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Torah 101-Chukkat Portion

I. ANSWERS TO LAST WEEKS STUDY QUESTIONS (from Korach)


1) Question for Numbers 16:

What is the real motive behind the Korach rebellion, in addition to the fact
that the leaders may have been rich and had official prestige with Pharaoh as
has been often reported in Jewish tradition?
Lets look at the last passages of Scripture before this portion opens:

37
YHWH also spoke to Moses, saying,
38
"Speak to the sons of Israel,
and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the
corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they
shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue.
39
"It shall be a
tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of
YHWH, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and
your own eyes, after which you played the harlot,
40
so that you may
remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your Elohim.
41
"I am YHWH your Elohim who brought you out from the land of
Egypt to be your Elohim; I am YHWH your Elohim." (Numbers
15:37-41 NAU)

So I call this The Tzit-Tzit Rebellion because that was the last specific
command Moshe gave them before they rebelled. Lets go deeper
Why would something so simple create such consternation in the ranks of
Israel? I believe it has something to do with what the tzit-tzit represent
rather than the command itself.

I have often likened the command to wear tzit-tzit with how we might tie
a string around our finger to not forget something important. In this case
that important thing is actually the whole Torah and drama of the
Exodus!

Israel clearly wanted to play and be like other nations. This manifests
in the wilderness and also later when they ask for a king to lead them,
again, so they can be like everyone else. This type of conformity to the
nations around them, of course, is a major insult to YHWH, Who called
them OUT FROM THE NATIONS to be a set-apart people. More than
that, it was YHWHs express plan that Israel learn His Torah so that
THEY could then teach the nations TO BE LIKE THEM, not the other
way around!
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So when we see this clearly, the rebellion is inspired, at least in part by a
desire not to stand out, even while they practice being priests of YHWH!
Its like after a hard day at the office the Israelites want to go home to
pagan pleasures, as if they can separate their job from their identity. I
dont think I need to explain further regarding how this idea all turned
out for them.

Everything is associated with remembering what YHWH did for them
and remembering the Covenant that YHWH gave to them. This is true
whether we are talking about Adam and Eve failing to remember a single
instruction to Noah and Abraham and so on up the line. This is because
we are told over and over again to SHAMAR or SHOMER YHWHs
Torahmeaning to guard it zealouslybut ironically later rabbis would
think this guarding involved putting a fence around it, rather than
preserve it as it originally came down.

One of the best examples with this is with Tzit-Tzit. YHWH commanded
a tekhelet or blue thread be there, but because the rabbis werent sure
what shade of blue it was based on what they remembered, they decided
to make it all white! Now this is remarkable! We dont know what it was
for certain so to avoid making that mistake we choose something we
KNOW for a fact it wasnt? Isnt this sort of a miniature version of what
Korah did? Didnt Korah try as a Levite to work somewhat in that
system but simply take the mantle away from Aaron whom YHWH
chose?

See this is what true rebellion looks like. It will try to mimic what is
already there and then suggest (or shout) that its VERSION of what is
there is better, and it wont be too much of a change if you just follow ME
and put the authority of ME. But YHWH does NOT share power and if
he chooses Moshe then Korah cannot override that decision, no matter
how nice his priestly outfit looks!

Havent we also seen enough of this rebellion in our own ranks at
Netzarim? Can we think of people who dress the part and claim proper
lineage and a smooth Hebraic vibe and yet have the goal being to bring
attention and authority to themselves? Some will even try to look exactly
like Korah did 3500 years ago, but its not about the coat, its about the
person wearing it!

Instead YHWH demands that we root ourselves in His Word and do our
best and even risk problems by guessing wrong. Better to do that than to
take shortcuts amongst charismatic yet unlearned counselors and to stop
thinking and fail to test the leadership against the Word. If we do that,
even if occasionally we guess wrong, we will still do right in YHWHs
eyes. Moshe clearly was not perfect. He sinned too and was punished
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severely for those sins. But compared to everyone else, Moshe was the
best MAN for that job, and every time people tried to deny him that
YHWH fought for him. YHWH will then also fight for us as well when
we follow that example.

