What the Jewish Sages Say About the Second Exodus

Posted on by
Reply

The Jewish Sages Affirm That Ephraim Will Return to the Land of Israel (along with the Jews/Judah) in the End Times

The biblical prophets predicted that all the tribes of Israel (including the ten tribes of the northern kingdom or Ephraim) would be scattered to other lands outside of Israel, and that YHVH would regather them in the last days and return them to the land of Israel. This has also been the dominant belief of the Jewish sages as recorded in their writings and in their oral traditions including the Talmud. For example, the Scriptures tells us about the scattering of the twelve tribes,

And YHVH rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land [eretz acheret], as it is this day.” (Deut 29:28)

The Babylonian Talmud, in Yevamot 17a (written ca. A.D. 500, The Soncino Talmud) confirms this when it states,

“[T]hey had declared them [i.e., the ten tribes of Israel, see rabbinic footnote below]19 to be perfect heathens [or gentiles]; as it is said in the Scriptures, ‘They have dealt treacherously against YHVH, for they have begotten strange children.’”
A rabbinic footnote on this passage states, (19) ‘The ten tribes; (20) Hos 5:7.’”

The ArtScroll Tanach Series Bereishis/Genesis (an Orthodox Jewish commentary on Genesis) states, regarding Genesis 48:19, quoting Orthodox Jewish sage of the Middle Ages, Ibn Ezra:

Many nations will descend from him [Ephraim]. That is, the word, fullness, melo, connotes ‘abundance,’ the phrase meaning: ‘and his seed will become the abundance of the nations’ (Neter; Karnei Or, p. 2121).

According to Radak’s (R. Dovid Kimchi, a Torah scholar in the Middle Ages) commentary on the same verse,

This refers to the Exile when the lands of others will be filled with his scattered descendants. See also Hosea 7:8:

Ephraim shall be mingled among the nations (Ibid.).

Pertaining to the end-time regathering of the twelve tribes, the late well-known orthodox Jewish rabbi, Menachem Schneerson stated that the future King Messiah (Messiah Ben [Son of] David) will not only redeem the Jews from exile, but will restore the observance of the Torah-commandments to its complete state, which will only be possible when the Israelites are living in the land of Israel. At this same time, Schneerson who is quoting the notable rabbinic sage of the Middle Ages, Moses Maimonides also known as the Rambam, says,  Continue reading →

 

The Second Exodus—And YOU!

Posted on by
1

Jeremiah 23:3, 7–8. The Second Exodus of the End Times. The Bible clearly teaches that the ten tribes of the ancient northern kingdom of Israel (known biblically by various names such as the house of Israel, Samaria or Ephraim) were exiled among the nations of the world because of sin. At the same time, the biblical prophets and Jewish sages over the past 2000 years have predicted that in the end times (at the coming of the Messiah), through a series of supernatural events, these tribes will be regathered and return to the land of Israel to be reunited with their Jewish brethren who are descended from the southern kingdom of Judah. Furthermore, there is clear biblical and historical evidence that the ten northern tribes of Israel collectively known as Ephraim are largely to be found among the Christian peoples scattered across the earth. I have attempted to prove this point from biblical, linguistic, archeological, historical and rabbinic Jewish sources in a previous work.

In these last days before Messiah’s second coming, more and more redeemed believers in Yeshua (the Hebrew name for Jesus) are discovering a new-found love for the Jewish people and the land of Israel. At the same time, they are awakening to the need to return to the Hebrew roots of the Christian faith by adhering to a more Torah-centered lifestyle and spiritual walk. It then follows that some are coming to the fundamental truth taught numerous places in the Testimony of Yeshua (the more biblically accurate name for the “New Testament”) that born-again believers are actually redeemed Israelites and are either the literal biological or are the “grafted in” descendants of Abraham. As such, many are beginning to see that the numerous promises YHVH (the LORD) made to Abraham and his descendants apply to them—especially the promises that the land of Israel is an important aspect of their promised future inheritance. With these revelations often comes a new-found zeal and enthusiasm about returning to the land of Israel. For many, it is a question of not if, but “when do we return?” Continue reading →

 

Inherited Lies From the Church

Posted on by
4

Jeremiah 16:19, The prophet Jeremiah speaking of end-times Israel (that’s you and me), who are being regathered out of the Gentile nations, declares,

Surely our fathers have inherited lies…

Lies? What lies (i.e., those things that are contrary to the clear Word of Elohim) were you taught in the church system before coming to an understanding of the biblical, Torah-based Hebraic roots of the Christian faith? Which of these lies that you believed in angered you the most once you found out the truth of the Scriptures?

