detail, just like a land deed today. Locate the area of Zevulun, Ephraim, and Issachar, which takes up the area between the Galilee and the Mediterranean Sea.Deborah’s battle with Sisera took place at the junction of Zevulun and Issachar’s territory along with the Levitical clan of Gershon’s. Look over the following verses closely and find the places on your map. Now here are the clues. What looks like a strange extra phrase “toward the sunrise [mizrach]” in the land title is a hint to the future battle with kings of the east:* [The allotment of the tribe of Zevulun] “Then it turned from Sarid to the east toward the sunrise as far as the border of Chisloth-tabor, and it proceeded to Daberath and up to Japhia.” (Jos 19:12)
?????? ?????????? ??????? ??????? ?????????? ??????????? ???????? ?????? ??????? ?????????????? ??????? ???????* [To the Levitical clan of Gershon…] From the tribe of Issachar, they gave Kishion with its pasture lands, Daberath with its pasture lands…(Jos 21:28) * “…and from the tribe of Issachar: Kedesh with its pasture lands, Daberath with its pasture lands” (1Ch 6:72)
More place-names stand out: Tabor, Kishon, Daberath, Kedesh.Back to the future, young warriors. Let’s go back to Deborah’s palm tree. Can you see her? She’s scroll-rolling again. She’s totally ignoring that plate of pita, hummus, and olive relish. It looks delicious.Last week we connected Deborah’s Kedesh with Kadesh, a place in the wilderness the four kings conquered before they turned back east and engaged the five kings and kidnapped Lot and his family.There is also a Kadesh that was a key encampment for the Israelites in the wilderness. Deborah links Kedesh to Kadesh. Holy to holy. In fact, this is the encampment in the wilderness of Tzin where Miriam died and was buried in the month of Passover, the same month Pharaoh and his chariots were defeated:* “Then the sons of Israel, the whole congregation, came to the wilderness of Zin in the first month; and the people stayed at Kadesh. Now Miriam died there and was buried there.” (Nu 20:1-2)
For Deborah, life as a judge of Israel couldn’t have been all peace, love, and casseroles. If women in ministry are rejected today, imagine how difficult it would have been a few thousand years ago! Miriam’s ministry in Israel must have been a special inspiration to Deborah, a judge and prophetess:* “For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and ransomed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses to lead you, Aaron the high priest, and Miriam the prophetess.” (Micah 6:4 AMP)
Here is the outside-of-time hand of the Father on Israel’s behalf. Whereas the Kadesh in the wilderness was a place where there was no water because Miriam died[1], it would be an over-abundance of unexpected water, a literal flood, at the Kishon River that snared the kings of the east! Are you watching? Here comes General Barak, and he sits down beside Deborah under the palm tree.* Then Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” She said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the honor shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hands of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh, and ten thousand men went up with him; Deborah also went up with him.” (Judges 4:8-10)
What a wonderful precedent Miriam and Moses set for Deborah and Barak. Even in the tiny insight we have to Miriam’s life, which consists of her heroic saving of Moses’ life as well as her punishment for speaking about Moses’ Cushite wife, we have more clues, my fellow time travelers. The Israelite camp DID NOT MOVE WITHOUT MIRIAM. Not one inch!And what about the Song of Moses after the defeat of Pharaoh and his bogged-down chariots in the Reed Sea? The Song was echoed by Miriam, who led the women. So what does Deborah do? After they defeat Sisera’s chariots in the bog of the Kishon, she sings The Song of Deborah. I think they were both probably altos.What had Deborah seen in the scrolls?* She saw Kadesh, so she saw Kedesh. * She saw Chisloth-tabor, so she saw Mount Tabor. * She saw Daberath, so she saw Deborah. * She saw the green pastures of Daberath linked to the pastures of the Kishion, so she saw The Shepherd of Israel providing peace through her guidance to the troops: “Go from Tabor to the Kishon.”
If they obeyed the Great Shepherd’s instructions, then no one would need to strike a rock; instead, a flood of water would bog down and confuse the chariots and Sisera’s army.Speak to the Rock. Speak.Deborah looks at Barak. “Muster your 10,000 soldiers from Kedesh, holiness, and wait on Mount Tabor for Sisera’s troops to notice you.” The 10,000 holy soldiers will only appear to run away, which will lure in the kings of the east to Har Megiddo like Pharaoh was lured in.Somehow Deborah knows that those 10,000 holy soldiers will be only a small portion of the full army that will show up for battle.Deborah tells Barak that specific number of warriors: 10,000. They have a context for 10,000 because sometimes the word is translated as “myriads.” It suggests the myriads of holy ones (angels) who accompanied the Holy One at Mount Sinai when He gave the Israelites the Torah.Fire up your travel machines, brave Israelites. Program in “Mt. Sinai” as your destination. Be careful. The weatherman reports rain, hail, lightning, and heavy clouds. Now we are watching what Deborah saw in the scroll. It is recorded in Deuteronomy 33:2. It says,“The Lord came from Sinai and dawned on them from Seir,”which is the territory of Esau of Edom, The Red One, who lived in Seir. In fact, it was from Kadesh that Moses requested, and was refused safe passage by Edom. He also requested to buy food and water, and he was refused by Edom: “Thus Edom refused to allow Israel to pass through his territory; so Israel turned away from him.” (Nu 20:21)“He shone forth from Mount Paran,” which is a big red mountain the four kings defeated before Sodom: “…and the Horites in their Mount Seir, as far as El-paran, which is by the wilderness.”“And He came from the midst of 10,000 holy ones.”So He came noticeably with myriads of angels. This is how King Solomon will see the Savior of Israel: “My beloved is dazzling white and ruddy, preeminent among the myriad.” (So 5:10 Artscroll)“At His right hand, there was flashing lightning for them.”Some translations are more literal, and they’ll translate it as a fiery law. So is it lightning, or is it a fiery law in His right hand?Yes.Barak’s name means “lightning.”Perhaps not so coincidentally, Yael used her “right hand” (Ju 5:26) to drive the tent peg into Sisera’s skull, breaking/dividing it (???????), which is part of the compound name of Hazazon-Tamar, the place the kings of the east conquered just before the battle with the five kings.Deborah and Barak are going to battle with the fiery Word of God. Barak is not going to need 10,000 soldiers. This number tells the Israelites that the Holy One will come marching with His myriads of angels to fight for Israel, which is exactly how the Song of Deborah begins.Now you are seeing what Deborah saw in those scrolls.So hold your position at Sinai, troops. Hover right here near Mount Sinai and idle until next Shabbat. Next week, we will and did and are traveling a little farther, to the camp of another brave couple: Avraham and Sarah. We’ll gather more clues to this smokin’ Israelite army of 10,000.* “Look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain; when he was but one I called him, then I blessed him and multiplied him.” (Is 51:2)
[1] The traditional reading of this passage is that the water dried up because Miriam died. The miracle of the cloud was associated with Aaron’s service, the manna was associated with Moses’ service, and the water from the Rock was associated with Miriam’s service. Indeed, Yeshua the Rock first met Miriam (Mary) after his resurrection. |
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Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa in this week’s Torah midrash suggests that Parsha ‘Re’eh’ (Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17) is unique. Not that it covers territory that the Torah hasn’t addressed before, one way or another. But that this time it is far more…blunt.
And even the title is straightforward. “Re’eh,” can be translated ‘behold.’ Or just plain, “See!” As if what He was saying could be missed.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/SSM-8-7-26-Re-eh-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3But that’s not really the problem. It’s not that the message is even remotely ambiguous. In fact, it’s even beyond “self-explanatory.”
The problem is that — for those that most need to “see,” it’s beyond uncomfortable. It is threatening. Which is perhaps why, Mark suggests, the ‘whore church’ that should take it to heart, evidently prefers to deny it, ignore it, and, most tellingly, just lie about it.
This is thus a very “uncomfortable” portion, because it is also a matter of life and death.
And ‘curses’ that are already very clearly in play.
The three elements that make up the heart of the lesson are just plain damning.
“Re’eh: The UN-holy trinity of things Removed and Replaced — that explains EVERYTHING!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WT-CooH-8-8-26-Re-eh-The-UNholy-trinity-subtracted-out-replaced-added-in-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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The Time Traveler’s Quick Guide to Armageddon |
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| Over the last several months, we have done some deep dives into the principalities and powers in high places, the beast kingdoms, and then more particularly, into the kings of the east, another category that intersects with the beast kingdoms, including the Persian bear.In term of their proto-prophecies in the Torah, we’ve been all over the place because prophecy is cyclical, even though not identical, from generation to generation. When we read of events in the Psalms, Writings, Prophets, and New Testament, the writers expect us to already be familiar with those proto-prophecies.It was important to establish the earmarks of the battles with the kings of the east in Torah because Adonai declares the end from the beginning. If we want to have the basic understanding of the sixth and seventh bowls of wrath in the end and how they lure in the nations to Armageddon (Har-Megiddo), then we familiarize ourselves with them at the beginning:* “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east. And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. (“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”) * And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon. * Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.” (Re 16:12-18)
Har is “mountain,” and Megiddo is “a place of crowds,” so important in its military situation that it has been destroyed and built over numerous times. It overlooks the Jezreel Valley’s flat, agriculturally fertile abundance as well as the road to the Western Sea, or Mediterranean, an excellent place to monitor the coastal trade route that connected continents from ancient times. John prophesies of a final crowd that will be drawn to this ancient hill in the ol’ breadbasket of Israel.Rather than review some of the many points from our Heaven Shaking the Bear series, I will use them to augment some additional points in this newsletter. You can always go back and access the transcripts (thank you, volunteers!) or videos for little details, such as why even Canaanite kings are considered kings of the east. I’d rather add some new information for your handy time travel guide to Armageddon. We’ll be half Marty McFly and half Indiana Jones on our hunt for clues to Armageddon.Let’s take a seat in our time machine, the Word, and travel back to our familiar story in Judges 4-5, the story of Deborah, Barak, and Sisera with his 900 iron chariots. A little clue is in Sisera’s 900 chariots. It links the ancient with the future. Nine hundred years (plus some) is the typical age of the pre-flood notables from Adam to Noah. In human history, they are the ancients. It was an era marked by the rebellion of the “sons of Elohim” who provoked human beings to such a violence.Sisera’s chariots were iron, denoting the Roman beast kingdom that is mingled with clay in the feet of his image. In other words, something of Deborah’s story will establish a template for understanding the final defeat of the Red One, who appears in Revelation as the chosen steed for the Great Harlot Babylon. The nine-hundred-year era of the days of Noah and its violence will link to the end time of Armageddon.Every time I see the word “Babylonian,” my mind says, “babaloney.” Don’t know why. But ick.Okay, now let’s power up the time machine. We need to visit Abraham’s time during the battle for Sodom among the kings of the east, the Covenant Between the Pieces, and then visit Moses in the wilderness.Ready? Push the Abraham button. It might say, Avram, but you’ll recognize it. Here we go.Wait, wait. First, tape a copy of Judges 4-5 and a map of Israel on your steering wheel. We’ll need to compare what we see with the first battle of Armageddon that Deborah fought against Sisera to our past future locations.Okay, here we come, Abrahamic period. We are landing among the four kings of the east, led by Amraphel (perhaps Nimrod), who marched through and defeated territories east of the Jordan. The five kings of the Sodom coalition have quit paying their taxes, so the four kings are on their way to collect plus interest.Even though those cities of Sodom are situated mostly to the east of the Salt Sea, after the four kings first march and defeat cities east of the Jordan and in the highlands of Bashan, they are continuing as far as the Negev near Kadesh, En-Mishpat, and Hazazon-Tamar. By bypassing the Sodom coalition cities, the four kings are giving the five kings time to muster before the four kings turn back east and meet them near the Salt Sea in battle. Do you see this? Inexplicably, Sodom’s five kings are falling into tar pits! Shouldn’t they know about those tar pits? After all, this is their territory! How strange!And there goes Lot and his family as captives. And there…someone escapes and runs to tell Abraham. Okay, we don’t have to follow them up to Damascus. We know how this ends. Check your Judges 4-5 Scriptures and map. They’re taped to your steering wheel, remember?Something similar happened to Sisera’s iron chariot. Like Pharaoh drove his chariots into the Reed Sea and there his chariot wheels became “confused,” so Sisera drove his chariots into the mud of the Kishon, which he should have known about because he was a Canaanite.Although Pharaoh was not a “king of the east,” he is the dragon, and his authority was passed to them. This suggests that our soggy bottom boys are experiencing a Divine intervention, not just a human battle. Something flies in their brains, stings them, and causes confusion…perhaps the tzirah, the supernatural hornet of Moses and Joshua?The tzirah went before the armies of Israel, and it helped Moses conquer on the east side of the Jordan and Joshua on the west side of the Jordan. It first causes confusion, and then it cuts off root and fruit. It is the supernatural bug described as being released from the King of Abaddon in Revelation.Not so coincidentally, Deborah’s name means “bee” in Hebrew, and “hornet” in Aramaic. The root of her name is “word,” as in Devarim, the fifth book of the Torah and perhaps the most apocalyptic since it is the little scroll of Torah. There was a reason Barak would not take his soldiers into battle without her; she represented the Divine power of the Word going before them!How does Deborah know to tell Barak that he needs exactly 10,000 soldiers mustered from a place named “Kedesh”?Deborah judged Israel under the “palm tree of Deborah.” A palm tree is a tamar:* “She used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel came up to her for judgment (mishpat ????????????).”
Can you see Deborah studying the scrolls of Torah? Those scrolls are rolling her right into the time of Avraham, and she sees the conquests of Moses and Joshua in the wilderness, such as Amalek. She recognizes the conquests of the four kings as having the same names that are in the hill country of Ephraim near Har-Megiddo: From Kadesh to Kedesh. From Hazazon-Tamar to the tamar providing her shade to read the scroll. From En-Mishpat to her job rendering mishpat for Israel.We know Deborah has spent time scroll-rolling back to Abraham’s time because she mentions something specific in her Judges Five song. The Song of Deborah mentions the courage of the tribe of Ephraim in the defeat of Sisera’s chariots:* “From Ephraim, those whose root is in Amalek came down…”
If you need to, program in “Amalek in the Wilderness,” and travel there to see a bit of the battle. This “root in Amalek” is thought to refer to the wilderness battle under Moses in which the Ephraimite Joshua defeated Amalek. The tribe of Ephraim is rooted in its leadership in the victory in the wilderness in Israel’s first encounter with Amalek.Deborah knows Amalek is enticed to attack when its opponent looks weak, so that gives her a Divine strategy in enticing this king of the east Sisera to his Armageddon. Okay, now travel back to the battle between the four kings and the five kings. The four kings of the east also conquered Amalek before turning back to battle the five kings of Sodom.While the battle continues, let’s return to this question (you already know how that battle ends): How does Deborah know to tell Barak that he needs exactly 10,000 soldiers mustered from a place named “Kedesh”?We’ve only partially answered it. And our answer is based on the battle between bad kings of the east vs worse kings of the east. We don’t want to take this as the only source of Deborah’s inspired strategy to lure Sisera to Har-Megiddo. Deborah is scrolling through the rolls of the Torah, and she must have some even better prophecies on which she bases her battle with Sisera. Let’s leave these guys for Avraham to deal with and travel forward and back to Deborah’s palm tree for more clues.Yes, time travelers. Next week we’ll go back to the future with Deborah and spend some more time with Avraham and Moses. There must be a connection between Deborah’s forty years of peace in Israel and Moses’ forty years in the wilderness. Deborah has the handy traveler’s guide to help her map it all out. We’ll see her secret of selecting 10,000, and we might even take a peek inside Yael’s tent to find that she knew the Torah, and it guided her hand when she drove the tent peg into Sisera’s head.Oh, dear, oh dread.Sandals muddy like heavy lead.Some yogurt he was fed.Then he went to bed.Now Sisera is dead.A tent peg’s in his head.Okay, Deborah is better at composing songs than I am. I gave it a shot. Roll your time travel machines to Judges 4-5, and we’ll see you next week. |
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Parsha ‘Ekev’ (Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25) not only continues Moses’ ‘Farewell Address’ but some of the themes which permeate the Torah of YHVH: the repeated admonition to “hear and obey,” and KEEP His “commandments, judgments, and statutes,” and how that is inseparable from “love Him,” with all our “heart and soul.”
But the other element that is just as vital, but far more overlooked, is the prohibition against “idolatry.” Trouble is, most of the ‘whore church’ no longer has a clue what that means.
Not that He isn’t clear.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/SSM-7-31-26-Ekev-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3This Torah portion is arguably a “one-two punch” to the understanding of why YHVH forbids idolatry in ANY form, but there are some additional specifics here that SHOULD really “hit home” — especially now.
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship investigates some of those elements, in the current context. And they should be uncomfortable.
Because it not only underlines the distinction between the Real Messiah, and ‘another jesus,’ it also deals with other imposters – from Big Brothers Servants of Satan, to the AI god(s) currently “under construction.” But perhaps already out of the box.
“Ekev: What it means to ‘Love Him’ – and why the WC definition of Idolatry is FAR TOO Narrow!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/WT-CooH-8-1-26-Ekev-Idolatry-TOO-NARROW-the-definition-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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The Pirates of our Times |
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| Huge!This Changes Everything!Secrets Revealed!The Real Reason…ALL CAPS!What You’re Not Supposed to Know About…Something That Shouldn’t Exist…See Recipe in Comments Below[1]Is this what it takes to get our attention now?You would think so. When we search through YouTube looking for a favorite news outlet, we now slog through sensationalist titles and AI-generated title pages that entice us to view by showing extreme emotions: anger, fear, distress, shock.Not comforting, is it?It’s a weekly challenge for me when I try to choose a graphic that authentically represents the content of the teaching. At some point I think we have to admit that no matter how intriguing the title or graphic, mostly the same people will read and the same people will delete. Probably at most, an especially intriguing title will cause a tiny percentage of people to open an email who normally delete it. We are becoming more wise…or perhaps fatigued…with sensationalist content.The ability of AI[2] to offer us not just curated viewing, shopping, music, or social media posts, but to communicate with us like an actual person in Customer Service chats or Chat GPT, creates an illusion of an interested and caring person we know. How cool is it that YouTube lets me know when a new beading or archaeology video is released?Honestly, though, it’s digital machinery that has been fed immeasurable amounts of data. As I found out last week, it’s also been fed pirated books (Creation Gospel workbooks!) and videos (Creation Gospel videos!). The AI in turn cheerfully offers the information free to seekers.There was a foreshadowing of this back in 2003 when we first went online with www.israelnet.tv, offering teaching programs from some of the best-known Messianic teachers of the day. Our tech guy contacted us and said he was watching someone download multiple programs simultaneously in real time. This was in spite of clear copyright cautions. We only had permission from the teachers to stream to our audience, not to re-distribute the programs for personal use.With a little bit of investigative work, we tracked down the email address of the pirate. My burning question was, what kind of person steals Bible teaching? There’s much more lucrative content out there. Bible teaching? Really?I sent the faceless Torah pirate an email, and kindly but firmly explained that we knew he was downloading copyrighted programs. I also explained that we did not have permission to distribute the material randomly; we were only licensed for the specific use on Israelnet.Instead of an apology, the pirate went into the old trope: The Bible doesn’t belong to anyone. It’s free. Bible teaching should be free.Pretext.Aaargh, matey!Sure the Bible is free. They’re in the top drawer of any hotel nightstand. An institution known as the Gideons gives away free Bibles. Most people have an extra copy they’d be happy to give away. But there was a reason Yeshua chose one of the disciples to carry the donation money bag.Even though Yeshua was quite handy with multiplying loaves and fishes, they had to eat.Relying on miracles instead of working is not the Scriptural example. Miracles are for when we reach the limit of human skill, access, or knowledge.In my reply to the gentleman pirate, I agreed that the Bible is free. In fact, our Creation Gospel programs and workbook royalties are designated to support Torah-based orphanages, not pay salaries. My husband and I had full time jobs, so we didn’t rely on donations to pay the grocery bill or car payment. We donated our time and money. Other teachers, however, were full time ministers. They needed the income to support their ministries and families.Not being as handy with loaves and fishes as Yeshua, they had to eat.At the least, if this gentleman wanted to re-distribute the teachers’ programs, then he should obtain permission like Israelnet did. He should explain why the costs the teachers incurred, such as travel, studio, equipment, utility bills, (our streaming T-1 line back then was $1000 per month!), software, etc., was okay for him to remove from their pockets because he knew better than they did to whom their teaching and production work should be disseminated.So in our times, AI developers are free to redistribute all the intellectual property it can consume, even apologizing for not listing everything due to “copyright rules.” It’s like nodding and saying “no” at the same time.It’s not something we’ll change, however. In fact, it’s so incorporated into our daily activities that it’s probably impossible to disconnect unless we go off-grid. We’re being sluiced down that funnel faster and faster. The current Western trend toward socialism and communism is a symptom. The pirate’s reasoning that all Biblical content should be free is rapidly expanding. We feel entitled to confiscate anyone else’s hard work because it’s the “moral” thing to do. Share. Lift up the downtrodden. Love your neighbor.Sometimes we feign asking permission by passing onerous laws to tax and take property. Others simply take without permission and know that the wealth from it will more than equip them to face their accusers in court by the time it makes it that far. The ultimate settlement is calculated as the cost of doing pirated business. The Author’s Guild reports that the median annual income from book sales is just $15,000 for full-time authors. We’re not all John Grisham. The authors are never going to recover the income they’ve lost to pirates and AI even when the case makes it to court.Yes, I agree. Love your neighbor as yourself.But what about “Thou shalt not steal”? That’s in the Bible, too.Pretext.Yes, that’s what the Torah calls it.A pretext is when we make up a reason to conceal the actual reason we do or don’t do something. Pretext tends to spread like wildfire. We’d all like to avoid confronting our own fears, failures, laziness, aggressiveness, greed, or apathy if someone can come up with a pretext that sounds way better than “my fear,” “my laziness,” “my aggressiveness,” or “my greed.”Numbers 11:1-6 is an example of a pretext:* “Now the people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the LORD; and when the LORD heard it, His anger was kindled, and the fire of the LORD burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp… The rabble who were among them had greedy desires; and also the sons of Israel wept again and said, “Who will give us meat to eat? We remember the fish which we used to eat free in Egypt, the cucumbers and the melons and the leeks and the onions and the garlic, but now our appetite is gone. There is nothing at all to look at except this manna.”
The fire started with a taste for free meat and fish. This was the pretext. They even invented facts to go with the pretext: we ate free fish in Egypt; we have no appetite.The opposite was true. The fish wasn’t free in Egypt. Even the straw for the bricks they had to find for themselves. They did, too, have an appetite. The ignoramuses even listed all the things they were craving.The manna, the Word of Heaven was not tasty enough for their uncontrolled, greedy appetites.It helps to know what preceded the complaining. For the first time, the organized camp moved with the Tabernacle, following the Ark of the Covenant and expected to give feet to the commandments they’d learned:* “So they moved out for the first time according to the commandment of the LORD through Moses.” (Nu 10:13)
The Israelites had entered a new stage of responsibility in their walk to the Promised Land. No longer newly-saved milk-dependent babes in the wilderness, they had multiple commandments in which to walk. They were now organized by camp, directed by leadership. There was no map to their journey, only the Ark that traveled ahead looking for the place for them to rest.When we don’t know exactly what lies ahead, we often look back. What we see when we look back takes on a glory and sheen that it never had when we were living it. Truth be told, we were miserable. But those reconstructed memories and invented facts make great pretexts.Our present challenge is more than just leaking away of intellectual property or orphanage funds through pretexts or outright theft. Like I said, we won’t stop this flood until Yeshua returns. There’s no way to separate out an answer on a search engine that was stolen versus one that was taken from an open source.Our present challenge is more than just clickbaiting viewers or listeners to read, watch, or listen to a program when they have thousands of choices each day.Let’s put the two together.We are in a transition period. We hear the footsteps of Messiah. We also know that the period just preceding his return is one of chaos, turmoil, war, weather phenomena, family conflict, rebellion, and mass confusion.In the middle of this, a remnant is called out of that darkness in the “wilderness of the peoples.” What we feel as tribulation is really just a test. Tribulation is for the unrepentant. Yet, we, too, become scared, nervous, anxious, and angry. We’re not sure we know how to follow the Ark. Organization? The Beast uses those! Help!Yes, the Beast is full of cravings and greedy desires. He does use organizations to clickbait and entice us, to offer us any pretext for complaining about the journey. To overwhelm us with “free” choices: Cucumbers? Fish? Melons? Garlic? Onions? Pick me! Pick me! I love free!All our choices do cost something no matter the pretext or the truth of the Word. The only free thing is our salvation. After that is a wilderness journey of learning, and each lesson costs us some effort. And unlike the wilderness of the first Exodus, this Greater Exodus doesn’t come with a visible Moses or a leadership appointed by him. This is a bit scarier because it’s more than a bit greater than the first one! (Je 16:14-15; 23:7-8; Is 43:16-19)You know what? I used AI to look up those verses faster than I could on Logos. I don’t think AI is the Beast. It’s a tool, but we need to know how to and how not to use it, just like we need to know how to use and not use the organizations to which we belong or which we use. We don’t put faith in government, medicine, recreation, education, or any other system. We use them, but they will ultimately fail…repeatedly. They are tools, but they are not the Kingdom. We must recognize where they fail and use them wisely where they are honest and successful.While the wicked and lukewarm world with no clear direction enters this stage of confusion that precedes the Kingdom, knowing only an indiscriminate throwing off of every yoke, we are to walk with clarity. Training in the Word equips us, calms us, balances us.This is why I know that trying to find the most enticing graphic or clickbait title is not going to get lots more people to open a newsletter. In fact, statistics tell me that fewer than 50% even open the weekly email.People are weary and wary. When they do open those links that imply they HOLD THE NEXT GREATEST SECRET CONSPIRACY, they already anticipate that it will under-deliver. They know we’re overrun with the pirates of our time. It’s kind of like those sea monkeys I ordered from the back of a comic book when I was seven years old. I still have no idea what that cloudy mess was, but the ads made me think something alive, mysterious, and fascinating could be had for the cost of postage and few bucks.And I get it.I, too, have to search for ways to promote books like Scorpions Ascent or a conference, to politely ask the readers or viewers for a minute or two to consider whether the book or event is a good fit for them. I don’t want to be a time pirate, yet on the other hand, if we don’t do something to attract the eye, the message is shouted down by edgier content producers. At what point do we become a time pirate? These are wilderness dilemmas, but Yeshua goes ahead of us so we won’t get lost.My prayer is that we are quietly growing a trained remnant that doesn’t need superlatives, all caps, world-shaking prophecy insights, and carnival ride doctrines. They are faithfully collecting tasty manna in the Torah portions each week. They don’t need pretexts to justify their lust for the doctrinal carnival rides because they are not afraid of walking in the chaos Scripture warned us would accompany the period before Yeshua’s return.AI can only appear to know you by your first name. It cannot know you at all. It is data programmed to identify your habits captured either legally or illegally by analyzing your keystrokes, questions, searches, and preferences. The upside is a quick search for a simple, non-life-changing question. The downside is that from now until Yeshua comes, we will not likely know for sure what images or voices are real. Oh yeah, that’s in the Bible, too.A minister of pretext doesn’t really know you, either. He or she knows human fears, greed, cravings, laziness…even the good desire to do righteous things for your neighbor. The minister of pretext’s bait draws out the “rabble,” sharing confusion and darkness because they feed one another half-truths that become whole lies. In the end, it consumes them together. It doesn’t bear the fruit of righteous things. He’s a pirate who baits our scroll…em…scrolling time.As we navigate this greater exodus, let us deliver what the apostles of Yeshua delivered and what Moses and the leaders in the wilderness delivered. Truth.Truth still matters.A human being doing the honest work of the Kingdom can hold truth and the good of others at the same time. It can give without stealing. Truth can be firmly upheld without being unkind. It can make manna tastier than anything from The French Laundry.That is something the world desperately needs right now. Real human beings unafraid of the giants, robots, and raging, confused nutters. Strong, yet gentle messengers of Yeshua aren’t driven by their own fears, but by the good news promises of the gospel. They may not remember where you shopped online six months ago or that you like loom beading videos, but they know you are the Father’s treasured possession. This kind of knowing becomes a comfort to others:* For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit; but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts. For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is witness—nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, even though as apostles of Christ we might have asserted our authority. But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children. Having so fond an affection for you, we were well-pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become very dear to us. (1 Th 2:3-8)
Isn’t this a great passage Paul wrote to comfort the Thessalonians? These are words of relationship, not something Paul asked AI to write for him. Even back then, the recipient of a letter could sniff out a genuine letter from AI. A pastor who loves the flock is a gift from above AI will never duplicate.This Shabbat is “Shabbat Nachamu,” the Shabbat of Comfort that follows the fast of Tisha B’Av. The readings for the weeks following are also comforts that the destructions will someday come to an end, and the hard work of walking through the chaos and confusion of the wilderness will come to an end.The great thing about the Ark seeking out a resting place for the Israelites three days’ journey ahead of them in the wilderness? It is said that its cloud lifted up the low places, leveled the high places, and killed the scorpions and snakes in their path. It shaded them from the heat or cold. The journey was nothing to be afraid of, nothing for which they needed to collect pretexts beforehand for failures. They were being afforded the comforts they would need even through the challenges of the journey.It was those on the fringes the cloud had expelled for complaining who were consumed by the fire. It’s way bumpier and hotter out there where the cover of the clouds of glory is thin. The Presence of the Father can also sniff out a reluctant traveler on this journey. Leave the pretexts out there in the fire with the pirates, and report to your place in the cloud.Complaining is the opposite of comforting.Complaining is the opposite of comforting.Complaining is the opposite of comforting.* “’Comfort, O comfort My people,’ says your God. ‘Speak kindly to Jerusalem; and call out to her, that her warfare has ended, that her iniquity has been removed, that she has received of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.’A voice is calling, ‘Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up and every mountain and hill be made low; and let the rough ground become a plain, and the rugged terrain a broad valley; then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together;’ for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” (Is 40:1-5)
[1] The recipe in Comments will be a link that ka-chings the content provider’s account and takes you to a “recipe page” that buries the recipe within dozens of ads. Clickbait.[2] Fun Hebrew/English Coincidence Fact: The first AI pirate: in Hebrew: ?????, Ai means “heap of ruins.” It was a Canaanite city located just east of Bethel. It was the site of a major battle in the Book of Joshua. At first, the Israelites were defeated because a warrior named Achan (“troubling, troubler”) took treasure and hid it. After Achan was put to death, Joshua led a successful military ambush to capture and destroy the city. Pirates of Ai are in a heap of trouble. |
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Parsha ‘Vaet-Chanan’ (Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11) continues Moses’ ‘Farewell Address’ and lesson with “…and I BESOUGHT” Yahuah — but he was not allowed to enter the land, and that is followed up with some of the most important commandments in all of Scripture. But the “Ten Debarim” are just part of that; Yahushua noted that what precedes it, “Shema Israel,” is even greater.
It is central to what Mark has called “Yahushua’s Razor.”
The Erev Shabbat reading is one of the most important in His Torah:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SSM-7-24-26-Va-et-Chanan-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3This Torah portion is so powerfully central to the understanding of why YHVH forbids idolatry in ANY form, and is called “El Kanah” – the Jealous God – three times in this context. And since it also, without question, includes THE most important commandments in Scripture (to the point where He even uses the Singular – as in THE Commandment) this is the context where
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship outlines what he calls ‘THE Razor,’ which is the Truth so central to the ministry of the Torah Made Flesh, Yahushua, that it also serves to divide from what is probably the greatest lie in history: that ‘jesus’ somehow “did away with the Law.”
What it shows is why the distinction between the Real Messiah, Who did NOT in any way, and the fake, is so vital.
It’s not about pronunciation, or whether there was even a “J” in Hebrew for those 15 centuries. It’s far more fundamental, but is encapsulated in,
His Mama NEVER Called Him ‘jesus’!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/WT-CooH-7-25-26-Va-et-Chanan-Baruch-Haba-but-non-in-the-name-of-a-Liar-w-Truth-not-in-Him-Moses-seat-QQQ-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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| The Food of the Gods |
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| “I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if you find my beloved, as to what you will tell him: for I am lovesick.What kind of beloved is your beloved, O most beautiful among women? What kind of beloved is your beloved, that thus you adjure us?” (So 5:9)“The nations of the world say to Israel: ‘How is your beloved more than another beloved?” In what way is He God more than other gods, in what way is He a protector more than other protectors?’” (Midrash Rabbah to Shir 5§9)Once again, the proto-typical event is the exodus from Egypt:* “For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am the LORD.” (Ex 12:12) * “And what one nation on the earth is like Your people Israel, whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people and to make a name for Himself, and to do a great thing for You and awesome things for Your land, before Your people whom You have redeemed for Yourself from Egypt, from nations and their gods?” (2 Sa 7:23)
When did the other “gods” of the pantheon assume power over the nations?And are these entities unruly evil demons or ruly assigned powers over the principalities (2 Pe 2:10; Jde 1:8)?Too involved to answer, and probably not so fruitful, but when Israel goes into the principality of an assigned power, in a sense, it is the territory of that nation’s assigned angelic majesty, elohim, or “judge, authority.” There are indeed, however, unruly demonic entities that operate within those principalities that are worshipped as gods.Elohim is spirit, yet He “eats” the gifts of our worship, the human desire to be near to Him expressed in gifts and sacrifices:* ”You shall consecrate him, therefore, for he offers the food of your God; he shall be holy to you; for I the LORD, who sanctifies you, am holy.” (Le 21:8) * “Speak to Aaron, saying, ‘No man of your offspring throughout their generations who has a defect shall approach to offer the food of his God.’” (Le 21:17) * “…nor shall you accept any such [blemished, diseased] from the hand of a foreigner for offering as the food of your God; for their corruption (“decay”) is in them, they have a defect, they shall not be accepted for you.’” (Le 22:25)
Elohim’s food is to receive our heartfelt, lovesick obedience free of the decay of death. Our food is to do the will of the Father who sent Yeshua, the Living Word. (Jn 4:34)The evil and unclean gods of the pantheon also receive “food” when we idolize them [we actually worship ourselves and they enable it]. As in the Garden, when the serpent offered the humans the opportunity to “be like God,” so evil spirits receive the gifts and sacrifices of human beings as food, fuel for their ability to cross into our realm and proliferate.It was the serpent who was trying to be like God, and he needed Adam and Eve to feed that desire. He fed them what they desired; they fed him what he desired. The serpent is always eager to feed our wrong appetite, desire, emotion, and intellect. The end result, though, is death, not life.Obedience to Elohim’s voice, however, produces life and the ability to continue abundant life in the Garden, a Land flowing with milk and honey, wine and balsam.The following recitation for the tithe of the third year contains specific language that reminds us we are not to feed the dead, whether ancestors or gods.Instead, we feed only our Elohim with our holies of sacred obedience. In return, our Elohim sets us high above all the nations and their gods. This is why our Beloved is high above all others and why we are lovesick, seeking His Voice in the night of exile, which is what Adam and Eve should have done, waited to hear His Voice walking in the cool of the evening.* “When you have finished paying all the tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and to the widow, that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. You shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and also have given it to the Levite and the alien, the orphan and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed or forgotten any of Your commandments. I have not eaten of it while mourning, nor have I removed any of it while I was unclean, nor offered any of it to the dead. I have listened to the voice of the LORD my God; I have done according to all that You have commanded me. Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel, and the ground which You have given us, a land flowing with milk and honey, as You swore to our fathers.’ This day the LORD your God commands you to do these statutes and ordinances. You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul. You have today declared the LORD to be your God, and that you would walk in His ways and keep His statutes, His commandments and His ordinances, and listen to His voice. The LORD has today declared you to be His people, a treasured possession, as He promised you, and that you should keep all His commandments; and that He will set you high above all nations which He has made, for praise, fame, and honor; and that you shall be a consecrated people to the LORD your God, as He has spoken.” (Dt 26:12-19)
The unruly rebellious entities derive power when they are worshipped; in a sense, they are “fed” by human beings, which attracts greater numbers of unclean and evil spiritual beings…unclean in that those spirits are NOT assigned to the physical realm, but they hunt for physical hosts to enable them to operate there. It actually speeds the process of death and decay to the host because it is an unclean mixture. Life is only within one’s assigned realm:* “Then it goes and takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. That is the way it will also be with this evil generation.” (Mt 12:45)
When we “feed” a spiritual entity our disobedience and rebellion, we transgress, mixing two realms, which invites death, not life. It has no place in the life of a believer in Yeshua, or in a human being at all. This is why disobedience is equated with witchcraft:* For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,
And stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,He also has rejected you from being king.” (1 Sa 15:23)Because of this rebellion, the kingship and authority was forfeited. Just as in the Garden when the serpent had to entice the human beings into rebelling in order to commandeer their authority to rule, so we still can be deceived into the giving our spiritual authority to the beast by trying to be “like God.” There is only one Elohim, and all other beings are created by Him, even the rebels of the universe. An altar is a “table” connecting the physical realm with the spiritual. Why would we feed rebellious spirits the food of our own disobedience and share their demonic table fare?* “Look at the nation Israel; are not those who eat the sacrifices sharers in the altar? What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but I say that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.” (1 Co 10:19-21)
Angelic powers over principalities don’t need or want human worship to enlarge their influence or authority; they already have authority because it is assigned to them. Perhaps it was pre-assigned when the heavenly hosts were created, but more likely their creation prepared them to be assigned to their supervisory divisions after the Flood:* “Two sons were born to Eber; the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided; and his brother’s name was Joktan.” (Ge 10:25; 32; 1 Ch 1:19)
There is also this verse that synchronizes the symbolic 70 nations of the earth and their divisions to the number of Israelites who went down to Egypt:* “Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven. (Dt 10:22) * “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel.” (Dt 32:8)
This may not be a contradiction, but a hint to the restoration work in progress, a plan where the twelve tribes of Israel would become the judges over the nations from the gates of Jerusalem, i.e., the gates to the Garden of Eden, and the assigned princes over the nations would be shaken out of the way, that role concluded.Whatever the details of the plan, it is evident that these angelic majesties were anticipated and assigned, but the original plan was for the righteous among humankind to judge those angels in administering the Kingdom on earth and possibly in the heavenlies:* “Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life?” (1 Co 6:2-3)
These things are what makes our Beloved greater than the other gods of the nations. In addition, Messiah Yeshua can give his most beautiful Bride authority to rule the nations as at the beginning when Adam and Even ruled.The gods of the nations, whether unruly demonic or the ruly assigned angelic majesties, cannot and will not give this kind of authority, for their authority is either usurped or only a temporary assignment.* “He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds until the end, TO HIM I WILL GIVE AUTHORITY OVER THE NATIONS; AND HE SHALL RULE THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON, AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE BROKEN TO PIECES, as I also have received authority from My Father; and I will give him the morning star.” (Re 2:26-28)
The morning star? The first resurrection! We can share Yeshua’s table at the wedding supper of the Lamb. (Re 3:20) |
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Parsha ‘Devarim’ (Deuteronomy chapters 1 thru 3) are the “Words” that Moshe spoke to ‘all Israel’ during the last month of his life, and thus his “farewell address.” It’s also an elegant summary of His Torah, or the total Instruction, that was given by YHVH through him.
And it begins with the parsha that introduces the Book with, of course, the same Hebrew name.
The Erev Shabbat reading by Mark Call of SSM:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SSM-7-17-26-Devarim-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The story that Moses ‘retells’ begins with a poignant observation: “It is [only] 11 days journey,” from …where you started off… to …where you were to end up.
And yet it took 40 years.
Then follows the lesson.
After all, they were THERE with Moshe — even if some were very young, or even born after things he pointed out. But they were ALL still ‘very close’ to the situation.
Thousands of years later, we still have the Book. But if they failed to “get it,” and heed the lesson, “how much more so” those who have been taught it has been “done away with,” and doesn’t even matter any more?
Do we have a “love of the Truth,” or not? And, if so, can we rightly divide that ‘Word’ — and even follow after the Real, instead of the fake?
“Debarim: Those Closest STILL Needed a Reminder – ‘How much MORE so’ Now?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/WT-CooH-7-18-26-Devarim-Those-Close-STILL-Needed-a-Reminder-the-Heavy-and-Light-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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| The Bed of Tribulation Sickness |
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| Good news! Transcripts of Heaven Shaking the Bear are still coming thanks to a volunteer.Click here to view Transcript 1.Click here to view Transcript 2.Click here to view Transcript 3.Click here to view Transcript 4.Click here to view Transcript 5.Click here to view Transcript 6.Click here to view Transcript 7.Click here to view Transcript 8.Click here to view Transcript 9.Click here to view Transcript 10.Click here to view Transcript 11.Click here to view Transcript 12.Click here to view Transcript 13.Click here to view Transcript 14.Click here to view Transcript 15.Click here to view Transcript 16.Click here to view Transcript 17.Click here to view Transcript 18a.Click here to view Transcript 18b.There is a playlist to make it easier to find the videos. Click if you missed past livestreams: Heaven is Shaking the Bear PlaylistIn this week’s podcast we will relate our general timing of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear to the literal time of the Straits, the Jezebel woman’s refusal to repent and her present and future Tribulation sickness, and the regime change for those who are lovesick for their Messiah Yeshua and prepared for the fall feasts.Please join us.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings. |
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Parsha ‘Matot’ (Numbers 30:2 through chapter 32) is one of those that Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship thinks, because of the “not-politically-correct” and thus too often utterly neglected chapter 30, deserves much more attention that it gets, particularly for reasons he tries to make clear.
The Erev Shabbat reading is certainly an introduction:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/SSM-7-10-26-Matot-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath day midrash begins by making clear, at least in part, why Mark is not a fan of combining Numbers chapter 30 into a double-portion. BUT, at least there are certainly consistent threads that link them, and demonstrate WHY honoring our word is so vital.
The ‘rest of the story’ is why civilization collapses without it. And we’re there.
And Numbers chapter 30 is at the heart of most of it.
“Matot [and Masei]: Real MEN MUST ALWAYS Be Bound By their Word”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/WT-CooH-7-11-26-Matot-Only-Real-MEN-can-be-BOUND-by-their-Word-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyBad News Bears: Bear Flesh |
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| Good news! Transcripts of Heaven Shaking the Bear are still coming thanks to a volunteer.Click here to view Transcript 1.Click here to view Transcript 2.Click here to view Transcript 3.Click here to view Transcript 4.Click here to view Transcript 5.Click here to view Transcript 6.Click here to view Transcript 7.Click here to view Transcript 8.Click here to view Transcript 9.Click here to view Transcript 10.Click here to view Transcript 11.Click here to view Transcript 12.Click here to view Transcript 13.Click here to view Transcript 14.Click here to view Transcript 15.Click here to view Transcript 16.Click here to view Transcript 17.There is a playlist to make it easier to find the videos. Click if you missed past livestreams: Heaven is Shaking the Bear PlaylistThis podcast is a wrap-up lesson to Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear.Please join us. |
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Parsha ‘Pinchas’ (Numbers 25:1-30:1) is actually the conclusion of that story that bears the name of the grandson of Aaron, which begins with a lot of idolatry and outright ‘whoring’ – but not for mere money.
The Erev Shabbat reading by Mark Call of SSM completes that story, and continues with some other elements that certainly add more ‘understanding’ to the issue.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/WT-CooH-7-3-26-Pinchas-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The actions of Pinchas, which some describe as “double-murder,” are sometimes said to be among the most “problematic” or even “morally ambiguous” in all of Scripture. And yet YHVH says NOTHING of the sort. It should be hard to argue with stopping a plague, and receiving the “Covenant of Peace” from the Most High, Himself.
But men still do. Why not? The same ones want to re-write His Word, too.
“Pinchas: We Had Better Be RIGHT”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/WT-CooH-7-4-26-Pinchas-You-Had-Better-Be-RIGHT-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyGot-Zillah and the Bear Ladies |
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| Good news! Transcripts of Heaven Shaking the Bear are still coming thanks to a volunteer.Click here to view Transcript 1.Click here to view Transcript 2.Click here to view Transcript 3.Click here to view Transcript 4.Click here to view Transcript 5.Click here to view Transcript 6.Click here to view Transcript 7.Click here to view Transcript 8.Click here to view Transcript 9.Click here to view Transcript 10.Click here to view Transcript 11.Click here to view Transcript 12.Click here to view Transcript 13.Click here to view Transcript 14.Click here to view Transcript 15.Click here to view Transcript 16.There is a Heaven Shaking the Bear playlist to make it easier to find the videos. Click if you missed past livestreams: Heaven is Shaking the Bear Playlist In this week’s podcast we’ll examine the ancient origin of the Bear kings’ of the East relationship to women as recorded in Genesis, which will reveal (no pun intended) why the hijab has become such a flashpoint in Iran and why women are beaten, violated, and even killed for not wearing one or wearing it “improperly.”Please join us. |
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Parsha ‘Chukat’ (Numbers chapters 19 through 21) is mostly about the most enigmatic ‘chuk’ in Scripture – the Red Heiffer. But there’s another in here as well, also about things that are red, and a bit confusing as well. But the reading schedule this week goes far beyond that, through the parsha called “Balak” (and Numbers 25:9) as well. So it’s a lot of material, and while Mark Call of SSM admits this is a lot to do justice to, at least there ARE some undeniable themes that REALLY should stand out today!
First, the Erev Shabbat Combined reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SSM-6-26-26-Chukat-Balak-double-parsha-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash is where Mark ‘connects the dots,’ and points out just how deadly the connections, and the warnings, are today.
And it gives us better insight into why what Pinchas did was so important.
“Chukat-Balak: Death is CONTAGIOUS — and PRIDE is an Invitation”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/WT-CooH-6-27-26-Chukat-Balak-Death-is-CONTAGIOUS-and-The-Substitute-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyCrumbling Bear Walls Continued … |
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| Good news! Transcripts of Heaven Shaking the Bear are still coming thanks to a volunteer.Click here to view Transcript 1.Click here to view Transcript 2.Click here to view Transcript 3.Click here to view Transcript 4.Click here to view Transcript 5.Click here to view Transcript 6.Click here to view Transcript 7.Click here to view Transcript 8.Click here to view Transcript 9.Click here to view Transcript 10.Click here to view Transcript 11.Click here to view Transcript 12.Click here to view Transcript 13.Click here to view Transcript 14.Click here to view Transcript 15.There is a Heaven Shaking the Bear playlist to make it easier to find the videos. Click if you missed past livestreams: Heaven is Shaking the Bear PlaylistIn the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, we’ll continue where we left off last week and take a final look at another Bear king of the East drawn into the river as well as the cost of the repairs needed to break the walls of the beast kingdoms.Please join us. |
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| Shabbat Shalom!YouTube livestream at 4:00 pm Eastern on Shabbat |
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| News, news, news…* Although we have over 1,000 videos on YouTube, recent shenanigans with other “conservative” ministries and news outlets have resulted in removal of channels. We have backed up most of our videos just in case, and the more so since we embarked on Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear. We pray this series will be secreted in an ark for those earnestly seeking The Holy One and His Word for today. Should our YouTube channel ever be suspended, you can continue on another platform. Scroll to the bottom of the page to click on links to other platforms where you can find us, like Podbean, Substack, Odysee, and Hebrew Nation Radio. * The website tab for the Arava articles has been improved! |
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Parsha ‘Korach’ (Numbers chapters 16 through 18) is popularly known as the story of “Korah’s Rebellion.”
And the Erev Shabbat reading of the portion by Mark Call of SSM certainly explains why:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SSM-6-19-26-Korach-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3But we risk missing out if we don’t ask some important questions, and not even just “why?”
This was, after all, the guy who had led them through the Red, er, Sea of Reeds, and spoke directly to YHVH Himself. Who did they think they were?
But maybe we shouldn’t be surprised. After all, Yahushua told all us that if we don’t believe “Moses’s Writings,” how could we believe His Words?
“Korach: A Rebellion that was the First of Too Many
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/WT-CooH-6-20-26-Korach-If-we-cant-even-RECOGNIZE-Moses-how-can-we-hope-to-spot-a-FAKE-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
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Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyCrumbling Bear Walls |
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| Good news! Transcripts of Heaven Shaking the Bear are still coming thanks to a volunteer.Click here to view Transcript 1.Click here to view Transcript 2.Click here to view Transcript 3.Click here to view Transcript 4.Click here to view Transcript 5.Click here to view Transcript 6.Click here to view Transcript 7.Click here to view Transcript 8.Click here to view Transcript 9.Click here to view Transcript 10.Click here to view Transcript 11.Click here to view Transcript 12.Click here to view Transcript 13.Click here to view Transcript 14.Click here to view Transcript 15.There is a Heaven Shaking the Bear playlist to make it easier to find the videos. Click if you missed past livestreams: Heaven is Shaking the Bear PlaylistThe Shabbat livestream is the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear. We’ll take a final look at another Bear kings of the East drawn into the river as well as the cost of the repairs needed to break the walls of the beast kingdoms.Please join us. |
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| Shabbat Shalom!YouTube livestream at 4:00 pm Eastern on Shabbat |
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| News, news, news…* Although we have over 1,000 videos on YouTube, recent shenanigans with other “conservative” ministries and news outlets have resulted in removal of channels. We have backed up most of our videos just in case, and the more so since we embarked on Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear. We pray this series will be secreted in an ark for those earnestly seeking The Holy One and His Word for today. Should our YouTube channel ever be suspended, you can continue on another platform. Scroll to the bottom of the page to click on links to other platforms where you can find us, like Podbean, Substack, Odysee, and Hebrew Nation Radio. * The website tab for the Arava articles has been improved! |
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Parsha ‘Beha-alotecha’ ends with what Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship has often described as “the Whining.” Which is followed by ‘the Lusting.’ And a lot of people who end up dead as a result. And that leads directly into parsha “Shalach Lekha,” where the words mean “send out men.” It is the story of the infamous “spies” — including Joshua and Caleb — and is also what Mark calls the “first recorded VOTE in history.”
And Joshua and Caleb LOST it, 10-2. But, much like ‘votes’ today, the only people that REALLY lost were those who participated. Their “bodies fell in the wilderness,” ultimately, as they were promised.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the entire ‘parsha-plus’ clarifies that connection:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SSM-6-12-26-Beha-alotecha-through-Shalach-Lekha-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Did EVERY single man over the age of 20 die in the wilderness because they went along with the “evil report” of those ten spies? Scripture makes it clear that they did. But, other than Joshua and Caleb, weren’t there ANY men above ‘voting age’ that simply didn’t participate with that infamous ‘first vote’? Would God really do that?
But it turns out the pattern, and the progression, are clear. First they “murmured,” but perhaps “whined” really is what it would probably be termed today. Then they lusted, and got quail. A LOT of it. And probably wished they hadn’t. But Scripture told us the complaining, and worse, was widespread – but did not use the word “all.” Even if it may have been the vast majority.
UNTIL that ‘first recorded vote.’ After which, it says clearly, and repeatedly, “ALL” of ’em. And Joshua and Caleb admonished ALL of ’em, too. And then ALL of them tried to kill them both.
After which “ALL” of them got what they deserved. Or had earned. But it may not have been the very first time after all.
“Numbers 10 through Shalach-Lekha: “Sodom VOTED to Die! How long will ‘they’ Despise YHVH”?
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/WT-CooH-6-13-26-Beha-alotecha-through-Shalach-Lekha-How-Long-will-you-DESPISE-Me-My-Word-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this week's podcast of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, we'll take a look at another Bear king of the East who was drawn into the river as a pattern for the future triumph of the virtuous woman and Messiah Yeshua in Revelation.Hint: the Bear gets torched.
A few weeks back, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa made the decision to spend a bit more time on the last few weeks of regular readings, which included a “double-portion,” separately. Hopefully you saw why that was important. So, this week, we’ll continue to catch up, with a bit more than parsha ‘Naso,’ (Numbers 4:22 through chapter 7) and continue through a section in chapter 10 that seems to fit well.
The reading for parsha Naso begins with the remainder of the duties of the tribe of Gershon, and then summarizes the ‘census’ of the Levites, after which the narrative changes, and we again see that those who were “unclean” – for several reasons – were to be “put out,” or “shalach” in the Hebrew, a word we’ve seen before – of the camp. And that is followed up by descriptions of two other ‘processes,’ described in detail, which seem utterly foreign to most of ‘the sun-day church’ today.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SSM-6-5-26-Naso-plus-thru-ch-10-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash this week begins with a question:
What is it about those two, apparently very different, situations, and thus processes, the connects them? And why do they follow immediately after the commandment to “shalach” or put out of the camp, the “unclean?”
The process outlined for the “sota” – or the woman whose husband suspects adultery, but has no proof – is said to be the ONLY one of its kind in Scripture, where YHVH actually PROMISES a miracle, one way or another. It’s also misunderstood and mis-taught (witness most of the twisting you’ve probably heard about ‘Jesus and the Woman CAUGHT in adultery’) and yet still at the very heart of so many of the most important events in all of human history! Why does the ‘whore church’ then ignore the real lesson?
And that is followed-up immediately by the process surrounding the ‘Nazerite vow.’ Samson was said to be one “from his mother’s womb,’ as perhaps John the Baptist may have been as well. But Shaul, aka “Paul of Tarsus” notably TOOK such a vow, after he came to know Yahushua, notably, and yet most of xtianity has NEVER heard that! For reasons that Mark says, as the discussion unfolds, are obvious now.
“Naso-plus: “Put out” the Unclean – but then Other Ignored Commandments That Speak VOLUMES about what we have been MIS-taught”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/WT-CooH-6-6-26-Naso-plus-thru-ch-10-Shalach-the-unclean-the-Sota-the-Nazerite-and-HOW-MUCH-MORE-so-Es-QQQ-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Please join us for the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, as we discuss "Bear Bones."
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa made the decision to treat the last few weeks of regular readings, which included a “double-portion,” separately – because there was so much in there that needed to be given more time. So, this week, we will catch up, at least a bit, with a different combination ‘double parsha,’ and see that the combination also fits.
Parsha “Bechukotai,” (Leviticus 26 through the end of the Book) from the opening verse, IF you WALK, “IN MY Statutes,” is perhaps the second most dramatic set of “blessings and curses” in Scripture, after Deuteronomy chapter 28. And it includes what Mark has called the set of “seven times seven times seven times seven” — and a litany of curses that any of us would be hard pressed to argue aren’t at least in their initial stages, or worse.
The Erev Shabbat reading then continues with parsha “Bemidbar,” (Numbers chapters 1 through 4) and the command to Moshe and Aaron to “lift up the head” or number – take a census – the men of ‘fighting age’ in the mixed multitude. And the details make certain elements of that effort stand out over the millenia:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SSM-5-29-26-double-Bechukotai-Bemidbar-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash again begins with a suggestion. Since there is so much emphasis on DOING what YHVH says, ALL of it, and keeping his “statutes, judgments, and commandments, along with the dire promise of what happens if, as it turns out, they did not — the numbers that begin the Book called “Numbers” in English end up telling a stark tale. Because we’ve read ahead. of 603,550 men, all unique, all counted as individuals, it turns out that only TWO (2) – and we know their names – will make it “into the land.”
There is also a specific warning in verse 17, that precedes even the multiplied curses. It even has to do with things like data centers, today.
And a very specific failure, Mark contends, underlies ALL of those lessons.
“Bechukotai, then Bemidbar: Those Who HATE You WILL Rule Over You – and that’s for starters”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WT-CooH-5-30-26-double-Bechukotai-Bemidbar-Those-who-HATE-you-DO-Rule-Over-You-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, we'll take a closer look at the Bear kings of the East who were drawn into the Euphrates in the past as a pattern for the future.Please join us.
Parsha “Behar” (Leviticus chapters 25, essentially) is one of the shortest in the annual reading cycle. Certainly one of the most ignored. And, as Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship shows pretty clearly, it’s one that we NEVER should have pretended was “done away with.”
Yes, verse 10 is in fact inscribed on the Liberty Bell, which only helps make the omission more poignant.
And there are even some words in here that, transliterated, even sound a bit familiar. Like, “Jubliee,” from the 50 year (7×7+1) cycle know in Hebrew as ‘yovel.’
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out the specifics of the “sevens” of years, and the seven-sevens:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SSM-5-22-26-Behar-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3But it’s not just the Big Lie that the “Old” Testament has so much outdated stuff that’s been ‘done away with.’ It’s that the system of dishonest weights, and “money” that is nothing but debt, which multiplies without end, is pure slavery, with no Jubilee reprieve. Whether the banksters and fake priests of the world admit it or not, if YHVH’s Reset doesn’t happen every fifty years or so, His Great Reset will happen eventually, without fail.
And the irony of those who claim, “I am NOT “under the Law,” while being in bondage to a level of debt slavery the likes of which the world has never before seen, is not just palpable — it’s terminal.
Behar: “The Shmita, The Yovel [Jubilee], the REAL Great Reset – and other things we never should have ignored”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WT-CooH-5-23-26-Behar-Shmita-Yovel-Bondage-and-Torahless-ness-of-the-Fathers-visited-on-US-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, we'll take a closer look at the dawn demise of the bear in the River Euphrates per John's account in Revelation and the first Exodus as well as take a look at a pattern in the feasts that call the righteous out of Babylon before the opening/closing of the Euphrates River event.
Parsha “Emor” (Leviticus chapters 21 through 24) begins with the word “Emor,” or “speak,” and it is directed specifically: to Aaron, and his sons, and those who are ‘cohenim,’ or priests, that follow after them. Speak to THEM.
And yet today, the mishkan, and the temple which followed, no longer exists. Neither does that priesthood, so far as a known lineage at least. And so, even though this instruction was given as a commandment “forever,” and “throughout your generations,” and in all your dwellings — even in exile — the things they were charged with doing cannot be done.
How can it still be relevant?
And though most of us have probably been told that it’s “old testament,” and thus NOT relevant, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests (surprise!) otherwise.
For reasons that might even be surprising. And vital.
And in fact, it just might be that the fact we’ve been told to ignore so much of this, and particularly when YHVH says otherwise, that gives us every reason to look deeper.
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out the details of exactly what the cohenim, those who follow the sons of Aaron, were told to do, and how:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SSM-4-15-26-Emor-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3But that is just the start. The parsha also includes some other things, like particularly the “appointed times of YHVH,” that “make the case” so dramatically:
If we can’t tell a “real priest,” or cohen, from the fakes that claim to replace them, how can we expect to recognize a fake prophet? Or, more importantly, a fake messiah, or ‘christ.’ After all, Yahushua Himself warned us against exactly that!
