Being a Jew – What Does it Mean?
The Bible tells us that G-d took the Jewish people to Him for a nation and that He is their G-d (Genesis 17:7; Exodus 6:7). The relationship between G-d and Israel is like a marriage. G-d will not enter into such an intimate relationship with any other nation and Israel will never enter into a devotional relationship with anyone aside from their G-d.
“You were shown in order that you know that the Lord is God there is none beside Him” (Deuteronomy 4:35).
It is Israel’s holy calling to testify to this truth. Israel is to carry the torch of the Oneness of G-d throughout the corridors of history.
This truth has two ramifications. The first ramification of this truth is the simple fact that the devotion of our hearts belongs to no one but to the One who brought our hearts into being in the first place.
The second ramification of this truth is that every inhabitant of this earth, including those people who are deified by the various world religions, are but fellow subjects of the One Creator.
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Thank You
Yisroel C. Blumenthal
1000 Verses - a project of Judaism Resources 
G-d will not enter into such an intimate relationship with any other nation
…then don’t you think every nation should also join that relationship? I know some Jewish kids who deeply think so and don’t buy things that I say in the other direction. Personally I want to do whatever He chooses, but I hear what you say here and ask why anyone would choose to know God with Israel and yet also choose to stay outside of Israel.
G-d will not enter into such an intimate relationship with any other nation
….and neither with any other religion. I knew Christians that prayed a lot and the results of their devout prayers were impressive. But what does it mean – does it mean that they have the right beliefs? For sure not! Sometimes the Creator of heaven and earth (not hell) in His grace answers such prayers since even gojim (pagans) are His creation. I was brought up as an Evangelical who never would pray to Mary. But even prayers to Mary were and are answered. While I was caught in deep Christianity I was given a calling and I believe that the calling makes the difference. HE who has called Israel and who has proved His calling throughout history, always has taken care of His chosen and called remnant. Mount Horeb has made the difference and I look ahead of the ultimate renewal of this covenant. Christians have made their own “new covenant” with a Greek Theos, HaShem does not know. It’s their decision and they will have to face the sad conseqences.
Hi Annelise,
It is true that Israel is the L-RD’s chosen nation and all His covenants are with Israel, as a people and nation. Israel was promised through the Psalms, Prophets, and Torah a Messiah, a Chosen One, a Prophet, A King, G-d Himself, to come from amongst the people (Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Isaiah 49:6; Isaiah 9:6, etc.) to the hearts of individuals (Acts 15) among the nations.
It is really important to KNOW and SEE if Jesus was sent by G-d, and was in fact G-d incarnate (Isaiah 9:6) – then in fact with faith in the Anointed One/Messiah/Christ you are among the people of Israel (Ephesians 2:11,12; Romans 9,10,11; Hebrews) and one with the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob through the Blood of the Passover Lamb!
Timing is everything, Annelise. I pray for you! Here are two Scriptures that I hope will open your eyes to SEE the L-RD’s love for you, for He knows every hair on your head – He counts them (Matthew 10:30; Luke 12:7).
Hosea 2:14-23 (The L-RD is calling you back – he has brought you to the valley of Achor (suffering) for a door of hope … He’s waiting for you, Annelise. He loves you and so do I.
We are counting the Omer – it is Pesach – time for deliverance – for only the L-RD can deliver you and set you free! He cares and so do I,
Revelation 9:6-8
With Deep Love & Concern,
June
June, I don’t think that you really see it important to KNOW and see the truth. I think you only want to prove yourself right and pray something like this:
“I believe in Jesus; help my unbelief!”
So any time someone points inconsistency, you shovel them up and pray to Jesus to help you not to doubt in your lord and savior…
Hi RT,
Annelise is dear friend of mine … that is why I responded to her the way did. Sorry you think so poorly of me …
June
The other day I read a tweet on twitter where the exact words were, “Only through God can you come to Jesus”. Think about that. That was not met with ANY disagreement among the hundreds of responses. That is Christianity, at least in 2017.
Yes Eleazar, that makes me think of what I heard last Saturday:
For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. John 1.
Then he went to 1 John 4:
By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess that[a] Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world.
Those who acknolege Jesus are of G-d, those who do not don’t know G-d. Who did not acknolege Jesus and had the law? The Jews… And it goes on and say that they are of the spirit of the antichrist… So all Jews (real one, not convert) are of the antichrist, and even if they pray to G-d, they are not of G-d!
Then, he did not finished there… That was not enough!
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. 14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
So yes, all Jews who don’t believe in Jesus are antichrist and thrown in the lake of fire!
What you wrote Eleazar is fond in the “Beloved” gospel of John 6:
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.
Yes, as per new testament all Jews who don’t accept Jesus are antichrist and G-d does not bring them, because (He is a mean god) he has not drawn them to show his wrath by throwing them in the fire of hell forever!
No disagreement, because the New testament teaches that, and Jews who convert believe that lie as well!
RT,
You wrote: “So all Jews (real one, not convert) are of the antichrist”
I’m not sure what you meant by this because converts are real Jews. 1 John is not only talking about born Jews but about all people who don’t believe in Jesus.
Alan, I mean Jews who are not apostate are considered antichrist as per the new testament. True 1 John was talking about everybody, but who were the main group who rejected Jesus? You can also link it to John 8:
Jesus said to the Jews: “If God were your Father, you would love me… You belong to your father, the devil”
Also, if you start a preaching with John 1 and make the contrast between Moses and Jesus, the message is even clearer. Jews received the “law”, which condemns them, and Jesus brings grace and truth.
“You were shown in order that you know that the Lord is God there is none beside Him” (Deuteronomy 4:35).
Amen, dear Rabbi Yisroel! Yeshua/Jesus Is Lord and He Is The Holy One of Israel, Avenu Malkenu. In ‘That’ Day you will know Him As He Is known (Phil. 2:10; Romans 11:14)
“I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ To a nation which did not call on My name Isaiah 65:1).
“Then shall you say in your heart, Who has begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who has brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where had they been? Thus said the Lord GOD, Behold, I will lift up My hand to the Gentiles, and set up My standard to the people: and they shall bring your sons in their arms, and your daughters shall be carried on their shoulders. And kings shall be your nursing fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers: they shall bow down to you with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of your feet; and you shall know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for Me (Isalah 49:21- 23), …
“The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you, And all those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet; And they will call you the city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. “Whereas you have been forsaken and hated With no one passing through, I will make you an everlasting pride, A joy from generation to generation “You will also suck the milk of nations And suck the breast of kings; Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. “Instead of bronze I will bring gold, And instead of iron I will bring silver, And instead of wood, bronze, And instead of stones, iron. And I will make peace your administrators And righteousness your overseers. “Violence will not be heard again in your land, Nor devastation or destruction within your borders; But you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise. “No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And your God for your glory. “Your sun will no longer set, Nor will your moon wane; For you will have the Lord for an everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be over. “Then all your people will be righteous; They will possess the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified. “The smallest one will become a clan, And the least one a mighty nation. I, the Lord, will hasten it in its time.” (Isaiah 60:14-22
“It is Israel’s holy calling to testify to this truth. Israel is to carry the torch of the Oneness of G-d throughout the corridors of history.”
Shema Yisroel Adonoi Elohenu Andoni Echod
Hear O Israel The LORD our God The LORD is One
Echod is the unity of one – not like one finger but means Shelly and June, Scott, Dean & Suzi’s family are One family.
I look forward to ‘That Day’ when The LORD returns and Salvation will come to Zion – and to the whole house of Israel (Zechariah 12). I’m with you and for you, dear Rabbi Yisroel. Arthur Katz loved you and prayed for you – so do Shelly and I.
With The Richest Blessings,
Your fellow Jewess,
June Volk
I feel you didn’t listen to what I wrote to you elsewhere just then… I don’t understand why you are talking to Rabbi Yisroel like that when there are such seriously issues at hand and unaddressed 😦
*serious
(sorry, I’m tired 🙂 )
Amen, dear Rabbi Yisroel! Yeshua/Jesus Is Lord and He Is The Holy One of Israel, Avenu Malkenu. In ‘That’ Day you will know Him As He Is known (Phil. 2:10; Romans 11:14)
When Jesus or Yeshua was Lord – why did no Navi teach this? In Math 1:23 The Greek Theos even had forgotten the right name he had promised for the pagan Mashiach: Immanuel….?
