Post by R' Y'hoshua Moshe on Feb 16, 2007 22:11:24 GMT -8
My Name Is In Him
For Parashah Mishpatim
By Reuel D.
For Parashah Mishpatim
By Reuel D.
Altogether, Parashah Mishpatim envelopes fifty-three mitzvoth (commands); 23 imperative commandments and 30 prohibitions. Amongst all the various mitzvot in this parashah there is one particular imperative command that I would like to focus on. And, it deals with the Name Of Adonai and the authority of Messiah. This special mitzvah is introduced in Shemot (Exo.) 23:20 where it states,
20 "I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you on the way and bring you to the place I have prepared. 21 Pay attention to him, listen to what he says and do not rebel against him; because he will not forgive any wrongdoing of yours, since my name resides in him. 22 But if you listen to what he says and do everything I tell you, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and a foe to your foes.”
This certainly is a mitzvah not to miss! If we keep this command Adonai will fight our enemies! Of course one could look at this command and say it was for the Yisraelim (Israelites) of that time as they were being brought into the place that Adonai was preparing for them. But, I think it was much more than that. Is not Adonai preparing a place for us today? He has sent us the ultimate “Malach”, which is Hebrew for Messenger/Angel. Indeed, He has sent us His one and only begotten Son, the very extension of his Being, His Right Hand, and the very Son whom is Building His Kingdom. I believe this Holy Messenger is non-other than Yeshua The Messiah! This Malach Elohim (Messenger Of God) has come to lead us in the way.
If we keep this great mitzvah there are several promises given here. First, if we are careful to listen and obey Him, He will guard us on our way to the place that Adonai is preparing for us, the Kingdom Of Heaven. In Mattityahu (Matt.) 28:18-20 Yeshua The Messiah said,
"…All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. Therefore go, and make talmidim (disciples) of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I commanded you. Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amein.”
So, like the Angel or Messenger in our study passage, Yeshua will accompany us on our journey to this place of promise. Second, Yeshua said that He goes ahead of us to prepare a place for us. In Yochanan (John) 14:1-4 our Master says,
"Don't let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many homes. If it weren't so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also. Where I go, you know, and you know the way."
Note, the prerequisite for all of this is that we would pay attention to this Messenger and listen to what he says. Let us listen to the following strong words of our Master, The Messenger Of Elohim. In Mattityahu (Matt.) 7:19-24 He says,
“Every tree that doesn't grow good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire. Therefore, by their fruits you will know them. Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will tell me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name do many mighty works?' Then I will tell them, 'I never knew you. Depart from me, you who work lawlessness.'”
Then in the very next verse and in the spirit of the very mitzvah we are focusing on, Yeshua says, "Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock.”
Are we building our house on a rock? Or, are we building our house on the sifting sands of Torahlessness?? Yeshua says to those workers of lawlessness, “I never knew you”. These individuals would not be led into the place prepared for His chosen. They would die in the desert. Even if they cried “Adonai! Adonai!” or “Lord, Lord!”, those whom chose a life of rebellion against the words of The Messenger would not be forgiven there wrong doing. There is a certain point at which judgment will fall and forgiveness will not be issued, regardless of how diligently one may seek it. Therefore, one should seek it while it is available with fear and trembling. To avoid the unfortunate circumstance (that the majority of the Earth will fall into) we must stay close to Messiah. He alone has been given the authority to deliver and save us.
In chapter 23:21 of Shemot it states that those whom are in rebellion to this Holy Messenger would not be forgiven, for it says, “My name resides in him”. What does this mean? I believe this curious statement is connected with the authority this Mighty Being has to judge the wicked and to grant salvation to those He redeems. In Mattityahu (Matt.) 28:18 it states,
“Yeshua came to them and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.”
Certainly, this Messenger or Angel in this week’s parashah is Yeshua The Messiah. In the Hebrew culture that Messiah lived in and even today in Judaism a “name” represents authority. The Rabbis would speak in other Rabbi’s names when discussing and establishing halachah, and thus would be speaking in the authority of their Rabbi. Coming in someone’s name or bearing someone’s name meant to come in such a one’s authority. In Yochanan (John) 5:43 Yeshua said that He came in His Father’s name. This simply meant that He came in the authority of His Father. But, this doesn’t mean what so many in the “Sacred Name” movement would have us believe. It does not mean that “Yah” must be appended to the name of Messiah. Because of this theology some people believe that Messiah’s name must be “Yah-shua”. Not only has this never been an actual Hebrew name given to a Jewish baby son in history, but it is something fabricated to accommodate this particular theology.
In addition, if coming in the name of The Father or having the Father’s name in a person actually means to have a part of one’s name be “Yah” (to effectively carry the family name), than we would actually see a different practice in Hebrew culture. In the Hebrew society that Yeshua lived in appending the name of one’s father to the beginning of one’s name is not how a Jewish man would carry on the family name. No, in the Hebrew and Jewish culture to bear the name of a father with the name of “Yah” would be to say or write, “Yeshua benYah”, not “Yah-shua”. Of course it goes without saying that Yeshua is the Son of Yah. But, this is not what these passages speak of. It is well established in Hebrew thought that coming in one’s name meant to come in one’s authority.
Today there is a heated debate going on in some many Messianic circles regarding what is referred to as the “Sacred Name” movement. The proponents of the “Sacred Name” movement claim that you must say the name of Elohim in such a way that is correct (according to their estimation) and to pronounce the name of Messiah with the “Yah” appended to the front of the name. They claim that if we don’t pronounce the name of God and Messiah like they do…it is a great violation and our Heavenly Father will not hear our prayers, and we will not be blessed. Many of them even claim that you will not be saved. Of course this is completely false. They stumble in their Greek mindsets and understanding and miss the Hebrew idiom altogether. It is not about pronouncing the name correctly, it is about praying in the authority of the Elohim of Yisrael. It is about giving heed to His authority and the Authority of His Holy Messenger. His authority and name is dependent on His Word, and it is by His Word that we identify whom we pray to, and to whom we serve. Tehellim (Psa.) 138:2 says,
“I will worship toward Your holy temple, and give thanks to Your name for Your mercy, and for Your truth; for You have magnified Your Word above all Your name.”
