CHAPTER 1
1. The book of the history of Yeshua the Messiah, Son of David, Son of Avraham:
History: The Hebrew text begins exactly like the common colophon in Genesis and also seen in Ruth: "These are the generations [genealogies] of...", emphasizing the continuity of this account with all that went before. Son of David: thus potentially eligible to inherit his throne. Son of Avraham: This title is one that more of the other tribes of Israel—and even Arabs--can identify with.2. Avraham was the father of Yitzhaq;
Yitzhaq the father of Yaaqov;
Yaaqov fathered Yehudah and his brothers.
3. And Yehudah fathered Paretz and Zarah through Thamar;
Peretz fathered Hetzron, and Hetzron fathered Aram [Ram];
4. Aram fathered Amminadav, and
Amminadav, Nakhshon;
Nakhshon fathered Salmon;
5. Salmon fathered Boaz through Rahav;
Boaz fathered Oved through Ruth,
and Oved was the father of Yishai;
6. Yishai was King David's father.
King David ["beloved"] fathered Shlomo ["his peace"] through her who had been Uriyah's wife.
7. And Shlomo begot Rehav'am ["a nation has grown large"],
who fathered Aviyah ["YHWH is my father"],
and Aviyah begot Asa ["healer"].
8. And Asa fathered Yehoshafat ["YHWH has judged"],
andYehoshafat fathered Yehoram ["YHWH is exalted"],
andYehoram was ancestor of Uzziyahu ["YHWH is my strength"],
Ancestor: not his direct father. Ahazyahu, Yoash, and Amatzyah were between Yehoram and Uziyahu (also called Azaryah, 2 Kings 15). They may be left out because they were in-laws of Akh’av and Izevel (Jezebel), for Athalyah of the Northern Kingdom had infiltrated Yehudah's royal line through intermarriage. YHWH has chosen to write some people out of the historybooks on several occasions, probably due to the choices they made. Yoash did much better than most, but still failed to remove some evils from Yehudah. (2 Kings 12:2-3, 18). 9. and Uziyahu fathered Yotham ["YHWH is perfect"],
and Yotham fathered Akhaz ["he has seized possession"], and
Akhaz became the father of Hizqiyahu ["YHWH is my support"],
10. and Hizqiyahu of Menasheh ["causing to forget"];
Menasheh was the father of Amon ["master architect"], and
Amon fathered Yoshiyahu ["YHWH is my foundation/buttress"],
11. and Yoshiyahu was the father of
Yechonyah ["YHWH will establish"] and his brothers,
at the time of the deportation to Bavel [Babylon].
Heb., "in the exile of Bavel". The Messiah had to inherit the throne of Yehudah through David's kingly line, but could not descend from Yechonyah because of a curse stating that no one from his bloodline would sit on the throne of David (Yirmeyahu/Jeremiah 22:30). Through Miryam (whose genealogy may be the one that appears in Luke 3:23ff, where Yosef is said to be the son of Heyli), Y’shua descended from David by another line (Nathan's), but Yosef, his adoptive father, gave him legal right to the throne through Shlomoh (cf. v. 20), but circumvented the curse because he was not Yechonyah's physical offspring. (Missler) Heyli may have been Miryam's father. If a man had no sons, but his daughter married within her tribe (as Miryam, daughter of Yehudah, v. 33, in this view, did), his inheritance was passed on through her. (Num. 26:33; 27:1-11; 36:2-12; Yehosh. 17:3-6; 1 Chron. 7:15) The claims of Messiah as a firstborn in Heyli's line depend on this particular exception granted to the family of Tselof’chad. (Scofield) In an alternative explanation of why Yosef's name is in both genealogies, Julius Africanus considered both to be Yosef's, involving a levirate adoption (by a brother-in-law). 12. [After the carrying away by Babylon],
Yechonyah fathered She'althiel,
and She'althiel fathered Zerubbavel,
The first phrase does not appear in Hebrew.13. and Zerubbavel fathered Avihud,
and Avihud fathered [Avner,
and Avner fathered] Elyakim, and
Elyakim fathered Azor;
The brackets indicate a phrase only found in the duTillet Hebrew text, as per Trimm. The Greek text only includes 13 names in this list, while the duTillet Hebrew does include 14, as verse 17 claims. Thus it appears that the Greek text may have been based on a copyist's error at the stage of translation into Syriac, where the two are collapsed into one name, Aviur. The name Avner is sometimes spelled Aviner, which in Hebrew script nearly resembles Aviur, since the "d" in Aviud (the Aramaic form of Avihud) could have easily been mistaken for an "r" in the translation, as the two differ by only a tiny stroke; the same holds true for the "n" and "u”).14. Azor fathered Tzadoq,
and Tzadoq fathered Achim [Amon],
and Achim fathered Elihud,
15. and Eliyud fathered El'azar,
and El'azar fathered Mat'than;
Mat'than was the father of Ya'aqov,
16. who fathered Yosef, the husband of
Miryam, from whom was born
Yeshua, the one who is called the Messiah.
Husband: Aramaic Peshitta, govra, which can mean "man or husband", but when children are mentioned, as is the case here, means "father". Yosef, Miryam's father, may have been confused with Yosef, Miryam's husband, which in vv. 18, 19 is baalah, which can only mean "her husband". This is another possible way to get 14 generations from Bavel till Mashiakh. This would switch the genealogies of Matithyahu and Luke, in that now Matithyahu would be Miryam's geneology, and Luke, of Yosef, Miryam's husband. In Luke 3:23, there is actually an indication, that this is Yosef's lineage, but it had been taken to mean the opposite, of what it would now appear to be. (Stephen Silver/Andrew Gabriel Roth) But in some old Greek manuscripts and the Sinaitic Syriac version, it is much simpler: “Yaaqov fathered Yoseph, and Yoseph (who was betrothed to Miriam...) fathered Yeshua, called the Messiah.”
17. Thus, all of the generations from Avraham to David were fourteen generations,
and from David to the carrying away to Bavel [Babylon], fourteen generations,
and from the carrying away to Babylon until the Messiah, fourteen generations.
Trimm points out that in Hebrew, the name David has the numeric value of 14. There may also be an allusion here for the sake of the Northern Kingdom to Rakhel’s genealogy in Gen . 46:22.18. Now the birth of Yeshua the Messiah took place like this: After his mother Miryam had been betrothed to Yosef; before they consummated the marriage, she was found to have conceived through the spirit of being set-apart.
Betrothed: similar to engagement, but considered as binding as marriage, as it was a pledge and thus the first stage of the marital covenant. A ceremony "set the woman apart" to this man; it thus required a bill of divorce to break, as well as the return of gifts and compensation for the public degradation; many men would not be willing to marry a woman who had thus been shamed. (Ben-David) Before they consummated: Heb., "before he came into her". (See note on v. 25) Parthenogenesis is known in nature, but the offspring is usually female. Science writer Melinda Wenner Moyer says, “For a virgin to get pregnant, one of her eggs would have to produce, on its own, the biochemical changes indicative of fertilization, and then divide abnormally to compensate for the lack of sperm DNA. … These two events occur in the eggs or egg precursor cells of one out of every few thousand women. But the egg would also need to be carrying at least two specific genetic deletions to produce a viable offspring. …If the egg happens to experience a spontaneous calcium spike, it will start reacting as if it's been fertilized. …Once fertilization—or faux fertilization—occurs, an egg can complete the final stage of a cell division known as meiosis II, during which it loses half of its genetic material to make room for the sperm's DNA. But if there's no sperm, each half of the divided egg cell will end up short, and both will die. In order for our virgin birth to proceed, the faux-fertilized egg must, therefore, not complete meiosis. Both of these events—the calcium spike and the division mistake—could occur as the result of random dysfunctions or genetic defects. … In general, our cells have two functional copies of each gene—one inherited from the mother and one from the father. For some genes, however, only one copy is ever used, while the other remains dormant. …If there's no sperm, certain genes will be overexpressed, and the "embryo" will die when it is only about five days old. There's a way around this problem, too. By eliminating a pair of maternal genes, a Japanese team was able to create, via parthenogenesis, a viable baby mouse that was seemingly unaffected by its lack of paternal imprinting. …There's at least a theoretical possibility that this could happen spontaneously via random gene deletions [which] might each have a one in 1 billion chance of occurring, and that's not counting the calcium spike and division problem required to initiate parthenogenesis in the first place.” Interestingly, this is one part of the lore about Yeshua that Muslims have also retained as part of their doctrine. Physical anthropologist Arthur Custance saw this as integral to the possibility that Yeshua could be free from the heritable aspect of Adam’s fall, and thus be both on the same footing Adam initially had in regard to both the potential for a perfect record of obedience adequate to be an acceptable substitute for others as well as the choice of whether to remain immortal or give up his life in a truly free sense, because it would not be a requirement but a possibility if there was an important reason to lay it down. He could therefore be called the Second Adam, the first since Adam who had the ability to reclaim the authority over earth and all its species which had been forfeited when the first Adam made the choice to allow the direct, intimate knowledge of evil into his and his descendants’ lives. Custance writes that “while the offspring of the higher multi-cellular forms bury their parents, unicellular forms leave no dead unless they are actually killed. Thus any single-cell form of life is inherently immortal: and because the human ovum is also a single-cell form of life, it, too, shares this inherent immortality. That is to say, within the female human body resides a fragment of immortality still. When fertilized by the male sperm this unicellular organism, the seed, provides for its own immortal continuance by a specialized process of growth in the female body. As soon as a certain number of cells, like itself, have been reproduced by cell division, probably 16 according to our present understanding, a change suddenly takes place in all but one of these cells. One cell continues to multiply unchanged and the 15 other cells begin to differentiate and develop into the various tissues and organs of the body. The multi-cellular body which thus results thereafter becomes a vehicle for the housing of the cells which did not change... The process is repeated in each new generation, thus continuing not only the line of vehicles or bodies but also the line of the seed. As we pass back through history from each generation of mothers and grandmothers, to great-grandmothers, and so right back till we come to Eve [Chawwah], we are not quite at the beginning of things, for Eve was taken out of Adam. So what we now look upon and refer to as the seed of the woman was, for one brief moment in history, the seed of the man. This unbroken chain of immortal substance from Adam through Eve to Mary was one day to be brought to life uniquely by the Holy Spirit to become, quite literally, a Second Adam. The body, which is the vehicle for this process, is, for reasons which are not yet understood, subject to mortality. But it houses a stream of immortality… It is clear therefore that not all of man's physical immortality was lost. A little still remains, one small fragment of himself, immortal as was his whole body before he sinned. But as we shall see, it is not in the man that this fragment remains, but in the woman, who, though taken out of the man at the beginning, was in some way constituted differently...There were physiological reasons why the Virgin Birth was necessary…[so that a man could be] born of a woman in such a way that He escaped the stream of corruption which enters the body of every naturally conceived child and renders that child a mortal creature. When the time was fully come, by a supernatural agency, an ovum, a normal seed of a normal woman was vitalized and began the natural process of division and growth into an embryo, and then a fetus of a male human being who, when He was born, restored to man's view a perfect body precisely like Adam's perfect body and therefore in the most absolute sense a Son of Adam… We have here, therefore, the sudden re-emergence of Adam after thousands of years that had seen the birth of untold millions, who were, in the strictest sense, not truly "human," since they were not as Adam at first had been…There have been only two true men: all the rest of us throughout the whole of history have been poor unworthy mockeries of what God really means by "manhood." …Even the noblest were "noble" only in spirit…Adam was a wholly noble creature when God first created him, noble in body and in soul… Eve was formed out of Adam... Before this division, Adam must have contained within himself a mechanism for the production of both sperm and ova. These components of the generation-to-be were perfect and potentially deathless. When Eve was formed, Adam surrendered the mechanism for the production of ova… When Adam and Eve partook of the poisoning fruit, a change took place, for the children which were born to them were henceforth always subject to death. Yet one Child was born in due time who was not subject to death… We must therefore assume…that Adam's body differed from Eve's in this respect, that when he ate the forbidden fruit its poison reached his seed, i.e., the sperm, but when Eve ate of the forbidden fruit, the poison did not reach her seed, the ova...Thus, although both Adam and Eve in due time fell victims personally to the poison they had introduced into their bodies, the seed which the woman carried was never affected by it, but retained its immortal character… Only when it is fertilized by the seed of the male is death introduced to that part of it which develops into the body cells. Thus by creating Adam first as complete in himself and then taking from him that part which formed Eve while he was yet in a state of immortality, and by constituting Eve so that the seed she carried was in no way affected by the poison of the forbidden fruit, God opened the way for the appearance in due time of One who was truly the Seed of the Woman (in an unbroken chain from Eve) and therefore also the Seed or Son of Adam... The Virgin Birth was not merely some kind of miraculous sign which singled out the Lord as being a special Person because uniquely born: it appears in the light of the above analysis to have been the one way in which God could, in the completely literal sense, re-produce a Second Adam who might, because He was immortal, sacrifice His life in a truly vicarious way... Thus as Adam became the father of all who die, Eve became ‘the mother of all who live’.”
19. But, being a righteous man and not wanting to make her a public example, her husband Yosef decided to release her secretly.
Public example: Heb., "disclose or slander her". The procedure in cases of fornication (Deut. 22:23ff) was stoning. He did not wish this on her, but knew it would be the case if he exposed her. That Yosef was righteous yet would not follow this Torah regulation may stem from the fact that the supposed other man involved was not found, or that he trusted Miryam enough to partly believe her.20. And as he was deliberating about this, lo and behold! A messenger of YHWH appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Yosef, son of David, do not be afraid to take Miryam [as] your wife, for that which is in [and will be born from] her is begotten by the spirit of being set apart.
Begotten...spirit: Heb., "from the Spirit of Holiness, because from the Spirit of Holiness she has conceived." Could this be a result of his having used the test of jealousy as outlined in Num. 5:11-31, since when she proves to have been faithful (having the spirit of being set apart) the reward is that she will conceive?21. "And she will give birth to a son, and you shall call his name ‘Yeshua', because he will save his people from their sins."
