Watch: Parasha Vayakhel/Pekudei Here!
Exodus 35-40 (all); 2 Kings 22-23; John 14 & 1 John 2, 5
In last week’s Parasha study, Ki Tisa 2022 we asked the question: Are we with Yahweh?
Well, we covered how the House of Israel (or Ephraim, that is us) has a long history of ignoring Yahweh’s voice. And so, by default we end up obeying Satan’s voice instead.
Well, our forefathers made the same mistakes over and over, time and again, ever since the Garden of Eden (basically). We think we are listening to Yahweh when we are not. We think we are hearing and obeying His voice when we are not. And we think we are doing just a stellar job of being His people and building His Son, Yeshua’s kingdom, when we are not.
So, in Parasha Ki Tisa 2022 we gave specific examples of how our ancestors (our forefathers) did not do Yahweh’s commandments and thereby they rejected the Word of Yahweh; thereby effectively rejecting Yahweh. And so, (effectively) if you are not going to obey the light you are going to be enveloped in darkness. If you are not going to serve Yahweh the way He says, (basically) you are serving Satan instead.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 4:2
2 You shall not add to the Word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of Yahweh your Elohim which I command you.
And the most famous example was in the event of the golden calf, but it was not the only one. And while most Ephraimites probably do not intend to serve Satan, whenever we are failing to obey Yahweh, we are effectively building Satan’s kingdom. So that is what happens when we ignore or disobey Yahweh’s voice; we disobey or ignore Yahweh’s commandments.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 28:1
1 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of Yahweh your Elohim, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that Yahweh your Elohim will set you high above all nations of the earth.
By default, we are not building His kingdom. So, whose kingdom are we building?
And it is so easy for us today to sit back and read Scripture and focus on our forefathers’ sins. It is so easy for us to point the finger and say, “Haha! Look how disobedient our forefathers were!”
What is difficult is to have the spiritual maturity to say, “Wait! Woah! Woah! Wait a minute. All Scripture that is inspired (comes from Yahweh) is given to us for instruction and for reproof, etc.”
So, what we should be asking ourselves is: “What are we supposed to be learning from all this? How can we learn from the mistakes of History so that we do not need to repeat them like our forefathers did“?
We might ask ourselves: How are we supposed to be shepherding and guiding our families today? We might say, “What does this mean to me and my family in the decades ahead, as we move further and further into the Great Tribulation?”
So, rather than focus on our forefathers’ sins in this Parasha, we would like to ask the question: What is the root cause of Ephraim’s continuing disobedience to Yahweh? Why do we continue to be so disobedient and how can we prevent ourselves and our families from making the same awful kinds of mistakes today which cost our people their lives?
Hoshea (Hosea) 11:1-2
1 “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called My son.
2 As they called them, so they went from them; they sacrificed to the Baals, and burned incense to carved images.
In this Parasha Vayakhel/Pekudei 2022 we will examine the root cause of our disobedience to Yahweh and we will determine what it means to truly love Yahweh and His Son Yeshua. And if we do these things, it will avoid His coming wrath, because of what our ancestors have done.
Yeshua speaks about the most important commandment; He is speaking about Devarim (or Deuteronomy) chapter 6 starting in verse 4; it is all understood in a block. But what we see is that we are to shema; to listen for Yahweh’s voice, in order to obey it.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:4
4 “Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our Elohim, Yahweh is One!
We are to listen with an intent to obey out of love. And we are also to know that Yahweh our Elohim is one (meaning united) and we are to love Yahweh Elohim with all our hearts, with all our soul, all our being, and with all our strength. And that is the very first commandment.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:5
5 You shall love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
And if we do not truly love Him with all we have and if we do not behave like it, then really nothing else in the Torah really matters. And this is the mistake we see our Orthodox brethren committing all the time. They tithe the mint, and the rue, and the anis, and the cumin, and they do all these things, but it is not truly based on a love of Elohim, in obedience to His work, not man’s variations of His Word.
By the end of this Parasha we hope that we can all answer the question: What does it truly mean to love Yahweh with everything we have? Because that is the very first commandment; that is what we need to do before anything else. Whatever else we do or do not do; literally everything rides on whether we are truly serving Yahweh with everything we have in our hearts, and our soul, and our strength.
It seems like some people do not understand what Yahweh means when He says, “All”! It is like, what part of all do we not understand? But praise Yahweh, in 2022 we are going to see that our forefathers finally respond to Yahweh their Elohim in love that they should have been responding since day one of the Exodus and before.
We are also going to see how King Yoshiyahu (or Josiah) manifested a sincere love for Yahweh in Second Kings (or Melachim Bet) chapters 22 and 23. And then our Brit Chadasha (or Renewed Covenant) portion looks at Yochanan (or John) chapter 14. As well as Yochanan Aleph (or First John) chapters 2 and 5.
But what is love and how can we love Yahweh our Elohim with all our hearts, with all our souls, and with all our strength? What does that look like and what does that not look like?
Well, most of us who grew up in the ex-Christian West, we tend to grow up with some mixed-up ideas about what love is and is not, what love looks like. Western culture, and Western television and media, treats love like a ditch that you can fall into and out of or it is bucket that someone pours on you from above, but it is not Scripture’s idea of love. Scripture’s idea of love is that, when you love someone, you take care of them. If you love your brother, you become your brother’s keepers (so to speak).
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:2
2 By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and keep His commandments.
And it is not just all about us and what we want. No, no, no. That is one of the big mistakes they make in the ex-Christian West; it is all about them. You see a lot of Messianics, it is all about them. Really, they are still on the throne; Yeshua is washing their feet. What we are called to do, why He came for us, what He paid for us with, a price; He is giving us a mission, an opportunity to show our love for Him by doing as He instructs; His very simple protocol.
Mattityahu (Matthew) 28:19
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, immersing [baptizing] them in My name*.
[*For more information on why we immerse in Yeshua’s name only, please see “Immersion in Yeshua’s Name Only” in Nazarene Scripture Studies Volume Three.]
We must do it with discipline. And if we do it with discipline out of love for Him, it will establish Yeshua’s literal, spiritual, global government.
Mattityahu (Matthew) 6:9-10
9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
And it will establish a land and a system of governance that works because it is run by faithful believers who love Elohim, and they fear His Word and they want to serve.
Yochanan (John) 15:10
10 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.
And that is the only way a spiritual, global government can work is because that is the only thing Elohim will bless. Because He wants us to serve, He wants us to have servant’s hearts. He chose King David for his servant’s heart. So, why should He bless anything else? We need to develop servant’s hearts.
Tehillim (Psalms) 119:11
11 Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.
But the beauty of this whole thing is, if we will truly love Him and if we will truly put Him and His Son’s kingdom first, if we will truly seek first the kingdom of Elohim and His righteousness, then everything else will flow from that.
Mattityahu (Matthew) 6:33
33 But seek first the kingdom of Elohim and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
And we receive such blessings like the blessings King David received for obedience. That can be ours, we just must choose to obey.
Tehillim (Psalms) 119:56
56 This has become mine, because I kept Your precepts.
If we will seek first the kingdom of Elohim and His righteousness (meaning that we learn to walk in all His ways, we learn to walk just as Yeshua walked) then all the blessings will be put on us.
He made us, He paid for us all over again, He invites us to learn the discipline of walking as His bride, all we must do is hear His voice and do what He says. And follow His written Word, because again, that is just doing what He says. He just wants us to pay attention to Him, listen to Him and take care to do what He says. It could not be simpler. It is like painting by numbers.
