HeartTablets

                                                      Tablets placed inside of the Ark of the Covenant/Testimony

       The title of this week's Sabbath reading portion is Eikev, which means, "Because/As a consequence of/following after." The title comes from Deuteronomy 7:12-13, as Moses spoke to the Israelites: "Then it shall come to pass because ('eqeb/eikeb  - because, end, consequence, gain, reward, result, the latter part, wages) you listen to (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-these-judgments, and keep and do them, that the LORD your God will keep with you (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-covenant and (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-mercy which He swore to your fathers. And He will love you and bless you and multiply you..." 

     For this study, we should pay special attention to the use of the words "the judgments", "the covenant", and "the mercy", and that all three are preceded by the *aleph-tav in the written Hebrew, which Jesus identified as being Himself (see *note below).

     In the readings for this Sabbath from Deuteronomy chapters 8, 9, and 11, Moses continually stresses, not just the law, but the kind of personal and intimate relationship that Israel should keep with the LORD and with His Word. Let us look at some of these instructions of Moses.

     Moses said: "Therefore you shall love (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-LORD your God, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always." (Deut. 11:1).

     "And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul (see also Deut. 6:4-5), then I will give you the rain for your land in its season...". (Deut. 11:13-14).

     "For if you carefully keep (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-all-these-commandments which I command you to do - to love (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him - then the LORD will drive out (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-all-these-nations from before you..." (Deut. 11:22-23).

     We can see that the keeping of the commandments is "the consequence of" or "follows after" (see 'eqeb/eikeb above) the love for the LORD. There are blessings that will also be "the consequence of" or "follow after" the keeping of God's Word in our love of Him as mentioned in the above verses. The LORD through Moses emphasizes the necessity of loving Him with all of our hearts.

     Moses gives even deeper instructions to the Israelites: "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart." (Deut. 6:6). Also, "Therefore you shall lay up (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-these-words-of-mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes." (Deut. 11:18).

     The Words of the LORD are not only to be obeyed, but they are to be internally placed upon/within our hearts.

      These things brought to my mind a visualization that I had not considered before. Let us go to the next step in the vision that the LORD will present to us through His pattern established with Moses.

     Moses received the first set of stone tablets which contained the Ten Commandments which the LORD Himself wrote on the mountain. The LORD then told Moses to hurry down from the mountain because the people below were committing a great sin. Moses hurried down from the mountain with those tablets to find that a golden calf idol had been molded and the people were raucously worshipping it. He threw down the stone tablets and broke them before the eyes of the people. He took their (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-sin, the golden (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-calf, and burnt it with fire, and then crushed and ground what was left of it into fine dust. He then threw (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-dust into the brook (nahal root- inherit, inheritance, heritage, give as a possession, receive anything as a possession) that descended from the mountain. (see Deut. 9:12-21).

     We have heard of this above account in scripture, but seeing the written *aleph-tav's connected to this event is very thought provoking.

     However, the LORD was not done. He would write again upon a new or second set of tablets, telling Moses: "...Hew (pasal - cut out of a quarry, to carve, building stones, hew off boughs to create a shape) for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to Me on the mountain and make yourself an ark ('aron/'ara - ark, chest, coffin/to gather, to reap, to collect together) of wood ('es/'asa - tree, wood, gallows, carpenter/ to shut, fasten, shut a door). And I will write on the tablets (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-words that were on the first tablets, which you broke; and you shall put them in the ark...And He wrote on the tablets according to the first writing, the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-Ten Commandments...Then I turned and came down from the mountain, and put (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-tablets in the ark which I had made; and there they are, just as the LORD commanded me." (Deut. 10:1-5, excerpt).

     As Moses described above, he was instructed to create an ark for the second set of commandments. We know that this ark containing the tablets of the Ten Commandments would later be placed in the innermost chamber of the tabernacle, the Holy of Holies. An additional item would be added to the construction of the ark: a gold covering around the wooden chest of the ark, and a special solid piece of gold for the top of the chest, called the Mercy Seat (kapporeth - to cover, atonement covering), that would also include as one piece two covering angels with wings. Jewish teaching also refers to the space above the ark of the covenant/testimony as the Throne of God. 

     Therefore, the Words are carved on the tablets of stone, which tablets are kept or concealed within the wooden ark, which is directly under the Mercy Seat covering and, at the same time, under the covering wings of the two angels. For me, this is a visualization of our relationship with Jesus Messiah/Christ.

     There are many scriptures that instruct us to write the Word of God on/in our hearts, some even say specifically "the tablets of our hearts": "Let not mercy and truth forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet (luah - of stone or wood on which anything is carved) of your heart." (Prov. 3:3). Also: "My son, keep my (the father's) words, and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live, and my law as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart." (Prov. 7:1-3). Other references to the Words of God being in our hearts can be found in Prov. 6:21, Prov. 4:20-21, Ps. 119:11.

     The prophet Jeremiah connects the writing of God's Word in our hearts to a new covenant: "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-house of Israel and with (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-the-house of Judah - not according to the covenant that I made with (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-their-fathers...(*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-My-covenant which they broke (parar - to break to bits, shatter, split, crack through, break apart, crumble, destroy)...But this is the covenant that I will make...I will put (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-My-law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people...For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more." (Jer. 31:31-34, also Heb. 8:8-12).

     For me, according to this spiritual pattern and vision, the tablets of stone upon which the LORD wrote His commandments represents the hearts of His covenant people, particularly His new covenant people represented by the second set of tablets. Why would our hearts be shown in this vision pattern to be of stone? The prophet Ezekiel wrote the Word of the LORD regarding stony hearts that are transformed: "Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-My-Spirit within you and cause you to walk (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega)-in -My-statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them." (Ezek. 36:25-27, see also Ezek. 11:19-20). Paul followed this same vision pattern, writing: "...clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart." (2 Cor. 3:3).

