Natan’s Notes of Galatians—What is the bottom line?

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Galatians 3:13, Curse of the law. The curse of the law is not the Torah-law, but the penalty for violating it. Yeshua came to save us from the penalty of the law, not from the law itself. Through his grace and forgiveness coupled with our repentance, we are saved from the consequences of violating the law (the penalty of the law, which ultimately is death), but we have not been liberated from obedience to the law. That would be like saying that if someone pays your fine for speeding, the speeding laws no longer apply to you and you are free to drive at any speed you like. This of course is absurd.

Galatians 3:19, It was added/sent again. This refers to the Torah in its codified form as given to the Israelites at Sinai, and to the sacrificial system that was imposed on the rebellious Israelites until the time of Yeshua’s death on the cross (see notes at Jer 7:22). Let me explain.

The Levitical priesthood (along with the elaborate tabernacle sacrificial system) was a temporary institution that YHVH added (Gal 3:19 cp. Jer 7:21–22) to the nation of Israel’s legal system because of the firstborn Israelites’ (who YHVH commissioned to be the priests of their families, Exod 19:22 cp. Exod 13:2, 11–16) failure to prevent Israel from worshipping the golden calf and to sin by faithlessly grumbling and murmuring against Elohim. In a general sense, YHVH didn’t give the Israelites the Torah at this time—the principles of which they and their forefathers already knew (e.g. Gen 26:5), and which were in existence since the foundation of the earth. These eternal and inviolate principles had already been passed on down to successive generations by men like Enoch, Noah and the patriarchs. So what other law was added? At Mount Sinai, the eternal principles of the Torah were codified into an administrative legal system (with civil penalties including the institution of a sacrificial system as a penalty for sin, which the Bible calls this system “the law of Moses”), and this codified system became the constitution of the nation of Israel. At the same time, YHVH gave them the institution of the Levitical priesthood and the sacrificial system (Gal 3:19), which (along with the rest of the Torah) pointed them to their need for Yeshua the Savior (Gal 3:16, 24). An example of such a codified system of law would be the American Constitution, the principles of which the founding fathers gleaned from many sources (including the biblical Torah, the ancient Greeks, English common law, the English Magna Carta and the French philosophers), which they then combined to make the legal code that now governs the United States (in theory). A similar situation occurred with the law of Moses, except the source for it was the Word, will, heart and character of Elohim, which he had revealed his servants of antiquity, and which then had been passed on down as well as additional laws that were given to Moses pertaining to governing the nation of Israel.

The civil penalties that the law of Moses prescribes along with the sacrificial and Levitical systems were temporary institutions that pointed, like a schoolmaster, tutor or pedagogue (to use Paul’s analogy in the latter part of Galatians chapter four), to Yeshua the Messiah, and which were completely fulfilled by the Messiah as the writer of Hebrews goes on to explains in great detail (see Hebrews chapters 5–11). 

The general principles of the Torah are inviolate and have never changed. This includes the ten commandments, the biblical feasts, the Sabbath, the dietary laws, and all the laws and principles that regulate moral behavior as well as tell us how to love Elohim with our total being and our neighbor as ourselves. These are the eternal principles of the Torah of which Yeshua said that not one jot or tittle would pass away, that we must obey (both letter and spirit), and that obedience to will determine the saint’s rewards in the kingdom of Elohim. Yeshua explains all these things in his landmark and pivotal teaching that history now refers to as the Sermon on the Mount (i.e. Matthew chapters five through seven). Read it, believe it and follow these principles as they lead and guide you into the kingdom of heaven through Yeshua the Messiah!

Galatians 3:24, Schoolmaster. The church’s concept and understanding of the schoolmaster is incorrect. Consider what David Stern has to say about it:

Stern in his Complete Jewish Bible translates schoolmaster as custodian. He explains why in his JNT Commentary (p. 553). The word translated as schoolmaster in the KJV and other English Bibles is the Greek word paidagogos which literally means boy-leader. In ancient Greece a paidagogos was a slave who conducted a boy to and from school and was not actually the school teacher. You can verify this definition in Webster’s dictionary. As languages evolve words change in meanings. Therefore, a secondary modern meaning of pedagogue is a teacher or schoolmaster and pedagogy is the science of teaching. Stern explains that the ancient Greek paidagogos had no teaching function and although the Torah had as one of its goals the leading of Jewish people to the Messiah, as Paul explicitly states at Romans 10:4, that is not the import of the present verse. The paidagogos actually would have been a harsh disciplinarian for the Jewish people, providing some protection but generally making the Jewish person aware of many transgressions so that Jews might turn from legalistic rule-following and be declared righteous legally on the basis of faith and being faithful to Yeshua, whose trusting faithfulness to God the Father purchased our salvation.”

Just because the Torah-pedagogue brought us to the Messiah, doesn’t mean we don’t need it anymore. This is a presumptuous and false understanding of Paul in Galatians 3:24 in its broader context. 

One purpose of the Torah was to identify our sin (1 John 3:4) and hence our need for the Messiah who forgives that sin. This is what Paul is saying in Gal 3:24. 

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What Is the Biblical Definition of Legalism?