But the problem is, in the West, the concept of taking personal responsibility for ourselves and our actions is treated like it is old-fashioned. Taking responsibility for our words and our promises is kind of an old-fashioned concept, but it is nonetheless one-hundred percent Scriptural.
Mattityahu (Matthew) 5:37
37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.
Millions of people claim to fall in love every day, all over the world. Teenagers have an experience where they feel all the fluttery emotions and hormones inside about another person which is basically just the hormones talking. It is a common misperception that when another person makes us feel good, then that is love, because we feel good. So, that is supposedly love, that is what the West, that is what the media teaches is love.
But that obviously does not work. That is not Yahweh’s model. And if we get the definition of love wrong, then how can we know how to love Yahweh? How can we know how to treat Him the way He wants us to treat Him? The way He created us to treat Him, to serve Him.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:3
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
So, one time I was counselling a Messianic sister and her Messianic teenage daughter (this was years ago) and the mother’s complaint was that her daughter did not obey her, she did not keep her commandments (so to speak), she did not do what she said. So, we had a big discussion and (basically) the problem is, just like every other problem, the daughter thought that she loved her mother, but she did not because she was confused by the feeling of her mother’s love for her. Her mother’s love felt very good, and she confused that with having love for her mother.
So, we are talking with her and saying, “Well, the problem, sister, is that you do not love your mom because you do not obey your mom.” And she says, “Oh, no, no, no, no, no. I know I love my mom.” It is like, I cannot tell her what her emotions she thinks she is having, right? Okay, well, fair enough, but her mom comes back and says, “No sweetheart, you feel my love for you.”
She says, “If you loved me, you would obey me and you would trust that Yahweh has put me over you to show you and instruct you and to guide you and raise you in His ways. But you do not think anything about (I am paraphrasing, but) you do not think anything about that because you feel my love for you and because you feel my love for you, you think you love me.”
Does any of this sound familiar? This is what Yeshua tells us to do, if we love Him, keep His commandments. And is that not Ephraim’s problem exactly?
Yochanan (John) 14:15
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
When children are born, their parents have the duty to take care of them. As parents you must feed them, you must clothe them, must clean them, clean up after them, you must bathe them, must keep them not too hot and not too cold, but just right. And you have to clothe them, and house them, and take care of them, and provide for them, try to give them the right upbringing, try to raise them in all of Elohim’s ways and (hopefully) try to impart the wisdom and the other things that are needed to survive and thrive in the modern world – hopefully in the spiritual as well as in the natural – but it does not always happen that way, does it? A lot of things can go wrong. Some of us have a very hard walk, so a very hard road to hoe (as they say).
But you give children (at least in a normal scenario), you give children what they need and as they get older, they can begin helping out around the house.
First they can clothe themselves, and then they can go to the bathroom themselves, they can pick up their toys, and then they can tidy up their rooms; they can start helping out around the house. This is part of the weaning process, teaching them to behave like young adults and not just letting them grow up wild like in the modern culture. They can help; this is part of a normal family cycle. They need to help, they need to develop a heart to help. Because they love the family, therefore, they obey the head of the house’s commandments by taking out the trash or cleaning up (or whatever). If you are on a farm, I am sure you have farm chores. And that is all very good, that is all to the good.
Children do need some time (perhaps) to play, but they are in training to become young adults. And how can they know how to survive in the real world if they do not have to experience real world responsibilities? And if they do not have to contribute to the benefit of the family in the real world, how can they understand the give and take relationship?
You end up with the kind of things that Yahweh says about Esau where people are so very proud and they are so independent and they are their own sovereigns (these kinds of things).
B’reisheet (Genesis) 25:27
27 So the boys grew. And Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field; but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents.
So, how will our children fit into any company? How will they work? How will they fit? How will they function in life if they do not have experience first, and making sure that they are benefiting the whole?
So, yeah there is love, but what is love? It is not just some warm, fuzzy, good feeling that comes whenever another person serves our needs. We feel Elohim’s love for us because He created us, He provides for us, He gives us everything.
So, what happens sometimes in the West, is for teenagers, you get a couple of young people together, the hormones start flowing – big difference (basically they want to mate) and they have a lot of energy because they are young. And what you see a lot in modern popular culture is the two young-ins feel (or think) that the union could serve both of their needs and so they call it love.
And the thing is, we and our forefathers entered a contractual relationship back at Mount Sinai. We said we would uphold our part of the marital Covenant (of the Ketubah).
Shemote (Exodus) 19:8
8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that Yahweh has spoken we will do.” So Moshe brought back the words of the people to Yahweh.
So, if we are not doing it, how can we say that we are His obedient, faithful servants? We cannot. It must serve more than just our needs. If you love your spouse, you understand you must take care of your spouse’s needs also.
How are we treating Yahweh? Do we treat Yahweh as if we love Yahweh? I mean, there is also such a thing as a marriage of convenience. Sometimes you see couples, they get together – I have seen Messianic couples, you can tell by the way they talk, the way they behave towards each other, that they do not have any real love toward their partner. Again, this feeling that someone is supposed to pour out a bucket of love on you, or you are going to fall in a ditch called love, you cannot avoid it, and if that does not happen, well, then there is no love.
How many Ephraimites do we have, they do not truly know what love is? How many people have we seen, they are just using each other, mutually? It is very common in some circles.
Is real, true love not supposed to be a whole lot more than that? Is it not supposed to be a real two-way relationship where the people are supposed to be there for each other, and they are supposed to be there to help bear one another’s burdens and to help one another and to encourage each other on with Psalms and spiritual songs? Is that not what Scripture says to do?
Well, what if someone told you that they loved you and they wanted to marry you, but that other person never took any thought whatsoever about what you wanted, it never occurred to them one single time to ask you what your desires were? Or maybe they asked you once or twice, but they do not care. Or, what if that person never asked you how you felt, but they want to marry you?
Hmm… Can we see the parallels with Yahweh? How often are we asking Yahweh what He wants in the relationship? We go to Him all the time. “Father, Yahweh, please give me this. Father, Yahweh, thank you for giving me the things that I want, here is another long list of things that I want.” How many times do we go to Him to ask Him what it is He wants? Where is our love for Him?
Mattityahu (Matthew) 6:9-10
9 In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Well, what do we do in cases where things are wrong? What do we do in cases where we get lied to or someone has betrayed us? Is there forgiveness? Do we forgive the other person?
What do we do in cases where people do not show us any real respect? They might say that they respect us, but they do not treat us with respect; their actions do not consider our wants, or our desires, or our needs?
Okay, well, if we treat other people that way, how are we treating Yahweh? Would you consider that kind of thing sincere love? Of course not. And, oh, oh! And guess what? Neither would Yahweh!
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:3
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
He wants us to show Him our love for Him by telling Him that we love Him and then we relax on Sabbath? No, there is much more to it than that. There is much more than just getting together with friends. There is much more than just singing a few songs for Him. If that is all we do, “That is it! We are done!” Is that the Great Commission for the week?
Brothers, this is the kind of thing that everyone knows. Real love requires sacrifice, real love requires (basically) giving up your time to do something that you want, so you can make a sacrifice of your time (and perhaps your money, your energy, your effort) for the benefit of the other person. So, are we considering Yahweh in this way?
We were bought as slaves, for a price. It is our duty to serve our Master. Are we doing that without the thought of compensation for ourselves?