Yeshua: short for Y'hoshua ("YHWH saves"). What sins would he save them from? Hebrews 9:15 says, “he is the mediator of a renewed covenant, so that, since a death had occurred toward a release [effected by the paying of a ransom] of the violations against the original covenant.”
22. Now all of this took place so that what was spoken by YHWH through the prophet could be fulfilled:
23. "Behold! The virgin will conceive in her womb, and will give birth to a son, and they will call his name 'Imanu-El'" (which is translated, "Elohim [is] with us").
Virgin: Greek parthenos, best known for its use in reference to a perpetually-virginal goddess; Heb. almah. Could be translated "maiden" (young marriageable girl, sometimes meaning prepubescent), as in the original quote (Yeshayahu/Isaiah 7:14) it has a double reference to the prophet's new wife as well as this one who would be greater. However, interestingly, the LXX (some two centuries before Y’shua) translated it as parthenos, which is quoted here. Why not paidiske, a better way to translate almah? The Mishnah also regards a post-menopausal woman (having missed three menstrual cycles) as a virgin, which may have been the case for Yeshayahu’s wife (or Akhaz’s, if that is the original reference), thus meaning that the child born in Yeshayahu’s day was a miraculous birth along the lines of Yitzhaq’s, Shmu’El’s or “John the Baptist’s”. Miryam was at least a “virgin” in relation to Yosef (v. 18), and this seems to have some bearing on why Y’shua is said to have “precious blood”. If he carried Adam’s tainted blood, corrupted by the bad fruit of the joining of good and evil, could he bring forth a “new creation” spiritually, allowing us to exchange our “bad blood” for a fresh breath of re-oxygenated blood that emanates from the marrow of the “bone” of heaven (a mystical reading of Exodus 24:10), and thus being allowed to be part of his mystical body that restores the original Adam? The Tzohar says the archety[al Adam took shape without the conjunction of male and female; might the second Adam have followed the same pattern? (Avi Ben Mordechai),24. Being then roused from his sleep, Yosef did as the messenger of YHWH
commanded him, and took her as his wife,
Took: went through with the second stage of the marriage. It is common in Hebrew to speak of the entire process as "taking a wife and marrying her".25. but did not have sexual relations with her until she bore her son, the Firstborn. And he declared his name [to be] "Yeshua".
Normally in Jewish culture the marriage is consummated in a separate room while the guests celebrate nearby, and the "friend of the bridegroom" listens for the groom to call out from within the chamber that the marriage has been consummated, then relays the message to the feasting guests. (Read Yochanan/John 3:29 in the context of this custom.) However,Yosef acted differently in this case, possibly knowing it was so unique, though the legend that Miryam remained a virgin all her life clearly stems not from Scripture but from a confusion with some Greco-Roman myths which resulted after Constantine muddied the truth through allowing Christian themes to merely take the place of existing pagan ones. The Firstborn: the fact that it does not say "her firstborn" signals that this is a title with a wider reference than simply Miryam's progeny. Sha'ul picks up on this theme by calling Yeshua "firstborn of many brothers", i.e., sons of Elohim (Rom. 8:29; compare Heb. 12:23), and not only that, but the "firstborn of all creation" (implying both precedence in time and status, Col. 1:15). Just after this he is called "the firstborn [which in Hebrew would also be firstfruits] from the dead" (1:18); his resurrection occurred on the Feast of Firstfruits (cf. 1 Cor. 15:20-23).CHAPTER 2
1. Now notice: after Yeshua had been born in Beyth-Lechem, [a city] of Yehudah, in the days of Herodus the king, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
Beyth-Lechem: "house of bread", a town five miles south of Yerushalayim in the Judean hills. This is not without significance: Y'shua called himself the "bread of life" (Yochanan 6:35). Yehudah: the tribal land of Judah; the Roman name for the province was Judea. Magi: a high caste in the Persian, then Parthian, empires, who served as both priests and as the highest magistrates, and chose kings according to signs in the stars. DuTillet has machshufim--"sorcerers" or "enchanters"; Shem Tov, "stargazers" or "astrologers". Some believe Dani'el was the founder of this order, since he is called "Rab Mag", or "chief of magi" (used also in Yirm./Jer. 39:3, 13), so it is no surprise that they had access to Hebrew prophecies. Zoroaster is thought to have been Dani'el's own student. Steve Collins traces many Parthians to the exiles of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, which would explain why they are part of this story, for this king’s prophetic calling was to reunite the Jews with the Northern Kingdom as his ancestor David had done. Herodus: This was Herodus "the Great", son of Antipater II, who lived from c. 73 to 3 or 4 BCE and came to the throne in c. 37 BCE. He tried to endear himself to the Jews by lavish building projects, most notably the Temple reconstruction and enlargement, but he had also built temples to pagan deities outside of Judea, and was always considered a foreign ruler. 2. asking, "Where is he who is born King of the Yehudim? —for we saw his star in the east and have come to pay him homage."
Julius Caesar had appointed Herodus' father procurator of Judea in 47 BCE. When the Parthians invaded and allied with the Hasmonean (Maccabean) king Antigonus, Antony and the Roman senate appointed Herodus "King of the Jews". He married into the Hasmonean family, but due to suspicion of those who aspired to power, he ended up killing his wife and all the remaining Hasmoneans one by one. His sons raised his suspicions against their brothers, and he executed three of them, which led to the quip that (as Herodus ate kosher to please his subjects) it was safer to be Herodus' pig than his son. His suspicion reached obsessive proportions, and this is the backdrop for his suspicion of another who was called "King of the Jews". "His star": Genesis 1:14 reveals that stars were designed as a means to convey signs of special importance, and traditionally Judaism interprets the "star" in Numbers 24:17 to be associated with the Messiah. These astrologers (whom Shem-Tov calls "seers in the stars, linked to angelology") who came (to "confirm Yeshua's calling" before their own countrymen?), would notice this star that Herodus did not seem aware of. They may have been descendants of exiled priests from the tribe of Levi. One of their responsibilities was to appoint new kings, and since Parthia’s emperor, Phraates IV, had just killed off most rivals to his throne, and the ruling class there was also descended from King David, they may have been especially glad to find another male descendant of David’s royal bloodline now in existence, and may have even brought a delegation from other tribes of Israel with the thought in mind that he could qualify as one of their own rulers should the need arise. (Collins) 3. But Herodus the king was disturbed when he heard this; all of Jerusalem with him [were], too.
The Hebrew says he was filled with rage; in Aramaic, "he shook". And no wonder: Parthian entourages could number in the thousands—and that was just to accompany foreign dignitaries to their land. Josephus records that treasure caravans bringing expensive offering sto Yerushalayim from Jews living in Parthian territory had tens of thousands of escorts. A delegation of high Parthian officials in a camel caravan loaded with costly treasures would need to be escorted by a strong force of soldiers, as well as attendants. This would be very visible and impressive, and could appear to be an invasion force coming to besiege Yerushalayim and start a new war with the Romans, who had taken it from the Parthians only a generation before this. (Collins) 4. And, gathering all of the chief cohanim [priests] and Torah scribes of The People together, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.
Messiah: Heb., mashiach--"anointed one". The term applies in a broad sense to anyone selected for a special task (most often used of the Levitical priests), but in a special sense to one particular servant of YHWH who was in line to be the king in the Davidic dynasty. Writings from this period show that Messianic fervor was very high, partly because of the Roman occupation, but also because Daniel's prophecy indicated the precise time the Messiah was to be revealed, and it was close at hand. So when such a momentous entourage appeared, King Herodus feared the worst, assuming that a Jewish king would certainly take precedence over himself, as he was a "Jew" for pragmatic reasons only, and a descendant of Edom (Esau). His people, the Idumeans, had been forced to convert to Judaism during the Hasmonean (Maccabean) dynasty, and he had ascended to the throne through a deal made with the Romans. He knew that he was not a rightful king according to the conditions laid down by YHWH for David's royal line. Cohanim: priests, or "officiators" in Hebrew, usually over the sacrificial ceremonies in the Temple. Scribes: not just copyists, but in this era, the prominent students and teachers of the Torah, and those who would be familiar with where to quickly find such information. (Stern) 5. And they told him, "In Beyth-Lechem of Yehudah, for this is how it has been written by the prophet:
Beyth-Lechem: "House of Bread". Interestingly, Yeshua later referred to himself as the "Bread of Life". (Yochanan 6:35) The town is five miles southwest of Yerushalayim. 6. ‘As for you, Beyth-Lechem, Efrathah, in the land of Judea, though [you] are least among the clans of Yehudah, out of you shall come forth to Me one who is to rule in Israel.'"
Micha 5:2,; the Greek Septuagint reads "are few in number to be reckoned among the thousands of Yehudah". The Aramaic and Greek versions, as well as the DuTillet Heb., say, "you are by no means least as pertaining to the governors of Yehudah, for out of you..." The Aramaic targum (a contemporary translation in the near eastern lingua franca, which included a paraphrase of the interpretation most common in that day) adds "who will shepherd My people", which then appears in the Aramaic and Greek versions of Matthew. The targum also links this to Genesis 49:24, identifying it as a Messianic prophecy. Least: "insignificant" or "lightly esteemed". Clans: or "thousands", i.e., as in “rulers over hundreds and rulers over thousands” (Exodus 18:21), the arrangement Moshe had set up to determine whose jurisdiction one would be under should there be a dispute to settle. Efrathah: the fruitful part of Beyth-Lechem—i.e., not in the town itself. Micha 4:8 makes the location of his birth even more specific: the Tower of the Flock (Migdal Eder), whose site has been identified just south of Kibbutz Rahmat Rachel. The Mishnah tells us this tower was the limit of a perimeter around Yerushalayim within which sacrificial lambs sold by the priests for Temple use had to be born.7. Then secretly summoning the Magi, Herodus questioned them diligently as to the exact time the star had appeared [to them].
Questioned them diligently: Gk., "ascertained from them". Apparently it had been over a year but less than two years before that, judging by his actions in verse 16. 8. And, sending them to Beyth-Lechem, he said, "As you journey, search diligently for the little boy, and when you find[him], report back to me, so that I may come and pay him homage, too."
Little boy: old enough to no longer be called an infant. Herodus could have exploded in jealousy, asking how anyone dared to imagine that there was any other king there besides him, but apparently this huge entourage including so many soldiers intimidated him.
9. When they had heard the king's words, they departed. And, lo and behold, the star which they had seen in the east [kept] going on ahead of them until it had come and stood still over the place where the young boy was.
The word "star" in ancient cultures referred to any heavenly body. In 3 B.C. (apparently the year Herodus died), there was a series of conjunctions of Jupiter (identified by the Hebrews with Tzedeq or righteousness) and Venus (Nogah, or dawn-star, in Hebrew). Some of them took place within the constellation of Virgo--the Virgin (called Bethulah in Hebrew long before), who, incidentally, was seen as in a position of childbirth, faced by a dragon, and "crowned" by a cluster of stars--at a time when the moon was below her feet in the sky and the sun where her clothing would be (Rev. 12 calls this a sign in heaven, which is what Magi would be looking for). The Midrash Rabbah interprets Yeshayahu/Isa. 41:2 ("Who has raised up the Righteous one from the east? He called him to his foot...") to be saying the planet Tzedeq would illuminate the Messiah's path! Another conjunction took place in the constellation Leo, the Lion, calling up memories of the prophecies of the Lion of the Tribe of Yehudah. It was right beside the star Regulus (the Ruler) in the lion's forepaw, reminiscent of the prophecy in Gen. 49:10. Stood still over: or "stopped in front of". Avi ben Mordechai goes into great detail about the Hebrew names of these stars and planets and their connections to the Messiah in Jewish thought prior to this time in his book, Signs in the Heavens: A Jewish Messianic Perspective of the Last Days & Coming Millennium.10. And when they saw the star, they were extremely glad with exuberant joy,
Because earth revolves around the sun faster than Jupiter, it appeared to stop, reverse, then again move forward to a third conjunction, coming to an apparent standstill right over Beyth-Lechem! No wonder the Magi rejoiced when they saw the "star" again! In Aramaic, they "cheered a great cheer."11. and, having come into the house, they saw the child with his mother Miryam, and falling down, they bowed before him in homage. And opening their treasure-boxes, they presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Homage: deep-seated fealty to a king, especially one to be installed by YHWH himself. The three gifts symbolize his kingship, his priestly calling, and his death and burial for the sins of Israel. Gold often speaks of purity as well. Frankincense is a ground white spice required to garnish the grain offerings which had nothing to do with sin, but with drawing closer to YHWH. Indeed, in Aramaic, "gifts" here is the word used for the "drawing-near" offerings in the Temple. It is also one of the spices mixed into the special Temple incense which is not to be imitated anywhere else. Myrrh is a costly antiseptic balsam resin used as a perfume and for embalming.12. And while they were fast asleep, a messenger appeared to them, saying, "Beware of going back to Herodus in Yerushalayim." So they went back to their own country by another route.
13. And when they had departed, a messenger of YHWH appeared to Yosef in a dream, saying, "Get up, take the child and his mother with you, and escape into Egypt, and live there. That is where you must stay until I return [and tell] you, because Herodus is about to search for the child in order to kill him."
Kill him: Greek, "get him out of the way". Herodus would find anyone else—even a baby!--who was called “king of the Jews” to be a threat to his position. 14. So, being roused from sleep, he did as the messenger had told him and took the child and his mother by night, and withdrew into Egypt,
"Did as the messenger told him" does not appear in the Greek and Aramaic versions. 15. And he stayed there until Herodus' demise, so that what YHWH had spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled: "Out of Egypt I have called My Son."