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Galatians 3

A Wild and Crazy Place to Be

The spiritual Babylon of the church system is a warm and comfortable place in which to live. Within its comfort zones, it has fixed boundaries and clear delineations. When one steps out of the mainstream church system, however, and into a more Hebraic and Torah-pursuant spiritual orientation, it can becomes the shooting gallery of the wild, wild west of doctrines and ideas. 

Outside the so-called organized church system, or churchianity for short, it’s a free-for-all wilderness of every man doing what’s right in his own eyes. In this wilderness outside of organized religion, one has to determine which church beliefs to hold on to and which ones are lies and unbiblical traditions our spiritual fathers have passed on down to us. Here one must learn to separate the spiritual wheat from the chaff. As one’s eyes are opened to the pro-Torah Hebrew roots of the Christian faith, there are many new ideas and doctrines to consider. When coming onward and upward to a fuller knowledge of the truth, one must determine priorities without falling prey to more false doctrines and legalism. This includes determining which biblical truths are the trunk of the tree issues, and which areas are the twigs and the branches. 

In the midst of this confusion, there are many winds of doctrines blowing around capturing people’s attention. People often get sidetracked from the trunk of the tree issues and get hung up on nonessential issues. Paul warned about this.

That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind [violent agitation, very strong tempestuous wind] of doctrine [teaching, instruction], by the sleight [deception] of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive [to delude, lead astray from the right way]. (Eph 4:14)

If one is not grounded firmly on the foundation of essential biblical truths, one can get hung up on side-issues that can become nonessential pet doctrines. Those who fall prey to this tendency will often gravitate toward biblical teachers who agree with them. A pet doctrine can become so important to a person that it can become a spiritual idol in one’s heart. One can become so convinced of the importance of a nonessential doctrine or belief that one will begin to demand that others around them conform to it, and then view those who don’t as somehow inferior spiritually. This is legalism. These pet doctrines often lead to pride and exclusivism toward those who do not agree with us and our pet doctrines. If not careful, we can develop an us versus them mentality, and become prideful because we posses a truth that the next guy doesn’t. 

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. (1 Tim 4:3)

What Is Legalism?

When one begins to emphasise pet doctrines there is a tendency toward exclusivism (wanting to hang out with others who also hold to these same pet doctrines), which can lead to legalism. 

So what is legalism? It’s not what exactly what the church has led you to believe it is. One of the definitions of legalism is an extra-biblical term that is often thrown out as a sort of insult against others who don’t believe as we do. 

Another definition of legalism according to the dictionary is “an excessive adherence to law or formula.” 

Those in the churchianity often use the term legalism as an invective against those who have discovered the validity of YHVH’s Torah and are now pursuing a more Hebraic or Torah-compliant lifestyle. This, however, isn’t how Yeshua or the apostles understand the concept. Yeshua told his disciples that if they loved him they would keep his Torah commandments (John 14:15). He said that the saint’s eternal spiritual rewards—not their salvation—are based on Torah-obedience (Matt 5:19). He then goes on to tell his disciples that their righteousness had to exceed that of the Pharisees who were punctiliously obedient the Torah (Matt 5:20). The apostles for their part in numerous places uphold the validity of the Torah in a believer’s life as well (Acts 21:20, 24; 24:14; 25:8; Rom 3:31; 7:12, 22; 13:8–10; 1 Cor 7:19; 9:21; 1 John 2:3–4; 3:4, 24; 5:2–3; Rev 12:17; 14:12; 22:14).

People who are zealous for righteousness and righteous standards of conduct can easily and unwittingly fall prey to legalism. Legalism must be differentiated from righteous living out of a heart of love, faith and humility. YHVH demands that the saints live a righteous life (Matt 5:20; Rev 19:8; 1 John 2:29; Rom 8:4; 1 Cor 15:34; Eph 4:24; 6:14).The Bible defines righteousness as Torah-obedience (Ps 119:172). All unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17; 3:10). The Bible prescribes righteousness, but proscribes self-righteousness and legalism.

The apostolic writings reveal that there are two kinds of legalism that had become an issue in the first century Messianic community. These types of legalism are still with us today. These are…

Salvational legalism. This is the idea that salvation is based on one’s good works. Paul addresses this issue and warns against this false teaching in several places (Eph 2:8–9; Gal 3:1–3, 5; Rom 3:20, 27; 4:2; 11:6; 2 Tim 1:9; Tit 3:5).

Halachic legalism. Halachah is a Hebrew word that means “to walk” and refers “how one walks out their faith.” Halachic legalism is demanding that others conform to our pet doctrines, our extra-biblical man-made doctrines or traditions, or our specific interpretation on how to walk out a Torah command. It boils down to the idea that “your spiritual walkor halachah needs to conform to mine.” Halachic legalism involves doctrines or beliefs that are nonessential to salvation.