Qorintim Aleph (1 Corinthians) 6:20
20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify Elohim in your body and in your spirit, which are Elohim’s.
We are just supposed to serve. And if we are not just doing that and trusting in Him to provide for us, what is best for us, then how are we serving Him? How are we loving Him?
Luqa (Luke) 4:8
8 And Yeshua answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship Yahweh your Elohim, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”
We pray for Yahweh to bring the kingdom of Heaven down to earth and to establish His kingdom here on earth. Do we understand He wants us to be the agents of it? We want Him to establish His righteousness here on this earth.
Well, the thing is, when we will do what He instructs, we will obey the five-fold ministry protocol, it will happen. He instructs us to take action. He instructs us to listen and obey.
Yehoshua (Joshua) 1:8
8 This Book of the Torah shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
He instructs us to listen diligently for His voice and do everything He says with zeal.
Tehillim (Psalms) 119:4
4 You have commanded us to keep Your precepts diligently.
Brothers, do we do that? We are coming into the Tribulation times.
In the ancient Hebrew wedding, when a bride goes to join her husband’s house, she (basically) quits her old life in her biological father and mother’s house. Just like Israel left Egypt and then she is literally carried a loft to go to her Husband’s house. And now she helps her Husband who is taking place in the greater extended household of His Father. And she helps Him to build His Father’s house.
So, if that is a bride’s role in the ancient Hebrew model, and we want to be His bride, is that not a no-brainer?
Mishle (Proverbs) 31:11-12
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her; so he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good and not evil all the days of her life.
And if we want to be Yeshua’s bride does that not mean we have to leave behind our old life in this world and to cleanse ourselves from all those nasty things from seeking after our own will, seeking after our own desires? Of the aimless will and the aimless desires of our forefathers?
Do we have to forget seeking pleasure in the world; going to cafes, taking in movies, football games, T-ball, all these kind of things that do not actually build a kingdom for Elohim?
We only have so much time in a day, how much time are we dedicating to these things and we are not dedicating to those things? And yet we say we love Yahweh with all of our heart, with all of our soul, and all of our strength.
He is just asking us to do some things any husband would want his bride to do. He would want his bride to listen for what he asks for and help him with it as best as she can.
If we love our spouses, do we not find out what they want and then consider deeply what they want and how to fit it into Yahweh’s plan?
And once we know what they want, if we love our spouse, do we not take action to help them get what they want? And if so, again, how are we treating Yahweh for real? Today is the day of salvation. How are we treating Yahweh? How did we treat Yahweh this week?
Ivrim (Hebrews) 3:15
15 while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
And brothers, just speaking honestly before Yahweh, if we love our spouses, or our children, or our parents, are we not typically willing to sacrifice of our time and our money to help them get the things that they want? We give of our life, our resources, our time and our energy. Well, what about Yahweh, if He is first?
Yochanan (John) 14:15
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
And does not Yahweh want us to restore that intimate relationship that we had with Him in the Garden before the fall? Does He not want us to improve our characters to show that we are worthy of His trust and His faithfulness?
Ephesim (Ephesians) 4:13
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of Elohim, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Messiah;
So, should we not do what He says? Should we not hear His voice? Should we not be diligent to obey it?
How many times do we read His Word and not want to do it? And we are going to stand before His throne, He is going to ask us, “Did you read My Word?” We are going to say, “Yes!” Then He will say, “Did you do what I said?”
Brothers, sisters, this day will come for every one of us. I do not know exactly what words He will use, but this kind of confrontation will come with every one of us. The Day of Reckoning, like the parable of the minas, a Day of Reckoning, a day of accounting will come.
So, as it says in Mattityahu (or Matthew) chapter 12 and verse 33 Yeshua says, “A tree is known by its fruit.” And just as a man and wife come together in a loving marriage and produce good fruit, our love for our husband Yeshua should that not also be bearing good spiritual fruit unto Him?
Mattityahu (Matthew) 12:33
33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.
So, if our love for Him has meaning, then do we not need to bear good, spiritual fruit for Him? Because we are known by what we do for Him. We are known by our fruits; a tree is known by its fruits.
Yeshua says, “Behold, I am coming quickly and My reward is with Me to give to every man according to His head knowledge?” No, no, no, no, no. He says, He will reward us according to our work! It is the story of the little red hen all over again.
Hitgalut (Revelation) 22:12
12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.
So, the question becomes: Does our fruit truly match our words? If we say we love Yahweh and His Son, Yeshua with all that we have, do our works reflect that love for Him?
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:3
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
Brothers and sisters, in these End Times, are we walking our talk? Do we gladly spend our time and our money and our life’s resources where our mouths are? Or not really?
We know He is watching everything, right? Okay, well what does Scripture say is required if we say that we love Yahweh our Elohim?
Was obviously far too many resources and references to lift here, but we know from our studies into Torah Government that it is by keeping Yeshua’s Commandments that we build His kingdom.
So, that is why Yeshua commands the five-fold ministry and the set-apart foundation of apostles and prophets, okay? These two protocols are necessary to establish a single unified kingdom for Him, so that He ends up with the kingdom built the way He says to do it.
Ephesim (Ephesians) 4:11-13
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Messiah,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of Elohim, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Messiah;
Ephesim (Ephesians) 2:20-22
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yeshua Messiah Himself being the chief cornerstone,
21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a set-apart temple in Yahweh,
22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of Elohim in the Spirit.
Just like our forefathers were always supposed to build the Tabernacle just exactly a certain way, according to the pattern that was shown to us on the mountain.
Shemote (Exodus) 25:40
40 And see to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain.
He is a military Commander. If we want to make Him happy, friends, brothers, sisters, Israelites, there is not a lot of substitutes for doing what He says to do.
If we can imagine ourselves in the military, we can imagine ourselves reporting to our first unit, or perhaps we first show up in the military. First you go to basic training, but eventually, once you get through the basics, you get to your unit where you can serve and you have a commander and there is just no substitute for doing the things that he says the way he says, with urgency.
There is no substitute for that and that is the way Yahweh is. We need to know Him; we need to know His character. What does it mean He is a war Elohim?
Shemote (Exodus) 15:3
3 Yahweh is a man of war; Yahweh is His name.
Is He going to take it lightly? If you are in the army and your company commander, your battalion commander, your brigade command, the commander of your armies, tells you, “This is what I want you to do, and make haste about it”? Do we do that?
Vayiqra (Leviticus) 18:5
5 You shall therefore keep My statutes and My judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them: I am Yahweh.
So, all the parts work together, everything is all one thing. That is because Yahweh is one and His name is one, His works are one thing. It is amazing when you see it, when you finally see it; we can build His kingdom by exactly what He says to do. By listening carefully for His voice and being diligent to keep all of His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 28:1
1 “Now it shall come to pass, if you diligently obey the voice of Yahweh your Elohim, to observe carefully all His commandments which I command you today, that Yahweh your Elohim will set you high above all nations of the earth.
Not only does this prove to Him that we love Him, because it is not something we would ordinarily do, but we are doing them because we love Him. Because the Spirit and the flesh are opposites and there are pages and pages worth of witnesses to all this. A lot of believers cannot seem to find them, but there are pages’ worth of witnesses to all this.
So, later in the Parasha series we are going to come to Devarim (or Deuteronomy) chapter 11 and verse 1 where Yahweh is going to command us to love our Elohim and keep His charge, – special word charge – and His statutes, and His judgments, and His commandments, always.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 11:1
1 “Therefore you shall love Yahweh your Elohim, and keep His charge, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always.