The most literal reference of this quote from Hoshea 11:1 was to the whole nation of Israel, but this is in keeping with traditional Hebrew hermeneutics, in which there are four levels on which every Scripture can be validly interpreted. As in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 52-53, the Messiah is seen as a microcosm of all Israel, because, as a virgin-born second Adam he embodied the "firstfruits" of a second race of humanity, which parallels Avraham's being called out from his ancestral culture to form a completely new culture which ran counter to the direction the majority of humanity was taken. Whether by ancestry or adoption, all of his "descendants" will constitute Israel in the truest sense.16. Then Herodus became extremely furious, seeing that he had been tricked by the Magi, and he sent and had all the boys in Beyth-Lechem and all its environs who were two years of age or under put to death—according to the time which he had discerned from the Magi.
Tricked: "trifled with" or "deceived"; Aramaic, "mocked". Two years of age: A Jewish child in those days was considered a year old when born; after all, he has been alive for ten cycles of the moon. So this would translate to those under about one year to fourteen months old in modern terminology. Notice the parallels to the infancy of Moshe. (Exodus 1:15ff)17. Thus that which was spoken by Yirmeyahu the prophet (peace be upon him) was fulfilled, saying,
"Fulfilled" has more of the sense of "established" in Hebrew--i.e., not only brought to its fullest meaning, but also confirmed and rendered steadfast and sure--vindicating him as not having been a false prophet.18. "A voice will be heard in Ramah, wailing, bitter weeping, and great mourning—Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be comforted, because they were no more."
Ramah: Alone it means "height", but it was commonly used with another noun to describe different "heights". There was a Ramah not far from Beyth-Lechem, but the best-known is Ramathayim Tsofim, Shmuel the prophet's birthplace and the site of his tomb, though that is on the far side of Yerushalayim and the outcry would have to be miraculously loud if it were to reach so far. However, Beyth-Lechem was in Yehudah, which is not the tribal land of either of Rachel's sons, so what is the connection? Rachel was buried at Beyth-Lechem, "while there was still some ways to go to Efrath". (Gen. 35:16) Efrath (which means "fruitfulness") links us to the name Efrayim, which means "doubly fruitful". Ramah was in the hills of Efrayim, son of Yosef (1 Shmuel 1:1). And Efrayim (through Yarav’am, the king from that tribe) led the straying of the "Lost Sheep of the House of Israel" (cf. 10:6; Yirmeyahu 50:6), whom Y'shua specifically had come to regather from among the nations--which is specifically the context of the verses immediately surrounding Yirmeyahu 31:15, the passage quoted here! She is told to stop weeping, because they will return--thanks to the little boy who survived this massacre. (Compare Yeshayahu/Isaiah 49:20ff; 54:1-10)
19. But when Herodus had died, a messenger of YHWH appeared to Yosef in Egypt through a dream,
Nothing is said about Herodus trying to overtake or punish the Magi, which he might have done if there were only three of them, but he dared not anger Caesar by provoking the Parthian nobles, who had diplomatic immunity at this time, and his garrison might also not at that time been large enough to rival the Magi's military escort. However, Herodus, who was a firm ally of Augustus Caesar, died of a very painful intestinal disease a few months later (after having also slaughtered 3,000 Pharisees and two well-loved rabbis for instigating some Jewish youths to remove a statue of an eagle that the Romans had placed over the eastern gate to the Temple, so his cup was full). Also, Parthia’s emperor had died while the Magi were in Jerusalem, causing a leadership crisis on both sides, and only a year or two later there was a summit conference between Rome and Parthia on a neutral island in the middle of the Euphrates, narrowly averting a war between them, which might have been provoked in part by this first large military force to cross their line of truce in over 40 years. (Collins)
20. saying, "Get up, and take the child and his mother, and cross into the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child's life have died."
21. So he rose up and took the child and his mother with him, and came into the land of Israel.
Land of Israel: Stern points out that the Renewed Covenant does not call it Palestine, as the Romans did (in honor of the Filistines, to blot out the memory of Yehudah) and as so many still try to do today. 22. But hearing that Arkhelaos was now the ruler over Judea in place of his father Herodus, he was afraid to go there. And, being warned through a dream, he went instead into the region of the Galil,
Arkhelaos: also known as "Herod the Ethnarch", Herodus' elder son who reigned after his father, but without the title of king. He was a repressive tyrant as well, leading the Judean and Samaritan aristocracy to warn Caesar Augustus that there would be a major revolt unless he were removed from power. So he was deposed and banished, after which Judea no longer had even half-Jewish rulers, but prefects appointed by the roman emperor. Galil: or Galilee, some sixty miles north of Judea. A Jewish mystical authority writes: "In the time of the resurrection of the dead, many camps will arise in the Land of the Galil, because that is where the Messiah is going to be first revealed". (Zohar, Vayakhel 220a). Indeed he was!23. and came and settled in a city called Natzereth, to fulfill what the prophets had spoken: "He shall be called [a] ‘Natzereth.'"
Fulfill: here the Hebrew term means "fill up", i.e., give its fullest meaning. A Natzereth: A Natzereth: a derivative of netzer ("branch" as in Yeshayahu 11:1), a prophetic title for the Messiah. The Talmud (Bab., 'Sanh.,' 43a) gives an account of where five disciples of Yeshua the Nazarene (haNotzri), among them Netzer, are brought to the Sanhedrin for trial. Someone said to the judges, “Shall Netzer be slain? It is written, 'A branch (netzer) out of his roots shall bear fruit.’ They answered him, Yea, Netzer shall be slain. For it is written, 'But thou art cast forth away from thy sepulchre like an abominable branch'" (netzer, Isaiah 14:19). “It is evident that the Jews (1) connected this name closely with Yeshua the Nazarene just before mentioned, and (2) saw a connexion between it and "the Branch" of Isaiah 11:1. True that they rejected the disciple's application of the passage, but they did not reject the identity of the expressions.” (Pulpit Commentary) A midrash also says all Natzerenes would be called "despised" (cf. Yochanan 1:46)--an allusion to Psalm 22 and Yeshayahu 53:3. A similar Hebrew word "naatz" means "scorned". Also, Yeshayahu 49:7 speaks of his coming chiefly for the “Natzirim”—the Faithfully-guarded or Preserved ones of Israel. Yeshua said he had only come for the “lost sheep of the House of Israel” (the Northern Kingdom). Over 700 years earlier, YHWH had promised to sift the House of Israel (the “lost” tribes of the Northern Kingdom), yet said not one would fall to the ground. (Amos 9:9) YHWH would not lose track of a single one! At that time, Natzereth, situated on a cliff overlooking the Yezre'el Valley near Mt. Tavor, was the tiny suburb (a branch or offshoot?) of a large, up-and-coming city called Tzippori (Sepphoris), and no definite archaeological remains from that period have even been found there.
CHAPTER 3
1. Now in those days, Yochanan the [ritual] immerser made his appearance in the Judean desert as a herald,
Ritual immersion (tvilah) is used on many occasions to signify a change in spiritual status, most commonly when ending a period of ritual uncleanness to again be eligible to participate in the Temple services. A complete immersion, even of the hair, is required in order to correctly present a picture of death and resurrection to a new status. The one who administers it does not physically immerse the person, but acts as a witness that the person has immersed himself properly and fully.
2. proclaiming, "Repent! For the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near!"
Repent: Heb., accomplish a turnaround in your lives. The timing of this call was very significant, as it was at the beginning of a season that prefigures the Kingdom as a rehearsal each year. (See note on v. 11; 4:2) Has drawn near: Shem Tov Heb., is about to come; Aramaic, approaches, or, is being offered, which correlates with 11:14. When Jews of that day heard this, they would not just think of a spiritual salvation; it brought to mind the time when "YHWH will be King over all the earth" (Zech. 14:9)the Golden Age of Israel, when Yerushalayim will be the capital of the entire world, the Messiah will rule from there, and there will be peace enforced by a rod of iron. The exiled tribes will be regathered (for "repent" also means "return"), and perfect justice done at every level. YHWH will judge the Nations, and Gentiles will come to worship him in Yerushalayim. But in order to be its subjects, men must prepare the way through repentance, purifying ourselves with the materials He has given, in order to form a clean, holy dwelling place for the King who deserves no less:3. For this is the one who was spoken of by Yeshayahu the prophet, when he said: "The voice of one crying out in the transitional land, 'Prepare YHWH's road! Make His pathways straight!'"
The quote is from Yeshayahu/Isaiah 40:3. Transitional land: Heb., Aravah, the Rift Valley along the Yarden River, which extends southward beyond the Dead Sea, all the way to the Reed Sea. This region is indeed where Yochanan was immersing. Prepare: or grade, level off.
4. Now Yochanan himself had his clothing made of camel's hair, and a belt of leather around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.
Locusts: probably carob beans, which have the same Greek name as the insect, and were commonly the food of those taking the Nazirite vow and are found in that region, though the latter is one of only three insects that are kosher. Wild honey: from date palms, or carob syrup, which is called "forest syrup” and was even called "St. John's Bread". Heb., honey of the forest. 5. Then [the people of] Yerushalayim and all of Yehudah and all the region around the Yarden River went out to him,
Yehudah: the tribe that constitutes the Jews in the most proper sense, and Judea, their territory.
6. and were ritually immersed under his [supervision] in the Yarden, openly acknowledging their sins.
Under his supervision: immersion (Greek, baptism) then was not something done by another person; that was a practice of Mithraism, a religion common among Roman soldiers. A kosher immersion is done by the person himself, with a witness to assure him that every part of his body, including all of his hair, has gone under the water three times. The Shem Tov Hebrew text says, “were immersing because of his word”.7. But seeing many of the P’rushim and Tz’duqim coming to his miqveh, he said to them, "You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?
P’rushim: or Pharisees, the most influential religious sect of the day. They were the lay successors of the Hasidim, or "loyal ones", who rigorously applied the Torah to all of life. They accepted the Oral Torah as YHWH's Word, and so added many fences to the written Torah, but tried to keep them practicable. Their name means "separated ones", as they would not eat with someone who did not tithe. Their rival sects ceased to be viable after the Temple's destruction, so their interpretation of the Torah prevailed and developed, via the Talmud, into the rabbinic Judaism of today. Tz’duqim [or Sadducees]: the arch-rivals of the P’rushim, who recognized only the five books of Moshe as scripture, and (at least the Boethusian sect) did not believe in anything supernatural, such as the resurrection of the dead, unless they found a direct reference to it in the Torah. Miqveh: ritual immersion site. A miqveh must have flowing water, so what better place than a shallow river? Offspring of vipers: possibly an allusion to the “seed of the serpent” spoken of in Gen. 3:15, who the prophecy said would bruise him. Who warned you: i.e., This is a holy act; were you invited? Wrath: Heb, heat of anger. (Compare vv. 10, 12.) 8. "Produce fruits worthy of repentance, then!
9. "And don't imagine you can tell yourself, 'We have Avraham as our father.' For I tell you, YHWH can raise up children to Avraham from 'these stones'!
These stones: Probably the stones Yehoshua had set up when the
Israelites first crossed the Yarden into the Promised Land (Deut. 27:4;
Yehoshua 4:6-7), since this was the same location Beyth-Avarah: the
"place of crossing over". (Yochanan. 1:28) Children to Avraham: Shem
Tov, “His son Avraham”. In Hebrew, the words for sons and stones both
come from the same root, meaning to build up. 10.
"Rather, even now the axe is already laid at the root of the trees;
therefore, any tree that does not produce worthy fruit is cut down and
thrown into the fire.
The
Shem Tov Hebrew text adds, “Many asked him, ‘What shall we do?’ And he
answered them, ‘Cause no man anxiety, do not exact money from them
wrongfully, and be pleased with your lot.’ And all the people were
considering and likening in their circumcised heart that Yochanan was
Yeshua.” (As in Luke 3:14) Worthy fruit: Aramaic, graced fruit.
11.
"I indeed immerse you with water into repentance, but the One coming
after me is stronger than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He
will immerse you with the Spirit of Holiness and with fire,
Indeed: Heb, only. Into repentance: i.e., to initiate repentance, for Shem Tov’s version says “in the days of repentance” (t’shuvah),
i.e., the traditional 40 days immediately preceding Yom Kippur. (This
takes on great significance in 4:2.) Stronger: innately more forceful,
as the fire suggests. Compare Malachi 3:1. Carry sandals: an especially
lowly duty of slaves. Worthy: or simply, able. Heb., the thong of whose
sandal I am not worthy to unfasten. (As in Yoch. 1:27; compare the note
on v. 10. It appears likely that all of the Gospels selected from this
Hebrew version when the Greek version was being written. Could this be
the missing “Q” document, which stands for Quelle, the German word for
“source”, from which textual critics have long theorized at least three
of them were derived?) And with fire: Heb., the fire of the Spirit of
Being Set Apart.12.
"whose winnowing fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his
[threshing] floor, and will gather his wheat into the barn, but the
chaff he will burn with fire that cannot be put out."
Winnowing:
tossing grain that has been threshed (had the hull loosened by gently
beating) up into the air where the wind can separate them. It symbolizes
teaching the truth in such a way that the Spirit (the same as wind in
both Greek and Hebrew) can enable us to discern between the weighty
(important) and the useless. The Temple was built on a threshing floor
that David purchased (1 Chron. 21:22; 2 Chron. 3:1), and the Messiah
would indeed cleanse the Temple. (Yochanan 2:16) His wheat: compare 1
Cor. 10:17. Fire that cannot be put out: Gk., asbestos; this word has
somehow come to mean the opposite of the original sense of
“unquenchable”!
13. Just then Yeshua came to Yochanan at the Yarden River from the Galil to be immersed under his [supervision].
Just then: during the “days of repentance” (v. 11), which include Yom T’ruah, the day of trumpet-blasts and shouting. Yeshua said the Psalms, too, spoke of him. (Luke 24:44ff) Tradition says Yoseyf was released from prison and elevated to second-in-command on Yom T’ruah (a new moon festival—compare Psalm 81:3-5), foreshadowing Yeshua’s immersion and subsequent recognition as king of Israel (v. 17 as interpreted by the Evyonites), reporting only to the Father, at this same time of year. (Ben Mordechai)
14.
But Yochanan tried to prevent him from doing so, saying, "I am the one
who needs to be immersed by You! Why are You coming to me?"
