Parashat Pin'has

(Numbers 25:10 - 29:40)

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. His motive was not so much to stop the plague as to restore the honor of YHWH’s Name and sanctuary that were being profaned. 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.

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."

What did this covenant of peace (completeness) constitute? 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, because he was the kind of high priest YHWH wanted. He had done even better than his grandfather Aharon. One can only imagine how people must have respected his position after what he did here. Y'shua also received an eternal covenant of priesthood. (Heb. 7:17-21) 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 reproductive organs ceased to function. Here, Pin'has ran his spear through her reproductive organs.

Sallu’s name means “weighed” or “made light of”. His son was now "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)

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 modern 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 counterfeit 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.

Cramp: harass, put in a "pinch", make things tight for them or hard to breathe; Aramaic, "engage in hostilities against". LXX, "plague". But making them feel pain for what they did to YHWH’s people, costing Him 24,000 of them, was only a prelude to killing them. How un-Christian! But it was YHWH’s will. We, too, are called to learn the Scriptures well so that we can show how ridiculous are the practices of those who worship the “lord of the underworld” without realizing it, then “kill off” the self in them so they can become more like they are meant to be.

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". Peor affair: when Bilaam suggested luring Israel away from YHWH by seduction, since he could not curse them directly. Though it began with the daughters of Moav (v. 1), somehow the Midyanites also became involved and took precedence over them, possibly because of the added weightiness of having defiled the holy area. A severe response is called for when anyone uses deceptive techniques to lead YHWH’s people away from faithfulness to Him.

CHAPTER 26

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 out to the army in Israel."

Just prior to this, there had been only one man willing to fight for Israel, instead of just crying about the crisis. The plague was the reason the census was requested. YHWH knew how many there were in Israel, and Moshe knew approximately how many had died over the years. The phrase “take a census” literally means “lift the heads”. I.e., make sure they are all paying attention. Have them look you in the eye as you remind them clearly, “You are not married to Ba’al-Peor. You are a part of Israel, not Moav, Midyan, or Egypt, so do not help them reach their goals. You belong to YHWH. Read my lips: serve one another. Get your focus back on being an army. Stand up and be counted.” In Israel, only those who fight are counted. And it is according to tribal identity that they are counted, not as individuals, because Yaaqov had given particular blessings (and curses) to each tribe, indicating where their strengths and weaknesses lay. Corps of different types of weaponry were grouped by tribe, largely because they possessed the same skills. (1 Chron. 8:40) By serving their ancestral household, they were serving all of Israel. The father is the leader, decision-maker, and authority in the household. Today, as we are still scattered, the temporary equivalent is the local congregation. If you are not in the one where you belong, find the one where YHWH has called you, then sink your tent pegs deep. You cannot go to war without a commander.

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)

5. Reuven ["Look! A son!"] is Israel's firstborn. The sons of Reuven [are as follows]: 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,

Their struggle was, in today’s terms, wanting Israel to be a democracy. They wanted everyone to have a vote, and called Moshe’s leadership style nepotism. But Moshe did not feel a need to explain anything to them. He simply referred the question to YHWH, who made His will very clear.

11. but the children of Qorach did not die.

This must mean that, unlike Dathan and Aviram’s children, Qorach’s sons, though they had rebellion in their veins, had the wisdom to separate themselves from their own father, who started the rebellion, when YHWH told the whole congregation to do so. (16:24ff) They sided with Israel rather than their own family when this was necessary. (Mat. 10:37) They were appointed 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. They knew their father wanted them to inherit lies and things that would not let Israel ascend. (Yirmeyahu 16:19) In fact, their father very quickly descended! However, no particular names of Qorach's sons are listed, so perhaps they no longer wanted to be called his sons. Today our fathers have passed on to us untruths about Y’shua that do not allow us to ascend closer to YHWH. If we see Y’shua as the end-all, we will not return all the way to His Father, which was His purpose.

