Last week we looked at enemies that came into existence because of sin
(Maob), as well as tampering with YHVHs Word (Beor). These enemies were
family members from the past that became the opposers of YHVHs people,
trying to annihilate them. We also touched on the protective power of YHVHs
blessings on your life because of faith and obedience.
This week we will look at the Hero called Pinchas, which is also the name of this
Torah Portion. Pinchas heroic act occurs during the time an Israeli leader
named Zimri, sined and rebelled against the Word of YHVH, as revealed
through Moses.
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His people are depicted by the ones who follow the ancient ways of His
unadulterated Word, and have the connection with shittim wood, which
identifies them as Covenant people, who have the Ark of the Covenant with
them. This is relevant because it links to Josh 3:15 where the waters of the
River Jordan opened up when the feet of the Priests, carrying the Ark of the
Covenant, touched the water, allowing Israel to walk through on dry land. (Read
Parashah 39 Chukat p4-7 for more detail). Shittim or acacia wood was also used
for constructing the Incense Altar, the Table of Showbread and in the Great
Altar, as well as in the structural members of the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting).
This wood, which could be as small as limbs and branches, represents people
like you and me, because it often needed to be fitted together, to be used in the
construction of the Mishkan and the furniture that was used in the Tabernacle,
thus connecting it to the Body of Messiah Yshua.
The numeric value of shittim shin-tet-yud-mem is 359, as 359 also equals:
All these words relate to Massich ben Yoseph, the suffering Servant, Who
represents Yshua, Who is the Torah, Who came in the flesh, a mighty man,
Who took the sin of humanity upon Himself (satan), Who suffered and was
rejected, and despised by His own people.
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Numbers 26 gives us the current census number of Simeonites and Numbers 1
gives us the census number from the beginning of the exodus:
Num 26:14 These are the clans of the Simeonites: twenty-two thousand
two hundred.
Num 1:23 those who were registered of the tribe of Simeon were fifty-
nine thousand three hundred.
The tribe of Simeon lost 37,100 people, so it is easy to conclude that perhaps
nearly all of the 24,000 who died from the plague were from the tribe of Simeon.
Phinehas (Pinchas) took action and killed two prominent rebels with a spear,
and then the plague stopped.
Pinchas cxnyp means face of trust and protection and mouth of brass. His
name is actually a contraction of two words, and it always points to a picture.
The word pey p which means mouth or here, now and the word nachash
cxn which means serpent or image of the serpent. Nachash is the same
word used for the serpent in Numbers 21:8-9 And YHVH said to Moses,
Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole The Hebrew, word for bronze,
copper or brass is nekhoshet. So instead of the mouth of brass
here, now (pey), we have the image of the brass serpent
(Nachash), or Penachash (Pinchas), who ended the plague of
death using the same remedy. Nachash (serpent, enchanter) has
the gematria of 358, that is also the gematria of Massiach, the one
Who became the image of the serpent, Who stopped the plague.
Pinchas was the son of Elazar rzila which means help of Elohim and
court of Elohim. The meanings of the name, indicate the function or role
Pinchas played, as one of the Levites. Pinchas was part of the Court of Elohim
(Elazar), which implies that he had a particular role within the order of the
Priesthood and was trained to act whenever there was a life-threatening
situation. This is similar to the role Yshua will perform as the Judge and
Advocate in the Court of Elohim, defending His people and judging those who
yoked themselves with the enemy and sin.
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Spiritual Insight: Unbelievers are described as Belial, which comes from the
term, Sons of Belial, described in Deut 13:13 as corrupt men who enticed the
inhabitants of their city to worship false gods. We are not to be yoked
together with people who worship false gods, especially those promoting it.
Choose your friends wisely because you become like the people you mix
with.
Q Who were these people and why did their deaths stop the plague?
The Midianites tactic was to set up their tents and have a feast, then inviting the
sons of Israel to join in. Their main aim was to target the leadership, Zimri, the
son of Salu, a prominent leader of the Tribe of Simeon.
It is believed that Zimri was in his tent with the daughter of a Midianite leader,
named Zur and he had sealed a covenant in marriage, yoking the Tribe of
Simeon with Midian. This was a serious offence based on Balaams tactics.
Zimri
means song and Salu vlc means perfect.
Spiritual Insight: This reveals another tactic of the enemy, to bypass the
cognitive part of the brain that deals with reason, targeting our emotional
centre accessed through music. The enemy uses the power of music,
influencing YHVHs people with its embedded messages containing half
truths (lies) that are not Scriptural. One of the dangers of mainstream
Christian music (not all music), is that people are led into an emotional state,
and they become addicted to that feeling they associate with the Holy Spirit.
Q - What does the Word teach us about the heart, our emotional centre?
Jer 17:5-10 Thus says YHVH: Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength, Whose heart departs from YHVH.
