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Triennial Cycle (Triennial Torah Cycle) / Septennial Cycle (Septennial Torah Cycle)

Three and 1/2 year Lectionary Readings	Fourth Year of the Reading Cycle
Kislev 21, 5772 – Dec. 16 – Dec. 17, 2011	Fourth Year of the Shmita Cycle

Candle Lighting and Habdalah Times:

Conroe & Austin, TX, U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 5:15 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 6:12 PM	Brisbane, Australia Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 6:21 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 7:19 PM	Bucharest, Romania Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 4:19 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 5:26 PM
Chattanooga, & Cleveland, TN, U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 5:13 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 6:13 PM	Jakarta, Indonesia Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 5:44 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 6:37 PM	Manila & Cebu, Philippines Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 5:11 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 6:04 PM
Miami, FL, U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 5:14 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 6:10 PM	Olympia, WA, U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 4:05 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 5:15 PM	Murray, KY, & Paris, TN. U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 4:21 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 5:22 PM
Sheboygan & Manitowoc, WI, US Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 3:56 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 5:03 PM	Singapore, Singapore Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 6:43 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 7:35 PM	St. Louis, MO, U.S. Fri. Dec 16 2011 – Candles at 4:23 PM Sat. Dec 17 2011 – Havdalah 5:25 PM

For other places see: http://chabad.org/calendar/candlelighting.asp

Roll of Honor:

This Torah commentary comes to you courtesy of:

His Honor Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David and beloved wife HH Giberet Batsheva bat Sarah

His Honor Paqid Adon Mikha ben Hillel

His Honor Paqid Adon David ben Abraham

Her Excellency Giberet Sarai bat Sarah & beloved family

His Excellency Adon Barth Lindemann & beloved family

His Excellency Adon John Batchelor & beloved wife

His Excellency Adon Ezra ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Karmela bat Sarah,

His Excellency Dr. Adon Yeshayahu ben Yosef and beloved wife HE Giberet Tricia Foster

His Excellency Adon Yisrael ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Elisheba bat Sarah

His Excellency Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HE Giberet Vardit bat Sarah

Her Excellency Giberet Laurie Taylor

His Honor Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham and beloved wife HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah

Her Excellency Prof. Dr. Conny Williams & beloved family

Her Excellency Giberet Gloria Sutton & beloved family

For their regular and sacrificial giving, providing the best oil for the lamps, we pray that G-d’s richest blessings be upon their lives and those of their loved ones, together with all Yisrael and her Torah Scholars, amen ve amen!

Also a great thank you and great blessings be upon all who send comments to the list about the contents and commentary of the weekly Torah Seder and allied topics.

If you want to subscribe to our list and ensure that you never lose any of our commentaries, or would like your friends also to receive this commentary, please do send me an E-Mail to benhaggai@GMail.com with your E-Mail or the E-Mail addresses of your friends. Toda Rabba!

“Shabbat Ki Yihyéh B’khá”

Shabbat	Torah Reading:	Weekday Torah Reading:
כִּי-יִהְיֶה בְךָ
“Ki Yihyéh B’khá”	Reader 1 – D’barim 15:7-11	Reader 1 – D’barim 16:18-20
“If there is among you”	Reader 2 – D’barim 15:12-18	Reader 2 – D’barim 16:20-22
“Si hubiere contigo”	Reader 3 – D’barim 15:19-23	Reader 3 – D’barim 16:18-22
	Reader 4 – D’barim 16:1-4
D’barim (Deut.) 15:7 -16:17	Reader 5 – D’barim 16:5-8
Ashlamatah: Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15	Reader 6 – D’barim 16:9-12	Reader 1 – D’barim 16:18-20
Psalm 119:137-176	Reader 7 – D’barim 16:13-17	Reader 2 – D’barim 16:20-22
	Maftir: D’barim 16:13-17	Reader 3 – D’barim 16:18-22
	Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15
N.C.: Mark 15:16-21

Blessings Before Torah Study

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us through Your commandments, and commanded us to actively study Torah. Amen!

Please Ha-Shem, our G-d, sweeten the words of Your Torah in our mouths and in the mouths of all Your people Israel. May we and our offspring, and our offspring's offspring, and all the offspring of Your people, the House of Israel, may we all, together, know Your Name and study Your Torah for the sake of fulfilling Your desire. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Who teaches Torah to His people Israel. Amen!

Blessed are You, Ha-Shem our G-d, King of the universe, Who chose us from all the nations, and gave us the Torah. Blessed are You, Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!

Ha-Shem spoke to Moses, explaining a Commandment. "Speak to Aaron and his sons, and teach them the following Commandment: This is how you should bless the Children of Israel. Say to the Children of Israel:

May Ha-Shem bless you and keep watch over you; - Amen!

May Ha-Shem make His Presence enlighten you, and may He be kind to you; - Amen!

May Ha-Shem bestow favor on you, and grant you peace. – Amen!

This way, the priests will link My Name with the Israelites, and I will bless them."

These are the Laws for which the Torah did not mandate specific amounts: How much growing produce must be left in the corner of the field for the poor; how much of the first fruits must be offered at the Holy Temple; how much one must bring as an offering when one visits the Holy Temple three times a year; how much one must do when doing acts of kindness; and there is no maximum amount of Torah that a person must study.

These are the Laws whose benefits a person can often enjoy even in this world, even though the primary reward is in the Next World: They are: Honouring one's father and mother; doing acts of kindness; early attendance at the place of Torah study -- morning and night; showing hospitality to guests; visiting the sick; providing for the financial needs of a bride; escorting the dead; being very engrossed in prayer; bringing peace between two people, and between husband and wife; but the study of Torah is as great as all of them together. Amen!

Reading Assignment:

The Torah Anthology: Yalkut Me’Am Lo’Ez - Vol 17: Deuteronomy – III – Gratitude & Discipline

By: Rabbi Yitzchaq Behar Argueti & Rabbi Shmuel Yerushalmi

Published by: Moznaim Publishing Corp. (New York, 1992)

Vol. 17 – “Deuteronomy – III – Gratitude & Discipline,” pp. 168-190.

Rashi & Targum Pseudo Jonathan

for: D’barim (Deut.) 15:7 -16:17

RASHI	TARGUM PSEUDO JONATHAN
7. If there will be among you a needy person, from one of your brothers in one of your cities, in your land the Lord, your God, is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, and you shall not close your hand from your needy brother.	7. But if you be not diligent in the precepts of the Law, and there be among you a poor man in one of your cities of the land which the LORD your God gives you, you will not harden your heart, nor hold back your hand from your poor brother;
8. Rather, you shall open your hand to him, and you shall lend him sufficient for his needs, which he is lacking.	8. but you will open your hand to him, and lend to him according to the measure of his lack through which he is in need.
9. Beware, lest there be in your heart an unfaithful thought, saying, "The seventh year, the year of release has approached," and you will begrudge your needy brother and not give him, and he will cry out to the Lord against you, and it will be a sin to you.	9. Beware lest there be a word in your proud heart, saying: The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand, and your eye become evil toward your poor brother, so as to be not willing to give to him, and he cry against you to the LORD, and there be guilt upon you.
10. You shall surely give him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him; for because of this thing the Lord, your God, will bless you in all your work and in all your endeavors.	10. Giving you will give to him, nor will your heart be evil when you give to him; for on account of this matter the LORD your God will bless you in all your works that you put your hands unto.
11. For there will never cease to be needy within the land. Therefore, I command you, saying, you shall surely open your hand to your brother, to your poor one, and to your needy one in your land.	11. But forasmuch as the house of Israel will not rest in the commandments of the Law, the poor will not cease in the land: therefore I command you, saying: You will verily open your hands toward your neighbors, to the afflicted around you, and to the poor of your country.
12. If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you for six years, and in the seventh year you shall send him forth free from you.	12. If your brother, a son of Israel, or if a daughter of Israel, be sold to you, he will serve you six years; and when the seventh comes, you will send him from you free.
13. And when you send him forth free from you, you shall not send him forth empty- handed.	13. And when you let him go away from you at liberty, you will not send him away empty.
14. You shall surely provide him from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your vat, you shall give him from what the Lord, your God, has blessed you	14. Comforting you will comfort him out of your flocks, your floors, and your wine presses; as the LORD has blessed you, you will give to him.
15. And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord, your God, redeemed you; therefore, I am commanding you this thing today.	15. And be mindful that you were servants in the land of Mizraim, and that the LORD your God set you free; therefore I command you today that you do this thing.
16. And it will be, if he says to you, "I will not leave you," because he loves you and your household, for it is good for him with you,	16. But if he say to you, I will not go out from you, because I love you and the men of your house, and because it has been good for him to be with you,
17. Then you shall take an awl and put it through his ear and into the door, and he shall be a servant to you forever; and also to your maidservant you shall do likewise.	17. then you will take an awl, and bore (or apply) it through his ear, and that to the door of the house of judgment, and he will be your serving servant until the Jubilee. And for your handmaid also you will write a certificate of release, and give it to her.
18. You shall not be troubled when you send him free from you, for twice as much as a hired servant, he has served you six years, and the Lord, your God, will bless you in all that you shall do.	18. It must not be a hardship in your eyes when you send him away from you; for double the hire of an hireling has he been of service to you six years; and on his account the LORD your God has blessed you in all that you have done.
19. Every firstborn male that is born of your cattle or of your flock you shall sanctify to the Lord, your God. You shall neither work with the firstborn of your ox, nor shear the firstborn of your flock.	19. Every firstling male that comes of your herd and flock you will consecrate before the LORD your God. You will not work with the firstlings of your herd, nor shear the firstlings of your flocks;
20. You shall eat it before the Lord, your God, year by year, in the place the Lord chooses-you and your household.	20. you will eat thereof before the LORD your God from year to year, in the place which the LORD will choose, you and the men of your houses.
21. And if there be any blemish in it, whether it be lame, or blind, or any ill blemish, you shall not sacrifice it to the Lord, your God.	21. But if there be any spot in it, if it be lame or blind, or have any blemish, you will not sacrifice it before the LORD your God:
22. You shall eat it within your cities, the unclean and the clean together, as the deer, and as the gazelle.	22. you may eat it in your cities; he who is unclean, (so) that he may not approach to holy things, and he who being clean may approach the holy, may alike (eat), as the flesh of the antelope or hart.
23. However, you shall not eat its blood; you shall pour it on the ground, as water.	23. Only you will not eat the blood; you will pour it out upon the ground like water.
1. Keep the month of spring, and make the Passover offering to the Lord, your God, for in the month of spring, the Lord, your God, brought you out of Egypt at night.	1. Be mindful to keep the times of the festivals, with the intercalations of the year, and to observe the rotation thereof: in the month of Abiba to perform the pascha before the Lord your God, because in the month of Abiba the Lord your God brought you out of Mizraim; you shall eat it therefore by night.
2. You shall slaughter the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, your God, [of the] flock, and [the Festival sacrifices of the] cattle, in the place which the Lord will choose to establish His Name therein.	2. But you will sacrifice the pascha before the LORD your God between the suns; and the sheep and the bullocks on the morrow, on that same day to rejoice in the feast at the place which the LORD will choose to make His Shekinah to dwell there.
3. You shall not eat leaven with it; for seven days you shall eat with it matzoth, the bread of affliction, for in haste you went out of the land of Egypt, so that you shall remember the day when you went out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life.	3. You will not eat leavened bread with the pascha; seven days you will eat unleavened bread unto His Name, the unleavened bread of humiliation; for with haste you went forth from the land of Mizraim; that you may remember the day of your outgoing from the land of Mizraim all the days of your life.
4. And no leaven shall be seen with you within all your border for seven days; neither shall any of the flesh you slaughter on the preceding day in the afternoon, remain all night until the morning.	4. Take heed that in the beginning of the pascha there be no leaven seen among you within all your borders for seven days; and that none of the flesh which you sacrifice in the evening of the first day remain till the morning.
5. You shall not sacrifice the Passover offering within any of your cities, which the Lord, your God, is giving you.	5. It will not be allowed you to eat the pascha in (any) one of your cities which the LORD your God gives to you;
6. Except at the place which the Lord, your God, will choose to establish His Name-there you shall slaughter the Passover offering in the afternoon, as the sun sets, at the appointed time that you went out of Egypt.	6. but in the place which the LORD your God will choose to make His Shekinah to dwell, there will you sacrifice the pascha; and in the evening at the going down of the sun you may eat it until the middle of the night, the time when you began to go out of Mizraim.
7. And you shall roast [it] and eat [it] in the place which the Lord, your God, will choose, and you shall turn away in the morning and go to your dwellings.	7. And you will dress and eat it in the place which the LORD your God will choose, and in the early morn (if need be) you may return from the feast, and go to your cities.
8. For six days you shall eat matzoth, and on the seventh day there shall be a halt to the Lord, your God. You shall not do any work [on it].	8. On the first day you will offer the omer, and eat unleavened cakes of the old grain; but in the six remaining days you may begin to eat unleavened cakes of the new grain, and on the seventh day you will assemble with thanksgiving before the LORD your God; no work will you perform.
9. You shall count seven weeks for yourself; from[the time] the sickle is first put to the standing crop, you shall begin to count seven weeks.	9. Seven weeks number to you; from the time when you begin to put the sickle to the harvest of the field after the reaping of the omer you will begin to number the seven weeks.
10. And you shall perform the Festival of Weeks to the Lord, your God, the donation you can afford to give, according to how the Lord, your God, shall bless you.	10. And you will keep with joy the Festival of Weeks before the LORD your God, after the measure of the freewill offerings of your hands, according as the LORD your God will have blessed you.
11. And you shall rejoice before the Lord, your God, -you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite who is within your cities, and the stranger, and the orphan, and the widow, who are among you, in the place which the Lord, your God, will choose to establish His Name therein.	11. And you will rejoice with the joy of the feast before the LORD your God, you and your sons, your daughters, your servants and handmaids, the Levites who are in your cities, and the stranger, the orphan, and the widow who are among you, at the place which the LORD your God will choose where to make His Shekinah to dwell.
12. And you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall keep and perform these statutes.	12. Remember that you were servants in Mizraim; so will you observe and perform these statutes.
13. You shall make yourself the Festival of Sukkoth for seven days, when you gather in [the produce] from your threshing floor and your vat.	13. The Feast of Tabernacles you will make to you seven days, when you will have completed to gather in the grain from your threshing floors, and the wine from your presses.
14. And you shall rejoice in your Festival-you, and your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant, and the Levite, and the stranger, and the orphan, and the widow, who are within your cities.	14. And you will rejoice in the joy of your feasts with the clarinet and flute, you and your sons and daughters, your handmaids, the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, who are in your cities.
15. Seven days you shall celebrate the Festival to the Lord, your God, in the place which the Lord shall choose, because the Lord, your God, will bless you in all your produce, and in all the work of your hands, and you will only be happy.	15. Seven days you will keep the feast before the LORD your God in the place which the LORD will choose, because the LORD your God will have blessed you in all your provision, and in all the work of your hands, and so will you be joyful in prosperity.
16. Three times in the year, every one of your males shall appear before the Lord, your God, in the place He will choose: on the Festival of Matzoth and on the Festival of Weeks, and on the Festival of Sukkoth, and he shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed.	16. Three times in the year will all your males appear before the LORD your God in the place that He will choose; at the Feast of the Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; nor must you appear before the LORD your God empty of any of the requirements;
17. [Every] man [shall bring] as much as he can afford, according to the blessing of the Lord, your God, which He has given you.	17. every one after the measure of the gifts of his hands, according to the blessing which the LORD your God has bestowed upon you.

