Portion CHUQAT (19:1 - 22:1)

CHAPTER 19

1. Now YHWH said to Moshe and Aharon,

2. "This is the [irreversible] enactment [chuqah] of the instruction which YHWH has ordained, saying, 'Tell the descendants of Israel to bring a red heifer to you--a wholly sound one in which there is no blemish, on which no yoke has ever been forced.

Red heifer: traditionally only a few hairs may be other than red. This is the only female animal used as an offering--a reparation for Chavvah (Eve)'s sin, which was essentially selfishness, and brought impurity to our whole race. (Adam did not take responsibility, so his sin was carried on to us all as well). Nothing in the Tabernacle could be considered ceremonially pure without this heifer's ashes. Preparations are underway for this practice to begin again; several kosher red heifers have been identified in Israel already, but they cannot be more than three years old when the time is right for Temple service to restart.

3. "'And entrust her to El'azar the cohen, and he will bring her outside the camp, and slaughter her [by cutting her throat] before His face.

Y'shua too was slain outside the city walls. (Heb. 13:13)

4. "'Then El'azar the cohen shall take some of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle some of her blood [directly] in front of the face of the Tent of Appointment seven times.

5. "'And the heifer shall be burned in front of his eyes: her skin, her flesh, and her blood, along with her excrement, shall be burned.

6. "'Then the cohen shall take cedar wood, hyssop, and crimson-scarlet, and throw it into the middle of [where] the heifer [is] burning.

7. "'Then the cohen must launder his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, then afterward he may enter into the camp. But the cohen will be ritually impure until the evening.

Ritually impure: prohibited from entering a holy place. In most cases it pictures selfishness, which It is not sin in itself, but leads to sin. This incidence of uncleanneess is for the sake of the whole community--a picture of Y'shua's "becoming sin" for us, though he had no sins of his own to die for. (2 Cor. 5:21) But when YHWH uses us, we can also become proud and self-righteous, thus focusing on ourselves. It is a reminder that we all need to remain teachable, since even someone as advanced as Paul said he could be "put on the shelf" as well. (1 Cor. 9:27)

8. "'Also, the one who burned her must launder his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and be ritually impure until the evening,

9. "'while a man who is ritually pure shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and deposit them outside the camp in a ceremonially pure place. Thus it shall be stored away safely to be water of separation [while ritually impure] for the descendants of Israel; it is a sin offering.

10. "'Then the one who gathers up the heifer's ashes must launder his clothes, and be ritually impure until the evening; this shall be a prescribed custom forever for the descendants of Israel and the sojourner who is staying among them.

11. "'Whoever touches any human body when it is dead will be ritually impure for seven days.

Body: literally, "soul".

12. "'He shall purify himself from uncleanness with it on the third day, and on the seventh day he shall be ceremonially pure.

Purify himself from uncleanness: literally, "lose himself". Y'shua said whoever loses his own soul (life) for his sake will find it again. With it: i.e., the water containing the ashes of the red heifer. Third day: a foreshadowing of Y'shua's resurrection; the seventh day: a foreshadowing of
the Messianic Kingdom. Both (faith and works) are necessary for the picture to be complete.

13. "'Whoever touches the dead--that is, the body of any human being who has died--and does not purify himself from uncleanness will have rendered the Dwelling Place of YHWH unclean. That soul shall be cut off from Israel; if the water of separation is not tossed onto him, he will be ceremonially impure; his impurity remains upon him.

Those who are in sin or lawless (without Torah) are called "dead" in Scripture as well, so this is a picture of the person who does not receive the provision YHWH has made to return to the covenant--Y'shua's blood; his unsuitability to be part of YHWH's Kingdom is retained. But a body without a soul is a picture of faith without works. (Yaaqov/James 2:26) Rendered the
Dwelling Place of YHWH unclean: by being in the camp, even if he does not approach the sanctuary, because YHWH's true dwelling place is His people when they are all gathered together "as one man".

14. "'This is the instruction in case a man dies inside a tent: Anyone who enters the tent, and anything that is in the tent will be ritually impure for seven days.

15. "'Also, any vessel that has no cover-piece secured onto it will be ritually defiled.

Cover-piece: literally, "a matching counterpart"; secured: threaded--i.e., either bound on with a cord, or screwed or twisted into place.

16. "'Anyone in the open field who touches one mortally wounded by a sword, or one who is dead, or a human bone, or a burial-site shall be ceremonially unclean for seven days.

A burial-site: For this reason the practice began of, before each pilgrimage festival, whitewashing caves that contained dead men's bones so that no one would take shelter in them on their way to the Temple, for none of the feasts last more than seven days, and thus they would be disqualified from participating (except that an extra day was tacked onto Sukkoth--perhaps
for this very reason). Mortally wounded: literally, "pierced".

17. "'Now for the ceremonially unclean they shall take the ashes from where the sin offering was burnt, along with living water in a vessel.

Living water: water collected from a source where it was running, not a stagnant pool. Y'shua offered this at Sukkoth to anyone who was thirsty; he is the fountain of living waters (Yirmiyahu 17:13, to which he alluded in Yochanan 7 and 8), letting the Spirit flow from its original source, while other teachers of his day were only able to offer water that had been stored up on a previous occasion. (Mat. 7:29) The water pictures cleansing from sin through YHWH's Word (Eph. 5:26).

18. "'And a ceremonially clean man shall take hyssop, dip it in the water, and sprinkle it on the tent and on all the vessels, on all the souls that were there, as well as on whoever touched the bone or the one mortally wounded or the dead [body] or the burial site.

Hyssop: an absorbent plant that still readily gives up what it absorbs, used in applying the blood of the Passover lamb (Y'shua) to one's doorposts (where we write YHWH's word, thus our hearts and the "gates" of our bodies), as well as what the poisoned sedative was offered to Y'shua on as he was dying. David showed that he understood what this pictured when he pleaded,
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean... create in me a clean heart." (Psalm 51) The water: because Y'shua gave up his life for us, the "washing of water with the Word" renders us cleansed for YHWH's purposes (Eph. 5:25, 26). Sprinkle: not just a light dash, but a strong spurt; the word is related to being startled. Yeshayahu 52:10-15 foretold that Y'shua would "sprinkle many nations", and reminds us not to touch what is unclean.

19. "'And the clean person shall sprinkle it on the unclean person on the third day and on the seventh. Then on the seventh day, he shall purify him[self] from uncleanness, launder his clothes, and bathe himself in water. then he shall be ceremonially pure at evening.

Because of the third day (Y'shua's resurrection), we have the hope of salvation, but salvation will not fully come until the Kingdom (pictured by the seventh day, which is the Sabbath).

20. "'But a man who is ceremonially unclean but does not purify himself, that soul shall be cut off from being included in the assembly, because he has rendered YHWH's Dwelling Place impure. The water of separation has not been tossed onto him; he [remains] impure.

Like the one invited to the wedding feast but who did not wear the garments with which he was provided (Matt. 22:11-12), this person has had faith without works. White robes are a symbol of the righteous deeds of the ones who are already declared holy ()--i.e., are YHWH's Dwelling Place made of living stones. We have been provided with the power to overcome sin (Rom. 8:1-2), but this will not happen automatically; we must resist its enticement.

21. "'Now this shall be a prescribed custom for them forever. Also, the one who sprinkles the water of separation must launder his clothes, and whoever touches the water of separation shall be ceremonially unclean until the evening,

22. "'and everything that the ritually-impure person touches shall be[come] ritually impure, and the soul who touches it shall be ritually impure until the evening.'"

In Haggai 2:12-14, YHWH applies this to the holy nation spreading its unclean condition to others, and asks rhetorically whether the converse is true, that anything holy that touches something common can make the latter holy as well, and he says this is not the case.


CHAPTER 20



1. Now the descendants of Israel--the whole congregation--arrived in the wilderness of Tzin in the first month, and the people settled at Qadesh, and Miryam died there, and was buried there.

Approximately thirty-nine years have passed since the end of the last chapter. Qadesh means "set apart", so it is noteworthy that in one sense of the wording, Miryam thus died only after having been ritually cleansed from the selfishness that had caused her leprosy.

2. But there was no water for the congregation, and they assembled against Moshe and Aharon,

3. and the people lodged a complaint against Moshe, and said, "If only we had perished when our brothers perished before YHWH!

YHWH probably felt the same way. Brothers: they showed their true colors when they called those who had been destroyed for their rebellion their "brothers"--i.e., those with whom they were in agreement.

4. "Now why have you brought the assembly of YHWH to this wilderness to die there--both us and our grazing [animals]?

Grazing animals: calling them this parallels the people's emphasis on having something to consume.

5. "Moreover, why have you brought us up out of Egypt to bring us to this bad place. {it's] not a place of sown [fields], fig trees, vines, or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink!"

At Sinai there had been a brook flowing from the mountain. (Deut. 9:21)

6. So Moshe and Aharon went in, away from the eyes of the assembly, to the entrance to the Tent of Appointment, and fell on their faces. Then the [full] weight of YHWH appeared to them.

7. And YHWH told Moshe,

8. "Take the rod, and you and Aharon your brother summon the congregation to assemble, then speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will deliver its water. You will bring water out of the rock; thus you shall provide the congregation and their animals with water."

Before their eyes: literally, "to" or "for" their eyes. Rock: or crag, cliff, or stronghold. It is the same rock at Meribah that Moshe had struck before, so perhaps they have come back to one of their earlier camp sites. Paul says that, at least in a mystical sense, this rock was the Messiah, and
it "followed them" through the wilderness (1 Cor. 10:1-6).

9. So Moshe took the rod from before YHWH, as He had commanded Him,

10. and Moshe and Aharon summoned the congregation to assemble in front of the rock, and he said to them, "Listen, you rebels! Must we bring forth water for you from this rock?"

Rebels: those who were contentious, refractory, or provocational; literally, "bitter ones".

11. And Moshe raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod, and abundant waters came out, and the congregation and their grazing [animals] drank.

12. But YHWH told Moshe and Aharon, "Since you did not trust Me [enough] to treat Me as set apart for the eyes of the descendants of Israel, you will not bring this assembly into the Land which I have given them either!"

Moshe and Aharon represent the Torah and the Priesthood; neither could complete the job of our redemption apart from Y'shua. This seems rather severe, but there are two keys to understanding what YHWH was teaching. First, Moshe "raised his hand" (v. 11): Linguistically this links us to the warning that one who sins with a "high hand" (the same terminology used here
in a different grammatical form) will not be given a way to atone for his error. (15:30) Moshe pleaded for a second chance in this regard, but was told to never mention it again. (Deut. 3:23-26) The reason was that he broke a picture of the Messiah. The rock had already been struck once (Ex. 17:6); now it was only to be asked to provide water. Likewise, Y'shua was bruised
for us once and for all, and now we only need to "remind" YHWH that our provision has been bought with a price. It is always available. But striking Y'shua twice does not work--that would be like crucifying him twice, but Heb. 6:4-6 says that if we have returned to the covenant once and turned away again, there is no sacrifice left for us. Treat Me as set apart: i.e., not one to trifle with, taking His words half-seriously, but to obey precisely to the letter.

13. These are the Waters of Contention, because the descendants of Israel contended with YHWH, but He showed Himself to be set apart among them.