6 For he shall be like a shrub in the desert, And shall not see when good
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This passage uses the same language found in Psalm 1 where the righteous
are compared to a tree planted beside living waters, that is the unadulterated
Word of YHVH. There is nothing wrong with using music to praise and
worship YHVH; the issue is with the words, message and doctrine behind the
music. Dont follow your heart, do not be led by your emotions and do not be
fooled into thinking that the Holy Spirit is a feeling.
Zimri was the son of Salu . Salus name consists of two parts sal which
mean, willow twig and vav which means man. Sal is first used in Gen
40:17 where Joseph interpreted the dream of the baker. The birds came and
ate the bread from the willow twig basket and that prophesied his death. Vav
represents the number 6 and is related to the following words:
bad which means lie, idle talk and liar, white linen, linen
garment, separation, being alone.
gebe which means reservoir, to collect, pit.
gag which means top of an altar, housetop, roof.
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The Covenant of Peace
Num 25:10-12 Then YHVH spoke to Moses, saying: 11 Phinehas the son
of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from
the children of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal among them,
so that I did not consume the children of Israel in My zeal. 12 Therefore
say, Behold, I give to him My covenant of peace; 13 and it shall be to him
and his descendants after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood,
because he was zealous for his Elohim, and made atonement for the
children of Israel.
Phinehas received a Covenant of Peace because of his zeal for YHVH. Peace
is the word shalom, that everybody is familiar with. What is so special about
this phrase Covenant of Peace in relation to the zeal of Phinehas? The
anewer is found within the word shalom ,vls, particularly in the letter vav v
contained in the word shalom.
The Broken Vav: Inside an authentic Torah
Scroll, you will find a broken vav in the word
shalom. Every jod or tittle is important in the
Torah Scroll and these are the things Yshua
referred to in Matt 5:18 teaching that all these small nuances will not be
abolished, let alone the Torah (Law). Every time you see a jod or tittle like this,
YHVH wants to get your attention, and wants to reveal something deeper
underneath the surface of the text.
Q What is YHVH teaching us here?
The broken vav within the word Shalom; means that the peace is broken
within the Covenant because of the sin Israel committed at Ball Peor. Broken
peace means broken Covenant and this caused the peace to turn into a
plague.
Shalom ,vls means safe, well, happy, friendly; welfare, i.e. health,
prosperity, favour, friend, good health, to prosper, rest, salute, to be whole.
It is YHVHs shalom that keeps the Covenant intact with His people, allowing
His friendship, safety, happiness, welfare, health, prosperity and wholeness to
come upon His Covenant people. If you lose Shalom, you lose all these things
that encompass everything of what it means to be blessed. Just like cold is an
absence of heat, and darkness an absence of light, so are curses created in
the absence of Shalom. It is not YHVH Who creates these curses, it is a
spiritual law that exists from creation, just like gravity, and without it our physical
world would not be possible. If you remove the vav from Shalom, then it
becomes the word salam ,ls that means; to deliver, to restore, and to make
complete. This represents people in the world.
Shalom ,vls comes from the root word shalam which means to be safe (in
mind, body or estate); to be completed; to be friendly; to make amends, to
finish, full, to give again, make good, (re-) pay make restitution, restore, to give
a reward.
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Shalam is first found in Scripture in Gen 44:4 where Joseph ordered his
servants, to put his brothers money in the bags of grain they purchased. After
that he confronted them asking; why have you rewarded (shalam) evil for
good.
Spiritual Insight: We will receive a reward from YHVH (shalom) and He
expects a reward (shalam) back from us. His reward is for us to be blessed
(shalom), to keep His Covenant of Peace through obedience, and to ultimately
live with Him in the Promised Land. Our reward to Him (shalam) is to return
good (tov - )back to Him, and not evil (ra - ) . Good or tov is first
found in Scripture in Gen 1:4 where YHVH created the Light and saw that it
was good (tov). Evil or ra is first found in Scripture in Gen 2:9 where YHVH
introduces the Tree of Knowledge of good (tov) and evil (ra).
Lets put these thoughts together: YHVH gave the light
for our benefit, that is our reward and He expects light
in return, that is His reward. If we return some
darkness with the light, or only darkness instead of
pure light, He will see it as evil (ra), and that takes us
back to the original sin, the eating of the fruit of the
Tree of Knowledge (mixture of Good and Evil
Babylon). YHVHs Word (Torah) is the light that was
spoken in Gen 1:4, and His Word should not return
void (His reward). We should reflect His light (truth) like a mirror reflecting light.
If we add any manmade knowledge, it will distort the light reflected back to
YHVH and will be seen as evil. Evil or Ra consists of a resh ( head) and
an ayin ( eye). The Tree of Knowledge was desirable (Gen 3:6) and Eve
saw (eye) that the fruit was good (tov) and disobeyed YHVH. The eye
influences the mind and change our thoughts from being good or enlightened
by YHVHs Word, to becoming evil, by following the things that look
desirable.
