Zion's Voice

Haftarah Reflections   18

Torah portion             Exodus 21 : 1  to 24 : 18  

Haftarah portion     Jeremiah 34 : 8 – 22  and 33 : 25,26

Listen to the Prophets

The parashah this week concerns obedience to the commands of God. We should not be surprised. God had issues with the people regarding ‘obedience’ from the very moment they all, many years earlier, as a community, agreed to abide by His word. The details are recorded quite clearly in Exodus 24. It seems to be the never ending story of the Hebrew Scriptures. (In Nehemiah’s account, (Nehemiah 10:29) after some of the exiles returned to Jerusalem from Babylon, the whole community again ratified their commitment to ‘obedience’ to walk in the ways of the Lord. But that is getting ahead of ourselves) Worse than that however, with all the knowledge we have of our God and His ways, through His revelation to us in those Scriptures, nothing seems to have changed! We still appear to have difficulty with obedience. The problem in Jeremiah’s day related to the “shemittah”. The year of release. (Exodus 21, Leviticus 25 and Deuteronomy 15 for the serious student of the Scriptures!).

It was a kind of “blow hot blow cold” situation. It seems that the people had decided to observe “shemittah” (releasing their ‘slaves’ from bondage in the seventh year) but when they no longer had their bond servants to do their work, they reneged on the deal and took them back into bondage again. It would also appear that this was the final straw for the Lord, because very shortly after this the whole nation of Judah was taken captive by the Babylonians.

In his pronouncement, the Lord majored on the principle of ‘liberty’. This is a most important element in God’s economy. He had brought this people out of their bondage in Egypt, in order to make them into a nation that would walk in His ways. To set the captive free. Isaiah put it well.  “To heal the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives.” That is God’s heart for His people, and that includes us. He wants us to walk safely in His ways, to enjoy all the blessing He has for us, and to be free from the bondage of sin.

This is the thrust of what Jeremiah is told in verse 17 of our text. To paraphrase here, God is saying “I want you to enjoy liberty, My liberty, liberty for every one of you, including those who are in your service as slaves.”  But then He goes on to say “the liberty you have chosen is the liberty to NOT walk in My ways”, that is the choice they had made. “But this is where that kind of liberty will lead you. To the sword, to pestilence, to famine, because that is what you will find when you walk in your own ways amongst the nations to where you are going”.

All too often we are ready to blame God for everything that we feel might be going wrong in our lives. A common exclamation is “Why me?” There is no answer to that rhetorical question. But it may be worth exploring the extent to which we consciously ‘walk in His ways’. Then to ask ourselves this question; “Which liberty have we chosen?”  That is exactly what Jeremiah put to these Israelites in our parashah.

There are two more interesting observations to be made in this reading. The first is in relation to the Abrahamic Covenant in verses 18,19. The detail is found in Genesis 15, which says that a deep sleep fell upon Abraham. So technically, Abraham did not participate in that covenant. It was one sided so to speak, unconditional, God bound himself to keep that covenant. However, the text here indicates that by their willing agreement to the Mosaic Covenant, it was as though in so doing they also participated as equals with God in the cutting of the Abrahamic Covenant too.

The second observation is found in the verses in chapter 33 of our reading. This reference has a close affinity with the New Covenant. In Jeremiah 31, immediately following his announcement of the terms of the New Covenant, God specifies the time when Israel will no longer be a nation before Him

“Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for a light by day, the ordinances of the moon and the stars for a light by night, Who disturbs the sea, and its waves roar (The LORD of hosts is His name):

"If those ordinances depart from before Me, says the LORD, Then the seed of Israel shall also cease from being a nation before Me forever."   Jeremiah 31 : 35,36

Now God is saying, had He not made that covenant with day and night, and not appointed the ordinances with heaven and earth, then He would already have cast Israel away.

But He did make that covenant, so His mercy and love towards these chosen ones is irrevocable. Our God is a covenant keeping God.