     Why two tablets according to scripture? Perhaps because the Body of Messiah/Christ and the inclusion of the nations as spoken by God prophetically, is of two peoples: Jewish and Greek/Gentile who become as one man through faith in Messiah/Christ. (see Rom. 1:16-17 and 1 Cor. 12:12-14).

     The ark of wood (see meaning above) in this vision pattern that I am seeing, into which the tablets are placed, hidden, or gathered, is Messiah/Christ. The Hebrew letters that make up 'aron, or ark in English, are aleph, reysh, vaw and nun. The individual meanings of each letter, when joined together can mean: "The Lord Adonai who is the highest, the head, the first and the beginning, is joined to or nailed to, the son, faithful and continual, who is heir to the throne." Paul also wrote of this vision pattern: "If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above....Set your minds on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory." (Col. 3:1-4). Jesus told us to abide in Him, rather than just "with" Him. (see Jn. 15:4-5).

     I am saying that the vision pattern has us, as living tablets, permanently inside the Ark of the Covenant/Testimony, which is Messiah/Christ, and inside the Holy of Holies, where no flesh was allowed to go, except once a year by the high priest on the Day of Atonement. The Book of Hebrews says that we now have full, bold, and unlimited access to the Holy of Holies, because of the work of Christ on the cross and His atoning blood that was shed. (Heb. 10:19-23).

     The vision pattern does not end there, but continues.

     So far, the Word of God is written on/in the tablets of our hearts. The tablets, our hearts, are gathered and hidden within the ark, Jesus. The ark is positioned under the solid gold Mercy Seat, which receives the atoning blood of the sacrifice (Messiah/Christ: see Heb. 10:19-23 above). Above the Mercy Seat, and hammered from the same piece of solid gold, are the overspreading wings of the covering angels. Let us look at some scriptures pertaining to this place of the mercy and wings of Elohim (the name of God meaning the exceedingly great God and His angels):

     The Book of Hebrews again teaches: "Let us therefore (through our sympathetic High Priest, Jesus) come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Heb. 4:15-16).

     "For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide (gur - dwell, abide, gathered, gather together [see 'aron/ark above], stand in awe) in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter (seter - secret place, hiding place, covering, carefully hidden) of Your wings." (Ps. 61:3-4). David wrote this Psalm referring to the tabernacle of God as his dwelling place forever, specifically in the hiding place of God's wings.

     "He (the Most High) shall cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler." (Ps. 91:4).

     "Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul (nehfesh - soul, life, breath, mind, heart, tablet) trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by." (Ps. 57:1 by David).

     "How precious is Your lovingkindness (hesed - mercy, goodness, merciful, kindness, love, favor), O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings." (Ps. 36:7 by David).

     David wrote of this same vision of the spiritual pattern that Moses presented to Israel, and which was later fulfilled in Messiah/Christ, Jesus. David also referred to this place under the mercy and wings as a refuge, as a place of our trust and hope. It is also written in the Book of Hebrews: "...it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil (referring to the Holy of Holies of the tabernacle), where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (meaning "King of Righteousness")." (Heb. 6:18-20).

    The idea of our eternal home in the Holy of Holies, within Messiah/Christ, is not far-fetched, but is confirmed in scripture, both by pattern, as Moses gave, and by written Word, as we see above. We are in the world, but not part of the world, as Jesus said, although it seems that we often leave the privilege of our awesome and glorious dwelling in the holy Presence in order to become entangled in the cares of the world which are passing away. However, our position in the Holy of Holies, hidden in Messiah/Christ, is a powerful position - remember the Word of God that is written in our hearts? That Word contains all of God's promises to mankind. That Word contains the plan and provision of God's Kingdom of salvation through His Son. By our position in the Holy of Holies, we bring this Word before God's throne of mercy every moment, every day, and from every corner of the globe.

     I want to always dwell in Messiah/Christ Jesus under the mercy and wings of God.

     If you would like to know more about dwelling in the Holy of Holies in Messiah/Christ, you can join my prayer: "Dearest Father, let Your Word always be written on the tablets of my heart. Let me desire to dwell in the tabernacle of the LORD all the days of my life. Help me by Your Holy Spirit to understand more about ministering Your Word from this exalted and holy place within Christ Jesus, and under Your blood atonement mercy and the refuge of Your wings. I didn't understand the holy place that Jesus went to before us in order to prepare for us, so that where He is, we may be also. Through our Savior, Jesus, we have received this glorious honor, and I thank You, Father, for this awesome purpose in You. I bless and exalt My Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in Jesus' name. 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. 

 

MercyPower

      This Sabbath reading portion is titled Eikev, which means "because, as a consequence of, following after, as a result of." The Hebrew word appears as part of Deut. 7:12: "Then it shall come to pass (in Hebrew: "Vehaya ekev"), because you listen to these (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) judgments (mispat/sapat - judgment, manner, order, measure/judge, defend, deliver, vindicate, punish, act as a lawgiver, plead), and keep and do them, that the LORD your God will keep with you (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) the covenant and (vaw-aleph-tav, with a meaning that includes: "Adonai, the Lord, nailed to the cross of the covenant") the mercy (hesed/hasad - mercy, loving-kindness, goodness, favor, pity, faithfulness, beauty, desire, ardor, zeal, love, rarely meaning reproof/to be good, kind, rarely meaning reprove, put to shame) which He swore to your fathers."

     There is much to look at from the verse above. The word eikev/ekev has a root word in Hebrew, aqab, which means "to take by the heel, to follow at the heel," which is also the root word of the name Jacob in scripture, who was born following after his twin brother, holding onto him by the heel. Therefore we can see how closely a consequence may follow after something - right at its heel.