5Mo 18:18 I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.
If Jesus was this prophet – so,
> why then was Moshe not conceived by the Holy Spirit and born by a Holy Virgin on a pagan feast of winter solstice?
> Why then pretended this Jesus that he was almighty (Mat 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven….)
> Why was Moshe not raised from the dead and ascended to heaven?
> Why has Jesus/Yeshua never been anointed according to mosaic requirements?
> Why was Jesus never King of the Jews? Or, if so, when was his kingdom (years)?
If this Roman Catholic semi-god was the same divinity as the Jewish HaShem, I would have a problem but since HaShem had forbiden to bow down to Jesus and to serve this graven crucifix-idol, I have no problem with both of them. It does not make a pagan Jesus more Hebrew when you call him Yeshua – no way! It does not make the Holy Virgin Mary more Hebrew when you call her Miriam – she is and she remains a pagan divinity from ancient Babylon and the mother of Jesus (Yeshua)! I suggest you not to mix Judaism and pagan ideas together in a syncretistic way. I know why I have repented of my spiritual adultery, my idolatry with Jesus/Yeshua! I was brought up as an Evangelical but I came to know the truth after I had fasted for 40 days. Jesus is Kyrios – you are right, but never serve him!
2Mo 20:3-5 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: 5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Hello
Yes I agree the scriptures do say” You were shown that there is no other God but Him”
However I sometimes wonder how much the House of Jacob can actually be in such denial of the truth. Of written records and literal history and your current condition.
As any one ever bothered to read; say ie; the Book of Hosea???
Hos CH14 V3 Never again will we call the idols WE HAVE MADE “Our gods”
In Christ Messiah. The God and King of Israel.
x
There can also be idols that humans didn’t make, i.e. stars or animals.
PS.
Rabbi Yisroel said in this post that to be a Jew means to stand before God, before every Jew, and before everyone in all nations, with the testimony that there is only one who deserves worship.
Putting aside your definition of how that should be understood… can you have a look again at what he said there and see that it is filled with an intention of obedience, consecration, and faithful love towards God alone? Just try to keep that heart in mind, if you characterise a group of people as truth-deniers.
Also, Hosea 14:3 is not a proof that someone can and should worship Jesus.
Also, Hosea 14:3 is not a proof that someone can and should worship Jesus.
Be careful, Annelise!
You are breaking a commandment of God to honour your father and mother. By speaking against Yeshua/Jesus as Lord – you are going against ALL your parents taught you. It was God who gave you a mother and father who love The Holy One of Israel.
Be careful you stray too far the God of Israel, Who Is your Salvation.
My mum and dad taught me the New Testament perspective that children should obey our parents “in the LORD”, in other words, that we should honour our parents when it doesn’t contradict what God says.
I don’t agree that the New Testament is part of the Jewish scriptures. But I do agree with the general principle on this point. I obey what my parents tell me, except if they tell me to disobey God. And actually, my parents have told me that they are sad about my choice but that nonetheless it is my own choice to make before God.
There are times when I don’t honour my parents as I should. I ask their forgiveness for that and try to change. But this is not one of those situations. Although I disagree with my parents, I still honour them. In my eyes, deciding to follow God in this way is the greatest expression of the love and honour for Him that they taught and still teach me. For that as well I do honour them.
Would you suggest that every child has to follow whatever their parents teach them?!
I’m tired of you repeatedly telling me to be careful when you are stubbornly ignoring the fact that I am telling you the same thing. Be careful not to stray too far from the God of Israel, who Is your salvation. How is it different when you say it than when I say it? Because I mean it as well. I’m almost at an end of talking with you about these things because I know you approach the conversation with gentleness, affection, and patient fervour, but I can’t continue to say things that seem to you as if I never said them. It’s a really bad kind of conversation and that’s how I see it.
A law for Israel is: “If someone has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey his father and mother, who does not heed them when they discipline him, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his town at the gate of that place. They shall say to the elders of his town, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a glutton and a drunkard.’ Then all the men of the town shall stone him to death. So you shall purge the evil from your midst; and all Israel will hear, and be afraid.”
It sounded like you were suggesting that if Israelite parents told their son to worship idols, and he refused, the men of the town would be obligated by Torah to stone him to death. That is not the case… at all.
Or if his parents told him to work on Shabbos, for example, and he refused (etc.).
I’m tired of you repeatedly telling me to be careful when you are stubbornly ignoring the fact that I am telling you the same thing. Be careful not to stray too far from the God of Israel, who Is your salvation. How is it different when you say it than when I say it?
The difference, Annelise, in my saying ‘Be careful not to stray too far from the God of Israel, Who Is your Salvation” then your saying it is: Yeshua/Jesus/Salvation is One and The Same – Yeshua means Salvation – and He Is your Creator – He Is and Was and Is To Come! He is Not dead – He Is Alive!!! Jesus and The Father are One.
Straying for ‘that’ truth is Very dangerous! As A Jew, I Never considered Jesus … I thought He was the god of the Gentiles only …
When I turned 30 He Touched Me – I called out To The God of Israel – My Father – and He answered me by FIRE … touching me … showing me Jesus Is Alive … and I as a Jew needed to go to my people and tell them … Jesus Is Lord … He Is Who He said He Was – He Is the Anointed One – our Messiah and King.
You were never born again, Annelise! That is what you need to understand spiritual truths … (Jesus said that to Nicademus who was a teacher of the Jews) you need to be ‘born again’ by The Spirit of God. Then, you will fall on your knees, if not your face, and repent for following the ‘teachings’ of men and Not of God!
Jews are the enemies of the Gospel for your (Gentiles) sake, but beloved of God because of the Fathers (Romans 9,10,11).
With Blessings & Love,
June Volk
When we speak about matters of truth and obedience, we try to appeal to each other’s ability to recognise truth. The kinds of sentences you would expect are
This is true because [reason]
You didn’t see it because [reason]
You are saying “This is true because it is true,” and “You didn’t see it because you never saw it.”
Too intellectual of me to say that? Too proud? Please just realise at least that what you’re saying doesn’t make sense.
If someone told me “God touched me and gave me an experience of fire, and He told me that we should all worship my friend Dave,” that would not be enough for me… even if I believed them.
When we speak about matters of truth and obedience, we try to appeal to each other’s ability to recognise truth. The kinds of sentences you would expect are
This is true because [reason]
You didn’t see it because [reason]
Dear Annelise,
I so appreciate your desire for The Truth. Would you be willing to search the Old Testament prophecies concerning The Messiah, or The Promised One? Then, we can see why something is true or false …then we can say this is true because … this is not true because …
With Love,
June
Yes, that is a good idea.
To be clear, are you agreeing that if you speak in the way that you have been writing here, though, I have no reason to listen to that kind of thing?
I’m going to bed but talk later. I apologise if I’m slow in posts because I’m doing intensive study at the moment and should not be typing here at all. Zie gezunt.
SO WE BEGIN, ANNELISE:
It is written where The Promised One would be born … and what The Scripture says about Him:
Micah 5:2 NAS
New American Standard
“But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.”
Was Jesus born in Bethlehem? Was He among the tribes of Judah? Was He born of a Jewish mother? This shows the One who goes forth from God (from Me) Who was to be ‘ruler in Israel’. His goings forth from long ago … From the days of ‘eternity’ … Showing He Is an Eternal being. Only The LORD God is The Ruler of Israel – in other words, Rabbis would not follow a ‘man’ a ‘created being’ only The LORD God Who Is One.
It Is Written How He Would Die:
Psalm 22
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
A Cry of Anguish and a Song of Praise.
For the choir director; upon Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.
My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning.
2
O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; And by night, but I have no rest.
3
Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel.
4
In You our fathers trusted; They trusted and You delivered them.
5
To You they cried out and were delivered; In You they trusted and were not disappointed.
6
But I am a worm and not a man, A reproach of men and despised by the people.
7
All who see me sneer at me; They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying,
8
“Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him; Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him.”
9
Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb; You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts.
10
Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother’s womb.