Rashi’s Commentary on D’barim (Deut.) 15:7 -16:17

7 If there will be among you a needy person The most needy person has priority. -[Sifrei]

from one of your brothers Your brother on your father’s side has priority over your brother on your mother’s side.-[Sifrei]

[in one of] your cities The poor of your city have priority over the poor of another city. -[Sifrei]

you shall not harden [your heart] Some people suffer [as they deliberate] whether they should give [to the needy] or they should not give; therefore it says: “you shall not harden [your heart].” Some people stretch out their hand [to give], but then close it; therefore it says: “nor close your hand.”-[Sifrei]

[nor close your hand] from your needy brother If you do not give him, you will ultimately become a “brother of the needy” [i.e., becoming needy yourself].-[Sifrei]

8 [Rather] you shall open [your hand] Even many times.

[Rather] you shall open [your hand] Heb. כִּי־פָתֽחַ תִּפְתַּח . Here, the word כִּי has the meaning of “rather” [whereas in verse 7 it means “if,” and in verse 10, “because”].

and you shall lend If he does not want [your money] as a [charitable] gift, give it to him as a loan.-[Sifrei ; Keth. 67b]

[lend him] sufficient for his needs However, you are not commanded to make him wealthy.-[Sifrei]

[sufficient for his needs,] what he is lacking Even a horse to ride on and a servant to run before him [if he is accustomed to this type of lifestyle]. -[Sifrei ; Keth. 67b]

he [is lacking] Heb. יֶחְסַר לוֹ , lit. what is lacking for him. This refers to a wife [i.e., you should help him marry a wife]. Similarly, it is stated: “I shall make for him (לוֹ) a helpmate opposite him” (Gen. 2:18). -[Keth. 66b]

9 and he will cry out [to the Lord] against you One might think this is a requirement [namely, that this poor man is obliged to "cry out... against you"]. Therefore, Scripture says, “[On his day you shall give him his payment...] so that he will not cry against you [to the Lord]” (Deut. 24:15). -[Sifrei 15:138]

and it will be a sin to you in any case, even if he does not cry [against you]. If so, why does it say, “and he will cry out... against you?” [It means that God says:] I hasten to punish in response to the one who cries out more than to the one who does not cry out.-[Sifrei]

10 You shall surely give him Even a hundred times.-[Sifrei]

him [meaning] between him and you [i.e., privately]. -[Sifrei]

for because of this thing Heb. דָָּבָר , lit. word. Even if you said [i.e., gave him your “word”] that you would give, you will receive a reward for the saying along with the reward for the deed.-[Sifrei]

11 Therefore Heb. עַל־כֵּן , here meaning מִפְּנֵי כֵן , [i.e.,] “because of this,” or “therefore.”

saying I offer you advice for your own good.-[Sifrei]

[You shall surely open your hand] to your brother, to your poor one To which brother? To your poor one.

to your poor one Heb. לַעֲנִיֶּךָ , [spelled] with one “yud,” [singular form,] means one poor person, but עֲנִיֶּיךָ with two "yud"s [the second “yud” denoting the plural form,] means two poor people. [Here, since it is written with one “yud,” meaning one poor person, thus modifying אָחִיךָ , your brother, which is in the singular]. See Yosef Hallel, Leket Bahir, Chavel.

12 If [your brother...] is sold to you By others [but not one who sells himself because of poverty]. Scripture is speaking here of one whom the court sold [for a theft that he had committed]. But has it not already been stated, “If you buy a Hebrew servant” (Exod. 21:2) and there, too, Scripture is referring to one whom the court sold (Mechilta )? Nevertheless, [it is repeated here] because of two points which are new here: The first is that it is written [here] “or a Hebrew woman,” that she, too, [like a manservant,] goes free at the end of six [years]. This does not mean a woman whom the court has sold, for a woman is not sold [by the court] on account of a theft, since it is stated [that the thief will be sold] “for his theft” (Exod. 22:2), not for her theft. Thus, [we are referring here to] a minor whom her father sold [as a handmaid], and it teaches you here that if six years terminate before she shows signs [of puberty], she goes free (Exod. 21:7-11). The second new point here is: “You shall surely provide him.”

14 You shall surely provide him Heb. הַעֲנֵיק תַּעֲנִיק . [The root ענק ] denotes an ornament worn high [on the upper portion of the body] within view of the eye. [Thus, this verse means that you should give him] something through which it will be recognized that you have benefited him. Others explain [the word הַעֲנֵיק ] as an expression of loading on his neck [meaning that you should load him with gifts].

[You shall surely provide him] from your flock, from your threshing floor, and from your vat One might think that I must [give him] only these things [listed in the verse here]. Therefore, Scripture states, “from what the Lord, your God, has blessed you,” meaning, from everything with which your Creator has blessed you. Then why are these mentioned? Just as these particular things are within the realm of blessing, so too, you should provide him only with what falls within the realm of blessing. This [therefore] excludes mules, [which are sterile, and are thus not considered within the realm of blessing] (Kid. 17a). In tractate Kiddushin (17a)our Rabbis derived by means of a gezerah shavah how much one must give the servant of each kind.

15 And you shall remember that you were a slave [in the land of Egypt] And I loaded you up [with booty], and then did so a second time, from the spoil of Egypt and from the spoil at the Sea [of Reeds]; so too should you load him up, and then do so a second time.-[Sifrei]

17 [And he shall be] a servant [to you] forever Heb. לְעוֹלָם . One might think that [ לְעוֹלָם , “forever”] is to be interpreted literally. Therefore, Scripture states: “[And you shall sanctify the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It will be a Jubilee for you;] and you shall return, every man to his property, and you shall return, every man to his family” (Lev. 25:10). Consequently, you learn that the term לְעוֹלָם here can mean only the period until the Jubilee. [This period is also called לְעוֹלָם .]-[Mechilta 21:6]

and also to your maidservant you will do likewise to provide her. One might think that Scripture includes her concerning the piercing [of the ear] as well. Therefore, it states, “And if the manservant (הַָעֶבֶד) will clearly say, [I love my master... then...his master shall bore his ear with an awl]” (Exod. 21:5-6); [i.e.,] a manservant (עֶבֶד) must have his ear pierced, but not a maidservant.-[Sifrei]

18 for twice as much as much as a hired servant From here our Rabbis said: A Hebrew slave serves both by day and by night, and that is double the amount of labor of a man hired only for day work. And what is his service during the night? That his master gives him a Canaanite maidservant [as a wife], and the [resultant] children [belong] to the master.-[Sifrei, Kid. 15a]

19 Every firstborn male... you shall sanctify [to the Lord] But elsewhere (Lev. 27:26) it says, “[But the firstborn which will be a firstborn for the Lord of the livestock,] no man shall sanctify it.” How is this [reconciled]? [The verse in Leviticus means that] one may not sanctify [the firstborn] to be another sacrifice [but only as a firstborn sacrifice]. And our verse here teaches us that it is a duty to proclaim [over the firstborn animal], “You are hereby sanctified as a firstborn.” Another explanation: It is impossible to say “sanctify [this firstborn animal],” because [Scripture] already says, “no man must shall sanctify it” (Lev. 27:26). And yet it is impossible to say that we shall not sanctify it, for [here] it already says, “you shall sanctify.” So how [can these two verses be reconciled]? [The answer is that we are dealing with an indirect sanctification, namely:] One may sanctify the value of the privilege [i.e., the owner of the firstborn animal has the privilege of choosing to which kohen he will give it. This privilege has a market value, namely how much an Israelite will pay so that the owner of the firstborn will give it to his grandson who is a kohen. The verse, therefore, means:] one may dedicate the value of this privilege according to its benefit and give it to the Temple [treasury].-[Ar. 29a]

You shall neither work with the firstborn of your ox, nor shear [the firstborn of your flock] The Rabbis derived that also the the converse [i.e., shearing your ox and working the flock] is prohibited. Scripture is merely speaking [here] of the usual manner [in which these animals are used].-[Bech. 25a]

20 You shall eat it before the Lord, your God [Scripture] is addressing the kohen, for we have already found [a statement to the effect] that it [the firstborn] is part of the dues given to kohanim, whether the animal is unblemished or whether it is blemished. For it is stated, “and their flesh [i.e., of the firstborn animals] shall be yours [i.e., the kohen 's]” (Num. 18:18). -[Bech. 28a] [In both cases, the kohen is entitled to eat the entire animal. The difference between the blemished and the unblemished animals is that the blemished animal is slaughtered outside the Temple, and its flesh may be eaten anywhere by anyone invited by the kohen. The unblemished animal, however, must be slaughtered in the Temple courtyard, its blood dashed on the altar, and its fat burned on the altar. The flesh must be eaten by the kohen and his household within the time allotted for eating it.] [

You shall eat it before the Lord...] year by year From here we derive the law that one should not delay it [i.e., from sacrificing it] beyond its first year (Bech. 28a). [If so, however,] one might think that it becomes unfit [as a sacrifice] when the first year has elapsed. [Therefore, the Torah tells us that] it [the firstborn animal] has already been compared to ma’aser [sheini], as it is said, “And you shall eat before the Lord, your God... the tithes of your grain, your wine, and your oil, and the firstborn of your cattle and of your sheep” (Deut. 14:23). Just as ma’aser sheini does not become unfit [when it is left over] from one year to the next, neither does the firstborn animal become unfit. However, [this verse means] that the proper way to fulfill this commandment [of the firstborn animal] is during its first year.

year by year If one slaughtered it at the end of its first year [on the last day], he may eat it on that day and one day of the next year. This teaches [us] that it [a firstborn animal] may be eaten for two days and one [intervening] night.-[Bech. 27b]

21 [And if there be any] blemish [in it] [This is] a כְּלָל , a general statement [not limiting itself to anything in particular].

lame, or blind [This is] a פְּרָט , particular things, [limiting the matter to these things].

any ill blemish [Once again the verse] reverts to כְּלָל , a general statement. [Now we have learned that when a verse expresses a כְּלָל , then a פְּרָט , and then a כְּלָל again, just as in this case, we apply the characteristics of the פְּרָט to the whole matter.] Just as the blemishes detailed [lame or blind] are externally visible blemishes that do not heal, so too, any externally visible blemish that does not heal [renders a firstborn animal unfit for sacrifice and may be eaten as ordinary flesh].-[Bech. 37a]

23 However, you shall not eat its blood [Although eating the blood of any animal is prohibited, this prohibition is mentioned here] so that you should not say: "Since this [blemished firstborn animal] is entirely permitted [to be eaten now after its blemish, even though] it started out from a forbidden status, since it was sanctified, [and now it is permitted] for it is slaughtered outside [the Temple] without having to be redeemed, and [it may be] eaten. I might [therefore] think that its blood is permitted as well!" Therefore, Scripture states, "However, you shall not eat its blood."

Chapter 16

1 Keep the month of spring Heb. אָבִיב . Before it [Nissan] arrives, watch that it should be fit for the אָבִיב , ripening [capable of producing ripe ears of barley by the sixteenth of the month], to offer up in it the omer meal offering. And if not, proclaim it a leap year [thereby enabling you to wait another month, until the barley ripens].-[San. 11b]

[for in the month of spring the Lord, your God, brought you] out of Egypt at night But did they not go out by day, as it is said, “on the morrow of the Passover the children of Israel went out...” (Num. 33:3)? However, since during the night Pharaoh gave them permission to leave, as it is said, “So he called for Moses and Aaron at night [and said, ‘Rise up, go out from among my people...]’ ” (Exod. 12:31), [therefore, here it says “at night”].-[Ber. 9a]

2 You shall slaughter the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, your God, [of the] flock As it is said, “You may take [it] either from the sheep or from the goats” (Exod. 12:5).

and...cattle These are slaughtered as the chagigah [Festival offering]. If a large group was formed for the Passover offering, they bring a Festival offering along with it, so that the Passover sacrifice will be eaten [after a sufficient meal, and therefore] after the required satiation. [Everyone had to designate himself to a particular company of people, which was then relevant to one particular Passover offering (Pes. 69a- 70b).] Our Rabbis also derived many other things from this verse.-[Sifrei ; Pes. 70a]

3 the bread of affliction [I.e.,] bread that brings to mind the affliction they suffered in Egypt.-[Sifrei]

for in haste you went out of the land of Egypt And the dough [that you had prepared for eating] did not have time to become leavened, so this [matzah] will be for you as a reminder. And the haste [here] is not on your part, but on the part of the Egyptians, for so it says, “So the Egyptians took hold of the people [to hasten to send them out of the land]” (Exod. 12:33). -[Sifrei ; Ber. 9a] so that you shall remember By eating the Passover sacrifice and the matzah, the day you went out [of the land of Egypt].

