For the week of November 30, 2024 / 20 Heshvan 5785
Toledot
Torah: Bereshit/Genesis 25:19 – 28:9
Haftarah: 1 Shmuel/1 Samuel 20:18-42
Note: The following is a revised version of an article I wrote some time ago that is most relevant to this week’s Torah reading.

And Isaac prayed to the LORD for his wife, because she was barren. And the LORD granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived. The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If it is thus, why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. And the LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.” (Bereshit/Genesis 25:21-23)

In the classic film, “Fiddler on the Roof”—based on the stories of famed Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem—the main character, Tevye the Milkman, upon hearing from the local constable of an upcoming pogrom in their small Russian village, complains to God, saying: “Dear God, did you have to send me news like that today of all days? I know, I know, we are the chosen people. But once in a while, can’t you choose someone else?”

This vividly expresses typical Jewish angst over what amounts to be the biblical and theological concept of chosenness. For Jewish people, this is no mere concept. From generation to generation we have heard the stories of the patriarchs and Moses, of David and Esther—that there is something special about being part of the people of Israel. But often, these ancient tales appear to be nothing more than a backstory for so much rejection and suffering. The result is, at times, a deep-seated ambivalence of the kind expressed by Tevye. If this is what it means to be chosen, then “once in a while, can’t you choose someone else?”

The story of the Jewish people hasn’t changed much in thousands of years. No people group has ever been through the kinds of persecution, exile, and attempted genocides that have haunted us since our earliest days. The ugly specter of antisemitism, the Holocaust, and the ongoing threats upon the modern State of Israel have greatly heightened since October 7, 2023. A similar spirit possessed Pharaoh, Haman, and Hitler. The agendas of Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome were not all that different from the great powers of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Yet we are still here. And, while grateful for our continued place in the world, many of us are confused about our true identity, especially over what it means to be chosen, if we are chosen at all.

Many Jewish people (and a lot of Christians) would be surprised to learn that the New Covenant Writings (the New Testament) effectively resolves this confusion. Paul, so misunderstood in the Jewish world (and in much of the Church for that matter), had a grasp of this issue in a way that Tevye did not. When Paul asks, “Then what advantage has the Jew?” (Romans 3:1), there is no confusion or angst in his answer. But before we look at that, Tevye’s response to Paul’s question, echoed in the hearts of so many Jews, Christians, and others, is just about “none.” For many Jewish people, the negatives outweigh whatever positives there may be. And for many Christians, if there had at one time been an advantage, not anymore. According to them, Tevye’s prayer has been answered since chosenness has been transferred to a new Israel, namely the Church.

But that’s not Paul’s understanding. His answer to “What advantage has the Jew?” is: “Much in every way” (Romans 3:2). He then begins to unpack what that means, starting with the Jewish people’s being entrusted with the Scriptures. Note he is not talking about a metaphorical spiritual concept of Israel as some sort of generic people of God but an actual ethnic group, the Jewish people. He would have more to say about the advantage of being chosen, but he first deals with the implications of the Jewish majority’s current spiritual state to demonstrate that any unfaithfulness toward God on their part in no way undermines God’s commitment to them. He comes back to listing various benefits of chosenness in chapter nine:

They are Israelites, and to them belong the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the Torah (ESV:the law), the worship, and the promises. To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Messiah (ESV: the Christ), who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen. (Romans 9:4-5)

I don’t have time here to fully delve into Paul’s—and God’s—understanding that Israel in Romans, chapters 9–11, is ethnic Israel, the Jewish people. I address this in my booklet God Did Not Reject His People: The Identity of Israel in Paul’s Letter to the Romans, Chapter 11. What I want to discuss here is how the issue of chosenness has been undermined in people’s minds through ongoing painful circumstances.

Tevye was willing to give up his people’s chosenness if it meant no longer facing the trouble that had become all too common in their history. On one hand, who can blame him? On the other hand (If you know Fiddler on the Roof, you know I sound like Tevye now), coming to such a conclusion must mean he had lost touch with the advantages Paul describes.