11
Be not far from me, for trouble is near; For there is none to help.
12
Many bulls have surrounded me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me.
13
They open wide their mouth at me, As a ravening and a roaring lion.
14
I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It is melted within me.
15
My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And my tongue cleaves to my jaws; And You lay me in the dust of death.
16
For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me;They pierced my hands and my feet.
17
I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me;
18
They divide my garments among them, And for my clothing they cast lots.
19
But You, O Lord, be not far off; O You my help, hasten to my assistance.
20
Deliver my soul from the sword, My only life from the power of the dog.
21
Save me from the lion’s mouth; From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me.
22
I will tell of Your name to my brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23
You who fear the Lord, praise Him; All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.
24
For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from him; But when he cried to Him for help, He heard.
25
From You comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.
26
The afflicted will eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever!
27
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations will worship before You.
28
For the kingdom is the Lord’s And He rules over the nations.
29
All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, All those who go down to the dust will bow before Him, Even he who cannot keep his soul alive.
30
Posterity will serve Him; It will be told of the Lord to the coming generation.
31
They will come and will declare His righteousness To a people who will be born, that He has performed it.
Josephus a Jewish Historian who did not believe Jesus was the Messiah, Lord, or Son of God wrote accounts of his life, ministry and death – and his writings line up with the Gospels and the prophesies.
Did Jesus cry out, “My God, My God why hast thou forsaken me on the Cross? Were His Hands and Feet pierced? Did the crowd cry out, “You saved others save Yourself? Did they divide His garments among them? Was He poured out like water – did not blood and water fall from Him when they pierced His side on the Cross? Were any of His bones broken?
Verse 27:
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, And all the families of the nations will worship before You.
Do the nations of the word (the Gentiles) worship Jesus as Lord?
Verse 26 Speaks of Forever … In Him Is and Was Eternal Life.
This Psalm has so much more … For a Jew to die on a Tree was a curse: He became a curse for us!!!
Deuteronomy 21:22-23
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
22 “If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, 23 his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God), so that you do not defile your land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance.
2 Corinthians 5:21
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Matthew 27:17
So when the people gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ/Messiah?”
SCRIPTURE FULFILLED
John 19
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
The Crown of Thorns
19 Pilate then took Jesus and scourged Him. 2 And the soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on His head, and put a purple robe on Him; 3 and they began to come up to Him and say, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and to give Him slaps in the face. 4 Pilate came out again and *said to them, “Behold, I am bringing Him out to you so that you may know that I find no guilt in Him.” 5 Jesus then came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. Pilate *said to them, “Behold, the Man!” 6 So when the chief priests and the officers saw Him, they cried out saying, “Crucify, crucify!” Pilate *said to them, “Take Him yourselves and crucify Him, for I find no guilt in Him.” 7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by that law He ought to die because He made Himself out to be the Son of God.”
8 Therefore when Pilate heard this statement, he was even more afraid; 9 and he entered into the Praetorium again and *said to Jesus, “Where are You from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 So Pilate *said to Him, “You do not speak to me? Do You not know that I have authority to release You, and I have authority to crucify You?” 11 Jesus answered, “You would have no authority over Me, unless it had been given you from above; for this reason he who delivered Me to you has the greater sin.” 12 As a result of this Pilate made efforts to release Him, but the Jews cried out saying, “If you release this Man, you are no friend of Caesar; everyone who makes himself out to be a king opposes Caesar.”
13 Therefore when Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha. 14 Now it was the day of preparation for the Passover; it was about the [h]sixth hour. And he *said to the Jews, “Behold, your King!” 15 So they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!” Pilate *said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.”
The Crucifixion John 19:16-42
16 So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified.
17 They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, [i]bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in [j]Hebrew, Golgotha. 18 There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. 19 Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” 20 Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in [k]Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”
23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece. 24 So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; this was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.” 25 Therefore the soldiers did these things.
But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He *said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then He *said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, *said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
Care of the Body of Jesus
31 Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. 32 So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; 33 but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. 35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. 36 For these things came to pass to fulfill the Scripture, “Not a bone of Him shall be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”
38 After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. 39 Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
THIS IS THE BEGINNING AND THE END – BEFORE HE ROSE UP – WHICH WE WILL SEE LATER ON …
With Blessings,
June Volk
Hi June, thanks for all that. Just to backtrack a bit first, I don’t think you answered my question: “To be clear, are you agreeing that if you speak in the way that you have been writing here, though, I have no reason to listen to that kind of thing?” I was referring to the fact that you agreed it would be worthwhile speaking about what is true, rather than just repeating opinions.
“When I turned 30”
Something similar happened to me, but I was shown that Jesus is not g-d, I could use the word FIRE here as well. I completely know how misguided christians are in their belief. G-d has shown me his truth. Having said that, I was already having my doubts, So, in a way g-d answered my prayers. Maybe you were led to what you believed already also? Truly we need to be careful what we pray for. Maybe you prayed for the easy way out. It’s tough to be true to g-d when your surrounded by people telling you lies/their beliefs.
Be careful you ‘don’t’ stray too far from the God of Israel, Who Is your Salvation!
Yes, The God of Israel is our salvation (with no mention that a man is involved with that salvation). And the God of Israel has declared that only He is to be worshipped, no one else.
Hi June, thanks for all that. Just to backtrack a bit first, I don’t think you answered my question: “To be clear, are you agreeing that if you speak in the way that you have been writing here, though, I have no reason to listen to that kind of thing?” I was referring to the fact that you agreed it would be worthwhile speaking about what is true, rather than just repeating opinions.
Annelise,
You gave me your opinions and like ‘parables’ with natural examples … If you want to go over Old Testament prophecies of the coming of The Anointed One/The Messiah I would feel priviledged to that with you. Did I misunderstand you correctly that you said, you would like to do that? If not, – sorry I misunderstood you and took the time to write about Micah 5:2 (NAS) and Psalm 22 with related Scriptures, mentioning Josephus,
Your disapproval of my manner of writing works two ways … if you stick to Scripture and Commentaries … the facts without your opinions … then it will work both ways. Does that meet with you approval?
With Blessings,
June
sorry for the typos … Does that meet with your approval?
Hi June,
I am more than happy to discuss them with you. God-willing it would be possible to talk about them all. But I’m unwilling to start on that until you answer my question with yes, no, or ‘I’d rather not talk about it,’ and give a reason for that.
Thanks so much for listening and sharing.
June
You “took the time” to write out Micah 5 and Psalm 22. I will say that I appreciate this type of writing more than just you sharing your own experiences as if no one else in the world has experienced the truth of what they believe – but I am still disappointed. On this blog I have “taken the time” to show how those prophecies complement the testimony of Eternal Israel and do not contradict it – you can read them under the category of “Of Whom Speaketh the Prophet” https://yourphariseefriend.wordpress.com/of-whom-speaketh-the-prophet/
So please read what I have written on the subject and come back with your questions on my understanding or agree with me.
In any case – out of love for you I will briefly explain why those prophecies you have quoted do not support the Christian claims for the messiah-ship of Jesus.
Micah 5 speaks of Bethlehem as a clan – not as a geographical location. In order to belong to a clan in Biblical Israel you needed to have a human father who was from that clan – according to Matthew Jesus is disqualified. The concept of going forth from days of yore simply means that God’s plan to bring the Messiah precedes the creation of the world – it has nothing to do with an eternal being. An eternal being has no origin any way – Scripture never speaks of the “origin” of God.
Psalm 22 is a typical Psalm in which David speaks of his own troubles and merges them together with the troubles of Israel (see Psalm 44; 69; 102). The Psalmist did not see himself as a unique individual – one who stands apart from all of mankind – but rather as a member of a nation who trusts in God (verse 5). And this psalm which speaks of the salvation of the world ought to be read in context of the other scriptures which speak of the same subject – https://yourphariseefriend.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/psalm-22/
June – since you brought Scripture into the discussion (and I sincerely appreciate your taking the time to do so) – perhaps you would be willing to consider the Scriptures that teach us that Jesus cannot be the Messiah? (such as the ones enumerated in the following articles)
https://yourphariseefriend.wordpress.com/2010/08/31/1000-verses/
https://yourphariseefriend.wordpress.com/2010/12/21/letter-to-sy-about-messiah/
Hi My Pharisee Friend,
I believe in the Eternal Destiny for Israel – The Holy One Is faithful to His Promises.
