Foundation

 

                                                                       The LORD speaks from Mount Sinai

     The title of this week's Sabbath reading portion is Va-etchannan, meaning "And I besought the LORD." This title comes from the words of Moses in Deuteronomy 3:23-24: "Then I pleaded (hanan/hana - have mercy, be gracious, implore favor, be pitied/abide, dwell, encamp, rested, grows to an end) with the LORD at that time, saying: 'O LORD God, You have begun to show (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-Your-servant (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-Your-greatness and (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-Your-mighty-hand, for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like Your works and Your mighty deeds?"

     Moses was pleading above with the LORD to allow him to cross over the Jordan River and see the land to which the Israelites would soon enter. The meaning of Moses' pleading indicates that Moses has placed himself or dwells in the mercy and grace of God and knows that the LORD will bring him to a perfect end. The LORD will show Moses mercy and satisfy his plea, but in a way that will be different from what Moses is specifically requesting. The qualities of the LORD that Moses is relying upon, His greatness and His mighty deeds, are connected with the written Hebrew *aleph-tav (see *note below) and are therefore connected to the identity of the Messiah/Christ. The Hebrew scriptures indicate that Moses himself is also connected to Messiah/Christ because of the same *aleph-tav before his name, above.

     The New Testament describes this truth perfectly: "But without faith it is impossible to please Him (God), for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder (one who pays wages, to recompense, give, perform, reward) of those who diligently seek (seek carefully, search for, crave, worship) Him. (Heb. 11:6).

     No one asks the LORD for anything in prayer unless that person is confident that the Lord, in His mercy and favor, will hear that prayer, and has the power to answer that prayer in a manner that brings the situation to a perfect end according to His good and perfect will for us and for others involved.

     Moses also reminded the Israelites of how the LORD spoke His commandments and wrote them on tablets: "These (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-words the LORD spoke to all your assembly, in the mountain from the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice..." (Deut. 5:22). How could His people forget the power and majesty that the LORD displayed by His presence as He delivered the *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega Word to His people? We will see that it is sadly an easy thing for God's people to forget even their most principal knowledge of Him.

     The words that the LORD commanded were to live in the hearts of the people: "Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the LORD God of your fathers has promised you - a land (land, country, nations, the whole earth) flowing with milk (as abundance and fatness, the richest and choicest part, most excellent) and honey (honey, syrup, concentrated sweetness). Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart." (Deut. 6:3-6).

     The Word of God was never meant to remain simply words on a page. The living Words were meant to be seeds planted in the good soil of our hearts where it can live, thrive, multiply, and bear fruit abundantly. (see Mt. 13:23). The Words of God are to become an inseparable part of our being. As we also know, Jesus is defined as the Word of God become flesh (see Jn. 1:1-2, 14), and He is in the same manner to be part of our innermost being as we are to be in Him.

     Moses pleaded with God's people to understand the vision of God and to walk in it, reminding them how the LORD had delivered them with His great power. 

     From another of this Va-etchannan, "And I besought" Sabbath reading portion, the prophet Isaiah also calls God's people to perceive how immense the LORD truly is: "Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning (head, chief, beginning, first, captain, ruler, the top, highest, forefront)? Have you not understood from the foundations (the act of laying a foundation, a foundation that remains, founded, established, appointed, sure, ordain) of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes (king, prince, ruler, weighty, commanding) to nothing; He makes the judges of the earth useless...'To whom then will you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal?' says the Holy One. 'Lift up your eyes on high, and see (see, consider, behold, foresee, perceive, have vision, look intently at) who has created these things, who brings out their host (host, war, army, sun, moon, stars, go out to war, organize for war, appointed time) by number; He calls them all by name, by the greatness of His might and the strength of His power; Not one is missing....Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (Isa. 40:21-31, excerpt). The beginning and the foundation that Isaiah asks us about not only established the beginning, but also the middle, the end, and all things forever.