So, if we happen to pronounce the name of Elohim incorrectly or we simply don’t know what His name is and don’t feel comfortable using a name that quite possibly is incorrect, I believe our Father God still hears our prayers. Our prayers are heard based on our relationship with His word. In Mishlei (Proverbs) 28:9 it states,
“He who turns away his ear from hearing , even his prayer is an abomination.”
It His words that we follow that show whom indeed we are serving, and to whom we pray to. For the scriptures says, “You have magnified Your Word above all Your name.”. There are a lot of theories out there, and at least a half a dozen ways people absolutely claim one must say The Name of God. And, they all passionately disagree with each other! The truth is, no one really knows for sure. Unless someone has received clear and direct divine revelation from Adonai, there is no way to tell for certain if one is pronouncing the name of the God correctly.
So, what is one to do? Think of it this way…Let’s say that you are not sure what someone’s name is. This person is someone that you have met, but forgot his name. It is somewhat of a peculiar situation. You would like to write him a series of letters and all you have is his address. You begin exchanging letters and ask his name in one of them, but there are no replies in the return letters addressing this question. You value the person and wish to continue to communicate. So, you diligently meditate on what his name is and narrow it down to three names that you think it may be. Let’s say that you are pretty sure that this person’s name is either; Bryan, Bruce, or Brad. You are certain that it starts with the first two letters “B” and “r”, but you’re just not sure which name is correct. So, what do you do when writing your letters to this friend? Do you just pick one of the names and hope it is the right one (with the good possibility that it is totally wrong)? What if the friend becomes offended because they don’t like the new name that you have given them? Or, do you just wait patiently until you receive definite confirmation of your friend’s name? Suppose, out of respect you choose to wait patiently for confirmation and in the meantime you decide that you should use a respectful title when referring to this friend? Would this not be a respectful choice?
If we would show this respect for a human being…how much more should we show it for El Olam, the God of Eternity? Of course an effective way of representing the name of God when writing would be “YHVH” or “YHWH”. Or, when speaking one can say “HaShem” which means “The Name”. In this way we can at least give honor to the presence of the name of Elohim. Otherwise, we can use the many various titles that the God Of Yisrael applies to Himself and of which Yeshua our Messiah used when referring to Him. Of course, each one should be convinced in His own mind and I would leave it up to each individual to search these things out themselves and come to their own conclusions.
As I was studying this subject I realized something. The personal name of the Elohim of Yisrael is not used once in the writings of the Brit Chadashah (New Covenant). If you do have a more modern Bible that has the personal name of God placed in the writings of the Brit Chadashah (New Covenant), this is because the translator added it to the text and not because it was there when they began their translation. Many “Sacred Name” versions of the scriptures do this. As we look into the history of 1st century Judaism of Yeshua’s day we see that there was a community law that was effective within the Jewish society during the time that Yeshua lived and taught. In fact, this law was in effect before Messiah came in the flesh and was born into this world. This community law stated that the Holy personal name of God was not to be spoken in public. This was done to protect the holy name of God from being desecrated by the ungodly. According to this community law the personal name of God was only to be spoken by the Cohen HaGadol (High Priest) once a year at Yom Kippur.
At any rate, it was in effect during Yeshua’s ministry and apparently He respected it. If He had not respected it (at least in public) He would have been thrown out of the various communities he taught and lived in. But, we see not one mention or accusation in the scriptures to that effect. The scriptures said that it was Yeshua’s custom to attend synagogue every Shabbat (Sabbath). There he would not doubt from time to time participate in the weekly public parashah readings as many of us do. These readings containing portions from the and the Prophets would most certainly contain the holy and personal name of the God of Yisrael. But, apparently Messiah respected the community rule…and if anyone happened to know the personal name of God, it would have been Yeshua! Unless Yeshua refused to participate in the synagogue parashah readings on Shabbat he would not have been able to avoid this inevitable conflict which would have arisen from the age of 13 until the year that he ascended to His Father in Heaven. But, we indeed have direct evidence that he participated in the weekly reading of the and haftarah parashah in the synagogues. In the book of Luke chapter 4:15-20 we read the following,
“He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. He came to Natzeret, where he had been brought up. He entered, as was his custom, into the synagogue on the day of Shabbat, and stood up to read. The book of the prophet Yeshayahu (Isaiah) was handed to him. He opened the book, and found the place where it was written,
"The Spirit of Adonai is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim release to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to deliver those who are crushed, and to proclaim the acceptable year of Adonai." He closed the book, gave it back to the shammash, and sat down. The eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him.”
The portion of the Prophet Yeshayahu (Isai.) that he read from contained the personal name of God twice, but Yeshua didn’t pronounce it in His reading. Again, if He would have done so he would have been instantly thrown out of the synagogue. The people were astonished not because He pronounced the personal name of God, but because He said, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.".
So, it stands to reason if our Master Yeshua and His talmidim (disciples) did not attempt to pronounce the name of God publicly, this would serve as an example of first century Messianic Jewish practice when it comes to this issue. When Yeshua proclaimed, “Today, this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."., He certainly proclaimed it in the name of His Father. Who else would have the authority to proclaim such words? Truly, the name of Elohim was and is in Yeshua The Messiah.
Baruch HaShem v’Shabbat shalom!