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 (ch. 1), there were nearly three times as many. Considering that while most of the tribes grew or maintained a relatively stable population between the first census and this one, but Shim’on’s size diminished sharply, Steve Collins theorizes that because one of their leaders, Zimri, had been executed by Pin’has (25:14), a large contingent left the camp and went off and formed a nation of their own. The historical record turns up the Milesians, who conquered Ireland around 500 B.C.E. after living for a while in Spain. They had come from further east, and their flag represented the last major event in Israel’s history prior to that—the serpent on a pole. (ch. 21) There are also drops in the sizes of Efrayim, Re’uven, Gad, Yehudah, and Nafthali, possibly explained by the loss of the 24,000 who died in the plague after the Kozbi affair. (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 were not to go to war, they were charged with guarding YHWH’s set-apart place. The Maccabees, who defended the faith from the Greeks’ attempt to taint it, also came from this tribe. While the tribe of Shim'on was decimated, Levi's numbers increased by 1,000.

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 Sardites; 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 Makhir ["sold at a price"], the clan of the Makhirites, and Makhir fathered Gil'ad ["rocky region"]; for Gil'ad, the clan of the Gil'adites.

A different pattern is seen here, for Yoseyf gave a special honor to Makhir. He named Makhir’s sons as his own, thus forming a sort of third tribe of Yoseyf. (Gen. 50:23) Yaaqov had transferred the birthright to Efrayim, so in this way Yoseyf gave some honor back to Menashe. Gil'ad: ancestor of Eliyahu the prophet. But because Makhir was a man of war (a term otherwise used in Scripture only of YHWH and David) and conquered the land of Gil’ad, half of it was given to Makhir’s descendants. (Y’hoshua 13:29; 17:1) They were held in very high esteem. Moshe even called them the tribe of the sons of Yoseyf (36:1ff) when they were especially concerned that they might lose this land due to one family of their clan having no sons.

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"].

See chapter 36 for the solution to the fact that he had no sons.

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 Bachrites; 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.

The tribe of Yoseyf is now the largest tribe, with 85,200. They are even larger than Yehudah, so it is clear that though Yehudah is back in the Land today, the majority of Israel is still in exile.

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 level.

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. Yoseyf’s name means “he adds”, and there are indeed more names listed under Yoseyf’s than any other tribe. 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)

Mustered: literally, visited. They were thus called up individually, for each was to see himself as a warrior in Israel and to pay attention to the place he was put according to his strengths and propensities.

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".

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.

Not counted among: They are a microcosm of how the nation of Israel at large relates to the whole world. Yet they were numbered from just after their birth, for they were born to do battle from the start by their unique calling to teach all of Israel to serve one another, for when we do, our enemies cannot stand.

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. Kalev means “like-hearted” and Y’hoshua means “YHWH is salvation”. This should encourage us if we are among the number of Israel who are unified in heart and who follow the Y’hoshua who is still alive. If not, this verse should strike great fear in our hearts, for when it is time to return to the Land, we will not be among the remnant to enter.

CHAPTER 27

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.

Those who were alive at this time held the sin of Qorach to be much worse than ordinary sins. He had wanted authority YHWH had not given him, and led a national rebellion against the authority YHWH had put in place. He defiled the people of Israel with his selfishness.

They could understand why Qorach's name should be blotted out, but knew the importance of their father's name being carried on. Since he had paid for his sin, they did not think they should have to pay for it as well. (See Y’hezq’el/Ezkl. 18.) But since there was no male child, his name would not be "remembered" (the same word as "male" in Hebrew). Having no brothers, they would in essence be left with nothing. Now they would inherit their husbands’ land, and they themselves would do well enough. So it was not their own well-being that they were concerned for, but their father’s honor. If their husbands should come from another tribe, some of the land of the tribe of Menashe would be transferred to another tribe. They wanted to ensure that this would not take place. They wanted a place among this tribe. There is a very clear parallel for our day. In the latter days, Yirmeyahu 16 tells us, the descendants of those who left the covenant of Israel would repudiate their fathers’ defiling of the Land and recognize that their fathers, too, had left them nothing of substance to inherit. They had passed down no clue that they were connected to Israel in any physical sense, but rather gave the impression that, despite Y’shua’s warning (Mat. 7:6), the holy things had after all been thrown to the dogs (an idiom for Gentiles), leaving the children with the assumption that they were nothing but Gentiles. The pearls of the New Yerushalayim’s gates (each bearing the name of one of the tribes of Israel, Rev. 21:12, 21) had indeed been cast before swine. But now the truth is coming to light that our true brothers are not the nations, but those who recognize the Elohim of Israel as their own, and turn to His ways. It is becoming obvious that the global community’s apparent alliance with the Church only applies where it advances their agenda, and will “dump” any apparent reverence for YHWH after they have milked it of any value it has for them. Israel’s name, and YHWH’s, would then be forgotten. Do we want our inheritance tied up in that sinking ship, or the one that will truly ride out the coming tidal waves? As we awake to our true identity as Israelites and want to turn from the lies our fathers have given us as an inheritance to receive what does allow us to ascend (Yirm. 16:19), the precedent for our return rides on the outcome of this case:

