1000 Verses – a project of Judaism Resources

Men of my Counsel

A person needs acknowledgment in order to survive. A person needs to feel that he or she is significant and that their life makes a difference. Without this feeling of self-respect and self-worth it is difficult to stay afloat on the raft of life.

There are different levels of acknowledgment. When you walk in to a store and the person behind the counter smiles at you and offers a greeting; that can be an act of acknowledgment. Sometimes you actually get a sincere greeting from a store-clerk; not because they are out for your patronage; but because they respect you as another human being.  Being acknowledged as a human being is important, but there is more to acknowledgement than that.

If the goals and aspirations that are dear to your heart are important to other people and these people appreciate that you are the person that will bring these goals to fruition, then the acknowledgement that you receive from them is so much deeper and more significant. These people will have acknowledged; not only your humanity, but also your role in life.

If you are blessed with a group of close friends who open their hearts to you and these friends constantly identify with your struggles and your aspirations; you will find yourself being affirmed and accepted on a constant basis.

The Psalmist declares that he is blessed with such an inner core of friends; men with whom he can constantly confide (Psalm 119:24). These “men of his counsel” are the commandments of the Torah. Each one of the commandments is a personal directive from the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth charging man with God’s work in this world. Can there be a greater confirmation and acknowledgment of one’s significance? What can be greater than the direct word of God telling you: “My son; My daughter; I, the Creator of heaven and earth entrust you with this particular act. I believe you can do it and it is important to Me that you do it.” Can you ask for more?

No; it is not that God “needs” our service. As Elihu declared: “If you are righteous; what have you given Him?” (Job 35:7). God does not “need” the existence of the universe altogether. But as far as there is a universe and as far as God has a purpose with this universe, then our deeds play a role in His plan.

Just as it is possible to receive acknowledgment and affirmation so can we receive the opposite of these; we can be invalidated and our sense of self-worth can be undermined. When we walk in to a store and we sense that the greeting that we receive has only been offered in order to buy our patronage; we have received a message of invalidation. We have been told that our humanity is not something that is worthy of acknowledgment. – Most people can handle such negative messages.

How about when we are treated rudely? Or how about when our basic human dignity is ignored and someone physically hits us? It is much more difficult to deal with such an extreme invalidation of our humanity – but most people can still bounce back from such an experience. Perhaps our friends and family will offer moral support. Perhaps we can draw upon our own inner strength and reaffirm our own dignity as people created in the image of God.

How about when those who stand against us exhibit a complete lack of respect for our very lives? How about if this comes together with a comprehensive message that invalidates every one of our goals and aspirations? How about if these negative messages are coupled with our enemies violently trampling on our entire thought process while the rest of humanity looks on with indifference?

That was the holocaust. But the holocaust didn’t happen in a vacuum. The holocaust was merely the apex of 2000 years of the invalidation of the Jew as a human being and of the invalidation of everything that the Jew stood for. For 2000 years the European defined the Jew as “sub-human” or worse. What the Jew considered holy and righteous was considered by the fellow inhabitants of the planet to be evil and impure. And these fellow inhabitants of the European continent did not hide their feelings; they put them on display in their Churches, in their town-squares and in their museums of art.

So how did the Jew survive?

When the Jew went out into the street the message was: you are dirt, you are worthless and you are a child of the devil. But when the Jew turned to God’s holy law; the voice of the Creator of heaven and earth greeted him or her with the message: “you are my beloved child in whom I delight.” Yes; the nations around us even took our law and tried to prove from the very love-letter written to us by God that He hates us and has cast us away. But the commandments were always there to reassure us. The holiness of the Sabbath, the purity and holiness of the commandments, the Godly joy of the holidays and the closeness we experienced in the days of awe all of these were appointed by God to stand at our side. Not only to affirm our humanity and sense of self-worth but to affirm our every step as servants of God, to affirm our thought process and to validate our role in God’s plan.

“If not for Your Torah as my delight, I would have perished in my affliction.” (Psalm 119:92)

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Yisroel C. Blumenthal

Peace, Jerusalem, and David

In the book of Deuteronomy God commands Israel to establish righteous judges (Deuteronomy 16:18-20). Immediately thereafter we are enjoined not to plant an idolatrous tree near the altar, nor to designate a “matzevah” (- a single stone) for ourselves as this is something that God hates (Deuteronomy 16:21,22).

