Status: Married
For you are a holy people to YHWH your God. YHWH your God has chosen you to be His own treasure, out of all the people on the face of the earth. Deuteronomy 7:6
Chosen – Have you chosen one to marry? Have you selected a partner for life? YHWH has. The Hebrew verb bahar is the verb for the action of choosing, of selecting through careful examination. This verb is not used to describe the impulse shopper. This is the act following meticulous examination. It’s a life-long decision. God and Israel didn’t get married in Las Vegas.
Why is it important for us to recognize the longevity of such a choice? We need to see that God has not altered course in His covenant commitment to Israel. Furthermore, the care taken in making this choice implies (and the Bible explicitly states) that this covenant relationship does not apply to any other people. Only those who share in the history of this exclusive relationship are “married” to YHWH. He is not husband to any others.
Certain immediate consequences arise from the exclusivity of this relationship. First, it cannot be replaced with another one. Israel may have been castigated for its unfaithfulness, but God did not leave the relationship because of Israel’s wandering. The prophets make it abundantly clear that God’s faithfulness prevails. There is no replacement of the bride.
Second, authors Halbertal and Margalit point out that the demand of the first commandment is not based on the uniqueness of the one true God. It is rather based on a moral obligation connected to the exclusivity of the marriage between YHWH and Israel. “The moral element exists because the very obligation to worship one God stems from the fact that God in Heaven chose Israel on earth as his wife, and so according to the norms of marital life, idolatry was forbidden for Israel.”[1] “You shall have no other gods before me,” is a statement about fidelity, not about sovereignty. This is crucial. It breaks the theological idea that our faithfulness to God depends on His uniqueness as God. Instead, it suggests that our fidelity to God depends on His choice to wed Himself to us. Of course, He isn’t husband to all nations or to just anyone who happens to acknowledge that He is God. He is husband to Israel and to all those who take upon themselves the obligations of the marriage contract given to Israel. Did you get that?
What happens to the martial contract when someone who does not accept the terms of agreement between God’s chosen and God decides to step into the place of the wife? What would you do in your marriage if someone claimed he or she had replaced you?
Topical Index: marriage, chosen, bahar, Deuteronomy 7:6
[1] Moshe Halbertal and Avishai Margalit, Idolatry, p. 22.
Oh man…. the implications of your last several questions are heavy for the church of today. I’ve always been taught that the church is the bride of Christ (of course, I’ve grown up in a New Covenant only world), so I’ve never thought about this issue before in this way, especially not in light of the relevancy of the original Covenant, and the idea of salvation as rescue from the world into the community of God.
1. Does it also mean that when we choose to allow the rule and reign of God in our life and choose to obey His covenant commands (accepting the terms of the agreement, as it were) that we are grafted into Israel, becoming a legitimate part of the marriage covenant between God and Israel?
2. This part comes from frustration over being in the dark for so long and being programmed to think Greek: if the church as we know it today is so far from God’s meaning and intent in the Bible due to political and social interventions, and if the meaning of salvation itself and the commandments themselves have been so lost and misconstrued, why isn’t God being more obvious about this divorce from His purposes? It seems that in many ways God still works through (or in spite of) the church, even though they are violating His commands and have, for the most part, rejected Israel as irrelevant. If they are so far off, why does God still work through the church?
Just wondering….
Just a quick comment on the two questions.
1. Paul certainly suggests that we are grafted into the commonwealth of Israel and we become participants in the original marriage covenant.
2. If God didn’t intervene in the 1500 years between Adam and the flood, why do we suppose that He will do so in our age? Until judgment comes, at least. If God continuously cried out to Israel but still allowed them to pursue their adulterous relationships with other gods until He finally destroyed the nation with the coming of Babylon, why do we think He should protect our civilization from ourselves? It is my observation that God’s people are discovering the great apostasy of the Church and the many small groups of His followers are turning back to the original. But why do we think that the remnant must be the whole? God rarely prevents us from exercising our free will to reject His ways. What He does it warn us until He finally has no other choice than to judge us.
I know I’m double posting, but after I read and posted the first time, I went over to do some reading from Blue Letter Bible. I’ve been reading (very slowly) through Psalm 119 (I always skip it because it’s so long, so I thought I’d do it justice because it’s a great psalm). Anyway, the verse I started with (I’m at verse 21) almost made me laugh and then cry… it dovetailed so completely with what is written here. If you want, you can read what I said at my blog (http://www.godhunt.com/?p=1233). Sorry, if I shouldn’t post links to my site, Skip. I just didn’t want to copy/paste it all here. And I’m still not sure if I should laugh at God’s sense of kairos or cry at the implications of what I’m reading.