In his Jewish New Testament Commentary, David Stern defines these two types of legalism. Salvational legalism is based on…

[A]ctions stemming from boastful, self-righteous belief that by doing them, by following a set of rules in one’s strength, without any trust [faith] in God or faithfulness towards him, one can earn God’s praises and applause and obligate him to grant one a berth in [the kingdom of] heaven. (p. 345–346)

 [T]he false principle that God grants acceptance to people, considers them righteous and worthy of being in his presence, on the ground of their obedience to a set of rules, apart from putting their trust in God, relying on him, loving him and accepting his love for them. (p. 521)

Stern then goes on to define halachiclegalism.

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Who Are the Real Judaizers?

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Galatians 2:14, To live as a Jew. The Greek word here is Ioudaidzo from which the term Judaizer derives. This is the only occurrence of this work in the Testimony of Yeshua. Biblically speaking, who and what is a Judaizer?

Mainstream Christians label those who believe in the gospel and, at the same time, adhere to the Torah as Judaizers. Is this a correct label and what is the biblical historical origin of this term? 

The term Judaizing or Judaizer as the mainstream church understands it to mean is not found in the Bible per se. However, church historians and Bible teachers have applied this term retrospectively to those in the primitive Christian church as well as to modern saints who advocated adherence to the Torah. This is ironic since Paul in many places in his writings advocated Torah obedience to the believers in Rome (who were both Jewish and Gentile) and elsewhere. So while Paul teaches Torah observance on the one hand, many believe that Paul was teaching liberty from the Torah (in book of Galatians, for example) on the other hand. This has led to much confusion about what Paul really believed. Was he conflicted in his beliefs in that it seems that he was both for and against the Torah? Or maybe he gradually changed his opinion from pro-Torah to anti-Torah. This latter proposition seems unlikely since Bible scholars tell us that Romans and Galatians were written nearly at the same time. So the term Judaizer as used by modern Bible scholars seems to be a canard­—a fabricated concept or one built on a false premise. 

The fact is that the phrase “to become Jewish” from which the English term Judiazer derives is found only twice in the entire Bible. The first place is in Esther 8:17 where the Greek Old Testament (LXX) uses the Hebrew verb Ioudaizon meaning “to become a Jew,” or “to profess oneself to be Jewish.” It was used in reference to those Persians who suddenly “converted” to Judaism to escape Jewish persecution. The second reference is found in Galatians 2:14 were Paul accused Peter, not of being Torah-obedient, but rather of adhering to non-biblical Jewish traditions, which forbad Jews and Gentiles from eating together. In this verse we find the phrase “to live as do the Jews.” This phrase is the Greek word Ioudaizō meaning “to become Judean, to live after Jewish customs or manners.”

In reality, adherence to these extrabiblical Jewish traditions was Judaizing—a fact that seems to be missed by the majority of Christian scholars from the second century to this day! The issue here was not whether YHVH’s Torah-law was still binding on Christians, but whether Christians needed to follow non-biblical or extra-biblical—in some cases, even unbiblical—manmade traditions. This would be like telling a person who has just become a Christian that celebrating Christmas and Easter are required to be a Christian, when, in fact, the Bible requires no such things. Such a requirement would be an extra-biblical, manmade traditions. Such was what Paul was accusing Peter of doing.

Religious systems trying to foist their unbiblical requirements upon their adherents is not a new thing, for Yeshua accused the learned Jewish religious leaders of his day of doing the same thing, that is, of “making the word of Elohim of no effect through your traditions which you have handed down” (Mark 7:15). Earlier he said, “You reject the commandment of Elohim, that you may keep your tradition” (Mark 7:9).

In reality, what Paul was fighting against was not YHVH Elohim’s Torah-laws, which in numerous places in his writings (which we have chronicled and discussed elsewhere) he advocated, defended and claimed to follow himself. Rather he is rejecting the idea that one can be saved by their own good works including circumcision. 

After all, this issue was the focus of the debate of the first Jerusalem council in Acts 15. In verse one of this chapter we read, “And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” The fact is that circumcision was never a biblical requirement for salvation going back to Abraham (see Paul’s discussion of this in Romans 4 where he shows that Abraham was justified by faith, not by works, including circumcision). Yet over the course of time, and due to a misunderstanding of the Torah law requiring all males to be circumcised before taking Passover, it became the belief among some Christians that circumcision is a prerequisite for salvation. This and other unbiblical Jewish traditions that were hindering the spreading of the gospel and Gentiles from coming to faith in Yeshua is what Paul was vigorously combatting in his Galatians epistle and elsewhere. For Paul, it never was about Torah-obedience as the mainstream Christian church has made it out to be. To say that it is a bald-faced lie, and the mainstream church has been peddling this lie for nearly 2,000 years! It is time that people wake up and realize this.

In combatting the false notion that circumcision, for example, must be a prerequisite to salvation, Paul opposed this idea in a grand and logical step-by-step manner in his epistle to the Romans, and again in his epistle to the Galatians in a knock-out-the-opponent-quickly manner. 

So if we are to apply the term Judaizer to anyone, it must be applied to those advocating a works-based salvation formula, not to those who teach that salvation is by grace alone through faith in Yeshua with the spiritual fruits of conversion being love toward Elohim and one’s fellow man as defined by the Torah—something this author strongly advocates. 