Contention: or strife. The water (instruction) that flows from Y'shua is related to strife; only warriors were numbered in Israel's census, so in one sense, if you are are not a warrior for Israel, you do not count.

14. Then Moshe sent messengers from Qadesh to the King of Edom, [saying], "Thus says your brother Israel: 'You have become familiar with all the hardship which has come upon us--

Your brother: Israel (Yaaqov) was the twin brother of Edom (Esau). Come upon: literally, "found".

15. "'how our ancestors went down to Egypt, and we remained in Egypt many days, and the Egyptians treated us wickedly as with our fathers,

Went down: by leaving the Land of Promise.

16. "'but when we cried out to YHWH for help, He listened to our voice and sent a messenger and brought us out of Egypt, and here we are in Qadesh, a city on the edge of your territory!

17. "'Now please allow us to cut across your land. We will not go through a field or vineyard, nor will we drink water from a well. We will go by the King's Highway, and not deviate to the right hand or the left until we have passed beyond your border.'"

The King's Highway remains to our own day (in the nation of Jordan). It runs along the ridge that borders the eastern edge of the Aravah, the deep Rift Valley that resulted from the cataclysm that destroyed S'dom and 'Amorah. Further north in this rift are the Dead Sea and the Yarden plain.

18. But Edom told him, "You may not pass through me, or I will come out and meet you with a sword!"

19. But the descendants of Israel told him, "We will go up by the raised highway, and if I or my livestock drink of your water, then I will pay [for] its cost. There will not be an incident; I will only go through by foot."

Water: a precious commodity in a desert land like Edom. Moshe knew there was not enough for both his congregation and Edom's residents. All they wanted to do was take a shortcut from Qadesh to the Promised Land.

20. Yet he said, "You may not cut across!" And Edom came out to meet them with a weighty [group of] people and a strong hand.

Edom is often taken to be at least a symbol of Rome, and by extension, the church.

21. Thus Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory, so Israel turned aside from him.

Turned aside: had to go the long way around, which is through desert and deep canyons.

22. Then the descendants of Israel--the whole congregation--pulled up [stakes] from Qadesh and arrived at Mount Chor.

Mount Chor: just outside the ancient city of Petra in southern Jordan, on the edge of the Aravah south of the Dead Sea (Salt Sea).

23. And YHWH spoke to Moshe and Aharon in the mountains of Chor, on the border of the land of Edom, saying,

24. "Aharon will be gathered to his ancestors, because he is not going to enter the Land that I have given to the descendants of Israel, because you were disobedient to My words at the Waters of Contention.

The "you" here is plural. But why is Aharon punished for Moshe's disobedience? Apparently it is because he did not stop Moshe from striking the rock when YHWH had told him to speak to it. Words: literally, "mouth".

25. "Bring Aharon and his son El'azar, and have them ascend Mount Chor,

26. "then have Aharon take off his garments and clothe El'azar, his son, with them; then Aharon shall be gathered and shall die there."

His garments: i.e., the special high priestly ones he wore over the standard white robe which all priests wore, to visibly confer on El'azar the position of high priest.

27. So Moshe did as YHWH had commanded, and they went up to Mount Chor in the sight of the entire congregation.

28. Then Moshe had Aharon take off his garments and clothe El'azar, his son, with them. Then Aharon was put to death there on the to of the mountain, and Moshe and El'azar came down from the mountain.

29. When the congregation saw that Aharon had expired, the whole house of Israel mourned Aharon for thirty days.


CHAPTER 21

1. When the Kanaanite king of Arad, who lived in the Negev, heard that Israel had come by the way of Atharim, he waged war against Israel, and took some of them as captives.

Arad: a city about ten miles southwest of the (later) Matzada fortress, west of the great Rift Valley, in the southernmost portino of the Promised Land according to the borders in that day. Its tel has been excavated over the past few decades. Today it is in the desert, but a thriving community has been rebuilt there today. Atharim: seems to mean "places of going about"--possibly a mountain pass or a caravan route.

2. Then Israel made a vow to YHWH and said, "If You will indeed deliver this nation into my hand, then I will totally destroy their cities."

Israel: speaking singularly. The nation was unified by the need to rescue their brothers. To get our brothers (all of Yehudah and Efrayim) back today, we also have to destroy many enemies. Kanaanite can also mean "merchant" (Zech. 14:21), perhaps recalling that we cannot serve both YHWH and Mammon (wealth), an esepcially strong enemy to both houses in our day.

3. And YHWH listened to the voice of Israel, and granted [them] the Kanaanites, so they completely destroyed them and their cities, and the name of the place was called Hormah.

Listened to: literally, "listened into"--He heard that their true motive was to reunite their nation by rescuing their fellow Israelites. Hormah: "Place of Complete Destruction". A city about ten miles south of Arad was also known by this name. (Mentioned also in 14:45) It is the same area where the twelve spies had begun their exploration of the Land, so this was a reparation for the wicked decision that was made there nearly forty years earlier. Perhaps having their countrymen to rescue gave added motivation to conquer the first area that was considered unconquerable to their fathers' generation. YHWH used this same motive to get Israel, who had been slow to be a light to all nations, to end up doing so when Y'shua's followers were sent out among all nations to locate and restore the lost sheep of the northern Kingdom, since in the process many more heard about Y'shua's Kingdom and became part of it.

4. Then they traveled from Mount Chor by the Way of the Sea of Reeds, to skirt the land of Edom. But the soul of the people became impatient because of the journey.

They had to turn far to the south in order to get to the area east of the Yarden from which they would approach the Land. Why didn't they just keep going north from Arad? Part of the reason is that the Yarden River is a clear demarcation of the edge of the Promised Land. But Y'hoshua's route also foreshadows the route the other Y'hoshua (the Messiah Y'shua) will take when he returns to his Land by way of Edom as conquering King. (Yeshayahu/Isa. 63) Impatient: literally, "shortened".

5. And the people spoke against YHWH and against Moshe: "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? Because there is no bread and no water, and our soul is sick of this worthless bread!"

Worthless bread: literally, "lightweight" or "overly simple" food; they were bored of the manna, which was YHWH's provision, and a picture of Y'shua (Yochanan 6:51).

6. Then YHWH sent the burning serpents among the people, and they bit the people, and many people of Israel died.

7. So the people came to Moshe and said, "We have gone wrong because we have
spoken against YHWH and yourself. Make yourself an intercessor to YHWH, that
He may take the serpent away from us!" So Moshe interceded for the people.

8. And YHWH told Moshe, "Make a burning [one] for yourself, and set it up on
a standard, and what will happen is that whoever is bitten may [remain] alive
if he looks at it.

Standard: i.e., a banner pole. Y'shua compared himself to this serpent
on a pole in Yochanan chapter 3.

9. So Moshe made a serpent of bronze, and set it up on a standard, and it
did turn out that if a serpent had bitten a man and he looked at the bronze
serpent, he survived.

Bronze: Often a symbol related to sin, but the word itself is from the
same root as "serpent".

10. Then the descendants of Israel pulled up stakes and encamped [again] at
Ovoth.

Ovoth means "water bottles made of animal skins". It is thoiught to have
been in the Aravah between Petra and the Dead Sea.

11. Then the set out from Ovoth, and encamped at Iyey-haAvarim in the
wilderness that faces Moav from the rising of the sun.

Iyey-haAvarim: "Ruin-heap of the crossings-over". One wonders whether
this might be the burial site of those who had tried to cross into the Land
at the wrong time. (chapter 14)

12. From there they pulled up and encamped in the Wadi Zared.

Wadi: a stream bed that is dry most of the year, or a valley cit by an
extinct river. Zared: this one is east of the Aravah, and flows into the
southern end of the Dead Sea. The word means "exuberant or luxurious growth".

13. They pulled up from there and ecnamped across [the] Arnon, which comes
out from the territory of the Emorites, because [the]Arnon is Moav's
border--the border between Moav and the Emorite.

The Arnon River flows through a deep canyon that resembles the Grand
Canyon in the United States, probably formed during the S'dom and Amorah
cataclysm. It makes a wonderful natural border.

14. This is why it is said in the Book fo the Wars of YHWH, "What was
delivered up in the place of [the Sea of] Reeds and the Wadi of Arnon,

15. "and at the slope of the wadi that turns toward the site of Ar, and
leans upon the border of Moav."

Ar: or "a city". Leans upon the border of Moav: or "supports itself on
the territory of Moav.

16. Then from there they went to Be'er, that is, the well of which YHWH told
Moshe, "Gather the people, and I will give them water."

17. Then Israel sang this song: "Spring up, O well! Answer it!

Answer it: or, "Sing to it!", probably in an antiphonal sense.

18. "The well which the princes searched out [and located]; the willing ones
among the nation dug it at the enacting of the decree." Then from the
wilderness, they went to Mattanah,

Mattanah means "a gift".

19. then from Mattanah to NachaliEl, then from NachaliEl to Bamoth,

NachaliEl means "wadis of Elohim". Bamoth means "cultic platforms" or
"high places".

20. then from Bamoth to the gorge that is in the Plain of Moav, the head of
the cleft which overlooks the face of the desert.

Cleft: Heb., Pisgah--sometimes translatable as "summit", and sometimes
apparently synonymous with Mount Nevo, due east of Yerushalayim across the
Yarden--in the land of Moav indeed. Desert: different from "wilderness" in
Hebrew--a truly desolate place, by denotation, whereas a wilderness is simply
uncivilized or uncultivated.

21. Then Israel sent messengers to Sichon, king od the Emorites, saying,

Sichon means "warrior", but it is rooted in the word for "sweeping".

22. "Let me cut across your land. We will not turn aside into a field or a
vineyard; we will not drink water from a well. We will walk on the King's
Highway until we have passed by your territory."

This is exactly what they had asked of Edom. (20:17-21)

23. But Sichon would not allow Israel to cross his territory. Sichon even
gathered his nation together and went out to meet Israel in the wilderness.
When he arrived at Yahatz, he engaged Israel in battle,

24. but Israel conquered him with the mouth of the sword, and took
possession of his land, from Arnon to Yabboq, as far as the descendants of
Ammon, because the border of the descendants of Ammon was formidable.


Moshe had conceded to the Edomites' unwillingness to let them cross,
since they were cousins. However, the Emorites were not, so Moshe had no
patience for them when they did the same thing. Ammon: the half-brother of
Moav, the other son of the incest of Lot and his daughters. Formidable:
strong, firm, or fierce. Yaaboq: the river where Yaaqov had encountered the
messenger of YHWH who "changed his walk" forever.

25. And Israel seized all these cities, and Israel inhabited the cities of
the Emorites--in Heshbon and all [its] suburbs,

Inhabited: or dwelt in, settled into. Heshbon: about 15 miles due east
of the northern end of the Dead Sea, and about the same distance southwest of
Rabbat-Ammon (the Ammonite capital, now Amman, the capital of the Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan). The name may mean "stronghold", but is related in
particular to the word for calculation, weaving, devising combinations (used
also for the "ingeniously-imaginative" waistband of the efod that the high
priest wore, Lev. 8:7.) Hence it appears that it was an especially difficult
city to conquer due to its well-thought-out design. Suburbs: literally,
daughters.

26. since Heshbon had been the city of Sichon the king of the Emorites, and
he had made war on the former Moavite king and taken all his land out of his
hand as far as the Arnon.