Thanks,
June Volk
But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn to your fathers, has the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of slaves, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the LORD your God, he is God, the faithful God, which keeps covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations; And repays them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hates him, he will repay him to his face (Deut. 7:8-10).
June
I thought you moved out of the robotic mode and moved into a mode where you acknowledge the humanity of the people you are speaking to – when you serve the God of truth – you will have nothing to fear from a conversation that revolves around truth
I am more than happy to discuss them with you. God-willing it would be possible to talk about them all. But I’m unwilling to start on that until you answer my question with yes, no, or ‘I’d rather not talk about it,’ and give a reason for that.
Hi Annelise,
What exactly is your question that I you feel I didn’t answer? Or, that I would need to answer: yes or no, or I’d rather not talk about it, and give a reason for that … ?
If it is God’s desire for me to talk with you, I choose to obey Him.
If you would rather not openly search out the Scriptures because you are ‘turned off – ‘closed your heart” to Jesus being Who He said He Was – then there is nothing further to ‘search out’ … you have made your decision to deny Jesus as Messiah and The Lord of all.
With A Caring Heart,
June
June
I find your attitude towards Annelise quite telling. She is asking you if your heart is “turned off” – and you are accusing her of “rather not openly searching the Scriptures”?!
Are you willing to openly search the Scriptures? (“openly” means considering both sides of the question equally)
Yisroel
June, again, I haven’t ‘closed my heart’ to considering Jesus. I have completely closed my heart to worshiping him (and any other human) if I don’t have a good reason to know that he was/is God. God forbid that anyone would do that. And I have completely closed my heart to accusing observant Jews of ‘rejecting the light of God’, unless there is a reason for me to believe that the Christian community is that light.
That said, why would I close my heart to even considering whether Christianity is true? I thought I shared my heart with you when I painstakingly and wholeheartedly spent many months trying to listen seriously to Christianity once it was challenged before my eyes. But clearly you thought I was just being ridiculous or proud or something. I got the same attitude from Dr. Brown a couple of days ago when he tried to invalidate what I said in a comment by saying that I’m not even Jewish and have clearly been ‘influenced’ by counter-missionary rabbis. Of course I’ve been influenced by the people whose message I saw, tested, and believed to be true… just like you and Shelly and Dr. Brown have been influenced by the Christian thinking and culture that you believed in. But it was not a passive influence, as if I had no integrity or choice in the matter before God or as if I had no idea what I was doing. I hope and believe that I have listened, and will continue to listen, to both claims, with an open heart towards walking in whatever Hashem alone desires me to accept and lets me see as pure and good, from Him. It’s very hard to have a conversation when you keep assuming that I am rejecting light.
You must have read my question, because it made up an entire comment… and you replied to that comment… then I repeated the question and you actually copy-pasted it into a response where you followed by not answering it. But if you aren’t seeing my questions then I understand why you aren’t answering them. Here’s the conversation we had, with my question at the end:
**
*A: When we speak about matters of truth and obedience, we try to appeal to each other’s ability to recognise truth. The kinds of sentences you would expect are
This is true because [reason]
You didn’t see it because [reason]
You are saying “This is true because it is true,” and “You didn’t see it because you never saw it.”
Too intellectual of me to say that? Too proud? Please just realise at least that what you’re saying doesn’t make sense.
If someone told me “God touched me and gave me an experience of fire, and He told me that we should all worship my friend Dave,” that would not be enough for me… even if I believed them.
*J: Dear Annelise,
I so appreciate your desire for The Truth. Would you be willing to search the Old Testament prophecies concerning The Messiah, or The Promised One? Then, we can see why something is true or false …then we can say this is true because … this is not true because …
*A: Yes, that is a good idea.
To be clear, are you agreeing that if you speak in the way that you have been writing here, though, I have no reason to listen to that kind of thing?
**
If you look at your posts following that, you didn’t answer my question at all. I feel that you are just saying whatever you want to say, and not reading people’s replies ever.
Anyway, I don’t ask you to reply over Shabbos… just have a safe and restful day and we can talk later! I need to let you know I might be too busy to respond for the next week and a half.
Blessings.
Annelise
To be even clearer: I said that you were speaking in a way that shouts your opinion rather than offering any reason for my heart to consider it. Then you said, okay, we’ll just talk about the evidence. So I asked you whether in saying that, you were agreeing that when you send me all these opinions and out of context passages, it would be wrong for me to respond.
Yisroel,
I’m a Jew who believes in Yeshua as Messiah and Lord of all. After I cried out to The God of Israel for truth of what was told to our family about Yeshua being the Son of God, I wanted to know the truth, and I cried out Never expecting He would answer me immediately – with FIRE – and speaking The Lord’s Prayer through me (I had Never heard that prayer) – to discover many, many years later it was exactly what Elijah said to the false prophets of Baal: ‘you call upon the name of your god and I will call upon the Name of my God – and the God Who answers by fire – let Him be God’.
Rabbi Eli and Rabbi Skobac have my book with all that has transpired with me for 40 years. I read the Scriptures after being touched by God and thought I was reading a ‘foreign’ book, not theTanach. I had our son, Scott, bring home the Chumash for me from our Synagogue to see if I was reading the same Scriptures – because – I saw Yeshua in the Torah, The Prophets, The Psalms … and had a deep understanding of what they were saying. Since I had not studied the Scriptures with anyone, I realized it was with a divine understanding – and my life was changed.
After Scott brought home the Chumash and I read chapter by chapter I fell on my face before the Holy One of Israel and wept. I couldn’t understand why He revealed to me as a young Jewess Yeshua as the promised One, and the Rabbis for 2,000 years could not see Him!
My maiden name was Bernstein, Rabbi. I understand very well what it means to be a Jew – and today I understand even more. A Jew doesn’t fit this side of heaven – we are a peculiar people who belong to God.
My concern for Annelise, as I have told her, is she is a Gentile who is supposed to bring The Light of Truth (Yeshua being The Truth – He said, “I Am the Way, the Truth and the Light – no man comes to the Father but by Me” -) to Israel .. and she is denying the One Who Is and Brings Truth. She has taken on the teaching of well meaning Rabbis and thinks he was just a man.
I’m a Jew – I was Not influenced by Christians or the Church in my faith — God sovereignly changed my mind and heart to agree with Him and His Holy Word. I consider myself a Jewess. Dr. Michael Brown is a very good friend of mine – and very Jewish – as is his wife, Nancy. If you are the Yisroel I think you are, you knew Arthur and he too was very Jewish. He was a Katz, a Kohanim … he too believed Yeshua was our Messiah. My husband’s Hebrew name is also Yesroel – and he too is a Jew who believes Yeshua is the Messiah.
I love Annelise; I met her mother before I met her. I think she knows I have a genuine love for her. She loves you and Rabbi Eli very much. She respects and appreciates your zeal and love of Hashem. Annelise has a misconception of me. She thinks I don’t respect and appreciate your love for Hashem. I suspect she feels that if she would see Yeshua as divine, that would be disrespectful to you and to your faith in The God of Israel. I believe you have a deep love and conviction for The Torah and Hashem. I understand your love for our people and the desire to see our people obeying Torah that was given on Mt Sinai. The most important element of the giving of Torah was The Giver of Torah … Moses knew Him … as did the Prophets and others Whom He revealed Himself to by visitations.
I’m a Jew who has been touched by the God of Israel and my life has never been the same. To say that I’m open to not seeing Yeshua as God incarnate would be denying what God HImself revealed and then confirmed in His Holy Scriptures – The Tanach.
I love our people. My heart is for the True Gospel, the Gospel Yeshua brought and the Apostles brought to our people, Israel. Not the Gospel of the separation of faith (as if there were two faiths) after the Counsel of Nicea; and the Churches misunderstanding over the ages of the Call of Israel. The Counsel of Nicea tried to separate Yeshua from our people and took it upon themselves to change the calendar and Sabbath. The first century Jewish believers all went to the Temple on Saturday – and celebrated the Resurrection of Yeshua on Sunday – in homes.