Hmmmm… I tried to post before, but maybe it wouldn’t let me because I linked it to my site…
The long/short of it is that after posting the above I went to read my Bible (I’m reading Psalm 119, slowly, because I’ve always skipped it in the past because it’s so long… stop laughing, I hear you…, plus I was hoping for something light and fluffy) and the first verse I read (verse 21) made me almost laugh and cry. I seemed to dovetail so perfectly with what Skip wrote today, in a scary kind of way.
Here’s the link: http://www.godhunt.com/?p=1233
Anyway, I’m still trying to decide whether to laugh or cry, but God sure does have a funny sense of timing (kairos, perhaps?).
Amen and amen, Skip. In the words of the prophet Jeremiah:
Jer 31:31-34 ESV – 31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord , when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,”
Note that the “new covenant” is not made with gentiles (the very word means “uncovenanted” or one who is outside the covenant) but with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, both of which include “former gentiles” who have been grafted in. As Paul wrote:
“Eph 2:11-13, 19 NKJV – 11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh–who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands– 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. … 19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God…”
If we were “once Gentiles”, then that implies that we are no longer gentiles, rather we have been “brought near” and “grafted in” and therefore heirs of the covenants of promise just like the natural born descendants of Israel.
Back to Jeremiah:
32 “not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord . 33 “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord : I will put my law (Torah) within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 “And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord ,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
In the wedding ceremony at Mt Sinai, our forefathers agreed to enter into the covenant without having heard the terms. The first time YHVH gave the instructions, he spoke them out so all could hear. His first intention was always to write them on our hearts, but our hearts were hardened and refused to hear Him, so as a sign of the hard hearts He wrote them on tablets of stone. He made this promise though:
Eze 36:26-27 NKJV – “26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do [them].”
The Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost (Shavuot) on the anniversary of the giving of the Torah at Mt Sinai. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is to write God’s teaching and instructions on our hearts, to cause us to remember YHVH and “to walk in His statutes, to keep His judgments and do them”. He will never lead us in a way that is contrary to the Word of God. That is done by another spirit.
Brother … How true … Ahmein
[The Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost (Shavuot) on the anniversary of the giving of the Torah at Mt Sinai. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is to write God’s teaching and instructions on our hearts, to cause us to remember YHVH and “to walk in His statutes, to keep His judgments and do them”. He will never lead us in a way that is contrary to the Word of God. That is done by another spirit.]
‘m not sure if the blog will let me embed video in a comment, but I’ll give it a go. In case it doesn’t work, you can find it here. This is a video from Max Lucado’s church (Max is one of the most respected Christian authors of our day) and speaks directly to the wedding ceremony and the responsibility of the bride. Enjoy!
No, it appears not to have worked…
Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/v/bk7T5DM4aDA&rel=0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xd0d0d0&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1”
“Rabbi Daniel K Thomson at Max Lucado’s church”
Hi Rodney,
Thanks for sharing the video!
Both men are very impressive, but for a little video the Rabbi certainly has a powerful presence.
I’m not clear on the difference between a Rabbi and a Priest.
Are there still Jewish priests?
The short answer, no, not currently. There is no operating altar or temple and therefore the Levitical priesthood cannot function in their role as designed by God. The scriptures say though that the covenant with the tribe of Levi is permanent and that the Priesthood will be re-established in the Messianic age (i.e. during the millenial reign of Yeshua from Jerusalem), which will of course require the re-establishment of an altar and the “third temple” which will be built by the Messiah.
The modern day rabbis are descended from the Pharisees of the second temple period, who were a class of teachers that were appointed by the Romans. The Saducees (Tzadokites or Sons of Tzadok) were in fact the Levitical priests and served in the temple. They were exiled with the rest of the nation after the destruction of the temple in 70 CE and were basically absorbed into the general population in the diaspora.
Thanks Rodney, for the great explanation!
To me the Rabbi had the aspect of a priest or a nun.
Probably because of my Irish, working class, Catholic childhood.