I.e., the Moavites had once inhabited Heshbon and this whole region.

27. That is why the poets say, "Come into Heshbon, and let the city of
Sichon be built and restored,

28.for a fire has gone forth from Heshbon--a flame from the city of Sichon.
It has consumed Ar of Moav, and the lords of the high places of Arnon!

Poets: literally, those who make parables or proverbs. Lords of the high
places: Baaley-Bamoth, possibly the religious leaders who oversaw the pagan
worship at these cultic platforms, or even the idols used there themselves.

29. "Woe to you, Moav! You are destroyed, O people of Chemosh! He has
given over his sons to be fugitives, and his daughters to be captives to
Sichon, king of the Emorites!

Chemosh: the god of the Moavites, to which some Israelites later
sacrificed adulterously. It means "subduer", which tells us something about
the character of the Moavites' religion and warfare. But their history proves
he could not subdue everyone.

30. "We have shot [arrows] at them; Heshbon has been destroyed as far as
Dibon, and we have devaastated them as far as Nofach, which [reaches] as far
as Meydeba.

As far as Dibon: this is poetic as well, because the phrase means "to the
point of wasting away". Dibon is a small Arabic village called "Dhiban"
today. (The "dh" is pronounced like the "th" in "then".) Nofach means
"blast", and Meydeba (called Madaba today), "gently gliding waters". It is
traditionally the hoetown of Ruth.

31. So Israel inhabited the land of the Emorites.

32. Then Moshe sent [men] to go by foot to Yaazeyr, and they captured its
suburbs and dispossessed the Emorites who were there.

Yaazeyr: means "helped".

33. Then they turned and went on the road [to] Bashan, and Og, king of
Bashan, came out to meet them--he and all his people, to do battle at Edrey.

Bashan: the Golan Heights. Edrey: a major city on a southern branch of
the Yarmuq, River, on the present-day border between Jordan and Syria. Its
name is from a word for "arm", possibly an allusion to the branch of the
river.

34. But YHWH told Moshe, "Do not be afraid of him, because I have delivered
him into your hand, along with all his people and his land, and you will do
to him the same as you have done to Sichon, king of the Emorites, who
inhabited Heshbon."

35. And they did attack him, his sons, and all of his people, until he did
not have a remnant left, and they took possession of his land.


CHAPTER 22

1. Then the descendants of Israel pulled up [stakes] and encamped on the
transitional land of Moav across the Yarden from Yericho.

Transitional land: partially grassland, partially desert, from the word
for "mixture".

Portion BALAQ (22:2 - 25:9)

22:2. Now Balaq the son of Tzippor saw all that Israel had done to the Emorites,

Balaq means "devastator", but now he is finding out that there is someone bigger than he. Tzippor: "sparrow".

3. and Moav stood in great awe of the people, because they were numerous, and Moav felt a sickening dread because of the presence of the descendants of Israel,

The man Moav (the son of Lot, Avraham's nephew) had been dead for centuiries, but his descendants acted on his behalf; we too can repent for the deeds of our ancestors, and they will be counted as having repented.

4. and Moav told the elders of Midyan, "This company is already licking up all that are around us just as an ox licks up the greenery of the field!" (Now Balaq, son of Tzippor, was the king of Moav at that time.)

Midyan: the son of Avraham and his later wife Q'turah. If we translate the meanings of their names, then those "from the Father" are asking for help from the men of "strife". On another level, we see that Balaq does not seem to recognize who this nation is, perhaps seeing them only as rogue Egyptians, so he seeks help from the best--the Midyanites and Bilaam--in order to try to
gain enough spiritual power to be able to deal with them. An ox surrounds the grass with its long, rough tongue, pulls it into its mouth, and bites it off. But here the Israel that is mighty is likened to an ox. In Deut. 22:10, we are instructed not to yoke an ox and a donkey together for plowing. In Hoshea 8:9, Efrayim while in his rebellious state is compared to a donkey. So the Israel of YHWH and any in Efrayim who still refuse the Torah as a strange thing are an unequal yoke (see 2 Cor. 6:14, where unbelievers and lawless are shown to be synonymous). We can teach them, but we cannot let our hearts be bound to them.

5. So he sent messengers to Bilaam, son of Be'or, at P'thor, which is by the river of the land of the sons of his people, to summon him, saying, "Behold a people has come out from Egypt, and here, they have overwhelmed the eye of the land, and they are sitting right in front of me!

Bilaam means or "wears down the people" or "failure of the people". He indeed would instigate this.

6. "So now, please come put a curse on this nation for me, because they are too numerous for me; [then] maybe I will be able to attack them and drive them away from the land, because I know that whomever you bless is blessed, and whomever you curse is cursed."

7. And the elders of Moav and the elders of Midyan proceeded with the [fee for] divination in their hand, and came to Bilaam and told him Balaq's business.

8. But he said, "Spend the night here tonight, and I will return and tell you whatever YHWH may say to me." So the leaders of Moav stayed with Bilaam.

9. And Elohim came to Bilaam and said, "Who are these men who are with you?"

He says he will ask YHWH, but he is answered by Elohim--the aspect that emphasizes His being a judge.

10. And Bilaam answered the Elohim, "Balaq the son of Tzippor, king of Moav, has sent [word] to me,

11. "‘Behold, a people coming out of Egypt is overwhelming the eye of the land; come now [and] pronounce a curse on them for me. Maybe I will be able to engage them in battle and drive them out.'"

12. But Elohim told Bilaam, "You are not to go with them nor curse the people, because it is blessed."

13. So Bilaam got up in the morning and told Balaq's leaders, "Go [back] to your land, because YHWH has refused to permit me to go with you."

Permit: or "employ/appoint/designate".

14. So the leaders of Moav rose and went to Balaq, saying, "Bilaam refuses to come with us!"

15. So again Balaq added more and sent leaders more important than they,

More important: or honorable; literally, "heavier".

16. and they came to Bilaam and told him, "Thus says Balaq, the son of Tzippor: ‘Please do not let anything prevent you from coming to me,

17. "‘because I will promote you to great importance, and I will do whatever you tell me; but please come pronounce a curse on this people for me!'"

Compare with the temptation of Y'shua in Mat. 4:8ff throughout this passage ( especially v. 41).

18. But Bilaam responded by telling the servants of Balaq, "If Balaq were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of YHWH my Elohim.

19. "But stay here now tonight, so I may find out if YHWH will tell me anything more."

He is trying to find a loophole, because he wants the wages, though he does not have any wish to curse Israel. He is truly a man of YHWH, but Mammon is his weakness (2 Peter 2:15) --a great example of why Y'shua told us to pray to not be led into temptation.

20. And Elohim came to Bilaam at night, and said, "If the men have come to summon you, get up and go with them, but you shall put into effect nothing more than the thing which I tell you."

Nothing more than: a very strong term meaning "strictly indeed". YHWH gives him the liberty to go, but it is clear that this is not his wish. Paul reiterates that while we have liberty, not all things are profitable (1 Cor. 6:12; 10:23), especially if they enslave us (see v, 32), and we have to pay the price for our choices.

21. So Bilaam got up in the morning, saddled his [faithful] donkey, and went with the leaders of Moav.

22. But YHWH's anger was kindled because he went, and the Messenger of YHWH
stationed himself in the way to resist him as he was riding his [faithful] donkey, while two of his young men were with him.

Resist: or act as an adversary, the verb form of "Satan". This "angel" is the preincarnate Y'shua, and he is always the enemy of our "flesh" when our priorities are not straight. The scenario is very much like Avraham's test in Gen. 22--two servants and a donkey.

23. Now the donkey saw the Messenger of YHWH standing in the way with his sword drawn in his hand, and the donkey turned off the road and walked into a field. So Bilaam beat the donkey to turn her [back to] the road.

Turn: or influence.

24. But the Messenger of YHWH stood in a path [between] the vineyards, with a fence on this [side] and a fence on that.

25. And the donkey saw the Messenger of YHWH, and she squeezed herself to the wall, and pressed Bilaam's foot against the wall, and he beat her again.

26. But the Messenger of YHWH went on ahead [of him] again and stood in a tight spot where there was no way to turn to the right or the left.

27. And the donkey saw the Messenger of YHWH, and she crouched down beneath
Bilaam. And Bilaam's anger was ignited, and he beat the donkey with a staff.

28. Then YHWH opened the donkey's mouth, and she said to Bilaam, "What have I done to you, that you have hit me this three paces?"

Opened the donkey's mouth: perhaps restoring her to the condition all the animals were in before Adam's fall? Hit me: or chastised, punished, attacked, subjugated, or brought judgment. Paces: or "three times"; literally, "feet". The very same phrase is used to describe the three
occasions during the year when all able-bodied men are to come up to Yerushalayim for a feast to YHWH. So we are meant to see some connection.

29. So Bilaam told the donkey, "Because you have made a fool of me! If only there were a sword in my hand, because I would kill you now!"

Made a fool of me: like those who accompanied Paul on his bounty-hunting trip to Damasek (Acts/Envoys 9), the two men would only see the donkey wandering off and Bilaam beating her. Paul, too, intended to do harm to the true Israel, and had a problem with the words of those he was after. (He did not seem to have a problem with anything they were doing except using YHWH's name--for YHWH spoke of this to Hananyah/Ananias. Bilaam seems to have been
so set on his journey and his reputation that he hardly noticed that his donkey was speaking! As a seer he is used to hearing voices, but YHWH here shows him that He is indeed able to restrict what Bilaam says. (See v. 18) He had his own agenda, barely permitted by YHWH's "grace", but the donkey paused at the three "stations" that YHWH had ordained, and he was upset by
it.

30. But the donkey said to Bilaam, "Am I not your faithful one, on which you have mounted and ridden ever since [I was] yours until this day? Have I ever been known to treat you like this?" And he said, "No."

Been known to treat you like this: or, "been in the habit of doing so to you".

31. Then YHWH uncovered Bilaam's eyes, and he noticed YHWH's Messenger having taken his stand on the path, with his sword in his hand, and he bowed his head and fell on his face.

Now YHWH acts as YHWH, and not just Elohim, and this brings full understanding. Uncovered: or revealed; literally, "made Bilaam's eyes round" or "complete"--i.e., seeing into otehr dimensions as well. David asks YHWH to do the same: "Uncover my eyes, that I may give consideration to extraodinary things from Your instruction." (Psalm 119:118) Paul said this
would happen to all of Israel after Efrayim (the Fullness of the Gentiles, Gen. 48:19; Rom. 11:10, 25)--first to learn who Y'shua truly is (as Bilaam first recognized him here), then to teach people that YHWH is the One who has allowed us to see.

32. And the Messenger of YHWH said to him, "Why have you beaten your [faithful] donkey this three paces? Behold, I have come out to resist you, because your way is reckless in comparison to me.

Reckless: or rash; literally, careening headlong out of control on a slippery slope. Bilaam was beginning to be guided by offers of rewards rather than the principles he had lived by hitherto. (vv. 18, 19) Alt., "contrary to me", since His ways are not our ways. (Yeshayahu 55:9) In
comparison to Me: "in front of Me" or "corresponding to Me"--the term for the counterpart Chavvah was to Adam; Bilaam was doing a poor job of being such a counterpart to YHWH's Messenger, which is Y'shua. We are called to be his counterparts as well, so let us learn from Bilaam's errors. (Micha 6:5; 2 Kefa/Peter 2:15; Yehudah/Jude 11; Rev. 2:14)

33. "But the faithful one perceived Me and bowed to Me this three paces; perhaps she turned from My face because I would indeed have destroyed you and left her alive!"