Emor: “The Real vs the Fake – Teach My People the Difference”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WT-CooH-5-16-26-Emor-What-is-relevant-here-A-Fake-Priests-for-starters-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship what may be one of the most vital — and no doubt offensive to some who most need to hear it — of the Torah teachings that the Whore Church would rather be ignored.
Parsha “Kedoshim” (Leviticus chapters 19 through 21) is another one of those that most of us have heard is not just “Old” Testament, and thus “done away with,” but full of stuff that we now find insufficiently WOKE to even be allowed to discuss. Prohibitions on “sorcery” and seances and “Gay Sex” – who could imagine how bigoted and certainly some kinda-phobic that is? People will no doubt soon – when the Aliens get revealed – be punished for even reading it.
Too bad that’s no longer even hyperbole.
And ironically, while even the ‘Whore Church’ still, at least occasionally, quotes the part about “be Holy because The LORD is holy,” even if they spin that, most folks would prefer, and have been TAUGHT to, ignore what that actually means.
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out more of the details WHAT that is, and a bit of WHY it’s now, at best, passe’. More importantly, though, given what’s now ‘in-progress’ – the text makes it pretty clear it’s also deadly.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SSM-5-8-26-Kedoshim-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Mark begins the Sabbath Day midrash with an explanation of the title of teaching for this week, and a bit of the irony of how the word “HOLY” has come to mean pretty much the opposite of what His Words says we are to be: Set Apart. From exactly some of what we’ve been taught.
And now that the “Alien Deception” is, one way or another, in Full Swing, how will people who don’t even understand what we are to be Set Apart TO, recognize what they have already been set apart FROM, and why?
The infamous “Clergy Response Team” was put in place years ago to push the Government-Inspired Version (GIV) twisting of Romans 13. Today, a similar plot is being unleashed to convince ‘christianity’ that what they are planning to release will “shake their faith.” Since so many have accepted, as Paul warned, “another jesus, whom we have NOT preached,” they’ve already been set up.
Kedoshim: “VERY ‘Familiar Spirits’ – Coming Soon to a Theater Near YOU!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WT-CooH-5-9-26-Kedoshim-VERY-Familiar-Spirits-Coming-Soon-to-a-Theatre-Near-YOU-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next podcast will be the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear. We'll explain why the abomination is mute and why it desolates.
Parsha “Acharei Mot” (Leviticus chapters 16 through 18) begins, as it says up front, “After the Death” of the two sons of Aaron. But we see several other parshas, since then. Why is that noted here, and what does it mean?
And two of those have had to do with a ‘plague’ that hasn’t been seen for centuries, at least. Most of us have also been told that the things described in THIS one, too, are “old testament,” and “done away with.” Arguably, it’s even MORE wrong here!
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a story that only begins there. And if you find the connections valuable, please forward the message to those who might be blessed by it.
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out the story, beginning “after the death,” and tells us, over and over again, in fact, that the “statutes” described are to be “forever,” and even tells us the consequences of the Big Lie that they’re not:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/SSM-5-2-26-Acharei-Mot-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The story tells us “after the death,” of Aarons sons, Nadab and Abihu, that there are things that must be done, in accord with His Instruction, so that those who do so, WHEN He says so, “die not.” And then it follows with the description of the “two goats,” one for YHVH, and the other for “Azazel.” It might seem that the ‘picture’ represented by the ritual is fairly clear, and yet it’s not a ‘perfect fit’ for what Yahushua did – for several reasons.
Mark begins the Sabbath Day midrash with those, and the fact that most of what — in this instance, certainly — must be called what it is, now too often ignored. Even though He says it remains a “statute forever.” And says it three times even.
Many people with a ‘sunday-school’ background will remember the line from Hebrews that “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” But they ignore the context, and the lesson of the distinction between sin committed “in ignorance” (Hebrews 9:7) and knowing and deliberate rebellion to Him.
For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Hebrews 10:26-27
This parsha then goes on to directly outline some of those things, which much of the world, and the ‘Whore Church’ which at minimum tacitly accepts, even promotes, YHVH warns about. Some — like things taught in the Publik Cesspools, and mandated by social pressures and tax subsidies — which are called “abomination,” and carry a death penalty. And they “defile the land,” which is why, He concludes, they were, and are, “vomited out” of it.
We ‘cannot serve two masters.’ Which will it be?
Acharei Mot: “When Does ~~Continued~~ Deliberate Sin In Ignorance Merit Being ‘Vomited Out’?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/WT-CooH-5-3-26-Acharei-Mot-Do-NOT-defile-statutes-FOREVER-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, we'll revisit the 21 days of Daniel, the 42 months, and a mirror, or chiasm, of prophecy.
Parsha “Metzora” (Leviticus chapters 14 through 15) is the conclusion to the study of something which does not even exist anymore – the ‘plague’, or malady, or skin disease once called “tzaraat.” But maybe the world would be better of if it did. Or at least people behaved as if it still did.
Is it just possible that there is more here than we’ve been told?
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a story that only begins there. And if you find the connections valuable, please forward the message to those who might be blessed by it.
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out more of the details of ‘unclean-ness,’ such as following childbirth, and the associated requirements that follow afterward:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/SSM-4-24-26-Metzora-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3But the real Truth seems to be in the connections.
Mark begins the Sabbath Day midrash with a look at what might be relevant about “rituals” associated with events, like childbirth, and a woman’s monthly cycle, that still happen regularly, and observations by some even in ‘mainstream Christianity’ that there has been a tendency, for several generations at least, to “bend the Bible’ to conform to the popular culture.
OK – tell me somethin’ we didn’t know! Obviously it goes much further.
But this parsha turns out to be a perfect illustration, he contends. Because the related claim is that, instead, people should try to “conform to the image of ‘Jesus'” — even if they fail to recognize the fact that that very ‘image’ has been bent to conform to a culture which doesn’t even recognize the real Messiah from their fuzzy-wuzzy imitation.
“Does that offend you?” He asked — more than once. But “blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” Does it matter that much of churchianity seems to be offended by the Real Yahushua HaMashiach, but not their substitute?
The irony is that YHVH sent both the PLAGUE of ‘tzaraat’ and His Son, the very “Torah Made Flesh,” to His people. And both evidently have a LOT to say about “what comes out of a man.”
Both — among other things — to teach them things they now, and perhaps almost always anyway, prefer to ignore – or “bend to fir their culture.”
One of them hasn’t been seen in the world, so far as we know, for centuries.
Metzora: “Bending Torah to Conform to ‘another jesus’ – and that culture”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/WT-CooH-4-25-26-Metzora-Bending-the-Torah-Made-Flesh-to-conform-to-another-jesus-and-its-culture-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear we have a special guest, Kyle Bevel, on to discuss the rise of cryptocurrency in the clay feet of the Beast.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at parsha Tazria, Leviticus chapters 12 through 14, and a discussion of what is too often dismissed as “old” testament minutia that no longer has any relevance.
Mark suggests that one of the most intriguing things about certain sections — like this one! — is how things that the ‘church’ claims are irrelevant is how He may have Written it for us knowing far better. Just maybe.
And the Erev Shabbat reading starts to make that case:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/SSM-4-17-26-Tazria-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark begins by asking some relevant questions, including, “what is UN-righteousness?” And what does this parsha tell us about it.
And the answer follows from the observation that a person who was ‘declared’ unclean, by the cohenim, was put “outside the [clean, evidently!] camp” — until they were again declared clean.
A look at the story of Miriam, and her “bad-mouthing” of Moses (in Hebrew, “lashon hora,” or the “evil tongue”) does at least begin to make the case that “gossip” or such damaging and contemptible speech, MIGHT be a cause of the ‘plague’ of tzaraat.
And unlike ‘leprosy’ – there hasn’t been a single known case of tzaraat in the world for many centuries. But if “evil speech” can even remotely result in that ‘visual manifestation of a spiritual malady” – why, oh why, don’t we see it literally EVERYWHERE in a world today where the “Evil Tongue” gets you a network late night show?
Did YHVH decide to stop the warning? As things get worse, and we enter into greater tribulation, wouldn’t an indicator of ‘wolves in sheep’s clothing’ be handy? Perhaps at least part of the problem is that when the whole word is ‘unclean’, there’s no point in kicking them out.
Which seems to make the lesson all the more important.
Tazria: “What is UN-righteousness?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/WT-CooH-4-18-26-Tazria-No-Tzaraat-for-centuries-so-What-is-Righteousness-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Parsha “Shemini,” (Leviticus chapters 9 through 11) is a ‘tour de force’ of what we have been told is “old testament” and “done away with,” and the reasons why that is such a satanic lie.
The story starts on the Eighth (or ‘Shemini’) day where YHVH tells Moshe and Aaron and the elders of Israel what must be done, as Aaron and his sons are consecrated to be kohenim, priests to Him.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at the parsha, and a discussion that will again, surprise some who have, like it or not, rejected His Word in favor of a pervasive Lie.
And the Erev Shabbat reading lays that out in a manner that is hard to ignore:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/SSM-4-10-26-Shemini-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark suggests that the atbash, or set of literary brackets that surround the key element in the deaths of Nadab and Abihu (“there came forth fire from before YHVH, and CONSUMED…”) also touch the very heart of the lesson.
It’s all about eating, or consuming (the SAME Hebrew word, every time) and it surrounds people who were “nigh unto Me,” says YHVH. And the should have known better, but instead did that which He had NOT commanded. As if He had.
And there it is.
Funny how so much of what He commanded, and then warned about, has been literally “turned on its head.”
And how, once we see it, the thing that some disciples once called a “hard teaching,” isn’t really so hard at all.
And the Big Lie is (again) revealed for what it is.
Shemini: “No Sugar in the Gas Tank”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/WT-CooH-4-11-26-Shemini-Sugar-in-the-Gas-Tank-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear we will take a close look at why Gabriel had to return to fight against the Prince of Persia even after his visit with Daniel.
Call this the “NOT ‘easter’ Special.” If the events in the world today haven’t yet made it clear – this is NOT the year to celebrate paganism with bunnies and eggs.
This is a link to the ‘teaching only’ portion of the podcast for Mark Call’s Sabbath teaching for parsha “Tzav.”
Parsha “Tzav,” (Lev. 6 through 8) continues the instruction concerning specific types of ‘sacrifices’ and ‘offerings,’ followed by the related process for sanctification of Aaron and his sons as cohenim.
There is a stunning contrast here, too, since this is the timeframe of His “Appointed Times” or moedim, known as Pesach, or Passover, and followed by the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
NOT to be confused with re-naming the Most Important Event in Human History with a fake, pagan, abomination of a ‘fertility goddess.’
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at the parsha, and a discussion that will no doubt offend many (as He did). But arguably not nearly as much as the issue so clearly offends Him.
You might call it the unequivocally “NOT-Easter” Special.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/SSM-4-3-Tzav-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3In the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark this week explores the stunning CONTRAST between those ‘offerings’ and ‘sacrifices,’ — which Scripture again emphasizes in such detail — and the Single Sacrifice which has since be re-named to something it is certainly not.
Is there no irony in the claim that the single ‘Final’ and Ultimate Sacrifice has been renamed in an idolatrous celebration that invites the death penalty?
The haftorah reading begins with a warning that those who originally heard failed to heed. “You trust in lying words…” said the prophet YermeYahu (Jeremiah). “Obey My voice,” He told them.
They misunderstood – and ignored – the lesson of the ‘sacrifices’ – and STILL DO.
But it is the lesson of Ezekiel chapters 8 and 9 that is most pertinent to the idolatry that is so pervasive today!
Tzav: “Lots of ‘offerings – ONE Sacrifice – Even More Abomination Now – and Little Discernment”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/WT-CooH-4-4-26-Tzav-Lots-of-Offerings-ONE-sacrifice-LOTS-of-pagan-abomination-but-little-discernment-NOT-easter-special-podcast-xxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In today's installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear I plan to further explain the role of money hardwired into the nature of the sinking bear beast. This end-time coinage was predicted from traditional rabbinic scholarship on the image of the beast as seen by Daniel, especially in the iron and clay feet. This is an additional right-here-right-now fulfillment of prophecy even beyond the significance of the silver market we saw last Shabbat. The possibility of this economic fulfillment of the image of the beast being a coincidence is likely incalculable.
Parsha “Vayikra,” begins the Book with the same Hebrew name, aka “Leviticus” in English. And it’s both too often considered “boring” by much of ‘Sunday Christianity’ – and thus ignored – while at the same time being central to one of THE most misunderstood concepts in Scripture.
And at the heart of perhaps THE Greatest Error, as well.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at the parsha, and a discussion that will no doubt offend many (as He did, BTW). Which only makes it more vital to understand.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/SSM-3-27-Vayikra-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3In the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark again takes a deeper look at the differences between ‘offerings’ and ‘sacrifices,’ and, more importantly, why Scripture emphasizes in such detail the concept of “unintentional” sin. It turns out that ‘deliberate rebellion to YHVH’ is also outlined as well, but in a VERY different way. And that is what makes All the Difference.
It’s also why we’re told that such a sacrifice is made only once. But that is a fact generally denied by a ‘church’ which fails to teach the difference!
Vayikra: “Is replacing Yahushua with ‘another jesus’ Unintentional Sin – or Worse?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/WT-CooH-3-28-26-Vayikra-Anothe-jesus-Is-THAT-Unintentional-Sin-or-worse-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Heaven is Shaking the Bear | Iran in ProphecyThis Week: The Sinking Silver BearThis week's installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear, I explain the role of money hardwired into the nature of the sinking bear beast and why it is crucial to the "fall, fall" of Babylon the great and the rolling up of the heavenly scroll of principalities and powers.
Parsha “Pekudei,” Exodus 38:21 through the end of the Book) concludes the reading and study of the Book of Exodus.
And as the Hebrew title suggests, it begins with an account of the precious materials used in building the mishkan, or tabernacle, and again emphasizes several of the key themes: it is the work of the ‘craftsman,’ ‘skillful workment’ who — in detail — DID what they were told to do, “as YHVH commanded Moses.”
And at least part again seem to be word-for-word repetitions, with the verb tense changed, another ‘atbash,’ or Biblical HTML tag equivalent, for emphasis.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at the parsha, and a different take than you have probably heard for the midrash discussion and teaching.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/WT-CooH-3-21-Pekudei-AI-Delinquent-Kids-and-the-Mishkan-Its-a-FILTER-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash not only emphasizes some of the primary themes of the building of the Tabernacle/Mishkan, but will connect what might seem to be some ‘disparate dots’. Like elements of the upcoming Pesach or Passover season, and the threat of AI-dolatry:
Pekudei: “AI, Delinquent Kids, and the Mishkan”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/WT-CooH-3-14-Vayakhel-Coming-OUT-Coming-together-wise-willing-hearts-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
This podcast will be the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear in which I plan to explain the Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf in the present conflict as it pertains to the decree of the scroll.
Parsha “Vayakhel,” Exodus 35:1 through 38:20, in many respects will seem very familiar. Many elements that we just recently read, only about ten chapters earlier, are repeated. Why? And why so much detail, not just once, but twice?
Mark has long suggested that any time something is repeated in Scripture, we had better pay attention; it’s virtually certain that it is important. But there is almost certainly more to it as well. For example, the concept of a chiasm, or “atbash” in Hebrew that serves to ‘set off’ what is enclosed in what might be thought of as the equivalent of ‘brackets,’ or even nested parentheses, in English. In a more modern parlance, it might be thought of as a Biblical equivalent of an HTML tag.
And in the case of some, like what comes to a conclusion in this reading, a virtual bright flashing red emphasis, in ALL CAPS, too.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at the parsha, and the implications for a world that stands at minimum on the cusp of World War III, potentially with even a nuclear escalation, and a global economic (and fiat reserve currency and debt) meltdown that have both been a long time coming.
As for the ‘End Times’ — well, “soon” is a relative concept in prophecy, but we know of a certainly that we are ‘close,’ and what will ultimately come to pass.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/SSM-3-13-Vayakhel-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3If this repeated, often word-for-word, detail, and the entire concept of first being told WHAT to make, then again WHEN they made it, is the ‘closing bracket,’ or tag, for what comes in between, then what is He emphasizing> Certainly, the ‘Golden Calf,’ and one of the most dramatic failure in Scripture. And there’s even an “atbash within that abash,” as well, concerning His Sabbath. But, this time the explicit reminder is that it’s one of those commandments that carries a death penalty. How can that be ignored?
To ‘come out of her,’ remains an imperative. But then what?
Vayakhel: “Coming out, coming together – it just starts willing hearts”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/WT-CooH-3-14-Vayakhel-Coming-OUT-Coming-together-wise-willing-hearts-podcast-xxxx.mp3 Service information:
Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship worship services and teachings are broadcast live every Sabbath, via Paltalk. (www.paltalk.com has both the link, and the app.) The “room name” is “Walking Torah with Shabbat Shalom Mesa,” and can be found via the paltalk search, then bookmarked.
Erev Shabbat services begin at 7:00 PM Mountain Time Friday evenings (9 PM Eastern, 8 PM Central)
Live Sabbath teachings begin shortly after 11 AM Mountain time on Sabbath day (Saturday).
email: mark@markniwot.com
The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear I explain the aggadah of the specific power awarded to Dobiel over the Persian bear kings in the symbolic scroll and how it influenced through the kingdoms of the beast around the earth. We'll briefly discuss the significance of the Strait of Hormuz and Persian Gulf in the present conflict as it pertains to the decree of the scroll.
This is perhaps one of the most important, most blunt, most twisted, and certainly – now, particularly – one of most utterly relevant Torah parashot in the Book.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at parsha Ki Tisa, Exodus 30:11 through chapter 34.
The Erev Shabbat reading starts with the command to take a head count, and how, and then continues through the infamous betrayal of the ‘golden calf’ — first of many, as it turns out — and the aftermath:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/SSM-3-6-Ki-Tisa-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3How often do we hear about the idolatry of that ‘Golden Calf’? And the smug dismissal that it was so long ago, but ‘the Church’ is SO much better than that – now.
Really?
Maybe there’s a lot more to it. And THAT would be why the Whore Church ignores all of that.
Ki Tisa: “Why did Moses SMASH the first Tablets?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/CooH-3-7-Ki-Tisa-WHY-did-Moses-Smash-the-1st-Tablets-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at parsha Terzaveh, Exodus 27:20-30:10.
The Erev Shabbat reading gives the details, of which there are many:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SSM-2-27-Tetzaveh-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The impressive level of detail is this description is certainly again one of the most memorable aspects of this parsha.
And yet, as Mark reminds us in the Sabbath day midrash, one more time, there is “no idle word” in His Torah.
But THIS time, we need to “Compare and Contrast.”
Tetzaveh: “Is This the REAL One?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/WT-CooH-2-28-26-Tetzaveh-Is-this-the-Real-One-podcast-xx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyThis Week: The Bear Prince Dobiel and the ScrollOnce again, as I'm gathering information and assembling Scripture for such a time as this, there is just enough time to prepare notes for the Shabbat lesson, but not enough time to edit a full newsletter teaching. Perhaps when it is complete, we can put together a transcript for those of you who prefer to read rather than listen.This Shabbat podcasr will be the next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear in which I plan to explain the pattern of the sky-scroll in Isaiah and Revelation along with a specific power awarded to Dobiel in the symbolic scroll...that could now be broken depending upon the outcome of the current conflict.
This week’s Torah portion from the annual cycle is a major ‘shift’ from the mainline story of the Exodus. After Moses heads up the mountain, for forty days and forty nights, the focus is now on getting ready to build something.
And why? Why now? It’s almost like He knows something, before we get to that part of the story. It turns out, there’s even more to it than that.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at parsha Terumah, Exodus chapter 25 through almost all of 27, which begins with the command from YHVH to “take for Me an OFFERING.” From a specific group of people, of a specific list of items, and for a specific purpose. The Erev Shabbat reading gives the details, of which there are many:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SSM-2-20-Terumah-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The impressive level of detail is this description is certainly one of the most memorable aspects of this parsha. It’s also at the heart of what might even be called ‘controversy.’ Why so much detail about a mobile tent in the wilderness? After all, it was later replaced by the temple, twice, and destroyed, twice. Some will again even claim that it’s “Old” testament, and therefore ‘done away with’ – like those temples. We may have even heard it called “boring.”
And yet, as Mark reminds us in the Sabbath day midrash, there is “no idle word” in His Torah.
Teruman: “That ‘boring DETAIL’ is a Big Flashing Red HTML tag – if we see it”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/WT-CooH-2-21-Terumah-The-ATBASH-around-Idolatry-and-the-Golden-Calf-then-and-Now-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Hello, everyone.Once again, as I'm gathering information and assembling Scripture for such a time as this, there is just enough time to prepare notes for you this week, but not enough time to edit a full newsletter teaching. Scriptural numbers and dates are lining up with significance to the current situation in Iran faster than I can record and sort them.In this next installment of Heaven Shaking the Persian Bear I plan to explain the pattern of the the Prince of Persia within Daniel and John's visions of the Beast Kingdom.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a provocative two-part look at what he claims is one of the most fascinating Torah portions in the whole Book, not only because of the variety of topics it covers, but the fact that they are so, let’s face it, HATED by much of society. Not only are they NOT ‘politically-correct,’ but the fact that so many of them ARE so rejected, he argues, helps explain why the “social justice-loving,” humanistic, Progressive Pagan system that has replaced His Word is such an UTTER, undeniable, even Satanic, MESS.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha, with some poignant commentary:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SSM-2-13-Mishpatim-teaching-only-podcast-xxx.mp3There is a whole lot that could be said about the Sabbath Day midrash and commentary.
But, this time, it will simply be more expedient to suggest — listen to it, pray, and make up your own mind.
Mishpatim: “His Way is SO Much Better — We Get Instead What We Did NOT Expect””
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/WT-CooH-2-14-Mishpatim-His-Way-is-Better-We-get-instead-what-we-did-NOT-expect-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyThis Week: Provoking the BearThis Shabbat we'll examine the provocation of the bear as found in the Scriptures concerning Elisha, the restoration of life springs in Jericho, the mocking boys, and the death of forty-two by the tearing she-bears. We'll see how it might pertain to the present situation in Iran, and time permitting, how the Persian bear and Roman board are related.
When the ‘mixed multitude’ comes to Mount Sinai it is clear that another major milestone is at hand, and — as we know it will emerge — another turning point has been reached. But this is set up by several major events documented by this week’s parsha (Yitro, Exodus chapters 18 through 20).
Moses’ father-in-law, Yitro (as he is called in this part of Scripture) hears a part of the story, comes to the wilderness, and brings Moshe back his wife, Zipporah, and his two sons. There he hears the “rest of the story,” recognizes YHVH himself, and offers sage advice. In that process, the mixed multitude becomes ‘echad’ as Israel. And one of the most important “downloads” from YHVH Himself follows after that stage is set:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SSM-2-6-Yitro-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Any reading that includes the ‘Ten Commandments’ certainly must include a look at the specifics. But in the midrash this week, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests that the ‘setup’ that precedes that historic Exposition can help us understand why what Scripture refers to as those ten “Debarim,” or Words, even ‘Sayings,’ have been so…idolized, re-formatted, marginalized, edited, twisted, and, almost unbelievably, even demonized over the intervening centuries. And, as Mark also notes, by men who failed Yitro’s metric: they seem to not only LOVE ‘unjust gain,’ certainly more than Truth, because they don’t “fear YHVH” either.
And “reducing His Name to nothingness,” or void, is just one undeniable indication.
Many of us have heard the claim that the “law is done away with” — which Mark calls one of the Biggest Lies in Human history — but there is a corollary that crops up this week, which is the claim that the “Ten Commandments” may be the only part that still matters.
Well, some of ’em, anyway…
Yitro: “Hate Unjust Gain”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/WT-CooH-2-7-Yitro-Hate-UNJUST-gain-essence-of-the-Ten-Debarim-and-other-INSTRUCTION-Still-Extant-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Act II of ‘the Exodus’ (parsha ‘Beshalach,” Exodus/Shemot 13:17 through chapter 17) begins immediately after the last of the plagues, when Pharoah has let the people go; actually – kicked them out, “shalach”, or expelled, is how the Hebrew puts it.
And it certainly is the beginning of a whole new phase in the saga.
But that central theme of how we are all to know that “ki ani YHVH” – or “I AM Yahuah” – not only continues, but is demonstrated: Graphically, undeniably, and miraculously.
As the Erev Shabbat reading outlines:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-30-26-Beshalach-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3In the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship observes that there are several specific places — and ALL of them PRIOR to the giving of the “Ten Commandments” at Mt. Sinai — where YHVH gives not only a “statute and an ordinance,” but detailed “instruction” (aka ‘torah’).
Which is a problem for the “Whore Church” claim that it is only the ‘Ten Commandments’ that still matter — all those others were just for a limited time, or for ‘the jews’, or for any number of constructed excuses for not recognizing what He means when He said that He did not come to change so much as the tiniest bit of His Instruction, any of it, so long as heaven and earth still exist. If we claim to “love Him,” it matters.
Beshalach: “And ALL of this is Before Sinai”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WT-CooH-1-31-26-Beshalach-ALL-Before-Sinai-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Heaven is Shaking the BearIran in ProphecyHello, everyone.Last week in the livestream, we did a brief review of Principalities and Powers for those newer to the CG teaching, and tomorrow we'll look more into the "bear" aspect of the Beast kingdom, the abomination that causes desolation, and the significance of the number 42 to the Beast and how it might pertain to the present situation in Iran. Please join us.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
The final part of what might be called “Act I” of ‘the Exodus’ (parsha Bo, Exodus/Shemot 10:1 – 13:16) concludes with the final set of the ‘3 sets of 3, plus one’ plagues, and the ‘death of the firstborn. But there is much more, because it also lays out the first of what are the Moedim, or Appointed Times, of YHVH, and what is not only the most dramatic, but so fundamental to all of Scripture, even if much of ‘the church’ may have become disconnected from the ‘why’.
It again bgins with what Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship contends is THE key understanding in the Book, and of the Creator Himself, “ki ani YHVH,” (no, not “I am the LORD,” but His real Name, and just how he makes very clear what that means.)
It is also clear that this final plague is very different from the others that precede it, as the Erev Shabbat reading outlines:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-23-26-Bo-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3This is the story of the first Pesach, or Passover. Our fathers’ fathers were supposed to “teach your children.” It was YHVH’s first demonstrated ‘moed,’ or of His ‘Appointed Times.’ And He gave Instruction about it — to remember it, to set it apart, “forever,” and “throughout your generations.” So what happened?
The Sabbath Day midrash begins with a question, and it’s one that may even be overlooked today:
Bo: “What is all this concern about the Firstborn?”
The answer will help a Whole Lot of the pieces to fall into place.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WT-CooH-1-24-26-Bo-What-is-this-Concern-About-the-Firstborn-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Part II of the story of ‘the Exodus’ (Vayeira, Exodus/Shemot 6:2 through chapter 9) begins with what Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship contends is THE key understanding in the Book, and of the Creator Himself, “ki ani YHVH,” and the fact that He will NOW make that known. It is not that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had never heard that Name, just that He did “not make Himself KNOWN” to them as He is now about to do.
And that includes the first of the “Ten Plagues” of Egypt, although, they are probably better thought of as the “Three sets of three, plus one,” that is different from the others:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-16-26-Vayeira-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Over a number of years of teaching this parsha, Mark has focused on the intriguing patterns among the plagues, and the progression, all of which may well be a harbinger of what we might see during the prophesied “Greater Exodus” to come, the and fact that the plagues are each ‘judgments’ (or even humiliations) of the fake gods of Egypt by the Real One.
He also does not fail to note the “conflation” about Pharaoh’s heart being “hardened,” either by himself, or later on, by YHVH — because there are TWO different Hebrew words used for what happened, but the distinction is often lost in most English translations.
But in the Sabbath Day midrash this time, Mark suggests that current events, including things we have already seen that point to elements of prophecy already making headlines, take us back to the central issue of what makes us human: Free Will. Choice.
Did Pharaoh have it? Shaul, or Paul, in Romans chapter 9, addressed the issue with his famous metaphor of the potter, and his clay, which doesn’t get to ask whether it will be formed into a “vessel for honor,” or the equivalent of an ashtray, destined for something very different.
And is it just possible that the “closing bracket” set of plagues might end up being directed at what we might think of as an “Artificial Intelligence” version of a Skynet Pharaoh?
Does such a creation even have “free will?” Did Pharaoh, at least at some point? And, when did his ‘choice’ become a terminal commitment?
Vayeira: When Does “Free-Will” Become Terminal?
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WT-CooH-1-17-26-Vayeira-when-does-free-will-become-terminal-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Heaven is Shaking the BearIt's a principle of Scripture.Prophecy is not fulfilled only once. It is fulfilled repeatedly at appointed times.It’s a cycle, not a one-off.This is why we observe the appointed times of Scripture. What has happened before will happen again, sometimes in a reversal of events. The prophecy is not fulfilled exactly as it was before, but the template doesn't change.At this very moment I write, the Persian people have revolted yet again against the Islamist regime by the millions, taking over streets in city after city in Iran. The coming days will test whether this latest revolt will uproot the Islamists that took power in 1979. The current uprising is estimated to have begun "around December 28."The Biblical Fast of the 10th of Tevet began the morning of December 30, but the 10th of Tevet began the evening of December 29th. Coincidence?That's why we fast the four fasts mentioned in Zechariah. The Fast of the 10th of Tevet remembers the tragedy of the Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, beginning the siege against Jerusalem and the beginning of the end of the First Temple. Babylon was the first beast kingdom, the head of the image. Persia succeeded it, swallowing and enlarging territory.Over the last several days, the Iranian people have been targeting Islamist seminaries, mosques, and institutions.In an interesting reversal, the Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the son of the exiled Shah (King) of Iran, is the one calling on the Persian people to rise up and overthrow the Islamic clerics’ religious governmental hold in favor of a democracy. Many Iranians are calling for the return of the monarchy, tearing down the flags of the Islamic Republic, and putting up the old Iranian flag that flew before the Shah was deposed.Crown Prince Pahlavi's daughter Princess Iman Pahlavi recently married Jewish-American Bradley Sherman. The Persian Queen Esther, was actually Hadassah, a Jewish exile who married the Persian King Ahasuerus. It was a marriage that brought salvation to the Jews nation, designated to die by wicked Haman, may his name be blotted out. Some of the protestors are posting messages, “The Lion and Eagle will rise again together and once again live in peace,” meaning Iran and Israel. “The Lion of Judah and the Lion of Persia will rise again.”I offer no judgment on these things, just to offer a few illustrations of what is being done and said in this revolution.So what we’re seeing is a shaking according to the pattern. What happened to Judah in ancient times, the Babylonian siege against Jerusalem and the seat of Israelite religious life, is occurring in Iran, a territory encompassing both the golden lion of Babylon and the silver bear of Medo-Persia. The Persian people are laying siege to the religious centers and strongholds, demanding regime change, tearing down statues of Islamic terrorist “heroes” such as Soleimani.They are repenting of their grandparents’ choice of an Islamic beast cleric to lead their nation. They are chanting against the Islamist clerics’ funding of weapons, including the rockets, against Israel. They are chanting against the billions paid out to terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah while Iranians go without basic services, such as clean water. The old “sun and lion” flag of pre-Revolutionary Iran is appearing everywhere, even replacing the Islamic Republic’s flag on X.Let’s backtrack. What precipitated this Tenth of Tevet Iranian Uprising? During Chanukkah, I posted this Scripture from Haggai, which is the prophecy of Chanukkah. Chanukkah is tied prophetically to Daniel’s prophecies of “the abomination that causes desolation.” Haggai prophesies that the first day of the event we know as Chanukkah, or the Feast of Dedication, will commemorate a power change, a deliverance from the oppression of a beast government:•“…from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month; from the day when the temple of the LORD was founded, consider: Is the seed still in the barn? Even including the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree, it has not borne fruit. Yet from this day on I will bless you.’”Haggai continues, highlighting that the appointed time of the prophecy will mark a shaking of the heavens and the earth, which is movement within the principalities and powers that govern the nations:•“Then the word of the LORD came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, saying, “Speak to Zerubbabel governor of Judah, saying, ‘I am going to shake the heavens and the earth. I will overthrow the thrones of kingdoms and destroy the power of the kingdoms of the nations; and I will overthrow the chariots and their riders, and the horses and their riders will go down, everyone by the sword of another.’ ‘On that day,’ declares the LORD of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, My servant,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you,’” declares the LORD of hosts.” (Hag 2:18-23)Although the prophecy is specifically for Israel in a time of return and rebuilding after exile, it pinpoints a timetable that runs in the heavenlies, which in turn will affect the earth. The Prophet Haggai’s Hebrew name is Chaggai, “my feast.” A chag is an appointed time, usually marked by a feast.While Chaggai prophesies of the time when Chanukkah will occur in the epoch of the Greek leopard beast, it is accepted that Chanukkah was instituted to remember a missed chag of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) because the Temple was not yet cleansed of the abomination that causes desolation, a detail prophesied by Daniel. Sukkot, by the way, was when the Temple was founded, precisely pinpointing Chanukkah, an event that had not yet occurred. That abomination of desolation is not a one-time thing. Each beast kingdom finds a way to do it. There is yet an abomination situated on the Temple Mount.The appointed principalities and powers that rule from the heavenlies were adjusted, shaken out of the way to accommodate the returned status of the Jews from Babylonian captivity and the cooperation of Medo-Persia in the transition. This shaking of principalities and powers is also described in the Book of Revelation, a sign that the twelve tribes have repented, returned, and are ready to take up their appointed control of the twelve gates of Jerusalem, another way of saying they will judge the earth with the reigning Messiah Yeshua.The timetable is of particular interest to us this year because the first day of Chanukkah (24th/25th of Kislev), as Chaggai prophesied, is a day when the principalities and powers were adjusted. Nothing changed in the visible world immediately, but powers of nations shake in the spiritual domain. The next appointed time after Chanukkah is the 10th of Tevet, the Tenth Month, a fast day instituted to mourn the beginning of King Nebuchadnezzar’s Babylonian siege of Jerusalem. It was the beginning of the end for Jerusalem and the First Holy Temple.The 10th of Tevet is considered a “minor” fast day because it is not in the Torah, but in the Prophet Zechariah 8:19: •“Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘The fast of the fourth, the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth months will become joy, gladness, and cheerful feasts for the house of Judah; so love truth and peace.'” It is hard to define modern Iran as either Babylon or Persia, especially when it was infused with the Western influence of the third beast Greece during the reign of Alexander. Daniel described the fourth beast Rome as a conglomerate of the kingdoms that had gone before. So are the modern systems of the beast.The bear swallowed the lion. The leopard swallowed the bear. The Roman beast emerged from between the Western Greece bronze beast and the Eastern golden lion and silver bear; Rome swallowed them all, morphing and developing the most effective power tools of each kingdom: military, religion, politics, government, medicine, athletics, arts, philosophy, education...whatever worked.The beast systems work in three stages:· Invitation, baiting with things people want· Coercion, application of pressure through punishment for non-compliance· DeathIn Iran, the Islamic regime used this exact progression to gain control of a flowering country in the Middle East in 1979. Recognizing that the shah was introducing modern Western technology and changes too quickly for a traditionally conservative nation (think of Marty McFly going from “Earth Angel” to a heavy metal version of “Johnny B. Goode” in under two minutes in Back to the Future), along with too many other historical and political factors to explain short of recommending a reading list, the Islamists baited the youth of the nation, but when the ayatollah took power, it turned into bait-n-switch.When the Iranian people realized it wasn’t what they signed up for, it was too late.The compliance squads round up and torture or kill those who object. They repress every rebellion. They persecute the growing underground church. They threaten and imprison the tiny Jewish community still left in the country if they don’t speak support for the regime. They imprison, torture, and kill women who don't wear the hijab.That’s how the beast works.But today, the beast shakes. If you are unfamiliar with the Biblical calendar, the beast kingdoms of Daniel’s prophecy, or how principalities and powers exert influence over the earth, we have the following available on YouTube, and our Creation Gospel workbook classes will help establish a good foundation for understanding the Biblical feasts and calendar. To enroll, scroll down.The Fast of TevetA Concise History of the BeastPrincipalities and Powers Part OnePrincipalities and Powers Part TwoPerhaps next week, we can speak more to the abomination that causes desolation and Dobiel, the Prince of Persia who is thought to have fought Gabriel.
The weekly Torah portion reading this week is the first in the story of the Exodus, aka “Shemot” in the Hebrew, which also begins the story of the life of Moses (Moshe) — Exodus/Shemot 1:1 through 6:2. And these few chapters seem to cover a period of over two centuries, a descent into “cruel bondage” from a life of plenty in the land of Goshen, and fully two-thirds of the life of the man “drawn from the water.”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-9-26-Shemot-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship, in the Sabbath Day midrash, notes up front that this story picks up after what is generally recognized as at least two centuries of silence from Scripture. And the story hinges on the advent of a new king, who “knew NOT Joseph.” And even after some genealogy, the stunning (to some, certainly!) story of midwives who didn’t read Romans 13, and a few verses about the birth of Moses, and his salvation by being “drawn out of the water,” it’s also true that the first eighty years of his life are given only a little ink in the Book, compared to the detail about what follows, in just the final third of his life.
So it’s fascinating to examine just WHAT Scripture has us focus on during those years. There are things said, things that have a startlingly similar pattern, and things UNSAID, but which still resonate, because we can arguably see the concerning parallels right now.
And there’s a question that emerges, too.
Shemot: Where are the MEN?
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WT-CooH-1-10-26-Shemot-Where-are-the-MEN-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Continuation of last weeks message.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Torah parsha ‘Vayechi’ (Genesis/Bereshiet 47:28 – End) this week is the final reading in the Book of Genesis, and not only concludes the stories of the life of Yakov, and his son Joseph in particular, but sets the stage for the Exodus to come.
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out the story, and also the final adoption – literally – of Ephraim and Manasseh, and the structure of the ‘twelve tribes’ that underlie the rest of Scripture, both historically and prophetically:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-2-26-VaYechi-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash this week addresses the ‘elephant in the room,’ that follows so many of the aspects of this story of Genesis as it concludes:
– Yakov/Jacob “adopts” the two sons of Joseph, not only giving him their ‘double-portion’ in the inheritance, and replacing Reuben in that place, but setting up the second (after Judah) in what will be the line of kings, in this case of the Northern Kingdom, and so much of what seems to follow in later history.
– After the death of Jacob, the brothers STILL don’t seem to “get it,” and understand that Joseph did not intend to punish them for their treachery so many years earlier. But that theme also resonates later – in that “there arose another king in Egypt,” who “did not know Joseph.”
And Mark Call, of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship, outlines why THAT is still ever so true!
VaYechi: They STILL Don’t ‘Know Him’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/WT-CooH-1-3-26-VaYechi-They-STILL-Dont-Know-Him-podcast-xxx.mp3ADDENDUM:
The normal Q&A that largely follows the midrash is a bit different this week, since the stunning attack on Venezuela and capture of the communist dictator Maduro happened overnight, and was largely complete by the time the Sabbath session took place. It doesn’t ‘flow’ with the majority of the Torah reading, but is important, and will be of interest, as it was to those in the room, and so is included here. There are also MAJOR aspects most Americans have NOT been informed about:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/SSM-1-3-26-VaYechi-QnA-Venezuela-attack-Maduro-Smartmatic-special-podcast-addendum-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Noisy Doors, Leaky Roofs, and the Mark of the BeastLast week's newsletter was written to be very simple. This week...not simple. We're tying together our lessons on the Salt Covenant, The Scarlet Harlot, and the basic menorah pattern of Workbook One. So no, it's not simple, but it's not too difficult, either! Try printing it off and studying it over two Shabbats, referencing the suggested videos or workbooks as you go. *** So what do noisy doors, leaky roofs, and the mark of the beast have in common? Excellent question! I’m glad you asked. In order to see the connection, we have to know a little something about each of them. If you want a refresher on the Beast, consider signing up for the Creation Gospel Workbook Four class coming up with Kisha Gallagher (scroll down for info) or watching the Scarlet Harlot series on YouTube. You can also refresh your memory on the meaning of the mezuzah with our "More Than" YouTube videos. We’ll cover a few basics here to tie it together. “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me…” Yeshua standing at the door knocking is a huge hint, especially on the heels of John’s sobering prophecies of the mark of the beast in Revelation. If we can’t see the link to the world commercial system as “Babylon” in Revelation, we’re not trying very hard. Revelation begins with memos to the seven assemblies emphasizing their need to “overcome” the tribulations John is about to describe, •“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me. He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Re 3:14-21) We can conclude that how to overcome is described in Revelation, but we can also conclude that an ignorance of the Torah will make our understanding only partial. Revelation is written as an incredibly intricate re-telling of the Torah portions. Without an understanding of those Torah portions, it will be difficult to be identified as one of those who overcome when they “keep the testimony of Yeshua and the commandments of God.” If Yeshua knocks on the door of one of these potential overcomers, he knocks on a door that is marked by a mezuzah, which contains summaries of the commandments. To pull in the themes of our Salt Covenant study over the last several weeks, a mezuzah is a sign that those inside the house know to be salty within, tenderly and joyfully salting their commandment-keeping. Because they are pliable to the work of the Ruach HaKodesh within the house, they are ready to meet the challenges of the Beast outside the house. The mezuzah is their reminder that they’ve committed their coming and going, especially their work and business dealings, to preserving their covenant with the Father with salt, for savory salt is our faith, the tenderness we have toward His Word. It is our desire to draw close to Him through our sacrifices, not begrudgingly or to be admired by others, but to give glory to the Father. Yeshua reminds us that he also wants to draw near to our salty selves, so he stands at the door and knocks. Just imagine that the mezuzah on your door was Yeshua standing there each day inquiring if he may accompany you in your coming and going. Because he is.The custom is to touch one’s fingers to the mezuzah and kiss the fingers. It demonstrates affection and tenderness toward the Shma and other scriptures in the mezuzah, which remind us in our coming and going Who the only Source of wealth is. The name Shaddai is inscribed on mezuzot, which is the name describing His attribute of nourishment and supply. By touching the mezuzah, we also are reminded like the Israelites in Deuteronomy Eight: “Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’ But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers...” The mezuzah on the door marks the boundary between what happens when we go into the world and how we are inside our homes. If we are at war inside our homes, then how will we war against the principalities and powers outside our homes? The shin on the tefillin reminds the person Who opens the Heavenly windows to drip down zuzim, or coins, transactions, in our lives. Zuz is found in the word mezuzah, but the letter shin is found on both the mezuzah and the prayer tefillin. Because they are worn in prayer, it helps one to adjust those trade prayers according to Yeshua’s model…daily bread…forgiveness…holiness…His will and glory on earth…protection from temptation to sin.Ever notice how many famous actors, musicians, and sports stars end up unhappy, addicted, disconnected from the real world, and just plain weird? We are not spiritually wired to receive the glory of Heaven, only to reflect the glory of Heaven outward with salt. Of course they get weird and depressed! Our labor and business dealings outside the home must be salted and lit from within first. We must extend ourselves from within, or it will eventually be evident to the world that we did not exert ourselves according to our wealth of salvation and light.nIt is thought that the marks of tzaraat (leprosy) that appeared in a home were a result of greed and stinginess. When the priests removed everything inside to the outside to quarantine and scrape the stones, everyone would see the wealth concealed inside, especially if they'd pretended not to have enough to help the needy brother.The “best third” is where the mezuzah is placed on a door, the upper third, like an upper room. The mezuzah marks the right hand frame of the door about 2/3 of the way up: “Mezuzah guards the Covenant, and so observing the mitzvah of mezuzah leads a person to truth and faith, the faith which is absolutely necessary when conducting business.” “And I will bring the third part through the fire,Refine them as silver is refined,And test them as gold is tested.They will call on My name,And I will answer them;I will say, ‘They are My people,'And they will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’” (Zec 13:9) Yeshua invokes this prophecy in Zechariah when he warns the Laodiceans in Revelation Three that he is standing at the door knocking: “Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich…” This is where we see another connection to the mezuzah. Zechariah prophesies of the “third part.” This is thought to be the remnant that will come through the tribulation refined by fire instead of destroyed by it. They have not succumbed to the Beast’s commercial activity, buying and selling excessively or on Shabbat (see CG Workbook Four or Workbook Two). Traditionally, the mezuzah is affixed at a pointing on the right side of the door 2/3 of the way up the door. To relate the thirds, the mezuzah is like the principle of the “upper room” we’ve studied over the last several weeks. Ancient Israelite houses typically had two levels, a ground level where beasts were stabled and practical household work such as cooking and weaving took place, but the family quarters were on the second floor. An extra upper room had to be built either on the second floor or atop the family quarters, making it an upper third. More simply, an upper room was where the family made space for visitors, a space that wasn’t there, yet they created the space through hospitality. Those upper rooms in Scripture were places associated with hospitality toward the righteous visitor as well as resurrection from the dead, like the stories of Elijah, Elisha, Dorcas, and Eutychus. A mezuzah reminds us not to neglect making those spaces of hospitality for the righteous visitor, who represents hospitality toward Yeshua and the Living Word. Yeshua’s noisy knocking on the door is a daily reminder that when we make an “upper room” of hospitality, then we are actually tapping into the Garden of Eden. The resurrections in the upper rooms of Scripture show us this. On the mezuzah is either the Name Shaddai, or it is in the shorthand of the first Hebrew letter shin. Not so coincidentally, the tefillin that are placed on an Israelite male’s forehead and arm are also marked with a shin (see above). The mezuzah and tefillin remind each day: •Hear, O Israel! The LORD our God, the LORD is one! And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart; and you shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. (Dt 6:4-9) Deuteronomy 8:11-19 reminds Israel not to be deceived when they become comfortable and prosperous in the Land, for their wealth will deceive them into thinking they earned it with their own hand. Remember the gumballs? The tefillin on the hand and arm are a reminder that it is YHVH alone who gives the power to acquire wealth. Likewise, the mezuzah is marked with a shin for Shaddai, the One who provides sustenance, nourishment to Israel. Strangely, the shin is made of three Hebrew letters vav joined at the bottom. The gematria value of vav is six. 666. Whaaaaat? Yes, it’s the mark of the beast. But that’s not the whole story. The mezuzah and tefillin are NOT the mark of the beast. The mark of the beast is when you get very close to being a salt covenant household or person, yet you have something lacking. Salt. Your daily work is not to acquire the wealth of the Kingdom to the glory of the Father, which can only be done through the power of the Ruach HaKodesh moving through the Word in you. The mark of the beast is when our daily work is to acquire the object of desire for our own sake. We can hear the disingenuous, unsalty believer when he says, “If God will just let me win the lottery, I’ll build orphanages and feed the poor all over the world.” And he probably will. But he will do it only in order to feed his own desires first. He's not really seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness. He's pursuing his own kingdom, offering God a deal that the Kingdom of Heaven will benefit from the scraps. Such a person will not give commensurately with his newfound wealth, for he is stingy at heart. Unsavory salt. Tepid. Lukewarm. Blechhhh! The secret of the 666 is that it is only the letter of the Torah without the Ruach. The shin is like a menorah when the backlight of the Ruach shines through it (again, see Workbooks 2 & 4). Remember last week’s lesson on the gumball machine? It was what you couldn’t see that had to occur before what you could see. The Ruach precedes the letter of the Torah. Together, with the spiritual backlight through the literal three vavs, it yields seven, the seven- branched menorah. One tefillin has three vavs, but its mate has four! 3 + 4 = 7.Compare to the above:To be unsalty is 666. To be salty is to shine the seven spirits of Adonai described in Isaiah and Revelation: • wisdom • understanding • counsel • Spirit of Adonai • power • knowledge • reverence Yeshua, the Living Word, is the doorkeeper of the overcoming household. We never want to reduce him to someone there to reward us with wealth. The word mezuzah comes from a Hebrew word meaning movement, going back and forth. The historical zuz was a coin, about a day’s sustenance for one adult: •Weight: About 4.26 grams (0.137 troy ounces) of silver.•Value: Historically equivalent to a day's wage or a portion of food/clothing, (e.g., 200 zuz was a year's support). •Modern value would be about $20. "Give us today our daily bread." Not the lottery. Not so coincidentally, a mezuzah means more than movement. It is rooted as well in the movement of a beast:What starts out as a beautiful creation of spirit (upper room), soul and body (lower rooms), can degenerate into the mark of the beast. Instead of letting the Ruach drip into our lower rooms of work and family, the upper room is sealed off because of our stinginess and greed. Esau and Jacob had very different motives in asking for blessings. We can become unsavory, relentless hunters like Esau, the Red One, nicknamed Edom because he was red and hairy all over like a beast, a man of the field who loved hunting. We don’t want to become marked by the Red One, never satisfied, even on Shabbat. “…and he provides that no one will be able to buy or to sell except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.” (Re 13:17) Nehemiah’s struggles with those returning to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple, especially in their continued buying and selling on Shabbat, are the reference point. He eventually had to order the gates of Jerusalem shut and locked to prevent the vendors from coming in with their goods. How glorious will it be when the gates no longer need to be shut, for no one will even entertain the idea of disobeying the King of King’s command to rest and be with Him in Jerusalem on Shabbat. Knock, knock. In short, the mark of the beast is on one who buys and sells on Shabbat. Because there is no trust in Adonai to provide the many things we crave, we continue to work on His holy day. Someone who believes in God may have salt, but it is not savory. One who believes in God enough to do what He says is savory salt. Salt allows us to draw near the upper room of the Garden. I'm sure Yeshua is having wonderful conversations with the righteous souls of those who just didn't understand Shabbat, but they were faithful in what they knew. They are learning while they wait, not rebelling. Ezekiel describes what went wrong in the “upper room” of the Garden of Eden, a hospitable place for those who want to draw near to the voice of Elohim, but a place from which rebels are purged. The “trader” was cast out of the heavenly fiery stones and tossed into the lower realms of strange, profane fire, that is, fire used by those estranged from the upper room fires of the Ruach above: You were in Eden, the garden of God;Every precious stone was your covering:The sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper,Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald with gold.The workmanship of your timbrels and pipesWas prepared for you on the day you were created.You were the anointed cherub who covers; I established you;You were on the holy mountain of God;You walked back and forth in the midst of fiery stones.You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created,Till iniquity was found in you.By the abundance of your tradingYou became filled with violence within, and you sinned;Therefore I cast you as a profane thing out of the mountain of God;And I destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the fiery stones. (Eze 28:13-16; 18) Ezekiel 28 drops a hint to where we should be vigilant: “By the abundance of your trading [H7404 rekula] you became filled with violence within, and you sinned...” ????? rawkal’ [H7402] to travel for trading Our trade is part of work for our living, yet, the abundance is the danger zone. If our inner fire craves more wealth than we are willing to give back to Heaven commensurately, our going back and forth, zuzing about, to trade our time and effort for goods, power, and esteem becomes idolatry. In Hebrew, moving back and forth is zuz [zuz is also a coin], the root of mezuzah. The mezuzah marks the door where we travel back and forth each day to obtain our portion of wealth. When our pursuit of wages and wealth pushes the testimony of Yeshua and the commandments of God beneath our feet instead of allowing them to drip daily from the upper room of the resurrection Ruach that raised Messiah from the dead, we sin. Our house's upper room should be designed to drip to lower floors of daily living, or we become unsavory salt. We trade our precious lives, our time, our effort, to accumulate an abundance of things, not necessarily money, but what money will purchase: entertainment, security, comfort, esteem, power, knowledge, appeasement, etc. These things deceive us into believing they will bring joy and peace, but we know it’s a lie because they never do. They are simply offered to the strange, consuming fire of the soul, but are not refinement of the spirit, which is everlasting peace and joy. It brings savory salt, light, and contentment from within. The ancient investment advice is: •Invest 1/3 of your income in tangible property such as real estate, durable goods, secure long-term investments •Invest 1/3 in your daily labor, your paycheck, investments that provide a faster return, a little riskier, easily liquidated•Invest 1/3 above the mezuzah in the Kingdom of Heaven by lending to the poor, giving to needy, investing time in spiritual causes along with Torah study, prayer, service, discussing Scripture with others, etc. Even kindness is an investment! We should not become “stingy” with Heavenly principles in the world of work, which would reflect a home’s lower rooms sealed off from the upper room. The upper room should drip the testimony of Yeshua and the noisy commandments of God through the power of the resurrection Ruach. It leaks into the lower rooms of family and work! The leaky roof is what we need to carry into the world of work and business as well as our relationships. An outwardly successful business producing wealth that can only be spent before the resurrection of the dead is not successful at all. Preparation in the home under the disciplines of the Ruach HaKodesh will be evident in the place of business, not as a pile of 666 cash, but as peace in drawing near the Father, salt. The physical work is simply a means of building the Kingdom instead of demanding that the Father bless our work to build our own kingdoms of security, esteem, attention, comfort, intellectual stimulation, etc. Whether we have little or many zuzim, all we need to remember is that we must give commensurately with the wealth the Father drips down upon us. If we can be responsible even with earthly money, which has no righteousness within itself, then we can be responsible with Heavenly riches. If we can’t be trusted to give commensurately with our wealth when there is no Temple service, and much freedom is granted in when and how much we give, then how can the Father trust us with His riches when the Temple on “the mountain of God” descends? The Temple services and the Land of Israel are places of extreme exactness in managing work and wealth. Manage earthly zuzim faithfully, and we will inherit the Heavenly riches to manage. One of my favorite movies is about a Quaker family, from the book Friendly Persuasion. One of the funniest lines is, “Friend, thee’s got a squeaky door upstairs.” Friend, thee’s got a squeaky door downstairs, too. Yeshua is knocking, reminding, inquiring, requesting if we will open to his voice. It is the same voice of Elohim that walked and talked in the Garden, an upper room. When we open our doors to him, we release the water of the Word from our upper rooms and let it fill our homes, workplaces, and relationships. If we move about, may we zuz for the glory of the Father. Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
The Torah reading this week is the final installment in the ‘cliffhanger’ series, of the story of Yosef, or Joseph, where he reveals himself to his brothers, afterJudah ‘mans up.’
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “VaYigash,” Genesis chapters 44:18 – 47:27:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SSM-12-26-25-VaYigash-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash begins with the climax of that historic test. But Judah seems to complete it in a way that astounded even Joseph. And Mark suggests that is what is so significant here. Neither of them, nor the other brothers, knew how it would turn out, or even what was expected. Only YHVH, Who brought it all together, in His time.
But that is one way of understanding what a “double-blind test” is: If any of the direct participants really know what is going on, that might affect the behavior, and thus the outcome of the test.
How’s that for a metaphor?
And, if you think about it, that is the very OPPOSITE of the concept of Chess!
But it’s “part and parcel” of the Spiritual War in progress, and clearly a vital understanding on the path ahead.