Tz’lafchad’s daughters were bold to make such a request, but Moshe could tell that they were not coming in rebellion. This request seemed different from the hostile ones that had preceded it, so He gave it the proper consideration.

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.

Property: The term comes from a root word meaning “to seize” or “grasp”, for indeed, though YHWH had designated it for them, Israel had to fight to take it from those who had forfeited their right to it but still inhabited it. The same is true in our day. The pearls have to be taken back from the swine, and the holy things from the dogs, for they are to secure no one’s agenda but YHWH’s. The “dust” of Avraham’s children (Gen. 13:16) that makes up the Land in the spiritual sense needs to be brought back together as well.

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.'"

YHWH carries the pattern over from just the daughters of Tz’lafchad to anyone in Israel in the same situation with this official "flowchart" by which the recipients of an inheritance in question are eliminated and narrowed down, so that the Land would remain in the same tribe perpetually, even when it reverted to its original owners’ family every 50 years. (Lev. 25:10)

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.

He was telling Moshe, who is also symbolic of the Torah, that by having led the people to the border of the promised Land, his job was complete. (Ex. 32:34) The next task was not his. (See note on v. 18.)

The account of the daughters of Tz’lafchad shows us what we do have the right to take hold of—truth, the unity of Israel, the perpetuation of distinctions that allows some things to be kept holy. But though Moshe had begged YHWH to change His mind, He was not allowed to partake of the inheritance of the Land. There is also an inheritance that is not ours by right. In the context of telling us to be like-minded and put one another ahead of ourselves—essential buildingblocks in the restoration of Israel—he says we are to have the same attitude as Y’shua. (Phil. 2:2-11) The King James version says He “thought it not robbery to be equal with [Elohim]”, but emptied Himself and became a servant. Yet this term for “robbery” is really the equivalent of this Hebrew term for inheritance—prized booty, something to be grasped, seized, and held onto. Why did Paul even suggest that such a temptation would appeal to Y’shua? Because it was the sin of our most ancient forefathers. The serpent claimed that Adam and Chavvah, who were created in YHWH’s image, could become “like Elohim”. It was trying to seize this forbidden inheritance that put us all in exile from Eden. This was the same sin of setting one’s heart on the throne of Elohim that had gotten haSatan cast out of heaven, as seen in the typology of the Prince of Tzur (Y’hezq’el28:2-9) In Philippians 2, Y’shua is also described as being in the image of Elohim, and indeed He was the first instance since prior to Adam’s fall in which a man bore Elohim’s image unmarred. Yet are we to then say that Y’shua, who was sent to restore what Adam lost and undo his error (1 Cor. 15:45; Rom. 5:15-19), was guilty of the same crime that Adam and haSatan had committed—and praise Him for it? This is the ultimate contradiction, yet it is the foundation for a cherished Church doctrine that says Y’shua was equal with the Father—though He Himself said the Father was His superior! (Yochanan 14:28; compare 13:16; 15:20) If He was not genuinely tempted as we are (Heb. 4:15), then His successful overcoming would be a cruel joke that we could never attain to, though He tells us we must if we are to receive the fullest inheritance that is within our rights. (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:12, 21) He is the firstborn among many brothers (Rom. 8:29), the Son of Elohim who came to allow us to become sons of Elohim (Hoshea 1:10; 1 Yochanan 3:1-2). As the firstborn, He receives double the inheritance that His fellows receive (Gen. 48:22; Psalm 45:7; Heb. 1:9), but note that we are indeed to be His fellows when His task of restoring us to His Father and ours (Yochanan 20:17) is complete. Indeed, it was specifically because He accomplished this that He was given a higher position and more authority, as the Philippians 2 passage itself says. (Compare also Yeshayahu 49:6; .Mat. 28:18) As such we are to do Him the utmost homage, but not at the expense of obscuring the Father’s supremacy.