4 neither shall any of the flesh you slaughter on the preceding day in the afternoon, remain all night until the morning This is an admonition regarding leaving over the flesh of the Passover sacrifice, offered up by future generations, because [so far this prohibition] had been mentioned only with regard to the Passover sacrifice offered in Egypt (see Exod. 12:10). And יוֹם רִאשׁוֹן stated here is the fourteenth of Nissan [the preceding day, and not the fifteenth, which is the first day of Passover], just as it says: “but on the preceding day (בַּיוֹם הָרִאשׁוֹן) you shall clear away leaven from your houses” (Exod. 12:15). Now since Scripture digressed from the subject of the Passover sacrifice and began to speak of the rules pertaining to the seven days [of the Festival]-such as, “seven days you shall eat with it matzoth ” (verse 3); “And no leaven shall be seen with you within all your border for seven days” (verse 4)—it was necessary to specify to which slaughtering [Scripture] is admonishing. For had it written only “neither shall any of the flesh you slaughter in the afternoon, remain all night until the morning” [without saying “the preceding day”], I might have thought that the peace offerings slaughtered during all the seven days are also subject to [the prohibition of] “And you shall not leave any of it until the morning,” (Exod. 12:10), and may be eaten only for [one] day and a night. Therefore, it is written: “on the preceding day in the evening,” [thereby clarifying that the verse is referring to the Passover sacrifice]. Another explanation: Scripture is referring to the Festival offering brought on the fourteenth of Nissan [and not to the specific Passover sacrifice], and it teaches with reference to it that it may be eaten for two days [and the intervening night]. Now the רִאשׁוֹן mentioned here [according to this explanation], is the first day of the Festival [i.e., the fifteenth of Nissan, rather than the preceding day]. And this is the meaning of the verse: The flesh of the Festival offering, which you slaughtered in the afternoon, shall not remain overnight after the first day of the Festival until the morning of the second day [the sixteenth of Nissan], but rather, it is to be eaten on the fourteenth and the fifteenth [and the intervening night]. And thus it is taught in tractate Pes. (71b).

6 there you shall slaughter the Passover offering] in the afternoon, as the sun sets, at the appointed time that you went out of Egypt [In this verse,] three separate times are specified: 1)"in the afternoon," [i.e.,] from the sixth [seasonal] hour [not clock-hours, but rather the twelve equal divisions of the time between dawn and dusk, each one known as a שָׁעָה זְמַנִּית , a “seasonal hour”]. From this time onward [afternoon], you shall slaughter it (זְבָחֵהוּ) “as the sun sets,” you shall eat it (תּֽאכְלֵהוּ) ; and 3)"at the appointed time that you went out [of Egypt]," you must burn it (שוֹרְפֵהוּ) . I.e., [at the beginning of the morning of the first day of Passover, whatever is left over from the Passover sacrifice] becomes נוֹתָר , left over, and must be burned [on the next day].-[Sifrei ; see Ber. 9a]

7 And you shall roast [it] Heb. וּבִשַּׁלְתָּ . [Here] this term means “roasted in fire” (צְלִי אֵשׁ) (see Exod. 12:9), for roasting is also included in the general term of בִּשּׁוּל , “cooking.”

and you shall turn away in the morning [and go to your dwellings] [i.e.,] the morning of the second day [of Passover]. This teaches that [the pilgrim] is required to remain [in Jerusalem] the night when the Festival terminates.-[Sifrei ; Pes. 95b; Chag. 17a-b]

8 For six days you shall eat matzoth But elsewhere it says, “For seven days [you shall eat matzoth]!” (Exod. 12:15). [The solution is:] For seven days you shall eat matzoth from the old [produce] and six days [i.e., the last six days, after the omer has been offered] you may eat matzoth prepared from the new [crop]. Another explanation: It teaches that the eating of matzoh on the seventh day of Passover is not obligatory, and from here you learn [that the same law applies] to the other six days [of the Festival], For the seventh day was included in a general statement [in the verse “For seven days you shall eat matzoth,” but in the verse: “Six days you shall eat matzoth ”] it has been taken out of this general [statement], to teach us that eating matzoh [on the seventh day] is not obligatory, but optional. [Now we have aready learned that if something is singled out of a general statement, we apply the relevant principle not only to itself but to every thing included in the general category. Thus the seventh day] is excluded here not to teach regarding itself, rather to teach regarding the entire generalization [i.e., the entire seven days of the Festival]. Just as on the seventh day the eating of matzah is optional, so too, on all the other days, the eating of matzah is optional. The only exception is the first night [of Passover], which Scripture has explicitly established as obligatory, as it is said, “in the evening, you shall eat matzoth ” (Exod. 12:18). -[Mechilta on Exod 12:18; Pes. 120a]

[and on the seventh day there shall be] a halt to the Lord your God - עֲצֶרֶת . Keep yourself back from work. Another explanation: [ עֲצֶרֶת means] a gathering for eating and drinking, as the expression, “Let us detain (נַַעַצְרָה) you” (Judg. 13:15).

9 from [the time] the sickle is first put to the standing crop, [you shall begin to count seven weeks] [I.e.,] from the time the omer is harvested [on the sixteenth of Nissan], which is the beginning of the harvest.-[see Lev. 23:10, Sifrei ; Men. 71a]

10 the donation you can afford to give [I.e.,] sufficient generous donation from you; according to the blessing [that God bestows upon you], bring peace offerings of happiness [these are extra peace offerings in addition to the Festival offerings] and invite guests to eat [with you].

11 the Levite... the stranger, the orphan, and the widow [God says:] These are My four, corresponding to your four, [namely,] “Your son, and your daughter, and your manservant, and your maidservant.” If you shall gladden Mine, I will gladden yours.-[Midrash Aggadah, Midrash Hagadol. Compare Tanchuma 18, Pesikta d’Rav Kahana p.100a. Note that in incunabula editions, this comment of Rashi is connected to the preceding one: and invite guests to eat [with you]: the Levite... the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. [God says:] These are My four...]

12 And you shall remember that you were a slave [in Egypt] On this condition did I redeem you [from Egypt], that you keep and perform these statutes.

13 You shall make yourself the Festival of Sukkoth...] when you gather in [the produce]- [i.e.,] at the time of the ingathering, when you bring the summer fruits into the house. Another explanation: “when you gather in [the produce] from your threshing floor and your vat” וּמִיִּקְבֶךָ) (בְּאָסְפּ;ְךָ מִגָּרְנְךָ teaches that we should cover the sukkah [only] with the waste products that come from the threshing floor and the vat [i.e., with things that have grown from the ground, have become detached, and are not susceptible to ritual uncleanness. Since they are not foods and are not vessels, they are not susceptible to spiritual uncleanness. - R.H. 13a; Suk. 12a]

15 and you will only be happy According to its simple meaning, this is not an expression denoting a command, but rather an expression of an assurance [i.e., I promise you that you will be happy]. But according to its oral interpretation, [our Rabbis] learned from this to include the night before the last day of the Festival for the obligation of rejoicing.-[see Suk. 48a; Sifrei]

16 and he shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed But bring burnt-offerings of appearance (עוֹלוֹת רְאִיָּה) [which are obligatory when appearing before the Lord in Jerusalem on the Festivals] and Festival peace-offerings. -[Chag. 8b]

17 [Every] man [shall bring] as much as he can afford One who has many eaters [i.e., a large family] and many possessions should bring many burnt-offerings and many peace- offerings.-[Sifrei ; Chag. 8b]

Ketubim: Tehillim (Psalms) 119:137-176

RASHI	TARGUM
137. ¶ You are righteous, O Lord, and Your judgments are upright.	137. TZADE. Your are righteous/generous, O LORD, and your judgments are upright.
138. You commanded Your testimonies, [which are] righteousness, and they are exceedingly faithful.	138. You have commanded righteousness/ generosity, testimony, and much faithfulness.
139. My zeal incenses me, for my adversaries have forgotten Your words.	139. My zeal has overcome me, for my oppressors have forgotten Your words.
140. Your word is very pure, and Your servant loves it.	140. Your word is very pure, and Your servant loves it.
141. I am young and despised; I have not forgotten Your precepts.	141. I am small and despised; I have not forgotten Your commandments.
142. Your righteousness is perpetual righteousness, and Your Torah is true.	142. Your generosity is righteousness forever, and Your Torah is truth.
143. Distress and anguish have overtaken me; Your commandments are my occupation.	143. Trouble and the oppressor have befallen me; Your commandments are my delight.
144. The righteousness of Your testimonies is eternal; enable me to understand and I shall live. {P}	144. Your testimonies are righteousness/ generosity forever; give me insight and I will endure.
145. ¶ I called with all my heart; answer me, O Lord; I shall keep Your statutes.	145. QOPH. I have called with a whole heart; answer me, O LORD! I will keep Your decrees.
146. I called to You; save me and I shall keep Your testimonies.	146. I have called You, redeem me; and I will keep Your testimonies.
147. I arose early, when it was still night, and I cried out; I hoped for Your word.	147. I have risen early at dawn, and prayed; I have waited long for Your word.
148. My eyes preceded the watches to speak of Your word.	148. My eyes have preceded the watches of morning and evening to speak of Your word.
149. Hearken to my voice according to Your kindness; O Lord, according to Your custom sustain me.	149. Hear my voice in accordance with Your kindness, O LORD; sustain me according to Your judgments.
150. Pursuers of lewdness have drawn near; from Your Torah they have distanced themselves.	150. Those who pursue fornication have drawn near; they have gone far from Your Torah.
151. You are near, O Lord, and all Your commandments are true.	151. You are near, O LORD, and all Your commandments are truth.
152. From before, I knew from Your testimonies, for You established them to [the end of] the world. {P}	152. Long ago I grew wise from Your testimonies, for You founded them forever.
153. ¶ See my affliction and release me, for I have not forgotten Your Torah.	153. RESH. See my affliction and deliver me; for I have not forgotten Your Torah.
154. Plead my cause and redeem me; for Your word sustains me.	154. Argue my case and redeem me; heal me for Your word.
155. Salvation is far from the wicked, for they did not seek Your statutes.	155. Redemption is far from the wicked; for they have not sought Your decrees.
156. Your mercies, O Lord, are abundant; according to Your custom, sustain me.	156. Your mercies are many, O LORD; heal me according to Your judgments.
157. Many are my pursuers and my adversaries; from Your testimonies I did not turn away.	157. Those who pursue me and oppress me are many; I have not turned away from Your testimonies.
158. I saw traitors and I quarreled [with them] because they did not keep your word.	158. I saw despoilers and I contended with them, who have not kept Your word.
159. See that I love Your precepts, O Lord; according to Your kindness, sustain me.	159. See this, for I have loved Your commandments; O LORD, according to Your kindness heal me.
160. The beginning of Your word is true, and each of Your righteous judgments is eternal. {P}	160. The beginning of Your word is truth; and all the judgments of Your righteousness/generosity are forever.
161. ¶ Princes pursued me for nothing, but my heart feared Your word.	161. SHIN. Rulers have pursued me without cause; and my heart is in fear of Your word.
162. I rejoice over Your word as one who finds great spoil.	162. I am glad concerning Your word, like a man who finds much spoil.
163. I hate falsehood, and I abominate [it], I love Your Torah.	163. I have hated deceit and loathed it; I have loved Your Torah.
164. Seven times a day I praise You for Your righteous judgments.	164. Seven times a day I have praised You, because of the judgments of your righteousness/ generosity.
165. There is abundant peace to those who love Your Torah, and they have no obstacle.	165. There is great peace for those who love Your Torah in this age, and they have no stumbling-block in the age to come.
166. I hoped for Your salvation, O Lord, and I performed Your commandments.	166. I have hoped for Your redemption, O LORD, and I have done Your commandments.
167. My soul kept Your testimonies, and I love them exceedingly.	167. My soul has kept Your testimonies, and I have loved them greatly.
168. I kept Your precepts and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You. {P}	168. I have kept Your commandments and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You.
169. ¶ May my song of prayer draw near before You, O Lord; according to Your word, enable me to understand.	169. TAV. My prayer will come near in Your presence, O LORD; give me insight according to Your word.
170. May my supplication come before You; according to Your word, save me.	170. Let my prayer come before You; deliver me according to Your word.
171. My lips will utter praise when You teach me Your statutes.	171. My lips will seek praise, for You will teach me Your decrees.
172. My tongue will proclaim Your word, for all Your commandments are righteous.	172. My tongue will reply to Your word, for all Your judgments are righteousness/generosity.
173. May Your hand be [ready] to help me, for I have chosen Your precepts.	173. May Your hand be ready to help me, for I have taken pleasure in Your commandments.
174. I yearned for Your salvation, O Lord, and Your Torah is my occupation.	174. I have yearned for Your redemption, O LORD, and Your Torah is my delight.
175. May my soul live and praise You, and may Your judgments help me.	175. May my soul live and praise You, and may Your judgments give me aid.
176. I went astray like a lost lamb; seek Your servant, for I did not forget Your commandments. {P}	176. I have gone astray like a lost flock; seek Your servant, for I have not forgotten Your commandments.

Rashi’s Commentary on Tehillim (Psalms) 119:137-176

139 My zeal incenses me Heb. קנאתי . The zeal with which I am zealous for Your name against those who forget Your words, cuts me and incenses me against them.