Sadly, the fundamental truth of who a so-called Judaizers really were seems to have been missed by the majority of early church fathers and modern mainstream church theologians and leaders, who have continued to repeat their predecessors’ anti-Semitic and anti-Torah theological viewpoints. These traditions of men have been handed down to them by many second century Torah and Jew hating church fathers, incorporated into Roman Catholic theology and subsequently picked and peddled by the Protestants to this day. For one to now go against these institutionalized manmade and unbiblical traditions by which the word of Elohim has been made of none effect carries with it serious implications. These include excommunication from various Christian institutions, rejection by one’s peers, and most importantly, many ministers would lose their financial security. This means that many pastors, Bible teachers and countless others who make their living in Christians ministry sucking off the tit of Christianity Inc. would be forced to go out and get a real job like the rest of us! As Scripture declares, “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” (1 Tim 6:10).

 

Dr. Peter McCullough: ‘whistleblowers’ inside CDC claim injections have already killed 50,000 Americans

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From: https://hoshanarabbah.org/blog/wp-admin/post.php?post=19180&action=edit

ALGORA BLOG11 COMMENTS

‘Good doctors are doing unthinkable things’ …They ‘appear to be under a spell’

Dr. Peter McCullough

The most highly cited physician on the early treatment of COVID-19 has come out with an explosive new video that blows the lid off the medical establishment’s complicity in the unnecessary deaths of tens of thousands of Americans.

Dr. Peter McCullough said these deaths have been facilitated by a false narrative bent on pushing an all-new, unproven vaccine for a disease that was highly treatable.

He said COVID was a bioweapon and the vaccines represent “phase two” of that bioweapon.

“As this, in a sense, bioterrorism phase one was rolled out, it was really all about keeping the population in fear and in isolation and preparing them to accept the vaccine, which appears to be phase two of a bioterrorism operation,” McCullough said in a June 11 webinar with German attorney Reiner Fuellmich and several other doctors.

He noted:

“Both the respiratory virus and the vaccine delivered to the human body the spike protein, the gain of function target of this bioterrorism research.”

Most of McCullough’s comments come in the first 10 minutes of the below video.

[To watch the video, go here: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Dr.+Peter+McCullough%3A+‘whistleblowers’]

He did not hold back in his criticism of his colleagues in the medical community.

“And doctors, good doctors, are doing unthinkable things, like injecting biologically active messenger RNA that produces this pathological spike protein into pregnant women. I think when the doctors wake up from their trance they’re going to be shocked to think what they’ve done to people.”

McCullough is professor of medicine and vice chief of internal medicine at Baylor University and also teaches at Texas A&M University. He is an epidemiologist, cardiologist and internist and has testified before the Texas State Senate related to COVID-19 treatments. He holds the distinction of being the most widely cited physician in the treatment of COVID-19 with more than 600 citations in the National Library of Medicine.

In the video, recorded by Oval Media, McCullough said:

“The first wave of the bioterrorism is a respiratory virus that spread across the world, and affected relatively few people—about one percent of many populations—but generated great fear.”

He said the virus targeted primarily people over 50 with multiple medical conditions. It poses almost no risk to children.

He said 85 percent of the more than 600,000 U.S. deaths could have been prevented with a multi-drug treatment given in the early to mid-point of the disease.

Instead, people were told to stay home and not return to the hospital unless their symptoms got worse, such as severe breathing problems. By then it was too late for many. They were placed on ventilators and died.

The vast majority of doctors jumped in lockstep to follow these erroneous “guidelines” handed down by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. Those guidelines neglected to place any focus on the treatment of sick patients and, from the beginning, as early as April 2020, started emphasizing the need for a vaccine as the only real hope of beating back the virus.

The federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System [VAERS] logged 5,993 reports of deaths of people injected with the COVID vaccine between Dec. 14, 2020, and June 11, 2021. That’s more than all the deaths reported to VAERS from all other vaccines combined over the last 22 years.

But these numbers, as shocking as they are, don’t scratch the surface of the actual number of dead Americans, said McCullough.

“We have now a whistleblower inside the CMS, and we have two whistleblowers in the CDC. We think we have 50,000 dead Americans. Fifty thousand deaths. So we actually have more deaths due to the vaccine per day than certainly the viral illness by far. It’s basically propagandized bioterrorism by injection.”

McCullough added that “every single thing that was done in public health in response to the pandemic made it worse.”

He said the suppression of early COVID treatments, such as hydroxychloroquine and especially Ivermectin, “was tightly linked to the development of a vaccine.”

Without the suppression of the already-available treatments, the government would not have been able to legally grant Emergency Use Authorization to the three vaccines rushed to market by Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson.

In the case of Moderna, the U.S. government is co-patent holder through the National Institutes of Health, a clear conflict of interest.

“I published basically the only two papers that teach doctors how to treat COVID-19 at home to prevent hospitalization and death…If treated early, it results in an 85 percent reduction in hospitalizations and death,” McCullough said.

So not only were the vaccines rolled out unnecessarily by suppressing already available, effective treatments, but the FDA and CDC are now covering up tragic numbers of deaths caused by their experimental mRNA injections.

McCullough said he has organized groups around the world that emphasize early treatment.