2) Question for Numbers 17:

In this Torah portion also there is a hidden clue that will later relate to
Hanukkah. Where is that clue?

VAYEHI VAYAVO MOSHE EL-OHEL HA EDUT VEHINEH
PARACH MATEH AHARON LEVEYT LEVI VAYOTSE FERACH
pass on the following day, when Moshe came to the Tent of the
Testimony, that Aarons staff, representing the house of Levi, had
blossomed. It had given forth leaves and now was producing blossoms
and almonds were ripening from it. The leaves and the blossoms on the
staff remind me personally of the way the menorah was designed to have
blossoms, cups and calyxes and also how the center candle is called
SHAMASH (servant/minister). In the same way the staff of Aaron shows
he is to be the Levites rightful leader and shamash to Abba YHWH.

3) Question for Numbers 18:

There are two separate words with different spellings for Levi in Hebrew.
One is spelled LAMED-VAV-YODH and refers to the name of Aarons
ancestor and tribe. The other is spelled LAMED-BEYT-YODH is one of the
nicknames of one of Yshuas disciples. How do the different versions of
Levi combine to spell out a special message and also where do we see a
very neat wordplay on one these roots and its matching name?

Lets answer the last part first. We see a word play here

2
"But bring with you also your brothers, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of
your father, that they may be joined (Heb. LAVAH) with you and serve
you, while you and your sons with you are before the tent of the
testimony. (Numbers 18:2 NAU)

So Levi means join together and this is in part why parts of Levi
march in between the other tribes, to intersperse and join to their brother
Israelites.

However, the OTHER Levi, a.k.a. Thaddeus, or Yehudah, his name
means my heart or strong heart. His other nickname, Thaddeus is
Todah in Hebrew and means thankful, so putting all the meanings of
both names together we have: Let us join together with a strong and
thankful heart!
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4) Haftorah Question of the Week: 1 Samuel 11:14-12:22

Why would Samuel tell the people to renew the covenant at Gilgal rather than
Jerusalem?

Because Gilgal was the last place the covenant was renewed when the
Israelites were circumcised by Joshua (Joshua 4 and 5). These people
were the SECOND generation out of Egypt, the first having perished in
the wilderness for their sins of the Golden Calf and the spies.

They are anointing Saul as king but Saul has not nor will not take the
Jebusite stronghold of Jerusalem. That task will fall to his successor and
rival, David. As a result, Saul cant get anointed at Jerusalem and the
covenant that is renewed with him as the first unified king of Israel must
be done elsewhere, and Gilgal is a place where the Israelites obeyed their
leadership, so Samuel figures its a good fit to go back to where it worked
the last time.

5) Renewed Covenant Question of the Week: Yehudah 1:1-25

Please note I am making an exception this week by asking a question for the NT,
but the commentary that I usually do is still here, below. In any case, here is my
question on Yehudah

There are five surprising connections about Yehudah, the writer of the Epistle that
generally are not taught frequently. Four of these connections come straight out
of Scripture; the other is a part of ancient legend. What are these five
connections? (No I am NOT talking about him being Yshuas brother!)

The first surprising connectionat least in my experience-- is that Yehudah
has words credited to him outside of his Epistle but in the NT. In fact, his
question to his brother Yshua provokes a pretty detailed response at the
Last Supper

(Joh 14:21) [Yshua said:] He who has my Commandments with him and
keeps them, he is who loves me and he who loves me will be loved by my
Father. And I will love him and reveal myself to him." (Joh 14:22) Yehuda
(not Skaryota)
184
said to him, "My Master, why is it you are about to reveal
yourself to us and not the world?"
(Joh 14:23) Y'shua answered and said to him, "He who loves me keeps my
word, and my Father will love him and we will come to him and we will make
a dwelling with him. (Joh 14:24) But he who does not love me will not keep
my word and this word that you hear is not mine; rather, it is of the Father
who sent me. (Joh 14:25) These things I have spoken among you while I am
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with you. (Joh 14:26) But the Redeemer, the Ruach haKodesh, the One
whom my Father will send in my name will teach you everything. And He
will remind you of everything that I said to you. (Joh 14:27) Peace I leave to
you. I give my own peace to you. It is not as the world gives that I give to
you. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not have fear. (Joh 14:28)
You have heard that I have told you that I go away and I will come to you. If
you had only loved me you would have rejoiced that I go to my Father, for
my Father is greater than I. (Joh 14:29) And now behold, I have told you
before, that when it happens you might believe. (Joh 14:30) Henceforth I
will not speak much with you for the ruler of the world comes and he has
nothing in me. (Joh 14:31) But that the world may know that I love my
Father, and as my Father has commanded me I do likewise. Arise; let us
depart from here.
185