     There are several things we can learn in the Hebrew word for "judgments," above. The written Hebrew associates the *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega mispat judgment with Jesus Messiah/Christ (see *note below). Within its meaning in Hebrew, "judgments" includes the understanding of a kind of "measure." Again this is associated with Jesus by Paul who wrote that we, as believers in Jesus Messiah/Christ, are to come "to the measure (metron - a measuring rod, the rule or standard of judgment, determined extent, the due) of the stature of the fulness of Christ." (see Eph. 4:11-13). 

     The Hebrew meaning of "judgment" also includes the idea of a law-giver and also the act of pleading. In this Sabbath Eikev reading portion, Moses tells the Israelites how he, known as "the law-giver," repeatedly pleads for the mercy of God towards the rebellious Israelites. (see Deut. 9:18-19, 10:10-11). As a consequence of this (see the meaning of Eikev above) pleading by Moses the vaw-aleph-tav mercy of the LORD was extended to His people. The apostle James wrote that mercy triumphs over/rejoiceth over (katakauchaomai - boast against, "mercy boasts itself superior to judgment", to glory against, to exult over, full of glad confidence over) judgment for those who have shown mercy. (see James 2:12-13). Jesus also said, "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." (Mt. 5:7). The LORD told His prophet what He expected from His people: "He has shown you O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you but to do justly (see mispat above), to love mercy (see hesed above), and to walk humbly (sana - be humble, be modest, be lowly, keep close, reserve, preserve) with your God." (Micah 6:8). The privilege of walking with God requires that we walk in His character, which includes mercy.

     In an earlier encounter with Moses after he had broken the tablets of the Ten Commandments because of the terrible sin the people had committed, the LORD covered Moses by proclaiming His name: "Now the LORD descended in the cloud and stood with him (Moses) there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD. And the LORD passed before him and proclaimed, 'The LORD, the LORD God merciful (meaning compassionate) and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy (see hesed above) for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin..." (Ex. 34:5-7). The LORD also assured in the proclamation of His name that He by no means clears the guilty, with the third and fourth generations seeing "the consequences that follow on the heels of" (see eikev above) that iniquity (aon - punishment, fault, sin, depravity, evil, perversity, guilt, great guilt). We may conclude that the nature of this iniquitous guilt is its refusal to be repented of and as a result of that (see eikev above) it is not placed under the mercy of God.

     As we see from the Hebrew meaning of hesed mercy above, it also includes the idea of reproof. However, being a part of God's mercy, the reproof given to God's people is like the reproof of a parent to a child, as Moses said in this Eikev Sabbath reading portion: "You should know in your heart that as a man chastens (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) his son, so the LORD chastens you. Therefore you shall keep (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) the commandments of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him." (Deut. 8:5-6).

     Also included in the meaning of hesed mercy above is the emotion from which it comes forth: desire, ardor, zeal, love. Because of this ardent love and desire, God manifested His hesed mercy by sending His Son not to condemn but to save whoever will receive this mercy: "For God so loved (agapao/agab - to love dearly/to dote upon, to breathe after, wonder, beloved) the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (Jn. 3:16-17).

     Judgment will come, both to the individual and to a prophesied great evil that will rise up to enslave the world and persecute the believers in God and Messiah/Christ. The judgment of the just God is assured and will be devastating to all who have refused the covering of mercy that has been provided in His Word and in the Person of the Son of God, who is also The Word (see Jn. 1:14). The Father has placed all judgment into the hands of His Son, Jesus Messiah/Christ. (see Jn. 5:22-27, Rev. 6:15-17). Considering the calamity of the judgment, and the power of mercy over judgment, what place of eminence should the hesed mercy of God have in our prayers, our words, our message and our walk?

     In another reading portion from this Eikev Sabbath, we can read that every great and wondrous work the LORD, the God of gods, the LORD of lords, has done from His creation onward, has been driven by His hesed mercy. Not only were the wondrous works powered by mercy, but were a testimony of the hesed mercy of God. Psalm 136 has the repeated refrain after every work of power of God: "...for His mercy (see hesed above) endures forever (olam - ever, everlasting, perpetual, evermore, always)." The psalmist declared the mercy of God over every great work and covered them with that mercy. Do we declare and apply this eternal power of mercy over the precious works of God?

     The prophet Jeremiah wrote the Word of the LORD: "Through the LORD's mercies (see hesed above) we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. 'The LORD is my portion,' says my soul, 'Therefore I hope in Him!" (Lam. 3:22-24). 

     We are all products of His mercy.

     If you would like to learn more about incorporating the power of mercy into your life and walk with God, you can pray along with my prayer: "Heavenly and merciful Father, You extended Your mercy to me and touched and changed my life with Your Son, Jesus. While I receive Your loving mercy with joy and thanks, help me to extend and minister the truth of this same mercy to others. Help me by Your Holy Spirit to tell and show others that Your powerful mercy can overcome all judgment for those who will believe and receive it. Help me to reveal the truth that Your work of creation and all of Your works were accomplished through mercy towards me and all of us. Your Son could have judged and destroyed those who sought to kill Him, but He became even more powerful than that, extending overcoming mercy to them instead. In that power, He changed the world. He changed me. I give You all of my thanks, worship and praise, Lord, for Your overcoming mercies that are new to me and to all every morning. By and in Jesus' name, 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. 

Mercy&Humility

      The title of this week's Sabbath reading portion is Eikev, which means "Because". It may also be expressed "as a consequence of". The chapters from Deuteronomy that are part of this reading portion are chapters 8-11. Moses was recounting the history of the relationship between the Israelites and God up to that point, and it had been a contentious relationship.

     This reading portion begins with Moses saying to the Israelites: "Every commandment which I commanded you today you must be careful to observe, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) land of which the LORD swore to your fathers. And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test/prove you, to know (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) what was in your heart (lebab - inner man, mind, will, heart, soul, understanding, conscience, inclination, mode of thinking and acting), whether you would keep His commandments or not." (Deut. 8:1-2). There is a consequence or result to observing the LORD's commandments here: to live, to multiply, to go into the promised land. 