     Isaiah is asking God's people several questions above about their knowledge of the LORD. It is a knowledge that they should have already known: "Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?" Isaiah expected us to know what was revealed from the beginning, and from the foundations of the earth. Have we forgotten it? Is there an effort to keep this knowledge from us? We today must also answer Isaiah's questions. Do we know? Have we not heard? The beginning and the foundation of all creation, including the earth, was built upon one truth, and one substance. Let us look at some verses:

     "In the beginning (beginning, first fruits, first, chief, principal thing, choice part/head, chief, beginning, top, captain, best) God created (create, form, of new conditions and circumstances, of transformation, of birth, of miracles, of something new, choose, carve out, cut) (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-heavens (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-and-the-earth." (Gen. 1:1)

     The beginning was not a moment in time, but it was contained in a Person - the Head, the Chief, the Captain. By the Person, God brought forth something new, a birth, a transformation, a miracle, the chosen (see also Eph. 1:4). All that which would be created, which were the heavens and the earth, belonged to the *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega Messiah/Christ as designated in the written Hebrew (see also Jn. 1:1-3 and Rom. 11:36). Hebrews 1:1-3 also confirms: "God...has in these last days spoken to us by His Son (Jesus), whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the worlds/ages; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high...". We know that the beginning was Messiah/Christ, and was in and through Messiah/Christ.

     We also read: "He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn (see "beginning" above) over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist." (Col. 1:15-17). There is nothing that was created without Him or outside of Him. Is this truth being robbed from our knowledge by religions, fables and theories of men?

     The foundation (see meaning above) that Isaiah also asked us about above was built, we will read, upon and as the result of something that happened prior to the foundation, as a prerequisite to the foundation. We read in these verses:

     "...knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver, or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God." (1 Pet. 1:18-21). Revelation also tells us of a "...Book of Life of the Lamb (Jesus) who was slain from the foundation of the world." (Rev. 13:8).

     We view the natural foundations of the earth as rock and molten rock, but the eternal spiritual power upon which the foundation was established is not only the Son/Word of God, but more specifically, the foundation was built upon the preceding event in eternity of the sacrificed perfect Lamb of God, Messiah/Christ Jesus, and His redeeming blood.

     Since ancient times and up to today, there has been an effort to erase this knowledge that Isaiah asked us about from mankind, and to erase the resulting faith and hope of mankind.

     Scripture asks the question: "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? (Ps. 11:3). However, the victory is already won. It was won from the beginning. The LORD has already set His eternal and ordained King in place: "Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion.' I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, 'You are My Son, today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will give You the nations for Your inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Your possession." (Ps. 2:6-8). AMEN!

     If you would like to understand more about the beginning and foundation in Jesus Messiah/Christ, you can join my prayer: "Heavenly Father, how great You are! Though the heathens rage, You have already won and set Your King, our Savior, the Lamb of God over all the ends of the earth. Father, I will declare the holy Beginning and the sacrifice of Your Son upon which You have set the foundation of all creation. I will declare the knowledge so that it is not forgotten or lost. I will declare the hope in God that was established for us before anything made that was made. Your Word says that at the name of Jesus, all that is created must bow their knees before the King of heaven and earth. I ask, Lord, that the memory of this power and truth be restored and revived to all creation. The plans of the wicked to destroy this knowledge from our hearts has already been overcome by Your Son. Help me, Lord, to keep Your Word within my heart as Moses taught. I ask these things in the name of Your Son, Jesus. AMEN."

*NOTE: aleph-tav written in Hebrew as אֶת, are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The meaning of the two pictographic Hebrew letters can also be interpreted "Adonai (Lord) of the Cross/Covenant". In the New Testament, these letters are translated as Alpha and Omega written as ΑΩ, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. These letters are those by which Jesus Christ identifies Himself in the Book of Revelation: see Rev. 1:8, Rev. 21:6, Rev. 22:13. 

TheConsolation

      The title of this Sabbath's reading portion is Va-etchannan, meaning "And I besought." The portion begins with Moses' prayer to the LORD in Deuteronomy Chapter 3: Then I pleaded/besought with the LORD at that time saying: 'O LORD God, You have begun to show Your (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) servant Your greatness and Your mighty (vaw [nail]-aleph [Adonoi/Lord]-tav [cross/covenant]) hand, for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like Your works and Your mighty deeds? I pray, let me cross over and see the good (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains, and Lebanon." (v. 23-25). Moses was referring to the previous event when he was instructed by the LORD to speak to the rock in the wilderness in order for the rock to supply abundant water for the people and their animals, but Moses, in anger against God's people, struck the rock instead. (Num. 20:7-11).

