Post by R' Y'hoshua Moshe on Oct 14, 2005 10:16:14 GMT -8
The following is a commentary by Rabbi Yaakov benYosef. Enjoy!
Ha’azinu “Give ear”- Devarim (Deuteronomy) 32:1- 52
12 Tishri 5766 – Oct. 15, 2005
"HaShem gave the
to His people as an aide in determining what He considered sin. Before we had the each individual determined what sin was based on his or her own personal relationship with HaShem. Therefore, before the there was no standard for sin. Romans 5:13 in The Complete Jewish Bible states it this way “Sin was indeed present in the world before the was give, but sin is not counted as such where there when there is no ” The presence of sin did not guarantee that every individual could determine that he or she was committing sin. As a result unrighteousness and corruption became a lifestyle for many individuals. B’resheet 6:5-7 states “YHVH saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented YHVH that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And YHVH said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” Only a select few individuals, like Noah, Avraham, and Yosef, could walk in righteousness without the .
Because of these individuals strong relationships with HaShem they truly understood sin and its consequences. Their knowledge allowed them to act righteously even though they did not have a written set of commandments. Rav Shaul (Paul) refers to these types of individuals in Romans 2:14, which states, “When the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves”. Some righteous individuals are obedient to the by nature. However, the rest of us need instruction. To teach the rest of the world HaShem gave the to Yisrael. It then became Yisrael’s mission to expound and teach the to everyone else. Shemot 12:49 states “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourns among you.” HaShem wanted every individual to become obedient to one law. As a result, sin was no longer determined by individual interpretation. The new standard for the identification of sin was the . Yisraelite and stranger alike became accountable to the same set of rules. In Ha’azinu, HaShem’s purpose in making everyone accountable to the same rules becomes clear when we see His plan for redeeming Yisrael.
Devarim 32:21 states “They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.” HaShem makes it clear in this passage that at a future time He intends to provoke Yisrael to jealousy. To accomplish His goal HaShem is going to use a people, “which are not a people”, and a nation that lacks understanding. Rav Shaul picked up this theme in Romans 10:19 and stated “But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.” Rav Shaul believed that the people that were not a people and the nation that lacked understanding would be gentile believers. Romans 11:11 states “Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.” Rav Shaul interpreted the passage to mean that gentile believers in Yeshua would provoke Yisrael to jealousy. Rav Shaul was able to draw this conclusion because the teachings that non-Jewish believers received in his time were not the same teachings that non-Jewish believers receive today. During the first century the Brit Hadassah was being written and had not yet been canonized. First century non-Jewish believers were required to learn the, because it was considered the word of HaShem. Therefore, the was the standard used in teaching all individuals about HaShem. We can see this in the words of James and the Yerusalem council in Acts 15:21 which states “For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Shabbat day.” Assembling for the Shabbat service allowed the gentiles to hear the truths of the . Gentile believers were fulfilling the scripture of Shemot 12:49, which states, “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourns among you.”
It was within this framework of one law that Rav Shaul saw the gentiles as the people who would provoke Yisrael to jealousy. Without one law, it would be impossible for the gentiles to provoke Yisrael to jealousy. We can see this in Devarim 13:1-4 which states “If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder comes to pass, whereof he spoke unto you, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shall not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for YHVH your God proves you, to know whether ye love YHVH your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after YHVH your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.” Learning and living by the was the only way gentiles could provoke Yisrael to jealousy and present Yeshua as the messiah.
Teaching gentiles the also assured the first century church of a unity that does not exist today. The reason the unified first century believers is because it guaranteed two unified principles in every assembly. The first principle was that Jew and gentile were accountable to the same set of rules. There was not one law for a gentile and another law for a Jew. This allowed the Jew and the gentile to be judged as equals. As a result, both groups learned that HaShem was a just God and not a respecter of persons. Acts 10:34-35 states “Then Kefa opened his mouth, and said, of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that fears him, and works righteousness, is accepted with him.” The second principle was the establishment of one body. Teaching gentiles the guaranteed equal yoking. Gentiles would be taught the truths of the one true God. Gentiles could worship the God of Yisrael the way HaShem intended. Therefore, believers would not be unequally yoked with non-believers. As a result, first century believers both Jewish and non-Jewish were free to worship HaShem in one accord.