Bowed to Me: inclined, bent down, or "went out of her way for Me"--the same term for "turned off" in v. 23.

34. Then Bilaam told the Messenger of YHWH, "I have gone off track because I did not perceive that you had stationed yourself in the way to meet up with me. Now if it is evil in your eyes, I will turn myself back."

35. But the Messenger of YHWH told Bilaam, "Go with the men, but you must not say a word more than what I tell you." So Bilaam went with Balaq's leaders.

Not says a word more: literally, "stop with the word that I speak"; i.e., "make that your final word on the matter".

36. When Balaq heard that Bilaam had arrived, he went out to meet him in a Moavite city in the territory of Arnon, which is on the edge of [his] territory.

37. And Balaq said to Bilaam, "Didn't I send urgently to summon you? Why didn't you come to me? Couldn't I indeed promote you to great importance?"

38. But Bilaam told Balaq, "Here, I have come to you. But am I indeed able to promise anything at all? The word that YHWH puts in my mouth [is what] I will pronounce."

39. Then Bilaam went with Balaq, and they came to Qiryath-Chutzoth ["a city of open spaces"],

40. and Balaq slaughtered oxen and sheep, and sent [some] to Bilaam and the leaders who were with him.

41. Then in the morning, Balaq fetched Bilaam and brought him up to the cultic platforms of Ba'al, and from there he saw the extremity of the people.

Extremity: or edge, perhaps meaning that he could see all the way to the far side of the camp of Israel; but the term comes from a word for "cut off", so perhaps he only saw those who were going to be cut off due to the suggestion he was going to make to Balaq. Compare the "very high mountain" from which Y'shua was offered the temptation to power with which Bilaam was
now struggling.


CHAPTER 23

1. Then Bilaam told Balaq, "Build seven altars at this [place] for me, and prepare at this [place] seven bulls and seven rams."

He may be suggesting that if Elohim, this judge, is sufficiently appeased, He may allow Bilaam to do what Balaq wants.

2 . So Balaq did as Bilaam had said, and Balaq and Bilaam [offered] up a ram and a bull on the altar.

This may mean one on each of the seven altars (and was taken as such by the LXX and some Aramaic targums), but the actual text only says that seven of each are prepared but only one of each is used. YHWH has chosen the Sabbath as a picture of Y'shua's Kingdom. Any might be chosen, so all had to be ready. Throughout every "day" in history, we have been called to live as
closely to the Kingdom principles as we can and be ready in case Y'shua should return, but as the seventh millennium comes upon us, we know this must be the Day (see Psalm 90:4), so there is no excuse for slackness, and will be judged even more strictly.

3. And Bilaam told Balaq, "Remain standing by your ascending [offering], and I will go; perhaps YHWH will happen to meet me, and whatever thing He shows me, I will inform you of." So he went to a barren height.

Barren height: possibly denoting a solitary place where he could hear from YHWH more clearly.

4. And Elohim came to meet Bilaam, and he told Him, "I have set up seven altars, and I have [offered] up a bull and a ram on the altar."

Elohim came to meet: Aram., "the word from Elohim was directed toward..."
(throughout the passage).

5. So YHWH put a word in Bilaam's mouth and told him, "Return to Balaq, and you shall cause thus and so to be said."

6. So he went back to him, and indeed he was still standing by his ascending [offering]--[both] he and all the leaders of Moav.

7. So he took up his proverbial saying, and said, "From Aram, Balaq [the] king of Moav has had me brought out--from the mountains of the east: ‘Come, put a curse on Yaaqov for me!' and ‘Come, denounce Israel!'

Aram: son of Shem, and ancestor of Yaaqov's father-in-law Lavan. This appears to be why Bilaam knew YHWH. Mountains of the east: or "ancient mountains". No one mentioned Yaaqov before this; YHWH is now revealing what they are really up against. These are not Egyptians after all! Denounce: or defy, rage against.

8. "How will I blaspheme [one] whom El has not cursed? And how shall I denounce [one] YHWH has not denounced?

Hirsch: "How can I make a hole where El has not punctured?" Denounce: or "affect with wrath".

9. "For from the top of the rocks, I shall see him, and from the hills I shall watch him. Behold a people that is to dwell separately and not be considered [one] of the nations.

Hirsch interprets the first sentence as "From a high point of view I saw it near; from a lower one it was still far off." Separately: alone, in solitude, divided out from among everything else. This is the same way which Levi was not to be counted among the tribes of Israel, though he was one of them; he had a holy task to which he was called to "isolate" himself. If there is a conflict of interest, we are not a "member" of anything but Israel. Considered: or "not reckon itself"; the Sabbath liturgy thanks YHWH for not emplacing us like the other nations. The word also stems from a root meaning "to weave, braid, or interpenetrate", so Israel is not one of the threads in the world's fabric, but is a different entity altogether, even if there seems to be overlap at times. Aramaic Targum Onqelos interprets it from Yirmeyahu 30:11 to say that Israel would not be totally punished as all other nations will be.

10. "Who can count the dust of Yaaqov or number [even] a fourth of Israel? May my soul die the death of the upright ones, and may my future be like his!"

Perhaps those known today as "Jews" (who include some of the descendants of tribes other than Yehudah who joined them after the kingdom split) may comprise a quarter of the whole population of Israel, but even they often hide their identity; the rest have become so lost among the nations (to all but YHWH) that no one even knows who they are, but they are still there and
will be recalled to the covenant. Or perhaps, since Israel was divided into four camps, he was saying he could not even count one of these. Hirsch translates "a fourth" as "purely physical animal-like births". The upright ones: a special Hebrew nickname for Israel.

11. But Balaq said to Bilaam, "What have you done to me? I fetched you to utter a curse against my enemies, but here you have blessed them with a blessing!"

Fetched: or selected.

12. And he responded and said, "Must I not be careful to declare that which YHWH has put in my mouth?"

13. So Balaq said to him, "Please come with me to another place from which you will see it. You'll [only] see the tail end of it; you won't see them all! Curse it for me from there!"

It: i.e., the nation of Israel. Literally, "him", referring to the entity of Yaaqov as his descendants. He seems to assume that Bilaam's curse would only alight on those he could see.

14. And he took him to the Watchmen's Field at the head of the cleft, and he built seven altars, and [offered] up a bull and a ram on [each] altar.

Watchmen's Field: Aram.,"lookout point". Cleft: or "pass"--perhaps the Arnon Canyon.(cf. Ch. 21) The term (pisgah) also can mean "summit". LXX: "quarry".

15. And he told Balaq, "Remain standing by your ascending [offering], while I myself go to meet [with Him]."

16. And YHWH came to meet Bilaam, and He put a word in Bilaam's mouth and told him, "Return to Balaq, and you shall pronounce thus and so."

17. So he went back to him, and indeed he was still standing by his ascending [offering]--[both] he and all the leaders of Moav. And Balaq said to him, "What did YHWH say?"

18. So he took up his proverbial saying, and said, "Arise, O Balaq; listen [and obey]! Give ear as far as me, O son of Tzippor!

Son of Tzippor: literally, "his son, Tzippor", i.e., the one whom Tzippor calls his son.

19. "El is not a man, that He should let [His word] fail, nor the son of humanity, that He should make Himself comfortable. Has He spoken, and will He not follow through, or has He promised, and will He not put it into effect?
20.
Let His word fail: disappoint, prove to be in vain or deceitful; LXX, "waver"; Hirsch, "twist". Make Himself comfortable: i.e., accommodate, give in to the wishes of someone with money rather than maintaining His standards; LXX, "be threatened"; Hirsch, "change His mind", i.e., be sorry (for what He has said). Put it into effect: establish, make good on His word. Son of
humanity: Ben Adam, the same name Y'shua so often used of himself, so we can deduce based on this Torah prophecy that one common doctrine about the nature of Y'shua is false.

20. "Indeed, to bless [is what] I have received, and bless He has; I cannot reverse it!

21. "He has not perceived [any] mischief in Yaaqov, nor has He seen trouble in Israel. YHWH his Elohim is with him; the [joyful] battle-cry of a king is in him.

Not perceived: Aramaic, "carefully scrutinized and not found"; or "not paid attention to". Mischief: Hirsch, "misuse of power". Yet He has just brought judgment after judgment! But what one does in his house may be different from the relationship He has with Israel before the eyes of the world--or the "accuser of the brethren". As He says through Paul, "Who can bring any charge against YHWH's chosen?" (Rom. 8:33) The key is the final phrase: "battle-cry" is the same term used for the trumpet blast on Yom T'ruah (Rosh haShanah), and the king is Y'shua, who lives in us. (Aram., "sh'kinah of their king".) This is what makes the difference. I Yochanan warns us to never say we are without sin, yet invites us to enjoy the full rights of our calling as Sons of Elohim. (See also Heb. 4:16) Even if one had to beat his family into subjection, he would come to their defense without hesitation in the face of any outside threat. Alt., "He has not shown regard for exerting oneself in vain within Yaaqov, nor seen hard labor
in Israel." I.e., He would not give Israel unnecessary grief. LXX does interpret as "trouble" and "sorrow".

22. "El who led him out of Egypt is like the upraised horn of a unicorn to him,

23. "Because there exists no enchanting against Yaaqov or fortune-telling against Israel! As always, it will be told to Yaaqov and to Israel what El has accomplished.

Enchanting: casting a spell. Prov. 26:2 tells us that "a curse without a cause will not alight"--if we have the doors closed to it, as Y'shua did. (Yochanan 14:30) The prophecy could just as well read, "there is no divination in Yaaqov--an equally true interpretation, because in the true Yaaqov, in which YHWH sees nothing amiss, no perversity can exist. Indeed, if it is found within Israel, it is punishable by death. (Micha 5:12) As always: or "according to the proper season", "as usual", "like the event", or "as in eternity"; Hirsch: "at this very moment". What El has accomplished: This quote was chosen by Samuel Morse to be the first message sent by
telegraph. Hirsch interprets the first sentence in light of the second as meaning there is no need for omens or magic, since YHWH would inform them of whatever they needed to know.

24. "Behold, a people [that] will rise up like a roaring lion, and lift himself up like a violent lion; he will not lie down until he devours the prey and drinks up the blood of the mortally wounded!"

A people: Hirsch, "as a social union", Israel does not need all these means of foretelling the future, for as long as it fulfills its duty, it will be dauntless. Roaring lion: Hirsch, "leopard".

25. Then Balaq told Bilaam, "Don't do anything at all, [then]; neither curse it nor bless it!"

26. But Bilaam responded and told Balaq, "Didn't I tell you, ‘Anything that YHWH says, I must put into effect?'"

27. So Balaq told Bilaam, "Come, please, let me take you to a place [that's] further back! Maybe it will be all right in the eyes of the gods to pronounce a curse against them for me from there.

All right: literally, "upright" or "straight", "lawful" or "approved". The gods: Balaq uses the (always-plural) term with the article, as undoubtedly he still has little concept of the uniqueness of YHWH.