The Jewish advantage is due to our being chosen by God to be a blessing to the nations (see Bereshit/Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:8). The curse under which the whole creation groans was doomed from the moment God pronounced it (see Bereshit/Genesis 3:15; Romans 8:19-22). The purpose of choosing the Jewish people was to confront that curse. From the time of Abraham until now that process has been a painful one. Going against the grain entails suffering. The patriarchs understood that, as did Moses and every faithful follower of the true God ever since. While no one bore the brunt of chosenness to the extent that the Messiah did, it is not as if his suffering lessened its heavy burden. In fact, it opened the door for the nations to experience that which at one time was the exclusive calling of Israel.

The Jewish advantage of being set apart to rescue creation from the curse’s effects is now shared by all who trust in Yeshua. But that doesn’t mean the people of Israel no longer carry that burden. They may be unaware of it, like the fictional Tevye and the genuine sentiment he expresses, yet still, because of God’s commitment to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, that burden remains.

It’s a burden, for sure, but a great advantage nonetheless. Despite the hardships of which Tevye had become weary, God continues to work out his purposes through the people of Israel. Whether conscious of it or not, God’s faithfulness to his word is evidenced by the endurance of the Jewish people and the existence of the modern state of Israel.

I wonder how much of the angst and confusion Tevye expressed is due to the Church’s tendency throughout the centuries to refuse to affirm the Jewish advantage as described by Paul. Robbing the Jewish people of their God-given advantage not only undermines biblical truth but breaks the bridge of Jewish restoration upon which God so desires to walk. Followers of the Messiah, both Jews and Gentiles, have the responsibility to reflect the unchanging nature of the Scriptures to which they claim to adhere, including the place of ethnic Israel in God’s salvation plan.

Scriptures taken from the English Standard Version

For the week of November 23, 2024 / 22 Heshvan 5785

Chayei Sarah
Torah: Bereshit/Genesis 23:1 – 25:18
Haftarah: 1 Melachim /1 Kings 1:1-31
Originally posted the week of October 30, 2021 / 24 Heshvan 5782

Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. (Bereshit/Genesis 25:5)

Abraham lived about thirty-eight more years after Sarah died. During that time, he married a woman named Keturah and had several more children through her. This shows that Abraham and Sarah’s inability to have children was due to something to do with Sarah. This was already evident by Abraham’s first son Ishmael whom he had through Hagar, Sarah’s servant, at Sarah’s behest.

That Abraham didn’t have a fertility issue seems to contradict Paul’s statement in the New Covenant Writings, where he writes, “He [Abraham] did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb” (Romans 4:19). This is saying, however, that Abraham reasonably understood himself and Sarah as beyond the age of having children. That the issue all along appears to have been with Sarah is besides the point. As a couple who couldn’t have children, Abraham trusted in God to overcome their infertility in order to fulfill his promise to them.

Abraham accepted God’s particularity regarding his plans and purposes. We see this demonstrated through the dispersion of his inheritance. Abraham and Keturah had six sons. It appears that he also had other children through various concubines (I don’t know if I will ever get used to the idea of concubines in the ancient biblical world). While he provided for all his sons while he was alive, his inheritance went to Isaac alone (see Bereshit/Genesis 25:1-6).

Perhaps you might think this is unfair, but Abraham was following God’s lead. After the birth of Ishmael, God determined that the one to carry on the promise was to be the child born to barren Sarah as we read in Bereshit/Genesis 17:18-19:

And Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before you!” God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.

The inheritance given to Isaac was not mainly about money or livestock, etc. It was the legacy of the promise of blessing unto the nations (see Bereshit/Genesis 12:3). In God’s providence, he deemed that he would develop through Isaac alone a particular people through whom he would reveal himself to the world and by whom the Messiah and Savior would come.

God’s particularity is a core part of God’s creation design. He made a world where things work in a particular way. To ignore the set principles of the universe is to invite unnecessary trouble. Discovering those principles is not a simple matter. But when the Creator God reveals his truth or gives a direction, we are well-advised to follow his lead.

The particularity of Isaac may seem unfair, but God knows what he is doing. What set Abraham apart is that he was willing to do life God’s way. Careful adherence to God’s direction is the only way to lasting blessing. Abraham’s life models God-inspired effective living for us all.

We might think it is unfair that things work the way they do rather than the way we want them to. Some insist that anything but giving people identical opportunities along with guaranteed outcomes is unfair. Perhaps it is unfair. While we must do what we can to enact justice, protecting the vulnerable and providing for the needy, God made a world of diversity. Humans possess a great variety of strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. Surely some inequality is due to injustice and sin, yet to attempt to create absolute equality at every level undermines the great variety that God instilled into his creation.