      Because of this action of "unbelief" and not hallowing the name of the LORD before the people, the LORD told Moses that he would not be allowed to lead the people into the promised land. (Num. 20:12-13).  Moses said that he besought (hanan/hana - have mercy on, graciousness, favor, pity, implore, beseech, make supplication/bow down) the LORD about His decision to keep Moses from crossing into the promised land with the people. The aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega servant of the LORD, Moses, was bowing down and begging God to show grace and mercy to him and to allow Moses to go into the promised land with the people. We would expect the LORD to hear this earnest prayer for mercy from His servant and grant it. However, Moses said that the LORD "was angry with me on your account and would not listen to me." The LORD then answered Moses: "Enough of that! Speak no more to Me of this matter."  (Deut. 3:26). When Moses said that the LORD was angry with him "on your account", in Hebrew the word is ma'an and means: "purpose, to the end intent, for their benefit, for their welfare." The Lawgiver, Moses, could not lead the people in for the sake of their own good as the LORD saw it, but there was one who could: "But command (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Joshua ("Jehovah is salvation", Jehovah-saved), and encourage him and strengthen him; for he shall go over before this people, and he shall cause them to inherit the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) land which you will see." (v. 28). For the people's own good, it was better for Joshua to lead them in. The law, represented by Moses, testifies of and leads to something greater - the salvation of the LORD as we will see, and it is the salvation that leads us in. 

     Jesus referred to this something greater, which was Himself as salvation, when He said to the religious people, "You search the scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life." (Jn. 5:39-40).  Jesus also said, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill (pleroo/pleres - to accomplish, to make full, to complete, to carry through to the end, to carry into effect, to bring to realization/complete, filled up, to perfect lacking nothing)." (Mt. 5:17). The LORD said to Moses the Lawgiver that it was for the good of the people, for their sake, that salvation, Joshua, leads them into the land.

     As Moses experienced this heartbreak, the LORD offered him consolation: "Go up (ala - go up, ascend, climb, be taken up, brought up) to the top (ros - head, chief, principal, first, beginning, summit, captain, ruler) of Pisgah (pisga/pasag - a cleft/to consider, to contemplate), and lift (nasa - lift up, exalt, carry, bear up, extol, forgive, lofty, raise up, receive, be high) your eyes (ayin - sight, fountain, well, face, countenance) toward the west, the north, the south, and the east; behold it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over (abar - pass over, cross over, pass beyond, pass through, make to perish, make to cease to exist, make transition) this (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Jordan (yarden/yarad - descender, descending/sink down, be brought down to a lower region)." (Deut. 3:27). Moses would be given a vision of the land to console him. He, the Lawgiver, will see it by revelation from afar off, but he will not be able to cross over death: the descending, the sinking down, to get there. But Joshua, "Jehovah (LORD [YHWH: 'Behold the hand, behold the nail'] is salvation", can and will. Not only will he cross over, but he will lead all of the people to cross over with him.

     The words of the Lawgiver, Moses, and the Prophets are a light and a lamp that illuminate a path, but the path leads to a destination - The LORD: "Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path." (Ps. 119:105). This verse is the first verse that is written under the Hebrew letter NUN (נ) in Psalm 119. The pictographic Hebrew letter nun means "son, heir to the throne." In this week's Sabbath reading portion, Moses wrote this about our destination: "Hear O Israel: The LORD (YHWH, see above) our God is one (ehad/ahad - first, one, united, alike, altogether and apiece, together unitedly/unite, inseparably joined together like a sword of three edges)! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart." (Deut. 6:4-6).

     This Sabbath reading is also called Nachamu, meaning "Consolation". It is the Sabbath that follows the saddest day on the Jewish calendar, Tishah B'Av, the Ninth of Av. The Ninth of Av is the date of some tragic events in the history of the Jewish people (see the previous blog post "Speak" for more details). The Sabbath reading offers Isaiah 40 as a comfort and consolation to Israel after this day of mourning, just as the LORD offered revelation consolation to Moses in his moment of deep sadness mentioned above. Isaiah wrote the Word of the LORD to His people: "Comfort (naham - to console, to comfort, be comforted or consoled, repent, to draw a breath), yes, comfort (naham, see above) My people! Speak comfort (leb/lebab - heart, soul, inner man, kindly/mind, heart, soul, understanding) to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, that her warfare has ended, that her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the LORD's hand double for all her sins." (Isa. 40:1-2).