141 I am young and despised As it is stated (I Sam. 17:14): “And David was the youngest.” I am despised to the extent that I humble myself beside those who engage in the Torah, to learn, for I have not forgotten Your precepts; [nor have I refrained] from searching and debating with them about Your righteousness that is within them [the precepts], which is righteousness and truth to eternity; and even though troubles have befallen me, they were my occupation. And forever enable me to understand their righteousness and I shall live by them (Deut. 30:20): “for it [the Torah] is your life and the length of your days.”

146 and I shall keep (The acronym of, עֵדְוֹתֶיךָ is דמה בן פֶרֶץ ; the “vav” is vowelized with a “holam,” but in the other instances, it is עֵדֽתֶיךָ ; the “daleth” is vowelized with a “holam.”)

148 watches Half the night, two watches, and according to one who says that the night consists of three watches, David would rise from bed at the first third of the night and engage in Torah until midnight, as it is said: “to speak of Your word.” From midnight on, he would engage in songs and praises, as it is said (verse 62): “At midnight, I rise to give thanks to You.”

150 Pursuers of lewdness have drawn near a counsel of sins. They follow the counsel of their sins and distance themselves from your Torah to draw near to the counsel of their evil.

151 You are near to these faraway people, who distance themselves from Your Torah, if they repent of their way.

152 From before, I knew from Your testimonies Before the thing came about, I knew it from Your testimonies. Before they inherited the land, You commanded them about the first fruits, heave offerings, and tithes, and before You gave them rest from their enemies, You commanded them (Deut. 25:19): “And it will be, when the Lord Your God gives you rest, etc.” to appoint a king, to annihilate Amalek, and to build the Temple.

to the world For You established Your testimonies concerning all things destined to be until the end of the world.

160 The beginning of Your word is true And the end of Your word is not true? Rather, the end of Your word proves that the beginning of Your word is true. For, when the nations heard, “I am the Lord your God,” and “You shall not have [another god],” and “You shall not take, etc.,” they said, “Everything is for His benefit and for His glory.” As soon as they heard, “Honor, etc.; You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery,” they admitted [that they had erred] about the beginning of Your word, that it is true.

162 I rejoice over Your word Over Your promise that You promised me. Another explanation: Over one of Your enigmatic statements, when I understand it. Our Rabbis, however, interpreted it as referring to circumcision, for [when] David was in the bathhouse and saw himself without zizith, without tefillin, and without Torah, he said, “Woe is to me, for I am naked of all commandments.” As soon as he thought of the circumcision, he rejoiced and said when he emerged (from the bathhouse), “I rejoice over Your word.” [This refers to] circumcision, which was first given with a saying (אמירה) , and not with speaking (דיבור) , as it is said (Gen. 17:9): “And God said (ויאמר) to Abraham, ‘And you shall keep My covenant.’”

164 Seven times a day In the morning, twice before the reading of “Shema” and once after it, and in the evening, twice before it and twice after it.

for Your righteous judgments For the reading of the Shema, which consists of words of Torah.

168 for all my ways are before You You know all my ways.

169 according to Your word, enable me to understand the words of Your Torah; according to their law and in the order in which they stand.

171 will utter will speak.

172 My tongue will proclaim Heb. תען . Every [expression of] עַנִיָה is an expression of a loud voice, and the “father” of them all is (Deut. 27:14): “And the Levites shall proclaim (וענו) and say [to all Israel with a loud voice].”

Meditation from the Psalms

Psalm 119: 137-176

By: HH Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David

Our Torah portion opens with HaShem’s admonition that we should open our hand liberally to our needy brother. King David picks up this verbal cue in our portion of Psalm 119:173 by pleading for HaShem to open His hand to help him. Radak[1] indicates that this is a midda-kneged-midda action. ^[2] That is, just as King David opened his hands to do what HaShem commanded, by taking care of the needy, so also should HaShem take care of him.

This ‘open hand’ for the needy is also echoed in the opening words of our Ashlamata:

Amos 8:4 Hearken to this, you who swallow up the needy, and to cut off the poor of the land.

In our passage in Mordechai, we also see a ‘closed hand’ used as a fist to strike the poor man.

Thematically, there are a couple of connections between the Torah, with the Targum, and our Psalm portion. Consider the following:

Torah (Targum)	Psalm
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 15:7 But if you be not diligent in the precepts of the Law, and there be among you a poor man in one of your cities of the land which the LORD your God gives you, you will not harden your heart, nor hold back your hand from your poor brother;	Tehillim (Psalm) 119:168 I kept Your precepts and Your testimonies, for all my ways are before You. {P}
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 15:11 But forasmuch as the house of Israel will not rest in the commandments of the Law, the poor will not cease in the land: therefore I command you, saying: You will verily open your hands toward your neighbors, to the afflicted around you, and to the poor of your country.	Tehillim (Psalm) 119:143 Distress and anguish have overtaken me; Your commandments are my occupation.

Chanukah will occur four days after we read the end of Psalm 119. Therefore, we might expect to find a few allusions to Chanukah in our Psalm. Consider the statement of the Targum on v.141 as an allusion to the Maccabees:

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:141 I am small and despised; I have not forgotten Your commandments.

We also see an allusion in v.139 and v.143 as if Yehudah HaMaccabee had spoken these words concerning the Greeks:

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:139 My zeal incenses me, for my adversaries have forgotten Your words.

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:143 Distress and anguish have overtaken me; Your commandments are my occupation.

Radak[3] teaches us the following on v. 174:

I yearned for Your salvation from my enemies, so that I should be able to occupy myself with the study of Your Torah and not be threatened by them.

As we recall that the Maccabean army was composed of yeshiva students, we can easily relate the Radak’s words as applying to the Greeks at the time of Chanukah.

The Greeks, during the period of the Maccabees, were not necessarily interested in abolishing Torah or the worship of HaShem. However, they were interested in eliminating the time dependent mitzvoth (commandments) like Shabbat,[4] and in eliminating any commandment that marred the body, which they considered to be perfect.[5] Thus they forbade circumcision. In Psalm 119:162, the Talmud[6] homiletically interprets אמרתך, Your word, in the singular, as if it meant to single out one mitzva (commandment) par excellence. This mitzvah (commandment) is circumcision, because it is the very first one that was given to Abraham as a specifically Jewish mitzvah (commandment). Rashi agrees and elaborates a bit further:

162 I rejoice over Your word Over Your promise that You promised me. Another explanation: Over one of Your enigmatic statements, when I understand it. Our Rabbis, however, interpreted it as referring to circumcision, for [when] David was in the bathhouse and saw himself without zizith (fringes), without tefillin (philacteries), and without Torah, he said, “Woe is to me, for I am naked of all commandments.” As soon as he thought of the circumcision, he rejoiced and said when he emerged (from the bathhouse), “I rejoice over Your word.” [This refers to] circumcision, which was first given with a saying (אמירה) , and not with speaking (דיבור) , as it is said (Gen. 17:9): “And God said (ויאמר) to Abraham, ‘And you shall keep My covenant.’”

Aslamatah: Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15

RASHI	TARGUM
4. ¶ Hearken to this, you who swallow up the needy, and to cut off the poor of the land.	4. Listen to this, you who trample the heads of the needy like the dust of the earth, you who think of abolishing the words of the poor from the land;
5. Saying, "When will the month be delayed, so that we will sell grain, and the Sabbatical Year, so that we will open [our stores of] grain, to make the ephah smaller and to make the shekel larger, and to pervert deceitful scales.	5. Who say, "When will the month for grain arrive/ so that we can sell grain? And the sabbatical year so that we can open the storehouses, and make the measure small and make the sela greater, dealing dishonestly with deceitful scales?
6. To purchase the poor with money, and the needy in order to inherit them, and the refuse of the grain we will sell."	6. That we may buy the poor for silver and the needy in order to acquire an inheritance. that we may sell the refuse of the grain.
7. The Lord swore by the pride of Jacob: I will never forget any of their deeds.	7. The LORD who gave greatness to Jacob swears; “None of their deeds will ever be forgotten.”
8. Shall the land not quake for this, and shall all its inhabitants [not] be destroyed? Yea, it shall rise up wholly like the rain cloud, and it shall cast up and sink like the river of Egypt. {P}	8. Shall not the land be laid waste for this, and all that dwell in it be desolated? A king will come up against it with his army which is great like the waters of a river, and he will cover it all and drive out its inhabitants and it will sink like the river of Egypt.
9. ¶ And it shall come to pass on that day, says the Lord God, that I will cause the sun to set at midday, and I will darken the land on a sunny day.	9. And at that time, says the LORD God, I will cover the sun at noon, and I will darken the earth on a sunny day.
10. And I will turn your festivals into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation, and I bring up sackcloth on all loins, and baldness on every head, and I will make it like the mourning for an only son, and its end is like a bitter day. {P}	10. I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lamentation. I will put sackcloth on all loins, and baldness on every head. I will make it like mourning for an only child, and the end of it like a bitter day.
11. ¶ Behold, days are coming, says the Lord God, and I will send famine into the land, not a famine for bread nor a thirst for water, but to hear the word of the Lord.	11. Behold the days are coming, says the LORD God, when I will send a famine on the land: not that one will hunger for eating or thirst for drinking. but for hearing the words of the LORD.
12. And they shall wander from sea to sea and from the north to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it.	12. Men will wander from the sea to the west and from the north to the east; they will go to seek instruction from the LORD, but they will not find it.
13. On that day, the beautiful virgins and the young men shall faint of thirst.	13. At that time, the congregations of Israel, who are like beautiful maidens that in their beauty fornicated with wicked/Lawless young men, will be weary and they will be struck down and prostrated with thirst.
14. Those who swear by the sin of Samaria, and say, "As your god lives, O Dan," and "As the road to Beersheba exists," shall fall and no longer rise. {S}	14. Those who swear by the guilt of Samaria, saying, “The god who is in Dan lives; and the laws of Beer-sheba endure:” will fall and never rise again.
1. I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, and He said: Strike the lintel, and the sideposts shall quake, and break to pieces those who are at the head of all of them, and their remnant I will slay by the sword; no one of them shall flee, and no one of them shall escape.	1. The prophet said: “I saw the glory of the LORD; it ascended by the cherub and rested on the altar, and he said, ‘If my people Israel will not return to the Law, extinguish the lamp; king Josiah will be slain, the temple will be laid waste, and the temple courts will be destroyed; and the vessels of the Sanctuary will be taken into captivity. The last of them 1 will kill with the sword; not one of them will escape, and not one of them will survive.
2. If they dig down into the grave, from there My hand shall take them, and if they ascend to the heavens, from there I will bring them down.	2. If they should think to hide as though in Sheol, from there they will be taken by My Memra and if they climb high buildings to heaven, from there they will be brought down by My Memra.
3. And if they hide at the peak of Carmel, from there I will search [them out] and I will take them, and if they hide from before My eyes in the land of the sea, from there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them.	3. If they should think to hide themselves on top of city towers. there I will command searchers, and they will search them out. and if they hide from My Memra among the islands of the sea, there I will command nations who are strong like the serpent to slay them.
4. And if they go into captivity before their enemies, from there I will command the sword and it shall slay them, and I will place My eye upon them for evil and not for good.	4. And if they go into captivity before their enemies, there I will command those who kill with the sword to slay them. I will set My Memra against them for evil and not for good.
5. And the Lord God of the Hosts, Who touches the land and it quakes, and all the inhabitants thereof shall be destroyed, and it shall ascend wholly like the river, and it shall sink like the river of Egypt.	5. It is the LORD God of hosts who rebukes the land and it trembles; all who dwell in it will be desolated. And a king will come up against it with his army, which is great like the waters of a river, and he will cover it all and it will sink like the river of Egypt.
6. Who built His upper stories in Heaven and has founded His company on earth; Who calls the water of the sea and pours it out on the face of the earth, the Lord is His Name.	6. It is He who made the Shekinah of His glory dwell in the lofty stronghold and established His congregation on the earth; who commanded to assemble armies as numerous as the waters of the sea and scattered them upon the face of the earth; the LORD is His name:
7. Are you not like the children of the Cushites to Me, O children of Israel? says the Lord. Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor and Aram from Kir?	7. "Children of Israel, are you not regarded as beloved children before Me?” says the LORD. “Did I not bring Israel up from the land of Egypt, the Philistines from Cappadocia. and the Arameans from Cyrene?”
8. Behold the eyes of the Lord God are on the sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from upon the face of the earth; but I will not destroy the house of Jacob, says the Lord.	8. “Behold, the works of the sinful kingdom have been revealed before the LORD God, and I will destroy it off the face of the earth! But I will not completely destroy the house of Jacob,” says the LORD.
9. For, behold I command, and I will scatter the house of Israel among all the nations; as it is shaken in a sieve, and not a coarse particle falls to the earth.	9. "For, behold, I will give the order and I will scatter the house of Israel among all the nations, as one shakes with a sieve, and not a stone from it falls through the meshes to the ground.
10. By the sword shall all the sinful of My people perish, those who say, "The evil shall not soon come upon us."	10. All the sinners of My people will be killed with the sword, who say, ‘Evil will neither hasten nor come upon us.’
11. On that day, I will raise up the fallen Tabernacle of David, and I will close up their breaches, and I will raise up its ruins, and build it up as in the days of yore.	11. At that time, I will set up again the kingdom of the house of David that has fallen; I will rebuild their cities and set up their congregations anew. It will rule over all the kingdoms and it will destroy and make an end of the greatness of armies; but it will be rebuilt and re-established as in the days of old,
12. In order that they inherit the remnant of Edom and all the nations because My Name is called upon them, says the Lord Who does this. {P}	12. so that the house of Israel, who are called by My name, may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations, says the LORD. Behold, this is what I will do.
13. ¶ Behold days are coming, says the Lord, that the plowman shall meet the reaper and the treader of the grapes the one who carries the seed, and the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt.	13. Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when the ploughman will meet the reaper, and the presser" of grapes him who puts out the seed; and the mountains will produce sweet wine, and all the hills will be tilled.
14. And I will return the captivity of My people Israel, and they shall rebuild desolate cities and inhabit [them], and they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their produce.	14. I will bring back the exiles of My people Israel. They will rebuild ruined cities and inhabit them; they will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will till gardens and eat their fruit.
15. And I will plant them on their land, and they shall no longer be uprooted from upon their land, that I have given them, said the Lord your God. {P}	15. And I will establish them upon their land, nevermore to be exiled from their land which I have given them, says the LORD your God.

