Day of YHVH's Warning

Rimona Frank

Israel

Shalom Fellow Israelite

June 20, 2008

Toward the end of this Shabbat's Parashat Sh'lach Lecha ("Send for Yourself") we read the following: "Now while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. They put him under guard, because it had not been explained what should be done to him. Then YHVH said to Moses, "The man must surely be put to death; All the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp." So, as YHVH commanded Moses and all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died" (Num. 16:32-36). This man was said to be "gathering sticks"; He was "me'ko'shesh", of the root kash, which is "stubble" or "straw". Thus anyone picking up stubble, straw or sticks is of necessity having to stoop low.

Another instance of stooping to the ground and picking up "two sticks" is found in the story of Elijah and the widow woman of Zarephath, who in her desperation "gathered" ("mekosheshet" of the same above mentioned root) sticks upon which she was about to cook the last meal for herself  and her son. But because of her faith and obedience to the word of Elohim that came to her via the prophet, "the bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of YHVH which He spoke by Elijah" (1 Kings 17:16).

Like the widow woman of Zarephath, we too, with the rest of the inhabitants of this planet, could be coming to a time of dire need. In fact in Zephaniah chapter 1 there is a sobering description of what is called there "the Day of YHVH":  "The great day of YHVH is near; It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of YHVH is bitter; there the mighty men shall cry out. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of devastation and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, a day of trumpet and alarm against the fortified cities and against the high towers. I will bring distress upon men, and they shall walk like blind men, because they have sinned against YHVH; Their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like refuse. Neither their silver nor their gold shall be able to deliver them in the day of YHVH's wrath; But the whole land shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy, for He will make speedy riddance of all those who dwell in the land" (Zeph. 1:14-18).

Immediately following this somber prediction, a call is issued out: "Gather yourselves together, yes, gather together, O undesirable nation" (2:1). The address to the "undesirable nation" should immediately alert us as to who is being referred to here, as the whole House of Israel has been issued a bill of divorce by the Almighty (ref. Is. 50:1, Jer. 3:8). But isn't He also telling us here to "gather and be gathered" (literal Hebrew translation)? And doesn't it mean that He has forgotten all the treacheries of His People? Well, the gathering according to this passage, in the context of the Day of YHVH must take place in the same lowliness and humility that it took the widow woman, or even the defiler of the Shabbat, to pick up those sticks and branches. It is also the same lowliness with which our ancestors gathered the straw in Egypt while they were in slavery (ref. Ex. 5:12). What's more the "koshu ve'hit'ko'shashu" ("gather and be gathered") that we encounter here, is in a form that is somewhat different from what one would expect, which would be "koshe'shu" (as is found in all the other instances sited).

Why "koshu" and not "koshe'shu"? For non-Hebrew speakers this might sound like a triviality, but those who know the language can immediately pick the similarity between "koshu" and "kasheh", meaning "hard" or "stiff", which takes us to "k'sheh oref", that is "stiff necked"; a title that has been accorded us time and again by our King (e.g. Ex. 32:9; 33:3,5; 34:9). It is therefore no wonder that the Zephaniah text goes on to warn us:

"Before the decree is issued, [before] the day passes like chaff, before YHVH's fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of YHVH's anger comes upon you!  Seek YHVH, all you meek of the earth who have upheld His justice. Seek righteousness, seek humility. It may be that you will be hidden in the day of YHVH's anger" (2:2,3 emphasis added). The message resounds loudly and clearly. And while the decree is about to happen fast, and (His enablement of) humility and righteousness are unquestioned requirements, He still says that "it may be that you will be hidden". Thus, we cannot take for granted being "hidden" in the day of trouble, and neither can we "be settled in [our] complacency", because He warns us that He will punish those who do so (Zeph.1:12). Finally, verse 4 of Zephaniah 2 may alert us as to the timeframe of all of this: "For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon desolate; they shall drive out Ashdod at noonday…" If you live in Israel you hear those names daily on the "not so good" News!

Before the great and mighty trees of Judah and Ephraim come together (ref. Ez. 37:15ff), it will be the lowly gathering of sticks and twigs that will take place under the terms prescribed by YHVH only. We may be like the widow woman, humbly obedient and acting in faith, or, YHVH forbid, we can decide to do our own gathering in a way and at a time which YHVH has not designated and cast our lot with the individual described above in Numbers 15:32-36. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Rimona

Testing A Redeemer

Ephraim Frank

Israel

Shalom Fellow Israelite

June 27, 2008

Chapter XIII

Testing a Redeemer

Before the appearance of the promised son, and even beyond, Abram must go through a series of tests in order to qualify, that is, to be found faithful in his position as a firstborn redeemer.

Abram was seventy five years old when YHVH summoned him to take leave of his father's house and go to a strange land: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation [goy]; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Genesis 12:1-3). But before leaving, Abram had to execute a firstborn's responsibility. After the death of his brother Haran, in the land of Ur, Abram took his nephew Lot and his property under his wing. It was only then that he left his father's house for the Promised Land taking Lot with him.

From then on YHVH subjected Abram to one test after another, examining His servant's faithfulness to the role of a servant prince and firstborn redeemer. True to his given task, Abram proved to be his "brother's keeper" and thus demonstrated that he was not unaware of whose servant he was. Because of the importance of the firstborn princely office, Abram, in all likelihood, was acquainted with his forefathers and they with him, as almost all were still alive in his day.