VaYigash: Double-blind tests Outright War’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/WT-CooH-12-26-25-VaYigash-THE-Double-Blind-Test-and-a-Murky-Divided-Pagan-World-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
The TruthAbout Gumballsfor the young and young at heart.Sit down, young folks, and I'll tell you a story of long ago. There was a time when I, too, was young, and we used money you could hold, put in your pocket, and drop into vending machines. Ladies carried coin purses especially for coins. Coins were collected carefully, sorted, and counted because we would save them up to buy something, maybe a comic book or a pint of ice cream. In emergencies, we'd use those coins for lunch money, a little embarrassed if we didn't have two quarters to hand the cashier. Everyone knew if you paid with dimes, nickels, and pennies, your parents had come up short. Coins could also be used as toys. You could play something like a cross between table hockey and marbles (look up how to play marbles) with coins, and I liked setting up basketball and football plays with them the way coaches use whiteboards now. Boys sometimes played quarters, but I couldn't afford to lose mine, so I didn't play that game. One of the great things about coins was that back then, people paid for things with money, and they received change in coins. Dad would empty his pockets of change coins into an old ashtray at the end of the day along with bits of red, blue, and white electrical wire, leftover screws, plastic wire nuts, and guitar picks. What I aimed for, though, was making sure those pockets were emptied before we made it back home. While Dad paid the cashier at a restaurant, I'd inspect the area around the cashier for gumball machines. There was usually at least one. I always checked the dispenser because sometimes a good Samaritan would leave a piece of gum, or if you turned the lever, a stuck piece might drop out. The timing was important, though. Just as the cashier would hand Dad his change, hopefully with lots of coins, I'd dash in and beam my most angelic smile. I could usually score at least enough coins for one gumball, and on a good day, two. If he was short on dollar bills, then my gumballs would be forfeited for the tip. Dad always tipped. Everyone should. Even if you can't buy a gumball. Here's why. There's a passage in Scripture that teaches about gumballs. Don't believe me? Listen closely: •"Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. He led you through the vast and dreadful wilderness, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. He gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never known, to humble and test you so that in the end it might go well with you. You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” But remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today." (Dt 8:11-18) God is explaining to the Israelites that the gumball machine doesn't work like they think it does. At first, they were in the wilderness. The Father gave them manna every morning; all they had to do was pick it up. It was like the gumballs just started rolling out of the machine all by themselves. When they enter the Land of Israel, though, they will have to do something their parents' generation never had to do: sow, cultivate, reap, and thresh to make the produce they'd eat. The extent of the wilderness food effort was their gathering manna that miraculously appeared each morning except Shabbat. God let them be a only little hungry in the wilderness to test them. He didn't starve them, just let them get a little hungry. Being a little hungry is not a horrible thing, but it was their test to see if their hunger would make them angry with God for not making everything completely comfortable. When we don't get what we want when we want, often we become angry with other people, which is a sign we're angry with God. We think we deserve better. We think if God made us, He should treat us better. That's a test probably everyone but Yeshua has failed at one time or another. When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, they would be blessed to work and accumulate their own wealth. The danger was that they might be deceived into thinking their wealth was a result of their own efforts. They might think they put the coins in the machine, exerted the effort, and therefore, gumballs would fall freely because they turned the lever. They could become pretty proud of themselves for making so much money by planting and harvesting crops. But the Heavenly Father is not a gumball machine, and the Land of Israel doesn't just produce crops because Israelites plant, cultivate, and harvest. When I was really young, I never thought about how the gumballs got into the machine or who put the machine there. I only knew that if a coin went in, and I turned the lever, gum would roll out. The coin and I were all that really mattered. When I grew a little older, I realized that someone put the machine there to make money, usually for some charity listed on a sticker, and someone came and refilled the machine even though I never saw it happening. If what I didn't see didn't happen first, then what I saw and did couldn't happen later. The gumball machine owner supplied gum for me to buy, but it also provided the profit to the needy. If I’d known that earlier, I’d have pressed a lot harder for extra coins to buy more gumballs to “help the needy.” And there’s the problem in our fallen human nature. We’re greedy. Would as many people just drop coins in a charity box as they did the gumball machine? I think many would. And Israelites should. On Erev Shabbat, we have a chance to do that, to drop coins in a charity box without receiving anything, gumballs included, in return. It’s called a tzedekah box. Before lighting the Shabbat candles, we drop some money in a tzedekah box, and when the container is full, the money is given to a worthy cause. Israelites should be willing to give because the Heavenly Father gave to them first, and they want to share with others. They know they didn’t earn the money alone. The Heavenly Father released that money with His own hand in an unseen action. If that unseen action didn’t take place, then we wouldn’t have the ability to earn it. To understand it takes something called faith. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen.” (He 11:1) Do we literally see the Father release our income? No, we can’t. It happens in a spiritual realm, which is something very difficult for our eyes to see and our mind to believe. And yet, it’s the truth! Not one seed would grow if the Word was not releasing it to do so. The Father watches His special creations, human beings, and must shake His head when they believe they earned their money without Him. Just because a gumball fell out of the machine after we worked to get the coin, put it in the machine, and turned the lever, that doesn’t mean we alone made the gumball appear. An Israelite must be different from other people who don't know or believe that. The Heavenly Father opens a window in Heaven, which gives us the power to earn money and profit from our labors. It’s a mistake to think that we alone are responsible for how much or how little we have. Something happens first that we don’t see, and that allows us to do our work and earn. We, in turn, have the power to give some of that wealth to others. If we believe that something happened first: the Heavenly Father created everything, including us, and He supplies seeds, sun, and rain to make things grow, and then He opens an unseen door to release the increase when we work, then we understand the truth of the gumball machine. We have no reason to be stingy with others because the Father has not been stingy with us. He said we should remember this because it is part of our Covenant with Him. An agreement. In this case, our agreement is that no matter how much it seems only our efforts produced our coins, we’ll believe the Father first made us able to do so. That truth of our faith will trigger us to in turn do what is in our ability to bless others. Instead of saying, “The work of my hand got me this, so it’s mine to keep,” we’ll share a generous portion with the needy because the Father's hand was in it. We're in a real partnership with Him, not just standing there waiting with our empty baskets in the wilderness every morning. This is how we lend that money to the Father until He decides to open up Heaven a little more for the needy person: •"One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, and He will repay him for his good deed." (Pr 19:17) But just like the faith that sees the unseen, releasing the power to work and make money, that same faith sees that the repayment, or at least most of it, the Father holds in our heavenly bank accounts for us to have in eternity. Imagine that...a loan that will be repaid to us forever. Gumballs rolling through infinity. “Faith was never meant to replace action. It was meant to guide it.” - Juda Honickman
The Torah reading this week continues the story of Yosef, or Joseph, where it picks up in prison, after he has interpreted two dreams, for Pharaoh’s chief butler, and baker. Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Miketz,” Genesis chapter 41 through 44:17, where, after two full years, the story begins with a pair of dreams that Pharaoh himself has.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SSM-12-19-25-Miketz-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath Midrash explores the nature of ‘tests’. The parsha starts with “after two full years,” suggesting that Joseph was required to wait on YHVH, and the rest of the story is replete with tests.
Which is where we are now.
Miketz: Tests – of Faith, of Leadership, and Those Who Would Be His
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/WT-CooH-12-20-25-Miketz-Tests-of-Faith-of-Leadership-and-of-gods-Real-and-fake-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Sadly Self-EmployedI've been thinking a lot lately about greed. That's because in our short break from Song of Songs, we've studied salt covenant in our weekly Zoom classes. Although it's only about eight weeks of material, it's been packed with very practical ideas to improve our spiritual life today. In particular, what's been weighing in my thoughts is the premise that unsavory salt, the kind that has lost its savor, is at its root, greed. In short, our study has dug into Yeshua's question about salt losing its flavor. How do you make it salty again? The salt had savor at some point, but then lost it. If you review the last newsletters, Scripture specified that salt is something that comes from within a person. It is a softness and tenderness toward the Word and one's neighbor. It's the best part of our sacrifices for the Kingdom and Covenant that fulfills it, and without the salt, commandment-keeping is lacking: •Every grain offering of yours, moreover, you shall season with salt, so that the salt of the covenant of your God shall not be lacking from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall offer salt. (Le 2:13) We can't put unsalty salt on a sacrifice or work of the Word: •“Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves and be at peace with one another.” (Mk 9:50) “Have salt in yourselves ? be at peace with one another.” So if we lose saltiness, we aren't tender any longer. We can actually keep the letter of the commandments, but when it doesn't come from a tenderness within us, it doesn't create peace. That's salt without savor, and those commandments are not acceptable sacrifices for the Covenant, which must not be lacking salt. Defective salt is like a defective animal. No go. Unaccepted. •Therefore, if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering. (Mt 5:23-24) Leave the gift at the altar, go get salty again, make things right with your neighbor, then return, and the gift will be accepted because it came from tenderness toward the Father, which in turn made you tender toward His creation, your brother: •“If you do well, will not your countenance be lifted up? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it.” (Ge 4:7) Kain was told to put his happy face on with Abel, and then his gift would be accepted. Kain had short-changed the sacrifice by not bringing his best. He didn't bring first fruits; instead, he brought "of the fruit of the ground." Produce, just not his best. Begrudging, for sure. Instead of repenting of his greed, putting on his happy face, and bringing his best, he simply took out his anger and frustration with Elohim by killing his brother. Put another way, we can be about the Father's business diligently, keeping His commandments, and because of worry and distraction about our income, we find ourselves self-employed, like Martha, who resented Mary's relationship to Yeshua in receiving the Word. Daily we have to remind ourselves to make an "upper room" in our twenty-four hours to simply sit before the Father's Word and soak up His Presence in study and prayer. Doing things is important; it is the sacrifice we make for our families and the Body of Messiah. Without the salt from within, however, those works of the Covenant are lacking. The very meaning of sacrifice is "draw near," korban. Does doing a commandment draw us closer to the Father? If not, it may have become our business instead of His. That's unsavory salt and greed. When we salt the mitzvot of the Covenant, we exert ourselves, just as savory salt comes from “within yourselves” to make peace with others. We must exert ourselves commensurate with our “wealth.” While money is the example, the object of our desires is obtained with currency, which can be money, yet we might traffic for influence, power, manipulation, etc. to obtain our desires. Money is simply the currency most commonly used for the transaction to satisfy our greed. Greed is undisciplined and un-discipled desire. Sin. Idolatry of self-serving. It is easy to construe greed as a desire for money, or mammon, yet the less tangibles are nonetheless greedy: knowledge, esteem, security, attention, pleasure, etc. I have seen believers so drunk on the power of Scriptural knowledge that they habitually beat up their fellow servants with the Word. It is no longer the Father's business; instead, they have become self-employed. They use His Word not to draw people near the Father, but to enrich themselves. Maybe with donations, maybe with product sales, maybe with just a shot of self-esteem in soliciting invitations to speak or posting controversial statements designed to create a public dust-up for attention. How can we know when someone is unsavory and self-employed, but they've hung out the shingle of "Kingdom Business"? It's more important to know when WE'VE done it. Remember, unsaltiness is an inside problem. You won't always see it on the outside. The sacrifice may look just perfect on the altar. And Yeshua took donations...a group of women followed him throughout his ministry all the way to the upper room, "ministering to him." They loved him all the way to death (Mt 27:55; Mk 15:41; Lk 23:49,55) Yeshua said controversial things, was a highly-sought-after speaker, and he was definitely in the middle of public dust-ups. The difference is that Yeshua always did what he did and said what he said on actual Kingdom business. He was drawing people closer to the Father or exposing their self-employment in the commandments. His Spirit will help us to search our own hearts so that we don't become "moneychangers," encroaching on the holy places for our personal enrichment and deceiving people who think we're there to serve and help them draw close to the Presence. Instead, we're self-employed, working on our self-esteem needs or securing donations to fuel the fire of our pleasures. This is something ministries need to soul-search daily, and it's something a royal priesthood should soul-search daily. That's all of us. As in my example of the "Nuts" in last week's newsletter, sometimes we have to decide whether we're occupied in interests and ministry we've chosen according to our desire, yet the actual fruit ready to harvest is in a different area. It will be a true sacrifice to do business there, but it's where the Father needs us, not where we want to work. At first. The phenomenon is that if we will adjust our desire to His, sell out completely to draw near to the Father, our desire will actually change. Really! It will! This is what Yeshua tried to tell the rich young ruler when he told him he still lacked one thing even though the young man had kept all the commandments since he was a boy. He lacked the savor of salt with his commandment-keeping. The young man did not have enough faith in The Word, Yeshua, that the desire in his heart for his wealth would be changed by selling it: •"But he was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions." (Mk 10:22) Salt is faith in the Word. It is what prevents us from becoming self-employed in unsavory commandment-keeping. The rich young man would never know the wonder and joy of finding a coin inside a fish's mouth or sharing a simple breakfast on the beach with the resurrected Messiah. A righteous king. A truly rich man is one who is satisfied with what the Father puts in his hand from above, whether little or much; a truly poor man is one who is never satisfied with what he possesses below, whether little or much. A truly rich man rejoices in exerting himself and his resources in his Father's business; a truly poor man goes away sad. Yeshua asks what we are anxious, worried, sad, and distracted about, even in doing the commandments, for they are how we withhold ourselves from him. These things dilute our salt. They may be our desire, but they are not the "best part" that brings peace, the part that we spend at his feet learning, talking to him, lingering in his Presence. This requires us to exert ourselves to bring the lacking salt. Maybe it means selling off some wrong ideas about things that mean a lot to us. Mary sat at Yeshua's feet. She had to look up to him before she went to work. Martha did it backward. She worked, but because she was self-employed that day, she took out her frustration by blaming Mary and looking down on Yeshua's willingness to "discipline" her sister. She couldn't see he was discipling them both that day. She needed to look up first with joy in his presence. Start with salt, the best part within. What we do each day is His business. When we go into the world to give charity, be kind to others, speak peaceably, reconcile the world to their Creator, and shine the light of obeying the commandments, it will not be a labor of convenience. If we have prepared with salt, though, the exertion will be rewarding and change our taste. Do I mean how we taste to others? Or how we savor our labor for the King? Yes.
The Torah reading this week begins the story of Yosef, or Joseph, favored son of Yaakov. Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Vayeshev,” Genesis chapters 37 through 40, where the story begins, and builds on dreams.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SSM-12-12-25-Vayeshev-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3While this parsha contains a number of ‘nuggets’, or memorable elements, images, and component lessons, the midrash suggests that even the structure of the story is all about a ‘long-term’ plan of YHVH. This reading itself is only just the beginning of a series of what might be called “cliff-hangers,” where we see, as do Yosef and his brothers, that structure being put in place for what is to come. In any number of ways…
Vayeshev: ‘Two Dreams, Two Witnesses – Who can BUT Prophesy’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/WT-CooH-12-13-25-Vayeshev-Two-Dreams-Two-witnesses-Who-can-BUT-prophesy-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
This is part 2 from last week's teaching recorded at River of Life Tabernacle ...Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Vayishlach,” Genesis 32:4 through chapter 36) the story of Yakov/Jacob as he finally returns to Beit El, and a ‘reunion’ with his estranged brother, Esau.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/SSM-12-5-25-Vayishlach-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3That story has lessons enough, but there is an extended genealogy of Esau’s side of the family that might seem out of place, given the reminder that “Yakov I have loved, Esau I have hated,” says YHVH. And there are certainly a number of prophecies – arguably yet to be fulfilled – about the ultimate demise of the descendants of that line.
So who, or what, is Esau? As Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa documents in the midrash, there are no shortages of opinions on that score. But we have certainly been warned.
Vayishlach: ‘The Long Genealogy of Esau – and Two Houses’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/WT-CooH-12-6-25-Vayishlach-Two-houses-and-Edom-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
This teaching is at River of Life Tabernacle. Part A this week will be an introduction to the Salt Covenant covering the following:The requirement of salt on all gifts and sacrificesWhy salt must also accompany the commandmentsHow the salt covenant relates to other types of covenantThe essential element of human salt as seasoningThe relationship between salt and lightThe salted Bread of FacesPlease SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Vayetzi,” Genesis 28:10-32:3) the story of Yakov/Jacob as he journeys to the land of his father’s family, is told first-hand of his birthright and the promises, and acquires his own wives and family.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SSM-11-28-25-Vayetzi-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Mark’s Sabbath Day midrash probably raises more questions than it answers. Most of which are, at best, ambiguous from what we are told in the story. But these are human beings, of course — flawed people, who make mistakes — and thus more interesting and even relevant to where we find ourselves today. Yakov married daughters of Laban. While certainly not Canaanites, Laban himself is hardly a saint. And why did Raqel/Rachel steal his teraphim, fake gods?
There is a lot of setup here: The man who is forced to leave home to escape his own brother’s wrath soon comes to a place he’s almost certainly HEARD about, but suddenly – He sees first hand and KNOWS about those promises. What was hypothetical is Real. And yet there are still struggles ahead, and the man who asked for, and received, the place of the firstborn is deceived himself, because “it is not done so here,” to put the younger in place of the first-born.
Ultimately, Laban seems to take advantage of his son-in-law. There is animosity. He is, after all is said and done, still a pagan.
And that, too, is just as relevant now as ever.
Vayetzi: ‘Flawed people and Hard Questions: Do you Love Messiah more than Bacon?’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WT-CooH-11-29-25-Vayetzi-Labanite-xtians-do-you-love-Yahushua-more-than-bacon-podcast-x.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Custom MaryI wish I had a dollar for every time I've heard someone say, "It's just man's tradition. It's just a custom." At its worst misunderstanding, the tradition or custom is seen adversarial to Torah obedience and as evil. As a simply uninformed understanding, it's a lack of research or direction into how Yeshua taught and lived customs and traditions...of men. For instance, the letter of the Torah does not say to go to a synagogue every Shabbat. But how should one "hear" the Word, which is a commandment? Synagogues were an answer to that question. The Torah was read every Shabbat, so Scripture tells us that Yeshua went to synagogue every Shabbat: •And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. (Lk 4:16) Yeshua wouldn't do something evil, so this was a good custom even if the Torah does not say, "Thou shalt enter the synagogue every Sabbath." How to differentiate among the direct mitzvah (commandment), the custom or tradition that helps one to do the mitzvah, and an outright tare? The answer comes from knowing that the Word is the seed from which we grow fruit and that the heart's intent is a vital indicator of the fruit grown from it. My offer to help with a Biblically sound way to look at customs and traditions for believers was to write the booklet: Truth, Tradition, or Tare: Growing in the Word. This brings us back to our topic of hospitality over the last several weeks. Hospitality is how we invite the very Presence of Adonai into our homes, towns, and gatherings. In the following account of hospitality, the hostess is a woman named Martha, and she had a sister named Mary (Miriam). Custom dictated that a host or hostess like Abraham and Sarah provide a safe refuge, water for washing, and food and drink for their guests. It was customary. Traditional. Martha busied herself providing these customary things for Yeshua and his disciples, but Mary was more, well, I'm going to say it...not Custom Mary: •Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (Lk 10:38-42) Martha was missing something in her hospitality, just as we can miss it in any custom or tradition we practice: why do we do it? To strengthen our relationship to the Holy One and His Word? Or to earn righteousness or the esteem of others through our own efforts? Yeshua gently pointed out to Martha the important aspect of customary hospitality: it is to strengthen the relationship between the ministry of the Word and the recipients of the Word. To make it come alive. In this case, the Word was literally alive in Martha's home! In fact, Yeshua would have greeted the home with peace when he entered, just as he instructed his disciples to do. Instead of receiving the peace, Martha remained in a state of worry and bother. She did not receive the blessing. Mary, however, was eating and drinking it in, getting to know what the Living Word should be in her life. The custom of hospitality is to enable Kingdom ministry, to provide a temporary little Temple sanctuary for the minister. Martha was not wrong if she wanted to continue preparing food to serve the disciples, but she was wrong if it became contentious and destroyed the very relationships she should be strengthening with other believers. Yeshua was well able to perform a miracle of bread, oil, wine, fish, or any other meal she was serving. He'd certainly done it for others who offered what little they had, and so had Elijah. And I'm sure he was prepared to wait if her meal took longer. After all, he was there to grace her with his Presence, not to grade or promote her on culinary skills. He wanted her to drink him in! To Martha, however, the customary, traditional way a woman of the First Century was viewed as valuable was in her domestic skills. To Yeshua, his custom was to invite all to sit and learn at his feet. Male, female, Jew, non-Jew, slave, free...all could learn and grow in the ministry of the Word. It was the better part of hospitality. It didn't negate the need to feed and house the visiting ministers, the other part, but it was the better part of the whole equation. Perhaps, Yeshua is saying, the point of the serving is forging peace with people and Heaven. Hospitality is the designated vehicle for it. Yeshua didn't pick Martha's home so she could become righteous through serving; he picked her because she believed in him; she already was righteous. She just needed some extra training like he had to correct his other disciples on things like fighting over higher positions, water-walking, and poor demon management. A righteous guest seeks a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that sanctuary home with peace: •“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet.” (Mt 10:9-15) ”The House” is a euphemism for The Temple Yeshua clarified hospitality: it is receiving by 1) providing refuge, food and drink, and water for washing as well as 2) receiving his Word. Yeshua had to remind Martha to receive the Word, too. The heart of the Temple was in the hidden place of the ark, the Word of the Torah emplaced between the two cheruvim where the Voice would speak. Out loud. Hospitality is how the average person enters the holy Sanctuary to experience the Voice and Presence of Adonai through His designated ministers of the Word. •“You shall keep My sabbaths and revere My sanctuary; I am the LORD.” (Le 19:30) What did First Century Jews understand about this commandment? And why did Yeshua instruct his disciples so specifically about hospitality as they ministered in his name and authority? Rashi explains it in his comments to Vayikra (Leviticus) 19:30: •“’And revere my Sanctuary.’ He should not enter the grounds of the Temple neither with his staff, nor with shoes on his feet, nor with his moneybelt, nor with the dust that is on his feet, i.e., he should not enter with dirty feet. And although I enjoin you to have reverence with regard to the Beit HaMikdash [Temple], nonetheless, ‘you shall observe my Sabbaths; the construction of the Beit HaMikdash does not override the Sabbath.” Contextually, Rashi’s point is that Sabbath will occur in every place for all time, and so commandments specific to the Temple services will be overridden by commands specific to Shabbat. As Yeshua understood about the magificent Temple, it would not long endure. Instead, the righteous of the earth would have to function as little sanctuaries in the nations where they lived and were sent. He would continue to build the Temple through them and to send the Presence, the Ruach HaKodesh. In practice, Yeshua sent his disciples to continue his work; in order to do that work, they would need holy homes to provide Temple hospitality. For this, the home would need to be a “worthy” one. The family would need to conduct its daily life toward the preservation of holiness of Shabbat. Such a family was fit for Kingdom ministers, and those minister-guests were obligated to treat it with the same courtesies as they would enter the Temple itself. Yeshua’s requirements were identical to the customary Temple protocols for entry. A home that provided water to wash the feet was a prepared holy temple. As the repentant sinful woman washed Yeshua's feet with her tears, receiving his forgiveness, so a righteous home signaled receiving the guest with physical water as well as receiving the Word of shalom he or she brought to the house...and House. The reverence of Shabbat is linked to entering the Temple itself, placing that home in a very high spiritual status, worthy of blessing for its hospitality. The disciples would bless the homes of Custom Marys the same as they would proclaim blessings in the Temple, for the host was standing in to bless them as the priests would bless the tribes coming up to worship, and all, even those "night watcher" servants of exile from among the nations, offered blessings to YHVH.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Toldot,” Genesis 25:19-28:9)…
The Erev Shabbat reading – and thus the title of the parsha – begins with “These are to ‘toldot’, or generations, of Isaac…”
…but it is really the beginning of the story of Yakov, or Jacob, and the father of the nations, Israel:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SSM-11-21-25-Toldot-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Mark’s Sabbath Day midrash is a deeper look at what has been called “enigmatic.” There are certainly elements, of this story in particular, that have been regarded as “problematic,” even, in terms of things done by characters we might be inclined to emulate. For example, why does Rivkah (Rebeccah) decide to deceive her husband? Why does Yiztak/Isaac apparently FALL for it? Or even merit possibly BEING deceived? And, why is Yakov accused to being a ‘supplanter,’ or even “stealing” the birthright?
Some of those questions are certainly easier with the benefit of hindsight.
But there are others that, even in being asked, give us a greater insight into what is REALLY happening than we might otherwise imagine.
“Toldot: What’s With Isaac?
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WT-CooH-11-22-25-Toldot-Whats-with-Isaac-Enigmatic-until-hindsight-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Chayei Sarah,” Genesis 23:1-25:18)…
The Erev Shabbat parsha reading begins with two of the most important precedent stories of original principles that form the very backbone of English Common Law. First, Abraham buys the first plot of land recorded for all time in human history, and outlines the elements of ‘Contract.’ And immediately after that, Scripture show not only what “agency” is, or what it really means to “come in the Name of” a Master, but even what a “good and faithful servant” looks like:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SSM-11-14-25-Chayei-Sarah-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Mark takes a different approach to the Sabbath Day midrash this time. Since the principles are literally ancient, and so clearly formed the basis for the Common Law in England, and then were understood, likewise, by the Founders in the united States as the basis for the most fundamental elements of the Constitution — why are they no longer even taught? Why do the ~~lawyers~~ liars in the DC Swamp evidently disregard their contracts, their duties as supposed servants of THEIR masters, the American people, and even their oaths?
And that lack of trust – based on failure – now pervades virtually every institution.
We see where it has led.
But there is more to this story, in particular. Abraham, while he was literally blessed in “all things,” and live a long life, ‘full of days,’ and is literally regarded as the Father of our Faith, did not see the fulfillment of the primary promises YHVH gave him. He was told they would spend time in ‘bondage,’ but did not see them multiply as the stars in the heavens. And the only land he actually owned during his own life was that burial ground. And yet he KNEW, and saw – just as clearly as he saw the Son of Promise – that those promises would come to pass.
So do we. But from a different perspective, that of knowing all of this has been reserved, put in place, and, yes, done, for us.
Which gives us an obligation. Because ALL of these fundamental principles that underlie ALL of society, are based on Trust. In ourselves, to obey, in others, to do as they agree, and in Yahuah, to carry out His will, “on earth, as it is in heaven.”
As a world which has failed to honor that promise falls apart, the Remnant MUST keep it.
“Chayei Sarah: It’s ALL about Trust”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WT-CooH-11-15-25-Chayei-Sarah-Ancient-principles-precedents-ALL-involve-Trust-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
The Second Story and the Third HeavenThis week I'd like to visit the architecture of resurrection. Yes, such a thing is possible! Scripture gives us several examples from literal buildings. Last week's newsletter gave a hint with the resurrection patterns in the homes of the women who extended hospitality to Elijah and Elisha. There are even more examples than that. Just to review, the last several newsletters have investigated the Torah's ancient call to hospitality, not just a a nice thing to do, but as a vital preparation to inherit the Kingdom. Our hospitality study trail through the Torah, Prophets, Writings, and New Covenant started with Song of Songs 5:1, a restoration of the Bride and Bridegroom to the Garden of Eden: •"I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk. Eat, friends; drink and imbibe deeply, O lovers.” Elijah in 1 Kings 17:9 protected the widow and her son during the famine. Because she used the last of her flour and oil to feed the prophet of YHVH, she never lacked during the tribulation. She also hospitably gave him an upper room in which to dwell during the famine. In return, her son was resurrected from the dead in that upper room. Because she ministered to the man of God during an apocalyptic famine, she received multiplied miracles of nourishment and resurrection. And in Elisha’s “double portion” fashion, he performs two resurrections for the hospitality of the upper room. First, the barren Shunnemite woman is rewarded with a son, and then later the son is resurrected from the dead: •"Now there came a day when Elisha passed over to Shunem, where there was a prominent woman, and she persuaded him to eat food. And so it was, as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat food. She said to her husband, “Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God passing by us continually. Please, let us make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.” (2 Ki 4:8-10) The Shunemmite furnished her upper room with the furniture of the Mishkan. She made a little House for the Presence to dwell over the daily activities of her lower rooms. Elisha, a righteous visitor, was the stand-in for the very resurrecting Presence of Adonai. The upper room is the highest room of our home, a set apart place, yet attached to the rest of the home. What we furnish in the upper room blesses the rest of the home...or not. It can be where heaven meets earth...or not. When the Shunnemite woman constructed an upper room, imagine it as a third story built atop their own living quarters in the second story. Not a brand-new building, but one atop the existing one. Although now more symbolic because its examples are drawn from building construction in ancient times, today we still have upper rooms, those spaces we make to host the righteous believers who will accept our invitations. The visitor becomes the presence of Yeshua in our homes, especially during Shabbat. During the Iron Age (1000–586 BCE; the First Temple Period), the "four-room house" dominated Israelite architecture. The four-room house with pillars was widespread already, but it often had more or less than four rooms. The majority of houses only had three rooms, but could also five or more. The house had long rooms and a transverse broad room in the back, which could be partitioned by walls or columns. The ground level housed valuable livestock and had a working area for storage, weaving, food preparation, or other working tasks. The second level had the living quarters. A rooftop had an area for drying certain products, such as flax or fruits, and it was used as sleeping quarters in the intense heat of the summer for the cool breeze. Below are photos of the four-room house located at the Tamar Fortress. Its size suggests it belonged to a prominent administrator, and it is incredible that its stones were not repurposed for construction under the rule of other empires such as Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, or even the Byzantine. It is a very clean view into the early Israelite construction, characterized by undressed stones. Undressed stones are fitted into the wall or building in their natural shape, while later dressed stones are hewn into uniform blocks.The Upper Room pattern continues into the Newer Covenant. Yeshua affirms this by directing his disciples to follow a man with a water pitcher to an upper room where the host will have prepared a place for them to eat the Passover together. The experience is profound for the disciples, especially the foot-washing. He re-establishes the heavenly "Upper Room" hospitality pattern for their future Kingdom work: •“When they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with one mind were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.” (Ac 1:13-14) And it leads to the selection of another disciple (Ps 109:8) to take Judas’ place, for he had been one to receive his “portion,” or blessing from Yeshua’s ministry, like an inheritance for his position: •“For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry...” (v 17) ...Therefore, it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us— beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.” (Ac 1:21-22) The Land of Israel is something inherited at the resurrection. It is more than just a physical piece of property! It is set apart from the inheritance of the nations. Each of the twelve disciples received his share of the hospitable donations of food, drink, or money while they ministered with Yeshua, and in the Kingdom, they would also receive an eternal inheritance for their work. It was vital that Judas' replacement was an eyewitness to Yeshua's resurrection, for resurrection is what anchors our second story to the third story. What happened in the physical ministry on earth was anchored to the Third Heaven, also called Paradise or the Garden of Eden. Another upper room resurrection: •“So Peter arose and went with them. When he arrived, they brought him into the upper room; and all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing all the tunics and garments that Dorcas used to make while she was with them...and he gave her his hand and raised her up; and calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive.” (Ac 9:39;41) Had Dorcas made these garments to clothe the righteous and widows of her congregation? Surely she didn’t just have a room stuffed full of garments! She was doing acts of hospitality to the needy in the holy community by making garments to give away. Don't you love the association of women, especially widows, with the resurrection of the Upper Room? Elijah's widow, the Shunnemite woman, the women disciples and Miriam the mother of Yeshua gathered in Acts 1:14, the disciple Dorcas and widows gathered to mourn her? This "New" Testament has some pretty Old roots, doesn't it? "A wise woman builds her houseBut the foolish tears it down with her own hands." (Pr 14:1) These wise women were building a third story, an upper room in their homes, as a testimony to the resurrection of the dead through Yeshua. They served their household faithfully, and they served the household of faith in their second stories from the resources of the ground floor: feeding, clothing, praying, preparing, lighting, sanctifying, learning, washing, listening...and those second stories became the third stories. They invited the saints to the Upper Room, a sanctuary to remind us of the return to the Garden of Eden, the dwelling and inheritance of the righteous ones. When Yeshua returns, the righteous who have inherited the Third Heaven will administrate from a purified Jerusalem with him, and they will guide many upward from their First Story, the animal kingdom over which mankind was to rule. The millennial reign will be so awesome that even the earthy First Story will be restored to its creation glory. So what's your story? Are we carving time for prayer, study, and hospitality, building the Upper Room, or just spending all day on the ground floor feeding the donkeys and cows? Although it seems strange to build a house on top of a barn, it makes a lot sense, too. The flies would be drawn down instead of up. Another Upper Room example was in the ministry of Paul, this one associated with Motzei Shabbat (the going out of Shabbat on Saturday night): •On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight. There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered together. And there was a young man named Eutychus sitting on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead. But Paul went down and fell upon him, and after embracing him, he said, “Do not be troubled, for his life is in him.” When he had gone back up and had broken the bread and eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left. They took away the boy alive and were greatly comforted. (Ac 20:7-12) Would you like to know more about Paul's "first day of the week" resurrection experience in the upper room? It is densely packed with prophetic words and phrases you can put in your study toolkit, so look for the newsletter next week!
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Vayera,” Genesis chapters 18 through 22) and the central part of the story of the first Patriarch, Abraham, from his storied ‘dickering’ with YHVH Himself concerning the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, to the ‘binding of Isaac,’ known as ‘the Akieda,’ that prefigures another parallel act on that very same spot, many centuries later.
It is perhaps THE “Biblical-level” Act of Faith.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SSM-11-7-25-Vayera-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath Day Midrash is about not only that “Act of Faith,” but what it says to BOTH of those two houses, still in exile, who each believe the story prophecies the Messiah Himself, but can’t seem to recognize His character in the process!
“Vayera: ‘Your son, your only son…Who?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WT-CooH-11-8-25-Vayera-Your-son-your-only-Son-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Better Homes and GardenThe last several newsletters have investigated the Torah's ancient call to hospitality, not just a a nice thing to do, but as a vital preparation to inherit the Kingdom. Our hospitality study trail through the Torah, Prophets, Writings, and New Covenant started with Song of Songs 5:1, a restoration of the Bride and Bridegroom to the Garden of Eden:"I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk. Eat, friends; drink and imbibe deeply, O lovers.” This hospitality verse is thought to be one source for the traditional belief that the four rivers of Eden flow with milk, honey, wine, and balsam.In past newsletters, we made the connection between hospitality to the needy and the righteous stranger and one's preparation for to inherit, or even just enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Mt 25:34-46). Entering the Father's House, which was prepared for the righteous from the foundation of the world, is contingent upon preparing one's own house. Yeshua will definitely knock on the door! The very light of the earth was sown for the righteous at the beginning (Ps 97:11), the light of the Word of good works for them to walk in eternally (Eph 2:10).A better garden will be filled with the multiplication of human beings, the precious crown of creation created to fellowship with the Holy One Himself. Yeshua taught his disciples that the "rooms" of the Garden, their eternal home of inheritance, are being prepared for them, yet they also must prepare to inherit by preparing their own homes on earth. This would cause the Presence of the Creator to dwell comfortably in them. Better home, better Garden."Depart from evil and do good, so you will abide forever. For the LORD loves justice and does not forsake His godly ones; they are preserved forever, but the descendants of the wicked will be cut off. The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever." (Ps 37:27-29) ?????????? ??????????????? ????????????? ????? ????????The commentators to the verse in Song of Songs 5:1 connect it to Psalm 37:27-29 above in the Midrash Rabbah and write, ”The word yishkenu should not be translated as ‘they will dwell,’ but as a causative verb in the present tense, ‘They cause to dwell.’” “If only the righteous dwell upon the earth, what will the wicked do? Shall they fly in the air? Rather, the verse means that the wicked did not cause the Divine Presence to dwell on earth, but the righteous did cause the Divine Presence to dwell on earth.” (5§1) In yishkenu, you see the root of shachan, "to dwell," and the "Shechinah," or indwelling Presence. The Presence of the Creator Elohim has always longed to have an intimate relationship with human beings. He did not appoint them to rule of the earth in order to be a distant, cold judge of their actions, but so they would administer on His behalf according to His will because His Word was alive in them through fellowship. They would be able rulers because of their daily walking and talking in the special abode, the Garden of Eden.The Garden is thought to hover just above the Land of Israel, its centerpoint over Jerusalem. From there the Kingdom will be administered by Yeshua. The righteous are those whose lives are a home of hospitality to the Presence of Elohim. They CAUSE Him to descend for the fellowship He longs for with His creation. Inheriting the Land of Israel, the administrative center of the entire earth, is a matter of preparation. Even in Revelation 21:2, the Bride is described as the inhabitants of New Jerusalem “prepared for her husband.” Prepared. Prepared. Who is the Bride? Those who prepared the better Garden, working the will of the Word in their lives, which affects what Yeshua prepares for them in the Third Heaven, or the Garden of Eden. Is there something in our hospitality study to connect us to this Third Heaven?Yes.The Upper Room. An Upper Room is a characteristic of a Better Home preparing for a Better Garden. This yishkenu is an important nuance of grammar. The righteous are those who cause the Presence of Adonai to dwell on earth. They understand that hospitality is not just a place to spend the night and move on. Hospitality is extending a home that is prepared for the righteous to dwell, even the Holy One Himself. Yeshua’s instructions to inquire about a worthy home to stay in as the disciples ministered wasn’t a random comment. It is a vital insight. They were looking for a sanctuary of reverence for Adonai.Yeshua instructed his disciples to find a home prepared with righteous hospitality. The morally upright home will be part of the cause the disciples minister freely: teaching, immersing, healing, because they know they have a place to abide that is hospitable, compatible to their goals in that community. That house shares in the inheritance of that Kingdom being built!Yeshua said, “If you have done it unto the least of these my brothers, you have done it unto me.” In the context, he refers to the Jewish sages’ interpretation of inheriting the Kingdom by causing the Presence to dwell. They are royal priests, performing the Mishkan/Mikdash service by ministering to the world as the kohanim ministered in the Holy House.Hospitality is a vital practice for the believer, an upper room. Jewish scholars made the connection, and Yeshua tied a double-knot on it in Matthew 25.“Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? 38 And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’” Inhospitality and ill-will to the disciple of Yeshua is the same as inhospitality to Yeshua himself:Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord,...as he was traveling, it happened that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him; and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” And He said, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting... (Ac 9:1; 3-5) The guest is not there to re-arrange the furniture any more than pilgrims re-arranged the Temple. The guest accepts however much or little is offered and blesses the home. Elijah in 1 Kings 17 protected the widow and her son during the famine. Because she used the last of her flour and oil to feed the prophet of YHVH, she never lacked during the tribulation. She also hospitably gave him an upper room in which to dwell during the famine. In return, her son was resurrected from the dead. Because she ministered to the man of God during an apocalyptic famine, she received miracles of nourishment and resurrection. It is not likely this woman was chosen randomly. Elijah chose her because the Holy One chose her. There was already something of hospitality in her life for him to be sent so far to her home.Lesson? Prepare hospitality before the tribulation. A generous host who offers in a time of plenty is more likely to be generous in a time of scarcity. It is a resurrection preparation. A better homes-to-Garden habit.And in Elisha’s “double portion” fashion, he performs two resurrections for the hospitality of the upper room. First, the barren Shunnemite woman is rewarded with a son, and then later the son is resurrected from the dead:"Now there came a day when Elisha passed over to Shunem, where there was a prominent woman, and she persuaded him to eat food. And so it was, as often as he passed by, he turned in there to eat food. She said to her husband, “Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God passing by us continually. Please, let us make a little walled upper chamber and let us set a bed for him there, and a table and a chair and a lampstand; and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he can turn in there.” (2 Ki 4:8-10)Did you catch that? The Shunemmite furnished her upper room with the furniture of the Mishkan. She made a little House for the Presence to dwell over the daily activities of her lower rooms. Elisha, a righteous visitor, was the stand-in for the very Presence of Adonai.What have we prepared in the Upper Room of our homes? It is the highest room of our home, a set apart place, yet attached to the rest of the home. What we furnish in the upper room blesses the rest of the home...or not. It can be where heaven meets earth...or not.If we prepare an Upper Room in our homes of hospitality and service toward the needy and righteous ministers of the Kingdom, then the entire home will be blessed, for that is the deal. Literally the deal, according to Yeshua. A family who receives a minister of Yeshua is entitled to blessings of peace. Is there more chaos, unrest, need, and warfare in your home than could ever allow you to think of it as a Better Home prepared for the Garden above? Although it does not address all the home repairs necessary, there is one thing you can do today. Right now. This very instant. And it will begin to reverse the inhospitality to the spirit of shalom on your home. It will begin a sincere song of invitation, a "Shalom Aleikhem", to the Presence of the Most High.Begin preparing for a righteous guest next Shabbat. They have the spiritual authority to leave a blessing of peace upon your home. If it’s Shabbat today, just start planning. If it’s a weekday, start cleaning. Buy some groceries. Organize. Air out. Set boundaries. A steady stream of righteous guests will make your home inhospitable to the chaos. They’ll bring some of the Kingdom with them each visit, a word from the Word, a song, a correction, an exhortation, a word of good counsel. The chaos will either shape up or ship out. Resurrect or retreat. Try Him and see if His Word is not true. Furnish your upper room, and see if the lower rooms don't improve.Yeshua will be knocking...the person just may not look like what you thought Yeshua looked like.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Lech Lecha,” Genesis 12:1-17:27) — which might be considered the original “come out” teaching in Scripture — where the first Patriarch, Abram (later Abraham) is told to “get thee OUT” of your country, leave what you have known, and “go to the land that I will show you.”
It’s a historic, literally “Biblical-level” Act of Faith.
But that is where the story of the life of one of the most important men in Scripture, and the ‘Father of our Faith,” only begins. Here’s the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/SSM-10-31-25-Lech-Lecha-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3This parsha lays out several truly ‘fundamental’ elements. One, referenced often in the Apostolic Writings (aka ‘Old’ Testament) is that the man re-named Abraham in this story “believed YHVH,” and his actions repeatedly made that clear, and He “counted it to him for righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6, referenced by Paul/Shaul in Romans 4.)
Mark begins the Sabbath midrash with what some might consider a surprising understanding, given that is counter to what many may have heard, as he notes, “twisted,” and it lies at the heart of this story:
Galatians has been taught “backwards.” What does Hagar, ‘the Egyptian,’ represent? And if Paul, as he said, wrote to the former pagans in Galatia that he was worried that they were already “turning away” from that faith demonstrated by Abraham to the “weak and beggarly elements” from which they had been delivered, what does that mean?
And, ultimately, just who is the ‘son of the bondwoman’?
Once you see through the lies we have been fed – “inherited from our fathers” (some more literally than others) – it will be unseen.
Please share this one if you find it valuable.
“Lech Lecha: Twistings – from THAT ‘sign’ to the Real ‘Son of the Bondwoman'”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/WT-CooH-11-1-25-Lech-Lecha-Who-is-the-real-son-of-the-Egyptian-Bondwoman-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Parsha “Noach” (Genesis 6:9-11:32) is actually the second, and concluding part of the story of the “days of Noah,” and is the reading that contains the most well-known (and also sometimes LEAST known!) elements of the story of The Flood. But there’s more, too, because it also includes the “Tower of Babel,” and the intro to the first of the Patriarchs.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SSM-10-24-25-Noach-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Mark begins the Sabbath midrash with the observation that the ‘days of Noah’ spanned not only the time prior to the Flood when “the thoughts of men’s hearts was only evil continually,” but also many years thereafter, and certainly through the time of Nimrod, and up to the story of Babel.
And that is particularly key when it comes to understanding the somewhat enigmatic story of His ‘confounding the language’ to deliberately ensure that mankind is NOT “one people,” and NOT able to ‘work together for the common good.’ The fact that so much of today’s ‘One World’ propaganda pushes exactly that goal should be concerning, at minimum, given that YHVH explained His concern by saying the reason for His actions was that once they learned to work together, and seemingly plot to thwart His potential plans, “THIS is what they begin to do.“
“Noach: Maybe ‘coexist’ is NOT the best motto – then or now”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/WT-CooH-10-25-25-Noach-Am-Echad-And-THIS-is-What-they-Begin-to-DO-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Parsha “V’zot HaBerakhah” (Deuteronomy (chapter 33 through the End of the Book, and the entire Torah) is the final reading in this cycle, and the life of Moses.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SSM-10-10-25-V-zot-HaBerakhah-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3This Sabbath Day midrash comes during the week of Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles — not only the actual time of the birth of the Messiah, but the heart of the yet-to-be-fulfilled prophecies of the Greater Exodus, the Revelation, and the Wedding Feast. It’s also when the annual Torah cycle readings conclude, and begin again.
V’zot HaBerakhah: This is the Blessing – the Cycle Begins Anew
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/WT-CooH-10-11-25-V-zot-HaBerakhah-cycles-into-Bereshiet-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Parsha “Ha’azinu” (Deuteronomy (chapter 32) is the second-to-last reading in the Torah, and the life of Moses. It is, specifically, the second “Song of Moses,” that he sings, as a “witness against” them, and us, immediately prior to his death.
It’s also a warning that hits as close to home now as it ever has.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/SSM-10-3-25-Ha-azinu-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3This Sabbath Day midrash comes just after the ‘most holy’ day of the year, Yom Kippur, and right before the final, climactic week of the Fall Feasts, the time of Sukkot, aka the Feast of Tabernacles, or booths, or even ‘mangers.’ Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa notes that the confluence of this reading, and the Song of Moses, at this time at the heart of the Fall Feasts should suggest two major admonitions from Scripture: “Know the times and the seasons,” and that, furthermore, “NOW is the time!”
Sukkot is almost certainly the time when the Messiah, Yahushuah, was actually born. But how many of us have heard, “I don’t care – I love Xmas anyway,” and similar excuses for accepting what we “know or should know” is a lie. Is this the year to stand on Truth?
We also know, or should, that the word “jesus” never even existed until about 16 centuries as the Messiah walked the earth after that birth. No one EVER, not once, called Him by that name. And it thus cannot be (Acts 4) the “only name” by which we can be saved. Does that matter? Most of us have again heard, “I don’t care,” or “what difference does it really make?”
So, if His birthday doesn’t really matter, nor does His real Name, what about His Doctrine? Did He “do away with the law,” or is that – as Mark strongly suggests – perhaps the Biggest Lie in all of human history?
Does His Doctrine matter? Did He change it? Did He really change His Instruction about His moedim [appointed times], His Sabbaths, food, money, marriage – and just about anything else men decided they didn’t like from His Word?
Ha’azinu: When Does it Finally START to Matter?
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/WT-CooH-10-4-25-Ha-azinu-WHEN-Does-it-Start-to-Matter-podcast-xx-1.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
A Host of TroublesThen the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him and said,“There were two men in one city, the one rich and the other poor.The rich man had a great many flocks and herds.But the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb which he bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and his children. It would eat of his bread and drink of his cup and lie in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him.Now a traveler came to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take from his own flock or his own herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him; rather he took the poor man’s ewe lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”Then David’s anger burned greatly against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, surely the man who has done this deserves to die. He must make restitution for the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and had no compassion.”Nathan then said to David, “You are the man! The rich man was quite a host! The hospitality he offered his guest was not real hospitality at all. He faked his compassion for the weary traveler. He was so stingy that he killed another man's beloved pet and passed it off as his own sacrificial gift for the guest's benefit.This would be a prime place for a political commentary on the current state of affairs in the United States' political situation, but the reader is intelligent enough to understand that facet of the parable. Fake hospitality deceives people into thinking the host really cares and has compassion. What the wicked host offers is nothing more than someone else's hard work and property.To review from last week's text in this heavenly hospitality series, a righteous guest seeks a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that home with peace:“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.” (Mt 10:9-15) Yeshua sent out his disciples as his messengers. They were to practice what they'd seen Yeshua do: teach, preach, immerse, comfort, exhort, rebuke, heal, and so on."Let love of the brethren continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it." (He 13:1-2)These are not random strangers who visit, but "brothers" in the faith. No doubt the rich man had some level of acquaintance with the poor man he robbed. He knew where and when to steal the poor man's lamb, perhaps while the poor man was working or gone to the market. A lamb who was raised like his own daughter would not have been left unguarded very often. The rich man's act was premeditated, cunning, a masquerade of righteousness over a filthy act of cruel robbery.Strangely, Scripture links two concepts in the same neighborhood, called smikhut (placement). Those two concepts are lack of hospitality and fornication/adultery.In David’s case, he was the adulterer “rich man” who slaughtered the poor man’s lamb to prepare for the guest. This was also in the neighborhood of hospitality to strangers and "angels" in Hebrews Thirteen. Just skip one verse down:“Marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge.” (He 13:4)A wicked person may seem to offer hospitality, but the real motive is self-serving. They are not really serving the traveler or needy person; they are enhancing their own appearance of kindness. The hospitality is not for the benefit of the guest, but for himself. In the following account, the Messiah calls out fake hospitality.While the host had the means to extend genuine hospitality toward Yeshua, he'd only invited him out of curiosity to hear a new word, listen for something with which to entrap his guest, or to look hospitable to the rest of the townspeople. Instead, an unwelcome visitor extends hospitality that Simon did not:“Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, ‘Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair...’ “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” (Lk 7:44-47)The sinful woman understood the principle of hospitality better than the man who simply was curious to hear an insightful word from the teacher. Like many interactions in the Body of Messiah today, it would feed the host’s pride or critical skepticism, both of which fuel false feelings of self-worth. The repentant woman's hospitality was of the kind that welcomed the Bridegroom to the Garden with incense of sacrifice.Simon was thinking Yeshua didn't know what kind of woman anointed his feet. What Simon didn't acknowledge was it was the woman she used to be. She was repenting, bringing a sacrifice of her own, perhaps all she could afford, not someone else's hard work of repentance. If she had been a loose woman, this was not the generous, hospitable woman who washed Yeshua's feet intimately with her hair. She wanted a new relationship with Heaven through the Sent One, not a fake one. She wasn't faking her interest in Yeshua. She wanted to change. She had more than a little love.One way we signal this desire to truly repent is with generosity, especially to the needy and poor righteous. This is one of the "Big Three": prayer, repentance, charity leading up to Yom HaKippurim.Real charity.Love much, be forgiven much. Real charity doesn't care about who is in the room judging what kindnesses we give to a brother or sister. It wants a genuine relationship with Heaven. It doesn't offer someone else's work as their own. It does not seek its own reward for that gift. Any human being on earth can do an act of kindness that connects himself only to the recipient. One who desires to restores hospitality with the Presence of Elohim will see the face of the recipient as the face of Yeshua even if it is one of the "least of these."One who does not attribute his or her act of kindness to Heaven is usurping the very source of kindness inside every human being. This compassion is the stamp of the Creator! Even wolves will raise orphan pups and feed the wounded in their pack; how much more should human beings acknowledge that our Creator Elohim created us with a desire to help one another?If that's not plain enough, then consider this: A person who takes credit for being compassionate and charitable is offering someone else's gift as his own. Compassion was something planted in us by our Creator. Gifted. We are all re-gifting generosity to bring Heaven down among us.Sodom and her four satellite cities were known for lewd behavior. In rebuking Israel, Ezekiel points out another symptom of their wickedness:“Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.” (Ezek 16:49)Likewise, the Tribe of Benjamin was nearly wiped out for rapacious inhospitality.Likening Israel to Sodom recalls Sodom’s lack of hospitality to visitors. They were beyond inhospitable and stingy, they were lewd and murderous. They moved the Presence of Adonai farther away from the cities, not closer to it. Ever wonder why one of the "angels" didn't continue on to Sodom with the other two (Ge 19:1)? Perhaps the one Avraham called YHVH wouldn't set foot in it.And like Yeshua told Simon, gratefulness to Heaven for our own undeserved gifts should affect how we receive and love guests.Avraham had already rescued the Sodomite cities in order to recover his nephew Lot when they were carried away as spoils of war. Were they grateful and generous to others in need after their rescue? No, they did not become grateful hosts to righteous guests. They became worse. And dared anyone to judge them for it.Yet, the Day of Judgment arrived for Sodom and for King David's adultery and manslaughter of another for his own sin. Later, David repents and writes,"Against You, You only, I have sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge." (Ps 51:4)May we repent before Yom HaKippurim if we have mistreated brothers who are the face of Yeshua at our table. (Mt 25:45)
Parsha “Vayelekh” (Deuteronomy (chapter 31) is one of the final chapters in the Torah, and the life of Moses. It includes the ‘charge’ given to Yoshua/Joshua as he prepares to take over leadership of the mixed multitude, to “Kazakh!” – or, “Be strong, and of good courage.”
It’s also a poignant warning about the “End of Days” – arguably, now.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there, and also sets the stage for the final “Song of Moses”:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SSM-9-26-25-VaYelek-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa focuses on a prophecy that now seems to be at minimum, ‘in-progress’: “You will do evil in the sight of YHVH, and provoke Him through the work of your hands.”
But it is no coincidence that this portion is read during the time of His Fall Feasts, and we are now – or should be – preparing for the singular moed of His Appointed Times about which He warns so clearly, do it – or else!
Warning: Some will again be offended. They will say His Feasts are ‘old’, and “done away with.” As if He preferred the pagan replacements, and couldn’t manage to say so. YHVH certainly made the reason for His anger, and our continued exile, abundantly clear. And in this case, the warning and importance could not be clearer. Even if we have been lied to about it!
Vayelekh: This is the Year to Make SURE you ‘Know the Season’
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/WT-CooH-9-27-25-VaYelek-The-SEASON-is-Vital-to-Know-and-DO-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Idol or Angel? Scripture commands us not to make images of things in the earth or in the heavens to worship them. This means different things to different people, even within the Jewish community. It is one of those commandments that drives the reader to its multiple other mentions in Scripture to make full sense of it: “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth." (Ex 20:4) Some may not possess any figured images, applying the mitzvah very strictly. Others may give their children dolls or have animal sculpture for decoration, applying additional context for the mitzvah, which is having an image for the purpose of worshiping it or acknowledging its power: You shall not make for yourselves idols, nor shall you set up for yourselves an image or a sacred pillar, nor shall you place a figured stone in your land to bow down to it; for I am the LORD your God. (Le 26:1) In this application, a person avoids images of known gods, demons, or symbols denoting such, but does not avoid having photographs, artwork, or objects in the shape of animals or heavenly bodies, etc. The Tabernacle and Temple were decorated with images of both heavenly and earthly objects according to a Divinely-prescribed pattern. The range of interpretations is not unusual, and it lends itself to investigation so that one can learn more about the mitzvah by tracking down every mention of images as idols. This week, we'll take a look at a song traditionally sung on Erev Shabbat to usher in the Divine Presence on Shabbat, for Shabbat is a moed, an appointed time when the Creator of the Universe promises to visit those who tend His Garden. Shir HaShirim (Song of Songs) 5:1 has been our working text for understanding the repopulation of the Garden when the Bride and Bridegroom join the Divine Presence at the wedding feast of resurrection:I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride;I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey;I have drunk my wine and my milk.Eat, friends; drink and imbibe deeply, O lovers. This sumptuous wedding meal inaugurates the reign of Messiah Yeshua, for he will return to earth with his holy ones to rule and restore the earth to the purpose for which the Father created it. What we have learned the last few weeks is that earthly hospitality to the righteous brother or sister is the Torah's pattern of preparation for the restoration of all things. Following our lesson on Avraham and the angels last week, let's pick up this week with Yeshua's reiteration of hospitality. A righteous guest seeks a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that home with peace: “Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.” (Mt 10:9-15) Yeshua sent out his disciples as his messengers. They were to practice what they'd seen Yeshua do: teach, preach, immerse, comfort, exhort, rebuke, heal, and so on. The disciples were messengers, sometimes called shliachim in Hebrew for "sent ones." Another word for messenger in Hebrew is malak: ???????? m?l?âk; to despatch as a deputy; a messenger; specifically, of God, i.e. an angel (also a prophet, priest or teacher):—ambassador, angel, king, messenger Last week's lesson on Sodom was important to Yeshua's instructions to his disciples, who were being commissioned to function like the three "men" (anashim) in Genesis 18:2 who visited Avraham. One was called LORD (YHVH) in 18:13, and then when they approached Sodom, the two angels were called malakim (Ge 19:1). Although the LORD said He was on a mission to investigate the cries of the righteous, poor, and needy in Sodom, Scripture specifies "two angels" continued on to Sodom. Even if YHVH did not continue on after His bargaining session with Avraham to spare Sodom, those He sent functioned on His behalf. Some scholars say each of the three performed a specific task. The LORD blessed Avraham and Sarah and revealed the plans to them; one angel destroyed the cities; and one angel oversaw the deliverance of the Lot's family. Although they worked together, each focused on one aspect of the mission. This is a good example of an "angel" representing the Most High. They acted on His behalf, and anything done to them for good or bad was as if it were done to the Holy One Himself. So why did Scripture call the angels "men"? It demonstrates the importance of hospitality as a preparation for the reign of King Messiah and the return of the Presence of Adonai to His holy city Jerusalem. It is the Garden precept, an opportunity for human beings to show their Creator that they are ready for the return to the Garden. They will do and be the things for which the Creation was prepared for them. The Holy One enjoys visiting and walking with His unique creation, mankind. As a result, He visits them on this earth while they prepare, both through heavenly malakim and earthly malakim. Because we aren't always sure which is which, we treat what we think are earthly malakim with the same hospitality we would heavenly ones, for they represent Yeshua himself: "Let love of the brethren continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it." (He 13:1-2) These are not random strangers who visit, but "brothers" in the faith. What does this have to do with worshiping idols? It brings us back to that beautiful Erev Shabbat song, "Shalom Aleichem." Some believers might object to singing the song, saying that it is the worship of angels or speaking to spiritual beings we are not supposed to address. I think this is a basic misunderstanding of the hospitality principle of the Kingdom and the meaning of malak, a messenger of the Most High, whether heavenly or earthly guest bringing the Presence with him/her by virtue of their faithful walk in the Word. Servants of the Most High sent with a blessing from Heaven for the Shabbat home they visit. By hosting the righteous guest to the Shabbat table, the host has opened his home to the Most High Himself. The host is now part of the work Heaven sent that malak to do even though all the host did was prepare his or her home for the guest with good food and drink, a place to rest comfortably and safely, and a place to wash up from the journey. Knowing what you know now about Yeshua's instructions to greet a host's home with shalom and to bless it with shalom before leaving it, read the song: Peace be unto you, ministering angels, angels of the Most High, coming forth from the King of kings, the holy One, blessed be He.May your coming forth be in peace, angels of peace, angels of the Most High, coming forth from the King of kings, the holy One, blessed be He. Bless me with peace, angels of peace, angels of the Most High, coming forth from the King of kings, the holy One, blessed be He.May your departure be in peace, angels of peace, angels of the Most High, coming forth from the King of kings, the holy One, blessed be He. We sing the song not just for the blessings promised to the host home, but for the opportunity to welcome the Divine Presence to fellowship with us at the weekly moed. How Shabbastic is that? And about those blessings...if your righteous guests are not aware they have the authority to bless your home when they enter and leave, do mention it! Just like honoring one's father and mother comes with a promise, a righteous host can expect the guest to speak specific blessings that bring shalom, or completeness, to his household. Don't let that guest leave without blessing you! Be like Jacob, and hang on until they give up that blessing! (Ge 32:26) You might say, well, you know what? When I go to somebody's house, I probably won't heal anybody, or teach a Torah portion. I may not lead somebody to salvation and immerse them. It doesn't matter. Your very presence is a blessing of peace, for you are the stand-in messenger of Yeshua. The King of Kings. So be an angel, a malak. Speak what that family needs to make them whole spiritually and physically.
Parsha “Nitzavim” (Deuteronomy (29:9-thru chapter 30) is the parsha that Mark Call almost always says is not only a vital, undeniable, and not-yet-fulfilled, prophecy of our future, but contains the most succinct two-word summary of His Torah in the Bible.
And it begins with that enigmatic introduction, “Nitzavim,” or “you are standing” – all of you, THIS DAY, before YHVH your El…
…and here we are now, THIS DAY (ha yom) doing exactly that – again.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there, and the specifics, to set the stage:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SSM-9-19-25-Nitzavim-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa begins with a theme that has been on many of our minds this last week or two, and the phrase “doctrines of demons,” from Paul’s first letter to Timothy, 4:1.
It is certainly encouraging that Charlie’s execution/martyrdom has encouraged many people to look at his lifetime body of work, and his testimony for faith in the Living Elohim. No doubt many – particularly young and college-aged people – are considering a ‘turn’ toward the teachings of Scripture.
And yet, Mark suggests, the popular reaction of just “go back to church,” is but a pitiful small step in what might be the right direction. After all, many LEFT ‘the church’ because of it’s demonstrated, Scripturally-condemned, failure to “teach my people the difference,” between the holy and profane, clean and unclean. Simply returning to what already failed, and got us here, is not a real solution.
And yet, Deuteronomy 30 gives us both a clear razor for Truth, and a bold promise of why we MUST turn!
Warning: Some will be offended. YHVH certainly made the reason for His anger, and our continued exile, abundantly clear. But so is the Promise.