Well, what is His charge? So, Yahweh tells our forefathers that we are always supposed to keep His charge. His charge is a special term; we will talk about that when we get to Deuteronomy chapter 11. But in Hebrew, the charge is Strong’s Hebrew H4931, mishmeret. And if you want to feel shame as an Ephraimite, here is a good place to feel it.
H4931 mishmereth, (mish-mer’-reth); feminine of H4929; watch, i.e. the act (custody), or (concretely) the sentry, the post; objectively preservation, or (concretely) safe; figuratively observance, i.e. (abstractly) duty or (objectively) a usage or party:—charge, keep, or to be kept, office, ordinance, safeguard, ward, watch.
[Strong’s Hebrew Concordance]
Now, mishmeret is a feminine of H4929, meaning to watch. So, we look up the feminine, the H4929 (because we like to do that kind of thing) and we see this, mishmar, which refers to a guard.
H4929 mishmâr, (mish-mawr’); from H8104; a guard (the man, the post or the prison); a deposit (figuratively); also (as observed) a usage (abstractly), or an example (concretely):—diligence, guard, office, prison, ward, watch.
[Strong’s Hebrew Concordance]
So, we look up the root word at H8104 and it is shamar. And shamar means to guard, in the sense of hedging something about with thorns, to form a protective hedge.
H8104 shâmar, (shaw-mar’); a primitive root; properly, to hedge about (as with thorns), i.e. guard; generally, to protect, attend to, etc:—beward, be circumspect, take heed (to self), keep(-er, self), mark, look narrowly, observe, preserve, regard, reserve, save (self), sure, (that lay) wait (for), watch(-man).
[Strong’s Hebrew Concordance]
How many times did she talk about a protective hedge? How many times do the prophets talk about a protective hedge?
Okay, it is what is called a remez (or a hint) well, while this is a root word, some also consider it linguistically related to the root word shomer. And shomer is a very important word for Ephraim because in First Kings (or Melachim Aleph) chapter 16 in verse 24, king Omri (one of the worst kings ever in our history), he bought the Hill of Samaria from Shemer (or Shomerons from Shemer) for two talents of silver, then he built on the hill and he called the name of the city which he built “Samaria” and it became the capital city for the northern kingdom of Ephraim.
Melachim Aleph (1 Kings) 16:24
24 And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; then he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill.
Okay, so Samaria represents us, okay? So, now, very important word for us, Samaria. If we look up this word Samaria in Strong’s Hebrew concordance it is H8111, Shomrown.
H8111 Shômerôwn, (sho-mer-one’); from the active participle of H8104; watch-station; Shomeron, a place in Palestine:—Samaria.
[Strong’s Hebrew Concordance]
That is a doubling or an intensive of H8104 which is the root word shomer (or guard) that we just looked at. The need to watch, or to guard, or to protect something by hedging it about with thorns.
That is what we are supposed to be doing with the faith of Yahweh; we are supposed to be protecting it by hedging it about with thorns, that is what our name says. And, well, as we go through Scripture, we are going to see there are all kinds of plays on words of the idea that Ephraimites dwell in shomer, and we are supposed to be guarding the Covenant. When you read it in Hebrew, the parallels jump right out at you. There are a lot more layers of meaning that become apparent in the Hebrew.
But the idea is that we are given a charge to guard, and to hedge, and to protect, and to keep the commandments of our war Elohim. He is a military Commander. And we are in a spiritual war. There is such a thing as a peacetime mentality towards Scripture. A lot of people do not behave as if they understand this is a spiritual war. We do not have guns and knives right now, but if you do not understand souls are being lost, people are dying (so to speak) every single day and if we do not treat this thing the way Yahweh the Commander of armies treats this thing – friends, brothers, sisters, what are we going to have to say for ourselves in the Day of Judgment if we do not treat this thing the way He treats this thing, because we never bothered to find out what He wanted or what He expects from His people?
Well, here is the thing, in olden times, a commander’s bride would go with him to the battlefield sometimes because it was her job to order and organize the support activities in the war camp while the men were there at war. Can anyone see any parallels with what Yahweh expects from His Proverbs 31 bride Yahweh, the King of the universe. He calls us to be His helpmeet. Okay, so how can we help Him?
Mishle (Proverbs) 31:17-18
17 She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is good, and her lamp does not go out by night.
The kingdom of heaven is at hand, meaning the kingdom of heaven is offered, but we must defect, we need to change sides, we must let go of Satan’s kingdom, okay?
Mattityahu (Matthew) 4:17
17 From that time Yeshua began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
And now we need to work with all our might at helping to build our new King’s kingdom and helping Him in His mission of subduing the earth through the love and loving obedience of His Son. That is where we come in. Because if we love His Son, is there not any obedience required?
Or do we just sit on the sidelines while the battle is being fought? Do we realize that this fight is our fight? Are we one flesh with our Husband and King? And if we are one flesh with Him, is His fight our fight? If He works until now, should not we be working until now?
Ephesim (Ephesians) 6:12
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
I realize some people must have jobs, but what do we do with our free time? Are we earnestly contending for the faith that Yeshua brought? That is our charge in Renewed Covenant times. That is what we are supposed to keep, always, because of our love for Him.
Yehudah (Jude) 1:3
3 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
Hopefully we will get more time to talk about it when we get to Deuteronomy (or Devarim) chapter 11. But always is something we would do if we loved Him, okay? And if we are not keeping His charge, to guard (or protect, or hedge about with thorns) His commandments, always, then do we not need to ask ourselves if our love for Him is sincere, or if our commitment for Him is sincere or not?
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 3:3-4
3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
4 Whoever commits sin also commits Torah-lessness, and sin is Torah-lessness.
Because no child who truly loves his parent is going to disobey and ignore what his parent says to do, right? If you are a parent and you tell your son to do something, you expect him to do it, right? What do you do with your son if he does not do what you tell him to do?
So, last week in Parasha Ki Tisa, you saw that after all the disobedience, and all the corrections, all the not wanting to obey Yahweh our Elohim, finally our ancestors went over the line. They set up and worshiped the golden calf, after they had already sworn an oath of loyalty as His bridal nation.
Shemote (Exodus) 32:10
10 Now therefore, let Me alone, that My wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them. And I will make of you a great nation.”
And what Elohim says He wanted, once again, to listen carefully for His voice and be diligent to do everything that He said.
Shemote (Exodus) 19:8
8 Then all the people answered together and said, “All that Yahweh has spoken we will do.” So Moshe brought back the words of the people to Yahweh.
And again, it is just really amazing to me that Yahweh is willing to take us like orphans (basically), step by step, from nothing. It is like painting by numbers; Yahweh has a plan; He has a program by which we can go from absolute zero. Because many of us fall through the cracks, that is why we are here. We can go, He will take us if we listen and obey Him. He will take us from nothing to queen of the universe; slave queen, but queen of the universe.
The key is, we must hear and obey His voice; we must shema. We say it every week: Shema Israel, (hear and obey, O Israel).
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 6:4-5
4 “Hear, O Israel: Yahweh our Elohim, Yahweh is One!
5 You shall love Yahweh your Elohim with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Forty days later, our ancestors forgot all about Yahweh. Oy vey gevalt! This lack of discipline on the part of our forefathers resulted in the deaths of three thousand men.
Shemote (Exodus) 32:28
28 So the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moshe. And about three thousand men of the people fell that day.