Please share your thoughts even if your comments are brief.

 

Can We Trust Paul?

Posted on by
2
Recently, I received an email from a gentleman who had come across a website claiming that the Apostle Paul was an anti-Torah heretic, and that all of Paul’s books should be eviscerated from the Testimony of Yeshua (NT). The letter-writer wanted me to read this man’s arguments against Paul, and then respond to them.
Like this letter-writer, many folks who are coming to a Hebraic and pro-Torah
understanding of the NT are finding themselves questioning many once cherished belief systems that they learned in the church. What should be our approach as we separate the wheat from the chaff? Here is how I answered the letter:

Continue reading →

 

There’s No Shalom Like Shabbat Shalom!

Posted on by
Reply

I just got this email question from someone:

I was wondering where it is stated in the Bible that the Sabbath is to be a day of shalom?

This was my response:

I don’t know if it’s explicitly stated anywhere in the Scriptures, but it’s certainly implicit. Here are scriptural reasons that immediately come to mind:

  • YHVH sanctified the Sabbath, which means his blessing (including his shalom) is on it.
  • It’s a moed or a divine appointment (Lev 23:1), which means YHVH will show up to fellowship with his people on this day. With him comes his love, joy and peace.
  • Because it’s a day of rest and no work, then it naturally follows that with rest comes peace.
  • For those of us who have walked in the Shabbat for a long time (and who have done Sunday as well), we know from experience that there is a special blessing of peace on the Sabbath like no other day. There is no shalom like Shabbat shalom!
  • The Sabbath is a picture of Eden, and a prophetic picture of the Millennial kingdom  of Yeshua when peace will reign on this earth. The weekly Sabbath is a foretaste of that peace that once was and is yet to come

There are probably some other examples that I could give, but this is what comes to mind  quickly. Can you think of any biblical reasons that imply that the Sabbath is a day of peace? If so, please share.

 

Conservative Jewish Clergy Ordaining Homosexuals

Posted on by
1

I just read this news piece from Ha’aretz News in Israel and wanted to pass it on. This development illustrates the moral and spiritual slide going on in even the most unlikely places.

Israeli Conservative Movement Approves Ordination of Gay Rabbis

’A very important development in Jewish law,’ says President of the Israeli Conservative Movement Rabbinical Assembly.

By Revital Blumenfeld and Yair EttingerTags: Jewish World Jewish Diaspora

Israel’s Masorti (Conservative) Movement decided to approve the ordination of homosexual rabbis, in a dramatic vote on Thursday.

The Schechter Rabbinical Seminary, affiliated with the movement, will admit gay and lesbian students for training as spiritual leaders as of the upcoming school year.

gay marriage, gay wedding A Conservative rabbi marries a same-sex couple in the U.S.
Photo by: Courtesy of Gregg Drinkwater / Forward

In doing so the Israeli Conservative Movement is joining the American branch of the movement, whose rabbinical seminaries have been admitting gay students for some years.

The question whether or not to ordain gay and lesbian rabbis has been rattling the Conservative Movement in Israel and the U.S. for the past decade. Unlike the Reform movement that took to the question with ease, deciding firmly on the acceptance of gay rabbis. The Conservative Movement, whose rabbis see themselves bound to Jewish law, has been caught up in heated debate over the subject.

Years of discussion led to two contradictory religious rulings in 2006, one requiring the ordination of gay and lesbian rabbis and another banning any such act. The two rabbinical seminaries affiliated with the movement in the U.S. move the ruling allowing the ordination, while the seminaries in Jerusalem and Buenos Aires adopted the ban on ordination. The issue nearly caused a rift in the movement.

To continue reading this story: http://www.haaretz.com/jewish-world/israeli-conservative-movement-approves-ordination-of-gay-rabbis-1.425491

 

Blog Scripture Readings for 4/22–4/28/12 Midrash

Aside

Reply

For the third week of seven weeks of the 50-day count of the omer.

Leviticus 25–27; Numbers 1–4; Jeremiah 15–28; and Psalms 24–30

Most of this week’s blog discussion points will be on these passages. The full year’s Bible Reading Schedule can be found on the right sidebar under “Helpful Links.”

If you have general comments or questions on the weekly Scripture readings not addressed in a blog post, here’s a place for you to post those. Just use the “leave a reply” link below.