Rashi’s Commentary on Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15

4 you who swallow up Heb. הַשֽׁאֲפִים , who swallow up the needy.

and to cut off Heb. וְלַשְׁבִּית , like וּלְהַשְׁבִּית . And examples [of this are found in Isaiah 23:11:] " To destroy (לַשְׁמִד) its strongholds.” (II Kings 9:15) "To go and tell (לַגִיד) in Jezreel.”

5 Saying, “When will the month be delayed” -This is the swallowing up. They anticipate the time that the grain will be expensive and will be sold to the poor with interest, and they will take their fields.

the month be delayed Heb. יַעֲבֽר . Jonathan renders: When will the year be interpolated and [when] will the month of interpolation come? This is an expression of delay, like (Jer. 46: 17) “Has allowed the appointed time to pass by (הֶעֱבִיר) .” And because they delay the offering up of the Omer, and the year is extended, and the old grain becomes expensive.

and the Sabbatical Year, so that we will open grain -When will the Sabbatical Year come, and the grain will become expensive, and we will open our storehouses of grain.

to make the ephah smaller To sell for a smaller measure, and our money we will receive with a large shekel.

6 in order to inherit them Heb. בַּעֲבוּר נַעֲלָיִם . [from Jonathan] and

the refuse of the corn we will sell -[Jonathan renders:] And the sweepings of the grains we will sell. The refuse that fell from the wheat into the sieve, to sell at high prices to the poor.

8 Shall the land not quake for this -Is this iniquity not serious enough that the land be destroyed because of it?

Yea, it shall rise up wholly like the rain cloud Heb. כָּאֽר . And in another place (9:5), Scripture says: “And it shall come up wholly like the river (כַיְאֽר) ,” and Jonathan renders them both identically: And a king shall rise upon it with his camp as numerous as the waters of the river, and cover it completely. To me, it seems difficult to define כָאֽר like כַיְאֽר . It can, however be explained like: (Job 36:32) “On the clouds, the rain (אוֹר) is covered. (Job 37:11) ” He scatters his rain cloud (אוֹרוֹ) .” And it shall go up wholly like a rain cloud, pitch darkness.

and it shall overflow and sink like the river of Egypt -The Nile overflows once in forty years and waters the land, and when it overflows, it brings up mud and dirt on its banks, and when it returns from watering, it returns over its banks and its water sinks. And that is called sinking, for the dirt that makes the water murky, settles.

and it shall cast up Heb. וְנִגְרְשָׁה , Like (Isa. 57:20) “And its waters cast up (וַ ִיּגְרְשׁוּ) mud and dirt.” Also the land will spew out the wicked in its midst, and afterwards it will rest.

9 I will cause the sun to set at midday -When there will be exceeding tranquility, a sudden downfall will come and our Rabbis said: This refers to the day of Josiah who died by the “peaceful sword” as our Rabbis said: There was no more peaceful sword than Pharaoh-Neco who said to Josiah, (II Chron. 35:21) “What do I have to do with you, O king of Judah; not upon you yourself today.” Not upon you do I come today, but to pass through your land “to the house against which I wage war etc.” [from Mo’ed Katan, Ta’anith 22a]

the sun -The kingdom of the house of David is compared to the sun, as it is said: (Psalms 89:37) “And his throne is like the sun opposite Me.”

10 And I will turn your festivals into mourning -as the matter is stated: (II Chron 35:24) “And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.”

and all your songs into lamentation -as the matter is stated: (ibid. verse 25) “And all the singing men and singing women spoke in their lamentations.”

like the mourning for an only son -Like a father who mourns over an only son.

11 but to hear -for the holy spirit shall terminate from them.

13 shall faint Heb. תִּתְעַלַּפְנָה . Their spirit shall fly out. Cf. (Jonah 4:8) “And he fainted (וַיִּתְעַלָּף) .” And so, (Ezekiel 31:15) “The trees of the field fainted (עֻלְפֶּה) for him.” And so in the language of the Mishnah (Chullin 3b): “He may faint (נִתְעַלְּפָה) ,” pasmer, (pamer) in French. [from Dunash p.84]

14 “As your god lives, O Dan,” -One of the calves that Jeroboam erected in Dan.

Chapter 9

1 standing beside the altar -Going away from the cherub to the altar on its way out, on the golden altar which is in the Temple, and this is one of the ten travels made by the Shechinah. [from Jonathan]

Strike the lintel -which is on top of the roof.

and the sideposts shall quake -The lower doorposts of the Temple; so will the king be slain and the princes quake.

and break to pieces those who are at the head of all of them Heb. וּבְצַעַם , like וּפְצַעַם [wound them or break them] And Jonathan renders כַּפְתּוֹר as the Menorah: [If the people of the house of Israel do not repent,] extinguish the Menorah; King Josiah shall be slain. And the sideposts shall quake, meaning that the Temple will be destroyed, and the Courtyards will be demolished. וּבְצַעַם בְּרֽאשׁ כֻּלָם , meaning that the vessels of the Temple will go into captivity. וּבְצַעַם means ‘their money’ shall go into exile at the head of all of them.

2 If they dig down into the grave -If they think to hide in Sheol.

My hand shall take them -Their enemies shall take them with My word. -[from Jonathan]

and if they ascend to the heavens -And if they ascend to the lofty mountains up to the heavens, from there they shall bring them down with My word.

3 at the peak of Carmel -At the top of the towers of the fortifed cities. [from Jonathan]

from there I will search [them out] -From there I will appoint searchers, and they will search them out. [from Jonathan]

in the land of the sea Heb. בְּקַרְקַע הַיָּם . [Jonathan renders:] בְּנִיסֵי יַמָּא , in the islands of the sea.

I will command the serpent - Jonathan renders: peoples as strong as a serpent.

5 Who touches the land and it quakes -Who rebukes the land and it quakes. וַתָּמוֹג is an expression of motion. And the Lord is He Who touches the land and it quakes. I.e, this decree emanates from Me.

6 and... His company -The company of His creatures. Another explanation: The company of the righteous was the foundation of the earth and the ceiling [other editions: and the benefit] of the heavens, for whose sake everything exists.

Who calls the water of the sea -Who says to gather camps as numerous as the waters of the sea. [from Jonathan]

7 Are you not like the children of the Cushites to Me -Why should I refrain from exacting retribution upon you since you do not return to Me? Have you not come from the sons of Noah like the other nations? Like the Cushites whom you resemble, as the matter is stated: (Jer. 13:22) “Will a Cushite change his skin…? So will you be able to improve.”

Did I not -Was it not out of My goodness, the beginning of My choosing you, My taking you out of the land of Egypt? Now what is that to Me? The Philistines, too, I took out of Caphtor in such a manner when the Caphtorites came upon the Avvites, as the matter is stated (Deut. 2:23) “And the Avvites who lived in open towns up to Gaza etc.” They vanquished also the people of Gaza and the remaining lords of the Philistines under them, and I took them out of their hands, and, even so, I did not make them My people.

and Aram from Kir -And so am I destined to bring Aram up from Kir, where Sennacherib will exile them, and, at the end of days, when the kingdom of Assyria will terminate, they will go out.

8 and I will destroy it -The kingdom is the house of Jehu, but I will not destroy the house of Jacob.

9 For behold I command -to exile them among all the nations, an unusually great scattering.

as it is shaken -What they sift with a sieve after the fine bran falls out of it, and there remains the coarse [bran], which cannot come out, and then the one who shakes [it], shakes with all his might.

it is shaken -by another, and it is impossible to read יָנוּעַ , since that denotes a thing that moves by itself.

10 “The evil shall not soon come upon us.” -Because of our iniquities, the evil shall not hasten to approach and to come.

11 On that day -And, after all these will befall him, that day will come, the day destined for the redemption, and thereon...

I will raise up the fallen Tabernacle of David - Jonathan renders: the kingdom of the house of David.

12 In order that they inherit -[I.e, in order that] Israel [inherit] the remnant of Edom etc.

because My Name is called upon them Heb. אֲשֶׁר , like כִּי , because.

13 that the plowman shall meet the reaper -(Lev. 26: 5) “And your threshing shall overtake the vintage, and the vintage shall overtake the sowing.” They will not finish plowing until the harvest comes, and they will not finish harvesting until the time of sowing comes.

shall melt Heb. תִּתְמוֹגַגְנָה . Jonathan renders: shall split. Tilled soil splits when rains come.

sweet wine Heb. עָסִיס . Good and sweet wine.

In The School of the Prophets

Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15

By: Hakham Dr. Yosef ben Haggai

Our Ashlatamatah for this week covers four Petuchot (Pericopes/Paragraphs): 1) Amos 8:4-8; 2) Amos 8:9-10; 3) Amos 8:11 – 9:12 (divided into two sections – Amos 8:11-14 and 9:1-12); and 4) Amos 9:13-15.

Rabbi Dr. S. M. Lehrman,[7] divides the contents of these Petuchot (Pericopes/Paragraphs), and to which we have added further subdivisions, as follows:

• Amos 8:4-14 – The Fourth Vision: The Coming Judgment of the Northern Kingdom of Israel

(i) Earthquake – vv. 4-8

(ii) Eclipse – vv. 9-10

(iii) Famine – vv. 1-12

(iv) Drought – vv. 13-14

• Amos 9:1-4 – The Fifth Vision: G-d’s Sentence on the Northern Kingdom of Israel
• Amos 9:5-6 – The Might of G-d

(i) Judgment Begins in the Sanctuary

(ii) There are No Privileges When Righteousness/Generosity and Justice are Abandoned

• Amos 9:7-15 – Final Message of Hope

The Primary Verbal Tally between the Torah Seder and our Ashlamatah is as follows:

Torah Seder (Deut. 15:7 – 16:17):

Deut. 15:7

כִּי-יִהְיֶה בְךָ אֶבְיוֹן מֵאַחַד אַחֶיךָ, בְּאַחַד שְׁעָרֶיךָ, בְּאַרְצְךָ, אֲשֶׁר-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לָךְ--לֹא תְאַמֵּץ אֶת-לְבָבְךָ, וְלֹא תִקְפֹּץ אֶת-יָדְךָ, מֵאָחִיךָ, הָאֶבְיוֹן.

7 If there be among you a needy man, one of your brethren, within any of your gates, in your land which the LORD your God gives you, you will not harden your heart, nor shut your hand from your needy brother;

Amos 8:4

שִׁמְעוּ-זֹאת, הַשֹּׁאֲפִים אֶבְיוֹן; וְלַשְׁבִּית, ענוי- (עֲנִיֵּי-) אָרֶץ.

4 Hear this, O you that would swallow the needy, and destroy the poor of the land,

The Hebrew word אֶבְיוֹן – Eb’yón – translated as “Needy” is also equated in our first verse of our Ashlamatah (Amos 8:4) as: עֲנִיֵּי – Aniyei – translated as “poor” and from the Hebrew root עני – Oní (Strong’s # H6041), and from which the Matsa (unleavened bread) for Pesach (Passover) receives the name of “Lechem Oni – Bread of the Poor.”

Now the Hebrew word אֶבְיוֹן – Eb’yón (Strong’s # H34) at one time in history also became the name (i.e. Ebionites)[8] by which Nazarean Jews were identified – since the word means: destitute, beggar, needy, poor (man). And the reason they were called by this name is because of the strong persecution that Nazarean Jews went first by the hands of the Romans and then even more fierce persecution at the hands of the Christian Church, so that they were left literally “destitute” and needing to “beg” or remain poor and wondering from place to place in order to survive. In the end, between the Christian Church and Islam succeeded, but only for a time, to exterminate this important group of Jewish people. There are some who erroneously claim “that their name suggests that they placed a special value on voluntary poverty.” This is nothing but a cover-up and an obfuscation of the relentless extermination by the Christian Church of the Nazarean Jews.[9]

Wikipedia[10] correctly states:

Since historical records by the Ebionites are scarce, fragmentary and disputed, much of what is known or conjectured about the Ebionites derives from the Church Fathers, who wrote polemics against the Ebionites, whom they deemed heretical Judaizers. Consequently very little about the Ebionite sect or sects is known with certainty, and most, if not all, statements about them are conjectural.

Many scholars distinguish the Ebionites from other Jewish Nazarean groups, e.g., the Nazarenes., others consider them identical with the Nazarenes.

Small historical pointers of the extermination of the Nazareans/Ebionites do exist, and one such of them is mentioned in Church History, the so called “Quartodeciman Controversy” between the Roman Bishop Victor and the “so called” Bishops of the East regarding the exact date and whether to celebrate or not the Jewish Passover.[11] The reading of this Ashlamatah (Lesson from the Prophets) when viewed in connection with the history and mass extermination of the Nazarean/Ebionite Jews in the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine as head of the Christian Church is most apt for this season as we are preparing in this coming week to celebrate Chanukah whereby the Greek King Antiochus IV Epiphanes profaned the Temple by sacrificing a pig in the Holy Altar, enacted laws to forbid circumcision and the study of Torah, etc. and how the Maccabees in a long revolt regained and cleansed the Temple precincts.