I would have died with any Jew standing saying the Shema – because I believe in the Call of God for our people. To say I would be open to Yeshua not being the Messiah – no – I would not be open. I wouldn’t have written in your space had it not been what Annelise was saying which was so very close to denying the One she thought she once knew.
This is my heartfelt response to your writing about a misconception that I wasn’t answering Annelise’s question. I honestly did not know what she was trying to ask, and responded accordingly.
With Heartfelt Respect,
June Volk
June, again, I haven’t ‘closed my heart’ to considering Jesus. I have completely closed my heart to worshiping him (and any other human) if I don’t have a good reason to know that he was/is God. God forbid that anyone would do that. And I have completely closed my heart to accusing observant Jews of ‘rejecting the light of God’, unless there is a reason for me to believe that the Christian community is that light.
Dear Annelise,
For you to believe that Jesus was human and he was created is a ‘way’ of denying Him as your Creator since the Old Testament and New Testament Scriptures speak of Him as such (Isaiah 7:14; 9:7; John 1:1,2,3 etc…) That is Not my opinion, it is clearly written.
The ‘Christian’ Community is supposed to be a light to Israel and the lost and dying world – as Israel is supposed to be a light to the nations (Gentiles)! According to what Jesus spoke, He Is the Light of the world and He desires those who follow Him to be a light in the world and not hide His Light in them …
I’m not asking you to deny your love for Chassidic people and deny that they have a deep love for Hashem. My concern for you is to be careful to not deny Jesus; to honor your mother and father; God was aware of the parents He gave to you, and they have brought you up to love The Lord.
I will pray for you, Annelise. I pray during your ‘quest’ for Truth you will not look to honor, or dishonor, man but to bow down before The Holy One of Israel and obey His Voice when He speaks, “This is the ‘way’ walk ye in it”.
With Love,
June
June – since you brought Scripture into the discussion (and I sincerely appreciate your taking the time to do so) – perhaps you would be willing to consider the Scriptures that teach us that Jesus cannot be the Messiah? (such as the ones enumerated in the following articles)
Dear Rabbi,
Please do forgive me for not realizing who you were and not reading your articles. I will read them … thank you for taking the time to write to me.
With Respect
June
To Whom Should Our Hearts Belong?
The foundational teaching of the Jewish scriptures is that God created heaven and earth, and that everything that is in them are His subjects. Scripture opens with the words: “In the beginning God created heaven and earth.” In the Ten Commandments it is stated: “for in six days did the Lord make the heaven and the earth, the sea and all that is in them” (Exodus 20:11). Moses taught us: “Behold, to the Lord your God belong the heavens and the heaven of the heaven the earth and all that is in it” (Deuteronomy 10:14). Isaiah describes God with the words: the Lord God, He that created the heavens and stretched them forth, He spread forth the earth and all which comes out of it, He who gave a soul to the people upon it, and spirit to those that walk upon it” (Isaiah 42:5). God utilized the miracles of the exodus, the Sinai revelation and Israel’s 40 year journey in the desert to teach Israel the foundational truth of God’s absolute mastery over nature. Moses told us: Unto you it was shown in order that you know that the Lord is the God there is none else aside from Him… And you should know today and turn it to your hearts that the Lord, He is the God in the heavens above and in the earth below there is none else.” (Deuteronomy 4:35,39).
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
I’m in total agreement that our heart should be given to non other than God. I have a few questions concerning this:
1) Why in Chapter 1 of Genesis does it only speak of God, in your understanding?
2) Why in Chapter 2 is LORD introduced in the creation?
3) Do you believe the essence of God revealed in the Torah has duplicity?
4) Does The LORD reveal Himself to man in Torah through visitation?
5) Do you believe that Holy One reveals Himself through visitation to man today?
I ask these questions with respect,
June
June
Thanks for your respectful tone
Yes – I did know Art Katz. I spent quite a bit of time with him. He also saw his own experience as the center of the universe – interestingly he saw his own experience not only as the center of his personal universe but he expected the rest of the world to see his experience as the center of their universe as well. We spent much time discussing Tanach together (we also discussed the Christian Scriptures). At one point in one of our conversations – when he had no answer for the Scriptures that so clearly refuted his beliefs – he asked me: “So do you want me to throw out my 40 years of experience with Jesus?” I responded by asking – so do you want me to throw out our national experience of walking with God for 2000 years without Jesus? Art almost fell off his chair.
The point here is that the Torah does not point to personal experience as a determinant for truth – it is something that God allows all belief systems to experience.
I will answer your questions – but I will point out that the Torah was given to us AFTER it was clear to us who it is that we are to worship and who it is that not.
Answers to questions 1 and 2
The name of God “Elo-him” denotes the guidance of the world according to laws and judgment. God designed nature that way – there are rules that nature follows day in day out. The name that is translated as “Lord” denotes the complete guidance of the world including mercy – this is only relevant after the world is already inhabited by humans with whom God interacts with the full scope of His guidance.
3 – I don’t believe that the Torah reveals the essence of God – only His interaction with His creations. His essence is unknowable
4 – I am not sure what you mean by “visitation” – I do believe that God appears to His prophets if that is what you mean
5 – again – I don’t know what you mean by “visitation” – We have not received the direct level of prophecy since Scriptural times – but God can still communicate with us should He choose to do so. Despite the fact that we have not experienced direct prophecy – we are still intimately close with God – nothing that Art told me remotely compares to the experiences that our people still merits on a communal level and on an individual level. Its just that I don’t believe that my experiences should move you – but I do believe that your sensitivity to truth should guide you towards the God of truth and that is why I encourage you to study the Scriptures.
The bottom line is that the national encounter with God at Sinai was our nations marriage to God. directing devotion to anyone other than the God we encountered at Sinai – as our nation preserved that encounter in their collective heart – is spiritual adultery.
Hi June,
Like I said I need to take a couple of weeks to finish my study before I can continue this conversation. But I want to respond to some things that you said to Yisroel. Firstly, I didn’t say that you think that your observant Jewish friends, including Rabbis Eli and Yisroel, do not love God. I know you think they are trying to do the right thing and that they love Torah and love God a lot.
Secondly, God forbid that I would make a decision of faith in order to respect or please someone. I try to be as careful as I can in this area particularly, and I pray for help in it. If it were actually true that the Yeshua you’re mentioning came from God or ‘was God’, and I somehow knew that, then I would not have come to this place at all. And if I would realise it in the future, I wouldn’t hesitate to walk in the path I could see as my only option for obedience to God. I also believe that my closest Jewish friends would continue to care about me, and I them. But that is all hypothetical and I don’t expect it to be the case at all, even though I try to listen out for truth and for the real path of the heart of God. To repeat, I think you can respect people and honour them without taking on their beliefs. I care very much about these friendships with my teachers and friends, some of whom are Chassidim and some who follow Judaism humbly and obediently in other ways. But my path with God is not (thank God) defined by those relationships.
Don’t you see that I have a deep experience of love, respect, and a desire for love and respect, from many more friends, leaders, and family members who are Christians? Why I would choose to go one way or the other is not defined by this.
You said, “I understand your love for our people and the desire to see our people obeying Torah that was given on Mt Sinai. The most important element of the giving of Torah was The Giver of Torah … Moses knew Him … as did the Prophets and others Whom He revealed Himself to by visitations.” I agree with that very much. It matters for you as a nation to know Him and to know His ways; to love Him by keeping His ways, and keep the Torah by loving Him.
You said, “For you to believe that Jesus was human and he was created is a ‘way’ of denying Him as your Creator since the Old Testament and New Testament Scriptures speak of Him as such (Isaiah 7:14; 9:7; John 1:1,2,3 etc…) That is Not my opinion, it is clearly written.” I won’t comment about the passage in John, but I don’t see how a person’s name referring to God in Isaiah is a reason to believe that God would come as a man. June, God is with us even now, as you know, and that has nothing to doing with ‘being human’ or ‘physically present’.