I notice on wiki that one conflict between Pharisees and the Sadducees was “class”:
“One conflict was class, between the wealthy and the poor, as the Sadducees included mainly the priestly and aristocratic families.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pharisees
In the Leadership class this evening someone mentioned that Jews don’t tend to end up in prison because of their strong sense of community.
I agree and would add that in my experience most Jews tend to put a premium on education and often end up as doctors, lawyers, professors, engineers, and executives.
Most people in prison are relatively poor, uneducated, and dysfunctional.
There were other doctrinal disagreements between the Pharisees and Sadducees as well. The Sadducees did not accept the “oral law” of the Pharisees – rather they only accepted the Tanakh as being authoritative instructions on how to live.
They rejected the halakhic rulings of the rabbis. Halakhah = the path one walks, thus halakhic rulings are rabbinic answers to questions about how to live based on the “traditions of the elders”, the rabbinic sayings and writings of past rabbis. BTW, Yeshua also took the Pharisees to task about their traditions that added to or subtracted from the Word of YHVH. It is worth noting that the Pharisaic tradition says that even if you know that a rabbi is wrong on a given point, you must obey him regardless. Rashi (or was it Ramban) said, “Even if the rabbi tells you that right is left and left is right, you must obey him”. The rabbi’s word was law, and superseded even that of the Torah of Moses.
A good explanation of the different classes of halakhah is found here.
The modern day Karaites may be descended from the Sadducees – they also reject the oral law and hold that the Tanakh is the sole source of authoritative instructions for living.
It is also said that the Sadducees did not believe in the after-life or the resurrection (so they were forever sad, you see – bad joke, I know). We see in the gospel account a time when a Sadducee challenged Yeshua about this and was promptly put back in his place – “You do err, not knowing the scriptures or the power of God”.
Other sects existed as well (e.g. the Essenes) who did not agree with either the Pharisees or the Sadducees on specific doctrinal issues. Sounds a bit like the modern church, but we have something like 34,000 different denominations (or was it 38,000?). We can’t even agree to disagree a lot of the time (one example that I’m sure you’d be well familiar with is the conflicts between the Catholics and Protestants in Ireland). At least among Jews with doctrinal differences the end of all arguments is, “When Messiah comes, He will lead us into all truth”.
Shalom,
As usual Skip … a clear and concise message fully supported by the revelation of The Word!
Once again the issue of “replacement theology” brings us full circle to the real nature of the “deceiver”! It is one aspect of this commentary to understand the faithfulness of YHVH respective to the eternal covenant and the status of Israel … it is another matter to understand the implications respective to those who claim to be the “new bride”!
In all actuality the “new bride” is little more than a “zanah” … a harlot … and most certainly as Skip makes clear the adultery is not taking place with YHVH!
So if the “zanah” is not fornicating with YHVH … with whom is the zanah having relations?
Ahhh … the grand delusion! YHVH fully recognizes HIS bride but the “zanah” does not recognize her g_d! The “zanah” has been deceived and is confused! And who or what is the source of confusion?
In the later days G_D’s chosen will come out of Babylon which is … [Revelations 17:5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.]
Admittedly its a tough message … but … it is the message given by Yeshua! So who really views themselves as a grafted in constituent of Yisrael versus a member of one of the myriad clans of the replacement bride? With 34,000 plus clans in operation it is pretty clear that the “zanah” and her husband have been fornicating like crazy!
As is always the case … a rebuking from the Lord can cut deep … who is willing to soften the heart and let HIM cut away?
We (the chosen ones)-(yes, I’m talkin’ to you) are (now) the body and bride of Christ. Amen. (This is true!) We have been purchased (redeemed) and have been (that is something that has occurred in the past with future consequences) called by His name. We (I’m talkin’ to you) are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a peculiar people.
Dear family- “it is written”- “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Read it fifty times, if that is what is takes for this to “sink in.” You are (now, today) a chosen people.
G-d has “chosen” us!
Love is a choice- and G-d is love! G-d in His goodness, Sovereignty, and mercy has (fully) revealed Himself to us and has invited us to be partakers of the divine nature. (Holiness). In every relationship- (remember, “Christianity” is not a religion- it is a relationship). Oh yes, I am not blind to the atrocities and abuses of the past- but neither am I blind to the recognition and realization of the realities of the present either. We belong to Him! We have been (past tense) “bought with a price”.
We are (today) in a blood-covenant relationship with the (now) living G-d. (Is this too much? too soon?- too “heavy?”)