When Abram and his then small family arrived in the land of Canaan, to the environs of the heartland city of Shechem, YHVH spoke to him once again, saying: “Unto your seed will I give this land” (Genesis 12:7). Fulfilling his priestly role as a redeemer, Abram built his first altar to YHVH in the land that was now declared a possession of his future family. Notice that at first, YHVH did not give the land to Abram, but to his seed who was destined to become the promised nation. Yet, in spite of all the promises, Abram's wife Sarai was barren and hopes were diminishing of her ever having a child.

After a short stay in Shechem the family moved on to Beth El, “House of El (God)”, where Abram built a second altar. Here again, we see the firstborn functioning in the office of a priest and possibly even offering to YHVH first fruit and first born of his flock. It wasn’t long after YHVH had pointed out the land, which He was giving to Abram’s seed that a famine swept across the territory. Abram must have been quite surprised, if not discombobulated about the kind of land that YHVH had led him to. Here he was, trusting Elohim to give him a land that would sustain him and his entourage, but instead he found himself going down to Egypt!

Alas, even now Abram's troubles and tests were not over. If fact it seems that they were only just beginning… His fears that Pharaoh might look upon his beautiful wife, kill him and take her to himself were of real concern to the patriarch. Abram therefore convinced Sarai to tell a half truth, and say to the ruler of Egypt that he was her brother. This time Abram’s righteousness failed the test. If there was a hero in this story, it was Sarai who submitted to her husband’s decision and in essence gave up her life to save his. YHVH, however, not only protected Sarai's innocence and faithfulness, but delivered her out of Pharaoh’s hand. He also caused the latter to bless Abram and to give him sheep, cattle and other riches. Amazingly, Pharaoh did not hold Abram accountable for causing YHVH’s wrath to fall on Egypt!

Later Abram returned to Beth El, to the same place where he had pitched his tent and built an altar upon his first entry to the land. Is there a prophetic pattern here, foreshadowing what was to happen to Abram’s promised seed? Indeed, later on in history the promises will appear to be discarded for a time, resulting in a descent (caused by famine) to Egypt and an eventual emergence from there with great riches and a return to the “House of Elohim”.

In the meantime, Lot had grown and had taken over his father’s inheritance. Lot is referred to as Abram’s "brother" (ref. Genesis 14:14:16), illustrating again the seed principle of the life of the father in the progeny. Hence Lot, having Abram's brother's life in him, could be called "Abram’s brother".

Acting as a faithful redeemer, Abram handed back to Lot the latter's rightful inheritance which he (Abram) had administered until then. He also gave his nephew first choice of land. Lot chose that which appeared to be the best that the world could offer.

After Abram preformed this righteous act, YHVH spoke to him again, reiterating the promise and adding to it: "Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are -- northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever. And I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth; so that if a man could number the dust of the earth, then your descendants also could be numbered. Arise, walk in the land through its length and its width, for I give it to you" (Genesis 13:14-17).

Abram may have given his nephew first choice in picking land, but YHVH not only recompensed him; He offered Abram much more than that... Unlike the first promise of property, this time YHVH personally bequeathed land to His servant.

In YHVH's promise to Abram, his descendants were described “as the dust of the earth”. This could have been referring to all of Abram’s children, even to the ones from the other (at this point future) wives and concubines. The imagery of dust, however, is not limited only to numbers and profuseness of posterity. It also refers to the nature of the seed, which would be "earthy". Up to this point YHVH had been making promises to Abram, but He still had not made a covenant with him, as a covenant could only be ratified with blood following testing in the fires of life's experiences.

After Lot departed, Abram moved his tent to the area of the great oaks of Mamre in Hebron, where he built a third altar to YHVH. During his time there, a war broke out. Five of the city kings of the area, who were vassals of another king, rebelled against him. The latter formed a coalition with three other kings and came down to defeat the rebels. One of the five dissenting Canaanite city states was Sodom, where Lot had made his home. When the four kings defeated the five rebellious kings of Canaan, they took spoils and captives, including Lot, his family and possessions. Abram, no doubt, was very much aware of the political situation, but did not join his neighbors to do battle against the foreign forces. But upon hearing that Lot had been taken captive, Abram, again true to his position of firstborn and redeemer in the family, acted according to his obligation to restore his relative and retrieve lost property. Abram not only brought back that which belonged to Lot, he also recovered the property of the five local kings. Does this scene not evoke YHVH’s plan to send a Kinsman Redeemer for the lost tribes of Israel, to restore them along with their property and possessions and bring them back to their land, and while doing so to also save the rest of lost humanity (ref. Mathew 13:44)?

After the return of the spoils, the king of Sodom wanted to strike a deal with Abram. However, this redeemer knew the ways of Torah righteousness and justice and therefore refused. No sooner did that encounter take place, when Melchizedec (whose name means King of Righteousness) arrived on the scene.

Because Abram was willing to be his "brother's keeper" and give up his own life in order to deliver him from the hand of the enemy, he fulfilled his mandate as a firstborn redeemer and deliverer. YHVH therefore sent this king of Shalem (Salem), who was also a priest of the Most High, to bless Abram with bread and wine. “And he blessed him, and said, ‘Blessed be Abram of the Most High Elohim, possessor of heaven and earth; and praise be to the Most High Elohim, who has delivered your enemies into your hand. And he [Abram] gave him tithes of all” (Genesis 14:19-20). Unlike Cain, Abram faithfully gave to YHVH that which belonged to Him, thus qualifying him for the covenant.

Shabbat Shalom

Ephraim