Nitzavim: BOTH The Blessing AND the Curse
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/WT-CooH-9-20-25-Nitzavim-BOTH-the-Blessing-and-the-Curse-RE-turn-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Be My Burning GuestI have come into my garden, my sister, my bride;I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey;I have drunk my wine and my milk.Eat, friends; drink and imbibe deeply, O lovers.”Last week, we learned:"Of all the righteous ones of Scripture, Avraham and Sarah were the best known for hospitality to strangers, especially when they received the three angels. (So 5:1)Good gardening is good hospitality to the voice of Adonai, His holy Presence. Because human beings, particularly believers walking in the Way of Yeshua, are in His image, practicing hospitality toward people of faith is an especially sweet fruit of the Ruach HaKodesh."Hospitality prepares us to be a part of the Garden of Eden conversation in the Scripture above. We can both invite the Bridegroom hospitably and remain in the Garden because we possess the vital character of hospitality without which a human cannot remain in the Garden. We can be a worthy guest...and friend...who will bless the Garden.To get a better handle on this trait, let's take a careful look at what hospitality is. What does the word mean?Hospitality:Middle English hospital, "residence for pilgrims and travelers, charitable institution providing residence for the poor and infirm," "guest accommodations" (probably by ellipsis from hospit?le cubiculum "sleeping room for guests"), noun derivative of hospit?lis "of a guest, of hospitality, hospitable”The Hebrew word for “guest” is kara ?????The KJV translates Strong's H7121 in the following manner: call (528x), cried (98x), read (38x), proclaim (36x), named (7x), guests (4x), invited (3x), gave (3x), renowned (3x), bidden (2x), preach (2x)Outline of Biblical Usageto call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim(Qal)to call, cry, utter a loud soundto call unto, cry (for help), call (with name of God)to proclaimto read aloud, read (to oneself), readto summon, invite, call for, call and commission, appointto call, name, give name to, call byThe Book of Leviticus is "Vayikra" ["and called"], a book of holies, our calling to create a sanctuary of holiness for YHVH. This hospitality “preaches” His Presence to the earth and His desire to dwell with us. The Torah describes to us our holy "calling." Not only that, Adonai listens to the cries / proclamations of human beings, especially the poor and distressed.Somewhere in this world, your name can be proclaimed to Heaven, either in frustration, agony, and pain,or in gratefulness, relief, and consolation.How this works is that the needy “give name to” the situation in that home or community. A guest can “summon” Adonai’s attention for blessing or chaos. He will actually come investigate the call for Divine help or proclamation of gratefulness!•Now the LORD appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he raised his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed down to the ground, and said, “My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by. Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and make yourselves comfortable under the tree; and I will bring a piece of bread, so that you may refresh yourselves; after that you may go on, since you have visited your servant.” (Ge 18:1-5)Avraham understood what a special opportunity he had. Without a guest, who would bless? Righteous guests are given a Divine mandate to bless or destroy a home. It's an apocalyptic opportunity symbolic of the end of days.Washing feet and providing a safe place to rest with food is the ancient practice of hospitality to guests, especially honored guests. Yeshua told his disciples to honor one another, not a new commandment, but an affirmation and demonstration of an old pattern of hospitality. It strengthens bonds of holiness and signals a desire to return to the ultimate place of hospitality, the Garden.Abraham and Sarah’s [Pesach] hospitality was rewarded with a resurrection of their reproductive process.The messenger guest told them that they would have a son at the appointed time next year. The righteous guest has the Divine ability and OBLIGATION to bless a righteous host. In this respect, the blessing is mutual. The host blesses the righteous guest with three basic things, and the guest blesses the host with something that will bring shalom to the household. This is a Biblical pattern and principle.•“Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.” (Jn 13:16-17)Yeshua teaches the Garden principle of hospitality. With hospitality, one didn’t wash the whole visitor, but his feet. It is an act of extreme humility, making the benefactor the servant and the guest the recipient of unearned hospitality. Yeshua washed his disciples' feet to demonstrate the principles:•“You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. (Jn 15:14-15)This relationship with his disciples echoed El Shaddai's relationship with Avraham, the father of hospitality, which was based on believing Elohim, Who credited him with righteousness. Hospitality to the angelic messengers (possibly a pre-incarnate visit with Yeshua) resulted in an actual friendship with the Creator of the Universe. (Is 41:8; 2 Ch 20:7; Ja 2:23)As a result, Adonai revealed to Avraham not only the specific household blessing of having a son whom he would name Yitzchak, but the destruction of the five cities of Sodom. He didn't want His friend to be caught off-guard in either the blessing or the destruction.Likewise, Yeshua regularly updated his disciples on coming events, both good and bad. When he washed their feet at Pesach, he told them what was about to happen. From the hospitable foot-washing, Yeshua continues and points out the disciples who would betray him: the one who betrayed his hospitality of bread and rest at the seder:•“I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.’ From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.” When Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me.” (Jn 13:19-21)Yeshua is re-living the encounter with Avraham, a time when Avraham and Sarah would BELIEVE the promise and receive the power to conceive Isaac a few months later. Yeshua reiterates that when we receive a righteous guest, we receive the One who sent him or her, just as we receive the Father when we receive Yeshua.When we show hospitality to a guest, our generosity welcomes the Presence of Elohim to His Garden. As He was the benefactor, yet served the undeserving creation, so we must restore our sense of hospitality to welcome Him first like a “guest” so that His Presence no longer must ascend and descend due to sin, idolatry, adultery.Good hospitality creates a little sanctuary for blessing.Good guests respect the sanctuary and bless the host’s service.This is the fractal of the greater principle of the Sanctuary and the Garden; the host blesses the guest who blessed the host. This is the practice of the Temple:Behold, bless the LORD, all servants of the LORD,Who serve by night in the house of the LORD! Ps 134:1O house of Israel, bless the LORD;O house of Aaron, bless the LORD; Ps 135:19O house of Levi, bless the LORD;You who revere the LORD, bless the LORD. Ps 135:20?The LORD has been mindful of us; He will bless us;He will bless the house of Israel;He will bless the house of Aaron. Ps 115:12A righteous guest seeks a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that home with peace:•“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support. And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay at his house until you leave that city. As you enter the house, give it your greeting. If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace. Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city.” (Mt 10:9-15) What of INhospitality, though? Are there consequences for being inhospitable?The answer to that question is found in the nine times "Sodom and Gomorra" are mentioned in the New Testament, or Brit HaChadasha. Yes, inhospitality is a thing. A very bad thing.Sodom and Gomorrah were famously wealthy, greedy, inhospitable, murderous, and sexually perverted (more on that in a coming newsletter). They oppressed the guests and the needy, who cried out to their Creator at the inhospitality:•And the LORD said, “The outcry of Sodom and Gomorrah is indeed great, and their sin is exceedingly grave. I will go down now and see whether they have done entirely as the outcry, which has come to Me indicates; and if not, I will know.” (18:20-21)When we are inhospitable and stingy, especially to righteous visitors or the poor and distressed, their cry has a direct line to the Heavenly ear. The Holy One WILL conduct a thorough investigation. In the case of Sodom and its daughter cities, the cries were not only accurately describing the inhospitality, but they were ENTIRELY accurate.And the cities were burned. Destroyed with a spirit of burning.•“For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God." (Dt 4:24)In the verse above, it is in the context of the penalty for idolatry. Colossians 3:5 compares greed to idolatry. Inhospitality is like idolatry.•“Know therefore today that it is the LORD your God who is crossing over before you as a consuming fire. He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, so that you may drive them out and destroy them quickly, just as the LORD has spoken to you." (Dt 9:3)When a city is stingy, greedy, perverted, and sheds blood, it will be burned with fire eventually. The one thing Lot got right was a last-chance opportunity to be hospitable to the One Who burns with fire.A righteous guest is to seek a righteous home for hospitality, and he/she has the authority to bless that home with peace. It says much that the angels at first declined to spend the night in Lot's home. The spiritual ambiguity in his home made their reaction like the up-and-down visit to the Garden after Adam and Eve sinned.Vayikra 6:13 says, "Fire shall be kept burning continually on the altar; it is not to go out." Vayikra is our holy calling, our proclamation to the world that the House of Prayer for All Nations is a hospitable place for all to come meet the Bridegroom...while there is still time. How is our home fire burning for righteous guests and the needy? And is it hospitable to them?Somewhere in this world, your name is proclaimed to Heaven,either in frustration, agony, and pain,or in gratefulness, relief, and consolation.
Parsha “Ki Tavo” (Deuteronomy (26:1-29:8) is almost certainly the most famous, and foreboding, set of blessings and cursings in the Bible. But, notably, it begins with “when you have come into the land,” and a set of instructions, such as the ‘Bikkurim’ or offerings of First Fruits, that are to take place there.
But we remain in exile, have been “shalach”-ed for cause. So what does that mean about those curses?
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there, and the specifics, to set the stage:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SSM-9-12-25-Ki-Tavo-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa addresses exactly that question. But it begins with an observation:
The plagues are certainly – undeniably – “well deserved,” not just by the US, but the world. And many, at least, already seem to be in progress.
Yet we are told, repeatedly, in Scripture, to “have no fellowship,” with the unfruitful works of darkness. To “flee from idolatry.” And not to ‘keep company’ with, or even eat with, the kind of people who commit the kind of perversions we routinely see promoted on CNN. Or taught in the public ‘schools.’
Mark argues that we have been told to “come out of her,” to not participate with those sins, so as to – hopefully – avoid the promised plagues. The prophet Amos tells us that, unless they are agreed, it’s difficult for two people to “walk together.” And we saw this week there are, unquestionably, a large demonic army of people with whom reasoned dialogue, discourse, debate, and now arguably even peaceful coexistence have been demonstrated to be impossible.
So, do those plagues in Deuteronomy 28 still apply? Or not?
Isn’t it relevant that the FIRST three plagues in Egypt hit everyone? But, during the fourth, of flies, YHVH “put a difference,” made a distinction, between the pagan Egyptians and His people?
The promised plagues are here, and we’re already in exile. So what now?
Ki Tavo: The Plagues are OPTIONAL
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/WT-CooH-9-13-25-Ki-Tavo-Plagues-are-OPTIONAL-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
A Leaning LadyI have come into my garden, my sister, my bride;I have gathered my myrrh along with my balsam.I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey;I have drunk my wine and my milk.Eat, friends; drink and imbibe deeply, O lovers.”Of all the righteous ones of Scripture, Avraham and Sarah were the best known for the hospitality to strangers, especially when they received the three angels. (So 5:1)Good gardening is good hospitality to the voice of Adonai, His holy Presence. Because human beings, particularly believers walking in the Way of Yeshua, are in His image, practicing hospitality toward people of faith is an especially sweet fruit of the Ruach HaKodesh.“Given to hospitality” is not a light characteristic to the righteous. It is integral. It was incorporated into the believers’ daily habits in the Books of Acts, and it is a vital quality for an elderwoman of the congregation...The number 60 is signified by the Hebrew letter samekh, which means to support, sustain, to lean upon, ordain:•"Moses did just as the LORD commanded him; and he took Joshua and set him before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation. Then he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses." (Nu 27:22-23) ??????????? ?????????? ?????? ???????????? ????????? ??????? ???????????????????The appearance of the letter samekh is round, like a wheel. A burden may be moved more easily in a wheeled cart than dragged or carried, and to ordain someone for ministry is to infuse them with the spiritual strength to be that person who eases the burdens that others must carry for the Kingdom. The anointing of the ordination is to help that servant bear the suffering for that ministry in the Kingdom. As those who ordain must lean their hands upon the one receiving the ordination, so others will lean upon him or her to ease their suffering.Those who plead for an anointing may not understand exactly what they're asking for. With the anointing comes the suffering!By the age of 60, the individual is considered to have committed his or her best physical years to the royal priesthood, slightly different from the Levites, who formally served from ages 25 to 50 (Nu 8:23-26). This did not preclude them from assisting their younger brothers, serving as mentors. The holy Mishkan/Mikdash work was physically demanding as well as exacting.At the age of 60, a righteous woman has achieved an age where she needs physical support as her due for devoting her life as a royal priestess to the support of the righteous community and her family. She is still a teacher and mentor to the younger, but as others have leaned upon her, now she must lean upon others for physical support:•“A widow is to be put on the list only if she is not less than sixty years old, having been the wife of one man, having a reputation for good works; and if she has brought up children, if she has shown hospitality to strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has assisted those in distress, and if she has devoted herself to every good work.” (1 Ti 5:9-10)The age of 60 suggests that she has fulfilled the days of her ordination to every good work. Just as Levites were still entitld to portions from the Temple gifts after retirement, so a righteous elderwoman is entitled to eat from the common fund of the congregation she's served.Paul defines for Timothy the behaviors that are elderwoman good works according to the Word:1bringing up children2showing hospitality to righteous strangers3washing the feet of the righteous (extended hospitality as in #2)4recognizing and assisting those in distressA reputation is a “name,” and Ruach-filled women who demonstrated this vital attribute of a good name were entitled to full benefits from their congregations in old age. It was NOT the responsibility of the government, but her congregation if her family was unable to provide.Hospitality is that vital in doing good works, both to relieve the distress of the righteous as well one's own family. Through her hospitable good works, the elder woman has offered aromatic spices as a royal priestess, making the Holy Name famous. Those aromatic spices are those of good reputation that the Bridegroom Messiah Yeshua will gather into the Garden.Honoring other believers with hospitality is not just an old lady fruit of the Ruach. It is expected of EVERY believer as an outworking of love.Remember, love is not always an emotion. Love can be a preference for one thing over another or one person over another in a specific situation. This does not negate Peter and James’ admonitions that “God is not a respecter of persons.” It explains it:•“The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool?” (Mt 22:44 KJV)•‘Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—I will make them come and bow down at your feet and make them know that I have loved you.” (Re 3:9)vs•Opening his mouth, Peter said:“I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him.” (Acts 10:34-35)For context, the "synagogue of Satan" or "seed of Satan" meant something specific in the First Century. It meant someone who misapplied the Words of Scripture, twisting them like a serpent. The Hillel Pharisees, with whom Yeshua's teaching frequently aligned, welcomed converts to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, seeing them as children of Abraham, the person who first came to YHVH in faith from a house of idolatry.The Shammai Pharisees, Sadducees, and other sects rejected Gentile converts. In fact, they did not believe the Gentiles had a place in the World to Come, so they took advantage of the Gentiles who came to the Temple to purchase a sacrifice. If the Gentile did not know to designate his coins to the person at the moneytable, the moneychanger (who exchanged tokens for the sacrifice) would divert the money to the Temple fund for repairs and upkeep, not the sacrifice the Gentile believed he/she had purchased with the money. This infuriated Yeshua! This was not the purpose of the Temple! This was the synagogue of Satan, twisting the Torah to exclude unsuspecting Gentiles. The Shammai Pharisees looked the other way when this happened.The House of Prayer for all nations was for the “man who fears what is right.” He was welcome there, no matter his lineage or economic situation. This is what the Hillel Pharisees taught, which is what Peter and Paul (a Hillel Pharisee) later affirm, and which John establishes as the norm in his "synagogue of Satan" reference. A righteous Gentile will find himself assigned a higher place in the Kingdom than those who sought to exclude him.Yet, it is not “right” for the visitor to desecrate the sanctuary in which he is a guest, for to do so would be inhospitable to that very relationship he seeks in the House. Both those who serve and those who visit are obligated to bless one another, which brings down the blessing of peace from the Voice of Elohim, especially through the Birkhat HaKohanim (Aaronic Benediction). One new man.•“Then they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to drive out those who were buying and selling in the temple and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; and He would not permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple. And He began to teach and say to them, “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS’? But you have made it a ROBBERS’ DEN.” (Mk 11:15-17)Inhospitality to those seeking the Voice of Adonai is inhospitality to the Presence of Adonai Himself.Those who are judged and sentenced to the Kingdom “footstool” by Adonai are enemies of the faith, whether through hostility to Him and His holy ones or unrepentant hypocrisy. A fellow believer should be honored, loved [preferred], and judged according to his active faith, not his bank account. We judge our own assemblies with righteousness according to our brotherhood:•“My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and you say to the poor man, ‘You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,’ have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?” (Ja 2:1-4)The key is that both visitors to the synagogue were righteous men seeking to worship and hear the Word read on Shabbat. To look at two righteous men and show favoritism to the rich one IS wicked. Since we are to judge within our own communities, James says we are evil judges to do such a thing. Favoritism is to be shown the righteous over the wicked, not to set a fellow-believer in a lower place because he lacks money, power, or fine appearance.•“Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.” (Ro 12:6-13)Practicing hospitality to fellow believers is “incense,” spices fit for the Mishkan.•Let love of the brethren continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it. (He 13:1-2)Hospitality to the "brethren," the righteous guest, signifies one’s willingness to welcome back the Presence of Elohim on earth. The Hebrew cognate to xenos, the Greek word for guest, stranger, visitor, is oreach, (the Sept. for ??????)The best food, drink, and resting accommodations were prepared for the visitor. Footwashing was a mandatory courtesy:•“Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree...” (Ge 18:4) Also Ge 24:32; 43:24Even entering the Holy Land, the feet of the priests were supernaturally and hospitably “washed” as they crossed over.•“...and when those who carried the ark came into the Jordan, and the feet of the priests carrying the ark were dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest)...” (Josh 3:15)And finally, Yeshua demonstrated the righeousness required of the elderwoman:•“Then He poured water into the basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded... If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.” (Jo 13:5;14-15)Yeshua did not wash the feet of the wicked, nor did he seek out those just looking for miracles or a feel-good sermon at his appointed time. He washed the feet of those who were committed to serving him both in this world and the World to Come. We should do good to all people, but ESPECIALLY to those of the household of faith. Yeshua was not interested in ordaining Lady Liberties, but the Leaning Ladies.And Gentlemen.
Parsha “Ki Tetzi” (“When you go forth” – to battle) — Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9) begins with another VERY ‘politically IN-correct’ prescription. Which tells us, right up front, why this is one worth paying attention to.
Because we’ve been told it “doesn’t matter” any more, is “done away with,” or worse. Lied to about, in other words.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins there, and includes what amounts to a great summary of just why that is:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SSM-9-5-25-Ki-Tetzi-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3During the Sabbath Day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa explains why “miscellaneous mitzvot,” or commandments, are nothing of the sort. They’re certainly not “done away with,” but the fact that so many are SO ‘politically-INcorrect’ speaks volumes about a world jonesin’ fer judgment.
But what really stands out in THIS environment, today, is that they are intended for human beings, created in His image. Not corporations, and not “AI,” or any other creation of mere men.
Ki Tetzi: Miscellaneous Mitzvot – Not ‘PC’ – Not ‘done away with’ – but FOR HUMANS
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/WT-CooH-9-6-25-Ki-Tetzi-Misc-Mitzvot-for-HUMANS-not-corporate-creations-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part reading and Sabbath midrash:
Parsha “Nitzavim,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 29:10 through 30:20) is, according to Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship, not only perhaps THE most succinct, two-word summary of the Torah, but the parsha that is also most central to understanding what is arguably THE Biggest Lie since at least Genesis chapter 3.
And the Erev Shabbat reading lays the groundwork for that claim:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SSM-9-27-24-Nitzavim-teaching-podcast-xxxx.mp3But that is again just the beginning.
WARNING: This is yet another reading in the continuing series that you will certainly NOT hear in sun-god-day school.
The Sabbath day midrash is about that Big Lie, and the fact that the refutation is right there in Deuteronomy chapter 30:
“The Law has been done away with…nailed to the cross…it’s OLD Testament…and, besides, NOBODY buy Jesus could POSSIBLY keep ‘the Law.’ It’s TOO HARD for you!”
When, in fact, He says it is NOT too hard for you.
As things come to a head – it is more important than ever that we be able to answer, “in season and out,” from His Word, exactly WHY we need to “come out of” EVERYTHING that is based on the Lie that got us exiled in the first place.
Nitzavim: “Debunking THE Biggest LIE Since Genesis 3 “
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/WT-CooH-9-28-24-Nitzavim-Debunking-the-Biggest-LIE-in-History-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
The Bride's Wilderness LaundromatThe wilderness journey brings up all sorts of practical questions. Practical questions often lead to impractical, but not impossible, answers. Although the Israelites looted the Egyptians, it is unlikely that the garments lasted for forty years in the harsh desert. How did they keep up with the laundry? What about the children born who would need clothes of their own?Having done my laundry in the Aravah several times, I know from experience that clothes hung on a line to dry have a coating of sand by the time they dry and I take them down to fold them.The pillars of cloud and fire, as well as the cloud cover in which the Israelites walked, provided supernatural assistance in these practical questions. The hint is found in the following verses:“Your clothing did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years.” (Dt 8:4)“I have led you forty years in the wilderness; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot.” (Dt 29:5)Egyptian clothes surely wear out. The sandals even more so with a nation on foot. These supernatural garments and shoes must have come from somewhere. The Midrash explains:“From where did they obtain clothing to wear throughout the forty years that the people of Israel spent in the Wilderness? They were from what the ministering angels clothed them. Thus it is written, ‘I clothed you (Israel) in rikmah (Ezekiel 16:10).Rikmah is a royal garment.” (Midrash Rabbah Shir HaShirim 4§23)The hint in Ezekiel is that these splended, durable garments were garments of royalty, fit for a royal priesthood. They were also fit TO a royal priesthood.It was thought that the supernatural garments grew with the person like a shell grows with the chilazon, the snail from which techelet (blue) dye is extracted for tzitziyot to remind Israel of the mitzvot. From infant to adult, the garment grew. This helps us understand how the commandments grow with us when we continue to set our affection on what is above, learning to use what is below for the service of Heaven. The commandments become bigger and stronger in their protection and beauty as we grow because they are growing with us!This passage in Ezekiel is thought to describe Israel’s bridal agreement to betrothal at Mount Sinai when they said, “We will do and we will hear”:“Then I passed by you and saw you, and behold, you were at the time for love; so I spread My skirt [wing, kanaf] over you and covered your nakedness. I also swore to you and entered into a covenant with you so that you became Mine,” declares the Lord GOD. Then I bathed you with water, washed off your blood from you and anointed you with oil. I also clothed you with embroidered cloth [rikmah] and put sandals of porpoise skin on your feet; and I wrapped you with fine linen and covered you with silk. I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your hands and a necklace around your neck. I also put a ring in your nostril, earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your dress was of fine linen, silk and embroidered cloth.” (Ezekiel 16:8-13)Israel the Bride was at the time for “love,” or able to Shma, to hear and to love with all her heart, soul, and strength. At that time, the ministering angels were thought to clothe Israel with miraculous garments that did not wear out and give them the sandals that did not wear out. They were also given two royal crowns, one for “we will do” and one for “we will hear.” After the golden calf, those crowns were taken away and the “jewelry” were retrieved, but the miraculous royal garments and sandals remained upon them. (Dt 8:4) Like the Kohen HaGadol, every member of the royal priesthood was clothed in “garments of honor and glory.”The Midrash asks:But did the clothing not need washing? “The pillar of cloud, which accompanied the nation throughout their journey in the Wilderness, brushed against the clothing and cleansed them.” (ibid 4§23). The garments could withstand the fire of the pillar of cloud because they were manufactured in Heaven. These were garments with the smell of the blessed field, a place of eternal life. The fire actually refined the garments instead of destroying them!Likewise, Yeshua’s garment of salvation and robes of righteousness, which we may put on, have a Garden fragrance of eternal life and a royal priesthood, a fragrance of Lebanon, as Chapter Four of Song of Songs says. Lebanon is from lavan, which means “white.” Salvation and obedience are white robes from the pleasant Land of the Garden. A great "cloud of witnesses" to the commandments of God and the testimony of Yeshua wears clean, pressed white garments:“When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.” (Re 6:9-11)If, according to Rashi, the garments were also pressed daily, does that seem too fantastic? Perhaps not! The cloud and fire was the Bridegroom’s way of keeping the Bride’s garments of glory washed, pressed, and perfectly sized: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body.” (Eph 5:25-30)Remain in the Word, and the spiritual water and fire will clean your salvation garment and robes of Yeshua's righteousness daily. It will even give them a fine pressing so that there is not even a wrinkle in your commandment-keeping as you journey through the wilderness of the peoples. No wrinkles also means you've grown into them and matured in the journey. What might have seemed overwhelming at the beginning of the journey, you'll find was nothing to worry about. Your garments grew with you, and you grew into the garments!
Parsha “Ki Tavo,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8) is arguably the most well-known, and fearsome, catalog of blessings, and especially, cursings, in all of Scriture.
The Erev Shabbat reading literally lays out the case for the fact that are not only well-deserved, but already “in progress” for a nation which has turned from YHVH, and is in fact “jonesin’ fer judgment.”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SSM-9-20-24-Ki-Tavo-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3But that is just the beginning.
WARNING: This is yet another reading in the continuing series that you will certainly NOT hear in sun-god-day school. And the fact that the curses are so well-deserved, and so lied about, is the reason why we had better be paying attention.
Only this world doesn’t. Not even close. And that is why this reading should be such a jarring “eye-opener.” The promised curses are arguably well-under way, and the rest close at hand,
In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa literally lays out the case for judgment, based on what the Whore Church as done not only IN SPITE of His Word, but TO it.
The curses outlined are specific to what can happen – and DID – when those who failed to “keep My commandments failed to do so, and were, as promised, kicked out of the land.
But there are other curses, too, for things generally done in secret. At least, they were. Now they are open, and even “proud” of ’em.
And Mark suggests that there is a good case to be made that the curses are still “on the table.” And what we have already seen, and are seeing, makes an even stronger case that there is more to come.
And His people should plan accordingly.
Ki Tavo: “When you have been KICKED OUT of the Land – Do the Curses Still Count?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/WT-CooH-9-21-24-Ki-Tavo-When-you-have-been-KICKED-OUT-of-the-Land-what-curses-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
The Wild KingdomAs we approach the High Holy Days, we prepare to read a passage of Scripture on The Feast of Trumpets called The Akeidah. It refers to the binding of Isaac. A key verse is this:Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together.” (Ge 22:7)For now, notice two things:1. Isaac respectfully addresses Avraham, "My father."2. Avraham responds, "Hineni." "Here I am, my son."They are in unity as to what is about to happen. Avraham will sacrifice Isaac, and Isaac will be figuratively resurrected from the dead. From henceforth, there is no question as to the line of succession. Two sons. One will be labeled "a wild donkey" (Ge 16:11-12), and one will receive the promise of a Land, Covenant, and People to pass along to his offspring. Although Avraham longed for Ishmael to live before Adonai, the birthright was awarded to the one who would sacrifice himself. The son walks with the father. The Son walks with the Father. When it is time for Isaac to in turn bless one of two sons, he nearly makes a mistake. Rivkah his wife knows that Esau unburdened himself of the birthright for a bowl of stew. He "hated" the promise, though later he sought it carefully with tears when he realized he wasn't entitled to the blessings if he didn't accept the birthright. Believers are not so different today. They quickly claim the promises, but when it comes to the obligations of the Torah, they are nowhere to be found. They're just playing a wild game. In order to deceive Isaac, Rivkah instructs Jacob to dress in Esau's special garment and to put goat skins on his arms.“So he [Jacob] came close and kissed him; and when he smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field which the LORD has blessed...” (Ge 27:27)Although the voice didn’t add up to Isaac, the pleasant field fragrance was apparently a singular aroma, one not easily duplicated or confused with another. Where did it come from?The sages say it was from the blessed field of Creation, the garment Elohim made for Adam when he drove the first couple from the Garden. The garment was handed down to Noah, but after the Flood, the fear and dread of mankind fell upon the animal kingdom. With the special garment, though, the animal kingdom continued to have no fear. It still held the fragrance of obedient Eden. The animals would approach anyone wearing the garment, recognizing his authority in the Creation. It is thought that eventually Nimrod "the mighty hunger before the Lord" took control of the garment, which gave him power over the animals. When people saw this special power, they submitted themselves to him, giving him dictatorial power. At some point, Esau killed Nimrod and took this pleasant garment for his own:Then Rebekah took the best (chemdah) garments of Esau her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Jacob her younger son. (Ge 27:15)????????? ??????? ???????????? ?????? ??????? ???????? ????????? ?????? ??????? ????????? ???????????? ??????????? ??????? ????????????????? chemdâh feminine of H2531; delight:—desire, goodly, pleasant, precious.Chemdah [chamud/chamuda] can apply to precious things like jewelry or clothes, but it especially applies to the Land of Israel, the reflection of the Garden above it. Here are some examples of its use in context with the Land:“Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe [??????????] in His Word...” (Ps 106:24)“...but I scattered them with a storm wind among all the nations whom they have not known. Thus the land is desolated behind them so that no one went back and forth, for they made the pleasant land desolate.” (Zech 7:14)Israel, “the pleasant Land,” is the most beautiful inheritance one may have among all the nations that the peoples may inherit. Those who bear the lingering fragrance of obedience founded on their belief, or faith, will be collected from the nations to inherit with “sons”:‘Return, O faithless sons,’ declares the LORD; ‘For I am a master to you, and I will take you one from a city and two from a family, and I will bring you to Zion.’ “Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you on knowledge and understanding. It shall be in those days when you are multiplied and increased in the land,” declares the LORD, “they will no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the LORD.’ And it will not come to mind, nor will they remember it, nor will they miss it, nor will it be made again. At that time they will call Jerusalem ‘The Throne of the LORD,’ and all the nations will be gathered to it, to Jerusalem, for the name of the LORD; nor will they walk anymore after the stubbornness of their evil heart. In those days the house of Judah will walk with the house of Israel, and they will come together from the land of the north to the land that I gave your fathers as an inheritance. “Then I said, ‘How I would set you among My sons and give you a pleasant land, the most beautiful inheritance of the nations!’ And I said, ‘You shall call Me, My Father, and not turn away from following Me.’ (Je 3:14-19)That's the key. Those who return will say, "My Father" and not turn away from Him and His commandments as Esau did. Esau, the Red One, the wild red beast of Revelation, is a human in whom the soul practices subjugation of the spirit. The spiritual authority of the Father is only their second thought, hindsight, with regret for the goods lost, not necessarily the rift with the Father. As an example, Esau took two idolatrous wives without his parents’ permission, and only later did he take a daughter of Ishmael.Esau only regrets selling his birthright when he realizes the “loot” of the blessing was also forfeited. The scarlet beast is fully invested in the economic system to satisfy his soul. He serves the Father to obtain the goods and crown. He loves competition and games because he loves to win. That's why he hunts. Not just to eat, but to win. The taste of wild game is the reward of the hunt, fueling feelings of superiority and dominance over the creation. In Esau's case, he doesn't even want to wear the garment of the blessed field to hunt the wild game for his father. It's not enough of a challenge if the animals just walk up to him. It wouldn't have the taste of "wild" game. Notice the difference and progression of these “my fathers” related to garments:Then he [Jacob] came to his father and said, “My father.” And he said, “Here I am (Hineni). Who are you, my son?” (Ge 27:18)Then he [Esau] also made savory food and brought it to his father; and he said to his father, “Let my father arise and eat of his son's game, that you may bless me.” (Ge 27:31)When Esau heard the words of his father, he cried out with an exceedingly great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, O my father!” (Ge 27:34)Jacob approaches in shepherd-skins and says, “My father.”Esau approaches and orders his father to arise, eat what he has hunted instead of shepherded, and bless him.Only after Esau realizes what has happened is he humbled to plea, “O my father.”Yeshua explains that real "food" is not wild, but obedient work on the obligations of the birthright: "Jesus said to them, 'My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.'" (Jn 4:34)So, who are you, my son? Who are you, my daughter? Are you wearing the garment with the fragrance of obedience in Eden? Are you serving the Father for the loot, or to sacrifice for the sake of all the souls who will be added to the Kingdom? Now is the time to examine our garments. Do they smell of the fruitful, sown seed of the diligent servant who went weeping on his way, carrying a bag of seed? Or do they smell of wild game? When the last shofar blows, he who wept first will reap gladness and joy. He who practiced disobedience will weep last, find out that his reward was only in the physical world, the here and now. His garment could not withstand the fiery swords of the cheruvim at the entrance to the blessed field. Seek first the Kingdom, the birthright of the redeemed. It may feel as though you are bound, but you will resurrect to more riches than eternity can hold.At the resurrection, only then all the things of the blessings will be added to you. Walk on with the Father. Forever. Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Parsha “Ki Tetzi,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19) is not only one of the most NOT-PC parashot in the Torah, but the fact that it IS should tell us exactly where things stand, on the Road to Judgment.
For example, the very first segment, often called the ‘war bride,’ sounds like something that ‘modern feminism’ would call barbaric. Until they see the alternative. Perhaps much sooner that they expect. The fact is, His Word does not “oppress” women, it protects them.
The Erev Shabbat reading literally lays out the case for the fact that the lessons here have become to UNPALATABLE to a nation that despises His Word that it is literally “jonesin’ fer judgment.”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SSM-9-13-24-Ki-Tetzi-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3But that is just the beginning.
WARNING: This is yet another reading in the continuing series that you will NOT hear in sun-god-day school. Which is again why what He RREALY says will surprise some. Which in itself is another commentary on the “lies we have inherited from our fathers.”
Only this world doesn’t. Not even close. And that is why this reading should be such a jarring “eye-opener.”
iterally lays out the case for judgment, based on what the Whore Church as done not only IN SPITE of His Word, but TO it.
In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa literally lays out the case for judgment, based on what the Whore Church as done not only IN SPITE of His Word, but TO it.
In the process, it is illustrative to see just how much of the ‘rhetorical device’ Yahushua used in the Sermon on the Mount, His very first public address, comes right from this parsha. And how, immediately after He warned about teaching that even “the least of” His commandments can be broken, so many translations have done EXACTLY that with His Words.
From marriage, to money, this is one that goes to the very heart of what is wrong with a nation, and a world, which hates His Word.
Ki Tetzi: “Jonesin’ fer Judgment.” Which commandments have we NOT been taught to break?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/WT-CooH-9-14-24-Ki-Tetzi-Its-SO-NOT-PC-Jonesin-fer-Judgment-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Rise Up Come Down, Jerusalem(Part 2 of Charm School)The haftarah (reading from the Prophets) supplies our study this week, a continuation from "Charm School" of the Torah portion Vaetchanan. It is Isaiah 51:12-52:12. Verses and 1 and 2 supply our question and answer:Does Jerusalem, the Bride, arise at the resurrection or does she descend to be seated (dwell)?YES!First one, then the other.The foreshadowing of the restoration is found a little farther along in Isaiah:It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; but you will be called, “My delight is in her,” and your land, “Married”; for the LORD delights in you, and to Him your land will be married. (Is 62:4)This explains the “New Jerusalem” as Eden above able to once again “marry” the physical Land of Jerusalem and Israel from which she withdrew after the first sin. Once the Land is cleansed, those who could heed the command to “Arise” at the resurrection at the Last Trump will descend adorned with the ornaments of the written and lived Word, and they will be seated, or “dwell” (sheviyah) in the Bride’s renewed intimate Edenic habitation: Then I saw a new [renewed] heaven and a new [renewed] earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Re 21:1-4)Not all who were called will be fully clothed in the garments that allow them to pass into and out of the ”cloud” of New Jerusalem as they minister to the nations and kingdoms of the millennium. Although all were educated by Moses and the Ruach in the cloud in the wilderness, not all obeyed His compassionate mitzvot with joy, and they died either in the wilderness of the exodus from Egypt or the wilderness of the peoples in the last exile (Ezek 20:35). The Cloud expels rebels and practicing sinners. They evaporate in the Light of the Word, not the cloud.Nehemiah explains their royal priestly semi-Edenic journey, reiterating the special garments in a cloud dwelling where the Lamp was the Lamb, the Word of God, and how they ruled and will again rule the peoples from this portable Jerusalem/Temple. (Re 21)“You, in Your great compassion did not forsake them in the wilderness; the pillar of cloud did not leave them by day, to guide them on their way, nor the pillar of fire by night, to light for them the way in which they were to go. You gave Your good Spirit to instruct them, Your manna You did not withhold from their mouth, and You gave them water for their thirst. Indeed, forty years You provided for them in the wilderness, and they were not in want; their clothes did not wear out, nor did their feet swell. You also gave them kingdoms and peoples...” (Ne 9:19-22)The bridal garments are garments of a royal priesthood tried in the wilderness, ready to reign and rule with Messiah Yeshua, the Living Word of the Father. He is Bread, Water, garments of righteousness, and peace that do not wear out, for those royal bridal blessings of eternal life are from the Garden above. The feet don't swell because those feet are not exactly touching the natural earth after Jerusalem once again is married to the earth below. The Bride is adorned with beautiful mitzvot full of the Light of the Torah and the Lamp of the Word.That is the Light with which they also will light the world when they have come to rest in the Holy City:“I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Re 21:22-27)The Lamb is the Word of God, full of light that calls the Bride to arise and shine, for her Light has come. She also wears garments of glory, the 24 garments of the Word that light the way for the nations. Gates that never close have no threat from the Beast, who always strives to carry burdens of commerce through the beautiful gates of glorious Jerusalem. You. You, Jerusalem below, are adorning yourself to arise, to prepare for your role as Jerusalem who will descend and dwell on earth to serve Adonai.“You shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty.” (Ex 28:2)Each of the eight garments of the Kohen Gadol atoned for different sins, depending ona) the sincerity of Israel's repentance +b) pure intention of the Kohen Gadol.1. The Tzitz had the power to atone for brazenness, as it was worn on the Kohen Gadol's forehead, Metzach is synonymous with brazenness.2. The Mitznefet had the power to atone for haughtiness. It raises the Kohen Gadol's height when wearing it.3. The Ephod had the power to atone for idolatry.4. The Chosen Mishpat had the power to atone for miscarriages of justice.5. The Me'il Techelet had the power to atone for public slander, as the golden bells which were attached to its hem made noise while the Kohen Gadol walked, a reminder to guard our tongues.6. The Ketonet Tashbetz had the power to atone for certain capital crimes.7. The Avnet had the power to atone for sinful thoughts, as it was wrapped around the Kohen's torso from just above his hips to just under his heart, where its end was tucked in.8. The Michnasayim, which cover the Kohen from the waist to above his knees, had the power to atone for sexual misconduct. (The Temple Institute. 2-6-22)Reb Tzadok HaKohen from Lublin writes: “The concept of Shabbat is mentioned twelve times in the Torah, and we know that everything on Shabbat is double, so essentially Shabbat is represented by the number twenty-four. This idea is also reflected in the fact that a bride adorns herself with twenty-four ornaments, and the Shabbat is referred to as the bride. A Torah scholar (familiar with the 24 books of the TANAKH) is akin to Shabbat, and the Priests and Levites were the quintessential Torah scholars of Israel, so it is appropriate that the Priests are referred to as Levites twenty-four times in Scripture.”We are a royal priesthood, adorned with bridal garments more numerous than that of the Kohen HaGadol. If the Kohen HaGadol could die upon serving without all eight garments in place, so we should diligently study and apply the whole Word, lacking nothing. Whom we serve on Shabbat is the sum of those garments.Like the 24 earthly courses of the kohanim and Leviim put on their garments of beauty and glory, we put on 24 garments of the royal priesthood. What “good” are our 24 garments of Yeshua’s righteousness? They shine the Light of truth, exposing sins, leading many to repentance, and atoning for them among the nations of the world where our little tabernacles are scattered...Time permitting, we’ll give practical examples of how the priestly garments provide insights into how we can put on our 24 royal priesthood bridal garments each day to bring the Light of Yeshua to the nations and kingdoms among which we live.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings. Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Parsha “Shoftim,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9) begins with the word “judges,” which His people were to appoint in all their towns. So that they could render “righteous” judgment – essentially a tll.
But that is just the beginning.
John the Baptist was asked (John chapter 1) “Are you The Prophet…?” that Moses spoke of; that prophet “like unto Moses.” But the irony is that the real Salvation of Yah, as His Name attests, has been rejecting by both whoring houses! One because He pointed out their hypocrisy, and the other because He WAS the “prophet like unto Moses,” whom they ‘did away with.’
WARNING: This is another reading you will NOT hear in sun-god-day school. So the fact that His Word is so clear is a big part of the reason why.
ruism – in accord with His Word. And, “justice, JUSTICE, you shall pursue!” too.
Only this world doesn’t. Not even close. And that is why this reading should be such a jarring “eye-opener.”
The Erev Shabbat reading literally lays out the case for how “justice” has been turned upside-down:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SSM-9-6-24-Shoftim-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa lays out some contemporary examples of exactly why “justice, justice” is the antithesis of what is actually being ‘pursued’ in a world, and especially a system of “judges and officers” that not only reject the rule of law, but YHVH in particular.
And He has quite a bit to say about that as we
Shoftim: “Justice, JUSTICE!” But they hate that “prophet like unto Moses,” even more
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SSM-7-Sept-2024-Shoftim-Justice-Justice-inverted-and-That-Prophet-did-NOT-do-away-With-His-Torah-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Parsha “Re’eh,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17) begins with the word rendered “See!” – or, BEHOLD!” And what follows is what Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship calls a “Capsule Synopsis why WHY the Whore Church is STILL in Exile.”
The Erev Shabbat reading begins to explain ‘why’:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SSM-8-30-24-Re-eh-teaching-podcast-x.mp3In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa makes the case that this single parsha is central to understand why it is that BOTH the ‘Whore Church’ and ‘Whore Synagogue’ were sent into exile, and “scattered”, just as YHVH said they would be. Last week, we were told bluntly that men were not to “add to” or “subtract from” His Word; they have made whole religions out of it instead.
This week, that commandment is repeated, and He reminds us of so much more that we have simply been LIED to about.
WARNING: This is what you will NOT hear in sun-god-day school. It has ALWAYS mattered; now more than ever!
“Re’eh: BEHOLD! A Capsule Synopsis of WHY the Whore Church is STILL in Exile!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WT-CooH-8-31-24-Re-eh-BEHOLD-A-Capsule-Synopsis-of-the-Whore-Church-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Parsha “Ekev,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 7:12 – 11:25) continues the theme of obedience to YHVH, beginning with a promise, that BECAUSE (ekev) you hearken (hear and obey) to these ‘mishpatim’ (ordinance) and keep them and DO them…then…
And it is central to His Instruction (torah) for us, which has not changed.
The Erev Shabbat reading not only makes what that means clear, but should “raise some eyebrows” as well. Because we’ve been lied to about what that means.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SSM-8-23-24-Ekev-teaching-podcast-x.mp3In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa makes the case that there is FAR more to the instruction here than many of us have been led to believe. Last week, we were told bluntly that men were not to “add to” or “subtract from” His Word; they have made whole religions out of it instead.
This time we take a look at the consequences.
And what He says to do about it.
WARNING: When Scripture uses Strong Language, we do Him a dis-service to soft-pedal that Truth. Mark does not.
“Ekev: He Said He Would Hide His Face!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WT-CooH-8-24-24-Ekev-Hiding-His-Face-and-Return-to-Him-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Charm SchoolHave you ever seen something in a Judaica catalog or shop that made you scratch your head? Symbols are always a hot topic in our circles, and often the discussions are full of extremes. In our quest to be willingly obedient to the Word of Adonai, sometimes it's obvious we never went to charm school. Or charm and symbol school.Frank Houtz, may his memory be for blessing, did an excellent job addressing fears of idolatory in words and symbols in his lecture, “Discerning Between Good and Evil” (2010), and he presents a reliable hermeneutic to identify customs that are indeed evil from those that mean exactly what those who use them believe them to mean. In Creation Gospel Workbook Six, we address some of the controversy: “The Magen David (Star of David) is a good example of symbolism that has been appropriated by some pagan religions. Because of that, some believers with a poor hermeneutical skill set have averred that the Magen David is a pagan symbol. Without adding anything but common sense to Houtz’ insightful, careful work with the subject, the obvious questions are, “What is the symbol’s primary source, and what did the Magen David mean to the people who began to identify with it?”If pagan cultures at some time appropriated the symbol, it has no bearing on what it originally meant to those who began to use it, for the Fourth Day of Creation of sun, moon, and stars antedated by far any pagan identification. I’m sure no Christian wants Christianity judged by the number of cross necklaces worn in mug shot photos or at lewd, filthy concerts. Just because trees have been worshiped as gods and used as pagan symbols doesn't mean we can have trees in our yards.The symbol of the Magen David is accepted universally as a symbol of the Jewish people. It is not so much an ancient Israelite symbol, but more cultural and ethnic identity. At this point in history, it is the observance of the Biblical moedim that sets apart Israel from the heathen nations, making the association of the Magen David with paganism antithetical. The Jewish people have long been associated by other nations both with the moedim of Scripture as well as the symbol of the Magen David. Monotheism. (Scroll down for full communication from Frank)But what about other symbols, like charms? There is a fine line between a symbol of remembrance or identification and believing the symbol itself has power that belongs to the Creator. For instance, in times past, our congregation was accused of worshiping a Torah scroll. No, we respect the Word; it is valuable to us.Now if we marched the scroll down to the local ATM, held it up to the machine and believed it would miraculously spit out $10,000 every time, there's a bronze serpent problem.Twenty-four ornaments of the Bride are based on the richness that Israel used to seduce her lovers instead of her Bridegroom who gave them to her:“...and the LORD will make their foreheads bare. In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, headbands, crescent ornaments, dangling earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle chains, sashes, perfume boxes, amulets, finger rings, nose rings, festal robes, outer tunics, cloaks, money purses, hand mirrors, undergarments, turbans and veils. Now it will come about that instead of sweet perfume there will be putrefaction; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of well-set hair, a plucked-out scalp...” (Is 3:18-24 NASB)In the Shabbat livestream, we’ll examine the spiritual significance of each of these bridal ornaments, but one of them, the amulet, is a head-scratcher. That’s primarily because we’re only familiar with the corruption of the symbol, not the Scriptural, Hebrew meaning of it that makes it an ornament fit for a bride.amulets [lehashim] ?????? a whisper, i.e. by implication, (in a good sense) a private prayer, (in a bad one) an incantation; concretely, an amulet:—charmed, earring, enchantment, orator, prayer.Are they forbidden magic and superstition, or is there a more ancient use?The variety of necklace-type adornments links the wording of how to lay tefillin to wearing a pendant, amulet, necklace, etc.My son, keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. Keep my commandments and live, and my teaching as the apple of your eye.Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. (Pr 7:1-3)My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments; for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. (Pr 3:1-4)The above is very much like the description of how Yeshua grew in Scriptures and with people, the exact vertical/horizontal relationship found in the two greatest commandments, love Adonai and love your neighbor. “And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.” (Lk 2:52)My son, observe the commandment of your father and do not forsake the teaching of your mother; bind them continually on your heart; tie them around your neck. When you walk about, they will guide you; when you sleep, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk to you. For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is light; and reproofs for discipline are the way of life... (Pr 6:20-23)A permitted Bridal amulet should have the Word in some form that draws you to hear the voice of the Ruach guiding you and protecting you from sin. The writing is silent, “whispered,” like the Ruach in a still, small voice. Traditionally, Jewish amulets contain a verse of Scripture. Those containing mystical combinations of Hebrew letters are sketchy because of the Scriptural understanding of an amulet’s function: to remind the wearer of Adonai’s protective power. If the wearer doesn’t understand the words or symbols, it is not the thing to wear because it’s missing the mark. Different contexts of lachash, the root of amulet, which is connected to protection from harm:Positive“O LORD, they sought You in distress; they could only whisper a prayer, Your chastening was upon them.” (Is 26:16)“The captain of fifty and the honorable man, the counselor and the expert artisan, and the skillful enchanter.” (Is 3:3)Negative“If the serpent bites before being charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.” (Ecc 10:11)“For behold, I am sending serpents against you, adders, for which there is no charm, and they will bite you,” declares the LORD. (Je 8:17)The Word destroys the venom of the serpent, which is the “trick” of snake charmers. They remove the fangs and venom ducts before training it. If the snake bites before that, it harms. The Bride has no fear of snakebite, for the Word neutralizes venomous lies. The serpent may bite, but it cannot destroy. Shake it off. This enrages the serpent in Revelation.*The context is honorable people, so likely an orator or Scriptural wordsmith who is skilled with writing prayers for amulets.Literally, “master of the tongue”As an ornament of the Bride, an amulet represents a hushed prayer, a reminder of Scripture for protection. The daily prayer, the Amidah, is prayed in a whisper. Although silent, the amulet connects the wearer with the Scriptural prayer. It's fine to wear a necklace or any other jewelry with Scripture or its symbols if it is a reminder of the One who holds the power.Why are amulets associated with protection? If we read the contexts around the Proverbs passages concerning the binding of Torah around the neck or fingers, the promise is that it will “keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress.” (Pr 6:20)Scripture mentions snake charming as the evil example of amulet use. It is not the amulet that will prevent the snake from biting; it is the relationship of the wearer to the Word on the amulet and the One to Whom the prayer is directed. One cannot behave any way one wants and expect the “amulet” of tefillin or a Shema necklace to protect him or her. Snake venom is false doctrine...another reason the 24 ornaments should be completed. The number twenty-four represents the original number of the books of the TANAKH. The more we immerse in the Word, the Son of Elohim, the more protection we have against evil. Using it as a magic charm undercuts the actual use of an amulet, a piece of jewelry that reminds us of our intimate relationship with the Bridegroom and the Word He sent us to bind us to Him. A “hamsa hand” charm can no more prevent evil than not stepping on a crack will preserve our mothers’ backs or pointing a cross at a vampire will keep it away. If there were vampires. Which there is not.Except for vampire bats.There’s those.
Parsha “Vaetchanan,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy 3:23 – 7:11) is, very what might be called the heart of the heart of His Torah, because it includes not only the ‘reiteration’ of the Ten Debarim (Sayings, Words, or ‘commandments’) but also what the Messiah Himself called the “greatest commandment” of all.
First, he Erev Shabbat reading of some of the most central commandments in the Bible:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SSM-8-16-24-Vaetchanan-teaching-podcast-x.mp3In the Sabbath day midrash, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa makes the case that there is FAR more to the instruction here than many of us have been led to believe.
It’s a ‘razor’ that is key to understanding how to discern His Truth from the “lies we have inherited from our fathers.” And a ‘church’ that, all too often, attempts to turn his very Word ‘upside down.’
The deception He warned us about is here. But we can ‘see that your are not deceived.’
WARNING: This is another rather blunt message, because time draws short.
“Vaetchanan: The Razor!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WT-CooH-8-16-24-Vaetchanan-The-Razor-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Dog FoodYour lips, my bride, drip honey;Honey and milk are under your tongue,And the fragrance of your garmentsIs like the fragrance of Lebanon.The Torah, the Word of Adonai, is compared to milk and honey. The more we learn, the more we do. The more we learn, the more we can speak with spiritual intelligence.Midrash Rabbah 4§22 says:If one can make his words pleasing like honey and milk mixed together when he is speaking [under your tongue], then he is fit to say words of Torah [honey drops from your lips]...he must incorporate multiple branches of Torah knowledge in his addresses, like the different tastes of honey and milk mixing together.The "different tastes" can mean incorporating different parts of Scripture into one's words, or it can mean selecting the words to fit the understanding level of the hearers. Incorporating different parts of Scripture in an exhortation or teaching is likened to the twenty-four adornments of the Bride listed in Isaiah. Just as the high priest may not serve if he is missing even one of his eight garments, so the Bride should be well-versed (!) in all of the Word so that she may present them as delicious meals that are both appreciated and digested. The Midrash continues:Before one undertakes to present a reproachful sermon to an audience, he must determine that his message of inspiration and reproof will be so appealing to its recipients that it can potentially turn them around, transforming ‘unclean’ sinners into pure and holy people. Only when one’s sermons meet this ‘milk-and-honey’ standard-when they resonate with the masses and inspire them to repentance-does he have license to give them; otherwise, they are better left unsaid.Anyone who says words of Torah in public, and they are not pleasing to those who hear them is like the bride, who is pleasing to people when under her wedding canopy, it would have been better for him had he not said them. If the audience does not appreciate them, the words of Torah that he is imparting will suffer disgrace. One must ensure that he teaches Torah using the choicest of words, entirely free of inaccuracy or imperfection. A teacher should not teach according to his or her own disappointments, hurts, anger, fears, or grief. Those words will not be beautiful, nor will they move people to repentance. Life experiences inform what we teach, but personal emotions should never be allowed to direct the Word in a way to inflict one's own anger, fear, or disappointment onto the hearers. Those types of tantrums disguised as teaching or preaching bring reproach to the beautiful Word.Additionally, if the teacher is unfamiliar with the whole Word, or the teaching is not in harmony with the whole Word, the teacher will teach inaccurately. This is the danger of fixation on one doctrine. There is another danger as well...Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. (Mt 7:6)While this sounds harsh, look at the Torah clues to Yeshua’s warning. Dogs may eat trafe, or “torn” meat, that which does not meet the criteria of food for the holy community. Such food is not slaughtered precisely, without cruelty, according to high standards. Dogs slaughter and eat their food through strangling and tearing. Yeshua isn't calling people dogs and pigs; he's using the analogy to show how the food offered needs to fit the eater.Pigs do not recognize as valuable what is valuable to humans. They only value what goes into their stomachs. The beautiful pearls of Scripture are not useful to them.It’s important to know your audience or students. Teach over someone’s head, and the time is wasted. Insult their learning level, and the time is wasted. In a mixed audience, try to hit somewhere in the middle. Teach to the students’ needs, yet stretch them to holier places. Challenge with milk and honey until they can consume holy meat without tearing it in the processing.If they are “hogging” on a single doctrine, consider whether the pearls of Torah will be trampled in their pursuit. Their appetites may need to change before the whole Word is appreciated.The prophets often proclaimed the Word to people who didn’t heed their words, nor did they repent. They often tore and trampled the prophets or killed them.On the other hand, a remnant heard. If you are inspired of the Ruach HaKodesh to proclaim the Word, then do so. You might be planting seeds of repentance such as Stephen planted in Paul even as he was being martyred. Stephen’s dying sermon was full bridal adornment, taking the hearers on a TANAKH tour. Peter’s Shavuot sermon moved thousands. We don’t have control over what the hearers do with the Word, whether they will let it encourage them or cause them to repent.The remnant heard and repented, passing along the Scriptures we have today. What is the balance then? Milk and honey, or fiery hellfire diatribes?It’s not that you can’t speak hard words, but how they are delivered. Kindness and truth are intrinsic to the Torah. Truth draws the spirit, while kindness draws the soul. If we disregard the whole person who is listening, our lecturing may reveal a soul sickness within ourselves, not those whom we are “reproving and correcting.” Moses and Aaron paid dearly for “you rebels.” The Israelites weren’t rebelling, they were grieving. When someone says, “It's just the way I feel,” it's all and only about what they feel. Assume that whatever follows will not be balanced with truth or balance. The person is telling us plainly that facts don't matter and he or she has no concern for the object of their words or actions in that situation. He or she is telling the truth about one thing: the person only cares about how he feels.Maniacal social media posting usually gratifies those who are “with” us, distances even more those who aren’t, and confuses others. Such careless dissemination of the Word is only marginally for the benefit of the hearer or reader. It is primarily for the careless, soul-controlled sower worshiping his or her current perceptions.Who knows how much inaccurate “out loud” thinking has dropped into a reader’s or hearer’s heart when we fancy ourselves a Stephen being martyred for truth? The Word is beautiful. Delicious. Fragrant. Pleasing. It is the teacher's job to instruct so that the beauty of the Word is imparted.It is also important for the student to find a teacher who has the ability to impart the Word in a way that is milk, honey, and eventually, meat to the soul. Not every teacher fits every student. If the teacher's delivery doesn't click, then it's no reason to tear or trample the sower. Find a teacher able to click and coach into holier spaces of service.A few weeks ago, Ulpan-Or Hebrew Newsletter wrote:The Hebrew word for donkey (in general) is "khamor” - ????.Khamor also refers to matter / material / clay - ????.Both are derived from the same Hebrew root - ???In Exodus the verse states:???? ??????? ?????? ?????????, ????? ?????? ?????????, ???????????, ??????? ??? ????? ????????, ??????When you see the donkey of your enemy being overburdened by its burdens, don’t ignore it. It’s incumbent upon you to help relieve its burden.You observe "khamor", meaning - your physical body and the coarse materialism of life – and you see that it is your enemy, opposing all things spiritual, and feeling overburdened by the sublime responsibilities of the soul. You may then think of ignoring your body so that it does not distract you from fulfilling your calling. You may even want to punish the body through asceticism and self-affliction.Says the Torah: No! You are responsible to support, refine and elevate the material aspect of your being - the "khamor", even if it appears to be your enemy. Thus, our Torah portion reveals the following principle:At times, when we are unable to hear the voice of the spirit within us, we must listen to our material body’s voice. (summarized from Ulpan-Or Newsletter, July 19, 2024)Throwing harsh words into the ether is like screaming to make yourself heard in the crowd around the Tower of Bavel. Throwing harsh words at believers without understanding their physical and emotional state is not something a teacher should do. Like the Israelites complaining about the water, there may be more to know about the situation before firing off Word canons.Most likely, the fiery words of Torah are falling on uncomprehending ears. Another stick thrown on their donkey. A trampled pearl. Torn beyond recognition. Shouldn't they hear the Word as milk and honey, as truth to the spirit AND kindness to the soul?This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God... (Ja 1:19-20) If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? (Ja 2:15-16)Sometimes what the body and soul need are milk and honey. Nurture a disciple, know them, and form a relationship. Just as a mom knows what her children can eat or not at each stage of growth, the teacher selects the Words. No tearing or strangling necessary when the students grow into appeciating solid, holy meat fit for a nation of royal priests.
The annual cycle reading for this week begins a new Book, and the final Book, in the Torah, or Books of Moses, and it also marks the final chapter, and month of his life. It is also something of a valedictory, in that it is a speech which is both his last address, as well as a summary of what has come before, and more.
Parsha “Devarim,” (Devarim or Deuteronomy chapters 1 through 3) is, very literally HaDebarim, or The Words, that Moshe spoke to ‘kol Israel,’ as they prepared to enter the land.
The English name for the Book suggests that it is a ‘second reading’ or summary, of the Torah, or Instruction delivered through Moses, but many students of His Word have suggested that the structure of the Book is that of a covenant treaty, between a King and His vassals.
And this parsha lays the groundwork.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SSM-8-9-24-Devarim-teaching-podcast-x.mp3As Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship has often noted, the single Book of Deuteronomy itself is not only recognized as the foundation for the English, later American, Common Law, but is also THE most quoted reference by the Founders and the ‘Committees of Correspondence’ in our founding era.
Is this a Covenant that still applies to His people? His Remnant must understand.
WARNING: This is a blunt message, because time draws short – and strong language.