The festival of Chanukah for us, has a very special meaning, since in our generation we are seeing a small but miraculous revival of the Jewish Nazarean movement albeit with many other sects around it trying to asphyxiate it and prevent it from attaining its goals, but G-d, most blessed be He, is the owner of this work, and He will see to it that it prospers, and becomes a trustworthy instrument in His hands to achieve the final redemption, amen ve amen! We cry from the bottom of our heart together with the Psalmist: “We are small and despised; We have not forgotten Your commandments.” (Psalm 119:141).

In suma, the pericope of Hakham Tsefet (Peter) by the hand of his scribe Mordechai (Mark) shows that what happened to the Master also happened to his “real” Jewish disciples in the first four centuries of the common era, and to the Jewish people in general as his body even to this very day. But the time is near whereby these crimes will be punished most severely by G-d as He did to the unfaithful Northern Israelite Kingdom, as it is said:

Amos 8:7 The LORD who gave greatness to Jacob swears; “None of their deeds will ever be forgotten.”

Amos 8:8. Will not the land be laid waste for this, and all that dwell in it be desolated? A king will come up against it with his army which is great like the waters of a river, and he will cover it all and drive out its inhabitants and it will sink like the river of Egypt.{P}

People can hide behind their theologies, vain imaginations, and as Hakham Shaul puts it: "strong delusion,”[12] but our G-d, most blessed be He, can’t be fooled or permit righteousness/generosity and justice to be abandoned. We know that in many instances human history has been doctored in what is called “revisionism” to favour the guilty and dress them as righteous. But the prophecy in our Ashlamatah (Lesson from the Prophets) and the coming festival of Chanukah testify that true and genuine history is but His (i.e. G-d’s) Story in His dealings with the universe, mankind, and His chosen people, and in His Story the Psalmist sates: “There is great peace for those who love Your Torah in this age, and they have no stumbling-block in the age to come"" (Targum Pslam 119:165).

Another question that rises from this Ashlamatah is: Why are there poor and needy amongst G-d’s people? This very poignant question should give us much to think about. The best answer to this most profound and soul searching question, and which amongst us perfectly judges in G-d’s eyes those who are “genuine” and those who are “fake” is found in last week’s Torah Seder in Debarim (Deut.) 15:4 and in the first verses of our Torah Seder for this week (Deut: 15:7,11), according to the translation of Targum Pseudo Jonathan:

15:4 “If you will only be diligent in the precepts of the Law, there will be no poor among you;”

15:7 “But if you be not diligent in the precepts of the Law, and there be among you a poor man”

15:11 “But forasmuch as the house of Israel will not rest in the commandments of the Law, the poor will not cease …”

I remarked in my last Sunday Table-Talk on the Torah Seder and allied readings, that “being diligent in the precepts of the Law” amounts to having a heart full and overflowing with Chessed – (Heb. for: “loving-kindness”). I further remarked that in Acts 4:34-35 we read:

Acts 4:34 For there was not even anyone needy among them, because all those who were owners of [surplus] plots of land or houses were selling them and bringing the proceeds of the things that were sold

Acts 4:35 and placing them at the feet of the apostles (Nazarean Hakhamim/Rabbis). And it was being distributed to each as anyone had need.

This was neither communism nor the abolishment of private property amongst Nazarean Jews of that time, as some so called Scholars want us to believe. No! Never in a million years! G-d forbid! What we are seeing here is that as the Jewish people were being filled with the Ruach Ha Qodesh (Heb. for: “Spirit of Holiness”) the Nazarean Jews developed a keen awareness of the needs of the community and were selling any surplus possessions and “placing them at the feet of the Nazarean Hakhamim/Rabbis” so that the command of Deut. 15:4 “If you will only be diligent in the precepts of the Law, there will be no poor among you;” be fulfilled among them – such was their love and zeal for G-d’s Torah/Law!

Hakham Yochanan (John) in a passage that we will read for Chanukah elucidates this further when he writes:

“But whoever has the world's material possessions and observes his brother [in need] and shuts his heart [overflowing with Chessed – loving-kindness] against him, how does the love of God reside in him?”

Therefore, from a Jewish perspective, whether Nazarean or non-Nazarean, “Shomer Mitzvoth” (Heb. for “keeping/ guarding the commandments”) without Ahavah Yisrael (Heb. for “love of the Jewish brothers”) that is a heart overflowing with Chessed (Heb. for “loving-kindness”) cannot be considered a proper “Shomer Mitzvoth” (Heb. for keeping/guarding of the commandments). The sure sign that a person is a Nazarean Jew, above everything else is aptly described by Hakham Shaul as:

2Cor 9:7 Each one [should give] as he has decided in his heart, not [reluctantly] or from compulsion, for God loves a cheerful (hilarious) giver.

2Cor 9:8 And God is able to cause all grace to abound to you, so that in everything at all times, [because you] have enough of everything, you may overflow in every good work (Heb. “G’milut Chasadim” – “Deeds of Loving-Kindness”)[13]. .

And as the Nazarean Talmud for this week reads:

Rom 12:9-21 Love must be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; be attached to what is good, ¹⁰being devoted to one another in brotherly love, esteeming one another more highly in honor, ¹¹not lagging in diligence, being enthusiastic in spirit, serving the LORD [G-d], ¹²rejoicing in hope, enduring in affliction, being devoted to prayer, ¹³contributing to the needs of the saints (Heb. “Tsadiqim”), pursuing hospitality. ¹⁴Bless those who persecute, bless and do not curse them. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep. ¹⁶Think the same thing toward one another; [do not think arrogantly], but associate with the lowly. Do not be wise [in your own sight]. ¹⁷Pay back no one evil for evil. Take thought for (be considerate in) what is good in the sight of all people. ¹⁸If it is possible on your part, be at peace with all people. ¹⁹Do not take revenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God's wrath, for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay," says the LORD (Deut. 32:35). ²⁰But “If your enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink; for you will heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD will reward you” (Proverbs 25:21, 22). ²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

May all the needs of this ministry be speedily fulfilled, and may there never be any needy among us, and among all of our most noble and beloved Jewish brothers and sisters and Torah Scholars, amen ve amen!

Verbal Connections

By HH Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David & HH Giberet Dr. Elisheba bat Sarah

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 15:7 -16:17

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:137-176

Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15

Mordechai (Mark) 15:16-21

The verbal tallies between the Torah and the Ashlamata are:

Poor man / needy - אביון, Strong’s number 034.

Land - ארץ, Strong’s number 0776.

LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.

Giveth / given – נתן, Strong’s number 05414.

Open / set forth / wide - פתח, Strong’s number 06605.

The verbal tallies between the Torah and the Psalm are:

LORD - יהוה, Strong’s number 03068.

Hand - יד, Strong’s number 03027.

Devarim (Deuteronomy) 15:7-8 If there be among you a poor man <034> of one <0259> of thy brethren <0251> within any <0259> of thy gates <08179> in thy land <0776> which the LORD <03068> thy God <0430> giveth <05414> (8802) thee, thou shalt not harden <0553> (8762) thine heart <03824>, nor shut <07092> (8799) thine hand <03027> from thy poor <034> brother <0251>: 8 But thou shalt open <06605> (8799) thine hand <03027> wide <06605> (8800) unto him, and shalt surely <05670> (8687) lend <05670> (8686) him sufficient <01767> for his need <04270>, in that which he wanteth <02637> (8799).

Amos 8:4 Hear <08085> (8798) this, O ye that swallow up <07602> (8802) the needy <034>, even to make <07673> <00> the poor <06041> (8675) <06035> of the land <0776> to fail <07673> (8687),

Amos 8:5 Saying <0559> (8800), When will the new moon <02320> be gone <05674> (8799), that we may sell <07666> (8686) corn <07668>? and the sabbath <07676>, that we may set forth <06605> (8799) wheat <01250>, making the ephah <0374> small <06994> (8687), and the shekel <08255> great <01431> (8687), and falsifying <05791> (8763) the balances <03976> by deceit <04820>?

Amos 8:7 The LORD <03068> hath sworn <07650> (8738) by the excellency <01347> of Jacob <03290>, Surely I will never <05331> forget <07911> (8799) any of their works <04639>.

Amos 9:15 And I will plant <05193> (8804) them upon their land <0127>, and they shall no more be pulled up <05428> (8735) out of their land <0127> which I have given <05414> (8804) them, saith <0559> (8804) the LORD <03068> thy God <0430>.

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:137 TZADDI. Righteous <06662> art thou, O LORD <03068>, and upright <03477> are thy judgments <04941>.

Tehillim (Psalm) 119:173 Let thine hand <03027> help <05826> (8800) me; for I have chosen <0977> (8804) thy precepts <06490>.

Hebrew:

Hebrew	English	Torah Seder Deut. 15:7 -16:17	Psalms 119:137-176	Ashlamatah Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15
!Ayb.a,	poor	Deut 15:7 Deut 15:9 Deut 15:11		Amos 8:4 Amos 8:6
lk;a'	eat. Eaten	Deut 15:20 Deut 15:22 Deut 15:23 Deut 16:3 Deut 16:7 Deut 16:8		Amos 9:14
rm;a'	saying	Deut 15:9 Deut 15:11 Deut 15:16		Amos 8:5 Amos 9:15
#r,a,	land, earth, ground	Deut 15:7 Deut 15:11 Deut 15:15 Deut 15:23 Deut 16:3		Amos 8:4 Amos 8:8 Amos 8:9
aAB	come, go, at sunset	Deut 16:6 Ps 119:17	Ps 119:170	Amos 8:9 Amos 9:13
rx;B'	chooses	Deut 15:20 Deut 16:2 Deut 16:6 Deut 16:7 Deut 16:11 Deut 16:15 Deut 16:16	Ps 119:173
rb'D'	thought, words	Deut 15:9 Deut 15:10	Ps 119:139 Ps 119:147 Ps 119:160 Ps 119:161 Ps 119:169
hy"h'	come, has	Deut 15:16 Deut 15:21		Amos 8:9
gx;	feast	Deut 16:10 Deut 16:13 Deut 16:14 Deut 16:16		Amos 8:10
vd,xo	month	Deut 16:1		Amos 8:5
qxo	statues	Deut 16:12	Ps 119:145 Ps 119:155 Ps 119:171
dy"	hand	Deut 15:7 Deut 15:8 Deut 15:10 Deut 15:11 Deut 16:10 Deut 16:15 Deut 16:17	Ps 119:173
~Ay	day, today	Deut 15:15 Deut 16:3 Deut 16:4 Deut 16:8 Deut 16:13 Deut 16:15	Ps 119:164	Amos 8:9 Amos 8:10 Amos 9:13
lKo	all, whole	Deut 15:10 Deut 15:18 Deut 15:19 Deut 15:21 Deut 16:3 Deut 16:4 Deut 16:15 Deut 16:16	Ps 119:145 Ps 119:151 Ps 119:160 Ps 119:168 Ps 119:172	Amos 8:7 Amos 8:8 Amos 8:10 Amos 9:12 Amos 9:13
hf,[]m;	work, deed	Deut 15:10 Deut 16:15		Amos 8:7
~yIr'c.mi	Egypt	Deut 15:15 Deut 16:1 Deut 16:3 Deut 16:6 Deut 16:12		Amos 8:8
!t;n"	give, put	Deut 15:7 Deut 15:9 Deut 15:10 Deut 15:14 Deut 15:17 Deut 16:5 Deut 16:10 Deut 16:17		Amos 9:15
db,[,	slave, servant	Deut 15:15 Deut 15:17 Deut 16:11 Deut 16:12 Deut 16:14	Ps 119:140 Ps 119:176
~l'A[	forever	Deut 15:17	Ps 119:142 Ps 119:144 Ps 119:152 Ps 119:160
!yI[;	eye	Deut 15:9	Ps 119:148
ynI['	poor	Deut 15:11		Amos 8:4
~ynIP'	before, face	Deut 15:20 Deut 16:11 Deut 16:16	Ps 119:169 Ps 119:170
hw"c'	command	Deut 15:11 Deut 15:15	Ps 119:138
ar'q'	cry, call	Deut 15:9	Ps 119:145 Ps 119:146	Amos 9:12
br'q'	near	Deut 15:9	Ps 119:150 Ps 119:169
ha'r'	seen	Deut 16:4 Deut 16:16	Ps 119:153 Ps 119:158 Ps 119:159
vaor	sum, head		Ps 119:160	Amos 8:10
[b;v,	seventh	Deut 15:9 Deut 16:3 Deut 16:4 Deut 16:9 Deut 16:13 Deut 16:15	Ps 119:164
xk;v'	forget		Ps 119:139 Ps 119:141 Ps 119:153 Ps 119:176	Amos 8:7
~ve	name	Deut 16:2 Deut 16:6 Deut 16:11		Amos 9:12
[m;v'	hear		Ps 119:149	Amos 8:4
rm;v'	beware	Deut 15:9 Deut 16:1 Deut 16:12	Ps 119:146 Ps 119:158 Ps 119:167 Ps 119:168
vm,v,	sunset	Deut 16:6		Amos 8:9
ynI[\	affliction	Deut 16:3	Ps 119:153
hf'['	shall do	Deut 15:17 Deut 15:18 Deut 16:1 Deut 16:8 Deut 16:10 Deut 16:12 Deut 16:13	Ps 119:166	Amos 9:12 Amos 9:14
xt;P'	freely, open	Deut 15:8 Deut 15:11		Amos 8:5

Greek:

Greek	English	Torah Seder Deu 15:7-16:17	Psalms Psa 119:137-176	Ashlamatah Amos 8:4-10 + 9:13-15	NC Mk 15:16-21
ἐξάγω	led	Deu 16:1			Mar 15:20
ἔρχομαι	come, came			Amos 9:10 Amos 9:13	Mar 15:21
κεφαλή	head			Amos 8:10	Mar15:19
ὅλος	entire, all, whole		Psa 119:145		Mar 15:16
τίθημι	appoint, setting			Amos 8:10	Mar 15:19