The association between justice and the altar is not coincidental; it is also found in the book of Exodus where certain laws pertaining to the altar are presented and immediately thereafter we are instructed concerning matters of justice (Exodus 20:21 – 21:1). What is this connection between justice and the altar? And why does God hate the “matzevah”? Didn’t our forefather Jacob offer to God on a “matzevah” (Genesis 28:18)?

A civilization is not a group of people that happen to be living in the same geographical area. Civilization is only achieved when the group of people coordinates their efforts and work together to create a complex society that is much greater than the sum total of the individuals that it includes.

Justice is the glue that keeps a civilization together. Without justice a civilization quickly degenerates into a jungle where the strong crush the weak and the powerful grind the faces of the poor. It is only a society that respects the rights of each individual and only to the degree that the rights of the individual are respected that the society can hope to function as a successful civilization.

The primary function of the king is to ensure that the society he rules over functions as a civilization and not as a jungle. This duty includes synchronizing the efforts, the resources and the various energies of the country to work as one for the good of all. But above all the king must uphold the ideal of justice within the society that he controls.

The concept that stands at the foundation of true justice is the idea that all human beings were equally created by God. Job expresses this thought when he describes how he was dedicated to the principle of justice: “if I ever spurned justice for my servants or maidservants when they contended with me, then what would I do when God would rise up? When He would attend to me, what would I answer Him? Did not the One who made me in the womb make him too?” (Job 31:13-15).

In Job’s society it was very easy for a master to see himself as one who is above the arguments of his slaves and maidservants. Landholders saw themselves as standing on a higher plane of existence than the slaves and maidservants. But Job did not see things that way. Job recognized that there is One Creator who created all men and all are equally subservient to the One who created them all.

Many civilizations have risen and flourished; each with their own version of justice and each with their own set of ideals and aspirations. God did not choose these civilizations. This was not the society that would serve as His dwelling place on earth.

Then Abraham came. He separated himself from the society around him and he established a family on the foundations of charity and justice (Genesis 18:19). It was here that God found a heart that was completely loyal to Him and God chose Abraham, his son Isaac and his grandson Jacob (Nehemiah 9:8). God made a covenant with the patriarchs that it would be their children who will be identified as His people; this will be the civilization that He favors (Genesis 17:7).

When God redeemed the people of Israel from the house of bondage He established a dwelling place for Himself amongst His holy nation (Exodus 29:46). But God still did not choose a permanent “House of God” amongst his people. The society of Israel had not yet reached its full potential as a civilization that is worthy of a permanent dwelling place for God.

Then God found His servant David (Psalm 89:21). David established justice in Israel (2Samuel 8:15) and this justice was rooted in a deep recognition of the absolute sovereignty of God as represented in the songs of the Psalms. In the book of Psalms David gave voice to the heart of Israel in their complete submission to God and with this he consolidated and gave permanence to the true epicenter of Israel’s civilization as a society that is dedicated to God.

When God made the choice of David’s dynasty as the permanent rulers of Israel, then Jerusalem, David’s capital, became the permanent center of Israel’s civilization. Once Israel’s civilization achieved this quality of stability and permanence then, and only then, was God able to establish His permanent dwelling place at the political center of this society (1Kings 8:16).

Let us now return to the questions with which we opened this article. What is the connection between justice and the altar? Everything! It is only when the society is held together by the Godly ideals of justice that God favors their offerings and that His presence can be manifest in their midst.

Why does God hate the “matzevah”, the altar of a single rock? And why was it appropriate for Jacob to offer on this rock?

The altar that God favors is made up of many rocks symbolizing the harmony and unity that exists in the collective of Israel (1Kings 18:31). Once Israel is established as a national entity it is inappropriate for an individual to offer to God on a single rock. The single rock declares that I stand alone and apart from the people around me. The man who offers on the single rock sees himself as an entity that is above and separated from the people around him; the very opposite of the ideal of justice expressed by Job. When our forefathers had not yet established a nation whose heart is dedicated to God then God desired that they stand apart from the idolatrous nations that surrounded them. At that point in time the single rock altar was an appropriate structure for offering to God. But once a society is established on the foundation of loyalty to God; then the man who insists on standing apart is attacking the principle of justice which is the foundation of the civilization.