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) It did not matter whether someone looked to men like he could handle the job, as was later the case with King Sha’ul. (1 Shmuel 9:2) If people were to elect a leader democratically, Moshe knew by experience that they would certainly do so according to the flesh. Only YHWH knew what was truly best for Israel. (1 Shmuel 16:7) He has to be the one to choose the leader.

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) In fact, this is one reason His name had to be Y’shua, which is a shortened, Aramaic version of Y’hoshua:

Spirit: Aramaic Targum Onqelos adds "of prophecy", but the context leans rather toward it being the spirit of shepherding the nation. He must be one who would lead his people to battle, not just send them while he stayed behind in safety. The shepherd extablishes the next place for the sheep to settle. Lean your hand on him: put your weight (which signifies importance in Hebrew) on him, and express identification of your cause with his (as was done with the offerings brought to the Tabernacle). Moshe in this sense made Y’hoshua his “son”, and the later Y’hoshua (Y’shua the Messiah) was validated by the Torah as well. (Yochanan 1:45; 5:39) The Torah, as typified by Moshe, brought us out of Egypt, got us past our rebellion, and tutored us to the point of readiness to enter the Promised Land. (Gal. 3:24) Those not walking in the Torah will not be among those gathered to re-enter the Land. Y’shua’s Kingdom will be established under the Torah’s authority. But the Torah cannot take us all the way home. Keeping Torah alone cannot establish the Kingdom; only the one named Y’hoshua can precede us into the Land; we cannot go in unless we are also following Him. (Yochanan 1:14) Any other way of entering the Land is only temporary and is not the Kingdom. The modern, secular government of Israel, which is not even Torah-observant, is certainly not the one to grant us that right of return. But this also applies to entering the Land in the figurative, spiritual sense as well as the physical.

Present him before …the priest: At His immersion, Y’shua was given a higher degree of authority by YHWH through a voice from heaven. But the man who validated Him on the human level (Mark 1:9-11) was from the priestly line (Luke 1:5ff), and many think it possible that he was actually in line to be the high priest, though by this time the position was granted by Rome to the highest bidder among Aharon’s descendants rather than patrilineally as YHWH had mandated. Yet as Aharon never entered the Land, Yochanan the Immerser had to die before the Kingdom would come through Y’shua. (Luke 16:16)

Honor: splendor, dignity, majesty, or authority. Some of: Y'hoshua was given a “head start” so that the people would accept his leadership, but the rest of their respect he had to earn through his experience and decisions. He did not have the face-to-face conversations with YHWH that Moshe had:

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"), but here only Urim are mentioned overtly. They are the part that is seen. Y’shua too said He could only do what He saw the Father doing. (Yochanan 5:19; compare 5:30.)

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

CHAPTER 28

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

Be careful: from a word meaning “build a hedge around or enclose with a fence”. Our tendency is to build a wall to keep YHWH at a distance, but He wants us to come close to Him, building a wall that defines a set-apart place which Semitic languages call a harem, and indeed this whole passage is full of wedding terminology, the more familiar usage of the word to those who do not speak Hebrew or Arabic. The bread of community coming together at the appointments He has set (rather than ones we have set ourselves) is what builds this wall that serves much the same purpose as a wedding ring in the modern world—to keep other would-be lovers away from His bride. Yet so often He is a scorned husband. If we just fulfill our duty in a rote manner rather than for the purpose of drawing near to Him, we will have profaned these set-apart days (made them just like any other common day) and will be no better off than if we were still marking the wrong days and thus actually missing His appointments. Yeshayahu 55:6 tells us to “seek YHWH while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.” These are the dates He has made on which to woo His bride, and indeed the root word from which the Hebrew for “appointed season” is derived can mean “to betrothe” as well as simply “to assemble at an agreed-upon time”. This must mean there are times He is not available. Certainly this would include days others have substituted for His, just as Yarav’am, the first king of Israel did (1 Kings 12:32). Constantine, too, wanted to change the times and laws (Dan. 7:25), a condition from which the majority of the House of Israel has not yet repented as long as it calls any day but the seventh the Sabbath. But the first step in building the hedge is actually to be done every day:

Ascending: sometimes called a "whole burnt offering", since it all “goes up” in smoke, but literally it is a "stairway" or "means of ascent", for His ways are higher than ours. 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.