Ask Him today,- Adonai- do I belong to you? Am I called by your name? Am I “saved” (sosa), delivered, and healed?
Jesus loves me. This I know. For the Bible tells so. – that is about as deep as I can get. But actually- that (in and of itself) is “deep enough!” lol! But, brothers and sisters- there is so much more- “in Christ.”
I am so glad that Jesus loves me. Jesus loves even me! “Behold, (take a long look!)- what manner of love the Father has given (verb tense?) unto us (that’s me and you!) that we (us) should be called (He calls us) the children of G-d.” (It is so!)- Amen.
Hey skip I have been forwarding your Today’s word out to a few people hope you do not mind. Anyways, here is a response to what someone said. I am going to respond later when I have more time. I want to hear your input.
I’m not sure I entirely agree.
God did divorce Israel, for cause!
He will choose all nations eventually.
Those who have covenanted with God are “spiritual Jews” even though they do not keep the physical covenant commandments (like circumcision).
While the fidelity idea is extremely important in the first commandment, I think the sovereignty of God is equally important—or more so–.
God has the RIGHT to demand our fidelity because he is sovereign, the great creator, as well as our husband,
Yes, unfortunately those who believe the “church” are the “spiritual Jews” often see no connection between the original marriage covenant and today’s non-Jewish followers. But then they must ignore or re-interpret both Yeshua and Sha’ul. God will choose all nations, but Israel is the magnet that attracts them, even today. That covenant will never be broken. As for the first two commandments, rabbinic interpretation seems them as one piece, not two – and God’s pledge to Israel is foremost in the mix. After all, it is the God of ISRAEL, not just any God.
Pamela, God did indeed divorce Israel and she became wedded to foreign gods. Israel (consisting of the northern 10 tribes) were exiled among the nations and have not yet returned to the land. Judah was also exiled to Babylon, returned back to the land and was again exiled by the Romans, to be restored in 1948. Judah is now back in the land but Israel is still exiled.
Jeremiah, Isaiah, Ezekiel and Hosea all speak of Israel (as distinct from Judah) being regathered out of the nations where they are scattered and being re-united with Judah in the land under the rule and reign of Messiah Yeshua during His millenial reign from Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 3 is one such passage but this passage also gives us a small problem. Deut 24 teaches that if a man divorces his wife and she becomes another man’s, then if the second husband dies or divorces her she cannot return to her former husband because God considers that to be an abomination. In Jeremiah 3, however, we God say (paraphrased), “Yes, I divorced you, but return to me anyway and I will look upon you with kindness.” How can God break His own law? How can the adulterous bride who committed fornication with foreign gods, was divorce and became wedded to another return to her first husband without violating Torah?
Sha’ul gave us the answer in Romans 7:1-4. “Don’t you know, brethren, that the law only has dominion over a man as long as he lives?”. In other words, once Yeshua died and was resurrected as a new man, He is then free to remarry His bride and she is now free to marry Him again. Has that wedding happened yet? No, only the betrothal, which (if you watch the Rabbi Thompson video linked above you’ll understand) took place at the time of His death, burial and resurrection (as He illustrated during the “last supper”). In Hebrew thought, though, being betrothed is the same legal status as being married, so all of the obligations of faithfulness apply to the bride from the time she accepts the marriage proposal.
The marriage ceremony where Israel is finally joined to her husband is known as the “Marriage Supper of the Lamb” and will occur at the first Feast of Tabernacles that we will celebrate with Messiah after His return. The marriage covenant has been renewed. Israel is betrothed. All who have joined themselves to the God of Israel, who rely and wait on the promises of God, are grafted into Israel (as Sha’ul wrote) and are therefore part of the covenant (and betrothed to our husband). It is therefore up to us to live as if we are married.
Jeremiah 31 is very clear – the “new” (or renewed) covenant is made only with two entities, the House of Israel (still scattered in the nations) and the House of Judah (back in the land). Both of these include former gentiles who have now been grafted in. There is no other way into the kingdom.
It is interesting to note that in the new Jerusalem mentioned in Revelation there are 12 gates, named after the 12 tribes of Israel. There is no Baptist gate, no Presbyterian gate, no Catholic gate…the only way in is to be grafted into Israel. We don’t replace them – we become part of them.
Shalom Rodney,
Oh well said! Amen and Amen!