Tried to prevent him: Heb., was doubtful about.
15.
But Yeshua answered him, "Allow it to be this way for now, for it is
fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness in this way." So he let him
come.
Fitting: Heb., an obligation. YHWH had commanded that a priest had to
wash before beginning his service. (Ex. 29:4) Y’shua was the right age
to begin his service (Num. 4:3) as the Priest after the order of
Melkhitzedeq. (Psalm 110:4) He nowhere commanded immersion as such, only
the washing of the whole body, but “us” may refer to Yochanan and
Yeshua together. Righteousness: put more simply, doing what is right or
keeping the balance. In Torah, the king is subordinate to the priest, so
Yeshua was placing himself under Yochanan’s authority since his job was
to restore the proper order to Israel, even if he may have been more
righteous than Yochanan, for this was a pattern that had to outlast both
of their lifetimes.16.
And just after he had been immersed, Yeshua came up out of the water,
and, lo and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the
Spirit of YHWH descending like a dove and alighting upon him.
Like
a dove: Heb., in the likeness of a dove. This was in fulfillment of
Yeshayahu 11:2, which says “the Spirit of YHWH will alight upon him—the
spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the
spirit of knowledge and the fear of YHWH.”
17. And behold, a voice came out of the heavens, saying, "This is My Son, the Beloved, in whom I have found delight."
My Son, the Beloved: compare how YHWH described Yitzhaq to Avraham in
Gen. 22:2. I have found delight: Heb., My soul is pleased. In every
instance but one in the Talmud, such a “Bath Kol”
(as a voice from heaven was often called) was recognized as an
authoritative sign of heaven’s validation. (The one exception was a case
where an influential man’s opinion was stubbornly followed despite this
evidence to the contrary.)CHAPTER 4
1. Then Yeshua was led by the Spirit up into the desert to be tempted by the Adversary.
Adversary: Greek, diabolos (devil); Hebrew, Satan: accuser or adversary. In modern Hebrew the term is used for a prosecuting attorney.
2. He fasted 40 days and 40 nights, and afterwards he was starving.
Since
the Hebrew version says that the day he was immersed was the beginning
of the season of repentance (3:11), this period would culminate in the
day the whole nation was fasting, Yom Kippur. The body can feed off
stored reserves for up to 40 days only, then it begins consuming its own
tissue as food. This—when at his lowest ebb physically--is the time
when the tempter came to him, so that no one could ever say they were
tempted beyond what he had experienced. (1 Cor. 10:13) Moshe and Eliyahu
also fasted 40 days to prepare for momentous spiritual events. The
Judean wilderness was not a forest! It is beautiful, but a desert
nonetheless. The ancient pilgrims used to sing songs as they came up a
deep canyon to Jerusalem from the wilderness. Y'shua actually gained
strength here for the many stresses of the ministry that he would face.
He had to come aside and speak at length with YHWH to prepare for it.
3.
Then, approaching him, the Tempter said, "If You are the Son of Elohim,
why not [just] tell these stones to turn into bread?"
But
there is another aspect to this. “Son of Elohim” is a title for the
king in the royal line of David. (2 Shmu’el 7:14) The adversary—whether
the “demon on his left shoulder” or simply his own mind, which is often
one’s worst enemy—was tempting him to take this further than the
idiomatic level to the wrong way many others later interpreted the
phrase, and telling him to make some “manna”! It was less a temptation
to turn the stones into bread than to think that he could—that is, think
he was greater than he truly was. Y’shua’s answer shows that he
realizes what is going on and that he recognizes his limitations:
4.
But answering, he said, "It has been written, ‘Not on bread alone will a
man stay alive, but on every word that proceeds through YHWH's mouth.'"
[Dvarim/Deuteronomy 8:3]
By
admitting that he is only a man, though anointed for a special
position, he shuts the enemy down, because he will not play his game.
Notice the pun on the Hebrew definition of “wilderness” (midbar)
as “the place of words”. One of those words was that everyone fast on
Yom Kippur, so he had to at least wait until the day was over to eat. So
he will not use his position to do his own will even when hungry.
Whoever he is, he knows he is not to be about his own hungers but about
YHWH’s word. The purpose of the wilderness is to learn to eat what YHWH
actually provides (v. 11), not be our own provision. The Shem Tov
version includes only the first phrase of the quote, a common Hebrew
style of allusion to the whole. (Also in v. 6.)
5. Then the Adversary took him to the Holy City, and stood him on the wing of the Temple,
Holy
City: Some Hebrew mss. Simply say Yerushalayim. Wing: a pointed
extremity, in this case the corner of Herodus' complex; compare Daniel
9:27. The term is used of four corners of a garment, and a place of
YHWH’s special protection, which is what the Temple is, and haSatan
highlights this. The Shem Tov text has, “the highest point in all the
Temple”.
6.
and told him, "If You are the Son of Elohim, jump off, because it is
written, 'He shall give His angels charge concerning you, so that you
won't stub your foot against a stone.'" [Psalm 91:11]
The
southwestern corner of the Temple complex at that time was above a
market area on the outside that would be bustling with commerce, and he
would be noticed by huge crowds. About 32 years later, Y’shua’s brother
Yaaqov (James) would be pushed to his death off the same spot,
precipitating the ousting of the then-high priest because of public
outrage. Son of Elohim: the Shem Tov text leaves out “son of”. This
would constitute the same type of misquoting that the accuser did with
Chawwah.
7. Yeshua said to him, "It has been written elsewhere, 'You shall not put YHWH your Elohim to the test.'" [Deut. 6:16]
8.
Again the Adversary took him to an extremely lofty mountain, and showed
him all the kingdoms of the world with their magnificence.
Magnificence:
splendor, or the esteem that their subjects would give him. Note the
parallels between Chawwah’s (and Adam’s) temptation and Yeshua’s (Gen.
3): casting doubt on Elohim’s words, then twisting them, and the appeal
to the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and prestige. (1 Yochanan 2:16)
9. And he told him, "I will give you all of these if you fall down and worship me."
They
were his to give since he had tricked Adam out of his dominion over
earth. Instead Yeshua chose to redeem them legitimately. Satan had the
right to kill every sinner. But Yeshua did not deserve death, so in
dying he made Satan legally a murderer, thus stripping him of all his
rights--though his de facto reign continues until Yeshua returns to
reclaim his kingdom.
10.
Then Yeshua said to him, "Get out of here, Satan! For it has been
written, 'It is YHWH your Elohim that you shall worship, and you shall
serve him only."
11. Then the Adversary left him, and behold, messengers came near and attended to him.
Compare
Eliyahu’s experience in 1 Kings 9:15. The feast of Sukkoth is such a
respite of joy that follows hard on the heels of the agonies of
confession at Yom Kippur.
12. But when he heard that Yochanan had been taken into custody, Yeshua withdrew into the region of the Galil.
Yochanan
was imprisoned at the Makhaeros, a mountaintop fortress across the Dead
Sea from the Judean Desert where Yeshua had spent these forty days. He
undoubtedly waited until after the pilgrimage to Yerushalayim at Sukkoth
was over.
13. And leaving Natzeret, he settled in Kfar Nahum beside the Lake, in the tribal lands of Zevulun and Nafthali,
Kfar
Nahum means “Village of Consolation”. It is on the north side of the
Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinnereth, which means “harp”, owing to its shape).
Today it is only a ruin with churches built as memorials.
14. so that what Yeshayahu the prophet had said might be fulfilled:
15. “Land of Zevulun and land of Nafthali...highway of the sea, beyond the Yarden, the Galil of the Gentiles:
“Land of Zevulun and land of Nafthali...highway of the sea, beyond the Yarden, the Galil of the Gentiles: Zevulun’s
land extends from Mt. Tavor to the Qishon River near Mt. Karmel
(Yehoshua 19:11-12). It included Natzereth, in the Lower Galil.
Nafthali’s land was the Upper Galil, from Mt. Tavor along the Lake and
the Yarden River to Israel’s northern border. (Yehosh. 19:32ff) Its
proximity to Gentile regions also made it an inroad for idolatry. Galil:
or Galilee, a mountainous region west of Lake Kinnereth, separated from
Yehudah/Judea by Samaria, with the Yizreel Valley as its southern
boundary.
16.
The people who have sat in darkness have seen a great Light, and to
those who have sat in the region and shadow of death, to them Light
sprang up!” [Yeshayahu 9:1-2]
The people who have sat in darkness have seen a great Light, and to
those who have sat in the region and shadow of death, to them Light
sprang up!” [Yeshayahu 9:1-2]Who have sat: Heb., who walk.
17. From then on, Yeshua began to proclaim and to say, "Repent! For the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!"
Yeshua
began: now that Yochanan was incarcerated, and no one would think they
were in competition with each other, as so many rabbis of that day were.
(Yochanan 4:1-3) "The Heavens" was often a euphemism used to avoid
accidentally misusing YHWH's holy name, much as HaShem ("The Name") is
used among today's Jews. Ardent expectation of this restoration of both
David's and Adam's thrones took a variety of forms in Y’shua's day,
chiefly because the date when Daniel (9:25) prophesied the Messiah would
appear was fast approaching. He did accomplish the redemption, but the
restoration of the Kingdom to Israel (Acts of the Envoys 1:6) was
delayed because the spiritual leaders, more interested in their own
positions of power, failed to recognize the day Daniel had specified
(Lk. 19:44), and the descendants of the Northern Kingdom had to be
regathered first. The present, inward rule of the Holy Spirit is a "down
payment" (Eph. 1:1314) of what is to come—a physical, not just
spiritual, kingdom.
18.
And, while walking beside the Sea of Galilee, Yeshua noticed two
brothers, Shim'on (who was nicknamed "the Rock"), and his brother
Andreas, casting a net into the "Sea", because they were fishermen.
The
Rock: Greek, Petros; its Hebrew form, Kefa, is given in Yochanan 1:42.
“Sea”: it is really only a lake, seven miles by fourteen miles at its
widest points.
19. And he said, "Come after Me, and I will make you into people who fish for men!"
20. And, leaving their nets behind, they immediately followed him.
Leaving behind: This fulfills the second part of Yirmiyahu’s prophecy, that at some point the fishing will be over, and it will be time to hunt. Compare Y’shua’s parable of the dragnet in 13:47ff. In the process of finding them, other kinds of fish were pulled in too, which, in a roundabout way, fulfilled his desire that Israel be a light to all nations. But they also had to be sorted out, for unclean creatures, unfit for consumption, are also drawn in with the kosher fish.
21. Going on from there, he saw another pair of brothers, Yaaqov and Yochanan, in the rowable sailboat with their father Zavdiel, repairing their nets. And he called to them.
Yaaqov: often called James. Yochanan: Anglicized as John. Their mother, Shlomey, was probably the sister of Y’shua’s mother Miryam. (27:56; Mk. 15:40; Yoch. 19:25) Zavdiel means “Elohim is my endowment”. The Greek uses the truncated form, “Zebedee” (without the “El”).
22. And, leaving the boat and their father, they followed him right away.
Compare Eliyahu’s call of Elisha. (1 Kings 19:19ff; Luke 14:26)
23. And Yeshua went all around the Galil, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Glad News of the arrival of the Kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and illness among the people.
These miracles were signs that foreshadow the conditions that will take place on a far wider scale when the Kingdom comes in its fullness. (Yeshayahu 29:18)
24. And the news about him spread into all of Syria, and they brought him all those who were sick, suffering from various diseases and torments; those who were demon-possessed as well, and the mentally ill, and those who were paralyzed, and he healed them.
Syria: Aram, while the du Tillet Hebrew has the similar word “Am”, which means “the people”, which is more likely. On the other hand, at that time the province of Syria included the area immediately north of here, which is Lebanon. One reason there were so often sick people around the Lake may have been because people came from as far away as Egypt and Rome to the hot springs at Tiberias and Hamat Gader, but not all found this adequate to cure their ills, and so flocked to this much-heralded Healer. Mentally ill: possibly epileptics. Some of these diseases had spiritual causes; others had physical. (See note on 8:31.) Demons (Heb., shedim) are wicked, oppressive, destructive spirits. They are rarely mentioned in the Torah; it is possible that a Greek cultural outlook or the overly-spiritualized Judaism of the day predisposed people to credit more things to demons than to prevailing human philosophies that made people unbalanced, epilepsy, or the psychological results of a stubborn heart that precipitate many similar conditions in people’s bodies.
25. And many who saw it followed him—from the Galil and the Ten Cities and Jerusalem, and Judea, and beyond the Yarden.
Many who saw it: or crowds, but there is a Hebrew word with only a difference in suffix that means townspeople or bystanders. (Bivin & Blizzard) The Ten Cities:Gk., Decapolis, a Gentile trading zone southeast of the Lake, including present-day Amman, Jordan (known then as Philadelphia). All but Skythopolis (Beth Shean) were east of the Yarden River.
CHAPTER 5
1. When he saw the crowds, he went up into the mountain and sat down, and his disciples came and sat near him.
Disciples: Heb., talmidim, which better describes the wholehearted following many gave to their rabbis, aiming to learn to be like them. (10:24-25)
2. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,
Them: probably not the crowds (which he was trying to avoid), but his disciples. This may not have been a “sermon” to the masses. Like Moshe, he brought only those who would be leaders up the mountain and taught them what they would then pass on to the rest of his followers.
3. "’The afflicted of spirit' are on the right track, for of them is [composed] the Realm of Heaven's rule.