Between the evenings: 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.

One tenth of an ephah is an omer, which represents a single person, for it was valued at half a sheqel, the price for the redemption of one person. (Ex. 30:13) Why does it not just say an omer, then? Because the emphasis is that we are each only part of the whole. An ephah represents a whole congregation. You are not His bride, and I am not, but when all of are together in unity, we are. As we draw near, we need to focus on the whole congregation. Grain offering: Hirsch renders it, "allegiance gift". The oil represents the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Pure oil represents the fact that the fine flour that makes up the loaf (1 Cor. 10:17) must be held together by the right spirit, for there are many others willing to usurp that position. The first crushing (in an olive press): that which is given willingly when there is just a hint that it is His will (2 Cor. 9:7), not when the obligation has already become obvious to all. The later crushing required considerable pressure to force the oil out, but it is not so clear or unmixed with pulp as the first.

What was done on Mt. Sinai: At this particular drawing near, Moshe told us to purify ourselves in advance to receive the Torah. This stance of readiness and departing from selfish motives is to be carried on into every day so we can continue to have open ears to receive His orders.

If wine is a symbol of joy, this beverage is a picture of jubilance over the fact that YHWH is our husband and that He wants us close to Him.

We cannot do this literally right now, but not so much because there is no Tabernacle, because offerings were made elsewhere even after the Tabernacle was built. The main reason is because we are not yet gathered as a people as we were at Sinai. But when there is again a corporate Israel, we will return to the physical practice. (See Y’hezq’el/Ezk. 40-46.) Though it is only a picture of the heart of the matter, the heart is only expressed through concrete actions which He has prescribed. (Eph. 2:10) The blood of bulls and goats never took away sin (Heb. 10:4) It is done for the cleansing of our conscience. So how do we begin to obey these commands meanwhile? By at the very least, giving thanks to YHWH. Male animals are offered, and the Hebrew word for “male” means to remember. So we need to remember His mercy as we start the day, and end the day by recounting what the true bread (Y’shua and the Torah) has done for us that day.

Now we move to the next step in the betrothal process, the first of the special appointments YHWH has with Israel.

So four lambs were actually offered on the Sabbath. While everything else was to shut down, the sanctuary’s courts were actually a busier place on the Sabbath. Making His dwelling-place function properly should be our focus on the Sabbath too. As the double portion of manna was provided before the Sabbath, by tradition (and experience bears this out) we are given an additional soul—one with greater capacity to receive spiritual truth—on the Sabbath. We need to seek out the extra provision that we are to bring to the congregation in addition to giving ourselves completely. We are to bring all that we are and our increase.

Heads (beginnings) of your months: i.e., at the new moon. Note that there are more offerings brought at the new moon, for it is considered more important than the weekly Sabbaths. The word for month actually means “renewing”. Y’shua is the Head of the renewed Adam. (Eph. 2:15; Col. 1:18) But each month gives us the open door for renewal, and the attitude in which we bring the offerings sets the tone for where He is going to take us and what He will emphasize in that month. We should be filled with a sense of expectancy. The root word for “head” means “shaking”, like an earthquake that removes everything else from our lives so the rebuilding can begin. There is an atmosphere of adventure associated with it, because we do not know exactly which day this appointment will fall until the moon is actually sighted in Israel. So as with those who waited for the cloud to move in the wilderness, we must be ready and watchful.

The ram is also more valuable than a lamb, but the bull is most valuable, so the other offerings that accompany each also increase in number. Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately a seah, three of which make up an ephah. Sarah was told to make bread from three seahs of flour (Gen. 18:6), and Y’shua said the Kingdom was like leaven that permeated the bread baked from three seahs. (Mat. 13:33) Bringing three measures correlates with doing our part to make up the three-stranded cord (made up of Yehudah, Israel, and Y’shua) that is not easily broken. (Eccles. 4:12)

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". All of these elements together form a "bride for YHWH” and thus a satisfying aroma--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. “YHWH is a man of war” (Ex. 15:3), but when He smells the aroma of His people in unity and wanting to draw near to Him, it is like His wife cooking dinner, and He can rest in this, as He did at the first Sabbath. What other nation can say of their elohim that He wants to “kick back” and relax with us? The offerings are listed from the lower in value to the higher—an ascent in itself.