I completely agree with you Rodney, it was the person whom I forwarded Skip’s teaching to that was in some disagreement. Your response was well written and thank you for doing so. Most of the time it is difficult to type out responses in a timely matter.
“At least among Jews with doctrinal differences the end of all arguments is, “When Messiah comes, He will lead us into all truth”..
Rodney..just askin’.. has Messiah come? -Peter answered in Matthew 16.16 “”You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
And (in anticipation to your “yes!”),- (According to G-d’s Word..) -Will He lead us into all truth? Does He lead us into all Truth?
Carl, absolutely, yes! You are aware, of course, that our Jewish brethren do not all recognize Yeshua as Messiah and are still waiting for Him. We know that He has come and that He will return. The prophecy that they’re referring to is in Isaiah:
Isa 2:2-4 KJV – 2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, [that] the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. 4 And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.
“our Jewish brethren do not all recognize Yeshua as Messiah and are still waiting for Him.”
Hi Rodney,
Seems to me that Yahweh is One but he tends to come to us with two views.
For example, the two creation stories.
In this case, we have Messiah ben Joseph in the present and Messiah ben David in the future.
Our Jewish brethren, and some of us, worship the Father and the rest of us worship the Son.
Judaism (at least some parts of it) are actually looking for 2 messiahs – Messiah ben Joseph (the suffering servant who will die for the nation) and Messiah ben David (who will be the conquering king). This is scriptural but they interpret it as 2 separate persons because they failed to recognize Him the first time He came (indeed as Messiah ben Joseph). It is my belief thought that those who are truly seeking Him will recognize Him when He comes the second time as Messiah ben David, the conquering king “who in righteousness doth judge and make war” (with the enemies of God).
Interestingly enough, the “aleph tav” appears twice in Genesis 1:1 – once as the fourth word in the sentence (He appeared the first time on the “fourth day”, at the end of the fourth millenium since creation) and again as the sixth (we expect Him again at the end of the “sixth day” or the sixth millenium since creation).
I also recently heard of a rather old Jewish document (which Google searches have so far failed to turn up any reference to, but I’m still hopeful of finding it somewhere) which details a hypothetical debate between Aaron the brother of Moses (the first High Priest) and King David. The debate is about which is better – to be King or to be High Priest. The debate is apparently won by Aaron when he makes a point that King David is unable to refute – the inheritance of the High Priest is better than that of a King, because every son of a priest gets to be a priest, but only one son of a king gets to be king.
The conclusion drawn by the rabbis from this document is very interesting – they say that when Messiah comes, he will come first as priest that we might receive the inheritance of life, then as king to restore the kingdom to Israel.
Is that not in fact what He did the first time He came? He came as priest, offered Himself as the sacrifice and took on the High Priesthood after the order of Melchizedek in place of the Aaronic high priestly line. When He returns (as Messiah ben David), he will inherit and restore the kingdom. There is some debate as to whether it is possible to be both king and high priest at the same time, but getting into that is getting into technicalities that are probably way beyond the scope of this discussion (and beyond my understanding at this time).
Hi Michael,
I’ve had house guests for several weeks and am now trying to play “catch up” with Today’s Word. It’s July 23rd, but, I just finished reading the July 15th post.
Re: your comment “Our Jewish brethren, and some of us, worship the Father and the rest of us worship the Son.”
I wanted to mention a third option. Many of us worship BOTH, actually 3 with the Holy Spirit, for we see them as ONE.
It was the plan from before time. The Triune God would take on human form and become the sacrificial lamb who would die for the sins of mankind, leaving behind his Holy Spirit to bring us comfort. I don’t begin to understand it it, but I do believe. It helps me to remember that water can take on 3 forms (solid, liquid and gas.)
You’ve been pretty clear in some of your past posts that you don’t hold this position and I’m not trying to convince you or start a debate…just sharing MY belief.
It’s also my belief that God had a direct hand in bringing each reader to Skip’s website and teachings. We didn’t all just arrive here by accident. I know I didn’t. Some amazing minds weigh in regularly and readers reap the benefits of powerful theological discussions, insights and spiritual awakenings. When I subscribed to “Today’s Word,” I think I can safely say I was a watered down luke warm Christian. Since then, my faith has grown exponentially. I’m so grateful.
Bottom line…if you have doubts about the Holy Trinity, that might be the very reason God led you to this website. Keep throwing out the questions and I have no doubt that “somebody” 🙂 will offer a satisfying answer someday.
Blessings to you,