“A song of ascents, by David. I rejoiced when they said to me, “Let us go up to the House of the Lord.” Our feet stood firm within your gates, O Jerusalem. The built up Jerusalem is like a city that is united together. For there the tribes ascended, the tribes of God, a testimony for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. For there sat thrones of judgment, thrones for the house of David. Pray for the peace of Jerusalem; those who love you will be serene. May there be peace within your wall, serenity within your palaces. For the sake of my brethren and my comrades, I shall speak peace in your midst. For the sake of the House of the Lord, our God, I will request good for you.” (Psalm 122).

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Yisroel C. Blumenthal

The Blind Seer – Isaiah 40:6

Supplement to “Armor Bearers”

“A voice says, ‘Proclaim!’ and [the [prophet] asks, ‘What shall I proclaim?’ – ‘All flesh is grass and all its kindness is like a blossom in the field. Grass withers and blossoms fades when the breath of the Lord blows upon it; indeed the people are grass. Grass withers and blossom fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”

God comforts Israel by having the prophet proclaim that all flesh is ephemeral and transitory while the word of God stands forever.

Israel was chosen by God to testify that there is no power aside from Him (Isaiah 44:9). You don’t need a witness for something that everyone can see. The truth of God’s power is hidden behind the façade of the natural order (Isaiah 44:18). With eyes of flesh we see might, strength and permanence in natural objects such as mountains, rivers and seas. We see power and force in armies, weapons and warriors. And we see security and stability in financial resources and in political entities. But Israel was taught to see through all of these. When God took this nation for Himself He taught them that all of these are illusion and God alone is the only power (Deuteronomy 4:35; 8:3).

Throughout the long exile Israel ignored the success of the nations around them because it knew that any success that is not rooted in loyalty to God is transitory and illusion. The power of the empires and emperors, the strength of armies and warriors and the glory of idols and heroes did not impress the Jew who saw through all of these. The Jew was blind to the glitter and dazzle of the natural order and the Jew’s heart and hope were to the God of Israel and no one and nothing else. Israel’s steadfast loyalty to God and to His holy law gives testimony to the world that God alone is the true power.

God declares: “Who is blind but my servant” (Isaiah 42:19). Israel cannot see that which all other nations see and appreciate. Israel has already been taught by God not to be influenced persuaded by the natural order of things. Even when God castigates Israel for their blindness it is because they have been granted the tools to see beyond flesh and to perceive the power of God – and when they do not live up to this exalted calling – they are called blind (Isaiah 29:10).

Within the body of corporate Israel it is the prophet; the seer, who is the most blinded to the illusion of the material world. As Israel saw God on a national level; the prophet was granted vision by God on a personal level. The vision of the prophet cannot see the world-view that other people live with for God has opened his eyes to see the truth of God’s might.

Ultimately all of mankind will see that nothing is real aside from the word of God (Isaiah 40:5). All of the persuasions of the eye of flesh will embarrass those who believed in them (Isaiah 2:11). Israel will ultimately be comforted when all will recognize that all flesh is but grass. And until the day when God’s glory is revealed Israel draws its strength from the trust it has in the Rock of all existence (Isaiah 26:4).

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Yisroel C. Blumenthal

Armor Bearers – Isaiah 52:11

1. The Prophet and the Nation

One of the primary purposes of the book of Isaiah is to offer comfort and hope to the Jewish people. One method that the prophet uses to comfort Israel is by comparing the nation to the prophet himself.

“My Lord God has granted me a tongue for teaching, to understand the need of the times in conveying matters to those who thirst (for knowledge); He arouses (me) morning after morning; He arouses me to understand as disciples are taught. My Lord God has opened (my) ear for me, and I did not resist; I did not retreat to the rear. I submitted my body to those who smite and my cheeks to those who pluck; I did not hide my face from humiliation and spit. For my Lord God helps me; therefore I was not humiliated; therefore I made my face (as hard) as flint and knew that I would not be ashamed. My Champion is near; whoever would contend with me, let us stand together; whoever is my adversary, let him approach me. Behold my Lord God will help me; who is he that will condemn me? Behold, they will all wear out like a garment; a moth will devour them.” (50:4-9)

In this passage the prophet describes how God has granted him the tools that are necessary to fulfill his mission. God gave Isaiah a gifted tongue and an ability to break down the information so that people can understand him. Isaiah goes on to say that his mission called for him to endure humiliation and persecution but he was not deterred. Since God is on his side, Isaiah fears no one.

A few lines later we read: “Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, the nation with My teaching in their heart; do not fear from the disparagement of man, and do not be broken by their insults; for like a garment, a moth will eat them, and like wool, a worm will eat them; but My righteousness will be forever, and My salvation for all generations.” (51:7-8)

Here God addresses the people of Israel, describing them as a nation who carries His teaching in their collective heart. God encourages them not to fear the humiliation and the shame of the nations. He assures Israel that her enemies will melt away as if consumed by the moth. (See also 41:11; 51:22, 23; 54:17; 60:14). Just as the prophet carries God’s message, suffers humiliation and is ultimately vindicated by God; so it is with Israel. She too carries God’s message, is humiliated on account of God’s message and will ultimately be vindicated by God.

In chapter 44 God describes the fulfillment of prophecy with the words: “Who confirms the word of His servant, and fulfills the council of His messengers.” (44:26). The prophet who proclaims God’s word is entitled with the terms: “His servant” and “His messenger”. In chapter 42 God exclaims: “Who is blind but My servant and deaf as My messenger whom I send?” (42:19). God’s servant and His messenger are described as “blind” and “deaf” – the very qualities that are associated with Israel several times throughout the book of Isaiah – 35:5; 42:7,16,18; 43:8. The blindness that is Israel’s quality is attributed to the prophet and the blindness of the prophet is Israel’s blindness. The nation of Israel is set as a parallel to the prophet and the prophet is parallel to Israel.

2. The Word

The role of the prophet is to bring God’s word to the world. But the prophet is not merely a “delivery boy”; a means of transportation that is not connected to the article that he is transporting. God tells Jeremiah: “Behold, I have placed My words in your mouth. See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, to uproot and to smash, and to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.” (Jeremiah 1:9, 10).

The word of God accomplishes His purpose on this earth (Isaiah 55:11), and the work of God is attributed to the prophet who brings the word from God into the world.

Just as the prophet is entrusted with God’s word and is enjoined to bring it into this world, so it is with Israel. Israel has been granted God’s word to the exclusion of any other national entity (Isaiah 43:12; Psalm 147:19, 20). Israel has been appointed to be God’s witness to the truth of His sovereignty (Isaiah 43:10; 44:8; 45:19).

“And as for Me, this is My covenant with them , said the Lord, My spirit which is upon you and My words that I have placed in your mouth will not be withdrawn from your mouth nor from the mouth of your offspring nor from the mouth of your offspring’s offspring, said the Lord from now until forevermore.” (Isaiah 59:21).

“And I have placed My word in your mouth and with the shade of My hand have I sheltered you, to plant the heavens and to establish the earth and to declare to Zion; “You are My people”.” (Isaiah 51:16).

God’s work of planting the new heavens and establishing the new earth (Isaiah 66:22) is attributed to Israel who bears God’s word and declares it before it is done.

But how is Israel appointed to bring God’s message to Zion (“You are My people”)? Israel and Zion are one and the same. How can Israel be called upon to bring a message to herself?

The prophet provides two answers to this question. Throughout Isaiah we find that within the collective body of Israel there exists a limited group who are more closely associated with the prophet. In chapter 8 Isaiah tells us that God warned him not to walk in the way of the nation. As Isaiah proceeds to give us God’s warning he moves from the singular (in verse 11) to the plural (in verses 12 and 13). It is clear that the prophet was associated with a group within Israel who remained loyal to God even when the rest of the nation strayed. Similarly, the prophet calls out to this limited group: “Who among you fears the Lord, listening to the voice of His servant?” (50:10). The righteous amongst Israel fear God and obey the prophet. Chapter 40 opens up with God encouraging a plural group of people to comfort Israel (40:1). We can understand that those who are loyal to God are enjoined to declare to the rest of the nation that they are God’s people.

The prophet provides another way to understand how Israel can be appointed to bring a message to herself. Israel is a nation comprised of human beings who do not live forever. Israel’s purpose is only accomplished with the connection of all of her generations; from the past into the future. It is for this reason that the seed of Israel is mentioned so often in these passages of comfort (43:5; 44:3; 54:3; 59:21; 61:9; 65:9, 23; 66:22). Each generation of Israel is appointed to declare to the next generation: “you are God’s people”.

3. The Servant of Chapter 49

With all of this in mind, let us approach the opening passage in chapter 49.

“Listen to me, O islands, and hearken O distant regimes: the Lord summoned me from the belly; He mentioned my name from my mother’s womb. He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of His hand He hid me; He made me like a smooth arrow, in His quiver He concealed me. He said to me: “You are My servant, Israel, in whom I take glory.” But I said, “I have toiled in vain and used up my strength for nothingness and naught; however, judgment is with the Lord and (the reward for) my accomplishments is with my God.” And now the Lord, who formed me from the belly to be a servant to Him, to restore Jacob unto Him, and Israel will be gathered unto Him and I was honored in the eyes of the Lord and my God was my strength. He said: “It is insufficient that you be a servant for Me to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the ruins of Israel; I will make you a light for the nations, so that My salvation may extend to the ends of the earth.” 

Who is this servant?

At first glance, we would say that this is Isaiah. The prophet is described as one who is called from the womb (Jeremiah 1:4). The mouth of the prophet is the implement that God uses to accomplish His purpose (Jeremiah 1:9,10). Isaiah was first called to restore Israel to God (when he spoke to the Jews of his own generation), but ultimately, it is Isaiah who is the primary prophet called to bring the message of the Messianic era to all of mankind. It is Isaiah’s words that are written on the side of the U.N. building expressing man’s hope for a future of peace. And it is Isaiah’s metaphor of the lion lying with lamb that is most often used to describe the glorious plan that God has for all of humanity. Furthermore; the servant in this passage speaks for himself in the first person without being introduced in any way, which also leads us to believe that it is Isaiah who is talking.

However; the servant is identified as “Israel” (verse 3). Israel is also called from the time of their formation (43:21; 44:2, 21, 24; 46:3). The servant of this passage is described as a “sword” and an “arrow” just as Israel is called the “armor-bearers of the Lord” (52:11) and they are set by God to be a “threshing board of many blades” (41:15). Just as this servant is sheltered in the shade of God’s hand so is Israel likewise sheltered (51:16). Just as the servant fears that his toil has been in vain so does Israel fear that their toil has been in vain (40:27). Just as the servant will bring light to the nations so will Israel bring light to the nations (60:3). And this passage is placed in the midst of a series of prophecies which are spoken for the encouragement of Israel (48:20; 49:14).

The lines between the prophet and the nation are intentionally blurred. The encouragement to Israel is that in a certain sense they are the prophet of God. Just as the prophet carries God’s word so does Israel carry God’s word and just as the prophet is granted the strength of God’s word so is Israel granted the strength, the power and the eternal nature of God’s word (40:8).

4. The Servant of Chapter 42

“Behold My Servant, whom I shall uphold; My chosen one, whom My soul desired; I have placed My spirit on him, he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not shout nor raise his voice, nor make his voice heard in the street. He will not break (even) a bruised reed nor extinguish (even) a flickering flax; but he will administer justice in truth. He will not slacken nor tire until he sets justice in the land and islands will long for his teaching.” (42:1-4).

“Thus said the God, Lord, Who created the heavens and stretched them forth; who formed the earth and its produce, Who gave a soul to the people upon it: I am the Lord; I have called you with righteousness; I will strengthen your hand; I will protect you; I will set you for a covenant (to the) people, for a light to the nations; to open blind eyes; to remove a prisoner from a dungeon. I am the Lord; that is My name; I shall not give My glory to another, nor My praise to graven idols. Behold the early (prophecies) have come about; now I relate new ones; before they sprout I shall let you hear (them)” (42:5-9).

It would seem that the prophet is speaking here of two separate servants. The first servant is appointed to bring judgment to the nations (verses 1 thru 4); a function most often assigned to a king (11:3,4; 16:5). While the second servant is called to bring God’s word to the people (compare to 49:8; 61:1-3); a function assigned to the prophet. The first servant is described in the third person, while the second servant is being addressed directly by God and the paragraphs describing these two servants are separated by a space in the original scroll as well as with an introduction in verse 5.

With our new-found understanding we can see how these two servants are both separate and the same. We must first ask ourselves: what is this “teaching” that the islands long for? (verse 4).

In chapter 2 (verses 3 and 4) we see how it is God’s word and His teaching that will guide the nations. The same concept is repeated in chapter 51 verses 4 and 5. Yet here in chapter 42 we are given to understand that it is the teaching of God’s servant that the nations are longing for. So what is it? Is it God’s teaching or is it His servant’s teaching that brings light to the nations?

These two are actually one and the same. In chapter 60 we read how the nations are covered in darkness while God’s light shines over Israel (verses 1 and 2). But verse 3 tells us how the nations shall walk to Israel’s light. So whose light is it? Is it God’s light or is it Israel’s light?

The answer to this question is the underlying theme of these chapters in Isaiah. The light that all hope for is the word of God. This word has already been set in the mouth of Israel (59:21). The teaching of God that all of mankind longs for and the righteousness of the Lord that will judge the nations has already been granted to Israel and has already been planted in Israel’s heart (51:7). God’s righteous law that has been granted to Israel will ultimately bring light to all of mankind. When Israel’s king; the Messiah, administers justice to the nation, it will not be his own personal justice, he will rule by the righteousness of God and that righteousness is the law that is already planted in Israel’s heart.

The first servant of chapter 42 (verses 1 thru 4) is the Messiah, the king of Israel while the second servant (verses 5 thru 9) is the prophet who brings God’s word to accomplish God’s purpose here on earth. Yet these two are not seen as entities that stand alone. Both of these are part and parcel of Israel herself. The justice meted out by the Messiah is the law that God allowed Israel to call her own and the word that the prophet proclaims is the word that has already been planted in Israel’s mouth.

The argument that God uses in verse 8 of this chapter (42) is repeated in chapter 48 (verse 11). God argues that He will certainly fulfill His word because: “how can I let My name be profaned? I will not cede My glory to another”. In that context (chapter 48) God is explaining why it is that He will purify Israel and bring about His purpose through His chosen nation despite their failings. It is because he has already associated His name and His glory with this nation and this connection is immutable. It is this same argument with which God encourages His servant in chapter 42. It is because God has already associated His name and His glory with Israel that the prophet’s words must come to pass. The last phrase in verse 9 (of chapter 42) addresses the servant in the plural indicating that it is not only the prophet who is being addressed personally but it is also the nation as a whole that God is speaking to.

5. The Servant of Chapter 52:13 – 53:12

Why do the priests and the prophets bear the sins of the people (Numbers 18:1; Ezekiel 3:17 – 20)? It is because the priests and the prophets are the people who are charged with the task of bearing God’s teaching and His word (Deuteronomy 33:10; Ezekiel 3:17; 2Chronicles 31:4). As the teachers of the people they are responsible for the sins of the people. Had they executed their function more completely the light of God would have reached the people and they would have refrained from sin. When the priest and the prophet do not fulfill their divinely appointed tasks and the people walk in darkness, it is they, the teachers, who are held responsible.

Israel, who bears God’s word and His teaching is called “a kingdom of priests” (Exodus 19:6). It is their responsibility to bring God’s light to the world through their obedience to God’s law. When they fail in their calling and the world walks in darkness; Israel is held responsible. It is for this reason that the servant bears the sins of his oppressors. And the servant is comforted with the promise that he will eventually share his knowledge with many thus fulfilling his true calling before God (53:11).

It is the duty of every king to administer justice to their respective nations. Each nation has its own concept of justice and righteousness that is administered by every nation’s own monarch. This will cease when God’s light is revealed. When God’s teaching is revealed to the nations they will realize that they had been walking in darkness. They will recognize that their own concepts of justice and righteousness are at odds with God’s righteous law. It is for this reason that the astonishment of the kings and their subservience to the bearers of God’s word is such a prevalent theme throughout these prophecies of the future redemption (49:7, 23; 52:15; 60:3, 10, 11; 62:2).

But Israel is made up of individuals who only live for the brief time allotted to them by the Eternal God. How can these mortal beings accomplish God’s eternal purpose? It is through their progeny that Israel accomplishes God’s purpose on earth (53:10). By passing on God’s word from one generation to the next God’s purpose is accomplished and all of mankind is blessed (59:21).

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Yisroel C. Blumenthal