     This Word of consolation comes from the wilderness, the desert, crying "Prepare the way of the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God...The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (v. 3-5). (See more about the mouth and words spoken in the wilderness in the previous blog entry "Speak".) The consolation of Israel is the fact that the LORD is coming, and all eyes shall see Him! There is a Person who is known to the Jewish people as "The Consolation of Israel", and that Person is the Messiah/Christ. The consolation commanded here is not just a comforting feeling, but it is the LORD Himself. The words spoken here in chapter 40 by Isaiah were a prophecy fulfilled by the arrival of John the Baptist, who was anointed by God to point Israel to the Messiah, whom he identified as Jesus, saying, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (Jn. 1:19-36).

     This was the anointing of The Consolation from Isaiah 40: "He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall, but those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." (v. 29-31).

     When Jesus was born, eight days were completed for His circumcision, and Mary and her husband, Joseph, came to the temple in Jerusalem after the days of Mary's purification were completed as the Law required. There was a man in the temple named Simeon who was just and devout, and he was "waiting for the Consolation of Israel" to appear. Simeon had received a prophetic revelation from the Spirit of God that he would not die before he had seen The Consolation, and the Spirit had sent him to the temple on that very day: "And when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law, he (Simeon) took Him up in his arms and blessed God and said: 'Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your people Israel." (Luke 2:22-32). Simeon connected The Consolation of Israel, the Messiah/Christ, to the LORD's salvation.

     The prophet Isaiah also wrote that the people of God will proclaim and praise the naham consolation or comfort of the LORD, while connecting it to His salvation: "...Your anger is turned away, and You console/comfort (naham, see above) me. Behold, God is my salvation (Yesua), I will trust and not be afraid; for YAH, the LORD, is my strength and my song; He also has become my salvation (Yesua). Therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation (Yesua)." (Isa. 12:1-3).

     The Apostle Paul also wrote that consolation and salvation were connected together even through men's suffering and tribulation. He pointed out the source of that consolation: "...our consolation also abounds through Messiah/Christ." (Col, 1:1-7).

     Paul wrote this blessing to the believers in The Consolation of Israel: "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ (Messiah) Himself, and our God and Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation (paraklesis/parakaleo - a calling near, consolation, comfort, solace, of Messianic salvation/call to one's side, receive consolation, be comforted, encouraged, strengthened - see Deut. 3:28) and good hope by grace, comfort your hearts and establish you in every good word and work." (2 Thess. 2:16-17). It is the Lord's consolation and the power of hope through His grace that enables us to walk in His Word and Works. In this verse above, we see that the meaning of "consolation" in Greek is directly tied to the salvation work of the Messiah/Christ. He allows us to call Him to our side, and He calls us to His side to console and comfort us. Jesus told His disciples that He would send The Comforter/Consoler (parakletos), the Holy Spirit, to help them after He returned to His Father in heaven. (Jn. 14:15-18, Jn. 15:26). The Salvation and The Consolation again are connected together.

     As we go back to Isa. 40, which cries out for the consolation of God for His people, Isaiah prophesied of the "good tidings" that would come out of Zion and Jerusalem (v. 9, see also Lk. 2:10-12). These good tidings that Isaiah prophesied declares "Behold your God!" Even though the LORD God would come with a strong hand and arm to rule in this prophetic Word, He is also described as The Consolation: "He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young." (v. 10-11). Jesus (Yesua - "The LORD is salvation") said, "I am the good shepherd..." (see Jn. 10:11-16).

     This Sabbath of Nachamu, which follows Tishah B'Av, the Ninth of Av, a day of mourning and loss for the Jewish people, offers this promise of consolation to God's people. If you have suffered mourning and loss, His salvation consolation is available to you also. Who better to console and comfort His people than the LORD, YHWH (yod, hey, vaw, hey: "Behold the hand, behold the nail") who had experienced the suffering of man in His own flesh (Isa. 53:3-5), and welcomed the consolation and strengthening ministered to Him by angels? (Lk. 22:41-44, Mt. 4:10-11). Jesus said, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted." (Mt. 5:4). The LORD wants us to seek His consolation.

     If you would like to know more about The Consolation of Israel for your life, you can pray with me: "Heavenly and gracious Father, You have sent The Consolation of Israel, Your Son, Jesus, the Messiah/Christ, and my salvation. In these times, many who have suffered loss need Your consolation and comfort. In these challenging days, I and many others need the encouragement and strengthening of Your consolation to walk in Your Word and Works. You, the LORD's salvation, are able to lead me and this Your people to victoriously cross over the descent into death and to enter into the covenant promise of God, abundant and eternal life. I pray that many will begin to seek out Your salvation consolation, and You will lead them as Your flock. I ask these things in the name of Jesus. AMEN."