That is probably not the best example of our forefathers loving Yahweh through their actions. The question is, brothers, did we learn from our forefathers’ mistakes? Are we listening carefully and obeying all His written words when we read it? And that is Yahweh’s Word. Do we obey it or not?
Well, in Shemote chapter 33 verse 3, things are bad. Our forefathers have been complaining, and disobeying, bickering, ever since they left Egypt. Now, with the sin of the golden calf, Yahweh tells Moshe, “Okay, well, hold up, okay? Change of plans; deal breaker.” Hey! No. Now, He will not go up amid our rebellious forefathers, lest they rebel again, and He consumes them in an instant. Because our forefathers were stiff-necked, stubborn people and that is the opposite of what He wants. And it is so bad after the incident of the golden calf, Yahweh says He will not even come into the midst of the camp of Israel anymore.
Well, we will see in the narrative Moshe has to move his tent outside the camp and so now they called it the tent of meeting (or the Ohel Moed) because that is where Moshe would meet with Yahweh, in the Ohel Moed.
Shemote (Exodus) 33:7
7 Moshe took his tent and pitched it outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the tabernacle of meeting. And it came to pass that everyone who sought Yahweh went out to the tabernacle of meeting which was outside the camp.
Then verse 15, Moshe is pleading with Yahweh that, if His Presence or His Shekhina – His Shekhina, glory – if Yahweh, will not send His Presence, or He will not Shekhina with them – “Please do not send them” because then they are going to be separated from Yahweh and how are they going to make it, separated from Yahweh?
Shemote (Exodus) 33:15
15 Then he said to Him, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not bring us up from here.
Brothers and sisters, how are we going to make it separated from Yahweh? Do we have Yahweh’s Presence? Do we have the indwelling of Yeshua’s Spirit 24/7? Do we have a living, indwelling relationship with Yeshua; Abiding in Him and Him in us; Him in the Father and the Father in Him? Or do we not have that relationship, and so we will be cut off and burned in the fires of the Tribulation?
Well, Yahweh grants that, because Moshe is so humble, and so obedient, and he is such a good servant, Yahweh is going to grant him his request. And that is because Yahweh knows Moshe by name, okay? They have a close, indwelling relationship. Do we?
Well, maybe Yahweh was also influenced by the fact that our forefathers had repented back in verse 4? Maybe because when the people heard the bad news they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments.
Shemote (Exodus) 33:4
4 And when the people heard this bad news, they mourned, and no one put on his ornaments.
So, that is a good sign, okay? Maybe our forefathers did not decide to start keeping all His commands, but at least maybe they started keeping some of His commands, or at least they are showing somewhat of a repentant heart through their actions, at least? Maybe they were sorry that they got punished? Because they did not truly change, and that is the difference between true teshuva (true repentance) and just feeling sorry that you are getting punished. Anyone who has raised children knows the difference, so what about Yahweh; does He know the difference?
So, in the beginning of chapter 35, our forefathers are glad to build the Tabernacle because they hope that if they can do that, then perhaps will Yahweh want to dwell in their midst again. Okay, well, first we would not keep Yahweh’s commandments in the Garden of Eden. And that is us, that is our heritage, that is our genetics; disobedient, okay? So, then we got kicked out of Yahweh’s House (so to speak), right?
Then, later in Egypt, we as His bridal nation, just out of Egypt, worshiped an idol; forgot all about Yahweh. And Yahweh says specifically not to set up idols; He specifically said not to do that. So, basically Yahweh broke camp with us (so to speak) because He does not like impurity.
Shemote (Exodus) 20:4-5
4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;
5 you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, Yahweh your Elohim, am a jealous Elohim, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,
So, okay, what are we going to do? We are kicked out of the Garden, now Yahweh is not going to be in our camp anymore, we are exposed. What are we going to do? Okay, well, now maybe here is a way. We can build a house, or a tent, or meeting place where Yahweh will come again inside the camp and again will dwell with His people.
Well, we messed up, we forgot Him forty days. We forgot. Now, we are going to have to court Yahweh in with sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now, we know this was planned from before the foundations of the world, okay? Yahweh knows how things are going to go.
Yes, He already knows all the good and bad choices we are going to make. But at this juncture, we are going to have to show Yahweh through our sacrifices and our offerings that, yes, we do love Him and, yes, we do want to be His people.
We know we have messed up; we know we were supposed to be listening for His voice all the time. We could not get it right. Okay, so once again it is like, “Okay. Okay, Moshe. I will grant your request. Okay, what are we going to do here? We are going to give them a system where we just walk through and paint by numbers, okay? I am going to step you through a bunch of commandments, step by step. And if you will do them, if you will actually do them, this will build Me a kingdom,” or it will lay a foundation for a later phase of the kingdom (is what actually happened).
But in any case, we, our forefathers, us, needed to obey, we did not. So, Yahweh is giving us one last chance (so to speak), you know what I mean? We have disobeyed Him, we have complained, we have not trusted. He said, “Do not get the mana,” we got the mana. He said, “Stay on Sabbath,” we went on Sabbath. Whatever Yahweh said to do, we were not listening the Yahweh.
So, this is the way our forefathers have been the whole time. So, again the punishment from the golden calf must have made at least some kind of an impression, because in verse 4, Moshe tells them to take an offering for him for Yahweh.
Shemote (Exodus) 35:4
4 And Moshe spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which Yahweh commanded, saying:
He says, “Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh.” And many who had skills of all different kinds, they all put their skills to work. They are all saying, “What can I do for Yahweh? We have blown it; He is giving us another chance. What can I do for Yahweh?”
Shemote (Exodus) 35:5
5 ‘Take from among you an offering to Yahweh. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to Yahweh: gold, silver, and bronze;
It is like, if you are engaged to the King of the universe or the Son of the King of the universe, and you have blown it, and this is your last and final chance, that is how our forefathers responded. And, because what are you going to do? Yahweh leaves your midst, you are exposed, you and your family are going to die. So, all those who have materials necessary for the Tabernacle brought willingly for the work. They realized; you are going to have to have Yahweh in your midst. What about us brothers and sisters?
Chapter 36 verse 3 we see that the people continued to bring free will offerings every morning.
Shemote (Exodus) 36:3
3 And they received from Moshe all the offering which the children of Israel had brought for the work of the service of making the sanctuary. So they continued bringing to him freewill offerings every morning.
And again we see it in verse 5. And the people brought so much for the work that they had to be restrained from bringing anything more. Surely a ministry first…
Shemote (Exodus) 36:5
5 and they spoke to Moshe, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which Yahweh commanded us to do.”
Verse 6 Moshe gave the commandment:
Shemote (Exodus) 36:6
6 So Moshe gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing,
Never seen since. But again, maybe our forefathers realized, you have blown it and they are scared and so they wanted to make sure Yahweh was happy, right? Makes sense? Okay, but our forefathers only started to pay attention after they got scared. Where is their love for Him?
You are always looking for love; He is looking for someone who loves Him and His Son who realizes we owe Him everything, everything, everything, everything. He is asking us to lay down our lives in spiritual Egypt and live for Him.
We must kill our flesh, we must murder it, and when it rises back up you must kill it again. It is like a bad movie; you must keep killing it.
Well, the workers finished the work. Chapter 39 we see that Moshe inspected the work of the Tabernacle and everything belonging to it. Check it out: Moshe saw that the children of Israel had done all the work exactly as Yahweh had commanded for it to be done. Can you believe it?