Everything comes from YHVH, and every good we give back to Him, we
received from Him in the first place, so it belonged to Him anyway. The issue
YHVH has with us is that we only give an evil or opposing response back to
Him, whenever the things we experience are undesirable. Example: discipline
to a child is seen as bad from the childs point of view, but is a good thing
coming from the parents. The things you may experience as bad or evil are
sometimes good disguised as evil because of your lack of understanding.
Your Father knows best and sees all things and will allow certain situations that
are for your own good. The key is to understand this and not return evil in the
form of complaints and lack of faith, back to the Father. James says in James
1:2-8; count it all joy when you fall into various trials Returning joy for
sadness and praise for pain is what reflects light back to the Father, showing
Him that you act on His Word and not on your feelings or emotions.
It is easy to praise YHVH when things go well and to have faith when you have
no lack. The true test comes when you are faced with evil situations. The
reward YHVH expects from us can only spring forth from a situation that we
perceive as evil or bad. The reward He expects from you is to embrace the
bad situation and see what you can learn from it, but most importantly, what
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you can change about yourself after observing your response to that situation.
This will be seen as light and be a good reward unto Him.
We will now look a bit deeper into the forces at play that are designed to
change you within any adverse situation you may face.
Personal Application: The broken vav represents a broken
man and that vav is you. In order to build you up, YHVH
has to break your strong will (Balaams donkey). In order to
fill you, He has to empty you to make room for His revelation
of Truth. These breaking and emptying experiences are
not pleasant and start the moment you enter a challenging
situation that will make you uncomfortable. We sometimes
perceive situations like these as being under attack by the
enemy, rather than being stretched or emptied by the
Father. Remember that there is no power or authority
greater than Him, and everything you perceive as coming
from the enemy is YHVH in disguise.
This can be explained with the aid of an example. Picture yourself standing in
front of YHVH and He wants to move you to the Right (spiritual side). In order
to move you, He has to push you with His Left Hand and pull you with His
Right Hand. The whole idea is to close the gap between you and Him,
where He is on the Right (spiritual) and you are on the Left (physical world).
The pressing force of His Left Hand will be perceived as an opposing force
that comes against you. YHVH allows these situations (Left Hand push) to
make you uncomfortable and move you so that the gap between you and
Him can be closed. This opposing force needs to be harnessed, understood
and embraced for it to do its work in your life so that you can move closer to
Him. The left hand that rejects, is seen as correction, and the right hand
attracts, that is truth and revelation, specifically the Right Hand of YHVH, that
is Yshua.
These opposing forces that exist in the physical, come in the form of difficult
situations that create a desire for a revelation (truth and wisdom) to set you
free from this bad situation. While you are in the process of searching for this
remedy (truth), it will pull you closer to YHVH. This pulling force is also
known as desire and that is the internal force that will draw in wisdom and
revelation from Him. This desire towards YHVHs truth is the reward or
reflection of light He receives back from us until we return back to a state of
Shalom. Any good relationship consists of giving and receiving by both
parties, in the same way, you must strive to give back to Him, not only
expecting to receive His blessings and Shalom.
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fear, murmuring and ultimately, rebellion back to YHVH as His shalam
(reward).
The enemy will try to push with the right hand, to steer you away from YHVHs
light and truth, and pull with the left hand, attracting you with a worldly
solution for your problem that usually involves sin.
When YHVH opposes you, He will add pain to the physical (situations), to push
you away from the flesh, and draw you towards His peace, which are His
pleasant promises revealed in His shalom. The fact is that you will always
experience some sort of opposition because of a gap in your life that needs
to be addressed.
James 1:2-5 count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing
that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience
have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking
nothing.
James knew that if the flesh suffers, the spirit will be enhanced and drawn
closer to YHVH, closing the gap between Him and us so we can know Him
and ultimately, become like Him. The larger the gap, the more pressure is
required to break the binding power and the more pain you experience in that
situation. Remember, opposing forces in your life are the friction or traction
you need to move you in the right direction.
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be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven
ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
5 And the glory of YHVH shall be revealed, and ALL FLESH shall see it
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The only tribe mentioned here is Ephraim who returned to Egypt (sin &
bondage). This is a prophetic picture of the believers in Messiah (Ephraim) who
will go back to sin and bondage through the influence of corrupt Prophets,
drawn in under their entrapments by the things they love (fleshly desires).
These are believers in Messiah who are lowered into the traps by their own
desires, eating unclean things, entrapped by the words of false prophets and
teachers and warned more than once in the NT but people still follow their own
ways. May YHVH have grace upon us and help us not to be entrapped by the
tactics of Balaam and the venom of the Serpent.
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