The second surprising fact is that Yehudah is widely accepted as the brother
of Yaakov ha Tzaadik, which would of course make him the brother also of
Yshua, and the son of Joseph

BUT Luke 6:16 appears to call this Yehudah (a.k.a. Thaddeus) the son of
Yaakov instead, so either one of the Gospel writers got the family tree
wrong, or Yshuas mom somehow re-married a guy named Yaakov or,
more likely, this Yehudah son of Yaakov is one of the 12 whereas Yshuas
own half brother is ANOTHER Yehudah who, while important as a later
servant/apostle, is NOT one of the original 12 apostles. One clue to this
latter scenario may be in Yehudahs own words

(Jud 1:17) But do you, my beloved, remember the words which were spoken
before by the Shlichim of our Master Y'shua the Mashiyach; (Jud 1:18)
because they told you that in the end of the times there would be scoffers
going after wickedness according to their lusts.

The fact that Yaakov was one of the 12 but the other brother Yehudah was
not because he couldnt have been if he wanted to. It may simply be because
Yshuas brother was a kind of late bloomer and did not come to faith
while Yshua was alive and did not want to be a disciple. But fast forward
three decades later and he seems to have made up for lost time with that
Epistle of his.

The third fact is that we have a LOT of Yehudahs as some kind of apostle or
member of the 12. FOUR of them actually!

1) Yehudah-Thaddeus (Tawdi in Aramaic, Todah in Hebrew)-Lewi
(Lebbaus in Greek, Lewi in Aramaic)one of the 12.
2) Yehudah-Thomas (Tooma)-Didymusalso one of the 12.
3) Yehudah, brother of Yaakov, brother of Yshuawriter of the Epistle of
Yehudah and a leader NOT from the 12.
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4) Yehudah, son of Shimon the Canaanite/Zealot, traitor to Yshua. Thats
right, Shimon the Zealot and the traitor were father and son!

With all those Yehudahs running around, its no wonder many folks have
trouble keeping track of them all.

The fourth mostly un-taught fact is that the apostle Yehudah is the only one
with TWO nicknames and BOTH of them have interesting meanings that
suggest character traits of the man, like how Shimon was nicknamed Keefa,
which could be both in a good (you are stable like a rock) and bad (you
stubborn rock-head kind of guy) sense.

-Lewi unlike the father of the priests, LEVI (lamed-waw-yod), actually
means my heart and is spelled LAMED-BEYT-YODH. In Aramaic both a
BEYT and a VAV/WAW can take on the sound of a W. In any case, this
Yehudahs nickname is my heart or perhaps idiomatically strong-
hearted, all-heart. But his other name TODAH/TAWDI (Thaddeus in
Greek, sometimes Addai in later Aramaic literature) means to be
thankful, so he is called the thankful heart!

But the last item on our list, from the legends department, is attached to
Yehudahs name THADDEUS who is again NOT Yshuas brother but is one
of the 12

According to legend, someone named Thaddeus went with Thomas to heal a
king named Abgar, who lived in Edessa, Turkey. Miraculously delivered,
Abgar opened up his city to believers to show his gratitude, and the Aramaic
dialect of that city, which we call Estrangela, is the script style the Aramaic
NT manuscripts are preserved in today.

There is however a minor controversy as to WHICH Thaddeus, was Addai
the one who helped Thomas cure the king. Some believe the Thaddeus-Addai
who went to Edessa was NOT one of the 12 but one of the second level 72
apostles Yshua sent out per Luke 9.