     The way that the LORD had led Israel through the wilderness was not an arbitrary way. It was the way that was connected to the prophesied Messiah, designated by the written Hebrew letters aleph-tav (see * explanation at the bottom of the entry). The first purpose of the wilderness was to humble the people according to the verse above. These were former slaves, treated as lowly servants of Pharaoh, yet it was still required that they be humbled before the LORD. This is also the way of the Messiah/Christ: "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant (doulos/deo - slave, bondman, servile condition, one who gives himself up to another's will, devoted to another to the disregard of one's own interests/to bind tie, fasten, fasten with chains, to be bound to one), and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow....and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ (Messiah) is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:5-11). This is the *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega way of the Messiah/Christ.

     God's second purpose of the forty-year way through the wilderness was to test the Israelites. This is an interesting word in Hebrew. It is the word nasa, which in this case means "to test, to put to the proof, to try by the smell." Yes, there is a smell test! There is a fragrance that results, or is a consequence of, our love and service to God. There is an expected fragrance to those who follow the *aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega way of the Messiah/Christ: "Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing." (2 Cor. 2:14-15). What is the fragrance of Messiah/Christ? It is the fragrance of one humbled and obedient, as a servant bound to the will of His Father in heaven. All four Gospels give the account of this fragrance. It is like the fragrance of the most precious and costly anointing ointment (spikenard: nardo + pistikos - East India plant yielding juice of delicious odor used in the most precious ointment + pertaining to belief, faith, assurance, producing belief) poured out upon Jesus six days before His death on Passover that marks one as walking humbly but powerfully in death to self (see Mt. 26:6-10, Mk. 14:3-9, Lk. 7:36-50, Jn. 12:1-8).

       The LORD also that the humbling and proving that He did with the Israelites in the wilderness was "to do you good in the end (aharit/ahar - latter time, future, the last or end, end time/afterwards [of time])." (Deut. 8:14-17).  As we are in the latter times, the end times, before the return of the Messiah/Christ, it becomes most important that we are humble, and that we pass "the smell test" in this regard as our faith is tried and proven.

     Moses defined our humility before the LORD: "And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love (ahab - beloved, to desire, to breathe after, long for, to produce fruit, germinate and shoot forth) the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) LORD (Hebrew letters yod, hey, vaw, hey: "Behold the hand, behold the nail") your God and serve (abad - serve, servant, worship, to serve as a subject, slave, bondman) Him with all your heart, and with all your soul, then..." (Deut. 11:13, see also Deut. 6:4-6, Mt. 22:37-40). This command to love the LORD totally and serve Him was the command that Moses was leaving with the Israelites. Jesus said that the whole law and the prophets were contained in this command (Mt. 22:36-40). 

     Moses explained to the Israelites that even if they are flourishing and living in wealth, it is still necessary to humble oneself before the LORD. The humility is in the understanding that the LORD supplies the air that we breathe, the rain in the proper season that's necessary to grow the food that we eat and that our animals eat (Deut. 11:13-15). We cannot supply these necessary things to live, but the LORD supplies them for us. Money and possessions are enjoyable, and to some unfortunately they are the most important things in life, but those things cannot buy the air that you need to breathe: "Therefore you shall lay up these (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes...Then your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the LORD swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth." (Deut. 11:18, 21).

     In another reading portion from this Eikev, "Because" Sabbath, a Psalm was written in thanksgiving for the mercy (hesed - goodness, kindness, faithfulness, desire, ardor, love, eager and ardent desire) of the LORD towards us that endures forever: TO HIM who does great wonders, TO HIM who made the heavens by wisdom, TO HIM who laid out the earth, TO HIM who made the great lights in heaven, TO HIM who struck the slave masters of Egypt, TO HIM who divided the Red Sea, TO HIM who led His people through the wilderness, TO HIM who struck down great kings on behalf of His people...it is to Him whom we give eternal thanks. (see Ps. 136). Only the LORD can do these things, and He does them out of faithful, ardent love which is His mercy.

     There is another side to the meaning of the hesed mercy of the LORD. Hesed also contains the meaning: "reproach, wicked thing, revile, shame, put to shame." There is nothing more shameful than to refuse to return the ardent love, goodness and kindness of God when considering the supernatural mercies that have been extended to us. Shame falls upon us when we forget the hesed mercy of the LORD.

     From another reading portion of this Eikev Sabbath, Psalm 19 wants us to consider "The Perfect Revelation of the LORD" according to the notation in my Bible. In this Psalm, David wants us to consider the heavens that declare the glory of God (v. 1-6). We know that the LORD has arranged the heavens into perfect gravitational balance and revolution so that the earth can support abundant life. The sun cannot pull the earth into its burning heat, and the outer planets cannot pull us into the cold darkness of space, but rather, we hang in the perfect balance between those powerful forces. The LORD maintains this balance by calling the heavenly bodies by name into their set places: "He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name. Great is our LORD and mighty in power; His understanding is infinite. The LORD lifts up the humble; He casts the wicked down to the ground." (Ps. 147:4-6). Is the LORD not to be loved, thanked and glorified above all else for this brilliant mercy towards us? It is indeed shameful to walk in the benefits of these great mercies of God, but to refuse to continually love and acknowledge Him for them.

     One of the greatest expressions of the LORD's hesed mercy, ardent love, and desire for us is found in these words spoken by Jesus: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (Jn. 3:16-17). Here is the shameful side of that mercy: "...And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil." (Jn. 3:18-19). Rather than the humble, grateful acceptance of the sacrificial hesed mercy and avid love of God, it is refused in the pride and self-righteousness that dwells in men's hearts to their shame. Why refuse His great hesed mercy?