28. And Balaq took Bilaam to the top of the gap that looks down over the face of the desert.

Gap: Heb., Pisgah; possibly another name for Mt. Nevo. Looks down over: LXX, "extends to".
29. And Bilaam told Balaq, "Build seven altars for me at this [site], and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me at this [site]."

30. So Balaq did just as Bilaam said, and [offered] up a bull and a ram on [each] altar.


CHAPTER 24

1. Now when Bilaam perceived that it was appropriate in the eyes of YHWH to bless Israel, he no longer went as at other times to chance upon enchantments, but he fixed his face toward the wilderness.

2. Then Bilaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel residing by its tribes, and the spirit of Elohim came over him,

Lifted up his eyes: often an idiom for seeing prophetically into the future. Residing by its tribes: or "remaining in place for its branches". He foresaw that one day Israel would finally live as brothers, and the final outcome is what is the truth in Elohim's eyes. Hirsch says that seeing the arrangement of the tents by tribes, so that each child knew his father, unlike the nations, is what lifted Bilaam's spirit so high in certainty that Israel was worthy of such a glowing report.

3. and he took up his proverbial speech, and said, "The revelation of Bilaam, his son--Beor's--and the pronouncement of a mighty man whose eyes are blocked,

Revelation: utterance, or the pronouncement or declaration of a prophet in an ecstatic state. Whose eyes are blocked: stopped but perforated--perhaps closed to all but one thing, or who had once had his eyes shut, but now they have begun to open just a crack.

4. "the utterance of one who listens to the sayings of El, who has beheld as a seer the vision of Shaddai, fallen but with uncovered eyes:

Fallen: perhaps into a trance, but with truer knowledge of what is real. El Shaddai: Hirsch says "the limiting Elohim", but many associate Shaddai with the term for breast, suggesting His motherly provision for His people, and this is how He first revealed Himself to Yaaqov. All the tribes had the same father, but there were four mothers, and this determined their rank to some extent.

5. "‘How goodly are your tents, O Yaaqov! Your dwelling-places, O Israel!

Goodly: appropriate, morally decent. Tents: often an idiom for places of religious instruction. This carries on and narrows down Noach's prophecy in Gen. 9:27.

6. "‘Like the seasonal streams they have spread out--like orchards beside a river, like aloes planted by YHWH, like [firm] cedar trees beside water.

7. "He will cause waters to flow from His well-buckets, and his seed [is] on great waters. His king will rise higher than Agag, and his kingdom will lift itself high!

Great waters: Yaaqov's descendants were indeed scattered like seed across all the oceans--a theme picked up by all the prophets, but especially Hoshea. But Hirsch interprets it as Yaaqov's seed being that which is located where the greatest abundance of the water from YHWH's buckets falls when He waters the field. Agag was later a king of Amaleq, but the word means "increasing over the top."

8. "El, who brought him out of Egypt, is like the horns of a unicorn for him; he will devour the nations of his oppressor and gnaw their bones, and pierce them through with his arrows!

Gnaw: or "render powerless" (Hirsch).

9. "He has crouched--he has lain down--like a violent lion, and like a roaring lion, who will [dare to] stir him up? The one who blesses you is blessed, and the one who curses you is cursed."

Lions: Compare Micha 5:8. The last sentence is the blessing YHWH gave to Avraham and Yaaqov directly. Now at the time when someone is trying to curse their descendants, it is reiterated to make it all the more firm. Yehudah is the one who will be able to raise up all Israel. (Compare Gen. 49:9)

10. Then Balaq's anger grew hot against Bilaam, and he clapped his palms together, and Balaq told Bilaam, "I called on you to curse my enemies, but here you have blessed them with a blessing--this is three times!

11. "So now, get [back] to your place [in a hurry]! I said I would promote you to great importance, but here, YHWH has denied you the honor!"

Here is an echo of the Adversary in Eden, casting doubt on YHWH's good intentions.

12. But Bilaam told Balaq, "Didn't I tell the messengers that you sent to me the same thing, saying,

Didn't I tell...? This is his disclaimer, so he can claim his reward money anyway.

13. "‘If Balaq were to give me his house filled with silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of YHWH my Elohim, to put into effect [either] good or evil from my own heart; whatever YHWH says, I will say'?

14. "So now I am going to my people. Come, I will advise you of what this people will do to your people in the latter days."

15. And he took up his proverbial voice, and said, "The revelation of Bilaam, his son--Beor's--and the pronouncement of a mighty man whose eyes are blocked,

16. "the utterance of one who listens to the sayings of El and has become acquainted with the knowledge of the Highest [One], who has beheld as a seer the vision of Shaddai, fallen but with uncovered eyes:

The second phrase is added to the introduction he gave the former time (v. 4).

17. "I shall see him, but not now; I shall watch him intently, but not nearby: A star shall march out from Yaaqov; a scepter shall rise from Israel, and shall severely wound the edges of Moav, and bore through all the sons of Sheth.

This is the verse based on which Ben Kosiba was called "Bar Kochba"--son of the star, for "march" is a strongly militant term, and this "one who came in his own name" (Yochanan 5:43) appeared more militaristic than Y'shua had, and led many, including the forebears of today's Rabbinic Judaism, astray. Scepter: or rod, branch, or "offshoot"--all common terms for the Messiah. The prophecy in Gen. 49:10 clarifies that it will come through Yehudah, and
tying these two verses together connects with the planetary conjunction that took place twice at the time of Y'shua's birth, in which the planets representing a virgin and righteousness came together in the foot of the constellation of the Lion (see v. 9) near the star Regulus (which means
"ruler"--all imagery in Yaaqov's Gen. 49 picture story. Edges: the same Hebrew word for the corners of the head and beard which are not to be cut (Lev. 19:27; 21:5); in other words, YHWH would remove the authority or eldership of Moav and give it to Israel. Sheth: perhaps the same name as Adam's third son, but he is the father of all who are alive except the Qayinites (referred to in v. 21?), so this is unlikely. In context, Sheth may have been a tribe of Moav, but the word could mean either "crashing to destruction/ruin" or buttocks, signifying ruin to those who remain "on their seats".

18. "Then Edom shall become dispossessed property; Seir also shall become a possession of his enemies, but Israel shall accomplish [it] capably.

Accomplish it capably: or "do valiantly", "do mightily", "with efficiency".

19. "Out of Yaaqov shall come one who treads down, and shall destroy those [survivors] who escape from Ar."

20. Then he noticed Amaleq, and took up his proverbial saying, and said, "Amaleq is chief of the Gentiles, but his final end will be to perish."

Gentiles; or simply, "nations". To perish: or "eternal destruction", or "unto destruction", reminding us of Y'shua's words that "the first shall be last", and "the broad way leads to destruction".

21. And he looked on the Qeynites, and took up his proverbial saying, and said, "Your dwelling place is enduring, and you will set your nest in a rock,

Nest: a word play, since the term is "qin", similar to "Qeynite".

22. "yet Qeyn shall be burned up; how long until Assyria carries you away captive?"

This was indeed the practice of the Assyrians--to resettle those they conquered rather than destroying them, causing them to lose their sense of being a people tied to a particular place, and thus easier to enslave or convert to their ways of thinking. They did this to part of Israel later.

23. [Again] he took up his proverbial voice, and said, "Alas! Who will survive when El determines [to do this]?

24. "Ships will even be dispatched from alongside Kittim, and they will weaken Assyria and weaken Ever, and he too will come to destruction.

Kittim: a Yavanite (Greek) nation, as per Gen. 10:4; based on Daniel 11:30, Targum Onqelos interprets it as being Rome (Romulus), which is connected with Armilus, a code-name for the Counterfeit Messiah of the last days. Ever: the ancestor of the Hebrews, or simply "one who crosses over", perhaps an allusion to some event of that time.

25. Then Bilaam arose and left, and he returned to his place; Balaq, too, went on his way.


CHAPTER 25

1. But Israel tarried among the acacias, and the people [began to] allow [themselves] to be polluted by playing the prostitute toward the daughters of Moav.

Be polluted: profaned, letting what was holy become common, both in the physical sense of letting their sexuality be spread among many instead of concentrated toward their spouses, but also by spiritual unfaithfulness to YHWH (see v. 3).

2. And they invited the people to the slaughters of their elohim, and the people ate and bowed down to their elohim.

Ate: not just a common everyday act, but particularly an expression of fellowship with these pagan deities. It is not possible to "just go" to pagan feasts without participating in the idolatry (v. 3); they are a trap.

3. Thus Israel became joined to Ba'al-Peor, and YHWH's anger was ignited against Israel.

Ba'al-Peor: "Lord" or "husband of the gap", the local deity worshipped with licentious rituals, "gap" or "opening" having possible sexual connotations as well. Joined: attached or bound--a clear continuation of the idea of prostituting themselves, as Paul explains (1 Cor. 6:15-16): they
became both part of and obligated to this foreign deity, which meant they were no longer fulfilling their duty to YHWH, their true "husband". YHWH's anger: This was His wife!

4. And YHWH said to Moshe, "Take all the heads of the people of Israel, and hang them up for YHWH, exposed in the sun, so that the burning anger of YHWH may be turned back from Israel."

Heads: or chief rulers. Hang them up: or any form of slow execution, such as impalement; v. 8 suggests this. Possibly it was for not doing their jobs. In the sun: to open, public view (as examples, LXX), or toward the east, toward which the sanctuary faced. Take: may mean gather the leaders, and then determine who is to be hung. (Aramaic interpretation)

5. So Moshe told the judges of Israel, "Each of you kill [those of] his men who were joined to Ba'al-Peor!"

6. But, lo and behold, a man of the descendants of Israel came and brought the Midyanite woman near toward his brothers in the sight of Moshe and the sight of the whole congregation of the descendants of Israel, who were weeping bitterly at the opening of the Tent of Appointment.

Midyan means "strife". It is uncertain why the definite article is used of this woman. Weeping bitterly: perhaps mourning for their dead (see v. 5), for their sins, or even weeping for Tammuz, as women did at the northern opening to the Temple complex later (Y'chezq'el 8:14)--a common pagan practice in the region, and was related to sun-worship (v. 4). Tammuz was a later Babylonian name (meaning "sprout of life") for Nimrod, whom by tradition Shem killed because of his wickedness, perceived by many to be the end of their liberal freedoms. His widow Semiramis began this mourning ritual. He was called Adonis in Greek, which denotes masculine perfection that was snuffed out--as they likely perceived to have been the case in this incident. Psalm 106:28 suggests a connection between them, as it adds the detail that they "ate the sacrifices of the dead". (Hislop)

7. When Pin'has, the son of El'azar, son of Aharon the cohen saw [it], he rose up from amid the assembly, and took a [metal-tipped] spear in his hand,

This young priest was next in line to be the high priest. Rose from amid: he was declaring that he was not among this crowd.

8. and went into the shrine after the man of Israel and thrust both of them through--the man of Israel and the woman, right through her genitalia; thus the slaughtering-plague was brought to a halt from the descendants of Israel.

