Post by alon on Oct 3, 2015 20:25:15 GMT -8
Ve’tzot HaB’rachan (Vezot Ha Bracha) Deu 33:1-34:12
Leviticus 23:40 (ESV) And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.
This par’shah falls in the midst of the celebration of Sukkot, one of the most joyous of Jewish celebrations. We are commanded to bring together four species on this holiday: The citron- which is both aromatic and tasteful- representing one who having attained Biblical wisdom then performs good deeds. The myrtle- has good fragrance but is inedible- symbolizing a person of good deeds but he hasn’t learned from the Bible. The date palm- edible but has no smell- represents someone who has wisdom but does no good deeds. Then the willow- no taste or aroma- representing a person with neither wisdom nor good deeds. On Sukkot we take all four species together, showing us all types of people are equal and important before God. But there is a fifth element to the lulav- the ties that bind them all- representing a person who brings all other types of people together.
Yehoshua (Joshua) was such a leader. And as wisdom is the central theme represented in the four species, so wisdom is what was given to Yehoshua when Moshe laid his hands on him.
Deuteronomy 34:9 (ESV) And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him. So the people of Israel obeyed him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Yehoshua would need this wisdom in abundance as he led this disparate (not desperate ... well, maybe at times) group into the land promised them by Elohim. However the par’shah starts out with Moshe blessing the 12 tribes in the tradition of a father blessing his sons on his deathbed. Just a couple of observations in these blessings:
The focus overall is not tribal destiny, rather the focus is on YHVH as the Divine Warrior; coming to the rescue of His people in a theophany which moves nature, destroys enemies, ensures the rule of Yisro’el and His own place as Divine King, and institutionalized His
.
Deuteronomy 33:8-11 (ESV) And of Levi he said, “Give to Levi your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one, whom you tested at Massah, with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah; who said of his father and mother, ‘I regard them not’; he disowned his brothers and ignored his children. For they observed your word and kept your covenant. They shall teach Jacob your rules and Israel your law; they shall put incense before you and whole burnt offerings on your altar.
Bless, O Lord, his substance, and accept the work of his hands; crush the loins of his adversaries, of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”
Note to here that Levi, which was once a warlike tribe, is given the priesthood. It is they who will teach and serve El.
Genesis 49:5-7 (ESV)“Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords. Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger they killed men, and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
Simeon was later absorbed into Judah, and Levi was redefined as a priestly tribe with no land of its own. But note here that God does not choose whimps as priests, Rabbis or preachers! My skin crawls when I see some effete, condescending idiot standing in a pulpit or even in front of a class, expounding poison and lies to people who claim the name of God! As a PK myself, and having spoken to many in all walks of ministry, I can tell you it is not a calling for the timid or lazy. Yet so many today are just that! My dad, a hell-fire-and-brimstone Southern Baptist preacher of the old school used to tell of an old cowboy who went to a tent meeting. Afterward as he left and shook the speaker’s hand, he was asked how he liked the sermon. The cowboy replied “I just wanta’ know, were you sent, or’d you jus’ went?” Shamaimites make the best Rabbis.
Deuteronomy 33:27 (ESV) The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy.’
Deuteronomy 33:27 (NRSV) He subdues the ancient gods, shatters the forces of old; he drove out the enemy before you, and said, “Destroy!”
The Hebrew here is difficult to translate (I am told), however we can plainly see that like the men He calls to His service, our God is a God of action!
Deuteronomy 34:5-6 (ESV) So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord, and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.
Moshe here is honored by Elohim, as despite his advanced age he dies not of infirmary, but at the command of God. He is also buried by God, who takes on all the duties of family in the preparation and burial rites. He was mourned the 30 days set as the mourning period for a parent by the entire nation.
Deuteronomy 34:9 (CJB) Y’hoshua the son of Nun was full of the Spirit of wisdom, for Moshe had laid his hands on him, and the people of Isra’el heeded him and did what Adonai had ordered Moshe.
And so we come back to 34:9, where Yehoshua is filled with the spirit of wisdom. D’barim stresses wisdom as the primary quality for holding office. Therefore this is what Yehoshua receives from Moshe. He was already an “inspired man” (associated with the indwelling of the Ruach and sometimes prophecy):
Numbers 27:18 (ESV) So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him."
Numbers 27:22-23 (ESV) And Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the Lord directed through Moses.
This commissioning was not just for show; mere pomp and circumstance. It transferred authority as well as attributes from the outgoing leader to the incoming replacement. This system of transfer is echoed in military change of command ceremonies to this day. The entire unit is gathered in formation to witness the formal ceremony in which command is transferred. However before this the commanders and often the staff hold meetings to discuss the status of the unit so there should be no surprises. If the unit is lucky, their old and new commanders will be (and have been) spiritual, Godly men in the mold of Moshe and Yehoshua.
I highly recommend a study in the book of Joshua to everyone who may have a leadership role, or who might have the responsibility of picking the leader we will follow. I guess that means all of us!
Dan C
Sources: JPS Study TNK, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, my father
Note: During Sukkot thre are extra readings through the week. I’ll try and put something up on these, as you may come across them and become confused (as I was, so don’t feel bad). Also, traditionally the last two chs. of D’barim and the first ch. of Bereshith are read on Sh’mini Atzeretz. These are part of this and next weeks par’shoth, respectively.
Leviticus 23:40 (ESV) And you shall take on the first day the fruit of splendid trees, branches of palm trees and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.