After giving the Ten Commandments, Moshe also started by speaking of the weakest members of society. (Ex. 21) On the right track: often rendered “blessed”, but a different word in Hebrew. This one means not having a warm, fuzzy feeling, but being satisfied because they are “on a straight road” and “making progress”. In the context of Y’shua’s coming only for the “Lost Sheep of the House of Israel”, this means much to one who is trying to find the road back home. The Hebrew word most often rendered “bless” means “to bend the knee”. It is thus easy to see how we can bless YHWH. But how does He bless us? By bending down to our level as a father does to his small child, like YHWH’s tender dealings with Efrayim when he was a young child, and the way He will again treat those who repent when they realize how far afield they have gone. (Hoshea 11:1; Yirmiyahu 31:20) Rabbi Moshe Koniuchowski notes that this whole passage, on a deeper level, is about the reversal of the curses in Hoshea 1 and the restoration of those Lost Sheep (the Northern Kingdom which had left the covenant). Afflicted of spirit: an allusion to Yeshayahu 66:2, which says, “This is the one to whom I will pay attention: the humble and afflicted of spirit, who even trembles when I speak.” Yeshua is inviting the “void of spirit”, who for over 750 years have not been a nation, to come back to the abundant life of being the people of Israel. (Yochanan 10:10)
4. "Those who mourn are on the right track, because they will be comforted.
Mourn: bewail their sins in repentance. Shem-Tov: Those who wait (long for, delay for the sake of what one is waiting for). The second curse needing reversal is “No pity” (Hoshea 1:6). Yeshua loosed his unfaithful bride from the curses by dying, so that she could remarry the “new man” who he arose to be. Those who turn from their former ways and return with weeping over their lost condition will find his arms open wide like the father of the prodigal son.
5. "The meek are on the right track, because they will inherit the Land.
Meek: those whose power is under control, throwing away their boastfulness and, with dignity, submitting to the benevolent Elohim. (The French translate it “debonair”!) This is an allusion to Psalm 37:11, and thus to that entire Psalm, which speaks of waiting patiently for YHWH’s timing, since “in just a little while, the wicked will be no more.” Land: can mean “earth”, but all the earth will come up to worship in Yerushalayim during the Messianic Kingdom (Zech. 14:16-19) Compare the juxtaposition of mourning with the Land in Zech. 12:10-14. Shem-Tov: “Blessed are the poor/needy”.
6. "Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness are on the right track, for they will be filled.
Those who are far from home in exile are starving to be back in covenant with YHWH again. When we desire and seek him with all of our heart, He will let himself be found by us. (Yirmiyahu 29:13; compare Yeshayahu 55:1-2; Yochanan 6:48-51.)
7. "The merciful are on the right track, because they will obtain mercy.
The flip side is, “Judgment is without mercy to those who have shown no mercy.” (Yaaqov 2:13) Importantly, this is in a letter that, like this context (especially v. 17-19), emphasizes the importance of obeying the letter of the Torah. But mercy is one of the “weightier matters” in the spirit behind the letter. (23:23) For they shall obtain mercy: Aramaic, upon their being befriended.
8. "The pure in heart are on the right track, because they will see YHWH."
Pure in heart: Shem-Tov Heb., innocent of heart. See Psalm 24:3-4, which also speaks of ascending a mountain, the Temple Mount, which is probably why Y’shua used this particular act to open his discourse. See YHWH: perceive His working in even the less-enjoyable details. Also compare Psalms 51:10; 73:11.
9. The peacemakers are on the right track, for they will be called 'sons of Elohim'.
Peacemakers: Shem-Tov Heb., those who pursue peace (which Psalm 34:14 links with forsaking evil). Sons of Elohim: those who are doing what He wants done. But this is also a direct allusion to Hoshea 1:10—again, referring specifically to the Northern Kingdom. Y’shua is priming these messengers to go find them.
10. "Those persecuted because of their righteousness are on the right track, because it is they who make up the Kingdom of Heaven.
Compare 1 Kefa 3:14.
11. "How on the right track you are whenever they insult you and hunt you down and tell all kinds of malicious lies about you on account of Me.
12. "Be glad and jump for joy, because your reward is great in the Heavens! Because this is the way they mistreated the prophets who came before you.
Compare Yeshayahu 66:10. Here it is easiest to see that true “happiness” has nothing to do with “happenstance”, but refers to a deep inner knowledge that all is going according to YHWH’s plan.
13. "You are the earth's salt. But if the salt becomes tasteless, with what will the world be salted?
The earth’s salt: For a time, you will preserve the world from becoming totally corrupt. Becomes tasteless: Shem-Tov Heb., is neutralized; Aramaic, stales. It can be ground up finer and finer, yet is still always salt. Neither heat nor water can destroy it. The only thing that can is another chemical agent; then there is nothing we can add to salt to make it salty again. So how can salt lose its savor? Only by sitting idle for long periods. Salt was actually enough of a prized commodity in Roman times that soldiers received it as payment, for the term “salary” comes from the word for “salt”. A worker was said to be “worth his salt”. But it was usually paid out in chunks, and one would not grind up a portion of it until it was ready to be used, so that the rest would maintain its flavor. The context for Y’shua’s calling us “the salt of the earth” was persecution. (5:10ff) If we undergo His grinding up (compare Luke 20:18), we must put what it teaches us into practice right away, or its purpose will be lost. If we do it right the first time so that it does not need to be repeated, its effect will last forever. But the context of Luke’s version of this statement (14:34) seems more of an allusion to the military aspect of salting the ground around a conquered city (see Judges 9:45) to prevent crops from being grown there again. If we cannot destroy the productivity of Y’shua’s enemies, we are not useful to him.
14. "You are the light of the world. A city situated on a mountain can't be hidden!
You are the light of the world: He made this same claim for himself in Yochanan 8:12 (based on Yeshayahu 49:6). We share his calling and are to complete what he began, and we, his Bride and his Body, will ultimately even share his name. (Yirm. 23:6; 33:16; 1 Yoch. 3:2) A city: Ts'fat, atop a high hill, is clearly visible from this Lake in the direction his audience would have been facing as he spoke. But he is also alluding to Yerushalayim, which will one day be on the highest mountain in the region. (Mikha 4:1) Israel as a whole is at the crossroads of the world, through which all kinds of people from three continents passed, strategically situated because YHWH does not want truth kept in a corner, but spread in all directions. Torah is not a mystery religion; it is practical in improving the lives of everyone it touches, so it is not meant to be kept a secret.
15. "And nobody lights a lantern and then puts it underneath a measuring-basket, but up on a lampstand, and it gives light to everyone who is in the house.
Besides, it would burn up the basket! Shem-Tov Heb., a hidden place where it cannot shine. Lampstand: Heb., menorah—the very symbol of Israel because we are about overcoming darkness with light. Most religion creates dark ages, and fears being tested or challenged, but Torah is about enlightenment and undoing the disorder because the facts can be seen. In the house: not necessarily those outside, but those who care enough to come looking for the truth.
16. "In the same way, let your light shine in front of [other] people, so they can see your honorable works, and may give [the proper] weight to your Father who is in Heaven.
Our works are the light that points others to him. (Eph. 2:10) And our works must be based on the Torah:
17. "Do not imagine that I have come to abolish the Torah or the prophets; I have not come to destroy them, but to fulfill them.
I have come: a Hebrew idiom for “my purpose is”. Fulfill: to give them their fullest meaning: as seen by the rest of this discourse, where he expands on the common interpretations of his day, not to be a troublemaker, but to get to the heart of the matter—though many people are offended by this, but that is their fault. "Fulfill" (or complete) was also a technical term used by rabbis to describe a correct interpretation, which "established" it. He reveals what YHWH really intended by the commandments by setting forth specific cases--a common rabbinic method. In Mattithyahu he reiterates and/or amplifies on every one of the ten commandments.
18. "I tell you, be confident that until the heavens and earth pass away, not one yodh nor one taga will by any means pass away from the Torah until all things come to pass.
Yodh: the smallest Hebrew letter, but he is saying it is crucial nonetheless, because to leave one out would change the meaning completely. Taga: a diacritic notation over some letters to add nuances of intonation. Du Tillet Heb., one hook—often identified as the stroke that makes the distinction between the letters resh and dalet. To add to or take away from the Torah makes it impossible to keep (Deut. 4:2), because it would destroy the perfect balance of all aspects of truth; changing one letter (and thus a whole word) would make us misinterpret the whole commandment. Also, there are mathematical wonders woven into the numeric value of the Hebrew words, and changing a letter would completely change the equation. Aramaic (Peshitta), stroke. Not all have yet come to fulfillment yet, so none can be dispensed with. Until: Shem-Tov Heb., because all will be fulfilled.
19. "So whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments, and teaches other people to do the same, will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever practices and teaches them, that person will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven,
Teachers of others incur the stricter judgment. (Yaaqov/James 3:1) Compare Deuteronomy 4:2.
20. "because I tell you, unless your righteousness goes beyond that of the scribes and Prushim, there's no way you're going to enter the Kingdom of the Heavens.
Beyond the Prushim: A shocking statement, because to most they appeared to be the epitome of righteousness in their day. But he called them lawless at heart (23:28), though they claimed to be keeping the Torah better than anyone around them. You have to do better than they, he says. Their interpretation is on faulty footing. (7:26-27) He is setting the Torah back on its original foundation. Shem-Tov: greater than the Prushim and the sages.
21. "You've heard that the ancients were told, 'Do not commit murder!' and 'Whoever murders will be liable to the court.'
Shem-Tov Heb., Have you not heard? This takes away the element of antagonism to the commandment that some hear in the traditional rendering. "In this command I heard..." followed by "You must instead say..." was a common rabbinic way of discussing the interpretation of Scripture. Thus through this formula, he was saying, "You have literally understood Torah this way, and rightly so, but this is inadequate; it also means...” (See 23:23) Not every quote he alludes to is Scriptural; some is from human tradition. Rather than seeing the Torah as a set of outward, measurable acts, he demands obedience in motive as well:
22. "But I tell you, everyone who is angry with his brother without good reason also deserves to go before the court. And whoever says to his brother, 'You goodfornothing!' will be liable to the [religious] high court; but whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to be thrown into the fiery Valley of Hinnom.
Brother: one within the flock of Israel; David guiltlessly said worse things than this about true enemies of YHWH and the nation. (e.g., Psalm 137) Good-for-nothing: Aramaic: "I spit on you!" Heb.,“You evil one”. High court: Heb., council of the assembly. Fool: Aram., "brutish, abnormal”. Valley of Hinnom: corrupted into the Greek “Ge-henna”, where the idol Molech had been worshipped by making infants pass through its fiery hands. It was so abhorrent that the valley was later considered unworthy to be used for anything more noble than burning garbage. Like the prophets before him, Yeshua uses this valley to illustrate the reward of the wicked, because fires were kept burning there day and night.
23. "So if you are offering your gift to YHWH at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,
24. "leave your gift there in front of the altar, and go, be reconciled to your brother first, and then come back and offer your gift.
On the Day of Atonement it is said that the sacrifices only absolve one's guilt before YHWH; to be fully forgiven one must satisfy the one he wronged. Be reconciled to: Shem-Tov. Heb., appease him.
25. "Come to terms quickly with anyone who accuses you, while you are still on the way to the court with him, so he won't hand you over to the judge, and the judge in turn hand you over to the officer, and you won't be thrown into prison.
26. "I really mean it, you'll never get out until you pay the last quarter of a cent!
27. "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'Do not commit adultery'. [Ex. 20:14; Deut. 5:18]
28. "However, I tell you, everybody who looks at a woman for the purpose of lusting after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
The damage may not seem as great, but the thought proves the potential sin is waiting in us for a foothold. Chastity in thought also takes us further from the likelihood of the deed itself, writes Chilton. The main point is not the fine line of just when it begins to be lust, or what we have or have not been guilty of. he is showing through these clarifications that righteousness goes far beyond outward deeds; even our inner-most thoughts are far from what they should be; we need not just a change of habits, but a new heart which he came to bring. Lusting: Shem-Tov Heb., coveting her (the real sin is wanting what is not yours).
29. "So if even your right eye is a snare to you, pull it out and throw it away from you—because it is more to your advantage if one part of your body is lost to you instead of your whole body being thrown into the Valley of Hinnom.
Right eye: go to the harshest measures in order to root sin out of your life. Right eye can be a Hebrew idiom for the one among you who is most generous. Many congregations hesitate to discipline their biggest tithers! But what a price we will pay if we do not. Causes you to sin: Heb., seduces you.
30. "And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and thrown it away from you—because it is better for you if one part of your body is lost instead of your whole body being thrown into the Valley of Hinnom.
Right hand: a Hebrew idiom for one in the highest power or authority. Even such a one must be cut off (a Hebrew idiom for being put outside the camp, i.e., out from under the protection of the community, as in 1 Cor. 5:5) if he leads others to sin, for this is evidence that he is unclean (a symbol of being selfish).
31. "It was also said, 'Whoever divorces his wife must give her a certificate stating that he is forsaking her.' [Deut. 24:1]
Forsaking: or releasing. At that time, if a bill of divorce was worded incorrectly, it was considered invalid, but a wife remained abandoned while awaiting her official papers, while a man was technically free to have several wives. One could even divorce a wife for being loud-mouthed! Y’shua condemned this double standard by holding the man responsible as well. Shem-Tov Heb.: “Whoever leaves his wife and divorces her…”
32. "But I tell you, whoever divorces his wife at all, except in the case of unfaithfulness, makes her commit adultery, and anyone who marries the divorced woman also commits adultery.
In the case of infidelity a marriage vow has already been in fact broken. (19:9) Shem-Tov Heb.: “And I say to you that everyone who leaves his wife is to give her a written divorce document. But concerning adultery, he is the one who commits adultery, and whoever takes her commits adultery.” ” I.e., (per Shem-Tov version of v. 31), one should not (as was commonly the practice by those who, like in Mal’akhi 2:15-16, hesitated to allow the woman her freedom) deal treacherously with one’s wife by both failing to provide for her and refusing to allow her to come under the covering of someone else, just because of spiteful feelings against her. (If he were to send her away without a certificate of divorce, she is not free to marry another man.)
33. "Again you have heard that the ancients were told, 'You shall not lie when under oath, but you shall make good on the vows you make to YHWH.' [Lev. 19:12; Num. 30:2; Deut. 23:21]
Lie when under oath: Shem-Tov Heb., swear by My Name falsely.