The libations for the new moon (and the three pilgrim festivals, as seen below), when carried out to the least common denominator, add up to 13/12—a cup running over, and enough for all the tribes of Israel, which are usually described as twelve, but with Yoseyf’s double portion, there are actually 13.

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

Day: among other reasons, this simple detail clarifies that the sacrifice of the lamb begins as the light of the fourteenth is waning, for if it were on the evening as the fourteenth begins, the day it overlapped with would be the thirteenth, not the fourteenth.

The fifteenth commences as the Passover feast is still in progress, so no leavened bread is eaten at the Passover seder either. Elsewhere (Ex. 12:15-19 et al) we are told not to eat any leaven during this week, but here the only emphasis is on the positive command to eat unleavened bread on each of the seven days. Unleavened bread is a picture of the Body of the Messiah. (1 Cor. 5:6-8) This season gives us practice in partaking of one another rather than of what the outside world offers us.

Holy calling-together: thus it cannot be celebrated properly alone. 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 (Ex. 20:8), for this day is one of the “high Sabbaths”. Servile labor: that is, any work representing an employer. In anticipation of its fuller reality in the Kingdom, we are to celebrate our freedom from Egypt, the world system, and sin. The only way to ensure that we are not doing work for payment is to serve one another in ways for which we will not be paid on the earthly plane. As we gather for the convocation, we will found out the specifics of how our service is needed on that particular occasion.

These are the same offerings as on the new moon, showing equivalence on some level. The only differences are that attendance in Yerushalayim is not required of all Israelites nor is work forbidden on the new moon.

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.

This is the way community is forged. There is a different spirit at work during these set-apart days, and even during the “ordinary” days in the middle of the festivals, we should be concentrating on practicing how to be a unified community. Sukkoth, when we dwell outdoors for eight days, is a rehearsal for the time we will again spend in the wilderness with the Messiah before He retakes the Land and the kingship of the entire earth. (Yeshayau 16; 26:20; Rev. 12:14, etc.)

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.

Firstfruits: in this case, of the wheat harvest (that is, Shavuoth), because the firstfruits of the barley are brought while it is still the feast of unleavened bread. Renewed: or "new", but it renews the cycle of grain offerings, because it is fresh grain.

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.

A covering: another way of describing the sin offering. It is a microcosm of Yom Kippur, a day entirely devoted to atonement.

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

Trumpet-blasts: On the surface, this passage does not tell us the purpose of the trumpet-blasts, but the term encompasses everything from a shout of joy to a signal to wake up. Yoel 3:9 links this awakening to mighty men preparing for war. Psalm 57:7-12 says the reason to wake up is to praise and honor YHWH. This is the force behind battles being won. (2 Chron. 20:22) Psalm 59:5 is about YHWH waking up to judge the nations. Yeshayahu/Isaiah 52 links the call to awake with Tzion finally being rid of uncleanness and being freed from captivity. Seventh: symbolic of completion, but the cardinal term in Hebrew also signifies “an oath”. Since this day begins a time of intense repentance, it is a time to let Scripture show us where we have been asleep and how to shake off the slumber and storm the strongholds with the promise to do better, then how to actually carry it out. The term for month actually relates to the renewal of the moon rather than the moon itself. So “first of the month”, on a deeper level, is literally “united for renewal”. Seventh also symbolizes completeness, so we could read “a complete renewal”. The trumpet-blast is associated with the resurrection of the dead (Yeshayahu 26:19) The renewal will not be truly complete until the dead are resurrected, but the resurrection has begun in Messiah, who became the “firstfruits of the dead” on the Feast of Firstfruits. (1 Cor. 15:23) Indeed, Y’shua fulfilled each of the first series of festivals in the earlier part of the year on their very day. Since trumpets and the resurrection of the dead accompany his return (1 Thess. 4:16-17), it appears that His return will be on a Yom T’ruah (this day of trumpet blasts). 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. But the term for “calling-together” here also means “a rehearsal”. With each year it draws nearer, and the more we focus on freeing ourselves from the aspects of death (selfishness, works of darkness, etc.) by laying down our selves in love for one another (Rom. 13:8ff), the sooner we will be ready (Luke 12:40), and thus the sooner He can return (2 Kefa/Peter 3:12).