A key aspect of that variety is God’s particularity in the development of his rescue operation in and through the people of Israel and as fulfilled in the Messiah. It is humbling to accept that some things are just the way they are. Abraham was wise to accept that. We would be too.

Scriptures taken from the English Standard Version

For the week of November 16, 2024 / 15 Heshvan 5785

Vayera
Torah: Bereshit/Genesis 18:1 – 22:24
Haftarah: 2 Melachim/2 Kings 4:1-37

And Isaac said to his father Abraham, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” He said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they went both of them together. (Bereshit/Genesis 22:7-8)

Traditionally entitled “The Akedah,” the Binding of Isaac is such a wonderful story—that is, once you know the ending. Reading the story from the beginning, however, as I have noted on past occasions, is intensely traumatic. What kind of God is this, who demands of his beloved servant Abraham to commit human sacrifice? What kind of father binds his son to a pile of wood and raises a knife to plunge into his heart? Even after providing the substitute, what did this do to Isaac’s psyche? How did his sons, Jacob and Esau, process hearing what God told their grandfather to do to their father?

From where we are sitting, thousands of years later, we sentimentalize this story, celebrate Abraham’s extraordinary faith, and theologize over the substitutionary act. But to truly appreciate what’s going on here, we need to personally and intimately wade into the story’s dynamics. We are too quick to jump to the end and take comfort in that God didn’t really mean for Abraham to kill his son. Abraham didn’t know that. The New Covenant Writings claim that he anticipated God would do something. We read:

By faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, “Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.” He considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. (Hebrews 11:17–19)

Abraham knew God would do something, but he didn’t know what or how. I would like to ponder that here.

Abraham obeyed God, living with the tension of knowing he was trustworthy and capable of doing the impossible while not being clued in on the what or the how. Yet, step by step, he moved forward in obeying God anyway.

I don’t know about you, but I like details. I like to know where I am going and why. I know our plans don’t always work out as expected, but I still prefer to have as much information as possible. You should hear me pray! Often, when I face a problem and lay it out before the Lord, I tend to provide him with a multiple-choice list: “O God, do you want me to do this, that, or the other thing?” I am sure he appreciates my giving him options to choose from! Don’t worry. I am aware of what I am doing. I know I tend to try to solve my problems on my own instead of simply offering them to him. Of course, we should be working out problems as needed and able. And, sometimes, we struggle with choosing between reasonable options. There’s nothing wrong with praying accordingly. But other times, we don’t know what to do and need God to come through for us. Abraham’s journey to Moriah with Isaac was like that.

Step by step, day by day, more unknowns than knowns, with the knowns being as strange as strange can be. And yet, he kept on keeping on, trusting God knew what he was doing. Abraham even told Isaac, “God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son” (Bereshit/Genesis 22:8). True words indeed, even though he had no idea how God would provide. And provide he did. It wasn’t until the last second that God stayed Abraham’s hand. He was working all along, preparing the ram for a substitute. But from Abraham’s perspective, the provision was a surprise.

We don’t know about surprises until they happen. That’s what makes them a surprise. Until then, we live without being conscious of them. That’s fun when it’s a special gift or event, but another matter when we go through challenging times. I wonder how many of us resist such challenges because we don’t have enough details. Abraham knew there was more going on than what he was aware of. But he did it because God, the God of surprising provision, called him to.

Scriptures taken from the English Standard Version

For the week of November 9, 2024 / 8 Heshvan 5785

Lech Lecha
Torah: Bereshit/Genesis 12:1 – 17:27
Haftarah: Isa 40:27-41:16
Originally posted the week of October 28, 2023 / 13 Heshvan 5784 (updated)

On that day the LORD made a covenant with Avram, saying, “To your offspring I give this land…” (Bereshit/Genesis 15:18)

Important note: Having been providing TorahBytes for many years—in fact, based on the Jewish calendar, it’s twenty-seven years this week—as part of my preparation, I glance back at previous messages. I do this mainly to avoid unnecessary repetition and look for potential repostings. When reposting, I try to choose one that’s several years old, thus increasing the likelihood that current users haven’t encountered it before or, if they have, forgotten it. I am making an exception with this message, however. It’s from last year, but most worthy of repeating. More than that! It’s essential that I do. Not only is it foundational for understanding the whole Bible, but also for knowing how to effectively navigate the times we are in.