Verse 42, “according to all that Yahweh had commanded Moshe.” So, the children of Israel did all the work. That is also the first.
Shemote (Exodus) 39:42-43
42 According to all that Yahweh had commanded Moshe, so the children of Israel did all the work.
43 Then Moshe looked over all the work, and indeed they had done it; as Yahweh had commanded, just so they had done it. And Moshe blessed them.
Wow! You mean our forefathers got one right? Wow!
Okay, but now it is time for a test question: Which example shows true love and true dedication for Yahweh? Was it the example that Yahweh was pleased with? Is it door number one where our fathers took an oath to marry Elohim and to be His faithful bridal nation by hearing His voice and diligently doing all that He said to do and then they forgot about Him like two or three months later and they set up a golden calf and they started to worship Him the way they wanted?
Or is it door number two where our forefathers brought much more than enough to build the Tabernacle and then work together to make sure that everything was done exactly the way Yahweh Elohim had said to do things?
Okay, what do you think?, who said door number one? Put your hands way up high so everyone can see you! Okay. Okay, I hope nobody answered one, okay. Now, okay, who said door number two? Okay, put your hands way up high!
Okay, yay! Okay, good job. Okay, door number two is correct. Door number two it is. Okay, I know, I know. It seems like an easy test question, right? Okay, but so then how come most of us in Ephraim seem to be getting it wrong today, every single day of her lives?
Hoshea (Hosea) 13:1
1 When Ephraim spoke, trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but when he offended through Baal worship, he died.
Why are we not taking extreme care to come together to make sure that we do all the things that Elohim’s Word says? Especially when we know that our lives depend on it surviving the Tribulation; depends on it.
Why does it always seem like it takes punishment before we learn to obey Him? I mean, really, does it not seem like we always need punishment first, before we as a House, before we as a people will take Him seriously and come together in the right order that He wants?
Hoshea (Hosea) 13:9
9 “O Israel, you are destroyed, but your help is from Me.
Why do we have to be punished?
Hoshea (Hosea) 13:12-13
12 “The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is stored up.
13 The sorrows of a woman in childbirth shall come upon him. He is an unwise son, for he should not stay long where children are born.
Is it not the kind of willingness to obey Him eagerly, voluntarily listening carefully for what He wants and then hastening to do all that He said to do, and being diligent to do things the way He said to do it?
He is the Design-Engineer, He is the Scriptwriter, He knows everything, He designed this whole program. His Son, Yeshua came to give us a five-fold ministry protocol and to tell us to unify on a single foundation of apostles and prophets. He gives two very simple protocols to follow (and there are some other specific performance points).
And if we will just follow with discipline those two protocols, we will be so pleasing to Him. Can you imagine being pleasing to the King of the universe; the King above all kings who formed us, who created us, who is in control of the script? We are like pixels on the screen to Him. How can we not do exactly what He says He wants us to do, if we trust Him, if we have faith in Him?
Do we trust Him? Do we have faith that He will obey and perform His Word? Do we have trust in Him that He is sovereign over all things? And if we will do what He says that He will bless us?
Yeshua says, “If you love Me, then keep My commandments.”
Yochanan (John) 14:15
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
Look at this word “keep,” it is the word “shomer”, “to guard”. Look at that. Okay, but why brothers, why does it seem so hard for us and our forefathers to accept that we just need to submit to Yahweh? This is the command to be immersed, to die to our old flesh, to put the old flesh to death and be raised in newness of Yeshua’s life, and then be filled with His Spirit. To ask His Spirit in, every single day, so that we can then walk according to His Spirit to make sure we do not quench His Spirit; chasing after the things of the world: T-ball, a new car, a newer house, the things of the world.
Thessaloniquim Aleph (1 Thessalonians) 5:19-20
19 Do not quench the Spirit.
20 Do not despise prophecies.
Why is this such a problem for our forefathers? It is our genetics. Is it the fact that we are half Egyptian, we blame it on Asinaf? Or what is wrong with us brothers that we do not do the things Yahweh says to do until after we are punished?
We keep saying it again and again, hoping someone will hear. The first time we left Egypt, people were punished and died, but the children made it through. This time the children will not make it through if they are not walking correctly, okay? He wants us, He wants a relationship, He wants a love relationship.
Husbands, can you imagine if you were on a war campaign and your wife could come with you, all the things she could do to support you in old style army camp where you had a support camp activity? And would we not want that?
We know it is wartime; we are called to war, spiritual war. Brothers, would our Commander and King not want us to do it with a cheerful, willing heart; knowing that we are there helping Him on campaign? We are helping Him build His kingdom. He also is working hard.
That is what He calls real love for Him; is doing things that are not easy, but we know He wants them. So, that is why we die to the world, that is why we die to the video games, that is why we die to the poker games, that is why we die to the antique car shows, that is why we die to all those things; trusting that, if we will live for Him and look for the things that we can do, He will reward us for our works.
He gives us a framework, it is very simple, very elegant, very simple, very beautiful protocol. He gives us a framework of Melchizedekian Order that we can plug ourselves into, and the more and better we serve, and that is what He wants. He wants us to serve Him and His people as much as we can; building Him a kingdom.
And this is something anyone can do. You do not have to be a brain surgeon, okay? I am mildly autistic, and I have had a closed head injury, I have had to re-learn to do many things in my life, okay? It is not rocket science. If I can do it with a head injury, anyone can do it. You just need to put your mind to it and ask Him for His help. When we are in Yeshua, we can do all things through Messiah Yeshua who will strengthen us. His Dad is the Scriptwriter; He can do that.
So, in the Haftara prophetic portion we are going to see a wonderful example of someone who loves Yahweh, okay? We are going to look to the southern Kingdom of Judah. We wish it was an Ephraimite example, the Ephraimite kings were not uniformly horrible, but they were not great. The Jewish kings were far and away, much better kings. They would listen for what Yahweh wanted; they would inquire of Yahweh what He wanted. Ephraim would always make up his own idea, his own mind, about how he wanted to serve Yahweh and then he would go off and start doing what he wanted to do and then ask Yahweh to bless that. As opposed to what Judah would do, they would go to Yahweh and inquire.
Okay, so here we have King Josiah (or Yoshiyahu), he is the king of the Southern Kingdom of Judah, and he loved Yahweh. And the reason we know is because it showed; we see the fruits of his love for Yahweh, we see the righteous acts, we see the righteousness of King Yoshiyahu.
Second Kings (or Melachim Bet) chapter 22 starting in verse 2 it says, “King Yoshiyahu did what was right in the sight of Yahweh and walked in all the ways of his father David.” Wow! “He did not turn aside either to the right hand or to the left.”
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:2
2 And he did what was right in the sight of Yahweh, and walked in all the ways of his father David; he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.
Wow! Okay, that is exactly what we all need to do, right? If we want to be in Yahweh’s favor like King Yoshiyahu. Do you know what I mean? Okay, well, what is so amazing is to realize that Yoshiyahu was not raised in Torah. His forefathers were very bad kings. His great-grandfather, Hezekiah, he was a good King, but Yoshiyahu himself did not get raised with the Torah.
His grandfather, king Manasseh was bad, and his father king Ammon was also bad.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 21:11
11 “Because Manasseh king of Judah has done these abominations (he has acted more wickedly than all the Amorites who were before him, and has also made Judah sin with his idols),
It was only after they found the book of the Law in the Temple. “Oh, looky here! Oh! What is this? Well, oh! It is a book! Oh! What does it say?”