What a mighty, gracious, loving God we serve. Blessed be His Name for ever,

Shabbat Shalom

RS

Haftarah Reflections   17

Torah portion             Exodus 18 : 1  to 20 : 23  

Haftarah portion     Isaiah 6 : 1 to 7 : 6 and 9 : 6,7  

Listen to the Prophets

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”

What a triumphant exclamation to begin our parashah this week. Why? Because Isaiah “saw the Lord, high and lifted up”.  An experience rare in our day I suggest.

Isaiah makes note of the timing of this word “In the year that King Uzziah died”, so it would be possible to spend a lot of time ‘reflecting’ on that king. In Judah, 19 kings ruled after Solomon’s death. Only 8 of them are described as ‘good kings’. Uzziah was one of them. He reigned for 52 years, starting when he was just 16 years old. He was successful. He brought prosperity to the land. He built cities, and fortified others to increase the security of the people.  BUT ... there’s always a ‘BUT’ isn’t there?

Uzziah overstepped the mark. He grew proud of his considerable achievements, and, it seems, he thought himself ‘above the law’. He went into the Temple to offer incense on the altar. A role specifically forbidden for anyone other than the priests, who, to their credit, stood against the king. albeit unsuccessfully. The dreadful outcome for Uzziah was that as he argued with Azariah, the Chief Priest, God instantly struck him with leprosy in the very presence of the priests in the Temple, a condition which remained with him until his death.(see 2 Chronicles 26)

Jewish tradition has it that Isaiah was a cousin to Uzziah. In which case they would have known each other well. Maybe it was Uzziah’s death that caused Isaiah to see the Lord “high and lifted up” confirming that God will not be mocked, mistrusted or treated with contempt, by anyone, even a king. It was certainly a defining moment in Isaiah’s life. It heralded the beginning of his highly regarded prophetic ministry.

We are provided detail of the amazing encounter Isaiah experienced. Paraphrasing this experience, Isaiah thought he was finished. He had seen the King, the Lord of hosts. He might have recalled the time when Moses, that great servant of the Lord had asked the Lord to ‘Please, show me Your glory’ , and then he would have remembered the Lord’s reply “you cannot see My face, for no man shall see Me, and live” (Exodus 33:20). But in this unique experience, God commissioned Isaiah to speak for Him to the people of Judah, who, as the first 5 chapters of Isaiah makes clear, were again in a dark place regarding their commitment to the covenant promises made by their forefathers. Promises of which they were all aware (Deuteronomy 31:9-13).  The Torah was publicly declared to all the people, by the priests, once every seven years (the ‘shemittah’ year) at the ‘mo’ed’ of the Feast of Booths (Tabernacles).

Furthermore, God instructed Isaiah to speak, not only to the people but also to kings. The fearful Rezin, king of Syria, was camped in Samaria, and moved to make war against the Judeans at Jerusalem. King Ahaz, Uzziah’s grandson, was terrified at the prospect. The Bible tells us that his heart, and the hearts of the people, fluttered like trees in the wind. But Isaiah met the king (just near what is the Mamilla Centre today), to encourage and strengthen him.

This whole story is interesting, but we need to find the lesson which is contained therein, by which we can benefit and learn.

As we stated at the commencement of this ‘reflection’, the experience Isaiah had of seeing the Lord was, and is, very rare. For that reason it is difficult to translate that encounter into modern day terms. But what we can take from it is the way that Isaiah dealt with his experience. So real was that experience, and his reaction, that God later entrusted Isaiah with the announcement of the coming of Messiah. A most accurate depiction of His coming.

Most, if not all the people who read this ‘reflection’, are doing so because there was a time when we had an encounter with God. The circumstance of each of us will be many and various. But every one of us came “through the same door”.

The first lesson then is to note that Isaiah took careful note of that which God spoke to him. And he acted upon it. It was not just an emotional, head knowledge experience. It was life changing. It was real. It struck at the very heart of his being, and became much more than mere verbal assent to what had happened.

I wonder how many of us, having had that encounter with the Lord which brought us to the place of acknowledging Yeshua as Messiah, and trusting Him as our Saviour, have experienced the inner drive to behave, act, think, speak, listen and generally conduct ourselves differently to the way we lived those things prior to our encounter. In simple terms, what differences are obvious in our life and lifestyle? What differences do our friends and family see?