     Moses had a warning about the development of self-righteousness in the hearts of God's people when they see God remove the Canaanite nations from the promised land before them: "Do not think in your heart after the LORD God has cast them out before you, saying, 'Because of my righteousness the LORD has brought me in to possess this (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) land (eres also means the whole world)'; but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is driving them out from before you. It is not because of your righteousness or the uprightness of your heart that you go in to possess their land..." (Deut. 9:4-6). These verses also say that God will dispossess those nations "that He may fulfill the (*aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) word which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." It is very easy to lose our humility and become self-righteous before the LORD when He does wonders and shows favor on our behalf. Moses' serious warnings to the Israelites had to do with the issues of their hearts towards the LORD. Their fall, he warned, would not come from the actions of outward enemies, but from the sinful nature of their inward hearts.

     Jesus warned of the religious pride and self-righteousness that are traps into which we can so easily fall. He spoke of those who were religious "elite" who thought they deserved the greatest honors, titles and recognition, and did things to be impressive in men's eyes rather than for the love of God. However, the truth of the kingdom of God is this, Jesus said: "But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Mt. 23:1-12). Jesus said that God is spirit, and the Father was seeking those who worship Him in spirit and in truth. The Holy Spirit, of whom we are to be filled as believers in Christ, is of the humblest character, never exalting Himself, but only revealing the glory and truth of the Father and the Son. We should be of the same heart and character.

     The apostle James wrote: "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble...Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up." (James 4:6, 10). Peter wrote similarly: "Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for 'God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.' Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Pet. 5:5-7).

     If you would like to know more about the work in our lives of humility before the LORD, you can pray with me: "Heavenly Father, give me a humble heart to love You and serve You, even as Your Son, Jesus, humbled Himself to serve Your will and way. It is because of this humility that Your raised Him up and exalted Him for Your glory. You are magnified and glorified in the hearts of the humble. Be glorified in my heart today, LORD, and forgive me when I think more highly of myself than I ought. Change my innermost thoughts to conform to Your Word and Spirit. I thank You for the hesed mercy that You show to me daily. I pray in Jesus' name. 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.