“Debarim: Are We The ‘Remnant’?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WT-CooH-8-10-24-Devarim-Covenant-Treaty-BE-the-Remnant-CooH-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
This week, the regular reading cycle includes a “double portion,” Matot/Masei (Numbers 30:2 through the End of the Book)
========== More detail to be added later ==================
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/SSM-8-2-24-Double-parsha-Matot-Masei-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3 “Matot/Masei: Real Authority – the Answer is 42 – and it’s ALL too MUCH!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/WT-CooH-8-3-24-Double-parsha-Matot-Masei-Its-TOO-Much-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
The Filling StationWhen I was around four years old, my aunt borrowed my dad’s work truck, probably to carry a load of tomatoes to market. If you’ve never had a freshly-picked southwest Arkansas-grown Bradley tomato, you don’t know what you’re missing. My Aunt Frances took me along, and she pulled into a filling station to get gas. For those of you too young to know what a filling station is, it’s a lot like a gas station, but there’s someone there to pump the gas, often dressed in a uniform. He checked the tire pressure and cleaned the windshield while the gas pumped. Eventually, they called that “Full service.” Back then, it was the only kind of service. The attendant asked my Aunt Frances what kind of gas she wanted. My aunt wasn’t sure what Dad used, so she asked me, “Hollisa, what kind of gas does your daddy put in this truck?”Happy to have the right answer to a very adult question, I replied, “He gets Fillerupregular.” Nowadays, I suppose it’s even more important to select the right kind of fuel for different kinds of engines. In the Kingdom of Heaven, often disputes arise about grace vs works because we are pouring the wrong kind of fuel. The fuel is wrong because the question is wrong. The question is wrong because of a misunderstanding of the fundamentals of salvation, grace, obedience, and holiness. Like my four-year-old understanding of gasoline, often we simply parrot what we’ve heard someone say, someone older or wiser than we. We memorize the answer before we understand the words. There is a reason two cheruvim guard the entrance to the Garden. Death cannot dwell there. Sin falls under the legal purview of death. Rebellion and transgression sins transfer a person under the custody of death. To allow a sinner to enter the holier spaces of the Presence is to consign them to the custody of death. It’s like trying to drop a quarter into the slot only big enough for a dime. The way to the most powerful dwelling of the Divine Presence grows narrower as we walk with Adonai. Salvation begins the walk, but sanctification is a lifelong process of letting the Ruach HaKodesh shape us and strip away impairments that might delay our ability to stand and serve in holier places of the Presence. Adonai does not want us foolishly scampering into a holier place than that for which our obedience has prepared us. Just as there is glory to glory, life to life, growth to growth, so there are different kinds of “death.” Death is a matter of separation. The Mishkan drew levels of holiness in the Camp of Israel. The pattern of the kohanim illustrates how a nation of priests should approach the holy spaces of ministry in holy garments so that they are not cut off...You shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. You shall speak to all the skillful persons whom I have endowed with the spirit of wisdom, that they make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister as priest to Me. These are the garments which they shall make:..(Ex 28:2-4) ... “They shall be on Aaron and on his sons when they enter the tent of meeting, or when they approach the altar to minister in the holy place, so that they do not incur guilt and die.” (v. 43)Even the Kohen HaGadol could die from his service!It doesn't mean he wasn't saved from the second death, but that he couldn't fit into that holy space in disobedience.Rashi comments to the passage above: “When they enter the Tent of Meeting...and die.” See that you have learned from this verse that a Kohen who performs the service lacking any of the Kohen’s garments in subject to death.” This is a death “at the hands of Heaven,” not execution by the courts. It may or may not have an immediate visible effect to the natural eye.Rashi to Ex 28:41 “With them you shall dress Aaron your brother and his sons with him; you shall anoint them [with anointing oil], and you shall fill their hand, and you shall sanctify them, and they shall be Kohanim...” “Any filling of the hands in Scripture is an expression of inauguration when one enters upon a matter to be acknowledge as holding it from that day on that is called filling of the hands...filling the hands connotes taking full possession of something, e.g., a position of authority.”Even though Aaron’s sons Nadav and Avihu had died in a holier place of the Presence than their obedience and level of consecration permitted, nevertheless, Aaron was required to stay in the Mishkan because the anointing oil was upon him. The authority and responsbility had been poured into his hands.As Kohen HaGadol, his consecration had prepared him for the realm of holiness, the incense service, for which his sons had not yet been authorized. Obedience and consecration fills our hands with the authority of the Holy One to serve in the holier places, and unlike the rest of Israel, Aaron was limited in how he could grieve. The anointing prepares us for the suffering we will do in order to “fit” in those holier places of the Presence. How does this enrich our understanding of Boaz’ statement to Ruth not to appear before Naomi “empty-handed” in the House of Bread, Beit Lechem?Filling our hands with offerings when we approach the holy places such as Mishkan, Mikdash, or even our local congregation, is an affirmation of our position as a Kingdom of Priests willing to serve in the holier spaces. Juxtaposed with these extensive explanations of the Kohen HaGadol’s garments in Exodus 28 is a comprehensive list of oil-infused matzah “lechem,” “challot,” and “rakik” in Exodus 29:2-3.Ruth was engaging in an act of consecration on the threshing floor of Beit Lechem. Boaz acknowledged her clean garments, her anointing, her request for a holier place of the Presence of Adonai. A marriage should create a holy place for the family to thrive in the service of Adonai. Most likely, Boaz had been longing for this moment of pouring into her hands this promise of a closer place in his home, extending his authority into her hands to minister on his behalf, encouraging Naomi of restoration.This should inspire us to never have a garment lacking as we await the Bridegroom. Let us never lack for oil to anoint our gifts of “poor man’s bread” or for oil of anointing on our heads and hands as royal priests of the Kingdom. As we grow in obedience, we will grow in respect to our salvation and step into the holier places attained only through service and suffering for the sake of the Word. What if we despair of family or friends who don’t seem to be preparing to stand in the holier places of the Presence?“Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” (Ro 14:4)While it is important to pray for the unsaved, yes, often the saved are not interested in dwelling in holier places in eternity. Maybe they are so consumed with their own interests that we doubt their salvation. The good news is that there are many realms of holiness, just like the Israelite camp. Although many servants may not be able to stand in the Temple, there are less holy spaces that they can be made to stand where the brightness of the Divine Presence will not bring about the second death. Yeshua taught in Luke 14:7-11 that we shouldn’t make assumptions about one another’s “place” in the Kingdom, but to remain humble servants:And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them, “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him, and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place. But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”If we strive to obey the Word, let it not be in order to gain a reward of a higher position over others, but for the intimacy of holier places to serve and linger near the “livelier” realms of holiness.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Most people probably remember this story based on the name of the character who talked to YHVH more than the King for whom the parsha [“Balak” (Numbers 22:2-25:9)] is named.
More memorable, still, is “Balaam’s Talking Ass” – who isn’t actually named in story at all – but has registered as one of the most colorful, even humourous, vignettes in Scripture.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading of the story itself, and the ‘cliff-hanger’:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/SSM-7-19-24-Balak-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Most of the studies of this portion tend to focus either on the blessing(s) given by the most prominent, but arguably pagan, ‘seer’ of his day over the mixed multitude of Israel, or on the actions at the end of this part of the story by Pinchas (aka Phineas in most English Bibles) for which he was given the “Covenant of Peace,” by YHVH.
But Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests that this year, in particular, it’s what Bilaam did to get himself killed that merits a deeper look.
Because it should hit very, VERY close to home today.
The Sabbath Day midrash:
“Balak: Was Bilaam (aka ‘Balaam’) the Bill Clinton of his day?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/WT-CooH-7-20-24-Balak-Balak-Bilaam-the-ancient-Bill-Klinton-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
That's not like you.He wasn't himself.She's having a bad day.Ever say that to or about someone?After the beloved Miriam's death, the gracious Moses and Aaron go missing:And the people of Israel, the whole congregation, came into the wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there. Now there was no water for the congregation.And they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron. And the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Would that we had perished when our brothers perished before the Lord! Why have you brought the assembly of the Lord into this wilderness, that we should die here, both we and our cattle? And why have you made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is no place for grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” Then Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them and give drink to the congregation and their cattle.” And Moses took the staff from before the Lord, as he commanded him.Then Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels: shall we bring water for you out of this rock?” And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his staff twice, and water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe in me, to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” These are the waters of Meribah, where the people of Israel quarreled with the Lord, and through them he showed himself holy. (Nu 20:1-13)When Moses and Aaron took the message to the congregation, did they transmit the Glory of the Presence? Was it consistent with Kadesh, a place of testing in holiness?When they delivered the message, did Israel see what they saw in the Tent of Meeting?In Chukkat, there are three examples of the “sanctification of the Name” to witnesses through the death of a righteous person:1)The death of MiriamThe death decrees of2)Moses and3)Aaron.Before that, the deaths of Nadav and Avihu...Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the LORD spoke, saying, ‘I will be sanctified by those who are close to Me, and before all the people I will be honored.’ So Aaron, therefore, kept silent.” (Le 10:3)When a righteous person is judged or simply passes away peacefully, it definitely creates awe, mourning, and fear in those who see or hear it, thus sanctifying the Name.But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Since you did not believe in Me to sanctify Me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore, you will not bring this congregation to the land which I have given them.” They are the waters of strife, where the children of Israel contended with the LORD, and He was sanctified through them. (Nu 20:12-13 Artscroll)As a result, the trio were all removed from the congregation before entering the Promised Land. Missing.A garden locked is my sister, my bride,A rock garden locked, a spring sealed up. (So 4:12)A hint to our missing persons, Miriam, Moses, and Aaron, may be found in the “eyes of the people,” the Bride being tried in the wilderness:“Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water.” (v 8)“...to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel...” (v 12)Einayim (pl), ein, "eye," or "sight" also means a spring, a fountain. Had Moses and Aaron spoken tenderly to the sealed “rock garden,” it may have released the holy spiritual power of faith, hope, and love within the Bride. Instead, they scolded angrily, and it released only natural water. This did not really help the congregation through the test, only pointed out their shortcomings.Nothing has changed in our Exodus story at this point. Israel is the Bride being tested according to the mitzvot, particularly the Ten Words they agreed to at Har Sinai:“You shall remember all the way which the LORD your God has led you in the wilderness these forty years, that He might humble you, testing you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.” (Dt 8:2)In this week’s Torah portion, we can find tests of at least five of the first six Words:First Commandment (Exodus 20:2)I am the Lord Your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.Second Commandment (Exodus 20:3-6)You shall have no other gods beside Me.Yet, Moses and Aaron say, “Shall we bring forth water for you out of this rock?”Third Commandment (Exodus 20:7)You shall not take the name of the Lord Your God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that takes His name in vain [falsely, in vanity, in emptiness]Moses and Aaron's words are not exactly a vow, but a violation of the spirit in which the message was received. It was passed on to the people in a spirit of anger, not holiness. “And the glory of the Lord appeared to them, and the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the staff, and assemble the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and tell the rock before their eyes to yield its water. So you shall bring water out of the rock for them...” In other words, Moses and Aaron, “do it like this...” in a spirit of glorious assurance just as you're experiencing it in the Tent of the Assembly.Fourth Commandment (Exodus 20:8-11)Remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy.We’ll come back to this one.Fifth Commandment (Exodus 20:12)Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord God gives you.“Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron's sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing.” (Ex 15:20) “You rebels...”Miriam was a mother in Israel, a prophetess, and the congregation needed to mourn her and honor her memory. Instead, Moses calls them "rebels," a play-on word to Miriam's name [Hamorim-Miryam]. As a result, they did not progress to the Land.?????????--???????Sixth Commandment (Exodus 20:13)You shall not murder.“Death and life are in the hand of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.” (Pr 18:21) “You rebels...” The text implies that the water stopped because Miriam died. The people were grieving more than just the loss of water, but Moses and Aaron, likely exhausted from grief themselves and the weight of leadership, went missing that day. They murdered the congregation's reputation by calling them rebels when the Holy One knew it was a grief and glory problem, not a rebellion. They were accused with Moses and Aaron's own shortcoming that day.Maybe the simplest explanation is found in the beauty associated with the Tried Bride...Your lips, my bride, drip honey;Honey and milk are under your tongue,And the fragrance of your garmentsIs like the fragrance of Lebanon. (So 4:11)Torah is milk and honey; it should be pleasant to those who hear it. The Bride's fragrance is that of Lebanon, the "bones" of the Temple structure. It houses the Presence and glory of Adonai. The words spoken to the Bride of Israel should have comforted them with their pleasant encouragement and released the fragrance of Adonai's glorious Presence.Midrash Rabbah 4§22: “Anyone who says words of Torah in public, and they are not pleasing to those who hear them is:Like the fine flour that floats on top of the sieve, it would have been better for him had he not said them.Like the bride, who is pleasing to people when under her wedding canopy, it would have been better for him had he not said them.If the audience does not appreciate them, the words of Torah that he is imparting will suffer disgrace.One must ensure that he teaches Torah using the choicest of words, entirely free of inaccuracy or imperfection.The midrash is explaining that if the teaching is not in harmony with the whole Word, the teacher will teach inaccurately, not discerning the hearts of those listening. Moses and Aaron needed to bring the whole glorious experience they had in the Tent of Meeting to the people whose hearts were grieving. Assurance of help coming. By omitting it, this test in the wilderness brought disgrace to Israel, especially Moses and Aaron.Fourth Commandment (Exodus 20:8-11)Remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy...Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.Where is this in the story of the rock? It is in the equivalency of expression in holiness. Even as we are in the “wilderness of the peoples” seeking to draw close to the Presence of Adonai, so He has provided us the cooperative means just as He provided a Tent of Meeting to the Bride in the wilderness...You shall keep My sabbath is equivalent to reverencing the sanctuary.Our test in the wilderness of the peoples is to keep the Shabbat! As the Levitical priesthood guarded the holiness of the Mishkan and Mikdash, so the royal priesthood guards the sanctuary of holiness by creating a place of assembly in the Presence of Adonai so that we are filled with His glory to pass on to those in need.You shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. You shall speak to all the skillful persons whom I have endowed with the spirit of wisdom, that they make Aaron’s garments to consecrate him, that he may minister as priest to Me. These are the garments which they shall make:..(Ex 28:2-4) ... “They shall be on Aaron and on his sons when they enter the tent of meeting, or when they approach the altar to minister in the holy place, so that they do not incur guilt and die.” (v. 43)Rashi: “When they enter the Tent of Meeting...and die.” See that you have learned from this verse that a Kohen who performs the service lacking any of the Kohen’s garments in subject to death.” This is a death “at the hands of Heaven,” not execution by the courts. Leaders and priests are tested to see if they will uphold the holiness of Adonai; so is His royal priesthood. If the priests are lacking a garment, they suffer a kind of death different from a typical death. Likewise, the royal priesthood will be tested for her bridal garments. She will be tested for the Ten Words to which she agreed. She should lack nothing faith supplies for her beauty.As Boaz tested Ruth, and as The Holy One tested Israel in the wilderness as a Bride, so we are tested in the wilderness of the nations, “abroad”:To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings. Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (Ja 1:2-4)It is believed that the manna was provided in Moses’ merit and the pillar of cloud in Aharon’s merit. The water came from the Rock in Miriam’s merit.The three siblings operated as a unit. Although the para aduma was burned in the second year in the wilderness for use in the Mishkan, the Torah portion inserts it in Chukkat, drawing the connection between the purifying water of the ashes of the red heifer and Miriam’s life, which helped to purify Israel. In this test, perhaps Moses and Aaron could have helped the Bride release the faith Miriam modeled for them, not simply to give them, but to teach them to operate their gifts from within themselves. Moses and Aaron were to speak, not strike, the rock to release its water. Who knows if the whole congregation could have learned from their example to release Garden words with faith and kindness?Sometimes we need, “Suck it up, Buttercup.”Sometimes we need, “Words of life and healing are within you...release it.” When we grieve over a missing person or opportunity, we are vulnerable. We may complain, lash out, or go missing ourselves. Chukkat is the story of the whole community. What happens when it is not the leaders who are missing, but the members of the congregation?Therefore, if the whole church assembles together and all speak in tongues, and ungifted men or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are mad? But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all; the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so he will fall on his face and worship God, declaring that God is certainly among you. What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. (1 Co 14:23-26)The Holy One is sanctified in the eyes of unbelievers when ALL contribute to the assembly. There are different kinds of prophecy, but all involve a telling or affirmation of the Word, which convicts, heals, provokes to repentance, encourages, comforts...because it is manifest through gifts, it is exactly what the grieving, exhausted, or rebellious heart needs to hear. If, like Moses and Aaron had a bad day grieving for their sister, a leader goes missing on Shabbat, a royal priesthood can stand in the gap even though they may also be grieving. Their willing presence directs attention to Heaven and releases pure, clean water for the needs at hand.It is a Bridal test of released, purifying waters. The words we speak in the assembly should be milk and honey: purifying, edifying, provoking to repentance, comforting, healing, encouraging, inspiring joy.When leaders or congregants go missing, the Bride has a hard day of testing. What is worse than a Bride who dies trying? One who never tried dying.At least Moses, Aaron, Nadav, and Avihu died serving. Our presence on Shabbat invites the holy Presence to dwell among us. It honors Him, not our emotion of the day or our purposes. He will be sanctified when someone goes missing, one way or another.So on those days when I'm not quite myself yet, but I'm not anyone else either, that's a day to speak less as I serve, as Aaron remained silent about Nadav and Avihu. Let the assembly step in and release pure water.Let us honor the Holy One in the assembly, using His gifts just as we received them so that they become glory to His Bride.
Parsha “Chukat” (Numbers chapters 19 through 22:1) is, in at least one way, the second parsha in a sequence that arguably has to do with “rebellion.” Although in a very different way.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/SSM-7-12-24-Chukat-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash —
“Chukat: Meribah – Mara – Contention – and ‘I Blame Moses’ “
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/WT-CooH-7-13-24-Chukat-Meribah-Mara-and-I-Blame-Moses-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
A Tried BrideIn Creation Gospel Workbook Five Volume Four (Bamidbar), students are challenged with the following exercise:Draw a circle on a sheet of paper, but don’t close it. Inside write all the gifts, abilities, and characteristics that you KNOW are completely you. Don’t write what you’d like to be or do, but what you already know describes you. Let the circle sit for a few days or even weeks. Add or remove as necessary. It is okay to consult close friends or family who know you well. When you’re satisfied that what’s inside that circle describes what can be definitively known about you, close the circle. This simple exercise helps us to explain the problem in the Torah portion Korach this week:Therefore you and all your company are gathered together against the LORD; but as for Aaron, who is he that you grumble against him? (Nu 16:11) The leading administrators from the tribes of Reuven and Levi became jealous and bitter against Moses and Aaron. They are influencers of their generation. Moses reminds them that they were each given important leadership roles and service in the Body of the their future Messiah, but for some reason they became angry with Adonai; however, Moses and Aaron were the physical scapegoats for their jealousy. Moses wants to know why they were picking on Aaron. Who was he but an assigned agent of the Holy One? Authority comes from Heaven, not personal ambition or the ability to influence people. Aaron was a man walking in obedience to his gifts and calling; he was walking in the Way. When a disciple walks in The Way of obedience to Adonai, then he walks in a power of the Ruach HaKodesh that threatens the satan. Aaron was walking in the power of THE NAME. He was operating to the best of his ability in the gifts and abilities he’d been given to intercede for Israel. We saw his Divine gift early in the story when he met Moses and willingly interceded as a speaker for Moses when Moses was still struggling to walk in his own gift of administration...which he'd learned early in the house of Pharaoh, then abandoned for a time while he learned shepherding in the wilderness.The simple circle warmup exercise above was taken from a rabbi who was teaching on confusion and doubt. It is better to inventory one’s strengths and weaknesses early in a journey than to leave the path littered with ill-fitting armor and unrealistic dreams. In this context, the exercise points out where Korach and his assembly, and we as well, covet and enter spaces and places not apportioned by HaShem. Once the circle is closed, spend all your effort developing what’s inside it, never what is outside it. This is your portion. If something else will be added later, it will grow from what is inside the circle, not what is outside. The warmup exercise of drawing the circle is a way of helping disciples avoid doubt and confusion as to their roles in the Body of Messiah, families, work, etc. Every disciple must build the “name” or reputation and deeds uniquely apportioned to him in this world. The writer of Proverbs acknowledges that a Godly balance is desired in the portion: Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is my portion… (Pr 30:8)The Father knows how to apportion His gifts to His children. He supplies food and water inside the circle, like the Garden of Eden. The difficulty for most of us is that we don’t want to close the circle. We want to keep our options open so we can be or have more or be responsible for less. This brings us back to Shavuot and the story of Boaz and Ruth. Once Boaz realizes who Ruth is, he doesn’t react exactly as we’d expect him to. Yes, he invites her to his table, makes sure she gleans more with less effort, and she’s protected in his field. What he doesn’t do is lavish gifts or an all-expenses paid new home and car. Or donkey. He doesn’t woo her with expensive gifts. If he is such a close relative, and we know that from the first time he laid eyes on her he was attracted, why not roll out the red carpet?Even as she sweats to glean in his field, Boaz and the whole city know this about Ruth's name, her reputation:“Now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you whatever you ask, for all my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence." (Ru 3:11)Boaz wants to see if she would be content with her portion. Having been Divinely guided to his field, would she be content in it and grow into maturity with him, or would she seek a faster way to the top outside his authority? Would she follow the reaping crowd to new fields? This was the testing of the future bride as the testing of the Bride in the wilderness. Korach and the other leaders had the potential to build within their assigned positions. Had they applied the energy of coveting Aaron and Moses’ positions into developing their own, imagine what a blessing they would have been to Israel. They failed the test of the Tenth Word:Tenth Commandment (Exodus 20:17) You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, nor his wife, his man-servant, his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is your neighbor’s [in order to steal it].Boaz tried Ruth to see if she had any residue of covetousness, a rebellion against her portion. And then, Boaz demonstrates he also follows the principle of authority by refusing to “steal” Ruth from a man who had a stronger legal claim to her and the property:“Now it is true I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. Remain this night, and when morning comes, if he will redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to redeem you, then I will redeem you, as the LORD lives. Lie down until morning.” (Ru 3:12-13)And Ruth waited for the result. Boaz would do what she couldn't. Yes, working within one’s circle takes longer, but the result is less confusion and doubt in the Body and Bride of Messiah. Today we struggle with so many people who are adept with technology beyond their sense of responsibility to the Body of Messiah. They are called “influencers,” and they love to gather a crowd. Because the goal is to influence and gather, not to build and gather, they daily subvert the work of local congregations. Those congregations provide face-to-face opportunities to explore the Word, an opportunity to follow the model of Yeshua by physically attending a congregation each Shabbat, and by gathering at the feasts. The local leadership knows the sheep by name and reputation: when they hurt, when they need help, and when they triumph. ?They are not driven by a single doctrine, which often contributes to feelings of self-righteousness among those crowded around the influencer. The local pastor or rabbi wants to build and feed the flock on healthy fields and pastures where they can grow within the circle of their portion on a balanced diet, not the Sugar-Pops of the latest "wow."Influencers gobble up “likes” and statements of affirmation. Some of them even thrive on negative feedback…I suppose they think negative attention is better than no attention. Attention is their food, a feeling of power. This is covetousness, not of a good gift, but often in order to steal the attention of the flock and plant “grumbles.” Coveting a good thing is a good thing, but not to the point we “steal” from someone else’s place in the Body:And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues. All are not apostles, are they? All are not prophets, are they? All are not teachers, are they? All are not workers of miracles, are they? All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they? But earnestly desire the greater gifts. (1 Co 12:28–31)Yes, desire the greater gifts, but allow them to grow out of the circle of gifts Adonai has placed within us. A greater gift must stand the test of the wilderness. Influencers know how to gather a crowd, but the question is whose authority will they trample and steal to achieve their goals? How many flocks will they scatter? The attention-gobblers might take a lesson from Korach and his band. The average Israelite may be left standing in doubt, but the Ruach HaKodesh is not confused. The single-doctrine attention-gobblers might even pull people with completely different agendas into the same demonstration or challenge to authority, but Korach's family and the Reubenites, if successful in their power play, would have soon turned on each other. In the end, they both thought they deserved the authority. They certainly wouldn't have shared it as they demanded Moses and Aaron do!The Boaz and Ruth example shows us the discipline of hard work and patience that establishes a spiritual legacy passed on to children. We can be gobbled up by the wilderness, or we can diligently serve the community in the wilderness so that we become a community in the Land of Promise.A tried Bride.Circle closed.
Parsha “Shelach Lekha” (Numbers chapters 13 through 15) begins with a story that is often just called “The Spies,” because that might be sufficient to remind us what happened. Which is true, and because the story is also truly tragic, but – as is usually also true – there’s “more to the story.”
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-6-28-24-Shelach-Lekha-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash will probably upset a lot of people. But, of course, so will what’s coming.
“Shelach Lekha: Anointed? Or ‘Elected’? And by Who?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/WT-CooH-6-29-24-Shelach-Lekha-Anointed-or-Elected-and-by-Who-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
A Wedding of WordsPart TwoRecap: Each year, it is traditional to read the scroll of Ruth at Shavuot. We might say the three scrolls of Ruth, Esther, and Song of Songs are the Bridal Scrolls of return from exile.What happened to Israel in leaving Egypt at Pesach is what happened to Ruth in leaving Moab and arriving at the House of Bread (Beit Lechem) at Pesach. The Israelites left Egypt as strangers there before she became a Bride, and Ruth left Moab to become a stranger inside the gate of Judah before she became part of the Bride.Israel and Ruth moved to holier places in their journeys.The setting of Ruth’s story is Beit Lechem, the House of Bread, where Judah was recovering from the famine. The wilderness also was a place of miraculous, Heavenly Bread and Living Water. A place of covering, anointing, preparation, and clean clothes for a nation of priests. The wilderness was where the Bride was purified with the Torah as she walked as she walked after her Bridegroom, picking up what He dropped for her each morning.Let’s see if there are wilderness template parallels in the story of Ruth:The Ten Words to the Brideat Shavuot, Mount Sinai,Via Moshe, Friend of the Bridegroombecome Ten Witnesses to the Bride’s purity and offspring.If what happened to Israel in the wilderness at Mount Sinai happened to Ruth, then we should be able to find the Ten Words at work in the Megillat Ruth. Last week, we found the first four commandments. This week, we'll find the remaining six:Fifth Commandment (Ex 20:12)Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord God gives you.Ruth honors her father and mother in a way that many have had to when their parents were idolators and habitual sinners...she doesn't do what they would want, but what her mother "in Torah" would want. Her disobedience to her parents to honor her Heavenly Father is the only way to honor her earthly parents.All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth and came to a people that you did not previously know. (Ru 2:11)Enjoying "long days on the earth" is a kind of security that is thought to allude to eternal security in the Kingdom of Heaven.Then Naomi her mother-in-law said to her, “My daughter, shall I not seek security for you, that it may be well with you? Now is not Boaz our kinsman, with whose maids you were? Behold, he winnows barley at the threshing floor tonight. Wash yourself therefore, and anoint yourself and put on your best clothes, and go down to the threshing floor; but do not make yourself known to the man until he has finished eating and drinking. It shall be when he lies down, that you shall notice the place where he lies, and you shall go and uncover his feet and lie down; then he will tell you what you shall do.”She said to her, “All that you say I will do.” So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her. (Ru 3:1-6)In Ruth, the Moses role and priesthood role along with “young men” shifts to Naomi as the friend/mediator between bride and bridegroom, and the young women (na’arot) are emphasized instead of young men (na’arim). Boaz tells Ruth to follow his young women. This shift in emphasis honors the “mother” [in law]. Whereas Moses instructs Israel what to do, Naomi instructs Ruth, who obeys her in all.Then Moses came and recounted to the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do!”Moses wrote down all the words of the LORD. Then he arose early in the morning and built an altar at the foot of the mountain with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. He sent young men of the sons of Israel, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD. (Ex 24:3-5)She said to her, “All that you say I will do.” So she went down to the threshing floor and did according to all that her mother-in-law had commanded her. (Ru 3:1-6)Naomi's instructions to Ruth to wash herself and her garments and anoint herself echo Moses instructions to the Israelites to prepare to meet the Bridegroom:“Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow and let them wash their garments; and let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day [first fruits of barley] the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Beware that you do not go up on the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people, and they washed their garments.” (Ex 19:10-15)Ruth's obedience also echoes the Israelites':Ex 19:8 All the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” And Moses brought back the words of the people to the LORD.Ex 24:3 Then Moses came and recounted to the people all the words of the LORD and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has spoken we will do!”Ex 24:7 Then he took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people; and they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient!”Sixth Commandment (Ex 20:13)You shall not murder.Seventh Commandment (Ex 20:13)You shall not commit adultery.Ruth is recognized for her clean conduct:So she lay at his feet until morning and rose before one could recognize another; and he said, “Let it not be known that the woman came to the threshing floor.” (Ru 3:14)Ruth does nothing but request redemption and marriage from Boaz, and Boaz in turn protects her reputation by sending her away before she can be seen so that there will not even be an appearance of evil. Boaz makes sure her reputation is not murdered by evil talk. Even before he knows her intentions, Boaz takes steps to protect her reputation and purity:Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen carefully, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field; furthermore, do not go on from this one, but stay here with my maids. Let your eyes be on the field which they reap and go after them. Indeed, I have commanded the servants not to touch you.” (Ru 2:8-9)Boaz even acknowledges that Ruth has pursued a husband for the sake of sanctifying the Name of the Holy One, not simply to have a young handsome husband or a rich one:“May you be blessed of the LORD, my daughter. You have shown your last kindness to be better than the first by not going after young men, whether poor or rich.” (Ru 3:10)Seventh Commandment (Ex 20:13)You shall not commit adultery."It was not Boaz’ habit to inquire about young women. What caught his notice was her exemplary conduct and knowledge of the Torah. She would only glean two ears out of three, for three ears remain the property of the farmer (Pe’ah 6:5, Shabbos 113b). She did not mingle or jest with the young men harvesting, nor did she lift her skirt or bend immodestly as she gleaned." (Midrash Rabbah)Going after men opens the door to sexual immorality, akin to idolatry. Let the righteous man notice a young woman’s dedication to the Word first.Eighth Commandment (Exodus 20:13)You shall not steal [a person].Ninth Commandment (Exodus 20:13)You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.Tenth Commandment (Exodus 20:14)You shall not covet your neighbor’s house, nor his wife, his man-servant, his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is your neighbor’s [in order to steal it].Boaz acknowledges that there is another who is legally entitled to redeem Ruth and her deceased husband's property. Rather than make the transaction secretly because he loves Ruth, Boaz takes it to the proper court to make the transaction. He refuses to steal her from one who might take up the claim. He testifies to the truth both to Ruth and before the court.Now it is true I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. Remain this night, and when morning comes, if he will redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to redeem you, then I will redeem you, as the LORD lives. Lie down until morning.” (Ru 3:12-13)Ruth is also an honest worker.And she said, ‘Please let me glean and gather after the reapers among the sheaves.’ (Ru 2:7)Even though Torah gives the poor the right to glean, in her modesty and humility, Ruth asks permission.And thus, both the Israelites and Ruth married their bridegrooms and Bridegroom, making a covenant of wedding Words, 'til death do us part.Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Parsha “Beha’alotecha” (Numbers chapters 8 through 12) is a reading that spans what seems to be a number of ‘disparate’ stories. Is there a common theme?
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-6-21-24-Beha-alotecha-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash is all about ‘prophets’. Moses, elsewhere, writes about a prophet ‘like unto Moses’ that will eventually appear. In this parsha, we get some of the details about what that might look like – and ultimately did.
But there’s more, and it includes the haftorah and Brit Chadasha readings, too. And there are a lot of questions that might help us ‘connect some dots.’
Like, who are Eldad and Medad, and why are those two named, when the other 70 that we to help Moses’ burdens were NOT? And who are those two witnesses in Revelation chapter 11?
And why does Moses self-describe as the most ‘meek’ (or is it something more?) man on the planet?
“Beha’alotecha: Prophets, Witnesses, and Being Teachable”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-6-22-24-Beha-alotecha-On-Prophets-Witnesses-and-Being-Teachable-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
A Wedding of WordsRuth's One-Way FlightEach year, it is traditional to read the scroll of Ruth at Shavuot. We might say the three scrolls of Ruth, Esther, and Song of Songs are the Bridal Scrolls of return from exile.There are many wonderful ideas about why Ruth commemmorates the giving of the Torah in addition to the story's setting, the time between the first fruits of the barley harvest at Pesach and the wheat harvest at Shavuot.Sometimes the simplest answer is the most memorable. What happened to Israel in leaving Egypt at Pesach is what happened to Ruth in leaving Moab and arriving at the House of Bread (Beit Lechem) at Pesach. The Israelites left Egypt as strangers there before she became a Bride, and Ruth left Moab to become a stranger in Judah before she became part of the Bride.The clue is in the wings that carried the Israelites and Ruth to their destinations, the wildernes and the Promised Land. In Hebrew, "wing" is kanaf (??????). And why were they carried their places? To engage in a covenant of the Ten Words:“You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings (??????), and brought you to Myself.” (Ex 19:4)“May the LORD reward your work, and your wages be full from the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings (??????) you have come to seek refuge.” (Ruth 2:12)He said, “Who are you?” And she answered, “I am Ruth your maid. So spread your covering (??????) over your maid, for you are a close relative.” (Ruth 3:9)Were Israel and Ruth flown to a place of refuge, or were they moved to holier places in their journeys?Yes.“Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment (??????) of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” (Zec 8:23)The setting of Ruth’s story is Beit Lechem, the House of Bread, where Judah was recovering from the famine. The wilderness also was a place of miraculous, Heavenly Bread and Living Water. A place of covering, anointing, preparation, and clean clothes for a nation of priests. The wilderness was where the Bride was purified with the Torah as she walked as she walked after her Bridegroom, picking up what He dropped for her each morning.Let’s see if there are wilderness template parallels in the story of Ruth:The Ten Words to the Brideat Shavuot, Mount Sinai,Via Moshe, Friend of the Bridegroombecome Ten Witnesses to the Bride’s purity and offspring.Think of the Ten Words (Commandments) as Ten Witnesses, the observable grace of the Bride in preparing for her Bridegroom according to their everlasting agreement. Ruth's character exhibited this grace in the Word, witnessed by ten elders of Beit Lechem:...for all my people in the city know that you are a woman of excellence. (3:11) He took ten men of the elders of the city and said, “Sit down here.” So they sat down. (Ru 4:2)Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today...(v. 9)All the people who were in the court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. May the LORD make the woman who is coming into your home like Rachel and Leah, both of whom built the house of Israel; and may you achieve wealth in Ephrathah and become famous in Bethlehem. Moreover, may your house be like the house of Perez whom Tamar bore to Judah, through the offspring which the LORD will give you by this young woman.” (v. 11-12)Numerous times in Deuteronomy Moses called heaven and earth as well as the Israelites to be witnesses "today" of the importance of obeying the Words of the covenant. Ruth's obedience to the Ten Words had risen to such heights that she broke the "Moabite barrier," a passage in the Torah forbidding marriage to a Moabite, for they were stingy and inhospitable to their kin, Israel, as they passed in the wilderness.Ruth, however, was the exact opposite: hospitable, obedient, humble, and loyal to her words of fialty to Naomi, Judah, Israel, and the Elohim of Israel. Because of this repentance, a new understanding of the commandment against Moabites was found, just as Moses found a new understanding of the laws of inheritance through the five daughters of Tzelofechad. Now the judges realized that the prohibition was against marrying male Moabites, for the wording, when examined closely, suggested the injunction was against the males, not females [who had put away idols].If what happened to Israel in the wilderness at Mount Sinai happened to Ruth, then we should be able to find the Ten Words at work in the Megillat Ruth. We'll start this week with the first four commandments of the Ten Words, then continue next week, b'azrat HaShem.First Commandment (Ex 20:2)I am the Lord Your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.Second Commandment (Ex 20:3-6)You shall have no other gods beside Me. You shall not make for yourself any graven image, nor any manner of likeness, of any thing that is heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” (Ru 1:15-17)While Orphah returned to the house of her people's idols, Ruth firmly declares she is entering the "lodge" of Naomi to become one of her people worshiping their Elohim...'til death do they part.You shall have no other gods beside Me.Part of acknowledging only one Elohim is to eat only His food, only His Word, His manna. A phrase sometimes appears in Scripture: "which your fathers did not know," indicating a new thing, sometimes good, sometimes bad, such as Daniel 11:38 describing strange gods previously unknown.“He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you understand that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the LORD.” (Dt 8:3)In Beit Lechem, the House of Bread, Naomi continues to mentor Ruth in the precepts of the Torah which her fathers did not know because they served other gods. As Ruth sustains Naomi with physical bread, Naomi teaches her the manna-bread she will need to remain "long" in the Land. Boaz, too, instructs Ruth on how to remain safe gathering the Bread of the Word and where to drink safe water in his field. He acknowledges her allegiance has changed from the gods of her father's house to embrace a people and Elohim she did not previously know:Then Boaz said to Ruth, “Listen carefully, my daughter. Do not go to glean in another field; furthermore, do not go on from this one, but stay here with my maids. Let your eyes be on the field which they reap, and go after them. Indeed, I have commanded the servants not to touch you. When you are thirsty, go to the water jars and drink from what the servants draw.” Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” Boaz replied to her, “All that you have done for your mother-in-law after the death of your husband has been fully reported to me, and how you left your father and your mother and the land of your birth, and came to a people that you did not previously know. (Ru 2:8-11)Third Commandment (Ex 20:7)You shall not take the name of the Lord Your God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that takes His name in vain.When an Israelite takes an oath in the Name of YHVH, it should be performed and true in every way. Ruth swears to remain loyal to Naomi and the Elohim of Israel until death, and Boaz swears to take Ruth as his wife:“Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” (Ru 1:17)Then Boaz said to the elders and all the people, “You are witnesses today that I have bought from the hand of Naomi all that belonged to Elimelech and all that belonged to Chilion and Mahlon. Moreover, I have acquired Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of Mahlon, to be my wife in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance, so that the name of the deceased will not be cut off from his brothers or from the court of his birth place; you are witnesses today.” All the people who were in the court, and the elders, said, “We are witnesses. (Ru 4:9-11)Fourth CommandmentRemember the Sabbath, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath unto the Lord Your God, in it you shall not do any manner of work, you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your man-servant, nor your maid-servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger that is within your gates; for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested on the seventh day. Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and made it holy.In trying to send Orpah and Ruth back to Moab, Naomi uses the term "rest" to describe what they will find with their husbands. In the case of Ruth, the words turn out to be prophecy of Ruth's shabbat rest under Boaz' wing, in his house as well as in the House of Adonai:And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each of you to her mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you as you have dealt with the dead and with me. May the LORD grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” (Ru 1: 8-9)The commandment requires even the stranger within the gates of Israel to rest on Shabbat as well. Boaz treats her well even though she is a stranger, teaching later generations that an obedient stranger at the gate is a stranger on the way in to clinging to the Covenant of Ten Words, not on the way out. She should be treated well since the sign of her faithfulness to the Elohim of Israel will also be the Shabbat like the native-born:Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” (2:10)The next "rest" passage alludes to a Shabbat Shabbaton, or High Sabbath of the feasts via its number and grain symbolism:So she held it, and he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her. Then she went into the city. When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did it go, my daughter?” And she told her all that the man had done for her. She said, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said, ‘Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” Then she said, “Wait, my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out; for the man will not rest until he has settled it today.” (Ru 3:15-18)Six can represent the six days of work. Boaz sends the six measures to Naomi, knowing she'll understand his intent to bring rest to Ruth. Naomi in turn assures Ruth that "the man will not rest until he has settled it today." Boaz is taking the sixth day as a "preparation day" to settle the matter in court so that they can rest on the seventh in unity.Remember the Sabbath, to keep it holy.I am the Lord Your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.The First Fruits of the barley is a reminder that Israel was brought out of the house of bondage. For Ruth, too, Boaz measures six measures of barley to signal that she has left Moab and the house of bondage to idols, and her journey to "Sinai" has occurred at the same season at the Israelites' journey:First fruits of Barley: “You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the appointed time in the month Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. And none shall appear before Me empty-handed. (Ex 23:15)So she held it, and he measured six measures of barley and laid it on her. Then she went into the city. When she came to her mother-in-law, she said, “How did it go, my daughter?” And she told her all that the man had done for her. She said, “These six measures of barley he gave to me, for he said, ‘Do not go to your mother-in-law empty-handed.’” Then she said, “Wait, my daughter, until you know how the matter turns out; for the man will not rest until he has settled it today.” (Ru 3:15-18)In the two passages above, the term "do not go empty-handed" appears in reference to the barley feast. Something interesting is happening here!Naomi is like Moses and the priesthood, friends of the Bridegroom, “matchmaking.” Moses led the people to the mountain to meet the Bridegroom at Sinai, and the priesthood drew the Israelites close to the Presence of the Bridegroom through the Temple services...a Temple that Ruth's offspring would fund, plan, and build!Using a female in the role of matchmaker or friend of the Bridegroom is another symbolic layer: righteous women in Scripture often represent the work of the Ruach HaKodesh working in the lives of men and Israel, such as Rachel and Leah "building" the house of Israel. Both advised Jacob to return to the Promised Land and to leave the exile of living with idol-worshipping Laban.Boaz' reasoning that Ruth should not return to Naomi empty-handed is also a subtle reference to the way he perceives Ruth's status has changed. She is now a Hebrew, not a Moabite as his servant erroneously told him. This precept applies uniquely to a Hebrew servant set free from bondage, not a foreigner:“When you set him free, you shall not send him away empty-handed. (Dt 15:13)And this refers to an offering brought by males to the Temple:“Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed. (Dt 16:16)Ruth is being inducted into the Covenant People Israel, welcomed under the wing of Boaz just as Israel was taken to the wilderness on eagles' wings. Like Israel, she was saved from the house of bondage. Acting on that salvation, she begins learning the Torah, doing works of kindness, obeying the Ruach HaKodesh as symbolized by Naomi, which brings her to the holier places of Boaz' House of Bread. Not to be saved, but to reach for a holier space of intimacy. She was already saved. Now she would have offspring to dwell in those holier places of the Covenant.She asks Boaz, ““Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?” (Ru 2:10)He noticed her modesty, her obedience, her loyalty, her willingness to pursue the Covenant. In Acts Chapter Two, a similar group of proselytes of the gate also gathered at Shavuot and witnessed to the Ruach HaKodesh, the Friend of the Bridegroom. On that Shabbat Shabbaton, the former strangers to the Feast of Shavuot were assured they were no longer strangers to the Covenant of Ten Words: “For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” (Ac 2:39)They were called, like Ruth, to the feast. “At mealtime Boaz said to her, ‘Come here...’” (Ru 2:14)Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Parsha “Naso” (Numbers 4:21 through chapter 7) continues with the numbers – this time the other sons of Levi, and their assignments, but continues with SO much more. Including what Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests is one of the most central in Scripture, even if is perhaps also one of the most ‘overlooked.’
But it is notable for so many reasons: A look at authority in marriage, and beyond. And, at the same time, a procedure for what turns out to be the only enumerated process in the Torah for which a miracle is mandated as a result!
And then there’s the ‘longest chapter in the Book,’ and most redundant, too. Why?
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-6-14-24-Naso-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash begins with an observation about a common thread that connects every aspect of the apparently disparate elements of this parsha, submission, and the Authority to which it is rendered.
But it is the ‘cup of abominations’ that not only ties the pieces together, but should help us understand what it at play today, and coming to a head ‘soon’.
“Naso: Submission and Authority”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/WT-CooH-6-15-24-Naso-Submission-and-Authority-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is (finally!) here:
Nahum 1:1515 Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news,Who announces peace!Celebrate your feasts, O Judah;Pay your vows.For never again will the wicked one pass through you;He is cut off completely.
Parsha “Bemidbar” (Numbers 1:1 – 4:20) begins the Book who’s Hebrew name literally means “In the Wilderness.” And that certainly fits.
So, actually, does the English moniker ‘Numbers,’ because it has a lot of those. And this first parsha gives us a major clue as to why that will be so important.
The Erev Shabbat reading begins with another important point: What is commanded is more than a mere ‘census,’ although “headcount” is perhaps a better rendering. But, literally, what Moses is told to do is “lift up the head,” of all of the fighting-age men of Israel. And everything about the process, the description, and what is recorded tells us about His attitude concerning His people.
And that time “in the wilderness” is central to our understanding.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-6-7-24-Bemidbar-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash connects the ‘greater Exodus,’ promised by Moses and other prophets, the time “in the wilderness,” and the related prophecy of Hosea, and a look at cycles, and timing. We are told to “come out of her,” and not participate in the myriad, obvious, undeniable sine, wickedness, abomination idolatry, and perversion of a world which hates YHVH and His Word.
Sukkot, obviously symbolic of the coming ‘wedding feast,’ is also a time to remember and even practice to be “in the wilderness.”
Can we not start early?
Bemidbar: Pray to be “B’midbar – in the wilderness“
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/WT-CooH-6-8-24-Bemidbar-To-be-Wooed-In-the-Wilderness-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Parsha “Bechukotai” (Leviticus 26:2 through the end of the Book) contains one of the two most dramatic sets of ‘blessings and cursings,’ but particularly cursings, in all of Scripture. And it is, as Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa demonstrates, utterly relevant now.
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SSM-5-31-24-Bechukotai-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath Day midrash starts with a reminder: We are NOT in the land; we’re in exile.
But America’s Founding Fathers knew that. In August, 1776, Ben Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson were tasked with coming up with a suggested design for the Great Seal of the united States. Both Franklin and Jefferson wanted a depiction of then-Israel from the Exodus. Ben Franklin described a scene from the ‘parting of the Red Sea,’ with the inscription, later adopted, that “Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.”
Yet they also clearly understood what was at the heart of the message of Leviticus chapter 26: “IF you will walk in My statutes, and keep My commandments,” you will be blessed. They believed that in this New land, there was a Covenant to be kept.
But now, what is beyond doubt is not merely that it has been broken, but that what He says in verse 15 is true: That this has become a nation, and a world, that rejects His statutes, and has a soul which abhors His laws. And, evidently as a direct result, “those that hate you,” do “rule over you?”
And what, exactly, does it look like when YHVH Himself “appoints terror over you?”
Mark Call, of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship, observes that we are about to find out.
But do we consent to that “other master?”
Bechukotai: The Covenant is clearly broken – so Where Are We in Those Curses?“
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/WT-CooH-6-1-24-Bechukotai-ITs-WAY-too-Late-Unless-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Gardener's Guideto the Tree of LifeDays of Elijah Preparing the BrideShe is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,and happy are all who hold her fast. (Pr 3:18)The Torah is a tree of life, and obeying it is the path to fruitfulness. This fruitfulness deepens the relationship, stitching earth to Heaven, where the roots of the Tree extend upward. After all, our eyes really see the world upside down and turn it "right" side up. Or is it? Studying the Word rights the world in the mind and circumcised heart of the diligent disciple of Yeshua.One of the frequent metaphors in Scripture is that of a tree representing a human being. "I see men like trees walking." (Mk 8:24) The Torah brought to life in a human being is indeed like a tree of life walking. In fact, the Torah gives specific instructions on how to plant a tree:When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, then you shall regard its fruit as forbidden [orlah, uncircumcised]. Three years it shall be forbidden [orlah] to you; it must not be eaten. And in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, an offering of praise to the Lord. But in the fifth year you may eat of its fruit, to increase its yield for you: I am the Lord your God. (Le 19:23-25)The above passage from Torah portion Kedoshim, Holies, provides a teaching moment from Sefer HaChinnukh §246 and 1 Corinthians 10:23-30. Sefer HaChinnukh is a set of books explaining each commandment in the Torah. Since the Days of Elijah prepare the way of Yeshua's return, the holiness of the tree, representing human beings, instructs us in how to develop our circumcised hearts in holiness. One of the traditional views of Elijah is that he is associated with circumcision, zeal for the Torah.Holiness is often the result of a process. For instance, the seventh day of Creation was the first thing called holy in Scripture, and it was the result of a process of creation.Holiness in the Mishkan or Mikdash was something to be maintained and guarded after processes of purification.Holiness in a person is a matter of growing in sanctification. The mitzvot are the method of achieving holiness, not salvation. Since the tree is often a metaphor for human beings in Scripture, the growth of a goodly (fruit) tree is a metaphor for growing in holiness.In simple terms, a tree “planted” in the Land of Israel must be set apart for three years before its fruit may be eaten freely by anyone (assuming holy portions are removed first even after it ages into circumcision). In the fourth year, its fruit is to be eaten in the Temple by the owner or turned into money with a fifth added to be taken to the Temple and enjoyed. Only after the tree loses its orlah status is someone subject to a guilt offering if he/she took a holy portion designated for the Temple. If someone were to eat the set-apart fruit by mistake then, it would require a guilt offering plus a fifth, which is for taking holy things unwittingly.Three Levels of Holiness:The tree is planted in Israel and grows for three yearsThe tree is holy to Adonai to be consumed by the planter only in Jerusalem, circumcisedThe tree finally is subject to terumah, holy tithes, firstfruits, shmittah, yovel, but otherwise freely consumed or sold by the owner; also a person may opportunistically eat of it (but not gather).By the Torah’s expression, this law applies only in the Land of Israel. The sages, however, see some doubt, and have extended this law of tree orlah, un-circumcision outside the Land of Israel. Although they do not extend the fourth and fifth year (and beyond) requirements because a Temple is lacking, they do prohibit eating the uncircumcised fruit for the first three years. This includes only trees planted in the ground, not trees in a container.The opportunistic eater presents a problem: he/she does not know the tree’s age-stage of holiness. Trees don't have signs with their birthday written on them.In general, in Jewish law where there is doubt, the sages ruled stringently, not permitting it. However, in the case of the orlah (uncircumcised), “That which is certain is forbidden; what is in doubt is permissible.”So which is it? It is explained thus...“...if an Israelite has a tree of orlah in his garden and his neighbor comes and eats of its fruit, he is not duty-bound to inform him at all that it is orlah. The sages of blessed memory used the expression, ‘It is a doubt to me, and I will eat’; in other words, as long as a man does not know for certain that it is orlah, he is allowed to eat of it....’ Only if he knows it is forbidden is he punishable by whiplashes.” Sefer HaChinnukh §246If a passerby doesn’t ask if it is orlah, he is permitted to eat it. This extends grace to the hungry traveler, yet the owner of the tree is still developing a deeper relationship with Adonai.Now let’s see if Paul’s reasoning doesn’t make better sense when it comes to eating clean food in general...All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor. Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscience’ sake; FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S, AND ALL IT CONTAINS. If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscience’ sake. But if anyone says to you, “This is meat sacrificed to idols,” do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience’ sake; I mean not your own conscience, but the other man’s. For why is my freedom judged by another’s conscience? If I partake with thankfulness, why am I slandered concerning that for which I give thanks? Whether then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (1 Co 10:23-31)Although an “unbeliever” can be an idol-worshiper, very often in the New Testament it is a Jewish person who has not believed Yeshua for various reasons. In such a case, the food they would serve would be kosher. He/she is not obligated to notify the eater anything about the meat. The eater is not obligated to ask.See below a sample of the variety of ways "unbeliever" is used:If “anyone” informs you a meat was sacrificed to idols, don’t eat it so the server will be convicted by his conscience. Don't assume the relationship between the gardener and Heaven is growing in holiness! Quite the opposite! The eater's freedom is limited if the server informs him of idolatry.The model of the orlah is that the owner of the tree (an Israelite) is not obligated to tell an eater of the tree’s status, for the “doubt” makes the eater free to give thanks and enjoy the fruit. If, however, the grower informs the passerby of the tree's orlah status, the eater may not eat.The tree’s growth is a holy relationship between the planter gardener and Adonai, not an opportunistic eater. An Israelite gardener is assumed to have fulfilled all Torah Tree of Life requirements pertaining to the tree, making it "kosher" and spiritually healthy to eat for anyone.Now, in review, can we see that “holy eating” is:the result of a process. something to be maintained and guarded after processes of purification.for the owner of the food growing and developing in sanctification.for the passive recipient to give thanks and glory to the Creator. Since the deep, obligatory relationship is primarily between tree owner and Heaven, the amount of fruit a passerby eats is regulated by the Torah (Dt 23:24). The meat a guest eats is limited by the meal and whether the host is serving [clean] meat in good conscience.For the serendipitous eater for momentary pleasure or fellowship, the experience is limited to moments of thankfulness and glorying in the providence of Adonai, the first owner and Creator of food. The tree owner, like the tree, grows into the holiness of circumcision and becomes a guardian of the Word."anything" is assumed to be anything Scripturally defined as foodPlease SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
Parsha “Emor” (Leviticus 25:1-26:2) is both notable – for one specific English word – and also problematic, because it applies “in the land,” where we’re NOT any more, and arguably because it is even more foreign to our anti-Torah economic and ‘world’ system than almost anything else except the dishonest weight of the Almighty Fiat Dollar itself.
But, ‘Jubilee’ we’ve HEARD of, even if to no real effect.
And, again, what with the world melting down, and at the brink of civil and world war to boot, what would a REAL ‘great reset’ accomplish at this point anyway?
First, the Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SSM-5-24-24-Behar-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3It seems clear from the reading that that one of the primary prerequisites of the ‘shmita’ rest for the land, and then the 50 year ‘yovel’ – or “Jubilee” – was TRUST: that Yahuah would actually do what He promised, so that His people would have sufficient provision for the rest years.
Ultimately, history – and Scripture – shows they did not. We still don’t.
“Proclaim liberty throughout the land, and to all the inhabitants thereof,” is the inscription on the Libery Bell in Philadelphia, and it comes from this parsha, Leviticus 25:10. But that’s just one of the disconnects with Scripture today.
A even bigger one has to do with the entire concept behind that verse. And a world economic system, based on an abomination to YHVH, that will soon demonstrate why His plan was so much better – because a ‘reset’ every 50 years beats societal collapse.
THAT is virtually inevitable now.
And the “Babylonian Exile,” was said to be so that The Land could have its rest. Something that was commanded to be done, that wasn’t. In contrast, much of this next judgment seems to be a function of things that He commanded NOT be done, that are. And are taught in schools, too, as a slap in His face.
Behar: Trust in a Time of Cyclical Churn and Turmoil“
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/WT-CooH-5-25-24-Behar-Trust-amidst-the-Churn-podcast-xx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
In this teaching, Dr Hollisa Alewine shares some very basic yet important hermeneutic principles, which will encourage us on how to dig deeper into His WORD and not misinterpret the true meaning of the text.
Parsha “Emor” (Leviticus chapters 21 through 24) continues the theme of “holiness” – but this time for a group of people that many ‘christians’ would now see as irrelevant. After all, we have new ‘priests’ today, and the sons of Aaron seem to have been displaced centuries ago.
And, besides, with the world melting down, and at the brink of civil and world war to boot, what difference does it make?
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SSM-5-17-24-Emor-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The continuing theme of Kedoshim is to “be set apart.” Emor comes next.
And the kohenim, or priests, were not only to be “set apart” themselves, but to teach what that means, and were held to a “higher standard” as well.
Bitterly ironic, however, and especially now, is that what replaced the priests of YHVH were ultimately a pagan imitation, where mandated marriage to virgins was turned on its head, to mandated celibacy – except for what Yahuah made clear was abomination.
Arguably, what has happened since should be no surprise. But it will still be denied.
Emor: Compare and Contrast! “
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/WT-CooH-5-18-24-Emor-compare-and-contrast-Rightly-Divide-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
This week we'll cover the Torah portion Kedoshim, or "Holies" and we'll tease apart some profound details in the account of the woman caught in adultery.Leviticus 19:1-20:27Amos 9:7-9:15Psalm 15John 8:2-11"You shall love your neighbor as yourself." (Le 19:18)Kedoshim, the “holies,” is nestled in the very heart of the Torah. This commandment stitches itself to heaven and earth. Heaven and earth are two witnesses.If we love Adonai, then we will love His people. Loving His people on earth pleases Him above, for He is “glorified through his people.” Heaven should be glorified on and through the earth.“Then all your people will be righteous; they will possess the land forever, the branch of My planting, the work of My hands, that I may be glorified. (Is 60:21)“Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” (Jn 14:13)“You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Le 19:18)In the explanation of the holy commandment to love one's neighbor, the Torah student is told it's the most obvious thing:“This is a great principle in the Torah. Many commandments in the Torah depend on it: Thus, a person who loves another as himself will not steal from him, will not commit adultery with his wife, will not cheat him of goods or oppress him with words, will not move his boundary and will not harm him in any way. So are many other religious duties bound up with it; the matter is evident to every understanding person.” (Sefer HaChinnukh #243)Yeshua wasn’t kidding. All the commandments really do hang on two!“...Whoever derives honor through the disgrace of his fellow-man, has no share in the world-to-come. On the other hand, when a man behaves toward his fellow in a way of love and peace, and friendship, seeking his advantage and rejoicing in his good fortune, Scripture refers to him in the verse, ‘Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’ (Is 49:3)” (Sefer HaChinnukh §243)In the Gospel of John, Yeshua elaborates on how the holy commandment will work on earth to glorify Heaven:“A new [chadasha-refreshed] commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (Jn 13:34-35)The KJV translates Strong's H2318 in the following manner: renew (7x), repair (3x).Outline of Biblical Usage:to be new, renew, repairto renew, make anewto repair(Hithpael) to renew oneselfStrong’s Definitions ?????? châdash, to be new; causatively, to rebuild:—renew, repair.The KJV translates Strong's H2319 in the following manner:new (48x), new thing (4x), fresh (1x).Outline of Biblical Usage: new, new thing, fresh?????? châdâsh; from H2318; new:—fresh, new thing.Yeshua wasn't teaching a brand-new commandment; he was teaching how to refresh and repair the commandment they already had by explaining its function. By loving one another, the greatest commandment, to love Adonai with all one's heart, soul, and strength, would be fulfilled in such a way that the whole world could see it!Loving one’s neighbor as one’s self is impossible if the Torah is not written on the tablets of the heart. If we love our neighbor, we will not disgrace him or her. It is a commandment that has a "refresh" button! Each day, we must remind ourselves to hit "refresh and repair" on our hearts where Adonai has written love.This explanation is found in context. A person who embarrasses another believer is behaving disgracefully toward ADONAI!A person who behaves peacefully with other believers and honors them glorifies ADONAI, not the person. It honors the Father through the person. It also sets apart in holiness the one who honors others as a disciple of Yeshua in the eyes of all men. This is ONE HEART.“You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” (2 Co 3:2-3)“Love your neighbor as yourself” is embedded in Leviticus among many statutes of holiness. If you love your neighbor, and you are holy, you will not perform those transgressions. If you love Adonai, you will not perform those transgressions; therefore, all the holy Torah hangs on those two."Why the Law then? It was added because of transgressions, having been ordained through angels by the agency of a mediator, until the seed would come to whom the promise had been made." (Ga 3:19)Yeshua is the Promised Seed. In him, we have, are, and will be made perfect in love. A day is coming...if we will continually and faithfully "refresh" with the Father's mercy and His Ruach...when Yeshua will need only two tablets of our hearts to hold 613 commandments. We will be the perfect testimony and witness of Heaven through the earth.