This par’shah falls in the midst of the celebration of Sukkot, one of the most joyous of Jewish celebrations. We are commanded to bring together four species on this holiday: The citron- which is both aromatic and tasteful- representing one who having attained Biblical wisdom then performs good deeds. The myrtle- has good fragrance but is inedible- symbolizing a person of good deeds but he hasn’t learned from the Bible. The date palm- edible but has no smell- represents someone who has wisdom but does no good deeds. Then the willow- no taste or aroma- representing a person with neither wisdom nor good deeds. On Sukkot we take all four species together, showing us all types of people are equal and important before God. But there is a fifth element to the lulav- the ties that bind them all- representing a person who brings all other types of people together.
Yehoshua (Joshua) was such a leader. And as wisdom is the central theme represented in the four species, so wisdom is what was given to Yehoshua when Moshe laid his hands on him.
Deuteronomy 34:9 (ESV) And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him. So the people of Israel obeyed him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
Yehoshua would need this wisdom in abundance as he led this disparate (not desperate ... well, maybe at times) group into the land promised them by Elohim. However the par’shah starts out with Moshe blessing the 12 tribes in the tradition of a father blessing his sons on his deathbed. Just a couple of observations in these blessings:
The focus overall is not tribal destiny, rather the focus is on YHVH as the Divine Warrior; coming to the rescue of His people in a theophany which moves nature, destroys enemies, ensures the rule of Yisro’el and His own place as Divine King, and institutionalized His
.Deuteronomy 33:8-11 (ESV) And of Levi he said, “Give to Levi your Thummim, and your Urim to your godly one, whom you tested at Massah, with whom you quarreled at the waters of Meribah; who said of his father and mother, ‘I regard them not’; he disowned his brothers and ignored his children. For they observed your word and kept your covenant. They shall teach Jacob your rules and Israel your law; they shall put incense before you and whole burnt offerings on your altar.
Bless, O Lord, his substance, and accept the work of his hands; crush the loins of his adversaries, of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”
Note to here that Levi, which was once a warlike tribe, is given the priesthood. It is they who will teach
and serve El. Genesis 49:5-7 (ESV)“Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords. Let my soul come not into their council; O my glory, be not joined to their company. For in their anger they killed men, and in their willfulness they hamstrung oxen. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.
Simeon was later absorbed into Judah, and Levi was redefined as a priestly tribe with no land of its own. But note here that God does not choose whimps as priests, Rabbis or preachers! My skin crawls when I see some effete, condescending idiot standing in a pulpit or even in front of a class, expounding poison and lies to people who claim the name of God! As a PK myself, and having spoken to many in all walks of ministry, I can tell you it is not a calling for the timid or lazy. Yet so many today are just that! My dad, a hell-fire-and-brimstone Southern Baptist preacher of the old school used to tell of an old cowboy who went to a tent meeting. Afterward as he left and shook the speaker’s hand, he was asked how he liked the sermon. The cowboy replied “I just wanta’ know, were you sent, or’d you jus’ went?” Shamaimites make the best Rabbis.
Deuteronomy 33:27 (ESV) The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy.’
Deuteronomy 33:27 (NRSV) He subdues the ancient gods, shatters the forces of old; he drove out the enemy before you, and said, “Destroy!”
The Hebrew here is difficult to translate (I am told), however we can plainly see that like the men He calls to His service, our God is a God of action!
Deuteronomy 34:5-6 (ESV) So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord, and he buried him in the valley in the land of Moab opposite Beth-peor; but no one knows the place of his burial to this day.
Moshe here is honored by Elohim, as despite his advanced age he dies not of infirmary, but at the command of God. He is also buried by God, who takes on all the duties of family in the preparation and burial rites. He was mourned the 30 days set as the mourning period for a parent by the entire nation.
Deuteronomy 34:9 (CJB) Y’hoshua the son of Nun was full of the Spirit of wisdom, for Moshe had laid his hands on him, and the people of Isra’el heeded him and did what Adonai had ordered Moshe.
And so we come back to 34:9, where Yehoshua is filled with the spirit of wisdom. D’barim stresses wisdom as the primary quality for holding office. Therefore this is what Yehoshua receives from Moshe. He was already an “inspired man” (associated with the indwelling of the Ruach and sometimes prophecy):
Numbers 27:18 (ESV) So the Lord said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him."
Numbers 27:22-23 (ESV) And Moses did as the Lord commanded him. He took Joshua and made him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole congregation, and he laid his hands on him and commissioned him as the Lord directed through Moses.
This commissioning was not just for show; mere pomp and circumstance. It transferred authority as well as attributes from the outgoing leader to the incoming replacement. This system of transfer is echoed in military change of command ceremonies to this day. The entire unit is gathered in formation to witness the formal ceremony in which command is transferred. However before this the commanders and often the staff hold meetings to discuss the status of the unit so there should be no surprises. If the unit is lucky, their old and new commanders will be (and have been) spiritual, Godly men in the mold of Moshe and Yehoshua.
I highly recommend a study in the book of Joshua to everyone who may have a leadership role, or who might have the responsibility of picking the leader we will follow. I guess that means all of us!
Dan C
Sources: JPS Study TNK, Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, my father
Note: During Sukkot thre are extra readings through the week. I’ll try and put something up on these, as you may come across them and become confused (as I was, so don’t feel bad). Also, traditionally the last two chs. of D’barim and the first ch. of Bereshith are read on Sh’mini Atzeretz. These are part of this and next weeks par’shoth, respectively.