I told you already that honouring my parents is no good reason to believe what they believe by default. My heart belongs to God before it belongs to them, or to anyone. I’m saying this because I want you to know that it is possible to deny Jesus without walking away from God, and without having been tricked, manipulated, or accidentally drawn into doing so. I am so thankful for my parents and everything I’ve learnt in this family about loving Hashem. But I wish I had never been taught to see God as Jesus, and I am immensely thankful to have had my life really changed when the glimpses and glimmers of truth that already flooded my heart with God’s love as a child have now grown deeper, clearer, and fuller. It’s still and always a journey with Him, and the future is in His hands only.
Have a good week 🙂 If you reply to this I will hopefully be able to get back to you within a few days after Tisha b’Av. With love, and like Yisroel I thank you as well for your respect and kindness.
Re. the child’s name… think about Isaiah’s name, “Hashem is salvation.” That doesn’t mean that Isaiah is considered to be an incarnation of God. Many other biblical names (especially in that book) are reflections of who God is, to praise Him, rather than being an indication that the person bearing His name should be worshiped as an expression of Himself, God forbid.
I forgot to mention that you still didn’t answer the question, but I won’t push it anymore.
The name of God “Elo-him” denotes the guidance of the world according to laws and judgment. God designed nature that way – there are rules that nature follows day in day out. The name that is translated as ]“Lord” denotes the complete guidance of the world including mercy ]– this is only relevant after the world is already inhabited by humans with whom God interacts with the full scope of His guidance.
Thank you so much, Rabbi Yisroel, for writing your understanding of Lord and why He was introduced in Chapter 2 of Genesis.
It deepens my understanding of what God did for us in my belief of sending Jesus – because He does guide me and He shows me His mercy. I agree that non-other should have our devotion, our worship, other than the LORD God of Israel.
These Scriptures came to mind with your explanation, especially Psalm 85:10 (KJV)
Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.
Proverbs 3:3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
Proverbs 16:6 By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.
Psalm 61:7 He shall abide before God for ever: O prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him.
Psalm 101:1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: to you, O LORD, will I sing.
I was also touched with what you shared about Arthur. He really loved you and appreciated your devotion and love of God. Where a personal experience is concerned, Arthur had a heart to see others come into a personal relationship with God through Jesus, not because he thought his experience was the ‘center’ of all things – but becaue of what happened in his life and his devotion to God and God alone in coming to faith find Jesus as Lord. I understand why you would think the way you did about him, in not believing that Jesus is Lord. I think Arthur almost ‘fell off his chair’ with your answering ‘should we throw out 2,000 years with living without Jesus’ is becasue, knowing Arthur as I did, he probably thought – ‘are you kidding! He was ‘there’ all that time and you didn’t even know it!’ Like Jacob with the ladder – The presence of the LORD was there – but he didn’t knwo it! I’m smiling 🙂 I hope you ae too 🙂
What I meant by ‘visitation’, Rabbi Yisroel, is how The Lord visited with Abraham. Or, with Moses, with Samuel, with Samson’s mother and then Samson’s parents, etc… He actually came and spoke with them.
I wondered if you believed that the Lord could ‘visit’ His people today in such a ‘way’.
With Respect,
June
Hi Annelise,
Thanks for writing and sharing your heart to me – I’m relieved to hear that your ‘quest’ for God is deep and your desire to know Him is pure. My heart is comforted to see where you at this point in your life.
I love you and hope your hands are not hurting as much and your studies will go well.
With Blessings,
June
sharing you heart with me 🙂
where you are at in this point of your life 🙂
sharing your heart
You’re welcome! Thank God my hands have been gradually getting better, and the last four or five days I’ve had no pain at all, even though I’ve been typing some of the time rather than using dictation. Studies are going well, I really enjoy this course! But it leaves me with hardly time to sleep or get anything else done, so I’m looking forward to the end as well.
I read to my dad the conversation between you and R Yisroel about Arthur. I found it amusing (in an affectionate way, I think) that you two have such different impressions of what he thought about the exchange… and I find it frustrating that you continue to bring Jesus into things when Yisroel is trying to explain to you the value of the testimony of the relationship that Israel has had with God for the past two thousand years. Hashem is not distancing His heart from them but is showing them His favour when they join their hearts to the eternal remnant who seeks Him and walks towards obedience.
On the other hand, my dad told me that it isn’t fair for me to discount forty years of someone’s testimony, which is a very valuable thing to them and is for them part of the way they look to know truth. I didn’t know Art so for me the story Yisroel recounted isn’t personal, but I do know how much my dad’s testimony means to him. He simply agreed with what you said… both the content and the process… when I read it to him, which was interesting to me. So okay, it’s important to take seriously what is important to each person.
Nonetheless, Yisroel wasn’t saying that people like Arthur and my father are selfish in their reasons for trying to spread their experience. I know personally from my own previous acceptance of Christian belief and ways of thinking that it is love and compassion, and also the glory of God, that motivates some Christians to try and share that faith. I can’t judge someone’s heart. But even if the sharing is not for selfish reasons, EVEN SO, it is (unintentionally) arrogant to ask someone to re-evaluate their experience and the things they think are true and precious, if you are 100% unwilling to re-evaluate your own experience. Also, it is not fair to tell others that you’re ‘sure’, because of your experience, that they MUST believe a certain way… when you are unwilling to listen to the reasons and the experiences that matter to them. In essence, then, you just miss someone’s heart, and just one of the problems is how a sad thing that is in friendship.
Okay. I’ve really got to leave this conversation! But I’ve typed this now so I’ll send it. Be well, I hope that you are well too, have a good week.
June
I was there with Art and I know why he almost fell off his chair – you could go on your own merry way reinterpreting reality so as to be able to remain on your chair. Art was more honest than that. He admitted to me what my questions were doing to him and about his struggles with the Scriptures I was bringing to the forefront of his consciousness.
One of the questions that he admitted spoke to his heart without him being able to come up with a coherent response was this: Did God give us the Scripture so that we can know who to worship? or were we taught who to worship clearly, comprehensively and conclusively before we were granted the first page of Scripture? – What does Scripture itself say about this very question?
Did God give us the Scripture so that we can know who to worship? or were we taught who to worship clearly, comprehensively and conclusively before we were granted the first page of Scripture? – What does Scripture itself say about this very question?
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
Please forgive me for offending you by ‘reinterpreting reality’ in the scene with Arthur, my intention was not to offend you.
Shelly (my husband) and I were taking together about your response to the meaning of LORD being introduced in Genesis 2 and I was over whelmed, realizing the Hebrew Word for LORD, YHWH (a word too GREAT too HOLY to utter) … He is The Almighty One … the One I worship Him.
He Is Greater than the human mind can comprehend. After I read your understanding of the meaning LORD – and thought on His Name over and over in my mind – YHWH – Hashem enlightened my comprehension once again; apart from a divine revelation, which comes from Him, there is no way an Orthodox Jew, or anyone from the Nations, would, or could ever. believe God would ever do such a thing – to come to earth as man and be sacrificed for our sin would seem preposterous and a Great stumbling block to a Jew!
It is only by the mercy of God that The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. This morning, meditating on the Word LORD (in Hebrew) brought me back almost 40 years when Shelly thought I was crazy (preposterous for you to feel more Jewish and believe in ‘that’ one!) after the LORD touched me. Shelly was an apostate Jew, compared to the way you live, and he was outraged that I could believe such a thing. It was actually when Arthur, reading Isaiah 53 to my father, that Shelly received the revelation through The Word of God, those Scriptures were speaking about Him – Yeshua/Jesus – Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?
I’m honestly Not trying to ‘witness’ to you, just trying to explain what happened to me this morning after reading your response to my questions, I was reminded how Shelly responded to me before hearing Arthur read to my dad. It is interesting to note that I had read Isaiah 53 to Shelly countless times because I wanted to see what a Jew would think of those Scriptures before revelation knowledge Who they were referring to! (I say revelation knowledge because Israel has taken those Scriptures to mean our nation) I do know that the understanding is that Isaiah was speaking about Israel, as a nation. However, there are verses that speak so clearly of a ‘sacrificed one’ that believing it was Israel as a nation/only would be impossible to be true. Although, the relationship between the LORD and Israel is so close, we are His wife, that we are one with Him in too deep a way for our natural minds to comprehend.
I would love to learn from you. You have a gift from God to be articulate in your understanding of the Word – and it gives deeper meaning of The Greatness of The Holy One. Although, there have been times over the past 40 years His Spirit has overshadowed me and I’m undone! I recognize that the Chassidic Community seeks Hashem … what concerns me is being closed to the ‘thought’ or ‘possibility’ of Yeshua! On the other hand 🙂 I know God is Greater than the Chassidic Community and He can reveal Himself as He Will in His Time (Ecc. – a time for everything).
Again, sorry I offended you – Arthur was closer to us than a brother. If I took too much liberty in sharing my thoughts – please forgive me.
“nothing that Art told me remotely compares to the experiences that our people still merits on a communal level and on an individual level. Its just that I don’t believe that my experiences should move you – but I do believe that your sensitivity to truth should guide you towards the God of truth and that is why I encourage you to study the Scriptures.”
I agree with your statement that our sensitivity to truth should guide us towards the God of truth … He Is the One I love. And, thank you. I do study the Scriptures – I love the Word of God. What I wrote on my other post to you explaining falling on my face before the Lord was 40 years ago.
Thank you, Rabbi, for communicating with me.
With Respect,
June
June
Your responses have not offended me and you don’t have to apologize for “witnessing” – everyone is entitled to share their experiences.
You state that you are concerned with the thought of being “closed” to Yeshua. We are no more “closed” to Yeshua then we are to any other deity aside from the one to whom we pledged our heart. I am willing to study the Scriptures with you treating both sides of the question openly and honestly.
I don’t know why you think that God coming to earth as a man is the greatest thing that could ever happen – God touching us as God while we remain humans is what the Bible is all about.
I notice that you didn’t answer my question about the Scriptures being given to us so that we can figure out who to worship or if we knew who to worship before we got the Scriptures – Art recognized the importance of this question – do you?
With respect and appreciation
Yisroel
June
One more question – do you or do you not recognize my responsibility towards God to evaluate your claim with skepticism and with caution?
I notice that you didn’t answer my question about the Scriptures being given to us so that we can figure out who to worship or if we knew who to worship before we got the Scriptures – Art recognized the importance of this question – do you?
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
To answer your question that Art recognized as being important, do I:
Our people knew Who they were to worship because of the Covenant given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and passed down through the 12 tribes of Israel to the generation of Moses. Israel began through Jacob and his 12 sons, who believed in the God of their fathers. I too believe in the God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
The knowledge of God was first, Israel worshipped God, our Creator, before the Commandments were given on Mt. Sinai to Moses. One point to note, if my understanding is in error please correct me: The Abrahamic Covenant was unconditional – The Mosaic Covenant is and was conditional – do we agree?
do you or do you not recognize my responsibility towards God to evaluate your claim with skepticism and with caution?
I believe you not only have the responsibilty before God, but as a leader of Israel, the right to be skepical and move with caution with what I believe.
With Respect,
June
We are no more “closed” to Yeshua then we are to any other deity aside from the one to whom we pledged our heart. I am willing to study the Scriptures with you treating both sides of the question openly and honestly.
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
Psalm 17:1,5, 8, 15
Hear a just cause, O Lord, give heed to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips.
My steps have held fast to Your paths.
My feet have not slipped.
Keep me as the apple of the eye;
Hide me in the shadow of Your wings.
As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness;
I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.
With Blessings For A New Day,
June Volk
June
The Jewish people knew who it is that they are to worship BEFORE they got the first page of Scripture. It was passed down from Abraham Isaac and Jacob and it was sealed with the encounter at Sinai. The book was given in that context. The medium that God chose to transmit that knowledge was through the living testimony of the nation (Deuteronomy 4:9) and that testimony teaches us to worship the Creator alone – not as a man, not represented by a man – but Him alone. The worship that your experience encourages is the deepest violation of the covenant that our nation shares with God.
The Mosaic covenant was not conditional – it has conditions to it but it is not conditional – let me explain. The Mosaic covenant comes with clauses such us if you obey than… if you disobey than… but there is no clause for the nullification of the covenant – the covenant covers every situation and it is eternal.
Since you agree that I have the responsibility to examine your claim with caution – how do you propose I go about examining and evaluating your claim?
(by the way – I am not a leader in Israel – I am a simple Jew)
Yisroel
The Mosaic covenant was not conditional – it has conditions to it but it is not conditional – let me explain. The Mosaic covenant comes with clauses such us if you obey than… if you disobey than… but there is no clause for the nullification of the covenant – the covenant covers every situation and it is eternal.
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
June) We are in agreement, the Mosaic Covenant is Eternal – I wrote my statement incorrectly. There are conditions within the Mosaic Covenant for blessings and curses; that is what I meant by conditional. The Abrahamic Covenant was without any conditions. We are in agreement that Israel has been elected by God as a nation to demonstrate His Glory to the world, as well as to the principalities and powers. The Mosaic Covenant was given to The Nation of Israel exclusively.
Yisroe) The medium that God chose to transmit that knowledge was through the living testimony of the nation (Deuteronomy 4:9) and that testimony teaches us to worship the Creator alone –
June) We are in agreement here too, Rabbi Yisroel. We, as Jews, should worship God only. I believe I worship the LORD God, the Creator of Heaven and Earth and everything within that was created. (Genesis 1:1; John 1:1,2,3).
Yisroel) Not as a man, represented by a man – but Him alone. The worship that your experience encourages is the deepest violation of the covenant that our nation shares with God.
June) This is the crux of our disagreement. Who was Yeshua – since He came as the Son of Man? Who was He and Why did He Claim to be The Messiah? Why did the wise men go to Jerusalem looking for the One Who was born: King of the Jews? Why was all of Jerusalem troubled? Why was not Jerusalem excited for The King of The Jews to be born? (Matthew 2:1-3)
Yisroel) Since you agree that I have the responsibility to examine your claim with caution – how do you propose I go about examining and evaluating your claim?
June )This is a very important question – where do we begin:
Is Yeshua The Holy One of Israel, Who Is our Creator? – Old Testament & New Testament.
Is Yeshua The Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world? Old Testament & New Testament? Why?
Why would it have been ‘quintessential’ for The Blood of the Lamb to be shed to deliver Israel from her sin (to miss the mark – The Mosaic Covenant – The Law) in the first place?
Did Yeshua/Jesus Come As: The Son of God? King of The Jews? The Prophet Promised by Moses? Old Testament & New Testament
This is my proposal, since you asked me where to begin? What are your thoughts in where to begin?
With Respect,
June
June
You seem to be of the belief that Yeshua – who appeared as a man under these heavens and upon this earth – was not created and as such is deserving of our devotion. Yes this is the root of our disagreement. According to covenant that we share with God your belief is idolatry.
You ask where we ought to begin and you propose examining the following questions
Is Yeshua the creator?
Is he one who takes away the sins of the world?
why do we need a lamb to take away the sins of the world?
is Yeshua a prophet (or “the” prophet)?
We obviously came to a different set of conclusions about these questions – so I propose that we start a step before these questions
How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua – but was completely devoted to God – direct his or her devotion to God and what would be a valid reason to induce him/her to redirect that devotion?
Would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have believed that we need a blood offering to take away the sins of the world?
How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have identified a true prophet of God?
Are you willing to examine these questions? Or do you perhaps propose another set of questions?
With respect
Yisroel
We obviously came to a different set of conclusions about these questions – so I propose that we start a step before these questions –
1) How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua – but was completely devoted to God direct his or her devotion to God and what would be a valid reason to induce him/her to redirect that devotion?
2) Would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have believed that we need a blood offering to take away the sins of the world?
3) How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have identified a true prophet of God?
Good Morning, Rabbi Blumenthol,
I like your questions – let’s begin ☺
1) How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua – but was completely devoted to God direct his or her devotion to God and what would be a valid reason to induce him/her to redirect that devotion?
No Jew lived before Yeshua – Why? : Revelation 22; John 8; Gen. 1:26-28; Isaiah 12:2; Ex. 15:2; Mattew 16 … …*17*
2) Would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have believed that we need a blood offering to take away the sins of the world? …
According to Torah, the sins for Israel needed to be atoned for and there were regulations for those sins. Your question is ambiguous to me because, the nation of Israel was ‘in the world’ – but called to be set apart from ‘the world’ for God. Israel didn’t expect a Redeemer to come for ‘the world’ but was waiting for their Redeemer to come for them.
Paul and John addressed Yeshua as our atonement that is why I included New Testament …
Sin offering with blood: Leviticus 16; Isaiah 53:7-12; Leviticus 17:11; Hebrews 9:22; Romans 3:25; I John 2:1-3;
3) How would a Jew who lived before Yeshua have identified a true prophet of God?
I think it was established by the Scriptures given that a Jew didn’t exist before Yeshua ☺ However, the identification of a true prophet of God is the same both before ‘the son of man’ walked the earth and after … what the prophet spoke came to pass:
As we are approaching tisha b’av, I thought to include Yeshua telling his disciples of the destruction of the Temple, … (Matt.24:1,2)
Deuteronomy 18:22 … a true or false prophet …
I proclaim to you today that Yeshua Was Who He claimed to be – He Is and Was and Is To Come … Thank you for allowing me to ‘attempt’ to answer your proposed questions.
May the Holy One open your eyes to see…
With Respect & Affection,
June
June,
You stated that before Yeshuah there were no Jews. I would like to know, please, who stood at Mount Sinai and witnessed the revelation of God. Who was Moses? Who are the Children of Israel who are the main characters in Tanach? I would also like to know how it is that I am a Jew because I was born after Yeshuah but my ancestors who were born before him are not.
May God Who is the Father of us all lead us to the truth.
Hi Dina,
Please forgive me for the length of time it has taken for me to answer your question: before Yeshua there were not Jews …
You would have to go back and read the Scriptures I pointed to, where it shows what I believe about Yeshua – He Is Eternal. I believe Yeshua Is Hashem, The LORD God of Israel … therefore He existed before the foundation of the world. I believe He Was and Is our Creator … The Creator of the heavens and earth existed before His Creation – man.
The name Jews was derived from the Tribe of Judah, which I would think you are aware … so from the time of Jacob his 12 sons, the nation of Israel (God wrestled with Jacob and changed Jacob’s name to Israel) came into existance, as did the name, Jews.
Abraham was a heathen who sought God and The LORD revealed Himself to Abraham and gave him the Abrahamic Covenant for our people; The Abrahamic Covenant was sealed by blood … Abraham blessed Isaac with the Promise of that Covenant as did Isaac who blessed Jacob.
Sorry if I confused you with my original statement.
With Respect,
June
June, you contradicted yourself. First you said that before Jesus there were no Jews. Then you said that Jews came into existence with Jacob and the twelve tribes. So which is it?
The term “Jews” is used in Scripture, by the way. See for example the Book of Esther.
Thanks for responding to me. I would love to have an ongoing, in-depth discussion with you rather than these sporadic exchanges.
Peace and blessings,
Dina
P.S. If you don’t mind my asking, what is your full Hebrew name? Mine is Dina the daughter of Esther Serel. Thanks–DB
She thinks that J existed before all creation… calling him ‘the Holy One’ or ‘son of the Holy One’… so because Hashem precedes Israel, she puts J into that as well.
Every prayer and mitzvah done by a Jew is a declaration of Israel’s surrender to her Creator, dependence on Him, and gratitude for the relationship with Him. If Yeshua did those mitzvos and prayed those prayers, he was testifying to everyone around him about his place as part of creation in the relationship between God and creation… as a Jew in the covenant between God and Israel.
I didn’t follow this at all. Perhaps it’s just as well 🙂
The first paragraph was explaining why she said that he existed before Israel. Then the second paragraph was separate, a thought about how a person who lived Judaism (a relationship with God) could claim to be on the other side of the relationship.
Thanks for explaining. I still don’t get it, though. Too twisty for me :).
Yep, that’s the point 😦
One more thought, Rabbi: There are so many, many more Scriptures, as you are well aware, to answer each question … however … I wanted you to know that I was aware that I barely ‘scraped’ the surface of The Word – in answer to your proposed questions.
June
Before I start responding to your points I will tell you that there are many more Scriptures to back up the position of Eternal Israel as well.
Now for your point about no Jew living before Yeshua – I was not trying to offend you – I was talking about the period before Mary had a child.
Another introductory point – Since I am speaking of the pre- Mary had a child – era, it is therefore inappropriate to quote the Christian Scriptures
1 – You did not answer the most important question
2 – I am well aware that sometimes sins are atoned through blood – but where does it ever say that there is no atonement without blood? – there are many passages that teach that repentance alone atones – you can find them in my article “1000 Verses”
3 – Luke 19:44 decidedly did NOT come to pass – the destruction of the Temple was prophesied by Daniel long before Mary had a child and you are missing another key criteria – Deuteronomy 13:2 – but for this one you will need to go back and answer question #1 – what would be a valid reason for a Jew who lived before Mary had a child to redirect his/her devotion?
I was talking about the period before Mary had a child.
Another introductory point – Since I am speaking of the pre- Mary had a child – era, it is therefore inappropriate to quote the Christian Scriptures
Dear Rabbi,
You missed my point – I believe Yeshua is Eternal – He Was before Miriam/Mary conceived Him: Gen. 1:26-28; Chapter 2 of Genesis where LORD is introduced to be in communication with Adam and Even in the garden. That He (Yeshua-before He was born) was with His Father during Creation … that He ws the One that was with Moses in Exodus 33 where The LORD spoke to Moses and then was transformed into The Glory of God and Moses was hid in the cleft of the rock, saw His back part, but His face Moses could not see and live! There are many, many, more Scriptures as you know, but it would take too long to quote.
I understood you, and I think you understand me. I know we disagree – but be asured, that Hashem was before The Creation – I too believe.
With Respect,
June
PS There are 333 prophecies of The Anointed One … Before Miriam/Mary had a child …
Before I start responding to your points I will tell you that there are many more Scriptures to back up the position of Eternal Israel as well.
That what I meant with my statement about barely ‘scraping’ the surface of the Scriptures. I’m for Eternal Israel … but also for the Truth to be seen with Who Is The LORD God of Israel – Our Creator.
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
You have been on my heart today and I feel to release you publically to respond to my post, unless you see a value in continuing.
I appreciate your faith and ‘quest’ for the knowledge of God and would hope you would appreciate my ‘quest’ as well, for the knowledge of God.
I would love to be touch, if you see fit: junevolk777@hotmail.com
With Blessings To You,
Baruch Hashem,
June
June
I address each of the 333 so called “prophecies” on this blog – https://yourphariseefriend.wordpress.com/of-whom-speaketh-the-prophet/
If you so choose I will contact you privately to continue this dialogue – in any case it seems that you don’t understand the responsibility of the Jewish people to evaluate and to measure a claim such as the one you are putting forth – and I will try to help you understand the full weight of this responsibility
Dear Rabbi Yisroel,
I believe I do understand the seriousness of accepting a false claim, or the cost of neglecting to accept Yeshua Who claimed to be The Son of God as well as our Messiah as well as others knowing He Was King of the Jews … The ‘weight of this responsibility’ is great on ‘both sides’.
Please remember us in your prayers; Shelly and I will certainly remember you. I understand your objections to Yeshua – – – That is my heart felt concern for you, yet I know that God Is well able to open your eyes to See Him for Who He really Is.
Thank you for your offer to communicate with me privately – I do have your e-mail information. It would be a privilege if you should ever decide to communicate with me. Thank you, dear Rabbi Yisroel for taking the time to resond to me.
With Blessings To You,
June
‘respond to me’
After reading on internet after writing in the names Shelly and June Volk to read what was there … or … Shelly Volk alone … I found the quote: “Shelly an apostate Jew!” I wanted to see where it came from and it led to this 1000 Verses … and I was amazed after reading for awhile what was written between Annelise, My Pharisee Friend And me – that I was the one who called Shelly an apostate Jew! I compared Shelly to you, dear Rabbi Yisroel before coming tot he knowledge of Jesus.
This was quite the dialogue between the three of us … with others interjecting. Thank you for opening dialogue through internet … God Bless you, dear Rabbi Yisroel!
Reblogged this on 1000 Verses – a project of Judaism Resources.