The Last Three WarningsandShabbat HaGadolThe Days of Elijah begin with Passover. Join us as we explore the role of Shabbat, especially Shabbat HaGadol, and the three foot festivals as a warning for Bride to prepare for the coming of the Bridegroom. Together we'll unpack the language of zealous striking in the feasts. This Pt 2.
Parsha “Acharei Mot” (Leviticus chapters 16 through 18) is the regular reading for this week, following the Feast of Unleavened Bread. But we did take a look at that week, Mark decided to look at some of the ‘common elements,’ including statutes and ordinances that span the gap between chapters 18 and then 19, which begins parsha “Kedoshim.”
The Erev Shabbat reading explains the rationale, and the understanding to ‘be ‘qadosh‘ [set-apart, or ‘holy’] because “I AM” qadosh.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SSM-5-3-24-Acharei-Mot-2-Kedoshim-pt-1-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3It is undeniable, when reading from the end of chapter 28 of Leviticus, and the fact that YHVH says that for committing these ‘abominations’ the land literally “vomited out” those inhabitants. And then He then continues, that “YOU shall be set-apart, For I YHVH am ‘qadosh.’
And looking at the news, and the fact that virtually EVERY SINGLE transgression and outright abomination He outlines is now being subsidized, taught in the cesspools, and even mandated as political correctness – AmeriKa, and most of the West, are due for judgment, if not extreme vomiting out.
What does that say to the rest of us?
into Kedoshim: Things that Matter When Things Come Apart “
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/SSM-5-4-24-Acharei-Mot-2-Kedoshim-pt-1-Things-that-Matter-when-Things-Come-Apart-Yahushua-vs-jesus-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
The Last Three WarningsandShabbat HaGadolThe Days of Elijah begin with Passover. Join us as we explore the role of Shabbat, especially Shabbat HaGadol, and the three foot festivals as a warning for Bride to prepare for the coming of the Bridegroom. Together we'll unpack the language of zealous striking in the feasts.
Parsha “Acharei Mot” (Leviticus chapters 16 through 18) is typically read in the timeframe of the Passover, and the week of the ‘Feast of Unleavened Bread,’ or Chag HaMaMatzot, but seems to have more to do with a major element of the Fall Feasts – the Day of Atonement.
The Moed of First Fruits is arguably the day when the Risen Yahushua, as The First Fruit of Adam-kind Himself, made the required offering of Himself for us to Himself, in the place where He has put His Name.
“When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the cohen:
And he shall wave the sheaf before Yahuah, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the cohen shall wave it.
And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he Lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto Yahuah….
And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.” (Leviticus 23:10-12;14)
?While Rashi disagrees, and the rabbinic tradition thus ends up with a date which does NOT always fall of the First Day of the week, I contend that (as Yahushua obviously did) the ‘morrow after the WEEKLY Sabbath’ is what the verse means. Which is today (28 April). It is also the day which therefore begins the ‘counting of the Omer’ – seven Sabbaths plus one, or 50 days.
And, perhaps dramatically, if not also ironically, THIS year the ‘sighted new moon’ that marked a “beginning of months” for us (Exodus 12:2) was observed directly by literally millions of witnesses!
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SSM-4-26-24-Acharei-Mot-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3This year there is quite a bit of variance between calendar understandings. Not to mention the fact that the ‘sighted’ new moon this year was a bit more spectacular than usual as well. So Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship has decided to depart from the ‘suggested’ annual Torah cycle reading schedule, and make some observations based on a confluence of events, and teachings.
By now, perhaps it should not surprise us that His Word, and His warnings, are ever-more-important.
Acharei Mot: Blood, Iniquity Complete, and Pervasive ‘Chametz’ “
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/WT-CooH-4-27-24-Acharei-Mot-Pervasive-Chametz-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
THAT'S SO LAMEWith the eclipse so recent, literally putting a point on the new year of the feast cycle at the New Moon (Rosh Chodesh), it seemed proper to emphasize this year's pilgrimage through the feast. This is true specially in the United States where the eclipse bisected an already very divided nation.The eclipse gave us a glimpse of a wedding ring, which for believers in Yeshua, is the covenant, particularly Shabbat, the sign of our betrothal. We protect its holiness while we await the Bridegroom's return. During each eclipse, we have a dramatic reminder.For Americans, at the very least, I take this as a warning. Repent. Be set-apart. No more lukewarmness toward the feasts and Shabbat.Pray.Pray for the world, but especially Israel and our nation.The new moons are a zikaron, or remembrance. It is an appointed time for Adonai to "remember" us, which means to purpose an action pertaining to us.Attend Shabbat and each feast with like kind and like mind. Gather however you can. Each year at Pesach, you may have have started the journey through your last "sealing" on earth as we know it. It is your protection to the tribulation that accompanies those final days. Even as I write this, the ancient beasts of Babylon and Medo-Persia are crouching at the door.In apostolic times, the Biblical feasts were seen as a seal of protection to those who celebrated them. Seven feasts, seven seals. Sound familiar? You can find the details in Creation Gospel Workbook Six.We are living in a miracle so great that almost everyone is missing it...even those who are the miracle! What is even greater than the Exodus? The Greater Exodus! Israel being gathered from all the nations to return to her covenant, the Living Torah, and her Promised Land of covenant.Isn't that greater than the Reed Sea parting? After all, it's been almost 2000 years since a large group of people dared to proclaim Yeshua the Messiah and walk in obedience to his Torah simultaneously. As with the wilderness journey, the arguments and chaos frequently obliterate the miracle-consciousness.First, however, before the journey home, the "moral" return begins in the lands of exile. Before we walk and leap on the way to celebrate the foot festivals of Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot, we need healing. Thousands upon thousands are being healed of enmity against the Word and their Jewish brothers and sisters walking in the covenant.In ancient times, Jeroboam put up barriers on the highways of Israel to prevent the tribes of the Northern Kingdom from journeying to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts. By separating brothers, which is the seventh and most wicked of abominations, the northern tribes quickly lost their identity among the nations. To undo this separation has to be a work of the Ruach HaKodesh.To reiterate how the Ruach works to knit together like kind, rather than scatter and separate, I'm including Chapter Two of Standing With Israel: a House of Prayer for All Nations. It describes how prayer brought Jew and non-Jew together at the time of the afternoon prayer and Temple sacrifice. This prayer is named after the sacrifice, the Minchah. It is also called Shemoneh Esrei, or Eighteen, after its eighteen individual prayers.STANDING WITH ISRAEL: A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL NATIONSCHAPTER TWOJEW AND GENTILE: PETER AND CORNELIUSThe Shemoneh Esrei, whatever its form evolving in the Second Temple era, is a common prayer for both Jews and “God fearers” in Acts of the Apostles. Peter and John observe the hour of prayer: “Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.” In Acts, Peter and John are still accustomed to praying in the Temple at the appointed hour, and they encounter a lame man, likely a Jew, at the hour of Minchah prayer, the ninth hour. This is three o’clock. The lame man’s inability to walk in the life of the covenant people makes him poor. He asks alms at the Beautiful Gate (Yaffa Gate), and receives silver and gold of the Kingdom, which is strength to walk into the Temple of Israel as a strong man. His waiting for alms at the gate parallels the common term for a non Jew who practices some of the Torah, but who has not yet converted to Judaism; he is a “proselyte of the gate.” Although he is a native-born Israelite, there is yet a barrier between him and the inner Temple courts, for none blemished in body could enter into those precincts. The correlation to Minchah prayer and the poor lame man is found in Jewish law. In Berachot 34b of the Talmud, the code of Jewish law and commentary, we read, “The Minchah has the same high degree of holiness which is generally brought by a poor person.” The reason is that a poor man may have to fast his daily bread in order to afford his offering, so his Minchah has a heightened degree of holiness. Adonai’s concern for the poor is evidenced by the many provisions in Leviticus for the poor man to bring an offering of reduced cost, whether turtledoves and meal in place of flesh, or a single lamb instead of several. This poor man’s Minchah request for help from the disciples of Yeshua is endowed with special favor from his Father in heaven.Peter and John’s Shemoneh Esrei prayers of faith at the 3 o’clock hour of Minchah minister healing to the poor lame man. This restored Jew sees the beautiful feet of Peter and John, who bring him the good news of Messiah Yeshua. He no longer has to sit outside the Beautiful Gate like a Gentile, separated from the joy of the “foot festivals,” the pilgrimage feasts of Adonai, but he can walk, leap, and praise Adonai in the Temple. Yeshua is the Beautiful Gate to the House of God. By faith in the blood of the Minchah Lamb, who was sacrificed at the hour of prayer as an everlasting memorial, the restored Israelite can enter the Temple on strong feet. The cripple is reunited with his Jewish brothers and his Messiah in the life of the covenant. He affirms the blessing of the Shemoneh Esrei, “Blessed are You, O Lord, who heals the sick of your people Israel.” Cornelius is also in Minchah prayer when he is visited by the angel. “He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.” While many English readers would picture Cornelius as kneeling in prayer with clasped hands as Christians do today, the true picture would look much different. Cornelius learned of the One God of Israel from Israelites; therefore, he learned how to pray from Israelites! Picture Cornelius standing in his home facing Jerusalem. He takes three steps back, then three steps forward, symbolically stepping into the Presence of Adonai. He begins to pray, “My Adonai, open my lips, that my mouth may declare your praise…”Cornelius’ Minchah prayers are accompanied by acts of kindness to the Jews of his community. He offers not only the sacrifice of his lips, but good deeds of the Torah. The text calls Cornelius a “God-fearer.” A God-fearer is a Gentile, a “proselyte of the gate,” who has accepted the one God of Israel and who has begun to keep some of the commandments. Cornelius the God fearer also observes the Jewish hour of prayer: “And Cornelius said, ‘Four days ago I was fasting until this hour; and at the ninth hour I prayed in my house, and, behold, a man stood before me in bright clothing.” In the waning decades of the second Temple, the hour of prayer is the ninth hour. This places the prayer “between the evenings,” between noon and sundown, three o’clock, the time of unity for day and night.Even the time of month when Cornelius prayed is evident. Rabbi Munk reminds us that “The Torah ordains ‘On your days of rejoicing and your holy days and on your month’s beginning, you shall blow the trumpets over your offerings that they may be to you a memorial (zikaron) before your God.” Just as the Jews place goodwill money offerings in the Temple trumpets to accompany their prayers, Cornelius’ good deeds are offered with prayer, and together they ascend as a memorial offering, a zikaron, for the angel says, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.” Cornelius’ Minchah prayer and gifts to the poor parallel Peter’s Minchah and gift to the poor, not silver and gold, but healing. Rosh Chodesh, the first day of the lunar Biblical month, is a day appointed for sacrifices of prayer and good deeds to be an especial zikaron to Adonai. This may be Cornelius’ exact day of prayer. When one is fasting as Cornelius says he is the day of his visitation, a significant benediction of the Shemoneh Esrei is inserted. The fasting benediction is a fervent plea to Adonai to answer the prayer: Answer us, Adonai, answer us, on this day of our fast, for we are in great distress. Do not pay attention to our wickedness; do not hide Your Face from us, and do not ignore our plea. Please be near to our cry; please comfort us with your kindness – before we call to You answer us, as it is said: ‘And it will be that before they call, I will answer; while they are speaking, I will hear.’ For You, Adonai, are the One Who responds in time of distress, who redeems and rescues. The answer to Cornelius’ fervent Minchah prayer is that indeed, while he is yet speaking, Adonai hears and answers. Cornelius is rewarded with not only acceptance of his zikaron offering of prayer, but redemption for his whole household, and the gate is opened for the unification of the Jew and Gentile in the Commonwealth of Israel. The Orthodox Jewish translation of the New Testament plainly connects the zikaron (remembrance) to the unification of Jew and Gentile through the sacrifice of Messiah. Paul urges the Ephesians to Have zikaron (remembrance) that you were at that time unrelated and separate from Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, having been alienated from the citizenship in the Am Berit, from Yisroel, being strangers to the Beritot HaHavtacha, lost, and having no tikvah (hope) and without G d in the Olam Hazeh. But now in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua, you, who formerly were in the outermost courts, have been broughtnear by the kapparah of the dam of Moshiach. Therefore, then, nolonger are you zarim and aliens, but you are fellow citizens of theKadoshim and bnei bayit members of the household of G-d.The KJV translates the same passage:Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh…that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ...For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one…that in Himself He might make the two into one new man…for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household…Paul’s placing of believing Gentiles within the Am Berit, or as most English translations read, the Commonwealth of Israel, and the Gentiles’ inclusion with the bnei bayit, or Children of the Household, gives credence to Rabbi Munk’s comment on a portion of the Minchah Shemoneh Esrei: “The third group (of prayers) comprises the spiritual preconditions for the reunion of the nation of Israel under the rule of G-d. According to the prediction of the prophets, the spiritual and moral foundation will have to be laid before the rehabilitation of our people can take place.” Cornelius’ commandment-keeping, acts of kindness to the Jews, and participation in a “Jewish” prayer lay the moral foundation for the rescue and reunion of Israel under the rule of God.Apathy, hatred, and jealousy among Israelites is so lame it prohibits entry to the House. Where do we think we're going?A lame person cannot fully engage the Shabbat and feasts, a Beautiful Gate into the Presence of our Father at His feasts. He is separate from the House. We are being healed. Rise up and walk. Walk to Shabbat. Walk to the Passover seder with a staff in your hand, ready to collect the seven seals of Yeshua's kingdom. They are seven beautiful gates, and each week, the Shabbat gate protects you and beautifies you for the Bridegroom while you journey between the feasts.Healing is available for Jew and non-Jew. One household. One House. A foot-festival is approaching quickly.The zealous spirit of Elijah says, "The King is coming." Prepare.
Parsha “Metzora” (Leviticus chapters 14 through 15) is almost like “part two” of something many people might tend to skip over anyway.
But don’!
After all, this malady hasn’t been seen in – at least! – many centuries. So how could it possibly be SO relevant to exactly what is happening now?
Start with this question:
How is it that so many people could be duped into injecting something into their bodies that turned out to modify their DNA and destroy their immune system? And many of them even believe two men can have a baby, or that someone who cuts off their genitalia can be magically transformed into some other ‘gender’.
Yet they laugh at people for suggesting that some ancient ritual involving two birds might have something to do with cleansing a skin problem?
You can’t see a ‘virus’, any more than a radio wave. Or a demon. Or a DNA double-helix.
How do we know what is ‘technology,’ and what is ‘magic?’ Or superstition.
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests that the more something in the Bible — especially where there is SO much detail about it! — that doesn’t seem at ALL relevant now, just might end up being vital. Especially when we figure out just what we’re up against.
The Erev Shabbat reading is again about the details:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SSM-4-19-24-Metzora-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath teaching and midrash lays out the key question. And the conundrum.
Metzora: How can we believe in ‘magic’ but not Scripture?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/WT-CooH-4-20-24-Metzora-ANY-suffieciently-AdTech-is-Indistinguishable-from-Magic-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Getting StonedBiblically, that is.Torah contains many commandments. Some of those are positive, "you shalls," and some are negative, "you shall nots." Most frequently, the negative commandments carry tangible punishments such as restitution, whiplashes, hanging, or even stoning. Sometimes no punishment is prescribed, or a vague phrase, "he shall be cut off from his people." It has been speculated to be banishment or shunning, and some sources say this is a Divine punishment, not a human one.Let's take a closer look at stoneable offenses, which will help us to understand a Divine punishment in John's Revelation.“You shall also say to the sons of Israel: ‘Any man from the sons of Israel or from the aliens sojourning in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech, shall surely be put to death; the people of the land shall stone him with stones.’” (Le 20:2)“Now a man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones, their bloodguiltiness is upon them.” (Le 20:27)“Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death….Then Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and they brought the one who had cursed outside the camp and stoned him with stones. Thus the sons of Israel did, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.” (Le 24:16, 23)“Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day…Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘The man shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.’ So all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.” (Nu 15:32-36)Idolatry, dark arts, blasphemy, and desecration of the Shabbat are the most explicit of the commandments that carry a death penalty of stoning. An additional commandment against adultery is linked to idolatry:Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, the lewd women. But they, righteous men, will judge them with the judgment of adulteresses and with the judgment of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands. ‘For thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Bring up a company against them and give them over to terror and plunder. The company will stone them with stones and cut them down with their swords; they will slay their sons and their daughters and burn their houses with fire. Thus I will make lewdness cease from the land, that all women may be admonished and not commit lewdness as you have done. Your lewdness will be requited upon you, and you will bear the penalty of worshiping your idols; thus you will know that I am the Lord GOD.’” (Ezekiel 23:44-49)The Ezekiel passage is addressed to two nations in their state of apostasy, Oholah (Northern tribes of Israel) and Oholibah (Judah). They are also called mystically "Babylon" and "Egypt" because they carried with them the adulteries/idolatries of Egypt and Babylon and continued to practice them. Their example was a message to other "women," or nations.The vital transition in Revelation is that first Israel is warned through the "moedic memos" to the Seven Assemblies of Revelation. Next, those nations from which they carried the adulterous idolatries are judged. The smaller to greater pattern may also be seen in Zechariah 14:17 when he prophesies that the commandment that initially was specific to Israel of going up to Jerusalem for the foot festivals of Passover, Shavuot, and Sukkot will extend to the other nations in the millennium.It then explains why John prophesies in the Revelation to the world that they will suffer the same sentences applied to Israel for the "stoning" offenses. As those nations transition to King Yeshua's rule over the earth, they, like Pharaoh, will suffer stoning for stubborness concerning control of Israel and the commandments of Adonai.To understand how stoning was performed, we have to erase our memories of high school reading assignments such as "The Lottery" or news images of men stoning women in Afghanistan. While throwing stones at someone until they are dead is one way of stoning, the Biblical method is rarely explained outside of Judaism.The Jewish understanding of how to perform stoning is rooted in Moses’ warning at Sinai to protect the people from the hailstones by which they would be stoned if they approached the mountain:“And you shall set bounds around it for the people, saying, ‘Guard yourself from ascending the mountain or touching its edge; whoever touches the mountain shall surely die. A hand shall not touch it, for he shall be stoned or he shall be cast down; whether animal or person he shall not live; when the blast of the ram’s horn is drawing out, they will ascend the mountain.” (Ex 19:12-13)Judicial orders of stoning in ancient times consisted of first, pushing the guilty one off a high place, such as a cliff. This was the "casting down." If the person were to somehow survive the fall, then he or she would be stoned, sometimes placing a heavy rock on the chest to prevent breathing. First the fall, second the stones.Exodus 9:25 was a plague of hail in Egypt which affected unbelieving man and beast: “Now therefore send, bring your livestock and whatever you have in the field to safety. Every man and beast that is found in the field and is not brought home, when the hail comes down on them, will die.”’” (v. 19)This is just after a pestilence upon the beasts of Egypt (but not of the prepared Hebrews) which knocked them off their feet (Re 2:22-23). Likewise, those following the idolatrous teaching in Thyatira, which corresponds to the fourth feast of Shavuot, will be thrown on a sickbed and afflicted with pestilence for eating things offered to idols. Egypt and Babylon. Fallen, fallen. The unprepared "believers" and the rebellious world: fallen, fallen.This equivalency sounds very familiar from the Revelation of John, which describes those who conform themselves to the image of the beast.The nations are judged at the blowing of the shofar at Yom Teruah in the fall, whereas Shavuot, the conclusion of Pesach, is the warning to the righteous among all nations to prepare. If prepared by “holiness and washing” (Ex 19:14), they will be prepared to cross the boundary and ascend the mountain at Yom Teruah without fear of stoning or being cast down.Put that in the context of ascending into the cloud, "going up" as the resurrection, then it makes sense why Israel could not ascend until a specific shofar was heard, the Great Shofar of Yom Teruah that accompanies Yeshua's return.It is the plague of the Seventh Angel, corresponding to Shabbat and Sukkot, that stones the nations of the earth. If we read the context of Revelation 16, it references Babylon, recalling the Tower of Bavel when mankind agreed to challenge the boundary of heaven to achieve eternal life. Their attempt to approach the mountain without holiness and washing results in this:“And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague was extremely severe.” (Re 16:21)Egypt and Babylon were the sources of the idolatry-adultery of Israel and Judah. Egypt handed off the authority of the serpent to the first beast kingdom, Babylon. Israel and Judah will be judged first. The righteous among them will wash themselves and their "clothes" (garment of salvation, robes of righteous deeds) and be prepared to go up to the mountain at Shavuot (not saying they will).The nations and the lukewarm among Israel and Judah will hear the Great Shofar at Yom Teruah, yet not be prepared to ascend. If they try, they will be "stoned." What would keep them from ascending, or worse yet, being "stoned"?Adultery/idolatry, dark arts, blaspheming, and profaning Shabbat are all associated with the punishment of stoning.Warn, judge, cast down, stone.Yeshua uses the language of Yom Teruah, when he comes like a thief in the night, to warn the world to be "awake" on Judgment Day. Yom Teruah is the opening of the books, and Yom HaKippurim is the closing ten days later, a period known at the Terrible Days, the Great and Terrible Day of Adonai:“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.” (Re 16:15)The preparation for Shavuot at Sinai to receive the Torah included washing one’s clothes. This warning was given through Moses. The Torah.The clothes must then be “kept,” or guarded, shamar. This guards the person's body. Likewise, the preparation for Yom Teruah is to stay awake: “Awake you sleeper, arise from the dead...” The warning is to “keep” one’s clothes, which were washed to prepare for Shavuot, all the way to the Great Shofar, the Resurrection of the Dead at Yom Teruah.Discerning the Body of the Bride on Shabbat is to guard the first of the moedim, to guard one’s clothes. Guarding one’s clothes from Re 16:15 has a Hebrew cognate, shamar, which is also used in the “wedding ring” of Shabbat as shamor et yom ha-shabbat:“Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you.” (Dt 5:12)??????? ???????? ????????? ??????????? ????????? ??????? ?????? ?????????It is because of this warning of stoning at Shavuot that Jewish scholars scrupulously read guidelines concerning stoning offenses in the Torah. “He shall be stoned or he shall be cast down” (Ex 19:13 Artscroll) explains how the death sentence is executed. If a person is observed committing a stonable offense, he should be warned, just as the Israelites were warned to wash and keep themselves and their garments until the Presence was revealed on the mountain.The beast will try to "ascend" in rebellion, not obedience, with the stonable offense of blasphemy:There was given to him a mouth speaking arrogant words and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven. (Re 13:5-6)Adultery/idolatry, dark arts, blasphemy, Sabbath-breaking.The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk; and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts. (Re 9:20-21)The offender is warned first. If he does not repent (stop), then he is judged. When he is found guilty, he is stoned. The very presence of believers who obey the Word of Adonai and proclaim Yeshua's testimony serves as a warning to the nations. Those "lukewarm" believers who are a little like obedient Israel and a little like the rebellious world will be assigned a place with unbelievers, at least for a time. (Lk 12:46)They failed to warn the idolators, magic-workers, blasphemers, and Sabbath-breakers. Maybe they've even engaged in it themselves like the Thyatirans. What we do, how we walk before others is the testimony of Yeshua that can warn the world and protect them from falling down and from the hailstones of judgment. Why wouldn't the Master be angry when He returns if His own witnesses have treated His Shabbat casually?Those sentenced by the court to be stoned areFirst pushed down from a high stoning place. The fall may kill them.Should he survive the fall, he will be stoned with stones.Yes, as Israel is judged, so will the nations follow quickly:“The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell...” (Re 16:19)First they will be warned like Pharaoh with plagues. Then they will fall. Then they will be stoned.Have you entered the storehouses of the snow,Or have you seen the storehouses of the hail,Which I have reserved for the time of distress,For the day of war and battle? (Job 38:22-23)The message to Laodicea, the Seventh Assembly, is to not think that being "lukewarm" concerning the Shabbat would adequate covering to survive the Presence that is encountered at the resurrection of the dead in the cloud on the Mountain.It isn't.It wasn't in the wilderness, and it won't be when we hear the Great Shofar. Yeshua gives the warning:"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth. Because you say, 'I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,' and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent." (Re 3:15-19)Every Shabbat could be the most important Shabbat of your life. We've been warned. Don't get stoned. Why else would the most important number in Revelation be seven? We've seen the Words. We'll hear the sound. Soon, we will see the sounds.
Here’s another one of those paraschot that just seems to be SO “old testament,” and that has perhaps even been used as a poster child for “done away with.” After all, it’s a ‘disease’ that hasn’t been seen for centuries, except in a few Bible movies, and isn’t really “leprosy” at all, anyway. So who cares?
Which is why Mark suggests we ought to!
Parsha “Tazria” (Leviticus chapters 12 through 13) also at least has something to do with the ‘eighth day,’ when an infant male child is to be circumcised. But it also comes from a section that is ‘politically incorrect,’ in a world that so hates His Word, and then introduces a concept that might be even more “out of favor.”
The Erev Shabbat reading lays out all the sordid details:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SSM-4-12-24-Tazria-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The sages suggest that a person being overcome by the malady of ‘tzaraat’ and exiled outside of the camp was a sort of testimony that Elohim Himself was publicly pointing out that individual’s wrongdoing.
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship has suggested in the past that perhaps the “NOT-leprosy” that is described in Scripture, but has not actually been SEEN in centuries might in some ways thus be a type of ‘blessing’ for His people, in that the ‘evil tongue’ might be revealed for what it is, while repentance is still possible.
Such detail about a ‘plague’ that probably hasn’t been seen anywhere on the planet for over a thousand years. And if the ‘evil tongue’ of lashon hora is the proximate cause – you have to wonder why it isn’t more common in today’s world of “calling evil good,” and vice-versa, than ever.
So why no more? And why not – especially – in a time when truly reprobate “leaders” give a whole new understanding to the term “evil tongue,” or lashon hora.. don’t we “unclean, unclean” as bumper music for every fake newscast?
Tazria: Why? They Have NO Shame!”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/WT-CooH-4-13-24-Tazria-Why-no-Tzaraat-they-Have-NO-Shame-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
One Size Fits All"Tzav""One Size Fits All!"We’ve probably all been duped by that assurance! Sure it fits, as long as you don't mind sleeves so long you could make it into a straitjacket!One size definitely doesn’t fit all. Do we trust the ad enough to order it online? Do we hire a personal shopper who knows our taste, our height, our weight, body shape, even arm length?How about prayer? Does one size fit all?That’s a common question even though it is not usually worded that way. Frequently I hear objections to Jewish prayer as vain repetition. It’s an uninformed way of looking at it, but we often simply repeat what someone who we respected told us. As we allow the Ruach HaKodesh to turn our spiritual life upside down repeatedly, that may be one area that turns. To help coach new-to-Torah believers in the basics of Jewish prayer, I’ve written books such as Standing With Israel: A House of Prayer for All Nations, Messianic Shabbat Service, and Creation Gospel Workbook Six: Hebrew Prayer and Worship Traditions. Rather than cover that ground again, I thought I would reiterate one of the principles of Hebrew prayer. Although the basic daily, feast, and Shabbat prayers are fixed and do not change, they do not need to. The Temple service was the same. Fixed. As the daily prayers took the place of the Temple services after its destruction, they too, were fixed.There is room in the Amidah prayers for spontaneous, personal conversation with Adonai. The point of Hebrew prayer is that the person is transformed with each prayer. When I pray the Amidah in the evening, I am not the same person who prayed it that morning. The conversation with Adonai changed me. As immersion into Messiah Yeshua makes me a new person, so does the fire of the Ruach burn me on the altar each day.This is why it is so difficult to advise someone on which siddur (prayer book) to purchase. It’s kind of like picking out someone else’s clothes, especially if you don’t know them personally. I’d need to know several things:1. Do you want Hebrew text, English, or both?2. Do you want an English transliteration?3. Do you need a daily siddur, Shabbat siddur, or a combination of both?4. Do you want a Messianic siddur?5. Large print, or are you good with a font the size of a gnat’s tattoo in the pocket size?You get the gist. This week’s Ulpan-Or newsletter on the Torah portion is an excellent illustration of the personal relationship with prayer. The ashes from altar that burn down from the previous day are symbolically placed beside it. Today’s sacrifice will be a new one. Today’s prayers will be new because we are new, re-born of fire and water. With their permission to reproduce, I’ve included Ulpan-Or's lesson below:TORAH PORTION "Tzav"This Shabbat we will read Torah Portion "Tzav".In our Torah Portion Tzav, G?d instructs Moses to command Aaron and his sons regarding their duties who offer the offerings on the altar in the Sanctuary.The fire on the altar had to be kept burning at all times.It is interesting to notice that each and every morning, the first order of the day in the Holy Temple was for the priest to remove a small portion of the ashes from the altar and place it on the floor just next to the altar.Why particularly the priest had to start each day with removing ashes from the previous day?What was the purpose of this ritual?The purpose of this ritual was not merely to tidy up the ashes left over from the fire that had burned all night. The priest only had to remove a very small symbolic amount of ash.And, in fact, after the first priest would remove a small portion of the ashes, the other priests would place the remainder of the ashes in a large heap in the center of the altar.Why is it so important that it’s the first ritual performed in the Temple, - the first step in the service of G?d?What is the significance of lifting and removing the symbolic amount of ashes?Let us think. What are ashes? These are what is left over from the previous day’s service.Your yesterday, may have been perfect.Yesterday, you may have achieved a lot with your talents and strengths.But, …. That was yesterday.However, if you do the same thing today, you do not grow spiritually.If you repeat what you did yesterday - then you are merely stuck in the past.You remain the “Old You”.So, the ashes that represent “the old me” must be removed, in order to clear the way for “the new me,” that today will actualize today’s greater potential.That’s why the first step in serving G?d each morning is the realization that that the ashes that represent “the old me” must be removed, in order to clear the way for “the new me,”One must tell himself – Tomorrow will be totally different - not just “a bit different,” The next day’s potential would be so much greater.Unlike in the Beatles’ song “Yesterday”, one should not long for yesterday, but rather look onward for a better tomorrow.Remembering the exodus from Egypt is so central to Judaism.Egypt in Hebrew is Mitzrayim - ?????, and it means “constraints.”So, if today you are in the same spiritual space that you were in yesterday, you are in Egypt – you are constrained. The verse in the Torah insists that you “remember the day you left Egypt all the days of your life.”Each morning when we wake up, we need to remember to symbolically remove the ashes of yesterday and not limit ourselves to the person we were yesterday.As Dr. Joe Dispenza says in his book: “Breaking the Habit of being yourself: “If you want a new outcome, you will have to break the habit of being yourself, and reinvent a new self."
Parsha “Shmini” (Leviticus chapters 9 through 11) appears to be an unusual combination. It begins on the ‘eighth day,’ with the climax of the consecration of the priests, Aaron and his sons, and only appears to end when “there came forth fire from before YHVH.”
Those same words frame the tragedy of the death of his sons Nadab and Abihu when they offer “strange fire,” which – clearly most importantly – He did NOT command.
Why, then, does He talk about food next?
The Erev Shabbat reading sets the stage:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SSM-4-5-24-Shmini-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3And the confluence of those events set up the questions. What does ‘strange fire’ even mean? And why did it merit sudden death?
Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship suggests that the story of Ezekiel chapters 8 and 9 offers some insight: What was it they “knew, or SHOULD have known?”
It is true that, “to whom much is given, much is expected.” And in Ezekiel 9:6, YHVH does tell the destroying angel to “begin at My sanctuary.”
But, wait – we don’t have a temple, or even a mishkan, any more. No priests, either, to hold to a higher standard. And any issues about “ritual purity” and food don’t fit any more, either.
Maybe that’s another indicator. Especially now.
With the ‘next bioweapon release’ seemingly at-hand, not to mention the biggest economic meltdown in history, and an attempted nuclear escalation of mention WW 3, doesn’t it seem far less insane to trust YHVH rather leaders who have demonstrated a desire to serve Death?
And since there are things on the horizon that we cannot control, doesn’t it make sense to obey Him as best we can in the things we can?
Shmini: Knew, or Should Have Known”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/WT-CooH-4-6-24-Shmini-Knew-or-SHOULD-Have-Known-WHO-to-Trust-podcast-xxxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Violence in Eden: WhiplashAlthough its connection to Yom HaKippurim (A Day like Purim) is more easily heard, the story of Purim in the scroll of Esther holds references to all the feasts. In fact, Purim holds a key to Passover that is very practical. It has to do with how the danger started: evil words. Chametz. Leaven. When Queen Esther calls the Jews to fast with her against the evil, it is during the days of matzah! The antidote to the violence of evil words is holy words, words spoken in prayer and fasting. By fasting and praying with unleavened tongues, the power of evil was broken.In our "Benjamin Will Not Bow" newsletter, we searched back to Eden to find the source of slander, gossip, and separating brothers in conflict. Ezekiel describes the Edenic violation as a kind of violence. Indeed, today, when people profess hatred toward others, it often leads to actual violence. It "spreads out" two human beings made in the image of Elohim that were not created to be apart.Ezekiel 28:12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,“You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.13 “You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering: the ruby, the topaz and the diamond; the beryl, the onyx and the jasper; the lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; and the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, was in you. On the day that you were created they were prepared.14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I placed you there.You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked in the midst of the stones of fire.15 You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you.16 By the abundance of your trade (rakal) you were internally filled with violence (malu chamas), and you sinned; therefore I have cast you as profane from the mountain of God and I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.17 Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you.It is rather odd that "trade" led to "violence," or chamas. Perhaps there is more to the word than is translated. What is "trade" in Hebrew?Rakhal- “...go about, from one to another”There is much debate on the identity of the “King of Tyre.”In this type of prophecy, the "villain" may be an archetype of a certain sinner. The tip-off is that it is anachronistic, completely out of the time period. Just as often it will work on the positive side, such as a later person coming "in the spirit of Elijah," for instance.This violent violator walked among ”fiery stones” until he was cast out because of his “trade,” rakhal. The same accusation is made against Babylon in Revelation. The Adversary, the serpent, goes back and forth between Adonai and His People to accuse.The trafficker has two connotations: go about for spice trading and slandering. A High Priest is to go about with spices for atonement, not leverage to accuse Israel.On the other hand, false witness was trafficked to convict Yeshua.Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES. (1 Co 5:6-13)If only Adam and Eve hadn't associated with an immoral "person," the slanderer! Why are we so hesitant to confront a slanderer? We're not supposed to even eat with one...it's quite a sour fruit even though it looks juicy.A “reviler” as Paul describes is G3060 ???????? loídorosThe KJV translates Strong's G3060 in the following manner: railer (1x), reviler (1x).Its Hebrew cognate is from din, judgment: madon ???????????? H4066 from H1777; a contest or quarrel:—brawling, contention(-ous), discord, strife.One who quarrels is one who is both arrogant and “leavened,” prone to distort the truth. The serpent in the Garden was a trafficker of falsely twisted information.Slander is a reviling truth to separate humans from Elohim and one another. It's probably not the whole story, just enough to deceive. We must remove these things before Passover. It is chametz!During the search for leaven, and especially the seven days of Matzah, beware of slander, gossip, and lies. If you have to tape your mouth shut and wear noise-canceling headphones, do it! Who with perversity in his heart continually devises evil,who spreads strife. H4066 (Pr 6:14)?A perverse man spreads ?????? strife, H4066And a slanderer separates intimate friends. (Pr 16:28)?Like charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire,So is a contentious H4066 man to kindle strife. (Pr 26:21)?An arrogant man stirs up strife, H4066But he who trusts in the LORD will prosper. (Pr 28:25)Stirring up strife is evidence we don’t trust Adonai in the situation. It is “tongue-leaven”:So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? (Ja 3:5-11)It is so clear from James' warning that pride is what sets the stage for the evil tongue and all the abominations that follow. Is Passover just about finding leavened products in our homes, or is it about finding the arrogance that leavens us?15 ‘You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.16 You shall not go about as a slanderer among your people, and you are not to act against the life of your neighbor; I am the LORD.17 ‘You shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove your neighbor but shall not incur sin because of him.18 You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD. (Le 19:15-18)Are there any other commandments in Scripture that we so predictably apply to other people?You shall not go about as a slanderer among your people...[Sefer HaChinnuch to Le 19:16]The Jewish sages explain:“This means that if we hear a person telling something bad about his fellow, we should not go and tell him, ‘So and so is saying this-and-this about you’ unless it is our intention to remove or avoid injury or to stop a quarrel. Our Sages of blessed memory said of the word rakkil (talebearer, slanderer): rakh, soft (kind), to one, and harsh to another. Another meaning: do not be as a Rokhel (peddler), loading up with words and going to peddle them...evil gossip and its partner, slander...bring death to the one who says it, the one who receives it, and the one about whom it is told-but most of all to the one who receives it...he is as one who violates a royal command...”This explains the violence done by the serpent. He "peddled" words to Eve. To this day, he "peddles" words back and forth from human beings to the Throne, most regrettably, even back and forth from the people of Adonai to His Throne. He accuses us because we continue to load up his peddler's cart with our word-poisons against one another.The same tongues that could make peace instead create distance, killing relationships. Just as Adam and Even were separated from the Presence in the Garden, so we continually hide our faces from one another. One day, the Adversary will have no more words from our lips to peddle, and he will be cast down to earth.This is our goal in preparing for Passover. Make peace. It will not make itself, for peace must be made. Peace is not a spontaneous miracle, but humility in two parties who build it together. Adonai makes peace in the Heavens; it is our job to make peace on earth.What is the Torah's punishment for a slanderer? It requires no whiplashes from the beit din, but instead, Adonai Himself is thought to send agents of judgment with “whiplashes.”Whiplashes are frequently the punishment for violations of the mishpatim, mostly for violation of a negative commandment. Whiplashes can be both literal by human hands or through Divine judgment:If there is a dispute between men and they go to court, and the judges decide their case, and they justify the righteous and condemn the wicked, then it shall be if the wicked man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall then make him lie down and be beaten in his presence with the number of stripes according to his guilt. He may beat him forty times but no more, so that he does not beat him with many more stripes than these and your brother is not degraded in your eyes. (Dt 25:1-3)In the case above, the dispute has a clear innocent person and guilty person. Righteous and innocent. Even the punishment must not be degrading, a mercy the wicked did not extend to the righteous. Slander, however, incurs Divine whiplashes. Consider this slander committed by the ten evil spies concerning the Land itself. By using the truth about the Land of Israel, they turned the hearts of the people against it!According to the number of days which you spied out the land, forty days, for every day you shall bear your guilt a year, even forty years, and you will know My opposition. (Nu 13:4)Moses didn't give anyone a whipping over the slander and the peddling of malicious talk. Yet, just as in Eden, the sentence was death. The slanderers would die off in forty years, a year for a day. These were Divine "whiplashes." It is as if Adonai knew the degree of malice each man arrogantly kindled with his tongue, and He set the forty-year death time-table accordingly. Some were executed sooner, some later in the journey. In the graphic below, you can see that whiplashes are sometimes seen in Scripture as the words of a malicious tongue, yet also the judgment of Adonai Himself.Yeshua describes it this way:And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk; the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers. And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more. (Lk 12:42-48)When is it okay to be a tattletale? Mordechai demonstrates: When the truth will save a life. By telling of the plot to assassinate the king, he saved his life. Queen Esther does it more boldly: she accuses wicked Haman in his very presence and saves the lives of all the Jews in Persia!The assassins and wicked Haman both set out to do the same thing with their tongues: kill. Given time, they would have completed the killing task that their tongues began. They arrogantly decided who had a right to live. So it is with slander. We arrogantly decide who has a right to live and begin to flog our enemies with gossip and slander to kill their reputations.In Vayigash, Judah atoned for Benjamin, not knowing he was innocent of the charge. In Esther, Benjamin (Mordechai and Esther are Benjaminites) atones for Judah. Atonement can be a painful thing because peacemaking carries a risk of personal loss.So when we see a peddler's cartful of words rolling our way, we know what to do. Even though the king was an unwitting receiver of the slander against the Jews, he did receive some lashes. The trouble it started resulted in a number of deaths when he granted the Jews the authority to defend themselves against attackers. The king is supposed to protect his people, not set them up for harm. He received the words, and death happened.How much more will those suffer who know better than to receive the words, yet they purchase the juicy fruit of slanderous lips. Like Yeshua said, it's violence, beating up fellow-servants. And they thought it cost them nothing. Free fruit juice.Whiplash is coming when that cart skids to a stop before the King and Judge of all the earth. May we unload any apples of our own in that cart before Passover.
Parsha “Tzav” (Leviticus chapters 6 through 8) begins with the word ‘command,’ but this time specifically Aaron and his sons, having to do with some more detail of the offerings that they are going to make.
And, again, there is something for us to learn here, too, but it starts with a realization, and an understanding: Not only does the ‘mishkan,’ or tabernacle there in the wilderness no longer exist, and neither do either of the two later temples, but today, there no ‘kohenim’ to make those offerings, either.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/SSM-3-29-24-Tzav-teaching-podcast-x.mp3This is a year where “calendar variants’ loom large. Variants of the roman church are talking about ‘easter’ this weekend, while some of the more ‘equinox-oriented’ calendar variants among those seeking to return to Torah have Pesach in this same timeframe, while others, including those waiting for’abiv’ barley, and most rabbinic Jewish reckonings, based on the Hillel calendar, will observe Pesach closer to the end of April.
So there is almost a one-month spread this year, and – perhaps ironically – the Big Total Solar Eclipse on April 8th falls right in between.
Mark Call looks at a number of ‘indicators’ that are either “signs” that judgment is at hand, or of a nation gone insane.
Or all of the above.
But he noted up front that he is, “no longer surprised how many times,” over recent years, we’ve heard reports that another Red Heifer ‘candidate’ has been found, and is being examined in Israel. Including, it seems, now. Usually with a reminder that procedures are being put in place to dedicate an altar, and resume some sort of “temple operations,” which turns out to be a source of excitement, anxiety, and certainly great division among those who fancy themselves ‘Bible believers.’
Is this a “good thing,” or a “bad thing?” And what about the ‘third temple’ prophecies?
Almost always, too, the claims from some version of the Book of Hebrews that those “silly jews don’t know that ‘jesus christ’ DID AWAY WITH all of that!’ And the ‘red heifer’ is now nothing but superstition, because that’s the ‘whole point of EASTER.’
Which is, of course, the reason why it’s important to understand what Scripture actually says about all of the ‘controversy,’ and in what ‘sacrifices’ He says, “I do NOT delight.”
Tzav: Red Heifer or Chocolate Bunny?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/WT-CooH-3-30-24-Tzav-Red-Heiffer-or-Chocolate-Bunny-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
This week marks the first parsha in the Book of Vayikra, or Leviticus (Lev. chapters 1 through 5), where the reading beings with descriptions of several different types of offerings, and how they are to be done.
Many here are probably already aware that there is a difference between “sacrifice” (tzebach) and “offering” (korbon) and that Shaul/Paul actually supported and performed those associated with the end of the Nazerite vow (Acts 21:23-26). But that is only part of what is at best “incomplete” about the significance of His plan as taught in ‘sun-day school’.
Because what is perhaps most interesting, however, and certainly overlooked, is the fact that these are specifically for what amounts to “UN-intentional” sin. Leaving a major ‘gap in the picture.
The Erev Shabbat reading:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/SSM-3-22-24-Vayikra-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Which is where the Sabbath Day midrash begins. Because if there is SO much discussion of the kind of ‘sin’ that might be accomplished by different people by mistake, or in ignorance, and what should then be done, what does that say about intentional, deliberate REBELLION to him; intentional sin?
The answer is – not much. Well, explicitly anyway. Almost as if His Instruction paints a complete picture, by drawing an outline all around, and leaving something for us to figure out. As if it should be obvious.
What could be the nature of a ‘sacrifice’ for deliberate, knowing rebellion to YHVH Himself?
And if these “sacrifices” have been “done away with,” anyway, what do they have to tell us now?
Perhaps most ‘ironic’ is the misunderstanding of what is referenced in Hebrews chapter 10. No wonder it’s so easy to twist a letter written by a Hebrew to other Hebrews if people don’t understand the basics.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa for an examination of the specifics of vital distinctions that speak volumes – especially when they are ignored! Starting with Hebrews 10:26. Which may be one of the most clear warnings to the “Clergy Response Team” in Scripture!
Vayikra: ‘It’s What You DON’T Say’ – Vital Distinctions – Omitted or Ignored?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/WT-CooH-3-23-24-Vaykira-Its-What-You-DONT-Say-distinctions-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Discussing how the hell-bug of Abaddon is overcome by believers who connect the generations with the Word. with special guests Howie and aline George.
Parsha Nitzavim [“you are standing THIS Day…” from Deuteronomy 29:9 through chapter 30] contains what I contend is one of the most graphic and undeniable refutations of some of THE Biggest Lies in all xtianity…things that are NOT in the Real Book, but get taught in sun-god-day skool as if they actually were. It also […]
Wars of Kings is a foundation for using the template of the first Exodus to understand the Greater Exodus and the accompanying plagues in the Book of Revelation. Click on Wars of Kings to go to the first segment of the Wars YouTube video. Part of this week's teaching will continue with the rest of the plagues, providing examples from our time to connect with the texts.
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Parsha “Ki Tavo” (Deuteronomy 26:1 thru 29:8) is the most well-known collection of “blessings and cursings” in the Bible.
There is, of course, much more. But this year, there’s an additional twist as well. Having taught this for a number of years at this point, and noting just how relevant – and DESERVED – those curses are, it time for a different take. After all, if it’s not obvious by now how and why those curses apply, it’s fair to ask: Just what is it gonna take?
The Erev Shabbat overview begins with something that might seem quite different from how this one ends…what does ‘first fruits,’ and things that have to with His appointed times, have to do with blessings and cursings?
But it’s no coincidence this parsha coincides with the coming of the Fall Feasts, and all they represent.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/SSM-9-1-23-Ki-Tavo-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3The Sabbath midrash is a look at the question that should especially resonate this year: The reasons for the curses should be obvious, but will not be to far too many. And Deuteronomy 27:26 is why! Doesn’t it tell those who deny His Word exactly what the consequences are?
The curses are deserved, arguably even overdue; but YHVH is patient, to give all who will a chance to ‘return’ to Him. The question for those with eyes to see then becomes, what do we do now? And Mark Call, of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship, suggests the answer is in there, repeatedly.
It starts with “fear not!” – but it turns out that there is more than one Hebrew word for “fear,” and the difference is vital to the second part of the answer, especially for the time of Sukkot: REJOICE!
“Ki Tavo: So – the Well-Deserved Curses are Here…NOW What?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/WT-CooH-9-2-23-Ki-Tavo-The-Curses-are-at-hand-so-NOW-what-podcast-xxx.mp3The combined two-part teaching is here:
Scripture Reading: Deut 29:1-9 Ecc 1:1-3:22 2 Cor 6:1-13 Psalm 46:1-11 Prov 22:15 and
Additional reading: Hebrews 12:18-24, 1 Timothy 2:5, Hebrews 8:1-7, Hebrews 8:13, Jeremiah 31:31-33, Ezekiel 36:27-28, Ezekiel 11:19-20, Galatians 4:21-30, Colossians 1:18.
In this teaching, we take a look at this critical question: Where are we standing in our spiritual walk? Are we standing at Mt Zion, where Yeshua is the head of this mountain? Or, is it possible that some in the Hebrew Roots world have slowly drifted away and are now camped at Mt Sinai, with Moses at the head of this mountain? We have all been on a faith journey. I fear that some of us may have lost our way. Listen in as we take a deep dive and look at these two spiritual mountains.
Watch VIDEO of this teaching: GO HERE
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Wars of Kings is a foundation for using the template of the first Exodus to understand the Greater Exodus and the accompanying plagues in the Book of Revelation. Click on Wars of Kings to go to the first segment of the Wars YouTube video. Last week's teaching explained up to plague five, and part of this week's teaching will continue with the rest of the plagues, providing examples from our time to connect with the texts.
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Parsha “Ki Tetzi” (Deuteronomy 21:10 thru chapter 25) is unique in a number of ways. Not only is it “maximally politically INcorrect” – which itself speaks volumes – but it contains more ‘statutes, judgments, and commandments’ than just about any other parsha in the Torah, with the possible exception of Mishaptim itself. But, as Mark […]
The Greater Exodus will have its own challenges, but is Perfect Attendance possible? If we see it as the presence of every chosen one, then Scripture indicates yes, it is more than possible, but promised. Our working text is Song of Songs Chapter Four:
Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young.
Translations will vary. Some will say “all of them perfect” or “not one of them is missing.”
This “twins and pairs” passage of the Song of Songs is also seen by the sages as hinting to the missing daughters of Jacob, of whom there is only the brief mention in Genesis 37:35. Where did these daughters come from? Scripture is often so subtle when it reveals information about women in Scripture that the hint is often read over without notice.
Although Scripture only names one daughter, Dinah, who is believed to have been a single birth, the sages believe that each son was born with a twin sister. Like Rachel, whose name means “ewe lamb,” she was thought to be a twin to Leah as Jacob was a twin to Esau. Where did these daughters go? Why aren’t they mentioned in the descent to Egypt? Were they too attached to the Land of Israel to descend, preferring instead to remain?
We have no answers, but we have a deliberately-placed hint, and in addition to its plain meaning, that not one sheep of the flock of Israel will be missing when they cross over the Jordan, we also have some insight as to Joel’s prophecy, quoted by Peter in Acts Two, that the latter days of prophecy will be characterized by a pouring-out of the Ruach HaKodesh on both sons AND daughters, male AND female servants. Not one will be missing when they come up from their washing. In fact, maybe they never were missing, just unseen.
The twinning aspect is seen in the 24 courses of the Temple service. This may explain much about Acts Two and Peter’s explanation of Yoel’s prophecy of “sons and daughters,” “male and female servants.” In the “House,” or Temple, the male AND female disciples were praying on Shavuot, commemorating the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, the “mountain of testimony” also from Chapter Four of the Song of Songs: “...your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead.”
The 24 courses were a twinning, or “perfection” of the twelve. The 24 mishmarot priestly watches would each consume the sacrifices with their teeth: “Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing.”
Three times of year the 24 courses are equal, or ”perfect,” all in attendance. These times are Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot. While only those kohanim on duty would eat the sacrifices at other times, at the foot festivals they all were present to serve, so they shared equally. Every priest was part of the Perfect Attendance of the feasts. There were also the 24 watches of the Levites who served for a week on a rotating basis, functioning as gatekeepers and singers, along with other duties. The kohanim and Leviim were mishmarot who “watched over” the Israelites by seeing to the sacrifices and doing the work for Adonai’s atonement.
In addition to the kohanim and Leviim were the royal priesthood on duty. They served for a full month rather than a week, providing continuity during the changing of the Levitical and priestly courses, just as each tribe represents a month on the calendar. The royal priesthood provides year-round service. This royal priesthood ministered to the needs of Israel and the nations on behalf of the king, just as we do today. As the kohanim were to the tribes of Israel, so the tribes of Israel were to the nations.
The 24,000 men were sent from each tribe, one tribe per month, to serve as maamadot who were at the king’s disposal. They assisted in the execution of royal duties and ensured the security of the Israelites while they worshiped. They also fasted, recited Scripture, and prayed, like Channah (Annah), who remained in the Temple day and night. Their duties of security, administration duties as assigned by the king, fasting, and prayer/Scripture reading is consistent with the identity of the tribes as a royal priesthood.
This is unique from the kohanim and leviim, for the 24,000 both served in the Temple and mingled with the people, conducting Kingdom business. At the feasts, the royal priesthood from the twelve tribes would also have Perfect Attendance, for all were required to present themselves in Jerusalem for Pesach, Shavuot, and Sukkot.
Although only the able-bodied males were required by Torah, the prophetic perfection of the commandment in Acts Two included the women as well, just as Channah was sought as a witness to the infant Yeshua's birth, for she served as a member of the Tribe of Asher. Likewise, the royal priesthood of Yeshua’s disciples assembled at The House (Temple) with Perfect Attendance on Shavuot, and the Ruach HaKodesh fell on them, equipping them to execute the King’s commandments and see to His business on earth, declaring His mighty deeds through their testimony of Yeshua’s resurrection.
Another line from the Shir:
“Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is beautiful.”
Another translation:
“Your speech [midbarekha] is beautiful.”
Your sons and your daughters. Your male and female servants. Not one is missing, and their testimony of Yeshua and the commandments of Elohim is beautiful.
“It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. (Joel 2:28-29)
Will you be serving the King of Kings at the upcoming feasts? If we all show up, then no matter the exact date of the Greater Exodus, we have
PERFECT ATTENDANCE!
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Parsha “Shoftim” (Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9) begins with the word which means “judges,” and proceeds to describe a set of instruction having to do with the “rule of law,” and ‘justice,’ and concepts of what an honest, trustworthy judiciary looks like that is so foreign to us today it’s no WONDER the Whore Church is happy that […]
Wars of Kings is a foundation for using the template of the first Exodus known as the "Wars of Kings" to understand the Greater Exodus and the accompanying plagues in the Book of Revelation. Go to the first segment of the Wars from last week. Last week's teaching explained the template and the plague on the waters, and this week's teaching will complete the rest of the plagues, providing examples from our time to connect with the texts.
Parsha “Re’eh” (Deuteronomy 11:26-16:17) begins with the single word “Behold!” Or, more simply, in the modern English, just “See.” Which is what most of xtianity has refused to do for at least 1700 years now. And it’s pretty easy to actually read this one, and see why. The Erev Shabbat reading and commentary of the […]
Wars of Kings is a foundation for using the template of the first Exodus known as the "Wars of Kings" to understand the Greater Exodus and the accompanying plagues in the Book of Revelation. This week's teaching explains the template and the plague on the waters, and next week's teaching will complete the rest of the plagues, providing examples from our time to connect with the texts.
Audio reading: Deut 11:1-10 2 Chron 35:1-36:23 1 Cor 1:1-17 Psalm 27:1-6 Prov 20:20-21 Audio reading: Deut 11:11-25 Ezra 1:1-2:70 1 Cor 1:18-2:5 Psalm27:7-14 Prov 20:22-23 For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to […]
Sometimes the Torah portion reading almost seems like it could have come from today’s news. Other times, we know the message applies, but we have to search a bit to make what later often turn out to be obvious connections. This week, it’s a bit of both. Parsha Ekev (Deuteronomy/Debarim 7:12-11:25) begins with a promise. […]
we looked at key “prepping” points for the Greater Exodus as children of Sarah, Jerusalem above and temples of the Ruach HaKodesh. We saw the need to:
guard against wickedness entering her house, a temple of the Ruach HaKodesh pray for her generation (until the Holy One Himself seals our lips) obey the Covenant, especially assembling on Shabbat and at the feasts, conspicuously holding daily "services" the lost may easily find because they are landmarks
This week, we’ll identify the traits of the warriors of a thousand generations gathering to Jerusalem. Here is our working text:
?Your neck is like the tower of David, Built with rows of stones On which are hung a thousand shields, All the round shields of the mighty men. (So 4:4)
To understand a thousand shields and generations, we look at the First Mention of a thousand:
To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; behold, it is your vindication before all who are with you, and before all men you are cleared.” (Ge 20:16)
When Avimelekh “redeems” Sarah’s reputation to a thousand generations, the earlier part of the story gives context.
In ancient times, rape was viewed as less permissible than killing the husband and then taking the wife. For this reason, Avraham twice uses the deception "Say you are my sister" to protect himself. In a sense, the serpent “killed” Adam and then had access to Eve, perhaps the source of some strange doctrines pertaining to the serpent and Eve. It is a spiritual metaphor, not a physical relationship. In Sarah, the 1,000 generations were in jeopardy, yet her reputation, which was held captive, was redeemed with 1,000 pieces of silver. In Messiah Yeshua, the serpent killed the Bridegroom, yet he resurrected, zealous with love stronger than the grave.
Once confronted with the plague on his house because he held Sarah unlawfully, Avimelekh seeks to rectify the wrong and clear Sarah's name to lift the plague.
“And Abimelech said to Abraham, “What have you encountered [ra-ah-”seen”], that you have done this thing?” Abraham said, “Because I thought, surely there is no fear of God [Yirat Elohim] in this place, and they will kill me because of my wife. Besides, she actually is my sister...” (Ge 20:10-12)
Avraham worried that there was no Yirat Elohim, or fear/reverence of Elohim. This is the seventh spirit of Adonai listed in Isaiah, which Creation Gospel students know quite well! It is the Shabbat spirit. Why does Avraham say "Elohim" instead of "YHVH"? Perhaps it is because he does not think Avimelekh knows the Creator as YHVH, as Pharaoh did not, but probably he was familiar with variations of "El" or "Elohim" as Creator. The important point is that Avraham did not identify any reverence (also translated as fear) of Elohim in Avimelekh's city-state. Where there is no reverence of Adonai, there is little respect for rule of moral law.
It is no accident that Yirat Adonai is connected to Shabbat and the Temple:
“You are awesome [norah, from yareh, ?????? ?????], O God, from Your Sanctuaries.” (Ps 68:35/36)
“From where does the awe of God issue forth if not from the Holy Temple? Thus does it state, ‘My Sabbaths shall you observe, and My Sanctuary shall you fear [tira-u ?????????] (Le 26:2).’” (Shir 4§7)
“This verse indicates that the Sanctuary is sanctified in its destruction just as it was sanctified when it still stood.” (ibid)
Fear of Elohim is what Avraham pointed out was lacking among Avimelekh’s people, who would murder him for access to his wife as the serpent “murdered” Adam to corrupt his children with sin. Just as Adam and Eve (bride and bridegroom) lost their dwelling place in the Garden, so the serpent seeks to prevent the Bride and Bridegroom from entering in sanctity of Torah covenant.