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:8
8 Then Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, “I have found the Book of the Torah in the House of Yahweh.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.
Okay, this is the Temple and they realized that the book had been neglected. What was your first clue? Okay, because no one had even known it was there let alone they needed to be obeying it. Okay, what kind of upbringing did King Yoshiyahu have? Okay, but look at what he does, okay?
So, they brought the Torah scroll, the book of the Torah to King Yoshiyahu, because obviously it affects the King; he is responsible for the nation in the temporal sense so he should know about it, right?
Okay, well, in verse 11 it says that King Yoshiyahu heard the words of the book of the Torah (probably for the very first time). He believed what Yahweh said the very first time he heard the message. He tore his clothes, and he wept before Yahweh.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:11
11 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the Book of the Torah, that he tore his clothes.
Why? Is it possible that he realized that his father, king Ammon and his grandfather, king Manasseh, were terrible kings and they had led the nation in the wrong way? They had not led the nation in the ways of the book of the Torah. It was a lost book.
Well, King Yoshiyahu believed what the Torah said. That is what we need to see. The first time he heard it he realized it could only mean, if this is Yahweh’s word and Yahweh is who He says, He is going to be very angry with the people and there is going to be punishment coming on the nation.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:16
16 “Thus says Yahweh: ‘Behold, I will bring calamity on this place and on its inhabitants—all the words of the book which the king of Judah has read—
He understood this the very first time that, if we do not obey Yahweh’s commandments there is going to be a terrible price for us and our families to pay; who is grieved so much by what he realized was going to be coming upon the nation that he wept before Yahweh.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 30:19
19 I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;
Notice the difference. It was not just “Oh, hey! Check this book out! Let us all sit around together in someone’s house and read this book together on Shabbat. Hey! And then we will eat some food, break some bread, and sing some songs! Hey! Then we will be faithful!”
No. He could have done that, but what did he do? Okay, a faithful King who loves Yahweh, what did he do? Okay, King Yoshiyahu took action to clean up the nation of Judah, okay? He acted to clean up his own backyard (so to speak), to clean up his own house.
Okay, so, here King Yoshiyahu pleading with Yahweh. And in verse 19 Yahweh said that He was pleased with Melech (or King) Yoshiyahu, because his heart was tender, because he had humbled himself before Him.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:19
19 because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before Yahweh when you heard what I spoke against this place and against its inhabitants, that they would become a desolation and a curse, and you tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you,” says Yahweh.
So, Melech Yoshiyahu had trembled at Yahweh’s Word the very first time you heard it. He showed good fruits; he tore his clothes, he wept, he said to inquire of Yahweh. All these good fruits of repentance showed Yahweh that Yoshiyahu believed Him. He wanted to do what was pleasing in Yahweh’s sight!
Verse 20, Yahweh says because Yoshiyahu had acted out his love for Yahweh because he had done the right thing. He himself would go to his grave in peace. His eyes would not see the calamity that Yahweh would bring on Yehuda and Yerushalayim because he had humbled himself and wanted to do what Yahweh thought was right.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 22:20
20 “Surely, therefore, I will gather you to your fathers, and you shall be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes shall not see all the calamity which I will bring on this place.”’” So they brought back word to the king.
If we think about it, Yoshiyahu could have stopped right there. Yahweh had already promised him that he would go to his grave in peace, so he is good. Check! He is pretty much covered, right?
Okay, but this righteous, Jewish, King, he did not stop at good; he did not let good get in the way of better, and he did not let better get in the way of best. He went for gold (so to speak). It was not like, “Oh! That checks my block, I am good. Party at my friend’s house!” It was more, “What more can I do for Yahweh? What more can I do for Him?”
Luqa (Luke) 17:10
10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”
Like his father, David, Yoshiyahu hastened to do all that he could for Yahweh. Notice chapter 23, Yoshiyahu took action to correct things. He heard the Word one time, and he made big changes throughout his house.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:3
3 Then the king stood by a pillar and made a covenant before Yahweh, to follow Yahweh and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant.
Granted, he is the king, right? Okay, but the point is, he cleaned up everything that was under his authority, right? He fixed up everything that he could in his house (so to speak), so that the Word of Yahweh would be one-hundred percent, completely done on his watch, in everything under his control.
Brothers, do we do that?
Okay, Melech Yoshiyahu sent to gather all the elders of Yehuda and Yerushalayim together to him. Then Melech Yoshiyahu read the book of the Covenant in front of all the priests, and the prophets, and all the people both small and great.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:2
2 The king went up to the House of Yahweh with all the men of Judah, and with him all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant which had been found in the House of Yahweh.
Then Melech Yoshiyahu made a covenant before Yahweh so that the people would be responsible to do their parts. He covenanted that the whole nation would follow Yahweh and shomer (or guard) all of Yahweh’s commandments, His testimonies, His statutes. And he would do it with all his heart, and all his soul, and perform all the words of Yahweh’s Covenant.
Basically, the head of the house led his house, led his people by example. And therefore, the people also took a stand for the Covenant. So, someone in a leadership position can make a huge difference.
In verse 4, Melech Yoshiyahu commanded all the things made for Baal (or the Lord), and for Asherah (or Easter), and for all the hosts of the heaven (such as the Queen of Heaven whom the Catholic Church calls Maria), they brought all those defilements, all those things out of the Temple, to be burned outside of Jerusalem.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:4
4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to bring out of the temple of Yahweh all the articles that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel.
Apparently, they were trying to make a New World Order, Abraham-accords type temple (or something there on the Temple Mount). Yoshiyahu did not fall for it. He removed and executed the idolatrous priests in verse 5, and then he did more cleaning up in verse 20.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:5, 20
5 Then he removed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, and those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven.
20 He executed all the priests of the high places who were there, on the altars, and burned men’s bones on them; and he returned to Jerusalem.
However, starting in verse 6, he cleansed the land of the false shepherds, and he defiled all the idolatrous things.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:6
6 And he brought out the wooden image from the house of Yahweh, to the Brook Kidron outside Jerusalem, burned it at the Brook Kidron and ground it to ashes, and threw its ashes on the graves of the common people.
Verse 24 tells us that he put away all those who consulted mediums and spiritists, and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Yehuda and of Yerushalayim. Can you imagine it happening today?
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:24
24 Moreover Josiah put away those who consulted mediums and spiritists, the household elohim and idols, all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might perform the words of the Torah which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the House of Yahweh.
Like his father’s David and Hezekiah before him, Yoshiyahu, he set his heart on the things Yahweh said He wanted. Yoshiyahu was after Yahweh’s heart like his forefather David.
And is that not what love is all about? We are going to give up something that we want so that we can do something good for someone else, or so that someone that we love can get what he wants. And if we love our Husband and He wants the kingdom and He wants us to be His slave-bride, His slave-Queen, is that not what we want, really; with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind, with all our strength? Why would we not want that for our children? Look at what Yahweh is offering us!
Yoshiyahu apparently understood this kind of thing because of his love for Yahweh, shown through all his actions; like a city on a hill, like a lamp set on a stand. Brothers, what about us? Does this kind of love shine from us in our households?
Verse 25 said that, before Yoshiyahu, there was no king like him who turned to Yahweh with everything according to all the Torah of Moshe, nor was there any that arose like him after him.
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:25
25 Now before him there was no king like him, who turned to Yahweh with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Torah of Moses; nor after him did any arise like him.