“Governments have actually tried to block early treatment of COVID patients, so we created a home patient guide,” he said.

“We broke through to the people, and the people who got sick with COVID called in to get medications from mail-order distribution pharmacies. So without the government even knowing what went on, we crushed the epidemic here in the United States towards the end of December and January. We basically took care of the pandemic with about 500 doctors and telemedicine services. And to this day we treat about 25 percent of the US COVID-19 population that actually are at high risk, over age 50 with medical problems or present with severe symptoms. And we basically handled the pandemic, and at the same time we’ve tried to keep ourselves above the political fray.”

McCullough said his focus has recently turned to the unnecessary and dangerous injections.

“We are working to change the public view of the vaccine. The public initially accepted the vaccine and we had to kind of slowly turn the ship. Now, in the U.S. the rates of vaccination have been dropping since April 8. Most of the vaccination centers are empty.”

“We have a lot going on in the United States. We are engaging more and more attorneys.”

 

Nuggets from Deuteronomy 1 and 2

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Deuteronomy 1

Deuteronomy 1:1, Words.The Hebrew word is devarim, which is the plural of the generic Hebrew word for word, which is devar/debar,and is the Hebrew name for the last book of the Torah. Devar is related to several other well-known Hebrew words such as midbar/wilderness (Exod 7:16; Num 1:1; 14:33; Deut 1:1,31; 2:7; 8:2,16), b’midbar/in the wilderness (Num 1:1),and deveer/oracle, sanctuary, holy of holies (1 Kgs 6:16; 2 Chr 5:7,9; Ps 28:2). Look up these words in your Bible to see how they are used. How are they related to each other with respect to hearing or being led by the Word of Elohim?

Deuteronomy 1:1, Wilderness…plain…Red Sea…Paran…Tophel and Laban…Hazeroth…Dizahab. Seven names are mentioned here, which are code words for major sins that Israel committed against YHVH while wandering in the wilderness. The younger generation may have been too young to remember what happened at those places, but Moses was giving them a history lesson, so they wouldn’t repeat the mistakes of their forefathers as they were about to enter the Promised Land. (See below for a discussion of the sin that each of these names represents.) If one were to quickly read over these words and fail to realize that they are code words or Hebraisms representing historical events, one would pass over some rich Torah treasure. For Americans, words like 911, Ground Zero, Katrina, Pearl Harbor, Christmas, D-Day, JFK and FDR conjure up all sorts of images and emotions. This was true of the Israelites when they heard the names in verse one.

Deuteronomy 1:2, Eleven days. Horeb (Mount Sinai) was only an 11 days’ journey to the edge of the Promised Land (Kadesh Barnea), yet because of Israel’s bad conduct (disobedience to YHVH’s commands, lack of trust and faith in YHVH’s Word evidenced by complaining, murmuring and even outright rebellion) they were made to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. What is holding you back from going forward in your spiritual walk? What sin, what fear, what wrong beliefs or false religious concepts are you refusing to let go that are hindering you? If you are serious about serving YHVH, it is time to repent and go onward and upward in Yeshua!

Deuteronomy 1:5, Moses began to declare this law (KJV). This is a poor translation of the Hebrew. A better translation would be: “Moses began to explain this law [Torah]…” (NKJV), or “Moses undertook to expound this law [Torah] … “ (NAS), or “Moses began explaining the Torah …” (ASET). To whom was Moses explaining the Torah? (Read verse 39 and cp. with Deut 6:7). Moses was the dutiful parent faithfully teaching Torah to the younger generation about to enter the Promised Land. How are you preparing the young people in your life to enter into the Promised Land of YHVH’s eternal kingdom?

Deuteronomy 1:11, Add to you a thousand times yourselves. If the children of Israel numbered between several million (there were approximately 600,000 men of fighting age numbered among the Israelites), then when was this prophetic promise of YHVH ever fulfilled in Israel’s history? Where are the several billion Israelites (1000 times two to three million) today? (See Gen 26:4; 32:12; Exod 32:13 cp. Hos 7:8; 8:8; Eph 2:11–19.)

Deuteronomy 1:12–13, Choose…men. Choosing leaders to help govern Israel and to maintain the peace was of first priority because the people were prone to strife and complaining. Without a dispute and conflict resolution plan in place, the nation of Israel would have been one of total anarchy, strife and confusion.

Deuteronomy 1:13 and 15, Provide for yourselves distinguished men, who are wise, understanding, and well known … so I took … of your tribes distinguished men, who were wise and well known. Compare the two lists. What character trait is not listed in the second list? Why? The word understanding (biyn, Strong’s H995/TWOT 239) means “discerning, perceptive, discreet, intelligent, observant and prudent.” Why did Moses have such a difficult time finding understanding men to be leaders in Israel? Are people any different today? Only two men out of hundreds of thousands had understanding: Caleb and Joshua.