Sarah, representing her descendants Israel, maintained her sanctity in the Fear of Elohim, which preserved 1,000 generations. Prophetically, the Vineyard of Israel is already “cleared before all men” by 1,000 pieces of silver. The thousand shields are a thousand generations, Israel. How are they "conspicuous" in their generations? One way their necks are like the Tower of David, the Temple, is their observance of Shabbat. They both are a Sanctuary and reverence His Sanctuary. They cease from their labors on Shabbat because they continue to reverence Him. These are the offspring of Sarah and Avraham. These are the warriors of a thousand generations, polishing their shields in reverence for the Holy One. Because they remember the covenant of Torah, He remembers them:
Remember His covenant forever, the word which He commanded to a thousand generations... (1Ch 16:15) He has remembered His covenant forever, the word which He commanded to a thousand generations... (Ps 105:8)
The warrior comprehends the Word:
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend (G2638) it. (Jn 1:1-5)
The Torah is a light, and the commandment is a lamp. The Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. The Torah is the Word. The Word is the Torah. The one who "comprehends" this is a warrior:
“comprehend” G2638 katalamban? Sept. for ????????, ?????, also for ?????, etc.; (from Homer down); to lay hold of; i. e.: to lay hold of so as to make one's own, to obtain, attain to: with the accusative of the thing; the prize of victory
The Torah is a Tree of Life to those who take hold of her. To comprehend something Biblically is not just to understand how it works; it is to grab it! Take hold of it! Pursue it! Seek it!
Its many contexts support the meaning of actively seeking for [and finding] something. Darkness is the “place” and identity of those who do not seek the Word actively; therefore, they cannot obtain. The Word must be sought to obtain its Light of the Torah and Lamp of Mitzvah (commandment). We are not passive recipients. This is the inheritance of Sarah’s Tent to the children of Avraham.
Now let's look again at the fuller context of the 1,000 generations of Israel:
“The covenant which He made with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac. He also confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel as an everlasting covenant, saying, ‘To you I will give the land of Canaan, as the portion of your inheritance.’” (1 Ch 16:16-18)
Psalm 105 repeats 1 Chronicles 16.
“All the thousands and myriads that crossed the Jordan River and whom I shielded (from the Canaanite kings), I shielded only in the merit of the one who came for a thousand generations, i.e, Yehoshua [Avot 1:1]. And it is not you alone who depended upon the merit of Yehoshua, but all shiltei, the mighty men, for anyone who rises and rules and prevails over his evil inclination, such as Moses in his time, David in his time, and Ezra in his time, their whole generation depends on their merit.” (Shir 4§7)
Anyone...ANYONE...who seeks the Word of Yeshua, takes hold of it, and lives by it, is a mighty warrior and a shield for his or her generation. The hopelessness of this generation reflects the Evil One's desperate last attempt to keep the shield of the last generation from taking its place on the Tower of David, the Temple. Yeshua taught the warriors of 1,000 generations how to pray:
Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation but deliver us from [the, G3588 ho] evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
As Yehoshua was a mighty shield to 1,000 generations, the sages and Yeshua (contraction of Yehoshua) teach that ANYONE who rules over “the evil” in his generation becomes a shield to that generation. The world depends upon those shields who defend the spiritual stature of the “Tower of David.” While the evil inclination will be bound for the duration of the millennium, it is those who fight it in their generation who are the warriors and shields standing between utter destruction and salvation, like the Temple. They are the little sanctuaries offering gifts and sacrifices on behalf of the nations in each generation.
The context of “The Lord’s Prayer” is acknowledgment of the sovereignty of Adonai and His role as supplier of help in both earthly needs and the spiritual need for strength to withstand the evil inclination, which becomes a satan to accuse us.
We cease secular work and our “own thing” on Shabbat because we are shields hung on the Tower of David, protecting the world by reverencing His Sanctuary, who we are, on His holy Shabbat.
“If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot from doing your own pleasure on My holy day, and call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, and honor it, desisting from your own ways, from seeking your own pleasure and speaking your own word, then you will take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; and I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” (Is 58:13-14)
To delight in the Shabbat and become a functional sanctuary, we have to change our hearts from “Oh, how awesome I am” to “Oh, how awesome He is!” Otherwise, we will seek our own pleasure rather than what pleases Him. What pleases Him is to minister to others and bring them into the “House” so that He may be a sanctuary to all, and they in turn may become little sanctuaries. This is the context of Isaiah 58.
A shield is something strong. It protects the holiness and righteousness of Israel and Shabbat because it acknowledges Heaven’s sovereignty in a world that does not serve the King over kings. In a world that increasingly scorns the moral laws of the Word, we are conspicuous. Although it feels as though we are being attacked, it is simply the world counter-attacking the conspicuously different faithful shields of their generation.
Observing Shabbat and letting His Word sustain us become a strong place for others, a refuge of many shields from generations past who revered Adonai. Because the tower is conspicuous, people may find it. The context of Isaiah 58 details the many ways we as little sanctuaries can minister ”daily bread” to others and bring them into the House in reverence.
“The fear of God issues forth to the entire world through their knowledge that His Presence rests within the Temple; hence, the Temple serves as a standing testimony to the world that God’s Presence dwells among Israel...the verse juxtaposes Sabbath observance with reverence for the Temple to intimate that just as the commandment to observe the sanctity of Sabbath is everlasting, so the reverence one must have for the Temple is obligatory forever-even in its destruction.” (4§7)
In the meantime, the shields of Israel are sanctuaries who show “all men” the Fear of Elohim by honoring Shabbat with the same reverence as if the Temple still stood, for a measure of its sanctity and its Bridegroom resides in her, the descendants of Sarah.
Take hold of the Light of Yeshua...conspicuously...and become a shield of your generation. Those who sanctify the Shabbat and reverence Adonai are those preparing to move into their inheritance.
Parsha “Vaetchanan” (Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11) might be considered one of the ‘most important’ in the entire Torah: it includes not only the ‘second reading’ of the Ten Debaraim/Words/Sayings/Commandments, but also what the Messiah called the Greatest Commandment of all. So, it’s certainly “feature packed.” The overview and reading from Erev Shabbat: But, as Mark Call of […]
In the last teaching, we saw how The Footsteps of Messiah are directly linked to the feasts. More specifically, it is the three “foot festivals,” also known as the chagim:
Pesach Shavuot Sukkot
A feast is not just a moed or chag, but mikra [convocation]. It is a planned happening. Here is our working text:
Your neck is like the tower of David, Built with rows of stones On which are hung a thousand shields, All the round shields of the mighty men. (So 4:4)
Prophecies are planned things, but we don’t always understand they are guides that inform every generation...prophetically, a thousand generations, thus “a thousand round shields.” Because the neck is a vulnerable spot, the Tower of David is an excellent analogy. It is tall and conspicuous in Jerusalem, yet a thousand shields cover it. Likewise, in the Shabbat Blessing After Meals, every week we acknowledge that Adonai is a tower of salvations to His King, a Shield keeping His promises to 1,000 generations of Israel [1,000 is a symbolic number-don't get out the calculator!]
“He is a tower of deliverance to His king, And shows lovingkindness to His anointed, To David and his descendants forever.” (2 Sa 22:51)
In return, the righteous of each generation walk in the Covenant, and they become shields for their generations. The obedient service of Israel protects the earth in their generations from total calamity. It almost makes me wonder if the sealing of the saints in Revelation and the half-hour silence is not just to protect them, but also to silence them from interceding so that the final destructions can be loosed.
Like a mikra, or appointed time of the feast, the prophecies of the gathering of the twelve tribes of Israel are already known. The Temple was the focal point of gathering, and the Tower of David thought to represent it. Rather than the modern Tower of David built in the Second Century BC on the ruins of earlier fortifications, the Biblical tower is thought to be the Temple itself:
Pesikta Rabbati 33:1 R’ Avin the Levi said: “our neck is like the Tower of David, built as a model …” What does talpiyot mean? The hill toward which all turns are directed. [tel-hill; "the holy hill," the Temple Mount]
Proverbs 15:6 “The house of the righteous one [i.e., the Temple, built by David] is a tower of strength, but with the entrance of wickedness, it is polluted.”
Tosafot on Berakhot 30a:10:1 The Gemara concludes that the verse “as the tower of David”, refers to the Beit Hamikdash [Temple]. ??????? literally means a landmark.
The House, or Temple, is a metaphor for Israel, something Paul emphasized. The Temple past, present, and future is the place where it all "happens." It is part of the prophecy of the Greater Exodus to gather a single people from every nation, tribe, and tongue. What could possibly unite that remnant from every nation on earth? The appointed times.
On the other hand, isn't Israel still very scattered? Some faithful, like Joshua and Caleb, visit the Land of Israel and attend the feasts anyway, setting steps in the Land, giving a good report, and establishing a claim to their future inheritance. Even if they are prevented from living there now, they will be back at the conclusion of the Greater Exodus!
Others cannot afford it or are too feeble. Nevertheless, they continue guarding and serving in the lands of their exile faithfully. They gather for the feasts and understand that they are little temples stationed wherever they are to testify to the Covenant by being "conspicuous," like a tower hung with a thousand shields.
These are the shields of their generation, leaving no generation's place with an empty spot. Because the rows of stones graduate higher and higher, each generation builds on some strength or advances a step higher than the previous ones. This allows them to "shield" their generation with obedience and prayer. Scorn for the shortcomings of previous generations completely misses the point of restoration from such low spiritual places. Instead, appreciate the sacrifices each made to prepare another layer for the next generation's shield.
Preparing for the Greater Exodus is a matter of protecting and serving with one’s individual temple, something about which Paul obsessed in his letter to the Corinthians, by all reports a real wild bunch of believers:
Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 1Co 3:16 If any man destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and that is what you are. 1Co 3:17 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? 1Co 6:19
In what reality would the Temple service omit the daily sacrifices, prayers (incense), renewal of the menorah's oil, the special Shabbat sacrifices, and the seven feasts? Only in an apostate reality of the harlot riding the Beast, eras when wickedness was allowed through the gates of the Temple and Israel failed in her twenty-four watches at every level: priestly, Levitical, plus each tribes' 24,000 representatives who served each month on a schedule.
The House, or Temple, is a metaphor for Israel, something Paul emphasized. There was no point in using it to teach the Corinthians about their role unless he intended for them to correlate it to the Temple patterns. Paul’s rabbinic training explains his obsession with this metaphor, which matches that from the Jewish sages’ insight into the destruction of both Temples:
Proverbs 15:6 “The house of the righteous one [i.e., the Temple, built by David] is a tower of strength, but with the entrance of wickedness, it is polluted.” (Midrash Rabbah Shir HaShirim 4§7) The Gemara concludes that the verse “as the tower of David”, refers to the Beit Hamikdash [Temple]. ??????? literally means a landmark. (Tosafot on Berakhot 30a:10:1 ) “Now, does it not stand to reason that if to His Temple the Holy One, blessed is He, showed no favor, then when He comes to exact retribution from those who destroyed it, all the more so will He not show them favor?” (Midrash Rabbah Shir HaShirim 4§7)
Yeshua’s own conspicuous “Temple” was torn down and rebuilt for all mankind’s redemption in three days. (Mt 26:61; 27:40) There are consequences for Israel allowing wickedness into the Temple, and likewise there are consequences for those saved by Yeshua's death, burial, and resurrection who invite wickedness back into the Temple of their bodies. Those who destroy it will repay the Holy One, including those who engage in self-destruction.
This is why a life of repentance is necessary to maintain holiness in the temple of the Ruach HaKodesh. We must conduct the services daily. We are a "landmark" wherever we are, something and someone who will be noticed either for a beautiful "neck," growing spiritual stature, or for a polluted waste of opportunity because of harlotry. Those who grow, pray, and obey, are the shields of their generation.
To understand a thousand shields and generations, we look at the First Mention of a thousand:
To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; behold, it is your vindication before all who are with you, and before all men you are cleared.” (Ge 20:16)
Silver represents a redemption-price. Sarah's reputation was redeemed before all men.
Sarah is a prophetess known for both physical and spiritual beauty. She appeared much younger than her age, having vitality from a spiritual source. Her barrenness was Divinely-appointed, perhaps waiting until she (and Avraham) attained a height, a tower of faith and noticeably righteous living to pass on to Isaac. This protected him the Land from giants. Abraham was even friends with giants! There was no reason for the ten spies to be discouraged by giants, but to be conspicuously righteous in one’s generation is to stick his or her neck out.
Righteousness in Yeshua is taller than giants.
Sarah’s “neck” was unfettered by foreign kings, and unlike the scarlet harlot in Revelation, she does not make covenant with the Beast. In Sarah’s case, she did not enter in covenant with Pharaoh, the Dragon-king, nor Avimelekh, a Canaanite king. The 1,000 pieces of silver “clear” her reputation before the entire world. She maintains spiritual integrity and prominence. This is Israel, Sarah above, Jerusalem above, “a thousand generations” and “kings of peoples” which will descend from her.
Until she is released by both Pharaoh and Avimelekh, plagues descend upon their houses. In the generation of Moses, when Pharaoh doesn’t let Israel return to its Promise, plagues descend upon his house and all Egypt, much worse than when Sarah brought the first plague upon Egypt (symbolic of the world, the wilderness of the peoples, the wilderness of Egypt, Ezek 20:35-36).
Revelation describes the plagues that will also descend upon the nations of the earth until they release the Woman Israel who is not rightfully theirs, the descendants of Sarah and Abraham, the last exodus of the 1,000 generations. The gathering of the Greater Exodus will be tribulation on earth, but necessary to release the Woman Israel and clear her name before “all men.” That means all.
Next week, we’ll take a closer look at the prophecy pattern concerning Sarah and her descendants, illustrated by Yeshua, and then taught by the apostles. As Israel prepares for her gathering, she must:
guard against wickedness entering her house, a temple of the Ruach HaKodesh pray for her generation (until the Holy One Himself seals our lips) obey her Covenant, especially assembling on Shabbat and at the feasts, conspicuously holding daily "services" the lost may easily find because they are landmarks
This week the regular annual cycle followed another double-parsha, but Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa wanted to spend more time on Matot, and instead decided to combine the last parsha of Numbers/Bemidbar into this week, where the “stages” seem to fit better with Moshe’s “introduction” besides. So, Masei (Numbers 33 through the end of […]
In the last episode, we saw how The Footsteps of Messiah are directly linked to the feasts. More specifically, from among the seven moedim, it is the three “foot festivals,” also known as the chagim:
Pesach Shavuot Sukkot
Nahum explains:
Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace! Celebrate [chag, verb] your feasts [chag, noun], O Judah; pay your vows. For never again will the wicked one pass through you; He is cut off completely. (Na 1:15)
The key to hearing the footsteps of Messiah is to know and celebrate the feasts of Adonai, which are in perfect synchronization with the footsteps of Messiah Yeshua’s return. Here is our working text:
Your neck is like the tower of David, Built with rows of stones On which are hung a thousand shields, All the round shields of the mighty men. (So 4:4)
Mah karah? In Hebrew, mah karah means, "What happened?"
A feast is not just a moed, but mikra [convocation]. It is a happening. If something just happens randomly, karah. Mikra, however, is a planned happening. It may appear random to the unspiritual eye, but it didn’t just happen. It was planned to happen.
We accept that prophecies are planned things, but we don’t always understand there is a method to the planning that informs every generation...prophetically, a thousand generations, thus “a thousand round shields.” Compare the definitions of karah below. See how similar they are? They are pronounced the same, yet one is a random happening, and one is a planned happening. Feasts are planned happenings; therefore, planned prophecies. In fact, H7121 is a "calling" to something. These are two side of the same word-coin. We can live our lives randomly, or we can walk in our calling.
Parsha Matot (Numbers 30:2 through chapter 32) begins with the topic, and what “YHVH has commanded,” concerning vows. And, as Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship has suggested literally every time it’s taught, it is in his opinion one of the most vital foundations for understanding marriage. As well what has been done to […]
Audio reading: Num 35:1-34, 1 Chron 16:37-18:17, Romans 2:1-24, Psalm 10:16-18, Prov 19:8-9 In our nation today, we have a two – tiered justice system: one for the anarchists (BLM, Antifa) and a different one for Conservative Patriots and Christians. The law of the land has been twisted and perverted. On the one hand, BLM […]
Parsha Pinchas (Numbers 25:10 – 30:1) is in fact “the rest of the story,” and more, from last week, and the end of ‘Balak,’ where the daughters of Midian began to seduce the men of the mixed multitude into pagan practices. And, again, no question, it is one of the most “problematic,” and no doubt […]
The Footsteps of Messiah are directly linked to the feasts. More specifically, from among the seven moedim, it is the three “foot festivals,” also known as the chagim:
Pesach (Passover) Shavuot Sukkot
Nahum explains:
Behold, on the mountains the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace! Celebrate [chag, verb] your feasts [chag, noun], O Judah; pay your vows. For never again will the wicked one pass through you; He is cut off completely. (Na 1:15)
The key to hearing the footsteps of Messiah is to know and celebrate the feasts of Adonai, which are in perfect synchronization with the footsteps of Messiah Yeshua’s return. Although we do not know the exact date of his return, we are commanded to rehearse these foot festivals so that we will be ready every year. Additionally, by rehearsing, the next generation is show the way to salvation in Messiah Yeshua and the path for growth and maturity. Let’s return to our working text, the Shir HaShirim, Song of Songs, focusing on the context of Chapter 4:1-5
How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young. Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is beautiful. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate behind your veil. Your neck is like the tower of David, built with layers of stones on which are hung a thousand shields, all the round shields of the warriors. Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle that graze among the lilies.
In past newsletters, we did more in-depth study of these verses. In a nutshell, they describe the spiritual growth of Israel in the Exodus from Egypt. To recap:
• The glory of Adonai is the glory "hair" of Israel, who descend from Mt. Sinai after their meeting with Him. • They came up from their two “washings,” the crossing of the Sea of Reeds and the washing to prepare for their meeting at Mt. Sinai. • Israel’s agreement to “do and hear” the covenant is a scarlet thread, two lips acknowledging their redemption. • The pomegranates are the commandments. • The neck is the increase in spiritual stature. • The shields are the “perfect” and symbolic 1,000 generations promised to Abraham and Sarah. • The two breasts are the twin tablets of the commandments, Moses and Aaron, Joshua and Elazar.
Let's return to "your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead."
Previously, we considered an explanation of this flock as referring to the sons of Israel crossing from the territory of Laban into Israel. Although Laban pursued, he was prevented from harming the flock, “not one of them has lost her young.” Laban and Jacob made a pile of rocks [galeed] to commemorate their covenant of no harm, a “mound of testimony.” (Ge 31:47-48) After the covenant at the mound of testimony, Jacob was about to cross the Jordan to return to the Land of Promise. This is the seed prophecy for Israel later entering into covenant at another mound of testimony, Mt. Sinai, and then crossing the Jordan to the Land of Promise.
This Jordan [Yarden] crossing is mentioned in all three components of the TANAKH. Tanakh is an acronym of:
Torah Neviim Prophets Ketuvim writings
In the first mention of a miraculous water crossing in the Torah, the literal flocks of goats and sheep followed Jacob, creating a “pairing” with the sons of Jacob, the twelve tribes. In Genesis 32:11, Jacob refers to the importance of the crossing:
“For with my staff I crossed this Jordan.”
The Midrash Rabbah explains, “He placed his staff in the waters of the Jordan River, and God miraculously parted the waters for him.” 4§6
Later, Jacob’s descendants will experience the same miracle following a shepherd of their generation.
In the Prophets, Joshua reminds the Tribes of Israel of their forefather Jacob’s [Israel’s] prophetic crossing to encourage them, using heaps of stones to illustrate:
Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth of the first month and camped at Gilgal on the eastern edge of Jericho. Those twelve stones which they had taken from the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. He said to the sons of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’ then you shall inform your children, saying, ‘Israel crossed this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed, just as the LORD your God had done to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed; that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, so that you may fear the LORD your God forever.” (Jo 4:19-24)
Joshua reminds Israel of their forefather Israel's testimony of crossing the Jordan with his staff and its miraculous parting. If Jacob (Israel) crossed at the same feast time, he crossed in the first month. The Jordan in spring is gushing from winter rainwater, which makes the miracle all the more notable. This parting and pairing of the water crossings is commemorated each year in the Passover Seder with the recitation of the Great Hallel. Psalm 114 (Writings) is part of the Great Hallel recited at the conclusion of the Pesach seder:
1When Israel went forth from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language, 2 Judah became His sanctuary, Israel, His dominion. 3 The sea looked and fled; the Jordan turned back. 4 The mountains skipped like rams, the hills, like lambs. 5 What ails you, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back? 6 O mountains, that you skip like rams? O hills, like lambs? 7 Tremble, O earth, before the Lord, before the God of Jacob, 8 Who turned the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a fountain of water.
The point is rehearsal. The second Jordan crossing occurs during the Pesach week, just as the crossing of the Reed Sea occurred during Pesach week forty years previous. Prophecy recycles because that is its structure, the structure of the universe.
Joshua tells the Israelites to pass on the Jordan crossing to their children just as Moses told them to pass on the Passover to their children. By using Moses’ language, Joshua assumes the leadership of his new generation of prophecy with Elazar the High Priest. They are now the “two breasts” of our Shir.
This is the importance of rehearsing and passing along the feasts in every generation as though the great miracles happened to us personally. Because prophecy transcends time, we were there. We are there. We will be there. We taste something of the Divine nature of the Sacred name when we walk in the footsteps of Messiah, who will one day part the seas of the peoples to return his faithful ones to their Land of Promise. The question is, are we walking out our own generation of these prophecies? May it be so!
In Part Two, we'll look more closely at another word for the feasts to learn even more about the importance of ear tuning to the Footsteps by keeping the feasts.
This week the regular annual cycle is a double-parsha (Chukat, Numbers chapters 19 through 21), and then parsha Balak, chapters 22 through 24…and a bit more. Admittedly, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa thinks that’s a bit much for one week’s study, but at least it’s an interesting combination, for reason’s we’ll explore. First, the […]
Ask most people who have even just a bit of knowledge of the Bible who “Korah,” was, and you’ll hear the response: rebellion. And what happened to him is almost as well-known: he was taken alive ‘into the pit’ as the earth opened up. This parsha (Korach, Numbers chapters 16 through 18), and the associated […]
Audio reading: Num 16:31-40, 1 Kings 22:1-53, Acts 13: 16-41 Audio reading: Num 16:41-50 2 Kings 1:1-25 Acts 13:42-14:7 Psalm 139:1-24 Prov 17:19-21 “And the LORD said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner. Then a […]
Most people know of the story of ‘the spies.’ Most who have heard Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa before have probably even heard him refer to it as the ‘first recorded VOTE in history,’ too. And the wrong side won. THIS year, though, the story has a “special resonance.” It hits even closer to […]
This week Mark had a very important mitzvah on the Sabbath Day, so the only teaching for this week is the Friday Torah parsha reading and summary, for Beha’alotcha (Numbers chapters 8 through 12):
When folks begin studying prophecy, it is common for them to identify which prophecies have been fulfilled and which haven’t, especially as it pertains to Yeshua. When the feasts of Adonai are fully grasped, this adds another burst of enthusiasm for identifying which feasts Yeshua has already fulfilled and which he has yet to fulfill. For some, there is a bit of smugness, as if to entice those who don’t keep the feasts to join in so they’ll understand prophecy, too.
Well, sure, the feasts are for everybody, but there’s no need to be smug. Prophecy is not a one-and-done proposition, and this is part of the richness of the feasts, which cycle with the years. It’s easy to see that Yeshua fulfilled the spring feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits of Barley. On the other hand, doesn’t the writer to the Hebrews spend multiple chapters explaining how Yeshua fulfilled the fall feasts, especially Yom HaKippurim?
So did he, or didn’t he?
Ummmm...
Yes.
Let’s turn to the Shavuot as the axis of the feasts to unpack the cycle of prophecy, at least until some future time when prophecy will cease:
Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. (1 Co 13:8)
This doesn’t mean that there will no longer be any gift of prophecy; it simply means it becomes inoperative. The spiritual gifts in the world to come will become unnecessary, for the righteous will be in perfect tune with the realm of the Ruach (Spirit). The challenges that necessitate these gifts will no longer exist. The spiritual pillars that are now commemorated with “time” will be part of our internal clocks, which don’t need calendars, just a well-tuned ruach, for in that day, the trees will bear fruit every month even though there will be no sun or moon to signal seasons or even day and night. Days, months, hours, years, and so forth, will form a reality that until now we only experience with the natural “clocks” of Creation. Let Shavuot guide into understanding of how Yeshua’s footsteps might sound.
Having left behind the salvation of Passover, Shavuot is the appointed time to grow from milk to solid food by Rosh HaShanah. As at Sinai, it requires a willingness to “do and hear,” or receive the Word of Moses and Yeshua. The Ruach enables this process:
“And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual men, but as to men of flesh, as to infants in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food; for you were not yet able to receive it. Indeed, even now you are not yet able, for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?” (1 Co 3:1-3)
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you the elementary principles of the oracles of God, and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed [“inexperienced”] to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. (Heb 5:12-13)
Paul and the writer to the Hebrews do not expect the non-Jews to whom they write to continue in milk. Jewish tradition says a remnant of the nations desired the Torah when it was offered at Mt. Sinai. In Acts 2 at Shavuot, this desire was satisfied for the proselytes from the nations, and they returned to their nations with the Good News of salvation and covenant. Along with verses from Psalm 119, Psalm 67 is read each day of the counting of the omer to Shavuot. These peoples are to mature to Sukkot:
God be gracious to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us—Selah. That Your way may be known on the earth, Your salvation among all nations. Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; for You will judge the peoples with uprightness and guide the nations on the earth. Selah. Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. The earth has yielded its produce [people]; God, our God, blesses us. God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth may fear Him. (Ps 67:1–7)
Shavuot commemorates both the giving of the Torah at Sinai as well as the Firstfruits of the Wheat harvest. The Seed of the Word is beginning to mature, ready to commit to the covenant anew, to learn and grow to the fullness of Sukkot, which celebrates the ingathering of everything: winevat, threshing floor, fruit of the ground, fruit of the tree, flocks and herds.
The fruit of the olive tree, however, creates a link between Sukkot and the next Passover. Because olives just begin ripening at Sukkot, it is too early to bring tithes, and perhaps even firstfruit in some late-ripening years. Processing the olive fruit is time-consuming, and it can take several weeks to harvest, process, store, and do the accounting necessary to separate tithes for the priests and Levites. The late winter fiscal year for tree fruits also affects when tithes and firstfruits might be brought. Season overlaps season, and feast overlaps feast, never disconnecting:
“Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “When the plowman will overtake the reaper and the treader of grapes him who sows seed; when the mountains will drip sweet wine and all the hills will be dissolved.” (Amos 9:13)
These cycles of the feasts explain why a prophecy may be fulfilled many times, never exactly the way it was previously, but according to that template. New generation, new fulfillment.
The blessings upon the tribes are sometimes oblique, but the blessing on Judah is fairly straightforward, an excellent example of the growth principle.
“Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down to you. Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He couches, he lies down as a lion, and as a lion(ess), who dares rouse him up? The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples. He ties his foal to the vine, and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine; he washes his garments in wine, and his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes are dull from wine, and his teeth white from milk.” (Ge 49:8-12)
Milk grows teeth for solid food. Wine is for grownups, especially associated with the Feast of Sukkot. At Sukkot, the Torah scrolls are re-rolled to start reading in the new cycle with Genesis (Bereishit). Judah has grown strong adult teeth to digest the Word. Inheritance is for the mature, not infants or children. A child who will inherit is taught, guided, rehearsed, and prepared to manage that inheritance. Some will faithfully grow in each feast cycle so that they may inherit the Kingdom. Others will live as little children perpetually, unwilling and unable to manage tasks assigned by the Holy One.
Judah is the focus of the above Messianic prophecy, but a rule of Scripture is that it must first apply at the simple level. What applies to Messiah Yeshua will also apply to Judah and Israel, for it is understood that each tribe has some measure of every blessing, but the blessings identified with them are evident and characteristic. For instance, there were kings from other tribes, but Judah is assigned the scepter and dynasty. Israel is a royal priesthood, but Judah will provide the king, and the Levites provide the priests.
In Judah’s blessing, he is identified both with a young donkey and its mother; it is a blessing of both growth and continuity that is echoed in the lion symbols. Judah is first a cub (gur aryeh), next a lion (ari), and then a lioness (lavi). Even though context presents child, male, female, all three symbols collectively are “he,” yet they symbolize the same tribe. Believers as individuals mature from nursing children to mature adults to adults with the ability to nurse new believers:
"But we proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children." (1 Th 2:7)
The Corinthians and Thessalonians were once "strangers to the covenant," yet the apostles who ministered to them refused to allow them to remain little cubs in the Word. They were supposed to grow to solid food and become teachers of the Word. The whole Word. The term for "cub" in Judah's blessing is gur aryeh. Gur shares the same two-letter root with the ger, the Hebrew word for stranger. A stranger in Israel is just a newcomer to the Word, but he or she will not stay a cub.
The stranger in Israel is there to learn, grow, and engage the covenant, not to remain a stranger. They are to become fellow-citizens with all the rights and obligations of Israel when they take the covenant yoke of Kingdom with Yeshua. The good news is that putting your neck in the yoke with Yeshua means that he is strong enough to make the burden easy, and he won't drag you along if you need more learning time. He has sent the Ruach HaKodesh to teach us.
As long as these cycles of the feasts continue, until the resurrection of the dead, we have the opportunity to do two kinds of growth each year:
grow in a new cycle individually, like the shoots of the olive plant that will mature the fruits at Sukkot grow together as Israel into the vine of Sukkot maturity
What have I done today?Other than talk to the carrots, that is.By now, I should have the newsletter teaching completed, pasted in the latest news from the orphanage, recommended a new book, and dropped in a reminder to register for REVIVE and mention that a new bloc of discounted rooms for the conference is now available. I should have answered a dozen emails and a phone call. I should have cleaned my bike chain and lubed it. I should have made something fresh for Erev Shabbat instead of being happy with plating up leftovers. I should have sprayed the north side of the house with cleaner. I should have. Should have. But I didn't.My mom of blessed memory called them the “Shouldsandoughts.” I did blanch, cold-shock, and vacuum-seal four freezer bags of asparagus from the garden. And make a maple-bourbon-pecan sauce for the sweet potatoes for oneg tomorrow. After that, I went back to the garden. Seems like I always go back to the Garden when I’m in this state of mind. Yesterday, I received word that Rick Daviscourt passed away, may his memory be for blessing. You may not know him. In fact, I never met him in person. We emailed and texted about Torah things and the ministries, how to support one another, but I can’t even remember how I first knew about his ministry. He has a girls’ home in Peru we support whenever we can, called Restoring Hope International. Rick was providing the girls a Torah-based home to be safe in. On March 22nd, Rick knew his diagnosis and prognosis, and he sent out his final newsletter. He wrote:"I want to thank all of you who have been praying for me and personally encouraging me through my battle with pancreatic cancer. Honestly speaking, most of us will struggle in one way or another in our lives. So, I really do not consider my struggle as being more important than the next person's difficult struggle. I have met and continue to meet people who seem to have it much worse than what I am going through - even if they are enjoying perfectly good physical health. Life on this planet, unfortunately, causes great obstacles for many of us - sooner or later.Even though my Whipple Surgery was successful in removing the tumor in my pancreas, it did not stop there. Now, after even more chemotherapy, this cancer has spread to different areas of my liver and continues to spread in that organ. I have been given 6 months to live.I am so grateful to our Creator for having given me this many years of life, most of which have been happy and productive for me! In several weeks, I will turn 67. And many of you have greatly helped to enrich my life's experience through your support and encouragement. You are so appreciated!Being able to work with God in starting our children's home in Peru has been such an honor and privilege for me. What an adventure that has been!With respect to those who are dealing with serious illnesses, etc..., I would like to reference the Book of Job, in the Old Testament. Neither he nor his friends had the least little idea as to why he, Job, became so ill and lost so much, including his children. His supposed friends were accusing him of this and of that - all of which were untrue. His wife told him to curse God and die... Also, it is very important to take into account what the apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:28 to the end of that chapter. First of all, a person cannot come to God - to Christ - unless God calls and draws that person to our Savior and Messiah. That person must love Him, God, with all his/her heart and soul (Deuteronomy 11:13). In my case, I have dedicated my life - both internally and externally to this end. I remember very well, the morning when our Lord invited me to give my life to Him. I will never, ever forget that special moment. So, as many of you already know, there are no easy "Canned Answers" to many of the complex issues of our lives and world. Some things are not for us to know…"Day before yesterday, Rick was heavy on my heart, and I wasn’t sure why. Prayer is the only option at such times, and I sent a donation, not knowing anything additional I could do. Yesterday I found out he’d passed away. So that was it. Can you grieve over a person you’ve never met face-to-face? So today, I went to the garden. I pulled suckers from the tomatoes, nodded to the poblanos, anchos, and jalapenos to keep up the good work, and guided the cucumber vines up their cages. I kneeled and picked away the weeds from the beets and carrots by hand because they’re too young and tender for the hoe. I suggested that they get a move on with their growing so they’d be easier to deal with. I’m getting too old and stiff to crawl around in the dirt. Did they have any idea why good people like Brad, Rick, Charles, and Mark left us so soon? No, they didn’t, but I left them in neat rows to think about it. Some things are not for us to know, remember?The cranberry beans, green beans, and Jacob’s cattle didn’t have any answers, either, but they endured the hoe without too much complaining. The cantaloupes and watermelons were pretty quiet, too. Just sat there and yellow-flowered me, which I take as a grin. The potatoes needed some shovel work, which I think they appreciated. I told them to give me a holler if they saw any of those striped beetles. It looked like something chewed the tomatillos, but they’re tough, and they get tougher as the summer wears on. I’ve picked tomatillos even after a light frost.You’d like my homemade salsa verde.Then I hoed the other garden with the corn and purple hull peas and butternut squash. I noticed some of the pole beans I’d planted to grow on the corn stalks were breaking the surface. The Three Sisters garden. They were all coughing dust, though. We need a good rain. Good rain. Not a gully-washer. Even the weeds weren’t too committed to the heavy clay. The purple hull peas have been passed down from my grandpa. My Uncle Jimmy gave me some to get started years ago. He started his from Grandpa's. We’re not sure how many generations they go back. I just thought you’d like to know that. Most of them are in the Garden now. My relatives, not the peas. With Rick. And Brad. And Charles. And Mark. If I had to have a last meal, I think it would be purple peas and cornbread and sliced tomatoes and watermelon. Funny how people on death row get to pick a last meal, but the saints, not usually. Maybe none of them would have a taste for it anyway.I finished up by checking the sweet potatoes and raised beds. All good. Sweet strawberries, but they’re not big talkers, and you have move the leaves away to find them and get them before the ants do. “Consider the ant, thou sluggard.” I doubt a sluggard would be reading Proverbs anyway. So here I am considering the ant. Not to worry. They don’t eat much. Tomatoes are volunteering in the strawberry, asparagus, and onion beds. You have to weed them out, but I leave a couple. I think they’re the little yellow pear tomatoes. Later in the summer, it’s like candy on the vine. The sun chokes are getting tall. They’ll make pretty yellow flowers as tall as the sunflowers I let grow around the bird feeders. It’s too early for persimmon and pawpaw fruits to set, but the apple trees look good. It will be a race to see whether the deer will clean out the fruit from the lower branches before we do. The fig tree is spreading, and even though I thought the new cherry tree was dead, I see a little branch sprouting out the bottom. A definite maybe.Some things are not for us to know. Yet.Memories must do for now. Ever notice how deeply the grooves are cut into the record of memories? No wonder records used to get stuck and just go round and round. Like today. When you can't concentrate, you concentrate.Like Rick wrote, a “Canned Answer” would be an insult to both the deceased and their Creator. When great, righteous people are transplanted into the Garden, they deserve our continued wonder. We should challenge our own ideas about what we “deserve” quantified in mere years and whether what can be accomplished there is somehow of less value than what we can accomplish here. Maybe the goodness there is exactly what they deserve, and because we see only the carrot top, and the deep red strawberries hide from us, we struggle round and round.This week, our Torah portion Bamidbar includes a census of the tribes for war. The army of Israel is not like other armies. Israel must first “pass muster” with Adonai Tzvaot, the Lord of Armies. When Israel falls into idolatry and other serious sins, their army is usually defeated, even routed shamefully. Israelite soldiers must pass a test of courage even before they are admitted to the ranks:Have you betrothed a wife, but not married her? Go home.Have you built a house, but not lived in it? Go home.Have you planted a vineyard, but not consumed its fruit? Go home. (Dt 20:3-8)Such a person is planning to fail! He started with good plans, then at some point, he could not envision a successful outcome, one of the jobs we accomplish in prayer-work. If he fell in battle, then someone else would marry his wife, live in his house, and tend his vineyard. In fact, both the “house” and the “vineyard” are sometimes used as euphemisms for a wife, the wise woman and the Proverbs 31 woman who builds the house and is the fruitful vine. The wife, in turn, symbolizes the work of the Holy Spirit in his life (see Workbook Four). The Ruach (Spirit) is what implants successful vision within a believer.Relating this to the No Place for Chickens Part Two last week, the spiritually deficient soldier did well at first, planning and imagining his life in the future, but when the enemy approached, he was unable to also plan and envision a victorious outcome to his prayer. This cowardice would become a cancerous discouragement to his fellow soldiers. A soldier planning a desolate house will be rewarded with a desolate house, for he does not remember the exhortation of the war priest:“Hear, O Israel, you are approaching the battle against your enemies today. Do not be fainthearted. Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble before them, for the LORD your God is the one who goes with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.” (Dt 20:3-4)If the soldier cannot go forward with confidence after that reminder, he’s hopeless in battle!In the following lament over Jerusalem, Yeshua evokes two important passages in the Torah:1) the Ruach Adonai hovering over the surface of the waters at Creation and (Ge 1:2)2) the torah of the hen and chicks, which assures the chicks’ safety if they will stay under their mother’s wings or in the nest with her. (Dt 22:6)The Jewish sages say that the Ruach hovering over the Creation waters was Messiah, whose obedience would bring order out of chaos, light out of darkness. The verb used for “hovering” is merachefet, which describes how a mother bird beats her wings violently to call her chicks. Also in the tradition, the palace of King Messiah is located in the Garden of Eden. It is called Kan Tzippor, or “The Bird Nest.” King Messiah’s job is to gather the Father’s chicks back into the Garden, to minister the Word to them so that they can be restored to their original habitat. Frequently, the chicks are obstinate:“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, ‘BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!’” (Mt 23:37-39)What can be derived from Yeshua’s lament?
What is the “Two House” understanding of Scripture, history, and prophecy?
How do we explain to those who ‘just don’t get it’ why it is SO vital to understand the ‘the law’ has NOT been ‘done away with’?
And how can people ostensibly read the same Bible and come to diametrically opposite conclusions about, well, EVERYTHING?
This is a special two-part teaching that Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa has put together as an “overview” of just exactly why Paul so specifically warned against “another jesus whom we have NOT preached.”
“From the Sermon on the Mount to Jeremiah 16:19: Big Lies Inherited from the Whore Church Fathers”
Part 1:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SSM-6-2-23-Wild-Card-Session-Food-Marriage-MotB-and-the-SotM-teaching-podcast-xxx.mp3Part 2:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/WT-CooH-6-3-23-Pt-2-Big-Lies-Inherited-from-Whore-Church-FATHERS-edited-xxx.mp3The combined full two-part teaching is here:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/SSM-2-3-June-2023-Wild-Card-Session-2-part-Food-Mrrg-MotB-Big-Lies-Inherited-from-the-Whore-Church-Fathers-combined-podcast-xxx.mp3
Parsha Naso (Numbers 4:21 through all of chapter 7) is on the agenda for this week’s Torah portion, but after the Sabbath this week is the 50th day of the counting of the Omer, and thus the day of Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha begins with the last part of the first “head count”, of the families of the Levites, but continues with some elements that are not widely studied by much of ‘mainstream Christianity.’
The Erev Shabbat reading helps explain why:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SSM-5-26-23-Naso-teaching-podcast-x-then-.mp3There are any number of places in the Torah, and in the prophets, where specific sequences of words seem to be used to “set off” a particular story, or make an emphasis, and often to connect elements in the text that might otherwise seem separated.
But there are other ways the Author uses His Word to draw our attention to connections. Imagery is one.
And this parsha demonstrates more than one of them.
The process for determining the guilt or innocence of the ‘sota’ or woman who’s husband SUSPECTS adultery is one such. The image of the ‘cup’ which contains the “water of bitterness that causes the curse” may be one of the most dramatic images in Scripture. It arguably appeared at the giving of the Torah – at this very time of year – and WILL appear at the climax in Revelation 18. But, most importantly, it was the cup which Messiah drank for us. Even though the identity of the guilty was not in question.
Which is why Mark Twain may have been right about prophecy and imagery in Scripture, too. It may not repeat precisely, but ‘rhymes’.
“Naso – and Shavuot: Rhymes in Scripture”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/WT-CooH-5-27-23-Naso-the-Sota-Nazerite-Imagery-and-Rhymes-in-Scripture-podcast-xx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
I am going to depart from the usual reading of the scriptures today and instead, I am going to share a topical teaching with you, entitled “Under the Wings of the Almighty: How to Shelter there”. You can listen to the teaching here, or you can also WATCH the teaching as a VIDEO by clicking the WATCH THE VIDEO button below. I know you will find this teaching encouraging and uplifting. Please enjoy: “Under the Wings of the Almighty”
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE VIDEO of this teaching:
In the second half of the program, here is our scripture reading:
Audio reading: Ex 19:13-25, 2 Sam 1:1-2:11, John 12:20-50, Psalm 118:19-29, Prov 15:27-28
Visit us at: dailyaudiotorah.com
Prayer makes you think.For instance, who was better prepared for what happened after midnight in the Garden of Gethsemane, Yeshua or his disciples? Why?Apparently, Peter needed to go to bed with the chickens, and by the time the cock crowed three times the next morning, he’d denied Yeshua and run away. Just hours before, Peter didn't imagine such a thing were possible.An often-quoted proverb helps us to understand the inner process of prayer:“As a man thinks within himself [b’nafsho], so is he...” (Pr 23:7)"B'nafsho" is "in his soul." The soul is defined as a bundle of appetites, emotions, desires, and intellect. The soul thinks. We don't usually hear the beginning or the end of the proverb, though. The beginning of the proverb is:“Do not eat the bread of a selfish man or desire his delicacies...”The rest of the verse is: “...he says to you, ‘Eat and drink!’ But his heart [lev] is not with you.”The heart is sometimes seen as the mind, interconnected with the soul. Even scientists understand there is a "heart brain" that communicates with the head brain. In context, the proverb warns us that in spite of the generous words he says, a selfish person’s silent soul and heart think the opposite and wish that you would not accept.The connection between prayer and the proverb is that it is possible to pray one thing with the lips, yet not to really believe it or want it to come to pass. It is possible to pray one thing and think the opposite. Yeshua struggled in this like we do, yet he prayed the perfect solution in the Garden of Gethsemane:"Nevertheless, not my will, but Yours be done."
This was either the week where average Americans began to awaken to the fact that what was once their country has been successfully invaded, or that it was in fact, conquered long ago. And it is also the week where the regular Torah portion gives us a stunning revelation of WHY.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship for a two-part look at a double parsha “Behar/Bechukotai” (Leviticus/Vayikra chapters 25 through 27), and what marks the end of one of the most “unpopular” Books in the whole Bible. Perhaps the fact that it is both so prescient, AND so ignored gives us a major clue.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha begins where the narrative does “B’har” or ‘in the mount’ of Sinai, and covers everything from the sabbaths of the land, in the land, to the Yovel, or Jubilee, year, through obedience to His statutes and ordinances and the SECOND most famous set of curses for rebellion in His Torah, to things that are ‘devoted’ – and to Who.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SSM-5-12-23-Behar-Bechukotai-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The inscription on the Liberty Bell, which begins, “Proclaim Liberty throughout the land,” comes from this week’s Torah portion. And so do some of the curses which are so clearly playing out now in place of the liberty.
In the Sabbath day teaching this week, Mark connects the warning to “those who walk contrary to Me,” in an escalating series of curses, to things that were once unthinkable, but now undeniable: like “those who hate you shall rule over you,” but, sadly, that is only the beginning.
It is the invasion across the extinguished southern border which began to sound SO much like the ‘curse of the week,’ however. And it comes from the set in Deuteronomy chapter 28, which led Mark to suggest some comparison between those warnings. And a connection which is also an explanation.
“Behar/Bechukotai: Comparing Curses – or – did jesus Do Away With the LAW?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/WT-CooH-5-13-23-Behar-Bechukotai-Comparing-Curses-or-did-jesus-Do-Away-With-the-LAW-podcast-x.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Thanks to the availability of rabbinic reference books, most people now understand that the rooster crow in Jerusalem wasn't likely on the Temple Mount. When Yeshua warns Peter that he will deny Yeshua by the third rooster crow, the meaning is likely referring to the official Temple trumpet blowers, who signaled the Temple's daily activities from special posts on the Temple Mount. To this day, you can view the tumbled stone on which they stood, which was found lying in the rubble at the base of the Temple Mount in 1968.It is forbidden to raise fowl in Jerusalem because of the “Holy Things”, [fowl may bring impurity in to sacrificial items] nor may priests raise them [anywhere] in the Land of Israel because of [the laws concerning] pure foods. (Mishnah Bava Kama 7)On the other hand, the rooster was used to signal the trumpet blowers when it was daylight, which was especially important on feast days with so many to accommodate in the services. Where was this rooster? Perhaps just outside the city walls, in which case, he would be easily heard.The Temple was no place for chickens.Now that you are called into covenant of royal priesthood with the Holy One of Israel, a little Temple sent to the nations, there's still no room for chickens. There's no room for a people too afraid to obey the Word.The appearance of Yeshua as the conqueror in Revelation is one of authority, and his feet are bronze, just like the bronze sea of the Temple. Seas in Scriptures often represent the peoples. The washing of water by the Word is what Yeshua sacrificed himself for on the altar. It is also what a royal priesthood is called to do. No chickens.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship for a two-part look at double parsha “Emor” (Leviticus/Vayikra chapters 21through 24). And this time the parsha contains references to a lot of things that don’t even exist any more, which – as we will see – make it all the MORE relevant.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha is again first; ‘command’ (emor) Aaron, it says, about things that have to do with his priesthood. Not only does that line no longer exist (at least, as such) – but much of the strictures are ‘insensitive’ and “NOT-PC” on top of it. Which certainly should tell us SOMETHING.
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/SSM-5-5-23-Emor-teaching-only-bad-recording-x.mp3One of the interesting aspects of this parsha is how much has to do with things we can NOT do, either because most of us are not of the line of cohenim, and may be lost anyway, or are things we’ve been LIED to about, and told don’t matter any more – like His ‘appointed times.’
But in fact, the opposite is probably true, and for reasons that might not have even been conceivable only even a few months ago.
So in the Sabbath day midrash, Mark suggests an entirely different approach to the lessons here.
“Emor: Dueling ‘Priesthoods’ – Melek-Tzadik or AI”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/WT-CooH-5-6-23-Emor-a-Priesthood-of-Melek-Tzadik-or-AI-edited-bad-audio-podcasat-xx.mp3Note: Apologies for the audio quality. Mark installed a brand new audio panel, had it working well, and then Windows decided to change the software configuration. So this is a ‘backup’ recording.
The combined two-part podcast is here:
It doesn't take long to learn about Passover and Sukkot, but Shavuot? What, exactly, are we supposed to do? There is a lot of celebration, storytelling, camping, and general hilarity during our bookend feasts of Passover and Sukkot, but I've had more than one email or student question concerning Shavuot and what to "do." Just eat dairy products? Just stay up all night reading Torah? That's it?No, no, that's not it. Shavuot forms the axis of the foot festivals. They are called foot festivals because these are the feasts that Israel was expected to walk to three times per year. The more fortunate could ride donkeys. As we listen for the footsteps of Messiah, then where else should we listen the most closely? Yes, the foot festivals.Two most important themes of Shavuot are the bringing of the firstfruits of the wheat and commemorating the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai.Our working text in the Footsteps of Messiah comes from Song of Songs Chapter 4:1-5. In past newsletters, we related these two symbols, a flock of goats and clean sheep as the nation of Israel come up from her two washings, the crossing of the Reed Sea and the three-day washing to prepare for the visitation at Mount Sinai to receive the Torah. The goats represent the Israelites descending from "Mount Gilead," or the "Mount of Witness," symbolizing Sinai, where they witnessed the Words in fire, smoke, hail, and rain:How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are!Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young. Your lips are like a scarlet (shani) thread, and your mouth is beautiful. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate behind your veil. Your neck is like the tower of David, built with layers of stones on which are hung a thousand shields, all the round shields of the warriors.Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle that graze among the lilies.The goat's hair formed a covering for the Tabernacle: "All the skilled women spun with their hands, and brought what they had spun, in blue and purple and scarlet material and in fine linen. All the women whose heart stirred with a skill spun the goats’ hair." (Ex 35:25-26)After the “mount of Witness,” the Israelites begin to work under the inspiration of the Ruach HaKodesh with Betzalel and Oholiav. As an aside, it is a given within the ancient Jewish way of viewing the Revelation at Sinai, that the offer of the Torah was made to the other 70 nations on earth as well as to Israel. Out of those 70, there was a remnant who desired the Torah, yet only one nation that unanimously, and with ONE VOICE replied, “We will do and we will hear.”
Audio reading: Lev 24:1-11, Judges 21:1-21 ,Ruth 1:22, John 4:4-42, Ps 105:1-15 Prov 14:25,
In the first half of the program, we do a deep dive into the book of Ruth. The story of Ruth and Naomi is a parallel portrait of the Church and Israel. The book of Ruth is an analogy of what the relationship between the church and Israel should be. The Ruth part of the church has a revelation of God’s plans and purposes for Naomi, that is, for Israel. Today the church, in a spirit of Ruth, needs to wrap our arms around Israel, our Naomi, and tenderly care for her by praying for her fervently, and blessing her in whatever way we can.
To go deeper on this topic, listen to Sharon Sanders teach on this. Go to:
The Call of Ruth Pt 1
The Call of Ruth Pt 2
The the second half of our program, listen in on this 25-minute interview where Bonnie Harvey interviews me about my recent 6-week trip to Israel. I was on an assignment: complete the project started for Christian Friends of Israel.
What was the project? Launch an internet-based radio station with content-rich teachings on the centrality of Israel in God’s end-time plans and the important role of the Jewish people in those plans. I was there to live and work in Jerusalem for 6 weeks. Truly the LORD ordered my steps as many great connections were made! Check it out at:
CFIRadio.com
Listen in to this GOOD REPORT about the land of Israel!
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship for a two-part look at double parsha “Acharei Mot/Kedoshim” (Leviticus/Vayikra chapters 16 through 20) — and another of those portions that is not only filled with a variety of interesting instructions and commandments, but so many that are now so “politically incorrect” as well.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha is first, from the “Azazel” and the Day of Atonement, to forbidden relationships, to a number of other ALMOST as equally ignored strictures, there are plenty of reminders in here about why so much is wrong with a world which ignores His Word:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/SSM-4-28-23-Acharei-Mot-Kedoshim-teaching-podcast-x.mp3And this time around, the focus for the Sabbath Day is on those OTHER ignored elements. In Matthew 7:13-14, Yahushua tells us that the “way which leads to destruction is broad,” while “narrow is the gate, and difficult the way which leads to life,” which is why “few that be who find it.”
Which is decidedly NOT the message most hear from a church that declared so many of those not-PC commandments “done away with,” anyway. No wonder most choose to ignore His warning.
This parsha includes what He called to second most important commandment, too: “love your neighbor as yourself.” But it’s the CONTEXT there that, by omission, is just as vital to our understanding. Time for some tough, but vital, questions.
“Acharei Mot / Kedoshim: the Narrow Path”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WT-CooH-4-29-23-Acharei-Mot-Kedoshim-That-Narrow-Path-podcast-xx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
The double Torah portion has a common thread: Those in need of purification, healing, and restoration must go through the agency of a human priest. This human priest is a type and shadow of Messiah Yeshua, a priest after the order of Malkhi-Tzedek. With types and shadows, expect some things to be identical, yet other things to be slightly different in application. As Pastor Mark and Tammy like to say, "patterns and principles."The one seeking restoration brings his or her various offerings to the doorway of the Tent of Meeting. From there, the service works its way inward to the bronze altar. The flames of the bronze altar purge out sin, and they provide atonement, or covering. It is from these very coals that the incense service moves the process of restoration even closer to the Divine Presence, the golden incense altar.In performing their services, the Cohanim were required to wear a turban-like headcover (the high priest wore a type of crown on his) and to be girded with a belt, or sash. Without these, the priests could not perform the service. In contrast, the metzorah, or leper, was required to let his hair go loose and wear torn clothes. These practices were forbidden to the priesthood when they served in the holy spaces, for they are identified with death and mourning.Then Moses said to Aaron and to his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, so that you will not die and that He will not become wrathful against all the congregation.” (Le 10:6)“As for the leper who has the infection, his clothes shall be torn, and the hair of his head shall be uncovered, and he shall cover his mustache and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’” (Le 13:45)“The priest who is the highest among his brothers, on whose head the anointing oil has been poured and who has been consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes.” (Le 21:10)The moral of the story? Those who minister on behalf of others have fewer “rights” and more “atonement, covering” responsibilities. Priests are not allowed the depth of grieving behaviors permitted to others.So what does that have to do with us?Following the pattern, from Shavuot onward, members of a royal priesthood need “working clothes,” not just a garment of salvation:A headcover, possibly a “credit crown”An untorn garment (why else was Yeshua’s garment left whole?)A sash or beltShavuot is the axis of the journey. The Mishkan and priesthood were inaugurated at Sinai to serve the tribal kingdom of royal priests. We should expect these priestly clothes to be explained in the context of Sinai. Having followed the Presence from Egypt to Sinai, from ”animal food” barley to the finest of wheat at Shavuot in untorn garments of salvation, it was time to receive the additional garments and crowns of a royal priesthood. When the Israelites said, “We will do, and we will hear,” they were awarded two...no, one...crown(s).Please SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter to get new teachings.
The Israelites did evil in the LORD’s sight and served the images of Baal. They abandoned the LORD, the God of their ancestors, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods, worshiping the gods of the people around them. And they angered the LORD. They abandoned the LORD to serve Baal and the images of Ashtoreth. Judges 2:11-13
This week we are in the book of Judges. We see that the children of Israel abandoned the God of Israel and began to worship Baal and Ashtoreth (Ishtar). Could it be that these ancient gods have re-emerged in our modern culture? If so, how do they manifest? How do we recognize them? Have we, as a people, turned away from the God of Israel to worship these false gods? Listen in to learn about the principle, the pattern and God’s solution: repentance!
Visit us at: https://DailyAudioTorah.com
Check out Jonathan Cahn’s new book: Return of the gods
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Tazria” (Leviticus/Vayikra chapters 12 through 13) — and several lessons that are dramatic, not only because they are now so “politically incorrect,” but so at odds with what we have seen in the world – for centuries even – that the contrast is almost stunning.
Still though, there’s something strangely ‘familiar’ in the detail here, even if much of it may have been “turned on its head.”
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha is first:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/SSM-4-21-23-Tazria-teaching-podcast-x.mp3In Torah cycles past, Mark has suggested that since the plague in this parsha, tzaraat (NOT ‘leprosy,’ which is quite different) for literally centuries, and certainly seems to be a physical skin condition resulting from a spiritual isse, we might ask the question, ‘Why?’ Or, why NOT?
And, since, “those He loves, He chastens,” doesn’t that say something negative about a world where even shame no longer seems to modify truly insane actions?
So, this time around, it’s a different question that sets the stage: Do we think that even if YHVH was to bring a massive plague of tzaraat on those who Evil Tongues are SO evil, that it would even make a difference?
But then again, here’s food for thought: Maybe we DID have just such a ‘plague’. Consider, The Adversary, HaSatan, is not very original. When we had real ‘cohenim,’ they were to look at the detailed description of the plague in this parsha, and then determine, literally DECLARE, that it was, or was not, ‘tzaraat’. Then the ‘metzora’ who was afflicted was to go outside the camp, maintain separation, and warn people away by saying, “unclean, unclean,” to anyone who approached.
With the Gain-of-Function Wuhan Plague, which we now know was developed on the US taxpayer’s dime, it was the High Priest of the Great God Science, Tony Fauci, who declared who and what was “unclean.” They had to put on the Mask of Shame, and maintain Social Distance, and even engage in ritual injections.
But the “Evil Speech” part was certainly familiar!
There is SO much in this portion…once the ‘dots connect,’ you can’t UN-see it.
“Tazria – Replacing Circumcision on the 8th Day with Castration in the 8th Year…and More”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WT-CooH-4-22-23-Tazria-Circumc-on-8th-day-or-castrated-in-8th-year-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Shmini” (Leviticus/Vayikra chapters 9 through 11) — and perhaps some insight as well into why what he refers to, especially now, as the ‘whore church’ would prefer to ignore it.
This one includes the death of the sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, for offering “strange fire” before Yahuah, which “He had not commanded.”
But there’s much more to it than that.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha is first:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/SSM-4-14-23-Shmini-teaching-podcast-x.mp3This midrash, too, begins with a question: What were they THINKING? But the answer may sound even a bit TOO familiar.
And one of the biggest indicators is another ‘atbash,’ which Mark suggests is a bit similar to what we might now see as a Biblical Hebrew equivalent of an HTML tag, like a text equivalent of a flashing red sign.
And that setup, the warning, the event, and everything that follows seem to emphasize why we are to understand the “difference…between the unclean and the clean,” and the “holy” as opposed to the profane.
Again, the emphasis is that the “sharp, two-edged sword” of His Word TEACHES us to divide things.