His father and grandfather had set up idols in the House of Yahweh, but Yoshiyahu repented of what his father and his grandfather and his forefathers had been doing. He was grieved by what his father’s, and his grandfather, and his forefathers had done. So, he did everything he could, everything in his power to make the kingdom look like Yahweh said He wanted. And is that not what we are supposed to be doing for Yeshua?
In the Renewed Covenant, in Yochanan (or John) chapter 14 in verse 21, Yeshua says, he who keeps (or guards), he who will shomer His commandments, that is the one who loves Him.
Yochanan (John) 14:21
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.”
And let us remember, as we saw a few Parashiot ago, Yeshua is the one that Yahweh sent as His Angel (or His Messenger) before him. Yeshua is the one who took us all through the wilderness. He is the one who gave us the commandments. And He says that, he who keeps His commandments, that is the one who loves Him. It just means that we just must keep (or guard, or shomer) all His commandments, just like King Yoshiyahu did.
Yochanan (John) 14:15
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
So, do we have the same heart as David, or Yoshiyahu? Are we cleaning up our own houses? Are we cleaning up everything under our authority?
We will be held accountable for everything that we know, right? So, again I do not know how it is going to happen, but Yahweh is going to say, “Did you read My book? Did you do everything Me and My Son said?”
Verses 23 and 24, Yeshua says, again that those who keep (shomer/guard) His Word, those are the ones who love Him. And He says, those who do not keep His words, those do not love Him. Seems clear to me. What part of love Him and not love Him do we not understand?
Yochanan (John) 14:23-24
23 Yeshua answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.
Yochanan Aleph (or First John) chapter 2, starting in verse 4 says, “By this we know that we love Him, if we keep His commandments.”
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:3, 5
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.
5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of Elohim is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
Let us read that again. Okay, does this not mean that we can get to know Him by keeping His commandments? So, if we keep His commandments, does that not show love for Him and does He not then (perhaps) reveal more of Himself to us? Have we ever heard the saying that we do not get more until we already do what we know? It is kind of like; you do not get more food until you clean your plate.
And would not that be nice to get to know Him? Is that not really what it is all about? It is developing a divine relationship with Him while we are still here on this earth; forsaking, giving up, abandoning the things of the world and of Satan’s kingdom; in Egypt, so that we can show Him our love by helping Him to get what He wants.
And when the King of the universe has chosen us for His bride, are you kidding? Can you imagine the queen of the universe or Yeshua’s bride; can we imagine how wonderful that is going to be? And if we say we know Yeshua, but we do not keep all His commandments, does it not mean that we are liars, and the truth is not in us?
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:4
4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
Verse 5 tells us that, whoever guards (or keeps) His Word – whoever from Samaria will shomer His word, truly the love of Elohim is perfected in him.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 2:5
5 But whoever keeps [shomer] His word, truly the love of Elohim is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.
That means – does that not mean the love of Elohim is perfected in whoever guards (or keeps) all His Word? We are the shomeranim (the guardians, the watchmen); this is how we know that we are in Him is that we are keeping His Word. Because we die to ourselves and now, we live to Him. We put off the old man of sin and now there is room to be filled with His Spirit.
And because we are filled with His Spirit, and because we ask Him every day, please to send His Spirit anew; “Please do not let us quench Your Spirit Father, Yahweh. Do not let us quench Your Son’s Spirit. We know we were bought with a price; we know we need to be keeping Your commandments, we know You are not fooled, we know You are not mocked. You will not be fooled in that day when Your Son comes back home. We fear You like we should and that is why we are gladly keeping Your commandments; because we fear You and because we love You.”
Sometimes people need to learn to obey out of fear. If we do not have proper fear for Him, we also cannot love Him. Solomon says that the fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom.
Mishle (Proverbs) 1:7
7 The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Scripture tells us that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every matter shall be established. Do we need more witnesses?
Qorintim Bet (2 Corinthians) 13:1
1 This will be the third time I am coming to you. “By the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established.”
Yochanan Aleph chapter 5 starting in verse 2 says that to count as one of Yahweh’s children, to join His house, to be His child we must love Him and His Son more than our own lives (basically), and to shomer (and to keep) His commandments.
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:2
2 By this we know that we love the children of Elohim, when we love Elohim and keep His commandments.
And that is because this is the love of Elohim is that we shomer (or guard or keep) His commandments. Yes, it is work, but it is not a burden, and it is way more pleasurable to live this way, walking in His Spirit, taking up His task; that is way more pleasurable now, than to live the way we were living before (I will just speak for myself).
Yochanan Aleph (1 John) 5:3
3 For this is the love of Elohim, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.
It is a joy to do this because we must put to death the flesh and its evil desires. If we have not put to death the flesh and its evil desires, then yeah, we are going to hate keeping Yeshua’s commandments because we are still carnal, we are still fleshly, we are not filled with His Spirit, we are quenching His Spirit, we are still full of ourselves.
Because if we love Him, keeping His commandments is not a big deal; not really. Not when you are bought with a price and the only reason you are living is to serve Him.
Tehillim (Psalms) 119:44-45
44 So shall I keep Your law continually, forever and ever.
45 And I will walk at liberty, for I seek Your precepts.
The point, brothers, sisters, is that, if we are not hearing Yeshua’s voice, then are we in right relationship with someone who does hear His voice? And if we are hearing Yahweh’s voice or we are in right relationship, we are in in right relationship with someone who is, are we placing Him first in our lives? We look at our checkbook, we look at our calendars, what is the fruit?
If we want to be His Proverbs 31 helpmeet, then are we helping Him with everything that we have?
Mattityahu (Matthew) 12:30
30 He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.
For a lot of people, it is just all about us; we are still on the throne; we are still allowing Yeshua to wash our feet. And the question is really, who is here to serve whom? Do we treat Yahweh like He is some genie in a bottle that we rub the lamp, or we call on Him whenever we want something? Or do we have an active love relationship with our Elohim?
So, I said we want to be with Him, we are waiting to go be with Him, so we are listening intently for the sound of His voice and then when we hear Him speak, we are hastening to do all that He asks, because He is at war for us; we are His bride.
So, are we like King David, seeking after His heart?
Tehillim (Psalms) 119:11
11 Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.
Or do we, like King Yoshiyahu, immediately begin to obey every single last thing in the Torah, because we heard it one time?
Melachim Bet (2 Kings) 23:2
2 The king went up to the House of Yahweh with all the men of Judah, and with him all the inhabitants of Jerusalem—the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant which had been found in the House of Yahweh.
As soon as we read about a commandment, we in Ephraim, we all begin to do it with haste, right? We hasten to keep all the commandments we read, right?
Because that is the ancient standard for the word shema, it means to hear with an intent to obey; it means to hear and obey. Nothing has changed, Hebrew is still Hebrew. The Father’s Word is still the Father’s Word, right?
So, brothers, what about us? Are we like King Yoshiyahu, ready to realize that our fathers, and our grandfathers, and our forefathers have all disobeyed Yahweh’s Torah, and that because of their disobedience, the wrath of Yahweh is surely coming?
Because Yahweh is the same, Yahweh does not change. So, are we ready to do all that our Father’s Torah says to do?
Do we have the wisdom to hear what our Father’s Spirit is saying to His people in these last days?
May Elohim lead all of us to hear His voice and obey all His commandments, so we might be pleasing unto Him, as our forefathers failed to do.
In Yeshua’s name,
Amein.