Shrine: the same term used in Arabic for the domed structures on the Temple Mount today; possibly a similarly-shaped round or vaulted tent, but it suggests that either the man took the woman into the sanctuary itself to engage in a pagan-style sexual fertility ritual, or that a shrine to
Ba'al-Peor had been erected within the area designated for the Tabernacle, to which no one but Levites were to enter except when bringing their offerings to YHWH. Genitalia: that which was being "worshipped" in lieu of YHWH. LXX: "womb". The word is also very similar to the word for "shrine" above, and appears to stem from the word for a curse. Since the judges appear to not
have obeyed Moshe and impaled the sinners, Pin'has does just that.

9. But [the number of] those who died in the slaughtering-plague came to
24,000.

Portion PIN'HAS (25:10 - 29:40)

25:10. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,

11. "Pin'has, the son of El'azar, the son of Aharon the priest, has turned away my fury from the descendants of Israel in being ardent for my jealousy among them, so that I did not finish off the descendants of Israel in my jealousy.

Ardent: from the same root as "jealousy", but it includes the concept of passion. Another "man" had been brought into YHWH's "harem" (protected enclosure off limits to anyone else), but Pin'has longed to be longed for by YHWH, and, being one of the assigned guards of the holiness of His Dwelling-Place, he carried out his assignment as few others had. He thus
foreshadowed Y'shua's jealousy for His Father's House (Mat. 21:12ff; Yochanan 2:17, based on Psalm 69:9/10). The "execution stake" he created with his spear saved the nation of Israel, even as Y'shua's cross rescued both Houses of Israel from annihilation.

12. "Therefore I say, ‘Behold, I am giving him my covenant of peace,

13. "and it shall belong to him and to his seed after him, [that is] the covenant of an eternal priesthood, because he was provoked to jealous anger for his Elohim, and atoned for the descendants of Israel."

Covenant of peace (completeness)...seed: Pin'has was not originally in line to be High Priest; his uncle Nadav was. Since Nadav was killed for his presumption, and the next in line, Avihu, with him, it fell to Pin'has' father, El'azar, to become the High Priest. But here YHWH promised that this kind of transfer would not happen again; the priesthood would remain in Pin'has' line. Y'shua received an eternal covenant of priesthood as well. It was the Israelite man who was guilty here; the woman was just acting normally for a Midyanite (see note on v. 15). Yet the presence of a woman points us to the key to this event: it lies in the word "jealousy", because YHWH had given special instructions about what to do when a husband was jealous for his wife in chapter 5. Israel, the wife of YHWH, had played the harlot, and she is the one being tested now. The priest was the one who administered the test, and here it was a priest who stopped the plague, keeping YHWH from having to be jealous any longer, because he was jealous for YHWH's reputation. When the woman tested was found guilty of adultery, her belly is what swelled, and her reporductive organs ceased to function. Here, Pin'has ran his spear through her reproductive organs.

14. Now the name of the Israelite who was slain along with the Midyanite woman was Zimri [my music] the son of Sallu [weighed], a ruler of an ancestral house among the Shim'onites.

Sallu's son was also "weighed and found wanting". Shim'onites were not to be in the Tabernacle compound anyway, unless they were bringing their sacrifices or offerings. (18:7) "My music" reminds us of haSatan. (cf. Y'chezq'el 28:13)

15. And the name of the Midyanite woman who was slain was Kozbi [my lie], the daughter of Tzur [Rock]; he was head over a clan and from a chief household in Midyan.

Pin'has made what we would consider a poor political move, because both of the people he killed were prominent citizens. Biblically, there is no marriage ceremony; rather, once one "took a wife", by Torah he was considered married to her. (Deut. 22:28ff) So in a way this was a political marriage--the very downfall of the later King Shlomo, which then precipitated the split in the Kingdom of Israel. Kozbi probably had a clear conscience. Moavite worship involved temple prostitution, so she was merely being a "missionary" for her religion; prostitutes there were considered very important and came from the highest classes--quite the opposite of our
society. The participants were trying to establish this as part of the official worship of YHWH. Artifacts have actually been found that had written on them, "To YHWH and His asherah". So people were taking pagan things and thought they were thereby worshipping YHWH, as in the case of the golden calf. But YHWH never accepted this as "kosher" worship. Rock: one title for Y'shua, but this Rock had a daughter who was a "lie"(a false bride) and a harlot--both biblical descriptions of the False Messiah and his congregation, which are built on "Jesus Christ"--a deceptive conceptual offshoot of the true Y'shua haMashiach; the false Messiah would not claim to be the little-known Y'shua, but Jesus, in order to deceive the many. Moshe's father-in-law was from Midyan, so he would not have expected trouble from that quarter, but the Midyanites shared the worship of Baal with Moav.

16. So YHWH told Moshe, "Cramp the Midyanites, then strike them down,

Cramp: harass, put in a "pinch", make things tight for; Aramaic, "engage in hostilities against". LXX, "plague".

17. "because they cramp you in their craftiness, with which they have beguiled you in regard to the matter of Pe'or [the gap], and in the affair of Kozbi, the daughter of a prince of Midyan, their sister, who was struck down in the day of the plague, because of the Pe'or affair."

Cramp you: put you in straits. By their "mission work", they nearly eliminated Israel, even as many who follow the Harlot have tried to swallow Israel up into the Church. Craftiness: Aramaic, "trickery"; LXX, "treachery". Beguiled: or deceived; LXX, "ensnared". Pe'or affair: when Bilaam suggested luring Israel away from YHWH by seduction, since he couldn't curse them directly.


CHAPTER 26

1. And it happened after the plague that YHWH spoke to Moshe and to El'azar, the son of Aharon the priest, saying,

2. "Take a census of the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their father's house--all who are able to go to war in Israel."

Census: when commanded in Scripture, a census was usually only called when a major change was about to occur. Literally, "lift the heads".

3. So Moshe and El'azar the cohen told them [this] on the plains of Moav beside the Yarden [opposite] Yericho.

This is the first time El'azar is called the cohen rather than the son of the cohen. By the time of this census, he has established his authority--perhaps by Pin'has' proving he had raised him properly--the prerequisite for one to be a leader in the Renewed Covenant congregations. (1
Tim. 3:5)

4. From twenty years old and upward, just as YHWH commanded Moshe and the descendants of Israel who came out from the land of Egypt:

5. Reuven ["Look! A son!"] is Israel's firstborn. The sons of Reuven [are as follows]:
6. From Hanoch ["dedicated"] came the clan of the Hanochites; from
Pallu ["distinguished"], the clan of the Palluites;

6. from Hetzron ["surrounded by a wall"], the clan of the Hetzronites; from
Karmi ["my vineyard"], the clan of the Karmites;

7. these are the clans of the Reuvenites, and those who were mustered from
them [numbered] 43,730.

8. Now Pallu's son was Eliav ["Elohim is a father"],

9. and Eliav's sons were Nemuel ["day of Elohim"], Dathan ["belonging to a fountain"], and Aviram ["my father is exalted"]. These were the [same] Dathan and Aviram who were acclaimed in the assembly, who struggled against Moshe and Aharon in the company of Qorach, when they struggled against YHWH,

10. and the earth opened up its mouth and engulfed them along with Qorach, when that company died and fire devoured 250 men, and they became a public example,

11. but the children of Qorach did not die.

This must mean they had the wisdom to separate themselves from their own father, who started the rebellion, when YHWH told the whole congregation to do so. (16:24) They sided with Israel rather than their own family when this was necessary. (Mat. 10:37) Their responsibility was to guard one side of the tabernacle, so they may not have even have been present with him when he sinned. But just because our own fathers have misled many does not mean we have to follow in their footsteps. However, no particular names of Qorach's sons are listed, so perhaps they no longer considered themselves his sons.

12. The sons of Shim'on ["hearing deeply"], according to their clans [were]:
for Nemuel ["day of Elohim"], the clan of the Nemuelites;
for Yamin [right hand], the clan of the Yaminites;
for Yachin ["he will establish"], the clan of the Yachinites;

13. for Zerach ["rising"], the clan of the Zarchites;
for Sha'ul ["desired, requested"], the clan of the Sha'ulites.

14. These are the clans of the Shim'onites--22,200.

When they were numbered at Sinai, there were nearly three times as many. So the 24,000 who died in the plague after the Kozbi affair were probably mostly, if not all, from the tribe of Shim'on, from which Zimri himself came. (This was a one-day plague, showing how highly contagious selfishness is, even if it falls short of actually being classified as sin itself.) Shim'on
and Levi had been partners in avenging sexual sin, but this time Shim'on was the perpetrator and Levi the avenger and righter of the wrong. Though the Levites did not go to war, there are a great many stories of them shedding blood--which scandalized Yaaqov himself. But here it was praised by YHWH, and the Maccabees came from this tribe as well; Levi also dealt with the
blood of the sacrificial offerings. While the tribe of Shim'on was decimated, Levi's numbers increased by 1,000.

15. The sons of Gad ["troop"], by their clans:
for Tz'fon ["hidden treasure"], the clan of the Tz'fonites; for Chaggi ["festive"], the clan of the Chaggites; for Shuni ["at rest"], the clan of the Shunites;

16. for Ozni ["my ear"], the clan of the Oznites; for Eri ["watchful, alert"], the clan of the Erites;

17. for Arod ["I will subdue, I shall roam"], the clan of the Arodites; for Areli ["valiant one"], the clan of the Arelites.

18. These are the clans of the descendants of Gad those who were mustered from them, [which numbered] 40,500.


19. The sons of Y'hudah [were] Er and Onan, but Er and Onan died [while he was still] in the land of Kanaan.

20. So the sons of Y'hudah, according to their clans, were: for Shelah ["a petition"], the clan of the Shelanites; for Peretz ["breach"], the clan of the Partzites; for Zerach ["rising"], the clan of the Zarchites;

21. and the sons of Peretz: for Hetzron ["walled"], the clan of the Hetzronites; for Chamul ["spared"], the clan of the Chamulites.

22. These are the families of Y'hudah; those who were mustered from them [numbered] 76,500.


23. The sons of Issachar, according to their clans: for Tola ["crimson worm"], the clan of the Tolaites; for Puwa ["splendid, dasher to pieces"], the clan of the Punites;

24. for Yashuv ["he will return"], the clan of the Yashuvites; for Shimron ["guardian"], the clan of the Shimronites.

25. These are the clans of Issachar; those who were mustered from them [numbered] 64,300.


26. The sons of Z'vulun, according to their clans: for Sered ["fear"], the clan of the Seredites; for Elon ["mighty oak"], the clan of the Elonites; for Yachle'El ["El waits in expectation"], the clan of the Yachle'Elites.

27. These [have been] the clans of the Z'vulunites, according to those mustered for them: 60,500.


28. And the sons of Yoseyf, according to their clans: Menashe and Efrayim.

29. The sons of Menashe: for Machir ["sold at a price"], the clan of the Machirites, and Machir fathered Gil'ad ["rocky region"]; for Gil'ad, the clan of the Gil'adites.

Gil'ad: ancestor of Eliyahu the prophet.

30. These are the sons of Gil'ad: for Iy'ezer ["no help"], the clan of the Iy'ezrites; for Cheleq ["portion"], the clan of the Chelqites;

31. and for Asriel ["I shall be prince of El"], the clan of the Asrielites; from Sh'chem ["shoulder-blade"], the clan of the Sh'chemites;

32. for Sh'mida ["wise"], the clan of the Sh'midaites; for Chefer ["a dug well"], the clan of the Cheferites.