Deuteronomy 1:26–28, Moving forward in the face of obstacles. Many times in our spiritual walk we are just at the point of spiritual breakthrough, but we receive an evil report about some spiritual giants that is blocking our forward movement and our resolve to advance melts. It seems sometimes that if we could just see what the future holds for us that it would be much easier for us to go forward! Yet Yeshua said, Blessed are those who haven’t seen, yet still believe in YHVH’s promises (John 20:29). Do you have what it takes to go on without being deterred by the world, the flesh and the devil? How can one go forward in faith if one cannot see where one is going? It gets down to personal and intimate relationship with your Heavenly Father, through Yeshua. He directs us through his Spirit. Can you hear his voice with your spirit when he tells you, “This is the way, walk you in it,” (Isa 30:21)?

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Ecclesiastes 1—Deep Insights on Life from the Wise Preacher

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As I rapidly move through my sixth decade of life, I have watched many people come and go, rise and fall, live and die. I have travelled to more than 20 countries on four continents, 25 U.S. states, lived in Europe, started businesses and ministries, been married for decades, raised four children, pastored a church for years, and written and published many writings. I have traversed, climbed and skied the mountains, hung from dizzying heights on ropes, swam in rivers, lakes and oceans, climbed 15 to 20 thousand trees, encountered demons, stared death in the face too many times to remember, and even been sprayed by a skunk. I have been loved as well as hated by those I thought were my friends. Much water has passed under the bridge called life, and now it is time to ponder it all.

Each of us has a story to tell, and as we grow older, we feel the need to share it, but why bother? Who will listen to it anyway? Most people are too wrapped in their own lives to care. Nevertheless, this all causes us to keep searching for meaning and purpose for our existence. And this compels me to return again and again to the Rock of Ages—the Bible, the Word of Elohim and to the source of the Truth that is above and way beyond each of us, for understanding and wisdom in order that I may more fully comprehend the complexities, that is, the whys and wherefores of life.

This all brings me to the book of Ecclesiastes (in Hebrew Kohelet meaning “the Preacher”) to hear from a wise man who had done it all. Here are my recent reflections on the wisdom found in this often overlooked and forgotten book of the Bible. Please enjoy and maybe something said will resonate and bless the reader. —Natan

Ecclesiastes 1

The Preacher (Heb. Kohelet)

Ecclesiastes 1:2, Vanity of vanities. This phrase is repeated twice in this book: once here at the beginning and once at the end (12:8). The word vanity is a theme that runs through this book occurring 32 times and every chapter at least once except chapter 10. In the course of his varied life, the Preacher discovers that the soft and ugly underbelly and the raison d’etre of nearly every human endeavor that one can imagine is vanity and pride. Vanity is the Hebrew word hebel meaning “vapor, breath, wind” or figuratively, as the author of this book often uses it, “worthless, senseless, empty, futile or vacuous.” The root of the word hebel is the verb “to act emptily.” Thus, as this book reveals, the vast majority of human activities can be summed up as nothing more than being emptiness, meaningless and senseless. 

The words vanity (Heb. hebel) and pride (Heb. room), as used in Scripture are different heads of the same evil monster of meaningless emptiness masquerading through the magician’s clever sleight of hand with the aid of smoke and mirrors as human exaltation. The former, as already noted, connotes “emptiness or meaninglessness,” while the latter means “to be high, rise up, extol, lift up, promote and to be haughty.” 

Pride is one of the so-called seven deadly sins that YHVH hates and calls an abomination (Prov 6:16–17). Therefore, Scripture reveals that vanity and pride in all of their manifestations are black and detestable in the eyes of Elohim and is not to be found on the paint palette that composes the character portrait of the saint or his life’s activities. On the contrary, Yeshua declares in his famous beatitudes statement that “blessed are the poor [literally, crippled, helpless, down and out] in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:3). In fact, YHVH looks with great favor on those who have “a poor and contrite spirit” and who “tremble at my word” (Isa 66:2). Therefore, it should not be hard to see that vanity and pride are the antithetical character traits of those who are poor or helpless in spirit, and that Elohim disdains and hates the one and highly regards the other showering upon the latter priceless gifts including inclusion in his heavenly kingdom.

Ecclesiastes 1:4, One generation passes away…the earth abides forever. Man is a microscopic drop of water in a vast ocean of time, space and material existence.

Ecclesiastes 1:5–7, The sun rises…and …goes down. The physical creation consists of an endless series of cycles involving time and natural forces. It is akin to a monstrous clock with myriads of integrated gears and wheels of many sizes all clicking along in sync with each other, while man is trapped in the middle of it with no way to escape. He is like a hamster in a cage mindlessly burning enormous amounts of energy running on an exercise wheel yet going nowhere.

Ecclesiastes 1:8, Full of labor. Energy and labor keep this giant cosmic machine going round and round endlessly with man in the middle of it all. Despite the vastness, complexity, wonder of this giant machine called this physical existence, the human eyegate and eargate are never satisfied. Man perpetually yearns for something more, some new thrill, a new achievement, or a new “high” to satiate some deep, longing to be fulfilled, unsated craving deep in his soul, yet to no avail. The relentless craving persists unabated.

