That Which Remains
He has also established them forever and ever; He has made a decree which will not pass away. Psalm 148:6 NASB
Not pass away – What passes away? Well, you and I pass away. We die. So do animals, and birds, and insects—and in fact every living thing. They all pass away. What about God’s words? Do they pass away? We want to say, “No. God’s words are eternal. They stand forever.” But consider the words found in this psalm. David is speaking about the sun and the moon. He says that God has decreed that these celestial bodies will not pass away. The Hebrew is ya’avor. It’s an imperfect, that is, an incomplete action. It isn’t finished. It goes on.
But what about all the scientific evidence that the sun and the moon will one day pass away. The sun will eventually be extinguished. The moon will cease to exist. The universe will collapse into heat dust. But God said, according to David, that these celestial bodies will never pass away. Which view is correct? Or are they both right?
Ya’avor is from the Hebrew root ‘abar (Ayin-Bet-Resh). It is usually associated with movement relative to some stationary perspective or object. Passing through the land is an example. Metaphorically it can also mean transgressing in the sense of passing outside of a promise or commitment. Sin is an example of passing over the commandments of God. Therefore, to “not pass away” implies that the relationship between the stationary and the shifting will remain undisturbed. God’s decree is stationary. The sun and the moon are shifting. This relationship will continue. And from David’s perspective, that’s exactly what it looks like. Since Hebrew is phenomenological, this observation appears to be permanent. David is not doing astrophysics. He is witnessing the day-after-day continuance of the celestial bodies and he uses this imagery to speak about the permanence of God’s decrees. It may be that some day the sun and moon will cease to exist, but that alternative perspective has no effect on David’s insight. God’s words are forever.
Yeshua draws a similar metaphorical connection. The Torah will not pass away until heaven and earth pass away. In other words, never. Now this seems about as clear as the daily rising of the sun. While the statements might not be astronomically correct, the point is not diminished. God’s decrees (David) and God’s instructions (Yeshua) are going to be around long after you and I pass away. Is there any hint here that the day of their passing came and went when Yeshua died on the cross? Are the sun and the moon still here? Are heaven and earth still here? If God’s decrees concerning the sun and the moon continue abated and unchanged, then isn’t it obvious that His other decrees also continue unabated and unchanged. Or did you think that somehow, some way, the steadfastness and reliability of those decrees suddenly changed when the Messiah died? But not when he was born, of course. Tell me, how am I supposed to trust in the words of the Lord if there will be a time (or has been a time) when they are no longer true?
Topical Index: not pass away, lo ya’avor, ‘abar, Psalm 148:6
Side note: 112 and counting. 112 blog comments on the post for Christmas day. Apparently the two most important topics for bloggers are the Trinity and Christmas. More comments on those two topics than anything else, by far. Do you find that interesting?
Well said. If His words passed away for one group (i.e., OT believers), on what basis would the new group think they stand on firmer ground? Food for thought.
Oh, come on now, Suzanne, you spoil-sporter you. There you go, thinking again.
But now that we are thinking, isn’t it funny that all the ways He led His people in the OT, and all His promises in the OT, and all His statements about Himself in the OT, well, those, of course, are still with us. Why? Oh, because we still like those. In fact, the only thing still NOT with us, are the Laws. Those, of course, had to go. All laws? When I go asking this, I get assured that, no, not all laws. The universe is still running now like it did then. Some laws, then? Which ones, specifically? Well, MOST of them are still ‘good’. You know, the MORAL ones. Oh. You mean, Nine of them. Yeah, those. Just the Fourth One, then. Yes. THAT one. Got it. You mean, the one that ‘seals’ the rest? Yes. So the Seal of the Law changed. No, just got taken away, because, because; well… So the Law doesn’t need a heavenly seal anymore. Yes. Because, because… oh, because it is written in our hearts now. Yes, that’s it. SIgh…. Also, with that pesky Seal gone, we can now agree with the rest of the planet about what ‘being good’ means. Yep. We can all be on the same page now. That’s good. Now that we don’t have to fight about religion anymore, we can all get along. Whew. Hurray for ecumenism!
🙂 Like
I was reading Heschel this morning (God in Search of Man) and he addresses that line of thought. “Every religious act and judgement involves the acceptance of the ineffable, the acknowledgment of the inconceivable. When the basic issues of religion, such as God, revelation, prayer, holiness, commandments, are dissolved into pedestrian categories and deprived of sublime relevance, they come close to being meaningless.”
“Do you find that interesting?”
Indeed, after the roman kirk took over, they substituted all that smacked of Hebrew/Jewishness with their own feasts.
Christmas being their chief of feasts.
Adaptability was indeed the trait of the Greeks, and the Romans took after them. They just renamed the gods and all things continued as before. Well, as with the Greeks rule so the Roman rule; the Jews were not allowed to pronounce the name of their God on penalty of death. Hence Gods name being to “holy” to speak (rabbi’s were at least pragmatic), even though God says we are to use His name.
T & C interesting… and both are based on false “precepts of the fathers”!
We seem to spend a lot of time producing straw.
Yet, what are we to do with the statements at the end of Revelation which emphatically tell us that Heaven and Earth WILL PASS AWAY when YHWH comes down with the new Jerusalem? I have looked at this issue at great length and (while I do not disagree with Skip’s assessment of David’s perspective) I believe that the New Covenant (as described by Jeremiah) will not actually come to pass until Heaven and Earth pass away upon YHWH’s return. My reading of Matthew 5 is that Yeshua states that the WRITTEN Torah (jots and tittles) will not pass away until H&E pass away, after which (as described by Jeremiah) the Torah will be written on our hearts. At that time no one will need to say to his neighbor “know God”, because all will know Him. Why will all know Him? Because He will be sitting on His throne in the New Jerusalem. The Word of God endures forever, just not the written Word. The WRITTEN Word is what requires the two witnesses of H&E. The two witnesses were given as constant reminders to follow His written Word. Once YHWH returns those witnesses will no longer be needed.
I have heard the viewpoint that the words have not passed away, in the sense that they continue to exist. But their purpose has changed. They no longer apply. But they still exist. ??? It’s far-fetched. I don’t see the support for it in scripture. But it amazes me the amount of contortionist justification people will concoct to get away from the idea that we are still “under the law”. After all, it’s bondage. And a curse. 😐
Ah yes, the theory of the thing that only thing that changed with the exodus of Israel from Pharaoh was just taskmasters. Later our omnipresent God went to an anger management course realized He was wrong and started loving people realizing that He too was just a task master, just a more powerful one then Pharaoh. It’s an interesting theory – I’ve heard that one as well Alicia.
No, I don’t think Christmas is important enough to comment on it – and yet I’m doing that right now. I stopped celebrating it years ago. No christmastree, no presents – even no Saint Nicolas, which is a seperate festivity in my country on the 5th of december: presents for children. So no more Sinterklaas / Sint Nicolaas either. B.t.w.: he’s the origin of Santa Claus, remember it’s the Dutch who started New York / New Amterdam. Those silly English just didn’t understand Saint Nicolas 🙂
Saint Nicolas was forbidden (just as the christmas tree some later) for a while after the refomation. But popular celebretions are hard to eradicate, aren’t they? So it all came back after a short time, within a generation or so.
As a result you really have to explain what you are doing celebrating Sukkot or Hanuka these days. How nice: now everyone wants to know…. !