- there are 70 faces to 
Post by alon on Apr 22, 2017 5:24:09 GMT -8
Hebrews 10:23-39 (NASB)
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;
24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds,
25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
26 For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
27 but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
28 Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”
31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 But remember the former days, *in which, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings,
33 partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated.
34 For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
35 Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive *the promise.
37 For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay.
38 But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.
39 But we are *not of shrinking back to destruction, but of those *of faith to the possesing of the soul.
What Rav Sh’ul is writing here is a treatise against apostasy.
apostasy (əˈpɒstəsɪ) n, pl -sies from Church Latin apostasia, from Greek apostasis desertion, from apostanai to stand apart from, desert
1. abandonment of one's religious faith, party, a cause, etc
2. renunciation of one's religious faith
As is his custom, Rav Sh’ul starts out with an exhortation on how we shuld act:
Hebrews 10:23-25 (NASB) Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
This is what we try to provide here on the forum for those who are doing this alone. It is a place where we can assemble and discuss the things of HaShem according to our faith and beliefs. We encourage and exhort each other to stay the course; not falling away into apostasy.
Judaism was never meant to be a solo endeavor. We need community, else we risk falling away into apostasy of one kind or another. Some give up and leave the faith altogether, some return to whatever religion they came out of, and others fall into deceptions such as Ebionism or Sacred Names, or any of the myriad cults which claim to be Messianic but are not.
Hebrews 10:26-27 (NASB) For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
1 Samuel 2:25 (NASB) If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death.
Isaiah 26:11 (NASB) O Lord, Your hand is lifted up yet they do not see it.
Let them see see Your zeal for the people and be put to
;
Indeed, let the fire for Your adversaries devour them.
Once you have been partakers in the truth, if you fall away there is real danger for you. All you then have is “a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.” Messianism is not a revolving door religion like most churches. It is the truth as laid out in the words of Elohim through His prophets and Shaliachim.
When we came to this if we truely believed we repented. The Hebrew word for repentance is “teshuva,” and is more than just being sorry. It implies a turning away form the old way and entering into a covenant of obedience with HaShem. But when we renoounce the truth and break this covenant, it is like teshuva in the other direction. We renounce what is right, going our own way. We like Adam and Chava decide to be our own elohim, judging for ourselves what is right to do.
Can we come back into the fold once we have done this? Yes, Adam and Chava were returned to fellowship with God. But it was not like before when they actually walked with Him in the Garden. And there were consequences. All mankind has faced these consequences to this day.
Exodus 34:6-7 (NASB) Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and faithfulness; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”
These verses are speaking of the consequences of sin, not the sin itself. We’re each responsible for our own sins. But the consequences of sin are far reaching for us as well as others.
Hebrews 10:28 (NASB) Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
This is talking about a sentence passed down by a court. Note the legal language “on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” We are not to just kill someone without trial; and never were. But this is the seriousness of the offense, that if you turned away from the truth you were taken to court, and then to be executed. As bad as this was, it is not the worst thing that would happen to one who has fallen away:
Hebrews 10:29-31 (NASB) How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Deuteronomy 32:35 (NASB)
‘Vengeance is Mine, and retribution,
In due time their foot will slip;
For the day of their calamity is near,
And the impending things are hastening upon them.’
After we have trampled the truth we were given underfoot, all we have to look forward to is the judgement in a court where we can neither lie nor beg for mercy. We will fall into the hands of an angry, vengeful God. And His sentence is an eternal one.
Hebrews 10:32-34 (NASB) But remember the former days, in which, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
And again following his custom, Rav Sh’ul ends with exhortation. He starts by reminding us of what we’ve done and the price we paid to follow the truth. And he goes on:
Hebrews 10:35-36 (NASB) Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.
We are encouraged to endure. Stay the course. Do not deny your faith nor forsake the assembly (even if only online).
Hebrews 10:37-39 (NASB) For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those shrinking back back to destruction, but of those of faith to the possesing of the soul.
This is a review. We have the promise of the return of Yeshua, who will come in righteous judgement. Those found righteous will live on in His presence. But for those who have fallen away, whose teshuva is reverted to themselves or some other god and not to Elohay Chaiyim, The Living God; these will pass into the hands of a vengeful God who is looking upon us as one who has trampled His sacrifice into the mud.
Therefore I exert you, stay with us. Find a good assembly near enough to visit occasionally; especially on the Shalosh Regalim (feasts where commanded to go up to Yerushalayim). You need that contact with like minded people. And stay with us here if you cannot find an assembly close enough to attend regularly. This is the best resource I’ve found online for this purpose. But above all, do not desert the truth once you have found it. The road back from that is nearly impossible, and always extremely difficult.
Dan C
Notes: the idea for this came from a teaching by Rav S on apostasy, however the substance of the post is my own.
I used the New American Standard Version for the scriptural text. However there were several places where they gave the literal translation in the footnotes. I replaced their text with the literal meaning in all cases. These are marked with an ( * ) in the complete text at the beginning of this post.