Ecclesiastes 1:9–10, That which has been will be. As this giant set of cosmic gears grinds inexorably on with miniscule man at its center, the cycles continue to repeat themselves endlessly. It is true that the actors, costumes, stage venue may change over the millennia, but the quintessential plot remains ever the same. When boiled down to its essential ingredients,reduced to its lowest common denominator, nothing has changed; therefore, there is nothing new under the sun. The nature of man is the same, the plot is the same. Life is still a burdensome task or a sore travail that can be summed up as vanity of vanities leading to emptiness and nothingness. (Actually there is a point to it all, and a way of escape, but that comes later in the book and that is the message of the rest of the Bible!)

Ecclesiastes 1:11, No remembrance. All is soon forgotten. The ripples made by the pebble dropped into the pond of life soon subside and are remembered no more as the pond to as it was before. Therefore, we are back where we started from—vanity, meaninglessness and nothingness.

Ecclesiastes 1:13, Burdensome task [sore travail, KJV]. Everything is a burdensome task or sore travail—an escapable hard labor prison camp of time and space and endless cycles to which man has been inextricably confined since the fall. (So what is the point of it all? The rest of the Bible contains the message of hope for the hopeless.)

Ecclesiastes 1:14, Vanity. Eventually, all of man’s works will come to nothing, nothingness is the definition of hebel, the Hebrew word for vanity. Everything that man does will come to nothing. All houses, buildings and monuments eventually deteriorate and become overrun with weeds and return to dirt from whence it came. Riches come and go, and no one can take it with them when they die. Memories of great people, events and ideas eventually fade away. Nothing physical is permanent.

Grasping for the wind [or vexation of spirit, KJV]. The physical pursuits, pleasures and acquisitions of man do not satiate the inner longings of the spirit of man that is connected to Elohim and to eternity—the spiritual and eternal realm. It is all grasping for the wind—elusive and unattainable.

Ecclesiastes 1:15, Crooked. Man is incurably crooked and Elohim is unwaveringly and immutably straight. The heart of man is especially crooked and cannot be made straight, for as Jeremiah declares, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked [i.e. incurable and sick]; who can know it?” (Jer 17:9). Each person has a giant log of pride wedged into his eye, and he views everyone and everything through the lens of his own strongholds of pride and his past hurts that involve fear, bitterness and unforgivingness. Dislodging that beam takes an act of God! This is because the disease called sin is incurable and terminal and everyone was born with it, and no one can cure himself because sin has too strong of a hold on each person’s heart and mind. Due to his sinful condition, man’s spiritual lack is incalculable.

Ecclesiastes 1:16–17, Look. When all is said and done, man’s condition and the life that he lives still remains the same: a grasping for the wind or seeking that which is unattainable.

When man walked away from Elohim in the garden by partaking of the forbidden fruit in his quest for forbidden knowledge, he bit the big one, so to speak, biting off way more than he could chew. What appeared to be appealing to the eyes, touch and taste quickly turned bitter in his gut, when the reality of the consequences of his actions punched him full force in the face. It was at this time that he had to go to work scraping out a living from the unforgiving weed and briar infested earth. Man was condemned to the hard labor penal colony of this earth to run endless circles on the hamster wheel of making a living day after tedious day before collapsing exhausted at the end of life. When the foolishness naivete of childhood and youth give way to the burdensome and demanding responsibilities of adulthood, only then do a few enlightened souls awaken to the brutal reality of this physical existence. The rest of humanity is too occupied attempting to self-medicate (via drugs, booze, sensual pleasure and entertainment, the acquisition of material good, the seeking of power and fame, etc.) against the pain and reality of a lifetime spent grasping for the wind to wake up to the truth that they need help from above if they are to break free from his life sentence due to his sin. (There is only one way of escape and Jacob dreamed of it when he saw the vision of the ladder to heaven in Genesis 28 and Yeshua interpreted the vision for us in John 1:51.)

Ecclesiastes 1:18, Much wisdom…much grief. It almost sounds as if the Preacher is affirming the idea that ignorance is bliss. In reality, ignorance is not bliss; it is still ignorance. Yet, sometimes two seemingly opposite propositions can be true at the same time. That is to say that too much wisdom and knowledge can lead to frustration, weariness and sorrow; therefore, it is perhaps advisable to know just enough to keep oneself on the straight path, but not so much that such knowledge ruins the little enjoyment that one can squeeze out of this prison camp called life.

My commentary on Ecclesiastes chapter two is coming soon…so stay tuned.

 

Confronting the Lies About Paul—Galatians Explained from a Hebraic Perspective

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The church has lied to YOU about Paul and his epistle to the Galatians!  NOW learn the truth…

An Important Question

When addressing the lies that the mainstream church has been dishing out like a load of dung against Paul and the Word of Elohim (i.e. Yeshua the Messiah, the Word of Elohim) since the time of the early church fathers, let us first ask an important question that has far-reaching implication including whether you can trust the Bible and whether you are saved or not. In the Epistle to the Galatians. It is this: Is Paul advocating the abrogation of the Torah-law as mainstream Christianity teaches or not?