Mordechai 119f

Mordechai 15:16-21

By: HH Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham

BESB	GREEK TEXT
Mar 15:16 And the soldiers [taking] him (Yeshua) away, led [him] out to the courtyard of [the palace, that is, the governor's Praetorium] and called together the whole cohort.	^16 Οἱ δὲ στρατιῶται ἀπήγαγον αὐτὸν ἔσω τῆς αὐλῆς ὅ ἐστιν πραιτώριον καὶ συγκαλοῦσιν ὅλην τὴν σπεῖραν
Mar 15:17 And they put a purple (robe) on him, and after weaving a crown of thorns, they placed it on his (head).	^17 καὶ ἐνδύουσιν αὐτὸν πορφύραν καὶ περιτιθέασιν αὐτῷ πλέξαντες ἀκάνθινον στέφανον·
Mar 15:18 And they began saluting him (saying), "Hail, king of the Jews!"	^18 καὶ ἤρξαντο ἀσπάζεσθαι αὐτόν Χαῖρε βασιλεῦ τῶν Ἰουδαίων·
Mar 15:19 And they repeatedly struck him on the head with a reed, and (they) were spitting on him, and they knelt (down) and did homage to him (mockingly).	^19 καὶ ἔτυπτον αὐτοῦ τὴν κεφαλὴν καλάμῳ καὶ ἐνέπτυον αὐτῷ καὶ τιθέντες τὰ γόνατα προσεκύνουν αὐτῷ
Mar 15:20 And after they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple robe and put his own clothes on him, and they led him out to crucify him.	^20 καὶ ὅτε ἐνέπαιξαν αὐτῷ ἐξέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὴν πορφύραν καὶ ἐνέδυσαν αὐτὸν τὰ ἱμάτια τὰ ἴδια. καὶ ἐξάγουσιν αὐτὸν ἵνα σταυρώσωσιν αὐτόν
Mar 15:21 And they instructed a passerby, one Shimon a Galut Jew from Cyrene, Lybia who was coming from that country (the father of Aleksandros and Rufos), to carry his cross.	^21 Καὶ ἀγγαρεύουσιν παράγοντά τινα Σίμωνα Κυρηναῖον ἐρχόμενον ἀπ ἀγροῦ τὸν πατέρα Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Ῥούφου ἵνα ἄρῃ τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ

Delitzsch Hebrew Translation

¹⁶ וַיּוֹלִיכוּהוּ אַנְשֵׁי הַצָּבָא אֶל־תּוֹךְ הֶחָצֵר הוּא בֵּית הַמִּשְׁפָּט וַיַּזְעִיקוּ אֶת־כָּל־הַגְּדוּד׃

¹⁷ וַיַּלְבִּישׁוּהוּ אַרְגָּמָן וַיְשָׂרֲגוּ עֲטֶרֶת קֹצִים וַיְעַטְּרוּהוּ׃

¹⁸ וַיָּחֵלּוּ לְבָרֲכוֹ לֵאמֹר שָׁלוֹם לְךָ מֶלֶךְ הַיְּהוּדִים׃

¹⁹ וַיַּכּוּ עַל־רֹאשׁוֹ בְּקָנֶה וַיָּרֹקּוּ בוֹ וַיִּכְרְעוּ עַל־בִּרְכֵיהֶם וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ לוֹ׃

²⁰ וְאַחֲרֵי הִתְלוֹצֲצָם בּוֹ הִפְשִׁיטוּ אוֹתוֹ אֶת־הָאַרְגָּמָן וַיַּלְבִּישׁוּהוּ אֶת־בְּגָדָיו וַיּוֹצִיאוּהוּ לִצְלֹב אֹתוֹ׃

²¹וְאִישׁ אֶחָד עָבַר וְהוּא בָא מִן־הַשָׂדֶה וּשְׁמוֹ שִׁמְעוֹן הַקּוּרִינִי אֲבִי אֲלֶכְסַנְדְּרוֹס וְרוּפוֹס וַיֶּאֶנְסוּ אֹתוֹ לָשֵׂאת אֶת־צְלוּבוֹ׃

Introduction

Behold The King Of The Jews

Son Of David, Son Of Yoseph

While the messianic figure of the Rabbis has covered a plethora of ideals and personas, the two outstanding figures representing messiah are David and Yoseph. While there are scholars, who postpone the two concepts until after the Bar Kokhba revolt, the “Gabriel Revelation”[14] reveals the truth that the idea predates the first century C.E by as much as 200 years. As Messiah ben Yoseph, Messiah was to suffer rather than reign, as pictured in the Davidic Son. However, the Davidic son established the primary prototype for the messianic persona.

1Ki 1:39-40 Then Zadok the priest took a horn of oil from the tabernacle and anointed Solomon. And they blew the horn, and all the people said, "Long live King Solomon!" ⁴⁰And all the people went up after him; and the people played the flutes and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth seemed to split with their sound.

1Ki 2:1-4 Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying: ²"I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. ³"And keep the charge of the LORD your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn; ⁴"that the LORD may fulfil His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, `If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,' He said, `you will not lack a man on the throne of Israel.'\

G-d’s promise to King David is most profound, “If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me (G-d) in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,” He said, “you will not lack a man on the throne of Israel.” The Messiah must be faithful to the Torah, its Chuqot (statutes), Mitzvoth (commandments), Eduyot (testimonies), Mishpatim (judgments) and Derek HaShem (ethics).

All the accounts we have of Yeshua’s life demonstrate him as a man of great piety.

We are so accustomed…to make Jesus the object of religion that we become apt to forget that in our earliest records he is portrayed not as the object of religion, but as a religious man. Thomas Walter Manson, the Teachings of Jesus (1935),101[15]

As Geza Vermes points out, Yeshua is pictured from the accounts of his life and contents of his “Mesorah” as wrapped within the confines of a pious Pharisaic Jew of the late second Temple period. Judaism of the late second Temple period saw the Torah as the absolute maxim for life. Furthermore, it was the application of Torah and the Oral Torah, which governed the religious life of the pious Jew. Temple worship played a vital part in the role of the general populace of this era. However, it appears not to have been the primary concern for those Jews who lived in the distant locations of Eretz Yisrael. Geza Vermes seems to believe that the mandate found in our present Torah Seder[16] was more idealistic than practical.[17] Therefore, we would surmise that the Jewish people who actually “appeared before the LORD” three times a year were the more pious Jewish people. The picture portrayed of Yeshua in the Nazarean Codicil matches the image of Yoseph. When the Sages of blessed memory, want to portray a man of piety, they use Yoseph as their prototype. Consequently, Yeshua the son of Yoseph is a fitting messianic title.

While the Biblical prophecies, which tell us that Messiah would intervene in the affairs of humanity, are somewhat cryptic, the Oral Torah contains a plethora of materials, which explain his role in redemption. Rabbi Akiva, with the failure of Bar Kokhba looked to the future for redemption. His parallel taken from the words of Rabbi Tarfon, taught that the first redemption from Egypt would lay the foundation and precedent for the final redemption in the distant future.[18] We must assert that the Jewish view of redemption does not match the typical western view of “salvation.” Judaism saw the redemption as the end of exile. The analogy presented above clearly demonstrates that desire for Jewish autonomy. However, redemption is not merely autonomy. The Rabbis looked to the end of the age when the Jewish people would be the kings and priests of the earth. Therefore, the final phase of redemption would include the subjugation of the Gentiles by the Messianic redeemer. The violent abuse of Rome during the first century was intolerable. Hence, the Jewish people of that era longed for the appearing of this messianic figure.

Refusal Of Rome[19] To Acknowledge Yeshua As King Messiah

Not only did Pilate refuse to acknowledge Yeshua as the Messiah, his cohort of nearly 600 men incessantly mocked Yeshua by placing a robe of purple and crown made of thorns on him. Then to show their disdain for the Messianic concept they spat and struck him repeatedly with a reed as it is written: “I gave my back to the smitters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting” (Isaiah 50:6). As we will see the refusal of Rome to accept and acknowledge Yeshua as the Messiah is not relegated to a few Roman soldiers from Pilate’s militia.

The Espousal Of Rome

ROME HAS REFUSED TO ACCEPT YESHUA AS THE MESSIAH, ESTABLISHING A PSEUDO-MESSIAH. CONSEQUENTLY, REPLACEMENT THEOLOGY HAS RELEGATED KING MESSIAH TO A MOCKERY OF HIS TRUE JEWISH CHARACTER AND MISSION

The Tz’dukim of the late second Temple period established the mindset for the coming Roman “priesthood.” The defunct priesthood of the late second Temple period espoused Rome. This defunct priesthood surrendered the Jewish Messiah to the Roman hoard in order to become a new priesthood. I have heard my mentor Hakham Dr. Yoseph ben Haggai suggest that the Tz’dukim who disappeared with the destruction of the second Temple reappear as the priesthood of “Christianity.” The “out of work” priests looked for new occupational territory and employment, which they found in Rome. Regardless, we see that the espousal of Rome as inevitable when one abandons true normative Judaism. I must concur with my mentor’s thesis and further that we see the Tz’dukim’s espousal of the Roman government[20] as an analogy of what was to come. The Roman cohort of Pilate derided Yeshua through vicious behavior and conduct against a pious Jew as if he were a slave or a criminal. This behavior is nothing new for Rome. Nor should we be surprised at their conduct. Historically Rome has been the instigator for many of the atrocities levelled against the Jewish people. However, we must note that Rome’s treatment of Yeshua has yet to change. Consequently, we must restate that Rome has yet to accept Yeshua as the Jewish King Messiah. By this statement, I mean that Rome and all of her siblings has NEVER accepted Yeshua as the Jewish King Messiah, albeit they have deified “Jesus” as their Christ. Accordingly, we have a pseudo-priesthood with a pseudo-messiah. Messiah divorced from normative Judaism is not a Jewish messiah but a Roman Christ.

One of the most heinous crimes perpetrated against Yeshua and the Jewish people is the crime of “replacement theology.” However, I must assert that this idea was not the brainchild of a later Christian strategist. The Tz’dukim and Samaritans developed this notion long before Christianity. Nonetheless, the idea of our present pericope, as found in the Nazarean Codicil is of Roman origin. Herod had the legitimate priests of Levitical lineage assassinated only to “replace” them with a pseudo-priesthood that would follow Roman rules, and serve the interests of Roman authorities. Consequently, Judaism’s battle with Rome and replacement theology has existed for millennia. Furthermore, its Roman origins remain intact to this very day.

Ya’aqob And Esau

The world has survived these thousands of years in the midst of a struggle, brother against brother. Ya’aqob (Jacob) and Esau were not the first brothers with these troubles. The very first brothers of Biblical mention demonstrate the difficulties of rivalries between brothers. However, it is Ya’aqob and Esau, which the Sages use to depict the present struggles in our Diaspora.

Mal 1:2-3 "I have loved you," says the LORD. "Yet you say, `In what way have You loved us?' Was not Esau Jacob's brother?" Says the LORD. "Yet Jacob I have loved; ³But Esau I have hated, And laid waste his mountains and his heritage For the jackals of the wilderness.

Hakham Shaul cites this prophetic passage in his letter to the Roman talmidim of Yeshua.[21] The Prophet speaks of the demise of Rome (Edom – Esau – Christianity).[22] The “mountain laid waste” can only be understood as an analogy for the “government” of Rome. I will not delve into the imagery except to say that we must expect the Roman system and rule to crumble in the final redemption just as the Egyptian régime toppled under the leadership of Moshe Rabbenu. My mention of the Roman government must be understood as the system, which has incessantly tried to strip Yeshua of his Jewish persona and Rabbinical profession. Like the Romans of Pilate’s cohort, they dress Yeshua in Roman garb mockingly honoring him as “King of the Jews.” However, before they placed him on the tree they redressed him in his Jewish apparel to show disdain and contempt for a Jewish Rabbi and King Messiah. The death of a Jewish Prophet and Rabbi allowed them to resurrect a Roman god in his place. Their mental perspective of Christ has yet to change. And, they have yet to accept a Jewish King Messiah.

I have noted that Hakham Shaul wrote a letter to the community of believers in Rome. In short, Hakham Shaul sums up his requirements in the initial paragraph of his letter.

Rom 1:5 Through him (Yeshua) we have received chesed and a commission to bring into obedience[23] among all gentiles, [living in] faithfulness [to the Torah] under his authority…[24]

Please note that the Gentiles are called to obedience and faithfulness to the Torah under the authority and Mesorah of Yeshua the JEWISH King Messiah. The letter of Hakham Shaul lays down the prototypical acceptance for the Messianic community. Those who follow Yeshua MUST observe the Torah![25]

I Have Accepted Yeshua As The Messiah

Common nomenclature among Christians, as noted, is the acceptance of Yeshua as Messiah. The difficulty being, CHRISTIANITY (ROME) HAS YET TO ACCEPT A JEWISH MESSIAH! The “JESUS I believed in in my youth was a blond-haired hippie type rebel, who was in rebellion against the “establishment,” which at the time I thought was the Jewish religion. Much to my surprise Yeshua turned out to be a pro – Torah Rabbi of the first century promoting rabbinic halakhah. Only after embracing the Jewish interpretation of Messiah could I say that I had ACCEPTED YESHUA AS THE MESSIAH! THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A GENTILE MESSIAH!

Acts 10:1-2 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, ²a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people (of Yisrael), and prayed to God appropriately.