34. "But I tell you not to swear falsely at all—neither by Heaven, because it is Elohim's throne,
Not to swear falsely at all: or, in vain in any matter--Shem-Tov Heb., in contrast with the Greek, which leaves out the word “falsely”, causing an unnecessary contradiction with the many passages in the Torah which tell us that it is YHWH’s Name in which we should swear. (Deut. 6:13; 10:20 et al) 23:16-22 throws much light on the point Y’shua was making. (Nehemia Gordon)
35. "nor by the earth, because it is “His footstool” [Yeshayahu 66:1], nor by Yerushalayim, because it is “the city of the Great King.” [Psalm 48:2]
36. "And don't swear by your own head either, because you can't even make one hair turn white or black.
How, then, could we guarantee larger matters?
37. "Rather, all you need to say is 'Yes' if you mean 'Yes', and 'No' if you mean 'No'. Anything beyond this originates from the evil one.
YHWH desires purity and straightforwardness in our speech. He is not forbidding creativity of language. The Torah tolerates vows as an expression of worship (Deut. 6:13; 10:20; Yirm. 12:16), but drops a hint early on (Deut. 23:22) that one does not need to make them--an idea unheard of in the ancient Near East. But Josephus writes that the Essene sect practiced truthfulness at all times, saying this rendered them more trustworthy than vowing only about certain things. Yeshua also wishes to demystify our relationship with the Father. The movies depict a mentality even among gangsters that they dare not murder someone in a church. But this sets up a double standard that appears to lessen its wrongness elsewhere. Yeshua is doing away with such a hypocritical dichotomy. His word is not far away where we cannot hope to understand it; to the pure in heart, it is as close as our heart or our tongue. (Deut. 30:14) Anything added: an allusion to Deut. 4:2, where we are commanded to not add anything to YHWH’s Torah. (Gordon)
38. "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth',
The allusion is to Ex. 21:22-27, Lev. 24:19-20, and Deut. 19:21. This in itself was meant to limit vengeance, and these damages were often paid for in monetary compensation rather than equal injury, for few wanted to exact this of their neighbors for injuries inflicted accidentally. It is also meant to be carried out through the court, not on one’s own. Y’shua has just made it clear in verse 18 that what he is saying cannot contradict the Torah (the passages mentioned under verse 38). He does not say, “It is written, but I say”, but only, “You have heard.” What was at issue to Y’shua was that some people were “moving an ancient boundary” (Deut. 19:14) by taking this out of the context of the court system and into personal life, seeking vengeance for every little snub. In a particular case, someone had ruled according to this Torah principle, when they should have, in Y’shua’s opinion, been more lenient and applied a different Torah principle. As he often did, he was rebuking his adversaries for making the Torah too burdensome for the weakest in society.
39. "but I say to you, don't try to get even with one who makes things hard [for you], but to [one] who strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.
Try to get even: Heb., withstand or outdo him. The word used here in the Greek version comes from a term used for weighing out silver in a balance coupled with one meaning “in the place of”; i.e., don’t try to even up the score by doing back to someone what he did to you; he is not speaking of legal obligations of restitution as in Exodus 21, but the attitude behind how the wronged person decides to treat the one wronging him. Shem-Tov, Do not repay evil for evil. (Do not let your life be ruled by what he does to you; you live deliberately, acting on your convictions and goals, not in reaction to someone else.) Letting one’s cheeks be struck is a symbol of a youth submitting to chastisement from his teacher (to whom he has submitted) when we have failed, in order to show we are willing to learn from it with our mouths shut. (Lam. 3:25ff; compare Yeshayahu 50:5) This is what he was alluding to. Turning the other cheek therefore refers to this learning from our hardships and difficulties. (Dell Griffin) It is not about allowing yourself top be abused, but not engaging humiliation—not letting someone else’s opinion of you become your reality (Les Brown) by reacting in the same way he treated you. It is not about maintaining one’s sense of self, but de-escalating what could potentially become life-threatening for the initiator because he is disgracing the servant of a King. By giving him permission to strike me on the other cheek, I am loving him enough to remove his occasion to sin. We avoid humiliation by taking charge of our own humility—humbling ourselves before YHWH so He can raise us up. We are not the ones meant to maintain others’ reputation of us; YHWH will exalt us at the right time. (Cole Davis on Yaaqov/James 4:10) Who requires you to toil: or, “one who makes things hard for you”. We need to focus on what YHWH wants us to learn from difficulties, rather than whining about them. He wants us to move on from where we are, not make the same mistake again, and hardship drives us to His word to find out what is wrong—and that is exactly where He wants us. He was not doing away with the ruling in Leviticus. To refuse to fight those who come against Israel is treason, though it may appear to be kind and understanding. He was referring to the attempt of some to apply Leviticius 24 to times when someone offends our pride by rebuking us. In his own day intolerance not for sin but for variations in doctrine was all too common, and it led to unjust hatred for one’s brothers. He does not even mention physical wounds. What Yeshua was saying was that when we are slapped on one cheek by a teacher whose prerogative is to make things difficult for us, we must not misuse the Scripture quoted in v. 38 to say we have a right to hit him back. We need to take the hard knocks, appreciating the occasion to grow more mature, rather than seeking vengeance. Yeshua was saying “an eye for an eye” did not fit the context of rebellion against authority. The right response would be to humbly ask for further teaching to understand why the first blow offended your pride or why the loss of one’s possession was so important to us in the first place. I.e., say “Thank you that you care enough” rather than getting your hackles up. If we accept YHWH’s rebuke about where we are lacking, the body can come together and supply the parts that each one is lacking.
40. "If someone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also.
Shirt…coat: the modern equivalent of “inner and outer garment” here.
41. "And if someone compels you to go one mile, go two [miles] with him.
This was spoken in the context of a nation occupied by a foreign power, a dilemma they had gotten themselves into by asking Rome for help centuries earlier, which Rome never did without “strings attached”. The whole nation was thus enslaved, and had to do what their self-chosen “master” said. Mile: from the Latin mille passus (1,000 steps, which is how the Hebrew says it) for which Roman soldiers often pressed bystanders into carrying their baggage.
42. "Do not turn away one who begs from you, or from one who wants to borrow something from you.
This is a Hebrew parallelism, where the two lines reflect the same thought to clarify the meaning; it is not a call to throw discernment to the wind, for elsewhere Yeshua commends wise stewardship of limited resources. Borrow: probably alluding to Proverbs 3:27. Beg: here, to call in a debt that is due.
43. "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor' and 'hate your enemy'';
The former is from Lev. 19:18. The latter is not a biblical quote (though suggested in Psalm 139:21-22), but the kind of inaccurate addition Yeshua condemned in 15:9, echoing Yeshayahu/Isaiah 29:13. This interpretation (that love was only binding toward one's "companions", Ben-David) is reflected in the Essene commentary on the "Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness" (Dead Sea Scrolls). Love: Aramaic, befriend, a less intense term than love, which means to act for another’s best interest regardless of feelings. Shem-Tov Heb., “Love the one who loves you and hate the one who hates you.”
44. "I tell you instead, love your enemies, bless the ones who curse you, do right to those who hate you, and pray on behalf of those who abuse and persecute you,
Compare Exodus 23:4-5. Do right: for you need to act from your own inner righteousness, not react to someone else’s actions.
45. "so that you may be sons of your Father in Heaven, because He causes the sun to rise on [both] bad people and decent [ones], and sends rain for [both] the righteous and the unrighteous,
Sons of your Father: i.e., like Him, thus worthy to be called His offspring. Contrary to popular belief, He does not consider all of humanity to be His children (Yoch. 8:44).
46. "because if you love the ones who love you, why do you deserve a medal? Don’t even tax collectors do that?
Tax collectors: Aramaic, customs agents, those considered the most odious then, since they collaborated with the Roman oppressors, often charging more than people really owed, and pocketing the difference with impunity. They were likened by some to cutthroats and thieves. (Nedarim 3:4) Their testimony was not considered valid in court. (Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 25:2) Matithyahu knew this well; had been a tax collector himself! (Yeshua may have been looking at him with a twinkle in his eye when he said this.) This may be why the Hebrew version says “Even the Gentiles do this”! But this lifestyle was now in the past for him, for YHWH makes all things new when we allow Him to.
47. "And if you only give a warm welcome to your brothers, are you doing anything exceptional? Don't even tax collectors do that?
48. "On the contrary, you [have to] be perfect, just as your father in Heaven is perfect.”
Perfect: Heb., whole-hearted, impartial, treating everyone according to their need, no matter how they have treated you. (v. 44) But taking the whole “sermon” as context, it means fully mature, lacking nothing, and of the utmost integrity-- the “fullest meaning” of the Torah (v. 17) Compare Yaaqov (James) 2:10. This perfection can only be achieved by YHWH’s empowering. (1 Yochanan 3:9)
CHAPTER 6
1. "Be careful not to do your acts of charity in front of men, [that is], in order to be seen by them; otherwise, you have no reward from your Father in Heaven.
Charity: Heb., tz'daqah, lit. "righteousness": kindnesses to the poor that YHWH does indeed desire. The root meaning is restoring the balance. He was not criticizing the deeds themselves, but the way in which they were being paraded by those who would use the needy to boost their own egos. "Rabbi Yannai saw [some]one giving money openly to a poor man, to whom he said, 'It is better you had not given at all than to have given this way.'" (Babylonian Talmud, Chagig., 5:1f)
2. "So when you do acts of charity, don't [send] a trumpeter ahead of you, as the hypocrites in the synagogue and in the streets do, so that they may be honored by men. I tell you for sure, they [already] have their reward.
When: not if. Despite these warnings, Y’shua assumes that we will do such almsgiving, as he does with prayer (v. 7) and fasting (v. 16ff). As with the Sabbath (ch. 12), he removes all elements of legalism and spiritual pride, but leaves the righteous acts themselves absolutely intact. Streets: Aram. and Heb., marketplaces. (Compare v. 24.) YHWH will not reward what was not truly done for Him or even for the sake of the recipient. If we want praise from men, from men we will get it, but that is all.
3. "Rather, when you do your acts of charity, don’t [even] let your left [hand] know what your right [hand] does!
How much less your neighbor?
4. "This way your merciful deeds will be [done] in secret, and your Father Himself, who sees [what goes on] in secret will repay you out in the open.
Thus everything is channeled first through Him and then He connects us to whatever He wishes to connect us with. He is the mediator of all we do, so that we expect no direct supply from anything else. (See v. 33)
5. "And when you pray, don't be like the hypocrites, because they love to pray standing in the synagogues, and on the corners of the wide-open streets, in order that they can be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they [already] have their reward [in full].
Don’t be like…: Shem-Tov Heb. adds “Do not raise your voice” before this phrase, and “with haughty speech” after “pray”. Be seen: Aram., manifest; i.e., show off. For example, Rabbi Yannai was known for having been observed saying his prayers in the public streets of Sepphoris (Tsippori, of which Natzereth was a suburb at this time), then advancing four cubits (six feet/two meters) to make the "supplementary prayer". (Jer. Ber. 8c, cited by Edersheim)
6. "But you, when you pray, go into your innermost storeroom and shut your door! Pray to your Father in secret, and your Father, who sees [what is] in secret will repay you openly.
Innermost storeroom: or closet: "a chamber on the ground floor or interior of an Oriental house, generally used for storage or privacy; a spot for retirement." (Strong) Shem-Tov Heb., your couch, i.e., bedroom. Y’shua, in his characteristic hyperbole, etches an unforgettable image on our minds. Aram., hold your door, as you would if doing anything else not intended to be seen; be out of sight so as not to use one's religion for personal ostentation. The other side of it is that the partition formed by placing one's prayer shawl (talith) over one’s head shuts out the rest of the world from one's thoughts while praying. (Moshe Kempinsky) In secret: though public prayers are often permitted in Scripture), his point is that it is YHWH, not men, to Whom we are speaking. (See Luke 18:10ff for a similar teaching.) Aramaic, privately.
7. "Moreover, when you pray, don't 'stutter' out [the same words over and over uselessly] the way the Gentiles do, because they assume they will be heard if they say enough words!
Enough words: compare Qoheleth/Eccles. 5:2. Gentiles: Shem-Tov Heb., heretics (minim).
8. Don't do like they do, because your Father knows the things you need before you ask Him.
YHWH answers before we call. (Yesh. 65:24) The Heb. Version makes it a question: Don’t you see that your Father knows…?
9. "So you should pray like this:
'Our Father, [You] who are in Heaven,
Let Your Name be kept separate [from being used for mundane purposes].
10.‘May Your Kingdom come;
‘May Your Kingdom come;May Your will be done on earth
just as it is [done] in Heaven.
11.‘Give us today
‘Give us todaythe bread we [need] daily,
12.‘And forgive us our debts
‘And forgive us our debtsin the same way we, too, forgive those who owe us debts.
13.‘Neither lead us into temptation,
‘Neither lead us into temptation,But deliver us from the evil [one],
because the Kingdom, the power, and the authority are Yours
into the ages. Amen.'
Like this: Not necessarily in these exact words (though there is no harm in that, if they are not themselves "useless repetition", v. 7, but the true cry of one's heart), but in a similar manner. This prayer seems to be culled from different parts of the Amidah ("standing prayers") used in the synagogue: e.g., “Sanctify Your Name through those who sanctify Your Name”; "May Your will be done in Heaven above" in Tosefta Berachot 3:7; "Do not lead me into sin, nor into iniquity, nor into temptation, nor into dishonor" and "let me this day and every day find grace, mercy, and favor in Your eyes", in Berachot 60. As was a common practice, he uses a key line as shorthand for the rest, to remind them of the rest. These seem more elaborate than necessary; Y’shua says YHWH does not need explanations for our heartcries; He knows them all. (6:8) What he is referring to might (ironically) be better understood in our day as something like "saying the ‘Our Father’ prayer 50 times". Your Kingdom: This should be the perspective we maintain not only in all of our prayers (to keep them "on track") but in ordering all of our priorities; Aram., may Your Kingdom be blessed. Just as… in Heaven: As every aspect of the Tabernacle and Temple were patterned after precise revelations of the things in Heaven (2 Kings 16:10; Env. 7:44; Heb. 8:5; 9:23f), we too must order our actions according to what YHWH is actually doing, as Y’shua did (16:19; 18:18; Yoch. 5:19, 30). But he also wants us to pray that the day may be hastened when the Kingdom is no longer just in the spiritual realm, but is a concrete, physical reality and no distinction is made between earthly life and heavenly. Bread we need: our regular portion, not too little but also not too much (Ex. 16:20), lest we feel secure and fail to continue looking only to Him for our supply. (Prov. 30:8-9) Though we are responsible to work hard for our food (Gen. 3:19), ultimately we have no control over whether our crops will grow or whether what we have already gained will remain in our hands. This places us permanently in dependence on YHWH every day. But v. 32 reminds us that we need only to humbly ask our loving Father for sustenance, not use elaborate self-injury as the pagan nations did to placate bloodthirsty "gods" before making requests. (1 Kings 18:28) "Rabbi Shimon said, '...When you pray, do not make your prayer fixed [repetitive, mechanical], but [appeal for] mercy and supplication before the Omnipresent, blessed be He." (Avoth, 2:13; note the similarities to vv. 7 and 9 above; see also Qoh. 5:2.) Into temptation: Trimm points out that it is a common Hebrew idiom that means "Do not let us be tempted (beyond our ability)". (compare 1 Cor. 10:13) Part of the Shakharit (dawn) liturgy prays that we will have holy thoughts “without even an inkling of sin”, and “that the evil inclination may not seduce us”. It also says, “Lead me not into temptation; keep me far from a bad man and a bad companion…” YHWH never tempts anyone to sin (Yaaqov 1:13). …Are Yours: He echoes his ancestor David’s prayer in 1 Chron. 29:11-13.
14. "(Because if you forgive men their slip-ups, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15. "But if you don't forgive men their slip-ups, your Father won't forgive your slip-ups either.)
We must operate on the same "wavelength" He is on, or we cannot expect to "receive" anything from Him (cf. 7:2; 8:13; parable in 18:21ff). Gamaliel (Rav Sha'ul's mentor) is recorded as saying YHWH grants mercy to the merciful, but not to those who show no mercy. (Pal. Talmud) Slip-ups: or steppings off track, offenses.
16. "Now, when you fast, don't be like those who put on an act of having sullen faces, because they disfigure their faces so that people can tell that they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have their reward [already].
Those who put on an act: Gk., hypocrites, which meant actors in a drama; Aram., they begrime. Disfigure: or "becloud"; blacken (Ben Ananiah).
17. "Rather, when you fast, use your head ointments and wash your face [as usual],
Ornamental anointing is forbidden only on communal fast days like Yom Kippur; if the fast is private, Y’shua says, keep it private:
18. "so it is not obvious to people that you are fasting, but [do it] in secret for your Father, and your Father, who sees in secret, will repay you in the open.
19. "Do not hoard up your treasures on earth, where moth and rust make [things] vanish, or where thieves [can] dig through and steal [them].
20. "But store up your treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust [can] make [them] vanish, and where thieves [can] not dig through and steal,
Moth nor rust: the Aramaic adds “caterpillar” before “moth”; “rust” appears in only one Aramaic version; Shem-Tov Heb., decay and the grub. The Divine "treasuries" (Bullinger) are the only ultimate security (Yesh. 33:6; Luk. 10:21). But how do we make investments in that “bank”? One way, YHWH says, is to lend to Him by having pity on the poor (Prov. 19:17), who cannot repay us. (Luke 14:13) Then we will be sure that we are placing our confidence in the only One who ever really can guarantee anything anyway, and not in the means He may—or may not—choose to use in the process.
21. "because wherever you have treasure, [that is] indeed where your heart will be.
Treasure: Aramaic, store, i.e., your “nest egg”. If we first develop a recognition that our ultimate security comes only from YHWH, and act on this in faith (by using what would be our personal security for needs we may have “someday” to meet needs that others have already), we will look forward more to the time and place where we can enjoy our investments (the true retirement—YHWH's Kingdom of Sabbatical Rest). Y’shua made the connection between almsgiving and treasure in heaven clearer in Luke 12:21.
22. "The lamp of the body is the eye, so if your eye is sound, your whole body is illumined.
Sound: single-purposed, i.e., all working together. The way one "views" things will affect his overall well-being (cf. Titus 1:15; Heb. 10:2-23). The root meaning is “woven together”, having one’s focus on the community of Israel, not on self; Aramaic, simple, literal, basic. Shem-Tov Heb., looking straight ahead.
23. "But if your eye is evil, all of your body is dark. If, then, [even] the light that is in you is darkness, how great that darkness is!
Is evil: Shem-Tov Heb., grows dim. "Sound eye" and "evil eye" are Hebrew idioms for generosity and stinginess. (Prov. 23:6; 28:22) "Evil" was used as "grudging" in the Apocrypha. (Bullinger) Thus, how generous one is gives others a “window” on what kind of person he really is at the core of his being. In a similar context (Luk. 12:21), generosity is contrasted with hoarding, and is equated with being "rich toward YHWH". Note the opposite promise of the darkest time being like noonday for those who are generous to the poor. (Yeshayahu 58:10) Rabbi Hirsch paralleled this: "Through the narrow eye the entire universe is brought into focus." Rabbi Munk called one's "eye" a "barometer of his character". But notice that there is a kind of light that can still be darkness. Even if one appears generous to everyone around him, if he is doing it for selfish reasons, he has no reward. This certainly extends to the sobering statement in v. 15. Psalm 19:10 holds the key to overcoming the seeming impossibility of self-improvement in this area. Telling our sons how YHWH brought us out of Egypt “shall be as …a reminder between your eyes.” (Ex. 13:9) Why between your eyes? The Hebrew word for “between” (beyn) comes from the word for “discerning”, i.e., “distinguishing between”. We may not always know which eye is which, since generally we look through both at once and they are hard to separate. Remembering that we left Egypt is the thing He gives us to remind us not to be selfish. Egypt was preoccupied with having everything ready for tomorrow (especially the afterlife), not with the things of today, which Y’shua said were enough to occupy our minds. If we hold back from those who need our help today for what may or may not really be a need tomorrow, our eye becomes “double”. Remembering that YHWH freed us from Egypt is meant to free us from self. YHWH’s words are also to be bound on between our eyes. (Deut. 6:8; 11:18) So it is the Torah that enables us to discern between them by standing between the single eye and the evil eye, making the parameters of each eye distinct from the other. (Gibor) It helps us recognize these “other elohim” that feed on our inclination to want security and riches so our “self can take its ease”. (Luke 12:19)
24. "No one is able to serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and give sacrificial preference to the other, or he will cling firmly to the one and despise the other: You cannot serve [both] YHWH and Mammon.
Hate: in common Hebrew usage, it often simply means “the one not chosen” when two objects are offered to us, rather than a malicious attitude as such. Mammon: a Hebrew term for great wealth or treasure, as contrasted with merely what is necessary for survival—or, as in v. 22, a little extra to be able to give away; but since a different Gk. word for "treasure" is used in v. 19, we use the transliteration as the Gk. and Aram. do. Ben-David: "materialism"; Shem-Tov Heb., the world (olam), i.e., the “system” that wants to own our labor for itself. It is a spirit that gets its tentacles into every crack and crevice it can, and is most insidious in the context of worship, which is meant to separate us from our greed. If we fear a lack of visible security, we are worshipping something other than YHWH, and this is the simplest definition of idolatry. He is the only one to fear. (10:28) One way to express our independence of its ultimate demands is to observe the Sabbath, when others feel they need to keep the machine running for the sake of preserving the economy.
25. "Because of this, I tell you, Don't be worried about your life (what you will eat and drink) nor about your body (what to put on). Isn't life more than the food [that preserves it], and the body more than the clothing [that protects it]?
Don’t be worried: Lit., "Don't take thought for", i.e., don't bother to be anxious about this; concentrate your mental energies elsewhere (as seen below). Is living only about staying alive? Isn't there a higher purpose to it? And if so, doesn't YHWH want you to concentrate on that and leave the incidentals to Him? If a man will ensure the daily necessities of one in his special employ, won't YHWH do so for His servants?
26. "Look to the [birds] that fly in the sky: they neither sow nor reap [a harvest], nor [do they] even gather [anything] into storehouses, yet your Heavenly Father [still] nourishes them. Don't you far surpass them in value?
Look to: literally, "look carefully into", observe, study. (Strong) Nourishes: lit., "fattens", demonstrating His generosity. Thus Y’shua is relating this to the above verses; if we are as generous with our money as we are with forgiving (v. 14, 19-24), YHWH will outdo us in return. If we sacrifice our security for the welfare of our fellow sheep, our Shepherd will not let us starve!
27. "In addition, who among you can, by worrying, annex [even] one cubit to his height?
Cubit: lit., "forearm’s length". (Thayer) The standard measure was from the fingertip to the elbow (about 18 inches on average). Height: or maturity, age; i.e., can you make yourself live longer just by thinking about it?
28. "And why are you worried about clothing? [Stoop] down and carefully study how the wildflowers grow! They neither tire [themselves] out nor [do they] spin [threads],
Wildflowers: Heb., crocuses (shoshanoth) of the Sharon, considered the paragon of beauty. (Song of Shlomo 2:1).
29. "Yet I tell you, not even Shlomo in all his glory was outfitted like one of these!
30. "And if YHWH so enrobes the grass of the field, which is [here] today and is thrown into a cooking pot tomorrow, won't He [clothe] you much more [adequately], O you "little-faiths"?
Grass which is here today: Heb., straw which is left in the standing grain. Cooking pot: Gk., klibanos, an earthenware vessel broad at its base and narrower above, at the opening. The fuel (in this case, dried straw of the plentiful wildflowers) was placed inside and heated, and dough spread around the outside to bake (Thayer); Aramaic, "fireplace". Won’t He…: If YHWH provides for the lesser, will He not provide for the greater? (This type of reasoning is called “light and heavy” argument in Hebrew.)
31. "So then don't worry, saying, 'What will we [have to] eat? What will we drink? With what will we be clothed?'
Heb., If YHWH so thinks of you, do not be anxious… A similar rabbinic saying goes, "Who[ever] has a loaf in his basket and says 'What shall I eat tomorrow?' is one of little faith." (Sot. 48b)
32. "All of these are what the Gentiles [spend their energy] striving for, but your Heavenly Father is mindful [of the fact that] that you need every one of them.
No one in his audience wished to be associated with what Gentiles did, so he adds this as one more motivation. This echoes Yirmeyahu’s “Do not learn the ways of the nations”. (10:2) Aram. has "worldly people". ("Those who throw off the yoke of Torah inherit the yoke of "worldly affairs", said Nehunyah ben HaKanah; compare Rom. 6:18) The point is that they are the ones subjected to futility (cf. note on Rom. 8:20); they are going in vicious circles and getting nowhere, while YHWH has created a counter-history, Israel, which has a goal and a direction, and those occupied with it can be free from being tyrannized by mundane cares. The thought (also in v. 34) is the same as "You follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead!" (8:22; more fully in Luk. 9:60)
33. "So [instead], enquire after YHWH's Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as added [benefits].
Enquire after: search out or look into for the purpose of getting to the bottom of the matter. Kingdom: or dominion. Righteousness: in this context (6:1), it probably refers to meeting others' needs, though it may apply more generally. The Hebrew term has the nuance of “balance”, reminding us not to go too far in any interpretation to the neglect of other legitimate emphases. (Yeshua says not to take religion so far that we neglect our familial responsibilities--Markos 7:11-14.)
34. "So don't worry [ahead] into the next day, because the next day will occupy your thoughts by itself; today has enough trouble of its own."
A Rabbinic proverb says, "Care not for the morrow, for ye know not what a day may bring forth...[The man who worries] may not be [here in the world] tomorrow, and thus have cared for a world that does not exist for him." (Sanh. 100b) Occupy your thoughts by itself: or, take care of itself—as if to say, “It doesn’t need your help!” Today: literally, "the day", but this is also the standard Hebrew way to say "today". Some translate it “each day”.
CHAPTER 7
1. "Do not condemn [others], so that you will not be condemned,
2. "because with whatever verdict you pass judgment, you [too] will be judged, and by whatever standard you measure, it will be measured to you in return.
Condemn: or, judge, if the thought is not taken out of the context of the rest of Scripture. Both terms are used in the duTillet Hebrew text. We do need to take wise precautions and there are times that we are called to discriminate and especially to make legal rulings. We only must recognize that whatever rules we use to judge others, YHWH will turn back on us. (cf. 26:52) This is the reality some choose to live by, so how can they fail to experience its logical conclusion? "He who digs a pit will fall into it himself." (Prov. 26:27; cf. 21:13; Yesh. 24:18) They treat YHWH's mercy as if it did not exist for others, so how can it exist for themselves? (See note on 6:15.) "He who has a crooked mind finds nothing beneficial." (Prov. 17:20) No one can help him until he has that "sound eye" (6:22; cf. Yirm. 6:29). To condemn is only his prerogative (5:39, 42). But if we live by the higher truth (Rom. 8:2), when accused, nothing will be found on which the "curse without cause" can alight. (Prov. 26:2; Yoch. 14:30)
3. "Now why do you pay attention to the splinter that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the beam that is in your own eye?
Splinter: or, speck of sawdust (NASB) or chaff (Rienecker); "a very small particle which may irritate" (Robertson). The emphasis is on its comparative insignificance. Beam: or, timber, from a word for "holding up" or "notable" (Strong), hence a building's main beam; "a log on which planks in a house rest " (Robertson). The Babylonian Talmud reports that some who refused to accept even the mildest criticism retorted "Take the log out of yours!" to "Take the chip out of your eye". (Arakh 16b)
4. "Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me pull the splinter out of your eye', when, lo and behold, the beam is in your [own] eye?
5. "[You] hypocrite! First take the beam out of your [own] eye, and then you will [be able to] see clearly to take the splinter out of your brother's eye.
See clearly: lit., "look through", i.e., recover full vision. (Strong) Note that he never says the splinter in the brother's eye is not there; it is not to be ignored either, but dealt with by one who is truly ready. (Gal. 6:1).
6. "Do not give what is holy to dogs, nor throw your pearls in front of pigs, lest they should trample them under their feet, then turn back around and tear you apart.
In context, do not allow one who still has the beam in his eye to be the judge, or he will make a mockery of justice. Dogs...pigs [swine]: the most detestable animals in Scripture. Dogs represent people who cannot be redeemed, as donkeys (also an unclean animal, but teachable) can. (Ex. 34:20) We are not responsible to share the most precious truths with those whom we know will abuse them, for they are unworthy. On Song of Shlomo 1:2, Cant. Rabbah warns not to entrust the secrets of Torah to the young. Tear you: one of the specific categories of non-kosher foods in Scripture is treyf, of torn, i.e., that which is torn apart by wild beasts. Here he turns it around and says that rather than making them holy when offered holy things, it will render the giver unclean. (Compare Haggai 2:11-14.) Their feet: Exodus 23:14 uses the term “feet” to mean the mandatory pilgrimage festivals; thus the feet of the wild beasts would be their festivals, and indeed through pagan festivals which were mixed into new Christian ones in place of the ones YHWH commanded, the pure truth was corrupted and only the barest basics of the message were passed down the generations. This also perpetuated the tearing apart of the two Houses of Israel (1 Kings 11:30) rather than healing it. Shem-Tov substitutes “chew them” for “trample them underfoot”.
7. Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened [up] to you—
"Ask" is a technical term for prayer in Hebrew. (Lachs; M. Ta'an 1:2) Seek…find: or "enquire, and you will perceive." Opened up: The Temple's gates were opened at Rosh HaShanah, and closed 9 days later on Yom Kippur (cf. note on v. 13; Rev. 4:1), indicating a special occasion to repent and have our sins covered. (See v. 13)
8. "because whoever asks receives, and the one seeking finds, and to the one who knocks, [the door] will be opened.
YHWH is not out to tease and tantalize us with a carrot on a stick that will never be delivered. If we do not find what we are seeking, He will at least provide something better for those who search diligently enough, not something worse:
9. "Or which man is there from [among] you who, if his son should ask him for a piece of bread, will give him a stone [instead]?
Piece of bread: A small loaf, much like a dinner roll. There is a word play between the Aramaic for "loaf" (reyfta) and "stone" (keyfta).
10. "And if he asked for a fish, he wouldn't give him a snake, [would he]?
Loaves and fish are real food (cf. Yoch. 6:15ff; 6:55), as opposed to substitutes which are not even kosher (acceptable), let alone edible. (This sets the stage for v. 15) Give: Heb., put in his hand. Yaaqov said Efrayim and Menashe would multiply like fish. (Gen. 48:16) YHWH would not substitute a serpent (the adversary) for the fullness of the Gentiles (48:19), but the enemy himself has tried to do so by turning the “called-out congregation” into another entity called the Church. But YHWH is reversing that in our day.
11. "If you, who are evil, know [enough] to give your children beneficial gifts, how much more will your Father who is in the Heavens give beneficial things to those who ask Him?"
Evil: From a word meaning "hurtful", i.e., who sometimes may also, whether accidentally or not, do things that are not totally beneficial to your children. The emphasis is not on degeneracy in one's essential character (Strong), but on the incompleteness of our integrity in comparison to YHWH's. (cf. 5:48; 6:23)
12. "So anything that you wish people would do to you, do the same to them, for this is the Torah and the Prophets."
This “golden rule” is what they are all about; this aptly summarizes the whole point of YHWH’s instruction to Israel as a people who need to live together in harmony. The influential rabbi Hillel (Y’shua’s contemporary) stated the same in negative terms when asked to teach a prospective proselyte the entire Torah while standing on one foot. “The rest is commentary”, he quipped; “Go and learn it!” (Talmud, Shabbat 31a) Tobit 4:15 is similar: “What you hate, do to no one.”
13. "Go in through the narrow gate, because the gate is wide—and [its] lane spacious—that leads away into ruin, and the ones who enter through it are many;
Narrow: based on a word for the obstacles that "stand" close around it; Aramaic, constricted. This may refer to entering the way to life while there is a narrow window of time to repent, before the gate is closed —the imagery found in the "Days of Awe" between the Feast of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement. (cf. Yoch. 9:4) The Jewish Encyclopedia cites the Testament of Abraham: “Adam sits at the gates watching with tears the multitude of souls passing through the wide gate to meet their punishment, and with joy the few entering the narrow gate to receive their reward.” Note that Yeshua is called the Second Adam. (1 Cor. 15:47)
14. "whereas the gate that leads into life is narrow, and [its] lane constricted; those who find it are few."
Constricted: Aramaic, difficult. Few: contrary to many popular teachings today that the majority can hardly be wrong.
15. "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are rapacious wolves."
The Greek words give the sense of "keep in mind that you should stay clear of counterfeit prophets" (pseudoprofetoi). Sheep’s clothing: Shem-Tov Heb., wool clothing like sheep. The Hebrew term for wool is also a metaphor for whiteness (Yeshayahu 1:18), i.e., a claim to be righteous and pure. Interestingly, Gid’on used a fleece of wool as a test of the genuineness of a vision. This is probably also an allusion to Yehezqel 34:3, in which the evil shepherds (see Yochanan 10) clothe themselves with the wool of the sheep they have killed instead of cared for. Y’hezq’El 44:17 stipulates that none of the priests who minister in the Temple to come will wear wool, but only linen. Rapacious: or, plundering (Green); those who use the sheep to their own advantage. The root can also be translated "extortion". (Strong) DuTillet Heb: as full of deceit as ravening wolves.
16. "From their fruits you will recognize them. [People] don't gather grape [cluster]s from thornbushes or figs from thistlebrush, do they?
17. "Likewise, every healthy tree produces appropriate fruit, whereas the rotten tree produces unhealthy fruit.
18. "A healthy tree cannot produce unhealthy fruit, nor can a rotten tree produce decent fruit.
Healthy…rotten tree: Or "green...dried-up tree" (Ben-David), an allusion to the green tree of Y’hezq’El 20:47 (21:3 in Heb., as per Bivin; see notes on v. 24).
19. "Every tree that does not produce appropriate fruit is cut down and thrown into a fire.
Cut down: Or, possibly, will have only its unfruitful branches "cut out" or "cut off" (as in Rom. 11:22, 24) and burned. (cf. 3:10; 15:19; 1 Kor. 3:15; Heb. 6:6-8; 10:27)
20. "So by their fruits you shall indeed recognize them."
Many can say the right words and be very knowledgable, yet be very selfish. On the other hand, one may be very abrasive or unrefined outwardly, like most of the prophets seem to have been, yet bear rich fruit because of where their heart is.
21. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Master! Master!' will enter into the Kingdom of the Heavens, but [rather] the ones who are doing the will of my Father who is in the Heavens.
22. "In That Day, many will say to me, 'Master! Master! Didn't we prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and perform many powerful works?'
In That Day: A common Hebraic way of alluding to "the Day of YHWH", the seventh Millennium of Sabbath Rest, which begins with the Judgment. (Rev. 20:11-15) Demons: the Hebrew specifies shedim, one of several categories of demons, a particular type that spoils and devastates and to which people sacrifice.
23. "But at that time I will declare to them, 'I never knew you. Get away from me, you workers of lawlessness!'"
Lawlessness: anomia, being without or contrary to Torah, i.e., who act as if they had not been given YHWH's instruction. (Stern) The last sentence is a direct quote from Psalm 6:8, which uses the Heb. term for perversity or crookedness. Psalm 119:115 is identical except for the final word, which means evildoers. Trimm notes that some Gk. Manuscripts contain a marginal note that reads, “The Judaikon [Jewish version] has here, ‘If you are in My bosom and do not do the will of My Father who is in Heaven, out of My bosom I will cast you away.” The second-century “Church Father” Clement supports this reading when he quotes this passage (2 Clement 4:5), again highlighting the primacy of the Hebrew version.
24. "So [then], everyone who hears these words of mine and carries them out, I will compare him to a sensible man who built his house upon the [solid] rock;
These words of mine: We prove our loyalty to Y’shua by keeping his commandments (Yoch. 14:15), which are the same as his Father’s commandments, given through Moshe. (Yoch. 5:19, 30; 10:30) Carries them out: the same word as that rendered "produce" in vv. 17-19. The allusion (cf. note on v.18) is to the Messiah himself being the only healthy tree, to whom we must be connected if we are to bear any such “decent fruit” (Yoch. 15:1-8; see note on Luk. 23:31). Sensible: One shrewd in practical wisdom, as opposed to one who is simply naturally intelligent, which is a different word. (Strong)
25. "And the rain fell, and the rivers swelled and the winds blew, and rushed violently against that house. Yet it did not collapse, because it had been based [solidly] upon the rock.
Based solidly: Founded, grounded, made firm, with the sense of being set or consolidated directly into the rock itself (Strong), as many ancient Israelite houses were. Shem-Tov Heb., “its foundation was a rock”. Rock is a Hebrew idiom for a secure, immovable shelter.
26. "But whoever hears these words of Mine but does not carry them out will be compared to a foolish man who built his house on the sand;
Sand: Though the comparison on the simplest level is powerful enough, YHWH promised Avraham that his descendants would be like the sand, but Yochanan the Immerser said that this heritage alone would not be enough to turn away YHWH’s wrath if they did not live up to this ideal. (Luke 3:8; cf. Yoch. 8:39)
27. "And the rain fell, and the rivers swelled and the winds blew, and rushed violently against that house, and it collapsed with a tremendous crash!"
Collapsed: Lit., "...fell, and great was its downfall." Great: emphasizes the ultimate, momentous significance of its collapse. “House” is a term often used in a special sense to mean the Temple, as representative of YHWH’s dwelling place, and indeed that was built upon bedrock. Thus there is a counterfeit dwelling place being built which cannot stand the furious tests that will try it in the coming days. It is the same imagery as the true image of Elohim as seen in Adam and then in Y’shua, and the image of the King of Babylon (Dan. 2, 3) which is destroyed, interestingly enough, by a huge stone. (Compare the destruction of the tent of Midyan—a counterfeit of the Tabernacle—by a barley loaf in Judges 7:13.) The fourth incarnation of this counterfeit “house” (Rome) changes the seasons and decrees (Dan. 7:25), which is exactly what the Roman Church did, claiming that changing the Sabbath to Sunday was evidence of their authority on earth. Many of YHWH’s true Israelites are still involved in constructing this house, thinking they can improve on it, though its foundation is inadequate. It is inherently a mixture of truth and error (13:25ff), like the statue’s toes, and thus it is not holy, and thus not a place YHWH can inhabit. He overlooks our ignorance, but once we know better, it is time to escape the impostor and leave the mixture behind. (Acts 17:30) Soon our only choice will be to side with Rome/Babylon or Yerushalayim; our motives may be impeccable, but if we are still associated with the condemned structure at that time will be found to be building the wrong house, and will go down with it. Daniel recognized when the time of his exile was due to be up, and took steps to in fact bring it to an end. YHWH had reasons for our exile, and the Church kept many of us safe through that time, but it is now time to “come out of her” (Rev. 18:4) and be truly separate, as our sentence is up and He is calling us back to being the Dwelling Place we were always meant to be.
28. Now as soon as Y’shua had finished [saying] these things, the crowds were struck with astonishment at his teaching,
29. because he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes did.
"Moshe alone had authority. The scribes teach the message and meaning of what Moshe had set down as the Torah on the authority of YHWH." (Neusner) Aramaic, one who was authorized. Y’shua, in his role as the "Prophet like Moshe" (Deut. 18:15), YHWH's spokesman who understood the intent of each component of Torah, had the authority to reaffirm and clarify, unlike the scribes, who could only reiterate what was actually written. They were making educated guesses, but sometimes getting it wrong. Some of the leaders recognized this (Yoch. 7:46). The Hebrew term for authority here means “ability of his own”, and it adds “and Prushim” after scribes.
THE MESSIAH’S LIFE
AS RECOUNTED BY
Matithyahu
INTRODUCTION: Matithyahu ben Chalfai, a Levite, was a tax collector hired by Rome who became Y'shua's disciple very spontaneously. (Markos 2:1-4) His emphasis is on the Messiah's kingship, and he writes to a mainly Jewish audience. Papias, Eusebius, and Jerome quote from a Hebrew version; for centuries, only their quotes were known to be extant, but among Hebrew texts confiscated in Rome by the Inquisitor General in 1553 was found a manuscript of Matithyahu salvaged by a French priest, Jean du Tillet. Two other Hebrew versions are known, the Munster text, which the publisher claimed was received from the Jews in 1537 with many holes in the manuscript, and the one Shem Tov Ben Yitzhaq Ben Shaprut transcribed into his 1380 apologetic work, Even Bohan ("Touchstone").
The Greek manuscripts may have been written separately by Matithyahu with the additional explanatory notes needed by non-Jewish readers. But some expert scholars believe the Hebrew version underlies the Greek. James Trimm, a Nazarene Jewish scholar, argues that the variations among the Greek Synoptic Gospels (Matithyahu, Markos, and Luqa) results from different readings of the same Hebrew phrases. He points out that, according to contemporary historian Josephus, Greek, though the lingua franca of the time, was not spoken widely enough in Judea even by the time the Temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, and the Romans had to translate their request for surrender into Hebrew. Thus a Greek version would have been adequate only in the diaspora. Ireneus, Origen, Papias, and other 2nd-4th century "church fathers" all acknowledged that Matithyahu had written first in Hebrew, and an eighth-century commentary by Isho'dad claims that this was still common knowledge in his day. The book begins c. 2-4 B.C., or 4000 years after Adam's creation.