Others hold to the idea that the 12 apostles each went out into the world in
groups of 3 to each direction (3 north, 3 south, 3 east and 3 west) to follow the
command of Matthew 28:19. If thats the case, three from the 12 going east
would have been Thomas, Thaddeus-Addai and Nathanael Bar-Tulmay
(Bartholemew) who is said to have joined Thomas in India in the year 52.
Still others object to that idea saying that Peter clearly also went east, to
Babylon (1 Peter 5:13) so the Thaddeus had to be a second-tier apostle.
Even this idea doesnt have overwhelming approval, as the counter attack is
Peter only went to Babylon around the year 40, and therefore may have been
somewhere else during the first wave of eastern missions. Bottom line, we
dont know, but it is interesting to speculate about.
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II. QUESTIONS FOR THIS TORAH PORTION (Chukkat)

Please NOTE:

For clarity and time constraints, if I elect to not read the whole parsha (which
is the case this week) I may still ask questions relating to the portions I did not
read!
6) Question for Numbers 19:

How does one phrase in Numbers 19 inform us on one reason why he Temple
cannot have been located where the Dome of the Rock is today?

7) Question for Numbers 20:

Does Miriam die fully forgiven and restored to her former status after having
been rebuked by YHWH and stricken with leprosy in Numbers 12? Why or
why not?

8) Question for Numbers 21:1-22:1:

Why would Abba YHWH command the Israelites to make a graven image of
a copper snake when He has forbidden just such an act elsewhere?

9) Haftorah Question of the Week: Judges 11:1-33

Was Jephtahs daughter really sacrificed?

10) Renewed Covenant Commentary: Yochanan 3:1-21

John 3:3

32) Here is the first of the Double Amens. When two of the same words appear
together in Hebrew or Aramaic it is a double amplifier, meant to sharpen our
spiritual focus. Yshua uses a double amen here to point to a very deep matter
that requires us to be in prayer mode to understand and receive his teaching.
Please see footnote on Joh_6:26.

33) Literally, "from the start" as Adam who was born into perfection without sin.
This refers to the Ruach haKodesh birthing the "image of Elohim" (perfection)
into the Neshama (spirit of man). The term "born again" can be rather misleading
as though being born once more, or a "rebirth" rather than experiencing the
indwelling of the perfection of YHWH. See Gen_1:27; Gen_6:9; Gen_17:1;
Deu_18:13. Another handicap of the term "born again" is that many are told that
they are "born again" when they accept certain theologies or become part of a
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Christian denomination, or get on a "religious high." But then, some are informed
that they're not "born again" when they disagree with the teachings of the
religious status quo. The term "born again" has become a religio-political term
that is used to judge souls and/or manipulate them into subjection to various
religious hierarchies. Many followers of Mashiyach experience a series of "born
anew-like" experiences as from "faith to faith" (Rom_1:17). However, you have
confidence of being "born anew" when your soul thirsts for righteousness and
follows in the footsteps of Mashiyach, observing Torah, and living to please
Master YHWH. This is evidence that you've entered into Covenant with YHWH
which is established in Mashiyach's blood! See Appendix, Born from the
Beginning.

John 3:5

34) Rukha can mean either "Spirit" and "Wind"; in this context the Spirit is the
proper translation. (PY)

John 3:8

37) In this wordplay, Maran Y'shua demonstrates the dual meaning of the
Aramaic word "Rukha." (PY)

John 3:10

38) Niqodemus is rich and famous, and a highly respected teacher, yet his
spiritual journey is still being cultivated. The question draws vital spiritual
elements out of him (and every student and teacher of Mashiyach since him), and
then while in that fertile moment of receiving spiritual bread Yshua reveals
Joh_3:16, the most famous and powerful verse ever spoken.

John 3:18

43) Condemned (Aramaic din) as Murdock renders it, is almost always better
translated as judged. The believer repents and stops their sin before a judgment
of punishment (condemnation) is levied, but, no such thing for the unbeliever.

44) Normally the beyt proclitic is translated here as "in" but Murdock opts for
"on" which suggests something greater than the peshat (plain) meaning.
Normally "on" is derived from the Aramaic al, i.e. "concerning or regarding" the
name, this may point to the promise of the name Y'shua as "YHWH is salvation"
(Mat_1:21), as opposed to faith in a man with the name Y'shua.