Just Because
Shabbat Shalom Kol
Yisrael. It is our pleasure to present this week's Torah Parsha commentary by
Nazarene Yisraelite Rabbi T. (Mordecai) Mitchell, Rabbi and Rosh Zaken of B'nai
Yeshurun Nazarene Yisraelite Synagogue, Kittanning, Pa. and board member of the
Union of Nazarene Yisraelite Congregations. It is our sincere hope and prayer
that these commentaries encourage, inspire, and strengthen the body of Messiah
in Kol Yisrael. This week our Parsha is Ekev (Because...) Debarim
(Deuteronomy) 7:12 11:25. Our Haftarah portion is YeshaYahu (Isaiah
49:1451:4. Our suggested Brit Chadasha readings are: MattithYahu 4:1-11 and
Ya'aqob (Jacob James) 5:711. Also please read Tehillim (Psalms) 1 and
19.
7:12. And it
shall be, because you hear these right rulings,
and shall guard and do them, that YHWH your Elohim shall guard with you the
covenant and the kindness which He swore to your fathers,
-
and shall love
you and bless you, and increase you...
Let us give
consideration to these opening verses of Ekev. The word Ekev has
several meanings. Commonly, and as it pertains to this Parsha, it means
Because... or As a result... However, the word may also mean heel, It is
related etymologically to the name of our Patriarch Ya'aqob (heel grabber). Ekev
is spelled in Hebrew with the letters Ayin, Qoph, and Vet
(Bet). Ya'aqob is the same three
letters but beginning with a Yod, and of course, in many versions of
Hebrew Scriptures, vowel pointed differently.
Interestingly, if we
add two letters to this word, a holem Vuv and a Tav, we
have the letters Ayin, Qoph, Vet, (holem)
Vuv, and Tav, pronounced eek'vot meaning
footprints.
As I got into this
study I thought of Bereshith (Genesis) 3:15 And I put enmity between you
and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall crush your head and
you shall bruise His heel. This verse is the first promise of
Messiah.
If we consider the
secondary meaning of Ekev, Heel perhaps we can see a
relationship between this meaning and Bereshith 3:15. However, to understand
where we are headed with this, let us continue.
The heel is of course,
an important part of the foot. With our feet we stand, and we walk. We also have
the saying Put your foot down, meaning to take a firm stand for
something.
The word walk, should
remind us of Halakah (A way to walk) which has come to mean our
doctrines and beliefs, the way we apply or interpret Torah.
Are we beginning to see
a picture here?
At the beginning of of
our Parsha Yahweh is telling Yisrael (and by extension, us) that He is our
partner in keeping Torah Ekev (Because) we chose to Hear His
Torah and actively do it, walk in it. This is brought out in the phrase
YHWH you Elohim shall guard with you...
By doing Torah, we form
an active partnership with Almighty Yahweh Himself.
For the past several
years we have taught the concept: First I will do Torah, then I will
understand it.
This idea is not
difficult to accept if we use the analogy of driving an automobile.
We do not have to be a
mechanical engineer to learn to drive. We do not have to understand how all the
various components that make up an automobile work to get in and drive it across
town, or across the country. However, the more we learn about the vehicles we
drive, the better we can maintain them or know when to have the experts maintain
them for us. While we do not have to have an engineering degree to drive a car,
it is very doubtful than any automotive design engineer could do his or her job
without ever having driven a vehicle.
As we apply the Torah
to our daily lives (living the lifestyle of the redeemed) we learn more about
the Torah. This leads us to establish Halakah, our core doctrines or
beliefs.
There is much doctrinal
confusion in the so-called religious world today. A veritable hodge-podge of
halakah, or doctrines runs rampant. Why is this? Why can't we Halakah or walk
in one accord with Yahweh's Torah?
One answer is that
ha-satan has also bruised our heel. Because of this wound, we cannot stand
firm or we have difficulty walking. Those who reject Torah as a ...bunch of old
Jewish laws will never understand it. They will never come to know the
blessings of Yahweh. However, those who allow themselves to become embroiled in
petty disputations will be side tracked from their goal and purpose in life.
Sad to say, even in
Nazarene or Messianic Yisrael, there is no total doctrinal unity, especially
when it comes to the calendar issue. There are also other doctrinal issues that
serve to divide us, such as circumcision, using Yahweh's and Yahshua's true
Name(s), use of the extra writings, and yes, Kaballah. Also sad to say, some
are still squabbling over such issues as whether the Star of David is pagan,
or whether or not we should say the words Amen or Adonai, or just how
Jewish we should be. This latter stumbling block leads to rejection of such
practices as Kabbalat Shabbat (Welcoming the Shabbat) and
Havdalah (Separation, or commemorating the outgoing of the Shabbat).
Interestingly, many who reject Havdalah as being too Jewish fail to see
a picture of Messiah in this beautiful and meaningful ceremony. And yes, some
decry our practice of commemorating Purim and Chanukkah, failing to see the
great prophetic significance of these two minor festivals.
It is not the intention
or practice of the Rabbis of the Board of Union Of Nazarene Yisraelite
Congregations to engage in doctrinal debates or to pass judgment on those
brethren who do not follow our particular Halakah. Our aim is to strive to build
bridges, not walls. Nevertheless, we remain firmly committed to the UNOYC basic
Statement of Beliefs.
Obviously, not all
agree on Halakah. For all of us, our heels are also bruised to some degree.
Yahshua our Messiah encountered a similar situation with the various Halakah
that were practiced in His day. However, Yahshua had a simple yet effective
solution as stated in Luke 9:49-55
And Yohanan
answering said, Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your Name, and we
forbade him because he does not follow with us.
But Yahshua said
to him, Do not forbid him,
for he who is not against us is for us.
Previously, in
verse 23, Yahshua said ...If anyone wishes to come after
Me, let him deny himself, and take up his stake daily, and follow
Me.
By
...follow Me... Yahshua was saying that we should follow His
Halakah. By doing so we will be blessed just
Ekev or Because we are doing
so.
In verses 52-55
Yahshua entered into a village of the Shomerites (Samaritans) and
...because His face was set toward Yerushalem... they did not
receive Him. This seeming rejection angered Ya'aqob and Yohanan and they asked
for permission to destroy them with fire. In verse 55, Yahshua rebuked them for
their evil spirit and said, ...You do not know what manner
of spirit you are.
In the light of
these verses it must be our intention to live at peace as much as possible with
all men, and concentrate on hearing and doing Yahweh's Torah. When we experience
rejection or hostility over our Halakah, we must do as Yahshua did and turn our
faces toward Yerushalem.
If you are familiar
with the Haftarah readings you may have noticed that this week we added one
extra verse to the Haftarah. Instead of ending at YeshaYahu 51:3, extending our
reading to include verse 4, and with this we shall end this week's
commentary.
Listen to Me, O
My people, and give ear to Me, O My nation, for the Torah goes forth from Me,
and My right-ruling I set as a Light for the peoples (nations).
We shall all surely be
blessed Ekev (because) we Halakah (walk) in The Light of
Yahweh's Torah, and His Living Torah, Yahshua our Messiah.
Questions or comments
about this week's commentary may be addressed to Rabbi Mitchell by e-mail at: yoel@windstream.net
Please tune into Pal
Talk Erev Shabbat (Friday evening) at 8 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time and 1
p.m. EDT Shabbat afternoon. Once in Pal Talk click on Religion
and Spirituality then click on Other. Our room is Bnai Yeshurun.
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SHABBAT MEETING
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May Almighty Abba Yahweh bless us all as we seek
to serve and obey Him, b'Shem Yahshua Meshikaynu, Amen!
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