Please understand, that as I ‘reflect’ on the Scriptures, I receive a challenge, every time, without fail. In love I pass on my challenges for your ‘reflection’.

You will be blessed as you ponder these things.         

Shabbat Shalom

RS

Haftarah Reflections   16

Torah portion             Exodus 13 : 17  to 17 : 16  

Haftarah portion     Judges 4 : 4 to 5 : 31  

Listen to the Prophets

Scholars have determined that Israel was ‘governed’ by 15 Judges over a period of approximately 400 years after the death of Joshua. God gave them this succession of righteous Judges, with whom they could consult whenever they required help and guidance, mainly in the settling of disputes. Deborah was the fourth such Judge, and she lived (and held court, as it were) in the territory of Ephraim.

Our parashah this week is set in a time almost 200 years after Joshua had led the children of Israel into the land of promise. The eleven tribes of Israel with a land allotment were still in the ‘settling’ phase. Each of them trying to get on with their lives as separate ‘provinces’, but they varied in the degree to which they were Torah observant (i.e. keeping their covenant), and as a result were still being harassed by the people local to them, amongst whom they lived.

In our text, the cruel Canaanite king Jabin, and his equally cruel army commander, Sisera, were causing significant angst for the tribes in the northern part of the territory. Such was the might of his army that the Israelites of the north were in dread of him. But Deborah had received word from the Lord that He would deliver Sisera and his vast well equipped army into their hands. So she called Barak, from the tribe of Naphtali, to prepare him to lead the fight against Sisera. Note that God’s instruction was that Barak’s army should consist of just 10,000 men. (Josephus Flavius informs us that Sisera’s army contained 300,000 foot soldiers as well as 10,000 horsemen and 3,000 chariots).  Barak declared that he would only raise an army to fight Sisera if Deborah would agree to go with him. Deborah, quite sure of the Lord’s deliverance, agreed to go with Barak, but told him that there would be no glory for him in the battle, that honour would go to a woman. Barak thought she meant herself, but of course that was not the case.

We remind ourselves of God’s injunction in Zechariah 4:6 “Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit, says the Lord”. We see it in action here, and somewhat later we see it in relation to the small army Gideon was told to assemble.

The battle itself is quickly disposed of in our Hebrew Bible text. Josephus is much more descriptive. In a ‘nutshell’, Barak and Deborah, with their army of 10,000, occupied the high ground on Mt. Tabor, Sisera and his chariots were on the lowland of Plain of Esdrealon (Meggido). The Lord caused a great storm to arise, blowing from the east, directly into the faces of Sisera’s army (and at the backs of the Israelites of course). There was drenching rain. The chariots were bogged in the softened ground, useless. The archers couldn’t use their bows in the headwind, the foot soldiers could not wield their swords, and all the disadvantages which Sisera experienced were huge advantages for Barak. It is a wonderful story of deliverance. The aftermath of which was that the northern tribes enjoyed 40 years of peace after Sisera’s army was routed.

Now we need to see the message for ourselves in this parashah.

Perhaps lessons may be found in the song, composed by Deborah, and sang by both Deborah and Barak at the end of the battle. The people had assembled in obedience. A relatively small army, outnumbered 30 to 1, but with the promise of God on their side.

“When leaders lead in Israel” the song starts, “when the people willingly offer themselves, Bless the Lord”. We are exhorted to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (read Israel). Many of us ask the Lord to preserve the lives of those young men and women of the IDF today, who defend the nation against the vast armies of Islam (and others) who are arraigned against them.

The victory is assured. The Scriptures have prophesied the end of the story. It will see the return of Yeshua Ha’Mashiach. To use the analogy of our parashah this week, the Jabin’s and the Sisera’s of today will be completely routed, then there will be peace. Not for 40 years as in our parashah, but for a thousand years in the millennial kingdom to come.

Deborah’s song tells of the difficulties that were encountered in the time leading up to the battle. It is quite graphic in its description of the parts played by the characters involved. And it does not take too much imagination to relate those times of difficulty with the opposition facing little Israel in today’s world.