*NOTE: aleph-tav written in Hebrew as אֶת, are the first and last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The meaning of the two pictographic Hebrew letters can also be interpreted "Adonai (Lord) of the Cross/Covenant". In the New Testament, these letters are translated as Alpha and Omega written as Α Ω , the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. These letters are those by which Jesus Christ identifies Himself in the Book of Revelation: see Rev. 1:8, Rev. 21:6, Rev. 22:13.

Sights&Sounds

Last week, the Sabbath readings took us to the beginning of the fifth Book, Deuteronomy, or D'Varim, meaning (Words) in Hebrew. "Deuteronomy" is from the Greek language, and means "a repetition (of the Law)". We will see that Moses does repeat the Law to the Israelites as they camp along the eastern side of the Jordan River before they enter into the Promised Land. However, there is something else going on in this week's reading portion titled Va'etchannan, which means "And I besought". This portion begins in Chapter 3 of Deuteronomy, where Moses begs the LORD to allow him to enter the Land with the Israelites: "Then I pleaded with the LORD at that time, saying, "...I pray, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains, and Lebanon.' But the LORD was angry with me on your account, and would not listen to me. So the LORD said to me: "Enough of that! Speak no more to Me on this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah, and lift your eyes toward the west, the north, the south, and the east; behold it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over this Jordan." (Deut. 3:23-27). And the LORD told Moses that He was giving the leadership of the Israelites to Joshua, and Joshua would go over with the people. (v. 28). From our English translation, we might think that the LORD was strongly and perhaps callously denying the heartfelt request of Moses, who described himself to the LORD as His (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega, see Rev. 1:8, 21:6, 22:13) servant (ebed/abad (servant, bondservant, slave, worshipper, subject, laborer, worship and obey). (Deut. 3:24). However, if we look at the Hebrew meanings of the key words here, we will see that the LORD wants Moses to speak (dabar) no more about it, because his request, as a prophet of the LORD, actually limits God's purpose. In fact, the LORD, in answer to His servant's pleadings above, commands Moses to elevate the vision of his eyes and understanding. The LORD told Moses: "Enough!", or, "Let it suffice!". Unlike the meaning of our English understanding, the word "enough/suffice" in Hebrew is rab/rabab, meaning "great, much, prince, captain, master, multitude, mighty, abounding, exceedingly, increase, great understanding, vast, arrows, archers/multiplied, manifold, ten thousands, become many, expand, spread". Then the LORD told Moses to "go up", or ala in Hebrew, meaning: come up, offering, raised, arose, light, exalted, ascend, extend the boundary, lift oneself, overcome. "The top" is: ros - top, chief, captain, sum, beginning, height of the stars, highest, supreme, prince, first and foremost. "Of "Pisgah/pasag": cleft/contemplate, consider, accurately contemplate. The LORD doesn't want Moses to limit his vision to the land, even though Moses calls the land "good" (tob - of favor, goodness, delightful, joyful, benefits, precious, rich, sweet, upright). The physical land is a foregone conclusion, because it is a promise of God. However, at the pleading of Moses, the LORD does not ignore that pleading, but He commanded Moses, the prophet of God, to see beyond that to the truly awesome, unlimited destination of the LORD's VISION. God tells Moses to "lift up your eyes" (nasa - bare up, lift up, exalt, rise up, accept, marry, magnify, forgive/obtain pardon, raise up, grow, increase, lift up soul in desire (towards God). "Eyes", or ayin in Hebrew, not only means physical eyes and sight, but the understanding, a fountain, knowledge, judgment. Moses is told to look in the four directions from Mt. Pisgah: westward, northward, southward, eastward. These directions also translate from the Hebrew as "the roar of the sea, the nations by the sea and across the sea; that which is dark, hidden, obscure, of heaven; at the right hand; rising, rise up, shine, come forth, like rays of sunlight, appear. From the meanings of these fur directions, Moses was supposed to "see" the plan of salvation, including the resurrection of the Son Who is at the Right Hand of God. The LORD told Moses not to speak small things of a limited, natural understanding, but to lift up his eyes from the greatest height, and see beyond to what God has seen and purposed. Then Moses was to take this revelation knowledge and command (sava - appoint, ordain, lay charge upon, send with, delegate), encourage (hazaq - encourage, prevail, strengthen, press urgently, make firm, make bold, hold up and support, fortify), and strengthen (ames - courage, brave, establish, increase, assure, make alert, stenghten) (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Joshua (yehosua - "Jehovah is Salvation"). Joshua will bring the people into their inheritance, "which you will see (ra'a - look, behold, appear, consider, perceive, foresee)". (v. 28). This is a prophetic journey that requires the prophetic Vision of God given to His prophet, to a prophesied spiritual, as well as a physical destination. The LORD