23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful;
24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds,
25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
26 For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,
27 but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
28 Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”
31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 But remember the former days, *in which, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings,
33 partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated.
34 For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
35 Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.
36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive *the promise.
37 For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay.
38 But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him.
39 But we are *not of shrinking back to destruction, but of those *of faith to the possesing of the soul.
What Rav Sh’ul is writing here is a treatise against apostasy.
apostasy (əˈpɒstəsɪ) n, pl -sies from Church Latin apostasia, from Greek apostasis desertion, from apostanai to stand apart from, desert
1. abandonment of one's religious faith, party, a cause, etc
2. renunciation of one's religious faith
As is his custom, Rav Sh’ul starts out with an exhortation on how we shuld act:
Hebrews 10:23-25 (NASB) Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
This is what we try to provide here on the forum for those who are doing this alone. It is a place where we can assemble and discuss the things of HaShem according to our faith and beliefs. We encourage and exhort each other to stay the course; not falling away into apostasy.
Judaism was never meant to be a solo endeavor. We need community, else we risk falling away into apostasy of one kind or another. Some give up and leave the faith altogether, some return to whatever religion they came out of, and others fall into deceptions such as Ebionism or Sacred Names, or any of the myriad cults which claim to be Messianic but are not.
Hebrews 10:26-27 (NASB) For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.
1 Samuel 2:25 (NASB) If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him?” But they would not listen to the voice of their father, for the Lord desired to put them to death.
Isaiah 26:11 (NASB) O Lord, Your hand is lifted up yet they do not see it.
Let them see see Your zeal for the people and be put to
;Indeed, let the fire for Your adversaries devour them.
Once you have been partakers in the truth, if you fall away there is real danger for you. All you then have is “a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries.” Messianism is not a revolving door religion like most churches. It is the truth as laid out in the words of Elohim through His prophets and Shaliachim.
When we came to this if we truely believed we repented. The Hebrew word for repentance is “teshuva,” and is more than just being sorry. It implies a turning away form the old way and entering into a covenant of obedience with HaShem. But when we renoounce the truth and break this covenant, it is like teshuva in the other direction. We renounce what is right, going our own way. We like Adam and Chava decide to be our own elohim, judging for ourselves what is right to do.
Can we come back into the fold once we have done this? Yes, Adam and Chava were returned to fellowship with God. But it was not like before when they actually walked with Him in the Garden. And there were consequences. All mankind has faced these consequences to this day.
Exodus 34:6-7 (NASB) Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and faithfulness; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”
These verses are speaking of the consequences of sin, not the sin itself. We’re each responsible for our own sins. But the consequences of sin are far reaching for us as well as others.
Hebrews 10:28 (NASB) Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
This is talking about a sentence passed down by a court. Note the legal language “on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” We are not to just kill someone without trial; and never were. But this is the seriousness of the offense, that if you turned away from the truth you were taken to court, and then to be executed. As bad as this was, it is not the worst thing that would happen to one who has fallen away:
Hebrews 10:29-31 (NASB) How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.” It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Deuteronomy 32:35 (NASB)
‘Vengeance is Mine, and retribution,
In due time their foot will slip;
For the day of their calamity is near,
And the impending things are hastening upon them.’
After we have trampled the truth we were given underfoot, all we have to look forward to is the judgement in a court where we can neither lie nor beg for mercy. We will fall into the hands of an angry, vengeful God. And His sentence is an eternal one.
Hebrews 10:32-34 (NASB) But remember the former days, in which, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings, partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated. For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.
And again following his custom, Rav Sh’ul ends with exhortation. He starts by reminding us of what we’ve done and the price we paid to follow the truth. And he goes on:
Hebrews 10:35-36 (NASB) Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.
We are encouraged to endure. Stay the course. Do not deny your faith nor forsake the assembly (even if only online).
Hebrews 10:37-39 (NASB) For yet in a very little while, He who is coming will come, and will not delay. But My righteous one shall live by faith; And if he shrinks back, My soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those shrinking back back to destruction, but of those of faith to the possesing of the soul.
This is a review. We have the promise of the return of Yeshua, who will come in righteous judgement. Those found righteous will live on in His presence. But for those who have fallen away, whose teshuva is reverted to themselves or some other god and not to Elohay Chaiyim, The Living God; these will pass into the hands of a vengeful God who is looking upon us as one who has trampled His sacrifice into the mud.
Therefore I exert you, stay with us. Find a good assembly near enough to visit occasionally; especially on the Shalosh Regalim (feasts where commanded to go up to Yerushalayim). You need that contact with like minded people. And stay with us here if you cannot find an assembly close enough to attend regularly. This is the best resource I’ve found online for this purpose. But above all, do not desert the truth once you have found it. The road back from that is nearly impossible, and always extremely difficult.
Dan C
Notes: the idea for this came from a teaching by Rav S on apostasy, however the substance of the post is my own.
I used the New American Standard Version for the scriptural text. However there were several places where they gave the literal translation in the footnotes. I replaced their text with the literal meaning in all cases. These are marked with an ( * ) in the complete text at the beginning of this post.