33. Now Tzilafchad ["first born"], Chefer's son, had no sons, but [only] daughters, and the names of Tzilafchad's daughters were Machlah ["disease"], Noah ["moving"], Choglah ["partridge"], Milkah ["queen"], and Tirtzah ["favorable"].

34. These [have been] the clans of Menashe, and those who were mustered from them [numbered] 52,700.


35. These are the sons of Efrayim, by their clans: for Shuthelah ["noise of breaking"], the clan of the Shuthelahites; for Becher ["young camel"], the clan of the Becherites; for Tachan ["pitching camp"], the clan of the Tachanites.

36. And these are the sons of Shuthelah: for Eran ["watcher"], the clan of the Eranites.

37. These [have been] the clans of the sons of Efrayim according to those mustered from them: 32,500. These are the sons of Yoseyf according to their clans.


38. The sons of Binyamin ["son of the right hand"], by their clans: for Bela ["destruction"], the clan of the Belaites; for Ashbel ["a man in El"], the clan of the Ashbelites; for Achiram ["my brother is exalted"], the clan of the Achiramites;

39. for Shifufam ["serpent"], the family of the Shifufamites; from Hufam ["coast-man"], the clan of the Hufamites.

40. And Bela's sons were Ard ["I shall subdue"] and Naaman ["pleasantness"]--the family of the Ardites, and for Naaman, the family of the Naamanites.

"For Ard" is notably missing from the pattern here. Such alterations in the text, if not to alert us to a purpose evident in the story itself, are often present so that the total of the numerical total of the words in the verse can come out to a number through which YHWH will reveal some truth on the deepest ("sod" or mystery) level.

41. These [have been] the sons of Binyamin according to their clans, and the ones mustered from among them [numbered] 64,400.

42. These are the sons of Dan by their clans: for Shucham ["pit-digger"], the clans of the Shuchamites. These are the clans of Dan according to their families.

43. All the families of the Shuchamites by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 64,400.


44. For the sons of Asher by their clans: for Yimnah, the clan of the Yimnaites; for Yishwi ["he resembles me"], the clan of the Yishwites; for Beri'ah, the clan of the Beri'ites.

45. For the sons of Beri'ah: for Chever ["comrade"], the clan of the Cheverites; for Malchiel ["my king is Elohim"], the clan of the Malchielites.

46. Now Asher's daughter was named Serach ["my prince breathed"].

47. These [have been] the clans of the sons of Asher by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 53,400.


48. The sons of Nafthali by their clans: for Yachtz'El ["El divides"], the clan of the Yachtz'Elites; for for Guni ["my defender"], the clan of the Gunites;

49. for Yetzer ["purposeful framework"], the clan of the Yetzerites; for Shillem ["repaid"], the clan of the Shillemites.

50. These [have been] the clans of Nafthali by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 45,400.

51. These [have been] the mustered ones of the descendants of Israel: 601,730.


52. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,

53. "The Land shall be distributed to these as inherited property by the number of names.

Again it is not the number of people, but the number of names. Perhaps it refers to arable land, because the actual territorial areas of the tribes do not correspond with the size of the tribes. However, some land was mountainous and some was wooded. Deut. 32:8 tells us that the boundaries of all the nations were allotted according to the number of the sons of Israel.
70 nations are listed in Genesis 10, and 70 persons of Yaaqov's family were in Egypt after they all had arrived. (Ex. 1:5)

54. For [those that are] more numerous, you shall allot larger properties, and to [those that are] fewer, you shall allot smaller.

55. However, the Land shall be divided by lot. They shall inherit according to the names of the tribes [branches] of their ancestors.

56. By the mouth of the lot, possession thereof shall be distributed between the many and the few.

Mouth of the lot: i.e., it will decide by its "word".

57. Now these are the ones mustered from the Levites, by their clans: for Gershon, the clan of the Gershonites; for Q'hath, the clan of the Q'hathites; for Merari, the clan of the Merarites.

58. These are the clans of the Levites: the clan of the Livnites, the clan of the Hevronites, the clan of the Machlites, the clan of the Mushites, and the clan of the Q'hathites. And Q'hath fathered Amram,

59. and the name of Amram's wife was Yokheved, daughter of a Levite, who was born to Levi in Egypt. And she bore Aharon and Moshe to Amram, as well as their sister Miryam.

60. Then Nadav and Avihu, El'azar and Ithamar were born to Aharon,

61. but Nadav and Avihu died for bringing unauthorized fire near before [the face of] YHWH.

62. Now those mustered from them [were] 23,000, all males from a month old and upward, because they were not counted among the sons of Israel, since no inheritance was allotted to them among the sons of Israel.

They are a microcosm of how the nation of Israel at large relates to the whole world.

63. These [were] the ones counted by Moshe and by El'azar the priest, who mustered the sons of Israel in the transitional lands of Moav, beside the Yarden, [opposite] Yericho.

64. Now among these there was not a man [left] of those numbered by Moshe and Aharon the priest, who had [previously] numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai,

65. because YHWH had told them they would certainly die in the desert, and not a man of them would be left except Kalev the son of Y'funeh and Y'hoshua the son of Nun.

The total number was very close to that of those numbered by Moshe earlier--only falling short by 820--though the comparative populations of the individual tribes shifted greatly, as YHWH redistributed the weight of each, possibly due to the merit of particular members of each tribe.


CHAPTER 27

1. Then the daughters of Tz'lafchad, the son of Chefer, the son of Gil'ad, the son of Machir, the son of Menashe, of the clan of Menashe, the son of Yoseyf, presented themselves. (Now these are his daughters' names: Machlah, Noah, Choglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah).

2. And they took their stand before Moshe and El'azar the priest, and before the rulers and all the congregation at the entry to the Tent of Appointment, saying,

3. "Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the group who gathered [to set themselves] against YHWH in the company of Qorach; rather, he died for his own sins, having had no sons.

4. "Why should the name of our father disappear from among his family just because he had no male child? Give us a possession among our father's brothers!"

Disappear: be withdrawn or done away with. Though they could understand why Qorach's name was to be blotted out, they realized the importance of their father's name being carried on, but since there was no male child, his name would not be "remembered" (same as "male" in Hebrew).

5. So Moshe brought their case before YHWH,

6. and YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,

7. "[What] the daughters of Tz'lafchad are saying [is] right: you shall indeed grant them hereditary property as an inheritance among their father's relatives, and you shall transfer their father's inheritance to them.

8. "And you shall tell the descendants of Israel, ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter.

9. "‘And if he has no daughter, you shall give his inheritance to his brothers.

10. "‘And if he has no brothers, you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers.

11. "‘And if his father has no brothers, you shall pass his inheritance to his closest relative, from within his clan, and he shall take possession of [and enjoy] it; and this shall be a prescribed [pattern] for deciding a case [justly], as YHWH has commanded Moshe.'"

This is to be the divinely-appointed "flowchart" by which the recipients of an inheritance in question are eliminated and narrowed down.


12. Then YHWH told Moshe, "Climb up to the Mountain[s] of the Avarim and gaze upon the Land which I have given to the descendants of Israel.

Avarim means "Region on the Opposite Side". Gaze upon: or "consider", "pay close attention to". This command can apply to us today as well, because the Land itself has much to teach us if we will "observe" it closely enough to "discern" what it holds.

13. "Then when you have viewed it, you too shall be gathered to your people just as your brother Aharon was gathered,

14. "because in the Desert of Tzin when the congregation provoked you by the waters, you rebelled against My mouth [command] to set Me apart before their eyes." (They were at the Waters of Contention in Qadesh ["holiness"] in the Desert of Tzin ["flatness"] .)

15. So Moshe told YHWH,

16. "Let YHWH, the judge of the spirits for all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation

Judge: literally, "elohim". (Compare Yirm. 17:10; Luk. 12:5) He was searching the hearts of all men to find an appropriate shepherd to succeed him. (v. 17) Appoint: LXX, "look out for".

17. "who will go out before them and who may go in before them, and who may lead them out and bring them in, so that the Congregation of YHWH may not be like sheep who have no shepherd."

Sheep without a shepherd: After this did later come to be the nation's plight (1 Kings 22:17ff; Y'chezq'el 34:5ff), Y'shua picked up on this theme (Mark. 6:34; Mat. 9:36), and made a way for the problem to be resolved. (Yirmeyahu 31:10; 1 Kefa/Peter 2:21ff)

18. So YHWH told Moshe, "Select Y'hoshua the son of Nun, a man in whom the spirit [dwells], and lean your hand upon him,

Spirit: Aramaic Targum Onqelos adds "of prophecy", but the context leans rather toward it being the spirit of shepherding the nation. Lean your hand on him: put your weight (which signifies importance in Hebrew) on him, and express identification of your cause with his.

19. "and present him before El'azar the priest and before the whole congregation, and put him in charge before their eyes,

Or, "give him the responsibility".

20. "and you shall bestow upon him [some] of your honor, so that the whole congregation may listen to [and obey] him.

Honor: splendor, dignity, majesty, or authority. Y'hoshua indeed exercised his authority more overtly than Moshe did, but did not have the face-to-face conversations with YHWH that Moshe had:

21. "Then he shall present himself before El'azar the priest, who shall consult [YHWH] for him by means of the decision of the Urim [lights]. At his word, they shall go out, and at his word they shall enter, and all the descendants of Israel with him--that is, the congregation."

Urim: a lot or some other means of direct, specific revelation of YHWH's will using the components of Aharon's breastplate or its accessories. According to tradition it would spell out His localized command by lighting up letter by letter from the names of the twelve tribes and an extra phrase that was added so that all 22 Hebrew letters would be present. Elsewhere "Urim" is usually mentioned in conjunction with the Thummim ("perfections").

22. So Moshe did as YHWH commanded him: he selected Y'hoshua and presented him before El'azar the priest, and before the whole congregation,

23. leaned hands on him, and put him in charge, as YHWH had commanded by the hand of Moshe.


CHAPTER 28

1. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,

2. "Give an order to the descendants of Israel, and tell them, ‘My drawing-near [offering] and My bread for My [offerings made by] fire, My soothing aroma, you shall be careful to bring near to Me in their appointed season.'

3. "And tell them, ‘This is the fire offering with which you shall draw near to YHWH: two healthy lambs [without blemish] a year old per day, as an ascending [offering] perpetually.

4. "‘You shall offer one of the lambs in the morning, and the second you shall offer between the evening [oblation]s,

Literally, "between the transitional [time]s"--the first perceptible dimming of daylight and the time when the last bit of light is still visible mingled with the darkness.

5. "‘with a tenth of an ephah of finer flour as a grain offering, commingled with a quarter of a hin of pure oil [from the first] crushing,

6. "‘as an ascending to carry into perpetuity what was done on Mount Sinai as a soothing aroma--an offering made by fire to YHWH--

Ascending: sometimes called a "whole burnt offering", but literally it is a "stairway" or "means of ascent". Hirsch renders it well as "elevating offering". It expresses the fact that one is being raised out of a lower state or condition and empowered to enter YHWH's presence as if worthy
again--a picture of what Y'shua really did for us. The Temple later built in Yerushalayim vividly reflected this ascent in its architecture.