The song ends:-

“Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Lord! But let those who love Him be like the sun when it comes out in full strength”

This parashah is descriptive of the Lord speaking to His servant Deborah. It speaks of the clarity with which Deborah received that word of the Lord. And it speaks of the obedience of Deborah in “doing” the word.

Too often, I suggest, when the Lord speaks, He does not find the willing listener. But when He does, there follows abundant blessing and peace.

Join me in asking the Lord to speak clearly in our time.

Shabbat Shalom

RS

Haftarah Reflections   15  

Torah portion             Exodus 10 : 1  to 13 : 16  

Haftarah portion     Jeremiah 46 : 13 to 28  

Listen to the Prophets

In last week’s Haftarah parashah, we heard from the prophet Ezekiel about the Lord rewarding the king of Babylon because he had used his army to fight against the king of Tyre, who had offended the Lord in relation to Jerusalem.

Jeremiah takes up the same theme this week. But the thrust of Jeremiah’s prophecy was directly to the Pharaoh of Egypt. He notes that Egypt was haughty, proud, and prosperous. Egypt was, at that time, a fertile land producing abundant crops of grain. In Joseph’s time, the ‘years of plenty’ had produced enough grain to satisfy not only the Egyptians, but also the surrounding nations with grain for the next seven years of drought. Joseph wisely built large grain vaults to store the grain in preparation for the debilitating drought God had shown Pharaoh in a dream.

But there was also another issue God had to deal with. There had been a remnant of the people who were not in captivity in Babylon (read the story in Jeremiah 42), who had asked Jeremiah to petition the Lord on their behalf, vowing that whatever the Lord said through Jeremiah, they would faithfully follow. When that word came they did the exact opposite of what God had declared, and chose instead to go to live in Egypt. This was an absolute violation of God’s promise to them of safety in their own land.

So, both Ezekiel and Jeremiah, prophesied the downfall of Egypt at the hands of the Babylonians, And because this remnant of Israelites had chosen to disobey the voice of God in going down to Egypt, the prophecy of Jeremiah regarding their own plight was assured by their presence there.

There is a lesson for us right here.

God had given these Israelites (His own people, called by His Name) a clear instruction through the medium of His respected prophet Jeremiah, declaring both the benefit of their obedience to His word, and the disastrous consequence of disobedience. There are those who might say “What a dreadful thing God has done to these people”. The truth is exactly the opposite. What a dreadful thing these Israelites did in not heeding God’s solemn warning. It is worthy of our attention lest we find ourselves doing exactly the same thing, albeit in very different situations.

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is always true to His word. He is a God of justice and a God of righteousness. He has spelled out clearly for us, in His word, the path we should tread before Him. The benefits of obedience are clearly spelled out, and the consequences of disobedience are there for us to see also.

In our day, we are seeing, not only individuals and groups, but whole nations, metaphorically ‘thumbing their nose’ at God. Even worse, there are some church denominations doing the same, especially in regard to Israel. When God spoke the promise of blessings and curses to Abraham in Genesis 12;3, He was deadly serious. It is worthy of note, yet again, that the words which are both translated ‘curse’ in English, are two different words in Hebrew, the language in which the Hebrew Scriptures were written. The first is “a’rar” meaning bitterly curse. The second “qalal” means to treat lightly, or to treat with contempt. How is it possible for whole Christian denominations to be so misled?

But in our parashah we end with on a note of comfort for Israel. The last two verses have two promises and a warning within them. The first promise is that Israel will not suffer the same devastating defeat as the Egyptians. The second is that their lives will be spared. However, because of their disobedient breaking of the first covenant made with Moses, and their utter contempt for the word delivered to them by Jeremiah, they would be punished by their actions. Because we have the record of history we are able to see exactly what happened to Israel some hundreds of years later, and for the same reasons. They would again be sent from the land, and on that occasion for almost two thousand years. We are only seeing, in our lifetime, that God is again calling them back to the Land again. This time it will be a lasting return, because this return is just one of the signs that God is preparing to send Yeshua back again to rule and reign from Jerusalem.

These prophets of old still speak today don’t they?

Shabbat Shalom

RS