Bulls: representative of our security. False elohim such as Ba’al were worshipped in the form of bulls. Ba’al means “overlord”, “husband”, or “owner”, for what we serve as security does indeed possess us. We need to corporately slay whatever we are serving as a husband instead of YHWH. Year-old: literally, sons of a year. They have been through a full cycle of maturity, having passed through each of His festival appointments once. The bull is the most expensive, but we are not to stop with bringing our best; we must offer the rest of our substance to YHWH as well. (Compare Mat. 23:23-27)

Fine flour: used to bake the bread that represents the Messiah and His community.

The total is twelve tenths of an ephah of flour, symbolizing the twelve tribes in community.

When all of Israel is joined together, the sin of one affects everyone, so in repenting we bring healing to the whole nation.

Proper: Aramaic, "prescribed". Since the offerings for three different occasions are all brought on this day, the total number of animals sacrificed is 21 (3 bulls, 2 rams, and 16 lambs).

No work: that is, representative work for another in a way that profits us—the same rule as for the Sabbath. Humble yourselves: traditionally "afflict your souls", a quite valid translation, taken for centuries to mean a complete fast. (Yeshayahu 58:3ff) It can just as properly be translated "weaken your appetites", which fasting does indeed do, "suppress your desires", or “be busy with your souls” It is one day to focus inwardly, because the soul-searching for the purpose of repentance can bring about a clear conscience and changes in lifestyle that benefit all of Israel. Thus we are actually still serving one another, even while turning inward. It is called a Day of Atonements in Lev. 23:27-28. The word for fasting comes from a word that means “to cover one’s mouth”—not just to keep food from entering, but to guard against letting corrupt words against our brothers (or even just too many words) come out. Yeshayahu 58 shows rather pointedly that the fast is not an end in itself but a time to set things straight so that during the rest of the time the hungry are fed with the bread of community and a place worthy of living in is rebuilt with the proper defenses intact again.

Healings: the same term as “perfect ones” in v. 2, but when YHWH is satisfied, we cannot but be healed too.

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.

These are the same offerings as Yom T’ruah. These twelve-tenths of an ephah of flour represent the next step in forming the unity of the twelve tribes.

No servile labor: This allows for cooking and necessary non-commercial activity. Lev. 23:29 clarifies that this only applies to the first and eighth days (see v. 35 below), which means buying, selling, etc. can be done on the intermediate days, but when the Temple exists, all able-bodied men are to be there for the whole week, so the ideal picture even in our exile is to spend all eight days together with at least your local community.

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).

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 decreases by one each day. One thing this pictures is that we should have fewer and fewer things that possess us (see note on v. 2) to have to offer up to YHWH. 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 ingathering of the nations", symbolizing the time all nations will bring their treasures into the holy city. (Rev. 21:24) But the very best thing they bring will be the scattered exiles of Israel (Yeshayahu 49:22)—the fruit of the seeds He sowed into all nations. (Hos. 2:23; Z’kharyah 10:9) YHWH gave His best—His only “bull”—so we could come back home. For now, Sukkoth is a rehearsal of that full regathering. Angels announced to shepherds who were raising lambs for use in the Temple (as, according to the Mishnah, 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 glad news of ‘mega- joy' which shall be for all the people." (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 applied to Himself. Because of these and 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, since they would no longer be fresh; payment for them was brought instead.

Holdover: sometimes translated "solemn or festive sacred assembly", the term actually denotes an encore, a 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 required holiday, because the symbolism is pregnant with significance. The root word means enclosing, which suggests an establishing and sealing of the unity that has been accomplished in the foregoing seven days. In ancient Hebrew 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. 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, made possible by what was accomplished during the 7,000 years of YHWH’s interaction with men. 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 (Heb. 10:20) 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 (Yehoshua 5:8-9), 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).

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.'"