To unify the world and teach all people the consequences of sin, HaShem handed down the on Mount Sinai. HaShem made it clear to Yisrael that His rules applied to the stranger as well as the native born. Therefore, it became Yisrael’s responsibility to teach the to the nations. This meant all people would learn how to serve and worship the one true God. As a result, everyone would be accountable by the same standards. However, Yisrael would eventually lose focus on HaShem and no longer be the light of to the nations. HaShem realized that Yisrael would need encouragement. To encourage Yisrael HaShem chose to provoke them to jealousy through a foolish nation. According to Rav Shaul HaShem chose gentile believers for this mission. It became the responsibility of gentile believers to provoke Yisrael to jealousy by learning and living by the . Therefore, in the first century believers used the as a tool of teaching the body. Unfortunately, the is no longer used as the foundational teaching tool it once was. As a result, followers of Yeshua no longer appear to worship the same God that Yisrael worships. According to Devarim 13:1-4 it is forbidden for a Jew to follow a messiah that is not observant. All believers must embrace the as one of the pillars of the faith. Until, Yisrael is provoked to jealousy they will not see Yeshua is the messiah, and the world will not experience the rebirth Rav Shaul speaks of in Romans 11:14-6, which states “If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.” "
By Rabbi Yaakov benYosef
Ha’azinu “Give ear”- Devarim (Deuteronomy) 32:1- 52
12 Tishri 5766 – Oct. 15, 2005
"HaShem gave the
to His people as an aide in determining what He considered sin. Before we had the each individual determined what sin was based on his or her own personal relationship with HaShem. Therefore, before the there was no standard for sin. Romans 5:13 in The Complete Jewish Bible states it this way “Sin was indeed present in the world before the was give, but sin is not counted as such where there when there is no ” The presence of sin did not guarantee that every individual could determine that he or she was committing sin. As a result unrighteousness and corruption became a lifestyle for many individuals. B’resheet 6:5-7 states “YHVH saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented YHVH that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And YHVH said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” Only a select few individuals, like Noah, Avraham, and Yosef, could walk in righteousness without the .Because of these individuals strong relationships with HaShem they truly understood sin and its consequences. Their knowledge allowed them to act righteously even though they did not have a written set of commandments. Rav Shaul (Paul) refers to these types of individuals in Romans 2:14, which states, “When the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves”. Some righteous individuals are obedient to the
by nature. However, the rest of us need instruction. To teach the rest of the world HaShem gave the to Yisrael. It then became Yisrael’s mission to expound and teach the to everyone else. Shemot 12:49 states “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourns among you.” HaShem wanted every individual to become obedient to one law. As a result, sin was no longer determined by individual interpretation. The new standard for the identification of sin was the . Yisraelite and stranger alike became accountable to the same set of rules. In Ha’azinu, HaShem’s purpose in making everyone accountable to the same rules becomes clear when we see His plan for redeeming Yisrael. Devarim 32:21 states “They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.” HaShem makes it clear in this passage that at a future time He intends to provoke Yisrael to jealousy. To accomplish His goal HaShem is going to use a people, “which are not a people”, and a nation that lacks understanding. Rav Shaul picked up this theme in Romans 10:19 and stated “But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.” Rav Shaul believed that the people that were not a people and the nation that lacked understanding would be gentile believers. Romans 11:11 states “Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.” Rav Shaul interpreted the passage to mean that gentile believers in Yeshua would provoke Yisrael to jealousy. Rav Shaul was able to draw this conclusion because the teachings that non-Jewish believers received in his time were not the same teachings that non-Jewish believers receive today. During the first century the Brit Hadassah was being written and had not yet been canonized. First century non-Jewish believers were required to learn the
, because it was considered the word of HaShem. Therefore, the was the standard used in teaching all individuals about HaShem. We can see this in the words of James and the Yerusalem council in Acts 15:21 which states “For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every Shabbat day.” Assembling for the Shabbat service allowed the gentiles to hear the truths of the . Gentile believers were fulfilling the scripture of Shemot 12:49, which states, “One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourns among you.” It was within this framework of one law that Rav Shaul saw the gentiles as the people who would provoke Yisrael to jealousy. Without one law, it would be impossible for the gentiles to provoke Yisrael to jealousy. We can see this in Devarim 13:1-4 which states “If there arise among you a prophet, or a dreamer of dreams, and gives you a sign or a wonder, And the sign or the wonder comes to pass, whereof he spoke unto you, saying, Let us go after other gods, which thou hast not known, and let us serve them; Thou shall not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for YHVH your God proves you, to know whether ye love YHVH your God with all your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk after YHVH your God, and fear him, and keep his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him, and cleave unto him.” Learning and living by the
was the only way gentiles could provoke Yisrael to jealousy and present Yeshua as the messiah. Teaching gentiles the
also assured the first century church of a unity that does not exist today. The reason the unified first century believers is because it guaranteed two unified principles in every assembly. The first principle was that Jew and gentile were accountable to the same set of rules. There was not one law for a gentile and another law for a Jew. This allowed the Jew and the gentile to be judged as equals. As a result, both groups learned that HaShem was a just God and not a respecter of persons. Acts 10:34-35 states “Then Kefa opened his mouth, and said, of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that fears him, and works righteousness, is accepted with him.” The second principle was the establishment of one body. Teaching gentiles the guaranteed equal yoking. Gentiles would be taught the truths of the one true God. Gentiles could worship the God of Yisrael the way HaShem intended. Therefore, believers would not be unequally yoked with non-believers. As a result, first century believers both Jewish and non-Jewish were free to worship HaShem in one accord. To unify the world and teach all people the consequences of sin, HaShem handed down the
on Mount Sinai. HaShem made it clear to Yisrael that His rules applied to the stranger as well as the native born. Therefore, it became Yisrael’s responsibility to teach the to the nations. This meant all people would learn how to serve and worship the one true God. As a result, everyone would be accountable by the same standards. However, Yisrael would eventually lose focus on HaShem and no longer be the light of to the nations. HaShem realized that Yisrael would need encouragement. To encourage Yisrael HaShem chose to provoke them to jealousy through a foolish nation. According to Rav Shaul HaShem chose gentile believers for this mission. It became the responsibility of gentile believers to provoke Yisrael to jealousy by learning and living by the . Therefore, in the first century believers used the as a tool of teaching the body. Unfortunately, the is no longer used as the foundational teaching tool it once was. As a result, followers of Yeshua no longer appear to worship the same God that Yisrael worships. According to Devarim 13:1-4 it is forbidden for a Jew to follow a messiah that is not observant. All believers must embrace the as one of the pillars of the faith. Until, Yisrael is provoked to jealousy they will not see Yeshua is the messiah, and the world will not experience the rebirth Rav Shaul speaks of in Romans 11:14-6, which states “If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them. For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead? For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.” "By Rabbi Yaakov benYosef