“Shmini – Kadosh to YHVH – and NOT Profane Fire”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WT-CooH-4-15-23-Shmini-Foreign-Profane-to-YHVH-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
The Footsteps of Messiah are echoing through the earth. Yeshua is returning for the righteous, to gather them. He is coming to judge the wicked as well. But what about the "in-betweens"? From the beginning until today, there are "believers" who don't believe so much that it changes their lives significantly. What should they know about these Footsteps?The model is found within the feasts of Israel, which culminate in the final feast, the Feast of the Nations, Sukkot (Tabernacles). Three of the seven feasts are the chagim, or "foot festivals" in which Israel was commanded to go up to Jerusalem to celebrate: Passover, Shavuot, Sukkot. Those who are expecting the Footsteps of Messiah Yeshua might also check where their own feet have trod in expectation. Have they proclaimed the Good News of Messiah and the commandments of Elohim?There are three seasonal firstfruits contained within the foot festivals: barley (Pesach), wheat (Shavuot), and everything else (Sukkot).At barley, Yeshua resurrected. In Egypt, the Israelites were delivered from sin and death at Pesach. There was little “Torah” to obey, they simply trusted in the lamb’s blood and followed the cloud in faith.At the wheat harvest of Shavuot, the Israelites made a commitment to the full Torah based on their deliverance by and in the cloud so far, which was in faith. They were in the wilderness. Not yet resurrected in body, but not dead in Egypt, either.At Sukkot of the nations, a cloud of greater resurrection would occur, one that included the nations. It is then that the Torah cycle concludes, rolling up the commandments. The Torah scrolls are re-rolled at this foot festival, and the reading begins again in Genesis 1:1. Sukkot leads to Pesach, a new beginning.Let's return to Shavuot, which comemmorates the giving of the Torah at Sinai. Every year, Israel accepts the yoke of the Torah anew at Shavuot, firstfruits of the wheat, echoing the commitment, "We will do, and we will hear."Oddly, the day is never celebrated as one of repentance from sin. Tradition sees the intervening weeks between Pesach and Shavuot as time to do work removing the “encrustations” of sin left over from Egypt, yet Shavuot itself has no repentance themes. In fact, the mussaf sin offering, an extra offering required on feast days, does not apply to Shavuot. It is as if the Israelites are considered sin-free when they received the Torah.Why?Our Footsteps text is the Song of Songs. From there, we read:“Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is beautiful. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate behind your veil.” (So 4:3)The symbolism of the pomegranate is thus: the pips represent the individual commandments, because the number of pomegranate pips is approximately 613, the number of the commandments. The high priest wore a garment hemmed with bells and pomegranates, and these made a musical noise as he walked, creating a pleasant atmosphere. Walking in the Word should be both musical and pleasant!Another symbol of the commandments is jewelry. When Israel sinned with the golden calf, Moses made them remove their jewelry, the ornaments of a Bride. When people removed their gold rings to make the golden calf, they already exchanged the righteousness of Adonai for an idol, and stripping them of the rest of their jewelry pointed out that if they could not remain faithful for 40 days, then they were not ready to enter the Land of Israel.If the ornaments represent commandments, then it is easy to see that they were adorned with "commandments" on credit to await Moses' return from the mountain with the rest of the Torah. As we've established in the last few newletters, this was the righteousness of Yeshua, the Living Word, credited into their accounts before they had a chance to walk in them. This is the same righteousness the apostles assured the Gentile believers that they'd been credited when they came to faith in Messiah Yeshua. Commandments wouldn't make them more saved, but they would result as they walked faithfully in the righteousness of their salvation, Yeshua. The Ruach HaKodesh would teach them from that starting point, just as Yeshua promised, and just as was experienced in Acts Two at Shavuot. While they learned, grace would abound.The fulness of the Torah is promised the betrothed. If we continue to walk faithfully, repenting as necessary, then Adonai makes us to stand and live in the righteousness of them before we fully realize perfection of the body. He clothes our “red” souls. The soul is associated with Esau, or Edom, the "Red One" because it is a bundle of appetites, emotions, desires, and intellect, which must be disciplined by the Ruach (Spirit) within each person, represented by Jacob in the twin analogy.The righteousness is not our own, for we did not invent it! It is the righteousness of the Father and His son Yeshua, our salvation. Our pips are red, reflecting the salvation and redemption of our red souls. Proverbs Thirty-one is a parable of the Ruach HaKodesh. This is what the Ruach does, it clothes us in the righteousness of Yeshua, which protects us from the judgment of snow (Job 38:22-23):“She is not afraid of the snow for her household, for all her household are clothed with scarlet.” (Pr 31:21)The lips like a scarlet thread is the mouth of the righteous, and the Word spoken through them in prayer and faith is a protection against judgment. The betrothed of Yeshua have slice of red pomegranate on their foreheads. Out of 613 pomegranate pips, only a small number apply to each person. It takes a full house of Israel with a functioning Temple and priesthood to observe them all. Each person, however, has his or her own slice, depending upon whether the person is son, daughter, father, mother, merchant, farmer, seller, buyer, animal herder, etc. The number may grow or shrink as the person ages or changes occupation. Just a slice of the whole.“Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth (speech) is beautiful”When we confess our faith in Messiah Yeshua and make our equivalent expression to "do and hear" the commandments given by the Father through Moses, we declare our Intention to walk in the Word, which is counted as “doing well,” righteousness credited before learning and performance:“Go near and hear all that the LORD our God says; then speak to us all that the LORD our God speaks to you, and we will hear and do it.’ The LORD heard the voice of your words when you spoke to me, and the LORD said to me, ‘I have heard the voice of the words of this people which they have spoken to you. They have done well in all that they have spoken.” (Dt 5:27-28)When we make this declaration with true intention, it is believed that we receive two crowns of Torah: Royalty and leadershipWe are welcomed into a royal priesthood nation, and we begin to learn the instructions through which we will lead others to salvation. The righteousness is awarded to us on credit, and we are clothed in scarlet against the day of judgment.The garments of of righteousness are seen as having protective power to guard against sin, like the scarlet clothes of the Ruach HaKodesh.When we know what sin is, then we can walk worthy of the credit in our accounts and avoid sin while learning to do good as well. Once we know what sin is, then it is easier to avoid it. When we avoid it, we avoid the judgment and consequences that follow rebellious sin.What if it's not rebellious, just ignorant? (Nu 14:9) This is the where grace abounds while we learn. Yeshua knows our suffering and that we are still housed in a corruptible body. For this, he makes intercession. We long for the resurrection of this Old Man Chametz to be raised incorruptible so that we no longer have to live on credit.Rebellious sin, however, is a retreat to the "in-between," or lukewarm status of the Laodiceans. But what about the person who just retreats? He or she doesn't really sin rebelliously, just passively? What if there is no attempt to know Yeshua in the fellowship of his suffering for the sake of righteousness? This, too, is rebellion. Passive aggression is still agression. Passive rebellion against doing good is still rebellion. For those who are lukewarm in redeeming their time, there are ten days between the Feast of Trumpets and Yom HaKippurim for them to repent before the Feast of the Nations at Sukkot.As we count toward Shavuot, let us commit anew to our slice of the yoke of the Torah and the testimony of Yeshua.
This week, by most reckonings of the Biblical Feast calendar (no, certainly not all) begins the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which includes the Passover seder or meal.
Not surprisingly, there are a number of choices for readings during His true Holy Days, including those passages which describe them. It’s also a season where the ‘regular’ sequence of Torah readings may get a bit “out-of-sync” – especially when calendar issues come into play. So Mark chose to do the look at parsha Tzav (Leviticus chapters 6 through 8) on Erev Shabbat, and then go a bit ‘further afield’ for the Sabbath day midrash.
The Erev Shabbat reading of the parsha Tzav:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/SSM-4-7-23-Tzav-teaching-only-podcast-x.mp3No question about it: the Pesach (Passover) timeframe, and the week of the Feast of Unleavened Bread that follows it, is one of the most important in all of history. Whether people who disagree on how and why understand that how and why, or not.
But, at least it helps to explain why there is so much ‘division,’ and perhaps even why He said He came “not to bring peace, but a sword,” and warned that many would be “offended” by Him.
Just as Mark suggests again, and with no shortage of proof, that He is “offended” (or worse) by having the Most Important Event Human History re-named after a (and this fits today!) trans-sexual pagan fertility goddess and celebrated in ways YHVH repeatedly calls “abomination.”
But there is a far bigger question. WHY does all of that matter? And what should those who seek to “follow Him,” DO, when we see the Truth?
But the “pieces ALL fit.” From the “olah” offering – which “goes up” to heaven, to “unleavened bread” – to the only, singular sign that He gave to an “evil and adulterous generation” (hmm…was He talking THEN, or NOW, or maybe almost continually?)
– and the answer is the same now, as it was when the FIRST Judas sold out to “the Adversary.” But it was hardly the only time.
This teaching is one to share. Because the “sharp, two-edged sword” of His Word tends to divide things.
“Pesach – and His REAL Holy Week”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WT-CooH-4-8-23-Tzav-the-Real-Holy-Week-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Audio reading: Ex 33:12-23, Luke 9:51-10:12, Psalm 74:1-23, Prov 12:11
Passover is the Festival of our Freedom. The freedom is from being in bondage to sin and to the world system and the new liberty/freedom in following Yeshua and His Torah. There are three important principles of the Egyptian redemption. They are:
The Egyptian redemption is both historic and prophetic.
The events that happened to our patriarchs are prophesies of what will happen to their descendants/to future generations.
*The Egyptian redemption teaches us about Yeshua’s redemption for the nation and for us personally.
The Hebrew word for Passover is Pesach. It means to hover over or Pass over.
The spiritual meaning is this:
it represents passing over from death and sin (Egypt) to eternal life and salvation.
it represents the blood of Yeshua to “hover over” our lives and to give us divine protection from the enemy.
Audio reading: Ex 34:1-9, Luke 10:13-37, Psalm 75:1-10, Prov 12:12-14
Passover defines and marks the first month on the biblical calendar. Even as Passover is the beginning of months, repenting of our sins, which is leaving Egypt, and putting the blood of Yeshua on our heart is the first step in our salvation in Messiah.
Yeshua, the lamb of God, is “inspected” by the Pharisees, the Sadducees, by Pilate, and by Herod. They are not able to find any blemish. Yeshua, the perfect, pure and innocent lamb of God, then dies on the tree, and takes the sin of the world upon himself. He IS our Passover lamb:
Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us. 1 Corinthians 5:7
Parsha “Vayikra” (Leviticus chapters 1 through 5) — because it’s the first in the Book — thus shares the name, and is certainly one of those challenges that, let’s fact it, much of “xtianity” would prefer to ignore. And it starts of with a bunch of ‘sacrifices,’ besides. Which, as Mark Call points out in this two-part look, isn’t even the right Hebrew word; these are offerings (korban) rather than the root word ‘tzebach.’
But why does that matter? Because how can people who don’t even understand “Torah 101” about that difference then grasp the real significance of what Yahushua actually DID…much less why it has never been more important to us?
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/SSM-3-31-23-Vaykira-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Another warning for the Sabbath teaching this week. Those who prefer the paganism associated with spring fertility rites, and “bunnies and eggs” to His Truth will no doubt take offense at this one, in particular. Just as He also warned.
But there is a bigger warning here as well. Most of the ‘boring sacrifice stuff’ that we’ve been lied to about has another characteristic that the Whore Church likes to overlook: it’s all about “unintentional sin.” But the claim that “I didn’t KNOW any better,” only works once. When people KEEP doing that which He says NOT to do, the claim that it was done in ignorance wears thin.
“Vayikra: How Many Times Can IGNORANCE Be an Excuse?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/WT-CooH-4-1-23-Vayikra-B-shagagga-only-applies-ONCE-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Our Footsteps of Messiah series has focused on the prophecies contained in the Song of Songs. Once we reach the fourth chapter of the Song, some of the prophecies are repeated, yet we can glean more in-depth understanding with the first chapters already established. In Chapter Four, we read:* How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young.
The Song of Songs describes how beautiful the Children of Israel were when they came up from their washing of the Reed Sea like a flock of clean sheep:* How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young. Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is beautiful. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate behind your veil. Your neck is like the tower of David, built with layers of stones on which are hung a thousand shields, all the round shields of the warriors. Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle that graze among the lilies.
Although the Israelites were in the middle of a “holiness sandwich,” nevertheless they were unharmed. They were walking on credit in righteousness they hadn’t personally attained. Instead, they walked in the righteousness of Yeshua, the living Word. They believed Adonai, which means they believed His Word as spoken to them through Moses, a metaphor for the Torah. At that moment that the Israelites came up from the washing of the Sea unharmed, the Midrash says that the following from our Song was said of their uprightness:* “Your lips are like a scarlet thread, and your mouth is beautiful. Your temples are like a slice of a pomegranate behind your veil.”
The pomegranate is a symbol of the Torah’s 613 commandments, for the number of pips in a pomegranate is around that number. The symbolism of the pomegranate pips as the 613 commandments suggests the doctrine taught by the apostles:* For what does the Scripture say? “ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.” (Ro 4:3) * for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. (Ro 10:10)
Salvation comes with the potential to fulfill the righteous and holy commandments. We are given mercy and grace while we walk and learn in the wilderness, preparing to ascend to the Promised Land. Drop down a couple of verses, and the Song reads: “Your two breasts are like two fawns, twins of a gazelle that graze among the lilies.” One the applications of the two breasts is the milk of the Word, demonstrated by the two tables (tablets) of the Ten Commandments. If those two breasts represent the two (twin) tablets of the Torah given at Mt. Sinai, then their formation into something mature (613) would come through further instruction from Moses in the wilderness.Ezekiel 16:6-14 rebukes the Israelites who later rebelled and walked in the very sins from which He’d delivered them. Adonai reminds them of how He found them struggling in their birth blood, twelve tribes now a nation in the midst of another nation, struggling to emerge from Egypt. He describes how He waited for them to grow up and to meet Him at Sinai to receive the Words of their promise at betrothal:Of note in Ezekiel 16 is: “…11 I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your hands and a necklace around your neck. 12 I also put a ring in your nostril, earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head.” (ibid)What are these ornmaments to Israel?* “Hear, my son, your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching; indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head and ornaments about your neck.” (Pr 1:8-9) * “My son, observe the commandment of your father and do not forsake the teaching of your mother; bind them continually on your heart; tie them around your neck.” (Pr 6:20-21)
Like children, the Israelites were guided from Egypt to Sinai by Moses, Aaron, and “mom” Miriam (Micah 6:4; Ex 15:20). The children walking in the credit of Yeshua’s righteousness were given the Big Ten at betrothal, which hang on the Big Two, and eventually Moses would teach them the fullness of the 613 so they could be “married” and enter the Land of their Promise. The two tablets represented how the Israelites would grow in respect to their salvation from Egypt, the realm of sin and death. Why were the commandments written on two tablets?The sages asserted that each brother of the twelve sons of Jacob had a twin sister. Half of the commandments focus on our relationship to Elohim, so they are the “father” commandments. As Paul taught the Corinthians, the man’s head represents the glory of Elohim restored to the groaning Creation:* “For a man ought not to have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.” (1 Co 11:7)
The other “twin” tablet is the “mother commandments,” which teach us the human relational Torah. The female “twin” head represents the glory of mankind restored in the Creation, which groans for human beings to walk in the revealed righteousness of Yeshua, the Word of Elohim:* For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. And not only this, but also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it. (Ro 8:18-25)
The Creation is groaning because like Israel, who had the potential to mature into 613 seeds of the pomegranate from the Big Ten, the Creation, too, is encoded with a greater potential than has ever been realized outside of the Garden of Eden. It is groaning because it wants to be growning! I know. Bad pun. Most puns are.Let’s identify some bullet points related to our study:* There is a glory to be revealed to human beings. This is symbolized by the “heads” in the congregration: men, the revealed glory of Elohim in the Creation, and women, the revealed glory of human beings in the Creation * Creation has an expectation of this, it is “encoded” for greater growth and fruit * Human sin prevents the Creation from breaking free of its slavery to corruption. Until the glory is revealed, it is in childbirth, the life within prepared, yet held back. * Likewise, the human body before resurrection is encoded with the ability to live in glorious immortality, yet is not revealed until full redemption of the body. * The Ruach HaKodesh is our “firstfruits”, or the hope of the resurrection to glory.
At Mount Sinai, the Israelites promised, “We will do, and we will hear.” They were again credited for righteousness they hadn’t yet learned or earned, but Adonai would give them time to grow in their salvation beyond the milk of the Big Ten.
Parsah “Pekudei” (Exodus 38:21 through the End of the Book) is the last Torah portion in the Book of Exodus. It does sound quite a bit like something we’ve heard before, not even that long ago (and there’s no doubt a point there…) and seems to have some OTHER ‘redundancy’ as well (OK, arguably for a similar point.)
Most of us have probably heard the claim that, especially since this is all “old” testament, and now everyone is the ‘temple of God’ anyway, none of this matters. Besides, it’s not “salvific.” Scripture ‘as Written’ says something very different. And this parsha is a pretty good proof of it.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SSM-3-24-23-Pekudei-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The Sabbath day teaching this week – as it probably must – picks up where He left off. We do see the completion of all the things He has laid out for them, and commanded to be done, via Moshe. And vitally, it seems- because He repeats the phrase no less than EIGHTEEN times in this Torah portion alone! – they finished the mishkan (tabernacle) “according to ALL that YHVH commanded Moshe, so did they,” and then also erected it “as YHVH commanded Moses.”
But it’s some of the connections in this parsha, both to others that precede, and prophecies that follow, and to very current events, that will prove most…thought provoking.
Some will find this discussion refreshingly blunt, some will be offended. (But on that score, we have been warned: Matthew 11:6, 13:57, 15:12, 24…and many others.)
It appears that the Book of Exodus ends with another ‘atbash,’ an “open and close” set of verses which dramatically underscores whatever is nested withing. But this one is particularly poignant NOW, ‘for such a time as this.’ In so many ways.
“Pekudei: A Great Big ATBASH aroundd ‘El Kanah’ – Why?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/WT-CooH-3-25-23-Pekudei-Great-Big-Atbash-around-El-Kanah-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Our Footsteps of Messiah series has focused on the prophecies contained in the Song of Songs. Once we reach the fourth chapter of the Song, some of the prophecies are repeated, yet we can glean more in-depth understanding with the first chapters already established. In Chapter Four, we read:* How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are! Your eyes are like doves behind your veil; your hair is like a flock of goats that have descended from Mount Gilead. Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young.
In a previous lesson, we looked at “Mount Gilead” as a wordplay with “mountain of rolling (continual) witness.” There is a literal mountain range in Gilead, but there was Mount Sinai, where the Israelites responded to the covenant invitation with “We will do, and we will hear.” From the heights of spiritual ecstasy at Mount Sinai, the Israelites descended “like a flock of goats” to become a light and witness to the nations. Goats are often symbolic of sacrifice for atonement. Indeed, Israel has suffered sacrifice to hold onto their covenant agreement at Sinai, reflecting the suffering of Messiah for the sake of the nations.Next, the prophecy refers to Israel as “a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing.” Sheep are often symbolic of the innocent, compliant, and easily led. The sages point to the “washing” as the journey through the Reed Sea in their escape from Pharaoh. A second washing was the three-day preparation of washing for the visitation at Mount Sinai. The first washing at the Reed Sea is of particular interest since it explains in more detail the apostles’ doctrines of mercy, grace, and torah. While there has been a long history of poor understanding and applications of the relationship among them, the foundations are in the Exodus from Egypt.The twelve tribes of Israel grew in their Egyptian captivity. With courage, the midwives salvaged the “young” of the sheep, protecting them from Pharaoh’s death squads.* “Your teeth are like a flock of newly shorn sheep which have come up from their washing, all of which bear twins, and not one among them has lost her young [???????? H7909].”
??????? shakkul; from H7921; bereaved:—barren, bereaved (robbed) of children.There was not a long list of commandments for the flock of Israel to keep while they were being saved.1. Listen to Moses’ warning about the plagues. 2. Circumcise. 3. Slaughter a lamb, apply the blood to the doorposts, and eat it. 4. Leave Egypt. 5. Follow the pillar of cloud.
That’s pretty much it. There were no 613 commandments, or even the Big Ten. Not even the Shema or “love your neighbor.” These were simple, demonstrated acts of faith. The details of the 2, the 10, and the 613 would come later in the wilderness.There is a play-on word with “all of which bear twins.”?????? tâ?am; a primitive root; to be complete; but used only as denominative from H8380, to be (causatively, make) twinned, i.e. (figuratively) duplicate or (architectural) jointed:—coupled (together), bear twins.Ta’am is sometimes translated as “perfect.” The flock may be seen as not only complete, but perfect as in upright, with moral integrity:* “Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before Me, and be blameless. [???????]” (Ge 17:1)
The children of Abraham would also be counted like their father, upright. It didn’t mean without sin or mistakes; it meant walk and work on the revealed things each day. The Midrash Rabbah presents a homily concerning “all of them are perfect, ta’am which have come up from their washing.” They point out that in spite of being herded and guarded between the Presence of Adonai Himself and the Angel, the Israelites came up from the Reed Sea unharmed by the intense holiness that was experienced between them. Although not yet walking in the commandments, nor had they even agreed to, the Israelites were already walking by faith. They were on the path, leaving death behind, yet obedience lay before them, a journey to prepare them to go up into the Land of their inheritance.
This Torah portion begins, and is named for, the SECOND use of the word “Vayakhel” in Scripture. Except, this time it’s Moses that “gathers together” ALL of the assembly, not as a mob, but to hear, and do, what Yahuah commands.
Parsha Vayakhel (Exodus 35:1-38:20) returns to the topic of what those who have just escaped death should build together. And there seems to be a lot of emphasis in the text on their ‘heart condition’.
Perhaps we should take note of what a ‘near death experience’ can do for our perspective, especially if we end up with wise and willing hearts.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SSM-3-17-23-Vayakhel-teaching-podcast-x-1.mp3The Sabbath day teaching this week beings right where He does. And where Mark suggests (again, because He does!) we should focus today, even though it might not ‘sit well’ with our sun-god-day neighbors: His Sabbath. There’s a reason He set it off with the ‘torah-tag’ equivalent of bright bold flashing text in the last parsha, and starts right there again after Moshe gathers them together THIS time for the right reason.
But it’s the repeated references to the ‘wise-hearted’ that should set the context. Is this society, too, on the brink of death – economic, spiritual, medical/bio-weapon, and perhaps of even the fiery, nuclear form? True, most who have been dumbed-down into slavish complacency are oblivious to what is coming, but that doesn’t mean WE shouldn’t be ready for the time when THEY will panic.
“Vayakhel: In THIS God We Trust”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SSM-3-17-23-Vayakhel-teaching-podcast-x.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Audio reading: Ex 38: 1-31, 1 Kngs 7:40-8:21, Luke 1:57-80, Psalm 58:1-11, Prov 11:11-12
This podcast was recorded LIVE from Jerusalem! There is a new sound, a new spiritual SHIFT in the atmosphere. 24/7 prayer is being lifted up for Israel. The spiritual atmosphere is changing and shifting! God is raising up a new generation of worshippers and prayer warriors. Succat Hallel, a 24/7 house of worship and prayer located in Jerusalem, is one of many platforms for this new sound of worship to come forth.
In November 2004, the Lord opened the door for Succat Hallel to relocate to a beautiful facility overlooking Mount Zion and the Old City of Jerusalem. Since then we have been crying out day and night 24/7 – until He makes Jerusalem a praise in all the earth. One of the worship teams that cries out in worship and prayer at Succat Hallel is SOLU Israel with Shilo Ben Hod. Listen to their anointed worship song, All Who are Thirsty, at the end of our reading today.
Visit our website at: dailyaudiotorah.com
Audio reading: Ex 40:21-38, Luke 3:1-22, Psalm 61:1-8, Prov 11:16-17
Another anointed team that paired up for lifting up anointed “prayer song” is Carolyn Hyde and Joshua Aaron. Please enjoy the worship song, “Keep the Fire Alive” at the end of today’s reading.
Please join with us in prayer for Israel! Take on a prayer watch at: AltarofPrayer.com, and join with other intercessors from around the nations as we lift up the nation of Israel in 24/7 prayer!
There are weekly Prayer Updates for Israel. This website is amazing! Check it out!
After a couple portions that might be called “setup,” for the upcoming construction of the mishkan, or tabernacle, this week parsha Ki Tisa (Exodus/Shemot 30:111 through chapter 34) returns to the story of what happens while, and after Moshe returns from his first trip up Mount Sinai.
And it’s not pretty.
In fact, it is perhaps one of the most painful and tragic stories in the whole Book. All the more so because it keeps repeating.
But, again, it’s the ‘What?’ AND the ‘WHY’ that are key to our understanding.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SSM-3-10-23-Ki-Tisa-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3The Sabbath day teaching this week certainly has to address what Mark suggests is one of THE most succinct stories out there to address the question, “what is Torah-obedience?”
Even if part of the story has undeniably ‘negative connotations.’
The ‘golden calf’ is probably the most well-known example in the entire Bible of what has become a synonym for idolatry. And the irony is that its fame is well-deserved as well, because it is so PERSISTENT. Which is the problem.
Because virtually everything about the story fits as well now as it ever has.
“Ki Tisa: Worship Him AS He SAYS”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/WT-CooH-3-11-23-Ki-Tisa-What-does-Torah-observant-MEAN-Worship-Him-as-HE-says-podcast-xxx-1.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
The Torah portion this week, parsha Tetzaveh, (Exodus/Shemot 27:20-30:10) is another departure from the narrative of Moshe and the sons of Israel, or mixed multitude now in the wilderness near Mount Sinai, to continue the exposition of something that will play a major role in events that will play out next.
This is the second installment of instructions that have to do with the upcoming construction of the mishkan, or tabernacle, in the wilderness; in this case, it begins with oil for the lamp, and then describes in some detail the ‘set apart’ garments for the Cohen Gadol, or Aaron, and then his sons.
But it’s the ‘WHY’ that is arguably key to our understanding.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SSM-3-3-23-Tetzaveh-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The Sabbath day teaching this week certainly has to address something that all of us have heard, probably too much: This is all OLD stuff, and even if we now know it might not be “done away with,” there’s still no cohenim, no mishkan, and no place where we’d ever see these garments anyway, so what’s the point?
But that is part of the irony where we need to start. YHVH says these garments for Aaron and his sons are for “splendor and for beauty.” They even seem to be specific signs of their Authority from Him.
Like it or not, we still seem to apply the idea, be it real or just perceived, to certain clothing. A white lab coat comes to mind, certainly for a different priesthood…
So, there’s something here that bears a bit more examination.kadosh
“Tetzaveh: Signs of Authority”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/WT-CooH-3-4-23-Tetzaveh-Signs-of-Authority-podcast-x.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
The Torah portion this week, parsha Terumah, (Exodus/Shemot 25:1-27:19) takes a departure from the narrative of Moshe and the sons of Israel, or mixed multitude now in the wilderness near Mount Sinai, to begin the exposition of something that will play a major role in events that will play out next.
This is the first installment of instructions that begin with “take an offering” (terumah) from every man whose heart makes him willing, to begin the construction of the mishkan, or tabernacle.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/SSM-2-24-23-Terumah-teaching-podcast-x.mp3The Sabbath day teaching this week begins with the concept of the ‘pattern’ that YHVH says He would show Moses. Many who have studied this portion share a similar sentiment, that without being shown, even though the text description is detailed, to actually BUILD the mishkan seems like an almost impossible task.
And the same might be true for dealing with the challenges we face today. Which leads to a common question:
“Terumah: Have We Been Shown the Pattern?”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/CooH-2-25-23-Terumah-Have-we-Been-Shown-the-Pattern-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
Audio reading: Exodus 25:1-16, Mark 3:31-4:25, Psalm 37:12-29, Prov 10:5
Did you know that there is a parable that unlocks are parables? The parable of the sower is like a “master key” to unlock all parables. Join in with us as we do a deep dive on the Parable of the Sower!
Audio reading: Exodus 26:31-37, Mark 6:30-56, Psalm 40:1-10, Prov 10:11-12
How do we handle ourselves when others treat us badly? When others are unloving, unkind, or who simply ignore us and treat us like we don’t exist? These things are painful, yet Yeshua calls us to respond in the opposite spirit. Join in with us as we look at how “love covers a multitude of sin”.
Parsha Mishpatim (Exodus/Shemot chapters 22 through 24) is said to contain over 11.5% of all the Mishpatim, or commandments, in the Torah. And it’s now just about the most “politically-INcorrect” of all, too. Which says even more about a society that so hates His Word.
This is the first set of instruction that follows the giving of the ‘Ten Commandments,’ and appears to continue a theme; YHVH brought them – and all of us – out of bondage, and then explains how to build a society, and live in His freedom.
This next installment then follows with a caution about the alternative.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha :
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/SSM-2-17-23-Mistpatim-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3There is a warning associated with the Sabbath day ‘deeper look’. Yahushua told us that, evidently speaking of such a time as this, many would be offended, and hate one another (especially for His sake, and Truth), and the love of many would grow cold.
Lately, it almost seems as if that might even be an understatement.
Which turns out to be the point.
“Mishpatim: Through which all the Dots Connect…”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WT-CooH-2-18-23-Mishpatim-all-the-dots-connect-through-here-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
We continue our series “Footsteps To The Coffin." This will be Pt 5. This week's teaching considers "His train fills the Temple" ... what else is there?
Audio reading: Exodus 23:26-24:18, Mark 3:7-20, Psalm 37:1-11, Prov 10:3-4
Did you know that when YHVH/Yeshua gave the Torah to Moses at Mt Sinai and Moses brought this down to the people, it was a marriage proposal? The giving of the Torah was a ketubah, a marriage covenant. To follow the Torah by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit is an invitation to become betrothed…to Yeshua, our bridegroom. There was a wedding supper on Mt Sinai with 70 elders of Israel! Listen in and learn more!
Audio reading: Exodus 25:1-16, Mark 3:31-4:25, Psalm 37:12-29, Prov 10:5
We do a deep dive on the Parable of the Sower. Yeshua has a hidden coded message in this parable. This parable is like a master key which unlocks all other parables. What is the deeper message we can find in this parable? How do we apply it to our lives? Listen in and find out!
This week Parsha Yitro (Exodus/Shemot chapters 18 through 20) begins with the arrival of Yitro (aka ‘Jethro’) at the camp of the ‘mixed multitude’, along with Moshe’s wife Zipporah and his two sons, but it’s certainly true that the part of the story for which is most famous happens at Mount Sinai.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha tells us about Yitro’s arrival, his understanding of the Real Elohim that follows, some excellent advice for his son-in-law, and of course the lead-up and giving of the “Ten Debarim,” (words, sayings, commandments):
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/SSM-2-10-23-Yitro-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Mark again asks a couple of question to set up the Sabbath day midrash:
What belongs to US? What is His? And what ever happened to these ‘Ten Commandments’?
And the answer, for reasons that will be made clear, has to do with exactly where we are today, spiritually, and prophetically.
“Yitro: Permitted Reach – and Beyond, Biden and Ahab”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WT-CooH-2-11-23-Yitro-Permitted-Reach-Biden-and-Ahab-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
We continue our series “Footsteps To The Coffin" and we need to ask ourselves: Why alabaster? Why nard?
After the completion of the plagues of Egypt, the ‘Exodus’ itself of the ‘mixed multitude’ continues with Parsha B’shalach (Exodus/Shemot 13:17-17:16), from Pharoah, and his ‘tyranny’.
And, without question, this parsha contains the seeds of so many elements that highlight the rest of Scripture.
The Erev Shabbat overview of the whole parsha:
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/SSM-2-3-23-Bshalach-teaching-podcast-xx.mp3Mark again has to ask a question to set up the Sabbath day midrash:
We’ve heard the ‘central command’ of Moses phrased this way a thousand times, “Let my people GO!”
So, why is the title of this parsha, and the better translation of what REALLY happened, that what came to pass was not just when Pharaoh had done merely that, but had SENT THEM OUT, “shalach-ed’ ’em”? And, THEN, just to make sure they didn’t decide to head right back INTO Egypt and bondage, He brought ’em the long way around, instead of the obvious shortcut?
Certainly, the central theme of the story is so we – all – will know, “ki ani YHVH” – that “I AM Yahuah”. But the word used here for what happened is not simply “let’em go,” but that he SENT them out. And YHVH was very clear, even in the setup, about what must occur.
Here, too, the lesson not only echoes through the centuries, but should strike us, today, particularly, with just how important that distinction is.
“B’Shalach: Deep Fakes, Deception, and Demons”
https://hebrewnationonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/WT-CooH-2-4-23-B-shalach-Deep-Fakes-and-Demons-dont-invite-em-in-podcast-xxx.mp3
The combined two-part podcast is here:
One of the most distressing...if not THE most distressing thing...about learning Torah within a community is that it too frequently leads to learning Torah outside a community. In our livestream on Shabbat, I plan to present a simple overview of leadership principles that may help you whether you are a congregational leader, home fellowship leader, family leader, or just want to learn how to be a good follower.
Those community principles are often challenged because we don't have good study tools in our toolbox, and without them, we can adopt all kinds of variations of understanding and practice from a single commandment. Those variations become divisive when it affects what the community can observe together.
In this week's newsletter, I'd like to pass on to you what I spent lots of time and money learning in college. No charge! It can be of tremendous help when navigating through divergent understandings of Scripture. If we understand the difference between meaning and significance, it could squash a lot of arguments over what a Scripture means, especially when we look as smug as our friend up there when we're convinced we found THE explanation instead of ONE explanation.
For instance, over the last couple of years, we've been studying the Song of Songs. It is a parable, poetry, song, commentary, elucidation of Torah, and prophecy, so it is rich in symbolism, and we've enjoyed deriving lots of interpretations of each verse's significance based on passages with similar context and even Hebrew wordplay. When one encounters Biblical symbolism, it is important to remember:
When parsing a passage of Scripture, the application of wordplay should not derive a new meaning even though a new significance is expected.
Let’s review these two principles of hermeneutics and the definition of hermeneutics.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Leading the Flock Pt 1 (Chayei Sarah) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
This week Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship takes a two-part look at the parsha which essentially covers the life of Yitzak/Isaac, and introduces his two sons Esau and Yaakov. That alone makes it vital to our understanding, but – no surprise, of course – there’s far more here. It’s also one of the […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Toldot” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
“A canopy (apiron) has King Solomon made for Him, from the wood of Lebanon. Its pillars he made of silver; its covering was gold, its seat was purple wool, its inner side was decked with love by the daughters of Jerusalem.” (So 3:9-10)
This week, we continue from last week's lesson on the chariot of King Solomon. If you didn't have a chance to read it or print it, click here. We'll weave in a couple of themes from this week's Torah portion, Vayera, particularly the second time Avraham calls Sarah his sister and the binding of Isaac on Mount Moriah.
Vayera “and appeared”
Genesis 18:1-22:24
2 Kings 4:1-37
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 47 – (Slaughtered Gold) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at the final parsha specific to the life of Abraham, parsha “Chayei Sarah” (Genesis chapter 23 through 25:`8). It’s also what Mark calls THE “Common Law” parsha, because it details some of the singularly most fundamental concepts – by means of stories – […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Chayei Sarah” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
There is an old parable of the king’s daughter that explains some points of the developing relationship between the King and His daughter, Israel, from the time He removes her from Egypt to the time He brings her across the Jordan into her inheritance. (Midrash to Shir HaShirim 3§15)
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 46 – (Chariots of Fire Pt 2) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Audio reading: Genesis 24:53-67, Ezek 35:1-36:38, James 1:1-18, Psalm 116:1-19, Prov 27:23-27 Audio reading: Genesis 25:1-11, Ezek 37:1-38:23, James 1:19-2:17, Psalm 117:1-2, Prov 28:1 Ezekiel is shown a huge field of dry bones. YHVH asks him, “Son of Man, can these dry bones live?” Who do the dry bones represent? What is this prophecy all […]
The post Ezekiel, Can These Bones Live? first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look, among other important things, perhaps the most significant event in the life of both Abraham, and his son Yitzak (Isaac) – also known as the Akieda, or ‘binding of Isaac’…parsha Veyeira (Genesis chapters 18 through 22) The sequence again begins with the Erev […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Vayeira” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
If the picture of Israel coming up from the wilderness to cross into her inheritance is of the tribes, then those tribes are guarded and surrounded by those among them who can expertly wield the Word of Adonai, full of the Spirit and flowing with its Rivers as promised by Yeshua during the Feast of Sukkot (Jn 7:38). Even in the “terrors of the night,” the exile, these warriors commit themselves to protecting against the flood of evil that threatens the holiness of the House of Israel.
“The sixty mighty men-these are the sixty myriads (600,000) that came out of Egypt from the age of twenty years and above/below.” 3§14
“Now the sons of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, aside from children.” (Ex 12:37)
“But Moses said, “The people, among whom I am, are 600,000 on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, so that they may eat for a whole month.’” (Nu 11:21)
“...even all the numbered men were 603,550.” (Nu 1:46)
“...a beka a head (that is, half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary), for each one who passed over to those who were numbered, from twenty years old and upward, for 603,550 men.” (Ex 38:26)
Why the disparity in the Midrash? Is it sixty myriads of mighty men above the age of 20 or below?
The Midrash points back to the exact wording of the text from Song of Songs 3:7:
“...sixty warriors around it, of the warriors of Israel.”
?????? ???????? ?????????????? ????????? ?????????? ?????? ???? ??????????? ???????????
The repetition in the verse describes sixty warriors from the warriors of Israel. The Hebrew preposition and prefix mem is read as “from,” so “from the mighty warriors of Israel.”
If there were sixty myriads in the wilderness 1) at the time of the Exodus, then the prophetic implication is that at the time of 2) the greater Exodus, there will be sixty myriads of mighty warriors descended from the original sixty myriads of the twelve tribes. As the verse could also describe 600,000 immediate descendants under the age of twenty, children from the original 600,000, so it could describe descendants of Abraham and Jacob who would also become sixty myriads of mighty warriors surrounding those traveling to the Promised Land.
“I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” declares the Lord GOD...and I will purge from you the rebels and those who revolt against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they reside, but they will not enter the land of Israel. So you will know that I am the LORD.” (Ezek 20:34-36; 38)
Although many have been instructed in the Word, a day of judgment is coming for mankind. Either we will accept the measures of the Word in the wilderness of the peoples, or we will rebel against them, just as many Israelites did in the wilderness. Those who “come up” from the wilderness to reign with King Messiah will be those who accept the Word and agree to remediate any misunderstandings or gaps in understanding so that they may be faithful judges with King Messiah. From the Creation, the appointed times were set as measures of iron so that mankind could thrive on earth.
This helps us to draw an inference pertaining to the Creation Week.
On the First Day, Light was separated from darkness, and the earth had light, but not dependent upon sun or moon. Plants grew in the Light on the Third Day. In Revelation, plants once again grow in this supernal Light. (Re 21:23-26; 22:2; Ezek 47:12)
On the Fourth Day, the sun, moon, planets, and stars were put in place “for the sake of the moedim.” This proto-prophecy alerts us to the fact that there would be exiles of the night in which we would no longer spiritually discern the appointed times as in the Kingdom of Heaven, but would instead depend upon signs in the night. The shomrim (guards of the Torah and especially Shabbat) and sovevim (night watchmen) know the night watches.
This significant day of Creation was emplaced within a Creation that already had Light!
In CG Workbook One, you learned of the play-on word of moed, “from eternity.”
The moedim are spiritually-discerned times, discernible from the Beginning, and discernible at the End, without the need of the natural substance of the heavenly bodies.
Although they were put as signs in the heavens, placing too much emphasis on the minutiae could lead one to forget that strife over such things may lead him/her AWAY from the goal of developing the spiritual perception of what time and times actually are: openings for obedience that stands eternally. In the reign of King Messiah Yeshua, mankind will regain the wisdom of the stork, who knows her “moed.”
Even the stork in the sky knows her seasons [???????????]; and the turtledove, the swallow, and the crane keep to the time of their migration; but My people do not know the judgment of the LORD. (Je 8:7)
What we learn of the moedim in natural time, we simply transfer into the realm of supernatural time, which does not depend upon the physical signs of sun, moon, or stars. It is spiritually discerned:
I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. In the daytime (for there will be no night there) its gates will never be closed; and they will bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it; and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. (Re 21:22-27)
There will be no “night” there, which means the inhabitants are no longer subject to the nights of exile from the Holy City Jerusalem.
And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will reign forever and ever. (Re 22:1-5)
The fruit will still be borne according to “time,” the months, yet a perception of the month beyond the physical world is granted to those who eat of the tree of life and are healed by it.
So is the Torah a Tree of Life or a Sword? Is the Word a rod of iron or an ageless support of Truth?
Yes.
It’s never been a matter of whether the Torah was life and instructions in godliness. It’s only ever been a matter of how mankind perceived its seasons and brought forth its fruits. As we come up from the wilderness of the peoples, we travel in Clouds of Glory, or as the rabbis call them, Sukkot of Glory. We learn the Torah of Moses. We bring forth fruit with the Spirit promised by Yeshua at Sukkot. We aren't just marking time in the wilderness of the peoples; we are dwelling in Sukkot, a privilege we celebrate as the seventh moed, a number of completeness.
Each Sukkot, the ushpizin, or Seven Shepherds and the Eighth Prince ask, "How have you dwelled in Sukkot of Glory?" Have you dwelled in what masquerades as reality, the natural world, or have you dwelled in the Spirit of Glory, using the natural world as a mere vessel and glimpse of that Kingdom for which you prepare each day?
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 45 – (Time Travel in the Footsteps of Messiah Pt 2 & Chariots of Fire) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at the first parsha to examine the details of the life of Abram, later Abraham, the “first of the patriarchs” in Scripture. Parsha Lekh Lekhah (Gen. 12:1 – 17:27) begins with the words which begin his journey of obedience and blessing: “Come out” […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Lekh Lekhah” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Are you a beginner to the feast?
Are you “seasoned” in the feast?
Did you literally travel to Jerusalem, or did you travel to Jerusalem in your sukkah?
Our Sukkot trip to Israel was, as usual, filled with “kisses on our cheeks” from the Holy One, especially a visit from the ushpizin! I’m sure, however, that your Sukkot was filled with joy and wonder as well, whether it was in your backyard sukkah, on the apartment balcony, or camping with like-minded believers. While I would have loved to spend an evening with each one of you during Sukkot, reflecting on how our last several newsletter lessons from the Song of Songs was preparation for our “coming up and out of the wilderness” celebration, we’ll have to settle for a review via email. Next year…in Jerusalem!
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 44 – (Time Travel in the Footsteps of Messiah Pt 1) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
The parsha for this week, Noach (Gen. 6:9 through 11:32) tells us more about what “as it was in the days of Noach” could mean. But there is, interestingly, a WHOLE lot of “ambiguity” in some parts of the story as well. The sequence again begins with the Erev Shabbat reading: This week it’s time […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Noach” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
At the conclusion of His Fall Feasts, it’s time to turn back again to the Beginning, and the Book of Genesis, aka “Bereshiet” and the first Book AND Torah parsha in the Torah. The parsha for this week — IN the Beginning, Bereshiet (Gen. 1:1 through 6:8) is arguably one of the most FUNDAMENTAL of […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Bereshiet” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Song of Solomon 3:7-8
7
“Behold, it is the traveling couch of Solomon;
Sixty mighty men around it,
Of the mighty men of Israel.
8
“All of them are wielders of the sword,
Expert in war;
Each man has his sword at his side,
Guarding against the terrors of the night.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 43 – (Sixty Mighty Men) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
The Torah parsha for this week is the final installment in both the Book of Deuteronomy, thus the entire Torah, and the life of Moses: V’zot HaBrakah (Deuteronomy chapter 33 through the End of the Book.) The sequence again begins with the Erev Shabbat reading: The Sabbath Day teaching this week — for reasons that […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “V’zot HaBrakah” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
As the serpent was a deceiver in the beginning, so he continues to deceiver or commit sorcery, against humankind who cling to Babylon, the first beast kingdom:
“…and the light of a lamp will never shine in you again; and the voice of the groom and bride will never be heard in you again; for your merchants were the powerful people of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your witchcraft.” (Re 18:23)
The righteous who obey the Word with the power of the Ruach HaKodesh will never illuminate the way in fallen Babylon again, for they have risen into the Garden, their inheritance. The merchants’ “witchcraft” deceived the nations, and the vehicle was the “powerful people of the earth,” those who controlled the leopard-spot systems perfected by Rome. Here is the reference information on witchcraft:
Strong’s G5331
pharmakeía, from G5332; medication ("pharmacy"), i.e. (by extension) magic (literally or figuratively):—sorcery, witchcraft.
Outline of Biblical Usage
the use or the administering of drugs
poisoning
sorcery, magical arts, often found in connection with idolatry and fostered by it
metaphorical of the DECEPTIONS and seductions of idolatry
Before we condemn all medicine and the entire medical system, let’s put pharmakeia in context.
The Hebrew cognate to pharmakeia is our familiar word for flaming ministers of fire: lahat.
Its root is also lahat, the flame of fire that describes the ministering angels or the consuming fire of Elohim. Oddly, the same flaming fire can describe both heavenly ministers of fire and sorcerers:
“Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the sorcerers, and they too, the soothsayer priests of Egypt, did the same with their secret arts [?????????????].” (Ex 7:11)
Drugs can be sorcery when we misuse them to deceive into disobedience of the Word. They deceive us into engaging in immoral, deathly, hopeless, faithless behaviors that perpetuate slavery to sin and death. Poisoning, however, is an important definition because the wormwood poison of Israel is to HEAR the Word, yet in their hearts believe that Elohim would not judge them for their sin!
“Now it is not with you alone that I am making this covenant and this oath, but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the LORD our God, and with those who are not with us here today (for you know how we lived in the land of Egypt, and how we passed through the midst of the nations through which you passed; moreover, you have seen their abominations and their idols made of wood and stone, silver and gold, which they had with them); so that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; that there will not be among you a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. And it shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will consider himself fortunate in his heart, saying, ‘I will do well though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order to destroy the watered land along with the dry.’ The LORD will not be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the LORD and His wrath will burn against that person, and every curse that is written in this book will lie upon him, and the LORD will wipe out his name from under heaven. Then the LORD will single him out for disaster from all the tribes of Israel, in accordance with all the curses of the covenant which is written in this Book of the Law." (Dt 29:14-21)
Drugs to treat a legitimate health issue are not sorcery! In most cases, they are not ideal, but they can preserve or prolong life. Drugs, however, are frequently used to transgress the boundaries of life as defined in the Word, creating "soul trafficking."
If a human being wants to be deceived or blur the lines of obedience, then drugs offer a way to tap into a realm forbidden to human beings. Drugs must be used with caution because they can be illusionists, like sorcerers, that enable belief that death is life. Perhaps this is why the Greek pharmakeia reflects the Hebrew lahat, a flaming minister of fire. This fire will destroy those who attempt to manipulate it for evil and rebellion, just like those who hear the Word and poison their hearts into determining that there will be no judgment for sin. Of course there will!
The worst drug is the one with which believers (Dt 29 wasn’t written to heathens!) poison themselves, injecting a determination to sin in spite of the Word they heard from Moses.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 42 – (Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 6 : The Sorcerer’s Tail Pt 3) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Audio reading: Ezekiel 38:1-18, 1 Thes 5:4-28, Psalm 82:1-8, Prov 25:9-10 Audio reading: Ezekiel 39:16-29, Jer 26:1-27:22, 2 Thes 3:1-18, Psalm 85:1-13, Prov 25:16 Europe is bracing for a cold winter, energy bills that have spiked 1000%, Europe is rapidly being “de-industrialized” with steel and manufacturing plant closures, and people are scrambling to buy up […]
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This week, Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship takes a two-part look at parsha “Ha’azinu” (Deuteronomy chapter 32) and the end of the week that includes Yom Kippur, and the second-to-last portion in the Book, and thus the Torah. The sequence agains begins with the Erev Shabbat reading, in the context of the Fall […]
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In last week's issue of Footsteps, we explored how “sorcerers” can produce signs and wonders that imitate the Heavenly wonders. As the Footsteps of Messiah approach, even the elect must guard themselves from a particular hazard: sorcery (Re 9:21; 18:23). The Beast will be given the power to produce signs and wonders, even the ability to call down fire from Heaven like the two witnesses (Re 11:5). But is it real, or is it a sorcerer’s illusion catering to what rebellious humankind WANTS to see? Review these couplets/equivalencies: “He makes the winds (ruachot) His messengers, Flaming fire (lahat) His ministers.” (Ps 104:4) These flaming ministers of fire can consume, for they are “serving” the fire of Elohim’s judgment... We looked at a midrash commentary to Jacob’s wrestling match with the angel. At the conclusion of the night, the angel corrected Jacob’s thinking that he was dealing with a “man” all night. In fact, he was dealing with a ministering angel, a fiery minister, some believe Esau’s angel.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 41 – (Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 5 : The Sorcerer’s Tail Pt 2) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Vayelekh” (Deuteronomy chapter 31 alone) which does perhaps seem a bit ‘short’ for a parsha, but is nevertheless still not at all short of “meaty”. The sequence begins with the Erev Shabbat reading and the certainly helps to “set up” that […]
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In last week's issue of Footsteps, we considered how powers and principalities functioned in their tasks and how Israel is not like the other nations even though she is scattered among them. As the Footsteps of Messiah approach, even the elect must guard themselves from a particular hazard: sorcery (Re 9:21; 18:23).
The names of the Torah portions provide a unique narrative when we put them together week to week. Last week, it was Ki Teitze, "When you go out." This week, it is Ki Tavo, "When you go in." The details in the mitzvot might distract us from the spiritual inheritance for which these Torah portions prepare us: The Land of Promise, Israel, and the Garden, our original inheritance hovering just above it, waiting to be "married" to the physical territory once again.
Once the righteous are resurrected like Yeshua, once again they can navigate physical and spiritual realms as the Father designed, but they will need to have internalized the commandments that rule our exit Ki Teitze and re-entry Ki Tavo to that special place prepared for us. In preparation, Israel must study the Word so that she will not be deceived by sorcery and witchcraft, tools of the Beast. As there are holy signs and wonders, so there may be deceiving signs and wonders.
These are the words of the covenant that the Lord commanded Moses to make with the people of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant that he had made with them at Horeb. And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them: “You have seen all that the Lord did before your eyes in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh and to all his servants and to all his land, the great trials that your eyes saw, the signs, and those great wonders. But to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear. I have led you forty years in the wilderness. Your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandals have not worn off your feet. You have not eaten bread, and you have not drunk wine or strong drink, that you may know that I am the Lord your God. And when you came to this place, Sihon the king of Heshbon and Og the king of Bashan came out against us to battle, but we defeated them. We took their land and gave it for an inheritance to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of the Manassites. (Dt 29:1-8)
Review these couplets/equivalencies:
“He makes the winds (ruachot) His messengers,
Flaming fire His ministers.” (Ps 104:4)
These flaming ministers of fire can consume, for they are “serving” the fire of Elohim’s judgment...
“His breath sets coals aglow, and a flame goes forth from his mouth.” (Job 41:21)
“Like fire that burns the forest, and like a flame that sets the mountains on fire.” (Ps 83:14)
forest=stronghold of the beast mountains=nations
“Fire goes ["walks"] before Him and burns up His enemies all around.” (Ps 97:3)
Fire also “walks,” such as the voice of Elohim walked in the Garden seeking Adam and Eve after they sinned. The enemies are saviv, encircling, as the Rivers did the Garden. The cheruvim, flaming ministers of Elohim, were placed at the entrance of the Garden with flaming swords to prevent re-entry and access to the Tree of Life in the midst of the Garden. This information helps us to understand that there is proper and authoritative spiritual fires who perform the will of Adonai. The more we walk in the Ruach, the more we can differentiate between ministers of holy fire and deceivers who may appear to work wonders in fire.
Let's turn back a few lessons to re-examine Yeshua's sheep speech and how it relates to Jacob's wrestling match with the angel. Yeshua, when questioned as to whether he was the Messiah at Chanukkah, started talking about sheep knowing his voice. Tradition says that the wrestling match with Jacob and Esau’s angel began with sheep!
This is strange, but it explains Yeshua’s sheep speech as a clarification of Kislev 25 when the Mishkan (Tabernacle) to house the Divine Presence was completed in the wilderness, surrounded and covered in the "Clouds of Glory" or *Sukkot of Glory. The Feast of Dedication was Chanukkah in winter. The context s not just an allusion to the celebration of Chanukkah as a “Sukkot sheni,” like a second Passover which could be celebrated if a person were unclean or on a far journey. Chanukkah became a Sukkot sheni after it was missed due to the Greek Abomination that Causes Desolation. For the whole story, see The Seven Shepherds: Hanukkah in Prophecy.
The setting of the challenge to Yeshua was significant, for if the Mishkan were completed during Chanukkah, then as Messiah, Yeshua would be the one who would unite the twelve tribes and lead them out of the "wilderness" of exile into their inheritance, destroying all their foes. Yeshua's answer to the challenge of his authenticity was a sheep speech.
This is from the Midrash Rabbah:
The angel appeared to Jacob that night at the Jabbok stream as a shepherd and robber chief. “This one (Jacob) had sheep and that one (the angel) had sheep. The angel said to Jacob, ‘Bring across the Jabbok stream what is mine, and I will bring across what is yours. The angel brought across Jacob’s flock in the blink of an eye...” 3§6
With that illustrative story in mind, now consider Yeshua's answer:
At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem; it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple area, in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then surrounded Him and began saying to Him, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep. My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus replied to them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “We are not stoning You for a good work, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” Jesus answered them, “Has it not been written in your Law: ‘I SAID, YOU ARE GODS’? If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be nullified), are you saying of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.” (Jn 10:22-38)
The “blink of an eye” reference in the Midrash points to Yeshua’s “eternal life” statement. We will be resurrected to eternal life in the blink of an eye. Yeshua is the holy flame that protects the Father’s sheep so they may re-enter the Garden of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob’s inheritance.
The Midrash goes on to tell how Jacob kept going back across the stream, and there would be more sheep...all night long! The night is the exile. Finally, Jacob realized it was sorcery, an illusion that there were more sheep each time, and he said, “Sorcery! Sorcery! You are a sorcerer, for sorcerers are successful at night!” 3§6
Jacob’s sheep would have followed him, for they knew his voice. These other sheep were “Esau’s.” They belonged to The Red One. Once the illusion was discovered, the angel knew the day was breaking, and he revealed himself to Jacob.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 40 – (Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 4 : The Sorcerer’s Tale Pt 1) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
As the annual Torah cycle begins to come to conclusion, the parsha this week (Nitzavim, Deuteronomy 29:10 through chapter 30) is the one that Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa Fellowship suggests — especially given season and confluence of global events at literally Biblical levels — is perhaps the most vital of all. It’s certainly […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Nitzavim” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
What was unique about the exodus from Egypt was that an entire NATION was taken out of another one. Such things may happen after a defeat in war, but typically it is not an entire people group. In the case of the exodus, the entire nation of Israel was removed from another country. Unprecedented! It is so unprecedented that the Torah documents it so we can understand the greater exodus. Miraculously, Israel will be removed from all the nations where they are scattered. Intact. It is such a big deal that it is mentioned three times (Dt 4:20; 1 Ki 8:51; Je 11:4) in reference to Egypt as the "iron furnace" of refining. Israel who passes through the fire in the "wilderness of Egypt" will be brought out intact:
"...which I commanded your forefathers on the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, ‘Listen to My voice, and do according to all that I command you; so you shall be My people, and I will be your God,'"
Egypt was a "pre-wilderness" to refine out those who had fallen too far into idolatry to even begin the wilderness journey to the Promised Land:
“I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face.Just as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,” declares the Lord GOD...and I will purge from you the rebels and those who revolt against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they reside, but they will not enter the land of Israel. So you will know that I am the LORD.” (Ezek 20:34-36; 38)
An incredible refining takes place in the wilderness of the peoples, but the good news is that it is preparatory to the journey home! The rescue from "Egypt" will follow the first refining process. However, as in the days of the first exodus, some will rebel in the greater exodus, and they, too, will not cross the borders of their inheritance. From furnace to furnace.
The first miracle in the journey, however, is how an entire nation was removed from Egypt; in the greater exodus, it will be how an entire nation is removed from all the nations.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 39 – (Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 3) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Ki Tavo” (Deuteronomy 26:1-29:8) which is again not only ‘meaty’ but downright SCARY to those who don’t like what it says. Which makes it again one of the most important – especially NOW. The sequence begins with the Erev Shabbat reading, […]
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In last week's issue, we took a simple look at how angels function in their tasks. In this issue of Footsteps, we will consider how powers and principalities factor in those tasks. Also, we'll see how Israel is not like the other nations even though she is scattered among them. How Israel is supposed to interact (or not) with those powers and principalities over the nations is related to the shaking of those powers to prepare for the Footsteps of Messiah and a greater exodus from the nations.
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 38 – (Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 2) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Join Mark Call of Shabbat Shalom Mesa fellowship for a two-part look at parsha “Ki Tetze” (Deuteronomy 21:10-25:19) which he describes as one of the ‘meatiest’ in the Torah when it comes to ‘instruction and commandments,’ and also one of the most NOT ‘politically-correct.’ Which makes it therefore one of the most important – especially […]
The post Mark Call – Parsha “Ki Tetze” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Audio reading: Deut 28:1-20 Isaiah 15:1-18:7 Gal 1:1-24 Psalm 58:1-11 Prov 23:12 Audio reading: Deut 28:21-41 Isaiah 19: 1-21:17 Gal 2:1-16 Psalm 59:1-17 Prov 23:13-14 Does following and obeying the Torah give us our salvation? Do our “works of the law” and good deeds make us righteous? Where does our righteousness come from? How do […]
The post Works of the Law, The Torah Walk and Following Yeshua first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Ep 6:11-13)
How did Jacob "win" the wrestling match with the angel? They weren't exactly doing jiu jitsu all night! Paul's letter to the Ephesians describes how righteous human beings fight situations that appear to be beyond their ability or control: stand fully and confidently in your salvation.
In the passage of beautiful blessings uttered by the sorcerer Balaam, we have another clue as to how Israel overcomes and appears: "How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, your tabernacles, Israel..."
In this same passage, “For there is no divination in Jacob” (Nu 23:23) is followed by the verse: “Behold! The people will arise like a lion cub and raise itself like a lion; it will not lie down until it consumes its prey and drinks the blood of the slain.”
The ultimate battle of the ages is won by warriors who are not using "divination" for the fight. When they operate in their appointed realm and calling, when they "stand," they fight like lions!
The post Dr Hollisa Alewine – Footsteps of Messiah Part 37 – (Shoftim-Shaking Principalities and Powers Part 1) first appeared on Hebrew Nation Online.
The Torah parsha reading for this week is “Shoftim” (Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9) — and it begins, “Judges [shoftim] and officers you shall make in all your gates…” …which, if you thing about it, tells us right off the top why we’ve gone so far “off the rails.” But there’s FAR more. Among other things, this week, […]
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