7. "‘together with its libation [offering]: a quarter of a hin for the one lamb: you shall pour out a libation of fermented beverage to YHWH in the sanctuary.

8. "‘Then you shall offer the other lamb between the evening [oblation]s in the same way [you did] for the grain offering in the morning, and its libations likewise. You shall prepare it as a fire offering, a satisfying aroma unto YHWH.

9. "‘Now on the Sabbath day, two perfect lambs a year old, and two-tenths [of an ephah] of fine flour, a grain offering mixed with oil, along with its drink offering--

Grain offering: Hirsch renders it, "allegiance gift".

10. "‘the ascending offering of a Sabbath on its [proper] Sabbath, in addition to the ascending offering [offered] perpetually [every day] and its drink offering.

So four lambs were actually offered on the Sabbath.

11. "‘And at the heads of your months, you shall present an ascending offering to YHWH: two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, and year-old lambs--seven perfect ones,

Heads (beginnings) of your months: i.e., at the new moon.

12. "‘Along with three-tenths [of an ephah] of fine flour, a grain offering mixed with oil for each bull, two-tenths [of an ephah] of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with oil for the one ram,

13. "‘and a tenth [of an ephah] of fine flour mixed with oil as a food offering for each lamb--an ascending [offering], a satisfying aroma, a fire offering to YHWH.

The Hebrew word for "fire offering" is spelled exactly like the word for "woman" or "wife", only with different vowel pointings (which were not in the original text). "To YHWH" could also read "for YHWH". One tenth of an ephah is an omer, which represents a single person, and ten omers, or an ephah, represents a congregation, the oil represents the anointing of the Holy
Spirit, the lamb depicts Y'shua and the turning away of the death angel, and the goat and bull, each often a payment for sin. All of these elements appear in a variety of combinations in the foregoing and following prescribed offerings, and while the meaning of the precise numbers is not yet clear, together they form something pleasing to YHWH, an entity that, when combined
together, forms a "bride" for Him and thus completeness or satisfaction in the universe, a repair of the damage begun by Adam's disobedience, and thus a reconstitution of the paradise that was lost.

14. "‘And their libations shall be half a hin of wine per bull, a third of a hin per ram, and a quarter of a hin per lamb. This shall be the ascending [offering] month by month for [all] the months of the year.

15. "‘And one kid of the goats [shall serve] as a sin offering to YHWH. It shall be prepared in addition to the everyday ascending offering and its libation.

16. "‘Now on the fourteenth day of the first month is YHWH's Passover,

17. "‘and on the fifteenth day of this month is a festival gathering; unleavened bread shall be eaten [for] seven days.

The fifteenth commences as the Passover feast is still in progress, so no leavened bread is eaten at the Passover seder either.

18. "‘On the first day [there] shall be a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor.

Holy calling-together: Aramaic, "sacred occasion"; Hirsch, "invitation to the Sanctuary". Servile labor: Hirsch, "work of world-service"--i.e., anything that belongs to a day that is unlike the Sabbath.

19. "And you shall bring near an ascending offering of fire for YHWH--two young bulls, one ram, and seven year-old lambs--they shall be perfect ones for you--

20. "‘along with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil. You shall prepare three tenths [of an ephah] per bull, and two tenths per ram.

21. "‘Prepare one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,

22. "‘as well as one goat, a sin offering to effect a covering over you;

23. "‘you shall prepare these in addition to the ascending offering of the morning--the perpetual ascending [offering].

24. "‘In this manner you shall prepare bread for a fire offering every day for seven days--a satisfying aroma to YHWH. It shall be prepared in addition to the [usual] everyday ascending offering and its libation.

25. "‘And on the seventh day, you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor.

26. "‘Now on the day of the firstfruits, when you bring near a renewed grain offering to YHWH in your Feast of Shavuoth [weeks], you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor.

Renewed: or "new", but it renews the cycle of grain offerings, because it is fresh grain.

27. "‘And you shall offering an ascending of a satisfying aroma to YHWH: two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, seven year-old lambs,

28. "‘and their [corresponding] grain offering: three tenths [of an ephah] per bull, two tenths per ram,

29. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,

30. "‘one he-goat of the kids to make a covering over yourselves.

31. "‘You shall bring them near in addition to the [usual] everyday ascending offering, its grain offering, and its libations; they shall be unimpaired for you.

Unimpaired for you: without blemish, but the range of meaning of this phrase could include "healings for you"--things to make you whole, complete, and innocent again, a people of integrity.


CHAPTER 29

1. "‘In the seventh month also you shall have a holy calling-together on the first of the month; you shall do no servile labor. It shall be a day of trumpet-blasts for you.

"Day of trumpet-blasts": blasts of alarm, war, awakening, or joy. Since trumpets accompany his return, and his return is the first major event of his second advent, and since he fulfilled each of the first series of festivals in the earlier part of the year on their very day, it appears that his return weill be on a Rosh haShanah (this day of trumpet blasts). In Jewish tradition it is associated with the resurrection of the dead, and since it is on the new moon, it is on the only festival that falls on a "day that no man knows" in advance. Hence, it is called, the hidden day. No one knows when it will be until the new moon is actually sighted, and since the new moon of
the new year is not known for sure until the green ears of barley are sighted as well, there is no way one could even guess precisely how many months it will be until this day until six months in advance. Thus, no one can set a date for Y'shua's return, though like the fig tree with budding leaves, we can tell when it is drawing near.

2. "And you shall prepare and ascending of a satisfying aroma to YHWH: one young bull, one ram, seven year-old lambs--perfect ones--

3. "And their [corresponding] grain offering: fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths [of an ephah] for the bull, two tenths per ram,

4. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,

5. "‘one he-goat of the kids to effect a covering over you,

Covering: Hirsch, "expiation-offering".

6. "‘in addition to the ascending offering of the [new] moon, its grain offering, its customary ascending offering with its grain offering [in turn], and the libations of them [both], as is proper for each to [be] a satisfying aroma unto YHWH, a fire offering for YHWH.

Proper: Aramaic, "prescribed".

7. "‘And on the tenth of the seventh month, you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no work at all, and you shall humble yourselves,

Humble yourselves: traditionally "afflict your souls", a quite valid translation, taken by Jews to mean a complete fast. It could just as well be translated "weaken your appetites", which fasting does indeed do, or "supress/diminish your wills, selves, or desires". Elsewhere called a Day of
Atonements, it is traditionally a time of repentance and renunciation of vows made thoughtlessly.

8. "‘and bring near an ascending for YHWH--a satisfying aroma: one bull (a son of the herd), one ram, seven year-old lambs--they shall be healings for you--

9. "‘along with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil: three tenths [of an ephah] for the bull, two tenths per ram,

10. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,

11. "‘one he-goat of the kids to make atonement [a covering] for you, in addition to the sin offering of the Atonement and the customary ascending offering with its grain offering, and the libations for [both of] them.


12. "‘Then on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor, but you shall celebrate a festival gathering for YHWH for seven days.

13. "‘And you shall bring near an ascending, a fire [offering], a satisfying aroma to YHWH: thirteen bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (they shall be flawless ones),

14. "‘along with their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths [of an ephah] per bull for the thirteen bulls, two tenths for each of the two rams,

15. "‘and one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the fourteen lambs;

16. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

During this festival, which foreshadows the Messianic Kingdom, there is much additional blood shed in the Temple--as there will be on earth at the commencement of the Kingdom (as per the book of Revelation).

17. "‘Then on the second day, twelve bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

18. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

19. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and their libations.

20. "‘And on the third day, eleven bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

21. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

22. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

23. "‘And on the fourth day, ten bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

24. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

25. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

26. "On the fifth day, nine bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

27. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

28. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

29. "‘On the sixth day, eight bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

30. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

31. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

32. "‘On the seventh day, seven bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),

33. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,

34. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

While the number of other animals remains the same each day, the number of bulls changes, decreasing by one each day. The total number of bulls is 70, symbolizing both the 70 people in the clan of Yaaqov upon his arrival in Egypt, as well as the 70 nations listed in the "table of nations" of Noach's sons in Genesis 10. For this reason Sukkoth, alternately called "the season
of our joy" is also nicknamed "the feast of the nations". This vivid imagery is echoed in the angels' announcement to the shepherds, who were raising lambs for use in the Temple (as the Tower of the Flock near Beth Lechem was the terminus of the perimeter around Yerushalayim within which sacrificial lambs could be raised): "Behold, I bring you good news of ‘mega- joy' which shall be for all the people [those gathered together everywhere]." (Luk. 2:10) Four great lights were set up in the Court of Women at the Temple during Sukkoth, and they were called "the light of the world", a title Y'shua aplied to hiumself. Because of the additional theme of his "tabernacling" temporarily among us (Yochanan 1:14), it is fairly certain that Y'shua was
actually born during Sukkoth, which occurs early in the autumn as soon as the harvest is finished. It is the firstfruits festival for grapes and any other crops not included in the earlier two firstfruits (for barley and wheat), though the firstfruits of these other crops were not necessarily brought as
they were beginning to be harvested as the other two were.

35. "‘And on the eighth day there shall be a holdover for you, and you shall not do any servile labor at all.

Holdover: sometimes translated "solemn or festive sacred assembly", the term actually denotes a (perhaps forced) layover, detention, or shutdown, with the added connotation of an affectionate farewell sendoff. In other words, an extra day is tacked onto the feast as a sort of required holiday, because the symbolism is pregnant with significance. In Jewish lore, the week of seven days culminating in the sabbath is taken as a prophecy that there will be six thousand years of difficult labor in the earth's history followed by a millennium of rest and peace under the Messiah's reign. Orindarily, the eighth day is really another "first day", a new beginning, and here it symbolizes the same, since it resembles the first day of the feast except for the number of animals offered. It represents the time after the Millennial Kingdom when there will be a new creation--a new heaven and a new earth. Because of this buildup of joyful celebration, Sukkoth is considered the greatest of all feasts, and when a biblical account, including the New Testament, simply says something happened at "the feast", it is referring to Sukkoth, because it was so glorious that all others paled in significance beside it. If Y'shua was indeed born on Sukkoth, the eighth day would also hold another significance: he was circumcised on the eighth
day--also a symbol of a new beginning, This could depict the removal of the veil of his flesh so his true nature as the restored Adam could be seen, as at his transfiguration. An additional theme tacked onto the end of Sukkoth, sometimes on the eighth day, and sometimes the ninth, is "Simchat Torah"--rejoicing in the Torah. Like the "rolling off" of the uncircumcision, Y'shua, the Torah or Word that was made flesh, "unrolled" the scroll in which "it is written of him" (Ps. 40:7; Luk. 24:27, 44; cf. Revelation 5:2ff).

36. "‘And you shall bring near an ascending, a fire [offering], a satisfying aroma to YHWH: one bull, one ram, seven year-old lambs (flawless ones),

37. "‘their grain offerings and libations for the bull, the ram, and lambs, as is proper according to their numbers,

38. "‘and one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.

39. "‘You shall prepare these in your appointed seasons, in addition to [any] vows and free-will [voluntary] offerings you [may bring] for your ascending [offerings], your grain offerings, your libations, or your peace offerings.'"

40. So Moshe recounted to the descendants of Israel everything that YHWH had commanded Moshe.

Recounted: Hirsch, "spoke explanatorily". This verse is 30:1 in Hebrew.