Behind&Within

We read in last week's Sabbath reading portion that Moses pointed out to the Israelites that no other nation on earth had ever been given the privilege of seeing and experiencing the LORD as they had seen and experienced Him (see Deut. 4:7-9, 33-35, 5:26). These great wonders that the LORD revealed before Israel were to give them a knowledge of Him that made them His unique people in all the earth, and so that they would pass this knowledge down to their children and grandchildren, and so on. All of these marvellous things were in keeping with the promise that the LORD had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob concerning their descendants, the Land, and even the Messiah who would come (see Gen. 49:8-12). Our current Sabbath readings are in Deuteronomy, which is from the Greek language, and refers to a "repetition (of the Law)". The Hebrew title of this Book of the Bible is D'Varim, meaning "Words", as Moses spoke the words to the Israelites. While parts of the Law are repeated by Moses to the people in Deuteronomy, I have learned that there is more to this fifth Book than that. This Sabbath's reading portion is titled Eikev, which means "Because" or "It follows", and it covers Deuteronomy chapters 8 through 11. The Hebrew letters that make up the word Eikev are ayin, qoph, beth. Each of these letters has an individual meaning that, when put together, could mean "See, understand, and experience what is behind and within". Moses spoke of more than the specifics of the Law. He spoke to the people of the understanding that was expected of them because of what they had seen with their eyes: "Know today that I do not speak with your children, who have not known and who have not seen the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega: see Rev. 1:8, 21:6, 22:13) chastening (musar/yasar - instruction, correction, reproof, doctrine/teach, correct,admonish, reformed) of the LORD your God, His greatness and His mighty hand and His outstretched arm - His signs and His acts...but your eyes have seen every great (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) act of the LORD which He did." (Deut. 11:2-7, excerpt). As we see the Hebrew meaning of the word "chastening" used above, we are reminded of what Paul said that believers in Christ should know about all scripture: "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Tim. 3:16). Paul was describing the concept of tje Hebrew word musar, as Moses did, regarding the scriptures. Paul also wrote that the scriptures make us wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15). We will see that something is required from those who have experienced Christ personally, as it was from the Israelites who had experienced God personally. Yes, obedience is required, but it is an obedience that should come from love for the LORD, whom we have been allowed to experience for ourselves: "Therefore, you shall love (ahab - love, lover, friend, beloved, loving, desire, breathe after, longing, delight) the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) LORD your God, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always...For if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do - to love the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) LORD your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to him, ...if you earnestly obey my commandments which I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul...then the LORD will...". (Deut. 11:1, 13, 22-23). In another verse from our reading portion Moses tells the Israelites regarding the Law: "And now, Israel, what does the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) LORD your God require (sa'al - require, ask, seek, borrow, beg, pray) of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD..." (Deut. 10:12-13). In Deuteronomy, Moses cannot separate obedience to the Law from love: the love that God has for His people, and the love that they must have for Him. The Israelites understood and experienced what it was like to serve Pharaoh under the hard bondage of slavery, but it was essential to see and understand that they now served the King of the universe, but this service must be founded in love. The LORD told the Israelites that He chose them based upon love: "...the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers...The LORD delighted only in your fathers to love them; and He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day. Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be stiff-necked no longer." (Deut. 7:6-8, 10:15-16). As the Hebrew letters of the title of this Sabbath's reading portion, Eikev, tell us, we are to "see, understand, and experience what is behind and within" our relationship with the LORD. This understanding will be a continuous living fountain (also part of the meaning of the Hebrew letter ayin) for us. Last week we read that Moses taught Israel: "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). Jesus also taught that this was the great commandment that encompasses the whole Law, and all that was written by the prophets (Mt. 22:36-38). Jesus also added that the second great commandment is of the same nature, and must follow the first: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Those to whom it is granted to experience the LORD personally are expected to follow that experience with a complete and total love for Him, the same as, we will see, the love that He professes for His people. The LORD is not looking for religion, but a reciprocal, loving relationship, and from that flows our obedience and service to Him and His Word. I'm sure that many already know this, but this Sabbath's reading teaches us that from this love flows everything else. Why is the LORD so insistent that the relationship with Him be based upon love here in Deuteronomy? There is something vital that we have to understand. Paul wrote that even those who move mightily in spiritual gifts, that without the knowledge of this kind of love, they are nothing, and have nothing. (1 Cor. 13:1-8). It sounds like Paul was again teaching from his knowledge of Moses and the true nature of the Law. Hopefully many of us would quickly say, "Yes, I love God like that!" However, this is not based upon a worldly or common understanding of love, but is based on a love that is the power of God's mighty Word and works, even resurrection, as we will learn. We can't practice this kind of love unless we understand ("see behind and within") what God is "requiring" of us regarding it. We may be able to see more about this love from another of this Sabbath's reading portions, which is Psalm 136. In this psalm, the writer records God's mighty deeds including creation, the deliverance of the Israelites out of the bondage of Egypt through Passover, the dividing of the Red Sea so that His people could pass through and their pursuing enemies could be destroyed, the leading of His people through the wilderness, and the miraculous victory over great kings on their behalf there, bringing His people into the land of their inheritance, rescuing them from enemies, and the provision which the LORD faithfully provided for them, and all living. Between recounting all of these great acts of the LORD, there is the same refrain: "For His mercy endures forever." The word "mercy" can mean many things to us, but this is the meaning of mercy, or hesed, in Hebrew: hesed/hasad - mercy, kindness, goodness, favor, pity, desire, ardor, love, zeal//reproach, wicked thing, put to shame, be reproached, disgrace). Even the creation, and every act of God, was fueled by hesed loving mercy according to this psalm. As we can see, there is a great love, desire and ardor attached to the favor and kindness of God's hesed mercy. However, because of this great zealous love, those who harmfully touch the beloved of God will fall on the other side of hesed mercy, which is wickedness, shame, reproach and disgrace. The same hesed loving mercy that parted the waters of the Red Sea to save God's people, covered the Egyptians in death. Moses described this event as salvation: "And Moses said to the people, 'Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) salvation (yeshua - also the Hebrew name of Jesus) of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the (aleph-tav/Alpha and Omega) Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." (Ex. 14:13-14). We can understand why "salvation" is identified with the aleph-tav of Christ in this verse, but why were the Egyptians connected to the aleph-tav, as well? Perhaps because they knew who God was. They had Joseph as their witness to the hesed favor and loving mercy of God generations before. It was God's hesed loving mercy that had saved Egypt from seven years of famine as they safely harbored His loved people, Israel. The generation of Egyptians who knew Moses had the hesed mercy witness of the signs, wonders, and miracles which the God of Israel had done in their midst. The LORD had revealed His mighty hand and His outstretched arm before them (Deut. 11:2-3, Ps. 136:10-12). Even after witnessing all of these things, the Egyptians had willingly disconnected themselves from the eikev knowledge, the hesed mercy, and the ahab love of the LORD. It is this same love that caused the Father in heaven to send His Word of Salvation in the flesh, His Son, Jesus, to save the world, and bestow everlasting life (Jn. 3:14-17). Paul described it this way: "Blessed be the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself...by which He made us accepted (charitoo/charis - to make graceful, lovely, charming, agreeable, highly favored, to compass with favor/good will, lovingkindness, spiritual condition of divine grace) in the Beloved (agapao - love, beloved, much love)." (Eph. 1:3-6). We have been accepted by love into Love, through Christ. Paul also wrote: "But God demonstrates His own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom. 5:8). God has "conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God..." (Col. 1:13-15). Jesus clearly identified Himself and us in connection to the Father's love: "As the Father loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love...keep My commandments...just as I have kept My Father's commandments...This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you." (Jn. 15:9-14, excerpt). Jesus gives us the connection that flows from love to obedience. He identifies His laying down of His life as an act of love, which led to His obedience (Phil. 2:5-11, Jn. 10:17). We accept this love that led to our salvation, but the journey of love, as with the Israelites, does not end there. Something more is required of us. John wrote that our identity to God, to each other, and to the world is not based upon how gifted we are, how many scriptures we know, or how well we preach, pray or sing hymns, but our identifying characteristic is the same as the identifying characteristic of God Himself, and His Son. That identifying characteristic is love. The subtitle of this section in my Bible is "Knowing God Through Love". It begins: "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God...for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son..." (1 Jn. 4:7-11). The same ahab love and hesed loving mercy that created all things, and created a people, Israel, for His own possession, loved us also into salvation and eternal life, and also commands us in His love, not for His sake but for ours, to love Him with all our heart, all our soul, and with all our strength, and like it, to love our neighbor as ourselves. These are the two great commandments. If you, like myself, would like to learn more about loving God and obedience to His commandments, you can pray with me: "Heavenly Father, You created me and called me to Your salvation in love. Open my eikev seeing and understanding so that I can know what is behind and within Your Word and all of Your marvellous acts: Your love. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit, and create in me the love that You require of me, and the mighty and holy fruit of obedience which follows it. I need to love You with the same measure of love with which Your Son, Jesus, loved You. You have adopted me as one of Your sons for this purpose. I ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN."

Moses

This week's Sabbath reading is titled Eikev, meaning "Because", from Deuteronomy Chapters 8 through 11. The individual Hebrew letters that form the word Eikev, ayin, qoph, and beth, each have a meaning. These letters when assembled together can mean ""a people, or house, that sees, understands and experiences the past". These were exactly the group of Israelites whom Moses was addressing in this reading: "...you shall love the LORD your God,, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always. Know today that I do not speak to your children, who have not known, and who have not seen the chastening of the LORD your God, His greatness, and His mighty hand and His outstretched arm - His signs and His acts which He did in the midst of Egypt...what He did for you in the wilderness until you came to this place...but your eyes have seen every great act of the LORD which He did." (Deut. 11:1-7, excerpt). Moses was talking to the Israeites who had seen and experienced the LORD in mighty ways. A different level of understanding is expected of such a people because they know God from experiencing Him. As Moses said, such a people should be keeping the LORD's commandments which He gave to them, not out of a religious obligation, but out of a love for God. Love is not acquired by word of mouth, but through experiences by which one has become intimately acquainted with and knowledgeable of another. Therefore Moses said to the people who have experienced God: "...I command you today, to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul....Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes." (v. 13, 18). This exhortation of Moses to the people of Israel came on the day when Israel would cross over the Jordan River into the Promised Land (see Deut. 9:1-3). This also meant, therefore, that this would be the day of Moses' death, because God had told Moses previously that he would not be allowed to go into the Promised Land with the people. All of the rest of the chapters of Deuteronomy that will follow will be his last words to the people. Moses also reminded the people of an interesting point. He revealed to the people that on several different occasions, he had prostrated himself and fasted without food or water before God for forty days. He did this when receiving the Word covenant of the LORD for the people on Mt. Sinai, and also in intercession before God to prevent His anger from destroying the people because of their idolatry, rebellion and wickedness before Him (see Ex. 34:27-28, Deut. 9:18-19, 9:23-25, and 10:4-10). And now we see that on his last day on earth, Moses is still teaching God's Word to His people so they can live in God's blessing when they inhabit the land. I have to ask myself, "Where are those who are following Moses' example today?" Who is there that is willing and moved to repeatedly lay prostrated before the Lord for forty days without food or water, not on their own behalf, or because of their own troubles, but on behalf of a stiff-necked people who have seen and experienced the greatness of God, but have turned from Him? Who is willing to do this in order that God's anger would be turned away from us, His people, or from others who are about to face His judgment for wickedness? Would I be willing to do it? Would you? And yet, this is not about following a religious formula: 1) prostrate, 2) fast, 3) forty days. This is more about the heart and mind of Moses in regard to the people of God, and God's purpose in Moses. What caused Moses to seek the LORD for His rebellious people in such a steadfast manner? We'll see more about this later. On this Sabbath, this Eikev reading portion answers that question for us. From Isaiah 50 and 51, the LORD asked His prophet: "Why when I came, was there no man? Why when I called was there none to answer? Is My hand shortened at all that it can not redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?..." (Isa. 50:2). If we really believed that the Lord would deliver and redeem a people who have sold themselves for iniquity, wouldn't we think it was worth doing as Moses did in order to intercede, and see the miraculous mercy and deliverance of God? The Lord raised this issue again with His prophet, Ezekiel: "The people of the land have used oppressions, committed robbery, and mistreated the poor and needy; and they wrongfully oppress the stranger. So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one." (Ezek. 22:29-30). The Lord was looking for anyone like Moses, and He didn't find even one. That's a shame. As much as we see "the handwriting on the wall" regarding the judgment of God in our times, I don't know if there is one like Moses who is prostrating, fasting and praying for forty days and nights before the Lord. Do you know of any? So what did God do regarding this? He sent One who spiritually prostrated Himself in humility and obedience: "...I was not rebellious, nor did I turn away. I gave My back to those who struck Me, and My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard; I did not hide My face from shame and spitting. For the LORD God will help Me...Therefore I have set My face like a flint, and I know that I will not be ashamed." (Isa. 50:5-7). This prophesied Servant, Who would be sent to us as the Savior, Jesus, laid down His body before God in order to stand in the huge gap between sin and righteousness among the people. The apostle Paul wrote that the same is required of us, we who have experienced the saving knowledge and Person of Christ: "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name..." (Phil. 2:5-9). Jesus did these things in the form of a man. We are asked by Paul to be of the same mind. We may never be called to give our lives physically as Christ did, or to fast and prostrate before God for forty days and nights as Moses did, but we are to have the same mind in order to walk in this same Spirit. If we hope to bring others to Christ in a latter day harvest of souls, I think that they are going to have to begin seeing this "mind" in us. Isaiah's prophesied Servant, Who made living intercession and sacrifice before God, accomplished joy and salvation in the place of God's judgment and anger: "For the LORD will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places; He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness will be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of melody...My salvation will be forever, and My righteousness will not be abolished." (Isa. 51:3, 6). It is Christ Who died and is also risen Who makes even greater intercession for us than Moses did for the Israelites (see Rom. 8:34). He is still before God interceding continually. He does not stop, and Christ saves to the uttermost of circumstances and distance, because He lives to make intercession for those who belong to God (Heb. 7:25). We read in the Gospels, that as the Lord Jesus was transfigured before His disciples, Moses was one of two who appeared and stood with Him (Mt. 17:1-3). Jesus said: "Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape...and to stand before the Son of Man." (Lk. 21:36). One of those who has already been shown to be worthy of standing with Jesus in His glorious appearance is Moses. If you would like to learn more about our calling to the same mind that is in Christ, you can pray with me: "Lord Jesus, You showed us the Eikev purpose to which Your Father called You, because You experienced Him and loved Him. Father has also called us to the same calling. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit who leads me to intercede for the people, to stand in the gap like Moses, to be that wall that stands between the people and destruction, to have the same mind as is in Christ. I ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN."

3Nations

In this week's Sabbath reading from Deuteronomy Chapters 8-11, Moses delivers the Word of the LORD to the children of Israel as they are about to cross the Jordan River into the land that God promised to them. They are about to become a nation. As a nation, the LORD has certain insights and warnings for Israel. Moses speaks from the LORD about the land saying: "...you shall keep every commandment which I command you today...that you may prolong your days in the land which the LORD swore to give your fathers, to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey. For the land which you go to possess is not like the land of Egypt from which you have come, where you sowed your seed and watered it by foot, as a vegetable garden; but the land which you cross over to possess is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the LORD your God cares; the eyes of the LORD your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year." (Deut. 11:8-12). The land into which the Israelites were about to go was not like other lands. This new land was supernaturall provided for from heaven. This land had a very special meaning to God, and that continues to this day, and will continue through the return of Christ, and beyond. It was a land specifically promised to the fathers, but it is also the land to which the Son of God, the Messiah, would be sent to save the children of Israel (Mt. 15:24, Mt. 10:5-8, Rom. 1:16), and from this land, the world and its nations will be changed and ruled by Him (Zech. 14:4-9). Because of all of these things, it is the land of promise in more ways than one. Moses continued to say that if the Israelites as a nation continued to obey God's commandments given to them that day, "to love the LORD your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine and your oil. And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled." (v. 13-15). Not only was the nation of Israel to follow this command, which is part of the Shema (Deut. 6:4-5), but they were to wear the command on their bodies, and place it upon their homes. They were to be faithful and diligent to teach this commandment to their children in every circumstance as well (v. 18-20). Another benefit that would be upon them as a nation, as they kept this commandment of God, was that all of the occupying nations currently in the land would be driven out from before them by the LORD, even larger and greater nations than themselves, and these nations would have fear and dread of the nation of Israel placed upon them (v. 23-25). If the nation of Israel failed to serve the LORD in love, and turn to other gods, the blessings of the new land would dry up, and the people would perish quickly from the land (v. 16-17). There is great blessing when the countenance of the LORD is lifted upon a person or nation, and great hardship when His glorious face is turned away (Num. 6:23-27, Prov. 16:15). Understanding these same truths, our nation, which is the second nation referred to in the title of this entry, also called upon God from its beginning, and wrote of its commitment to God's precepts in its founding documents. Our first document, the Declaration of Independence states: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." We began our independent nationhood with the premise that all men have been equally created by the Creator. Man did not come into being as an accident of circumstances, our documents declare, and man did not create himself. Also, the idea that men were equal was an earthshaking concept for its time. The other nations of the era did not hold that belief. Could an common man be equal to a king? This was a ridiculous thought to most at that time, but we declared men to be equal because they were all a divine creation of God. These same founders wrote that they would rely upon God, as the Supreme Judge of the world, to determine if their intentions in forming a new nation were right in His eyes: "We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown." Finally, they vowed in this document that they would rely upon God for protection: "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence , we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor." We believed the precepts of God in forming this nation. We called upon God to judge our intentions, and we relied upon God for protection in this hazardous step of independence. In the writing of our second founding document, The Constitution, we published our belief that liberty did not originate with men, but was a blessing from God to be valued and defended: "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." As we became a nation, we did so swearing our belief and reliance upon God. We have also written this same affirmation upon our public buildings, and even on our currency, down to the smallest denomination, the penny. However, as our nation, has turned our back on these declarations and affirmations on many occasions, we have seen, as the LORD warned Israel, that our blessings from God have begun to dissolve. Our extreme weather has caused problems with crops, causing shortages. Cattle have been slaughtered early because there is a shortage of hay and feed. In becoming like the other nations who do not depend upon the LORD for their protection, nor heed His commandments, we have seen a pestilence cover our land. Also, for a nation who never saw a defeat in war, we have had few victories in the last 70 years or so. Enemies no longer have a dread of us, as God promised the nation of Israel if they would love Him and heed His Word. Inspite of the fact that we have the greatest military force money can buy, our enemies have become confident from experience that they can out-wait us, out-last us, and out-fight us. A third nation that carries an obligation before God is a spiritual nation. In a Torah portion before this Sabbath's reading, God said of His people: "For you are a holy people (Hebrew am - "people, tribe, nation") to the LORD your God: the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples on the face of the earth. The LORD did not set His love on you or choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all peoples; but because the LORD loves you, and because He would keep the oath which He swore to your fathers, the LORD has brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you from the house of bondage, from the land of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments." (Deut. 7:6-9). Peter wrote a similar description of those who belong to Christ: "They (those who do not accept Jesus) stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. His own special people (Greek laos - "people, group, tribe, nation") that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." (1 Peter 2:9-10). Believers in Christ are not only The Church, His Body, and His Bride, but we are also a nation of God in Christ. It is still necessary, and will always be necessary for the believers in Christ to love God, and obey His commandments. As God instructed the nation of Israel, Jesus taught the same part of the Shema as being the greatest commandment (Mt. 22:36-40). Jesus also said, as God taught Israel: "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (Jn. 14:15). To Israel, to America, and to the nation of believers in Christ who have turned away from their love of God, the LORD asks these questions from our haftarah portion of this Sabbath's reading: "Thus says the LORD: 'Where is the certificate of your mother's divorce, whom I have put away? Or which of My creditors is it to whom I have sold you? For your iniquities you have sold yourselves, and for your transgressions your mother has been put away. Why, when I came, was there no man? Why, when I called, was there none to answer? Is My hand shortened at all that it cannot redeem? Or have I no power to deliver?..." (Isa. 50:1-2). The LORD waits for us to turn back to Him. He waits for our nation's answer to His call. He is looking for an opportunity to redeem and deliver both individuals, and His nations. The title of this week's Sabbath reading is Eikev, which means "If/Because (you follow)". Who or what are we following? The LORD commands us to follow Him. If you would like to follow the LORD your God in love, heeding His commandments, you can pray: "Heavenly Father, You have asked us to love and follow You. Your Son has asked us to love Him, obey His commandments, and follow Him. You have called me as an individual, and You have called me to be part of a holy nation. You sent Your Son to die for my sins, and to rise from death for my everlasting life: to bring me out of darkness and bondage, and into Your marvelous light. Forgive me of my sins. I turn back to You, and place my life in Your hands. Fill me with the Holy Spirit. Sanctify me and cleanse me, and teach me Your commandments. I ask these things in Jesus' name. Amen."