says to Moses, and to all of us, don't limit your vision, and don't speak that limited vision. Lift up your eyes and ra'a see! It is also interesting that the beginning place of this amazing encounter, Pisgah (v. 27), and the ending place of this encounter, Beth-Peor/Ba'al-Peor (see v. 29), were places from which Balaam tried to curse the Israelites for King Balak, but could not (see Num. 23:13-14, Num. 22:41). Man cannot curse what God has blessed, and the plans of God, established before the world was formed, will not be contradicted (see Rev. 13:8, 1 Pet. 1:19-20). In this Sabbath reading portion called Va'etchannan, or "And I besought", Moses repeated portions of the Law to the Israelites so that they would keep it when they entered the Promised Land in order to prosper, and keep their lives (see Deut. 4:1). However, also repeated several times within these three chapters of Deuteronomy, are specific sights and sounds that Moses never wants the Israelites to forget, because these sights and sounds make this nation of Israelites different from among all the nations of the earth: "For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the LORD our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day? Only take heed to yourself, lest you forget the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren, especially concerning the day you stood before the LORD your God in Horeb (horeb/harab - desert/dry up, desolate, laid waste, kill, decay, destroyer), when the LORD said to me, 'Gather the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) people to Me, and I will let them hear My (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) dabar words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children." (Deut. 4:7-10). Moses is about to repeat the sights and sounds that all of the Israelites saw and heard that they were to remember all of their lives, and teach to their children, and he will repeat the telling several times: "Then you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the midst of heaven, with darkness, cloud, and thick darkness. And the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; you only heard a voice. So He declared to you His (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) covenant (berit/bara - covenant, alliance, pledge, friendship, banquet, marriage, cutting:passing through pieces of flesh/miracles, create, something new, shape, form, transformation, eat, food, manifest) which He commanded you to perform, the Ten Commandments...". (Deut. 4:11-13). These were amazing and unforgettable sights and sounds, as the LORD made His presence known and His voice heard before His people in a place that can only be described as the devil's own stronghold of death, according to the meaning of Horeb (see above). Again, in another place, Moses said: "Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live? Or did God ever try and go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation...according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? (Deut. 4:33-34). Moses explained the reason why God had done this thing before their eyes: "To you it was shown that you might know that the LORD Himself is God; there is none other besides Him." (v. 35). Again Moses repeats: "Out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might instruct you; on earth, He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire." (v. 36). Moses told the Israelites that the LORD had done this because of His love for their fathers, and those fathers' descendants (v. 37). "Therefore", Moses Said, "know this day, and consider it in your heart, that the LORD Himself is God in heaven above, and on the earth beneath; there is no other." (v. 39). Therefore, God's people were to keep the Words that God spoke to them, His statues and commandments to prosper and prolong their days (written "behold" (hey), yamim - days, time, continually, ever, always) in the earth (adama - earth, nations, ground) forever (kol/kalal - all the whole, everything, all, whosoever, whatsoever/made perfect, made complete) (v. 40). This is where the Hebrew words are important, because Moses is revealing what he learned when he enlarged his Vision - that the LORD is talking about eternal life and perfection for whosoever in the whole earth. This is also the Gospel, our Good News. Again, Moses will repeat to the people: "Hear, O Israel, the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) statutes and judgments... (to learn and observe)...The Lord our God made a covenant with us in Horeb (see above)...with us, those who are here today, all of us who are alive. The LORD talked with you face to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire...you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up the mountain..." (Deut. 5:1-5). Moses repeated again: "These (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) words (the Ten Commandments) the LORD spoke to all your assembly, in the mountain from the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and He added no more..." (Deut. 5:22). And again he repeated: "So it was when you heard the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) voice from the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire..." (v. 23). These awesome sights and sounds that the people witnessed were never to be forgotten, but told to their children and children's children. The Word of God, which brings life (Jn. 1:1-5), was brought forth out of the stronghold of death, and only God can do that. This is the promise and the consolation that God has given to His people. The LORD confirmed and sealed the Word that was delivered on Mt. Horeb (part of the Sinai summits) with the signs and wonders of His fire, darkness, and voice. Jesus assured His disciple that He was the resurrection and the life when she was disconsolate over the death of her family member (Jn. 11:25-26). Jesus also said that the day was here when "...all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth..." (Jn. 5:26-29). As the LORD displayed before Moses and His people His Words of life from a mountain of death, Horeb, Jesus spoke His Words of life from the mountain of death called Calvary (kranion/keras - a skull/a horn), or in Hebrew, Golgotha (golgotha/gulgolet/galal - skull/every man/roll down, remove, roll away). From that place He said: "Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do", and told the criminal crucified next to Him, who had besought Him: "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."{Lk. 23:32-34, 42-43). These are also sights and sounds witnessed, recorded, and to be remembered forever. Those who beseech the LORD in their desperation, as Moses did, as one of the criminals who was crucified with Christ did, will not be turned away. This Sabbath is also the Sabbath that follows the sorrowful events that occurred to God's people throughout history on the Ninth of Av, or Tisha B'Av (see previous blog post titled "Words and Vision"). Because of this, this Sabbath's reading portion is also called Nachamu, from the Hebrew word naham, which means "comfort, repent, comforter, moved to pity, compassion, to pant or groan, to lament and grieve". For this portion titled Nachamu, Isaiah 40 is read in the synagogues: "Comfort, yes, comfort My people!' says your God. 'Speak comfort to Jerusalem, and cry out to her, that her warfare is ended, that her iniquity is pardoned; For she has received from the LORD double for all her sins." (Isa. 40:1). Just as Moses besought the LORD and received much more than he asked, God's people receive a double portion of comfort ("Comfort ye, Comfort..."), and not only that, but the pity and compassion of that double portion of comfort from the LORD leads to repentance from which God overcomes sin. Now this double portion of compassion is directed towards Jerusalem. However, the Vision of the LORD in this chapter of Isaiah encompasses the whole earth, as God is described as "...He who sits above the circle of the earth..." (v. 22). While some believed, and maps of old epicted, that the earth was flat well into the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods, the Greek, Eratosthenes, had calculated the circumference of a spherical earth in 240 BC. However, Isaiah had seen the Vision of God, and recorded the Vision with earth as a circle long before that, in around 750 BC. The Vision was written to bring to the remembrance of God's people how BIG God is, and the limitlessness of His power. In this same chapter of the double portion of comfort for His people in circumstances of desolation, God gave Isaiah another prophecy connected to the coming of the Messiah, the Anointed One, the Christ: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the LORD...The glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (v. 3-5). This is the prophetic promise, as part of a double portion of comfort, of the ministry of John the Baptist that would arrive many hundreds of years later as recorded in all four Gospels (Mt. 3:1-3, Mk. 1:4, Lk. 3:2-6, Jn. 1:19-23). He would be the prophet who called God's people to prepare with repentance of nachamu, and identified Jesus as the promised Messiah, saying, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (Jn. 1:29). He was the prophet who came out of the LORD's provision of the double portion of comfort for His people. The miraculous, unlimited, and all-powerful comfort and consolation of God to Moses, to His people, Israel, to the whole world, extends far beyond what we think: "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power (of Christ) that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen." (Eph. 3:20-21). With these inspired words, it sounds like Paul was preaching from the revelation of this week's Sabbath portion, doesn't it? Finally, of all the sights and sounds that the Israelites, that most special nation in the earth, were reminded of during this Sabbath reading portion of Va'etchannan, "And I besought", and Nachamu, "Comfort", was this sound: "HEAR, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength." (Deut. 6:4-5). If you would like to learn more about the comfort and consolation of God, you can pray with me: "Heavenly Father, You answered Moses when he besought You with a Vision of consolation that far surpassed his sorrow. You allowed Moses to receive the Vision of Your salvation, resurrection, and eternal life by the One, Your Son, Who sits at Your right hand. I want to remember always the sights and sounds when You revealed Your Son and Yourself to me. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so that I will always remember that moment and tell it to my children, and their children, amd so that I will always walk in the highest Vision of the double portion of the Comfort of the Almighty. I ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN."