OT – I got my new book! This is the Artscroll Stone Chumash. Just to see if it is of any value, I looked up Lisa’s question regarding the circumcision of Moses’ sons by Zipporah from a previous reading. Lisa, you will not be happy to know that Rashi does not speak to this. What he does comment on is that the baby is the cause of the bridegroom (her husband, Moses) and his bloodshed. Humm….. Already I am arguing with the greatest rabbinic commentator. At any rate, I think this book will be of great help to me during the readings.
Just as aside, The Stone Chumash uses the word “HASHEM” in the place of our Bible translation of LORD. The Stone uses God where ours uses God. Many of the orthodox Jews object to the use of capital G-o-d as they think this still names God, God. They print it as G-d. There is a special Orthodox and Hasidic Stone Chumash just for them with the G-d. Accommodation is the name of the game.
HASHEM is literally “The Name”. It represents the Tetragrammaton, the sacred Hebrew Four letter Name of God (Y-H-W-H). (Remember, ancient Hebrew had no vowels.) We sometimes translate this as Yahweh. (In my own mind, this gives God a name and for me, he really has no name. That would imply that I had somehow boxed him in or given him shape. Much like hearing the girl’s name Bambi. It just brings up a certain implication to how she is and how she will act. I remember hearing Yahweh for the first time when we started going to St Andrews Presbyterian when I was 7 and wondering who the heck they were talking about! We were Baptist before the move North.)
But to the reading. Do the miracles trouble you? I remember hearing how the parting could have happened with a hurricane force. Or some other natural phenomena that was explainable. Here is my take on it. God is absolutely capable dropping some bread and birds. Killing a bunch of livestock. Sending frogs. Raising someone from the dead. Why on earth would I question whether or not he could move some water? That one seems pretty easy on the miracle scale, if you ask me. Here is what Rashi says: “God’s reason for bringing the miracle about by means of a wind, rather than through an undeniable, obvious miracle was to allow the Egyptians room for doubt. In their wickedness, they insisted that the waters had been moved by wind ((sound familiar????)), not by God – even though it would be clear to any objective observer that the sea had never before been parted by a wind – therefore, they plunged into the seabed to their eventual doom.”’
Psalm -- Whoever wrote this is much different than I am. I am never blameless and I am afraid that verses 4-7 do not apply to me. The title in my real Bible says this psalm is “Of David”. That made me laugh. Well, okay. If David can say this, maybe there is room in this psalm for me, too?
NT – Even then, the politicians were spinning their words. Look at vs. 25-27. They won’t answer truthfully because to them, the truth doesn’t matter. They were busy trying to trap Jesus. Surely, at least one of them had a belief, a valid, honest true-blue belief as to what John’s baptisms meant and did for people. We read these words and think Jesus is being cryptic. He was just playing their game. His parables clearly indicate that he is anointed one, the son of the landowner.
So, think of today. When today did you come straight up and say what you believe? Or did you dance around, trying to think what would play best in whatever circumstances you happen to be at the time? Are you acting like the Pharisees? How would Jesus have responded to you?
I leave you with the song Moses sang – not to himself – but to the PEOPLE he had brought out of slavery. And you have to remember, *they* didn’t hear God. They only heard Moses and felt Pharaoh’s wrath and the wretchedness of the plagues that they did not escape from.
Vs. 11,13 “Who among the gods is like you, O Lord? Who is like you – majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders? … In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed. In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling.”
May HASHEM redeem YOU, and guide YOU to his holy dwelling.
There is an Interesting reference in Ex 14:19. It speaks of the Angel of God who was leading the people in addition to the Pillar of Fire/Cloud. Neither Kim nor I were able to find a source that spoke about this Angel. Probably not that important but an interesting artifact in the text.
ReplyDeleteHere we also encounter the hardening of Pharoah''s heart and this God is going to kill an entire army just to show the Hebrews how powerful He is. I don't ever remember any one of Sunday School teachers, preachers, Charlton Heston in the Ten Commandments ever mentioning that God purposely lead the Hebrews to the Red Sea just to kill the entire Egyptian Army. It's like we don't know how to think about this aspect of God so we don't mention it. Sylvia in her blog above says that just naming God limits him. Yet we do it all the time by discounting all the aspects of God.
Jesus tells today a parable where God the Father is going to come back and take vengeance for His death. I don't ever remember this passage for today ever being a sermon topic. I am learning so much by doing this reading. Thanks again Sis.
I looked in my new Stone Chumash and here is what Rashi has to say about that 'Angel'. The Hebrew word that our Bible translates 'angel' is also used as 'emissary' or 'agent' of God. When it was placed between the camps, it served with 2 purposes 1)it kept the Egyptians in total darkness and 2)provided a shield. But Ramban (another great rabbinic commentator) has a different approach. He said "The Torah refers to the pillar of fire as 'the angel of God', because God's presence rested in it, whereas the pillar of cloud was the resting place of 'God's Heavenly Court'. Thus, verse 19 states that both pillars moved between the two camps, with the fire closest to Israel to provide illumination and the cloud blocking the Egyptians. When vs 20 refers to the cloud and illumination, it describes both pillars".
ReplyDeleteMy Hebrew Chumash translates the 'hardening' of Pharaoh's heart as 'strengthening'. It is an interesting word twist on what happened with Pharaoh.