This is the lens through which most Christians view Galatians. For example, the chapter subheadings in my NKJV Bible reveal the antitorah bias of mainstream Christianity. The heading above Galatians 2:11 reads, “No Return to the Law,” and the heading over Gal 3:10 reads, “ The Law Brings a Curse.” When Christians study their Bibles and encounter these subheadings that are written by men and not inspired by the Spirit, what are they to think? Most don’t questions the scholars who translate the Bible or the publishers sell the Bibles. Most readers will automatically thinks to themselves, “After all, these translators and publishers are Bible experts, they know more than I do, so who am I to question them?”

Interestingly, the same author of Galatians elsewhere admonishes us to, “Prove/test all things; hold fast to that which is good” (1 Thess 5:21). This is the responsibility of each saint as he studies the word of Elohim. Therefore, it behooves us to have a touch of intellectual scepticism when studying the Scriptures to insure that we’re not unwittingly putting our faith in the traditions and doctrines of men by which the word of Elohim has been made of none-effect (Mark 7:9, 13), and that we haven’t inherited lies that have been passed on down to us from our spiritual fathers (Jer 16:19). Let us instead be like the righteous Bereans who “searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so” (Acts 17:11).

Instead of looking at Galatians as a stand-alone book, let’s view it in the broader context of all the New Testament writers’ and Yeshua’s view of the Torah. After all, the Scriptures cannot contradict themselves. The Bible doesn’t lie, Elohim doesn’t change, and Yeshua declared that the Scriptures can’t be broken (or loosened, untied, dissolved, annulled, John 10:35).

In 1 Cor 11:1, Paul instructed us to imitate him as he imitated Messiah. So let’s follow Paul’s advice.

What did Yeshua teach and do vis-à-vis the Torah? 

He never violated the Torah (or sinned), or else he couldn’t have been our sin-free Savior and taken upon himself the consequences or penalty of our sins, which is death.

Yeshua advocated Torah-obedience for his followers (Matt 5:17–19; John 14:15).

Paul goes on to tell us to imitate him as he imitates Yeshua. This includes obedience to the Torah.

Elsewhere, in many places, Paul advocates Torah obedience as we will see next.

How Did Paul View the Torah (“Law”)?

In answering this question, let us allow Paul to speak for himself in order to establish his predisposition with regard to the Torah-law. Was he a proponent or opponent of it? Several Scriptural quotations from his own pen should suffice in answering this question:

Wherefore the law [Torah] is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. (Rom 7:12)

For we know that the law [Torah] is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. (Rom 7:14)

For I delight in the law [Torah] of Elohim after the inward man… (Rom 7:22)

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin [i.e. violation of the laws/Torah of YHVH, see 1 John 3:4], that grace may abound? Elohim forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein? (Rom 6:1–2)

Do we then make void the law through faith? Elohim forbid: yea, we establish the law. (Rom 3:31, Romans was written in about A.D. 56)

But we know that the law [Torah] is good, if a man use it lawfully…(1 Tim 1:8, First Timothy was written just before Paul’s martyrdom in about A.D. 66)

But if, while we seek to be justified by Messiah, we ourselves also are found sinners [i.e. violators of the law/Torah], is therefore Messiah the minister of sin [lawlessness/Torahlessness]? Elohim forbid. (Gal 2:17, Galatians was written between A.D. 55 to 56)

Toward the end of Paul’s life and ministry when, according to many Christian theologians, Paul was supposed to have already liberated the first-century believers from the “shackles and bondage” of the Torah-law, yet in the Book of Acts we read the following:

And when they heard it, they glorified YHVH, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe [in Yeshua the Messiah]; and they are all zealous of the law [Torah]: And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs. What is it therefore? The multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come. Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them; them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law [Torah]. (Acts 20:20–24, written in about A.D. 58 to 60)

While he answered for himself, Neither against the law [Torah] of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor yet against Caesar, have I offended any thing at all. (Acts 25:8; Paul made this statement in a court of law about A.D. 62.)

And it came to pass, that after three days Paul called the chief of the Jews together: and when they were come together, he said unto them, Men and brethren, though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, [i.e. the Torah] yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. (Acts 28:17, written about A.D. 63)

Viewing Galatians Through a Different Lens

In view of the fact that Paul instructed us to imitate him as imitated Yeshua, who was Torah observant, and in light of the fact in numerous places in Paul’s own writings and in the Book of Acts we see that Paul was Torah observant to the end of his life, what conclusion can we come to in light of these facts? Either the Bible is consistent, and the Torah is for all people for all time, or Paul was an inconsistent liar in telling us, on the one hand, to follow the Torah, and on the other hand, telling us not to obey it. Which is it? If Paul is inconsistent, then the truth of the Bible is inconsistent, the Scripture is broken, Yeshua is a liar and the Bible is a lie. Which one is it?

There is another answer to this dilemma. Perhaps the mainstream church has misinterpreted Paul in the Book of Galatians and has come to a skewed view in believing that Paul abrogates the Torah in Galatians. We take the position of the inerrancy of Scripture, that it can’t be broken, that Elohim and Yeshua don’t lie, and that Paul wasn’t a duplicitous schizophrenic. Instead of viewing Galatians as an antitorah tirade courtesy of Paul, maybe there is something else going on here that needs to be discovered—the real message of Galatians that in no way contradicts the rest of the Bible.

Galatians Explained

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