The October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel was not only the worst day for Jewish people since the Holocaust, it changed the world in more ways than what  most people realize as a demonically inspired threat upon Western civilization was unleashed. Whether or not the events of the past few weeks have deterred that threat for now or not is yet to be seen. Regardless, to claim to value Scripture but ignore God’s ongoing faithfulness to the Jewish people undermines its effectiveness.

*     *    *

The following is a slightly edited version of last year’s post.

It is no exaggeration to say that we may be on the brink of a catastrophe hitherto unknown in history. I hope I am wrong—that the current crisis in Israel will calm down, but not until the demonic evil unleashed by Hamas on October 7 is destroyed. I have no illusions; however, if, by God’s grace that happens, it will manifest again soon and probably worse.

Serious readers of Scripture have no reason to be unaware of the dynamics at play, including why so much fuss is made over one of the smallest countries on the planet. Yet, not only are most people unaware of such things, but they have also reduced the truth of the Bible to a detached spirituality of the inner life while failing to grasp its global implications and all-encompassing importance. Core to this misguided spirituality is the disregard for the centrality of the people of Israel and the land of Israel in God’s plan.

This week’s parsha (weekly Torah-reading portion) is foundational in this regard. It begins with Avram, whose name is later changed to Avraham (you can figure out the English versions of his name yourself, I am sure). The God of all creation, who made everything “very good” (Bereshit/Genesis 1:31), determined to one day rid the universe of the curse he imposed on the earth due to our first parents’ rebellion against him (see Bereshit/Genesis 3:17-19). Described as the bruising or crushing of the serpent’s head (see Bereshit/Genesis 3:15), we are given no details on how this plan was to be worked out until this parsha. If Avram ventured to the alien land God would show him; he would make him a great nation and bless the entire world as a result (see Bereshit/Genesis 12:1-3). One of Avram’s most famous descendants would call the promise of blessing the nations, “the good news” or “the Gospel” (see Galatians 3:8).

The agreement, contract, or covenant (they all mean the same, by the way) that God established with Avram included an aspect that Bible readers have tragically ignored. People often called the covenant made with Avram unconditional, but it did have one condition—a condition he fulfilled. He had to go to a specified location. It wasn’t until he arrived there that God said, “To your offspring I will give this land” (Bereshit/Genesis 12:7). The land, therefore, was a crucial aspect of God’s covenant with Avram, which was later passed on to his son Isaac (see Bereshit/Genesis 26:2-5) and grandson Jacob (see Bereshit/Genesis 28:13-14).

But did you know how essential the land promise to Avram was? As we also read in this week’s parsha, sometime later, God says to him: “Fear not, Avram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great” (Bereshit/Genesis 15:1). Avram’s trusting response to God’s telling him that, despite his ongoing childlessness, his descendants will be like the stars of the sky, is an appropriate high point for many Bible believers as it demonstrates the importance of faith.

Following that interchange, God has Avram perform a covenant ritual whereby he was to cut up some animals (see Bereshit/Genesis 15:7-20). Apparently, this was a traditional covenant-making ceremony. The Hebrew for “make a covenant” is actually “cut a covenant,” probably taken from the cutting up of the animals. The two parties would walk together between the pieces to declare that if either fails to live up to their covenantal obligations, may they become like the cut up pieces. But note that Avram doesn’t walk between the pieces. Instead, he sees the unusual site of a smoking firepot and a flaming torch passing through them. Commentators consider this an indication that God was taking the full covenantal obligation on himself, so that if either party would break the covenant, God alone would suffer the consequences. We see this happen in the person of the Messiah, of course. But neglecting the context of this prevents us from seeing an key aspect of God’s commitment to the people of Israel. God’s self-imposed covenantal obligations to the people is not only about the people. Here’s what God says when he reiterates the covenant to Avram:

To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites and the Jebusites (Bereshit/Genesis 15:18-21).

God’s covenant with Avram includes the land, guaranteed! Should Avram or his descendants (those through Isaac and Jacob) fail in their covenantal obligations, God himself would bear the punishment. Do you know what this means? Yeshua’s death doesn’t only ensure your reconciliation with God by faith, but also upholds Israel’s right to their God-given land.

Scriptures taken from the English Standard Version, except that “Abram” is changed to “Avram.”