Act 10:47-48 "Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be immersed who received the Divine Presence just as we have?" ⁴⁸And he commanded them to be immersed…

Cornelius demonstrates the profile for a genuine Gentile follower of Yeshua. While Cornelius appears here in our initially cited text as a “pious” man (Gentile) who “fears G-d” he converts to Judaism in verse 47. It is a fallacy to believe or purport that Cornelius became a “Christian.” In other words, the true path of ANY follower of Yeshua is sooner or later to convert to Judaism. However, I have juxtaposed Cornelius against the Roman cohort of our present pericope to demonstrate the appropriate response to Yeshua by a Gentile. The passage cited above from Hakham Shaul’s letter to the Romans clearly instructs Gentiles to “[live in] faithfulness [to the Torah] under his (Messiah’s) authority.”

Has Rome Fallen?

If the “First Redemption” can be pictured in the initial Pesach and Yetsi'at Mitzrayim (exodus from Egypt) we must realize that there will be another redemption, a final redemption, which overturns all Roman rule in the earth. The demise of the Roman system will find the masses themselves embracing a true Jewish Messiah rather than the false Christ they have worshiped for millennia.

Peroration

Subjugation by Rome not only brought Yisrael to its departure, sending them into Diaspora, it infiltrated and plagiarized its religious aspects instituting a pseudo-Judaism, which mimicked nearly every aspect of this ancient religion. This plagiarism has wearied the soul of the Jewish people. G-d through His agent, Messiah will exact the appropriate vengeance upon Rome, Edom and those who have espoused their doctrines.

Targum Pseudo Yonatan Yesha’yahu 62:1 He is about to bring a stroke upon Edom, a strong avenger upon Bozrah, to take the just retribution of His people, just as He swore to them by His Memra. He said, Behold I am revealed – just as I spoke – in virtue, there is great force before Me to save.

We have cited this passage in the recent past. However, it suffices to cite it again for the present materials.

The prophet prophesies concerning what the Holy One, blessed be He, said that He is destined to wreak vengeance upon Edom, and He, personally, will slay their heavenly prince, like the matter that is said (supra 34:5), “For My sword has become sated in the heaven.” And afterward, (ibid.) “it shall descend upon Edom,” and it is recognizable by the wrath of His face that He has slain [them with] a great massacre, and the prophet is speaking in the expression of the wars of human beings, dressed in clothes, and when they slay a slaying, the blood spatters on their garments, for so is the custom of Scripture; it speaks of the Shekhinah anthropomorphically, to convey to the ear what it can hear. Comp. (Ezek. 43:2) “His voice is like the voice of many waters.” The prophet compares His mighty voice to the voice of many waters to convey to the ear according to what it is possible to hear, for one cannot understand and hearken to the magnitude of the mighty of our God to let us hear it as it is.

"The heavenly prince of Edom is destined to commit two errors. He thinks that Bozrah is identical with Bezer in the desert, which was a refuge city. He will also err insofar as it affords refuge only for inadvertent murder, but he killed Israel intentionally.”[26]

Rashi’s comments make clear that there will be a war waged against Edom (Rome – Christianity who has failed to embrace Yeshua as a Jewish King Messiah). Messiah our Go’el, “Kinsman redeemer” will exact punishment on those who have been involved in intentional crimes against the Jewish people.

The Prophet Yermiyahu records the events of those days.

Jer 16:19-21 O LORD, my strength and my fortress, My refuge in the day of affliction, The Gentiles will come to You From the ends of the earth and say, "Surely our fathers have inherited lies, Worthlessness and unprofitable things." ²⁰Will a man make gods for himself, Which are not gods? ²¹"Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know My hand and My might; And they will know that My name is the LORD.”

Note that the Prophet reiterates the justice, which G-d will pour out on those who refuse to accept the true path to G-d in the words “Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know My hand and My might.”

Messiah’s death in the present pericope of Mordechai is not so strange when we stop to count the millions of Jews destroyed by senseless malice and hatred at the hands of the Gentiles. Why did the Romans crucify Yeshua? Rome crucified a Jewish Rabbi in order to replace him with a gentile god. No self-respecting Jew could accept such a messiah. The demise of a Roman god is at hand. And, the footsteps of a Jewish King Messiah are echoing in the near distance.

Connections To Our Sabbath Readings

TORAH SEDER

The Death and crucifixion of Yeshua takes place on Pesach. Connecting our pericope of Mark to the Torah Seder D’barim (Deuteronomy) 16:1ff

TEHILLIM (Psalms)

Psalm 119:155. Salvation is far from the wicked, for they did not seek Your statutes matches the activities of the Roman cohort in their abuse of the Master.

ASHLAMATAH (Prophet’s Lesson)

The dark day described by the Prophet matches that day of Yeshua’s crucifixion and death.

Mitzvoth (Commandments) From The Torah Seder

Torah Address	M#	Mitzvah (Commandment)	Oral Torah
D’barim 15:7	478	Sustaining the Poor	m. B.B
D’barim 15:8	479	Mitzvah of charity	Ibid
D’barim 15:9	480	Not to avoid lending money to the poor
D’barim 15:13	481	Not to send a Hebrew man servant away empty handed	Kiddushin
D’barim 15:14	482	The precept of giving a bonus to a Hebrew manservant	Ibid
D’barim 15:19	483	Prohibition to work with consecrated animals	B’choroth
D’barim 15:19	484	Prohibition against shearing consecrated animals	Ibid
D’barim 16:3	485	Not to eat Hametz after noon on the Day before Pesach	Pesachim
D’barim 16:4	486	Not to leave over till the third day any flesh of the Festival offering at Pesach
D’barim 16:5	487	Not to offer up the Passover offering of an individual’s provisional altar
D’barim 16:14	488	Precept of being happy on the Pilgrimage Festivals
D’barim 16:16	489	Precept of appearing before the L-rd at the Sanctuary on the Pilgrimage festivals
D’barim 16:16	490	Not to appear before the L-rd Empty handed at His Sanctuary on the Pilgrimage festivals	m. Moedim m. Hagigah

Some Questions to Ponder:

1. From all the readings for this week, which particular verse or passage caught your attention and fired your heart and imagination?

2. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:7?

3. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:8?

4. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:9?

5. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:10?

6. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:11?

7. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:12?

8. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:14?

9. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:19?

10. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 15:21?

11. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 16:9?

12. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 16:15?

13. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 16:16?

14. What questions were asked of Rashi regarding Deut. 16:17?

15. What in the Torah Seder this week fired the imagination of the Psalmist as he penned Psalm 119: 137-176?

16. What in the Torah Seder this week fired the imagination of the prophet in the Ashlamatah of Amos 8:4ff?

17. How does Tehillim 119:162. Relate to circumcision and Chanukah?

18. What in the Torah Seder, Psalm and Prophetic Lesson for this week fired the imagination of Hakham Tsefet as his scribe penned Mark 15:16-21?

19. In your opinion what key message/s did Hakham Tsefet try to convey in Mark 15:16-21?

20. In your opinion, and taking into consideration all of the above readings for this Sabbath, what is the prophetic message (the idea that encapsulates all the Scripture passages read) for this week?

Blessing After Torah Study

Barúch Atáh Adonai, Elohénu Meléch HaOlám,

Ashér Natán Lánu Torát Emét, V'Chayéi Olám Natá B'Tochénu.

Barúch Atáh Adonái, Notén HaToráh. Amen!

Blessed is Ha-Shem our God, King of the universe,

Who has given us a teaching of truth, implanting within us eternal life.

Blessed is Ha-Shem, Giver of the Torah. Amen!

“Now unto Him who is able to preserve you faultless, and spotless, and to establish you without a blemish,

before His majesty, with joy, [namely,] the only one God, our Deliverer, by means of Yeshua the Messiah our Master, be praise, and dominion, and honor, and majesty, both now and in all ages. Amen!”

Next Sabbath:

Shabbat “Fourth Day of Chanukah” & Mevar’chim HaChodesh Tebet

Sabbath of Chanukah & Proclamation of the New Moon for the Month of Tebet

(Friday Evening December 23 – Saturday Evening December 24, 2011)

Shabbat	Torah Reading:	Weekday Torah Reading:
בְּיוֹם כַּלּוֹת מֹשֶׁה
“B’Yom Khalot Mosheh”	Reader 1 – B’Midbar 7:1-11	Reader 1 – Vayiqra 24:1-4
“And on the day Mosheh finished”	Reader 2 – B’Midbar 7:12-23	Reader 2 – Vayiqra 24:5-9
“En el día que Moisés hubo acabado”	Reader 3 – B’Midbar 7:24-29	Reader 3 – Vayiqra 24:1-9
B’Midbar (Num.) 7:1-59 & 28:9-15	Reader 4 – B’Midbar 7:30-35
Ashlamatah: Zechariah 2:14 – 4:7	Reader 5 – B’Midbar 7:36-41
Special: I Samuel 20:18,42	Reader 6 – B’Midbar 7:42-47	Reader 1 – Vayiqra 24:1-4
Psalm 30:1-13	Reader 7 – B’Midbar 7:48-59	Reader 2 – Vayiqra 24:5-9
Yehudit (Judith) 7:17 – 8:27 1 Maccab. 6:28 – 8:32	Maftir – B’Midbar 28:9-15	Reader 3 – Vayiqra 24:1-9
N.C.: 2 John 1-13 + 3 John 1-14	Zechariah 2:14 - 4:7 I Samuel 20:18 &42

For further study see:

http://www.betemunah.org/lapin.html ;

http://www.betemunah.org/connection.html ;

http://www.betemunah.org/chanukah.html ; &

http://www.betemunah.org/lights.html

Shalom Shabbat !

Hakham Dr. Yosef ben Haggai

HH Rosh Paqid Adon Hillel ben David

HH Paqid Dr. Adon Eliyahu ben Abraham

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[1] David Kimhi (1160–1235), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK, was a medieval Rabbi, biblical commentator, philosopher, and grammarian. Born in Narbonne, Provence, he was the son of Rabbi Joseph Kimhi and the brother of Rabbi Moses Kimhi, both biblical commentators and grammarians.

[2] The ArtScroll Tanach Series, Tehillim, A new translation with a commentary anthologized from Talmudic, Midrashic, and rabbinic sources. Commentary by Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Feuer, Translation by Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Feuer in collaboration with Rabbi Nosson Scherman, on verse 119:73.

[3] Mikraoth Gedoloth Psalms, volume three, translation of text, Rashi and other commentaries by Rabbi A.J. Rosenberg, Judaica Press, 119:174.

[4] Pri Tzodok, Rabbi Zadok HaCohen who lived about 150 years ago.

[5] Maharal 

[6] Shabbat 130a

[7] Lehrman, S. M. (1961), in Rev. Dr. A Cohen (Ed.), Soncino Books of the Bible: The Twelve Prophets, London: The Soncino Press, pp. 116-124.

[8] Cf. Wikipedia – “Ebionites, or Ebionaioi, (Greek: Ἐβιωναῖοι) (derived from Hebrew אביונים ebyonim, ebionim, meaning "the poor" or "poor ones"), is a Christian patristic term referring to a Jewish Nazarean sect or sects that existed during the first centuries of the Christian Era. They regarded Yeshua as the Messiah and insisted on the necessity of following Jewish religious Law and rites.” - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebionites

[9] This horrendous mass murder of Nazarean Jews (men, women and children) is little spoken of by historians, but in my humble opinion it is one of the many crimes against the Jewish people perpetrated by Christianity together with inquisitions, progroms, the holocaust, etc. etc. No, historian, to date, has dealt yet comprehensively with this dark episode.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Schaff, P. & Wace, H. (1982), Nicene And Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church, Second Series: Eusebius’ Church History, Grand Rapids, Michigan: WM B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., pp.242-244. See also Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quartodecimanism (but careful, this last citation contains some errors as for example that the Bishop of Rome Victor did not excommunicate those that celebrated Pesach, and that the Council of Nicea did not deal finally with this so called heresy, and whereby by edict of Constantine those Nazareans/Ebionites that observed Pesach were to be put to death – the meaning of excommunication in those days).

[12] Cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:11.

[13] The Mishnah also describes G'milut Chasadim as one of the few mitzvoth (commandments) for which there is no minimum amount sufficient to satisfy your obligation. (Pe'ah 1:1; reiterated in Talmud Chagigah 7a). That verse also describes G'milut Chasadim as one of the few things that one derives benefit from in this world and yet still be rewarded for in the world to come. The Talmud says that G'milut Chasadim is greater than Tzedakah (charity), because unlike Tzedakah, G'milut Chasadim can be done for both poor and rich, both the living and the dead, and can be done with money or with acts. (Talmud Sukkah 49b).

[14] BAR 34:05, Sep/Oct 2008 “Messiah the Son of Joseph”

[15] Vermes, G. (1993). The Religion of Jesus the Jew. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. p. 184

[16] D’barim 16:16

[17] Vermes, G. (1993). The Religion of Jesus the Jew. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. p. 184

[18] Cf. m. Pesachim 10:6

[19] Here I use “Rome” as the people, and the religion developed from Rome. I further the understanding that “Rome” is Edom. It must also be stated that Rome is Catholicism and all of it siblings, i.e. Protestant Christianity, which fails to accept a JEWISH messiah and the Torahs, written and Oral.

[20] Cf. John 19:15 – where it is said of the Sadducee Priests – “The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar.”

[21] Cf. Rom 9:13

[22] For an in-depth presentation of the relationship of Easu with Edom and Rome, see… Harry Sysling, Teḥiyyat ha-metim: the resurrection of the dead in the Palestinian Targums of the Pentateuch and parallel traditions in classical rabbinic literature. Mohr Siebeck, 1996

[23] Note: It is G-d’s grace, if I may use the term, to bring Gentiles into faithful obedience of the Torah and Oral Torah through the agent of Yeshua our Messiah.

[24] My rendition

[25] My assertion is that they must accept the Torah Written, and Oral along with the Mesorah of Messiah. The Mesorah of Messiah will take us to deeper levels of commitment in some areas which may not be comfortable for some of his followers.

[26] [26] Cf. Rashi Yesha’yahu 62:1