Your Daily Pesuk Sept. 12, 2018

Parashat Vayeilech / פרשת וילך

• Wed, 12 September 2018 = 3rd of Tishrei, 5779
• ג׳ בְּתִשְׁרֵי תשע״ט

Deuteronomy 31:10-13 (4 p'sukim)

Deuteronomy 31:10-13 Tree of Life Version (TLV)

10 Then Moses commanded them saying, “At the end of every seven years, in the set time of the year of cancelling debts, during the feast of Sukkot, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before Adonai your God in the place He chooses, you are to read this Torah before them in their hearing. 12 Gather the people—the men and women and little ones, and the outsider within your town gates—so they may hear and so they may learn, and they will fear Adonai your God and take care to do all the words of this Torah. 13 So their children, who have not known, will hear and learn to fear Adonai your God—all the days you live on the land you are about to cross over the Jordan to possess.”

10 וַיְצַ֥ו מֹשֶׁ֖ה אוֹתָ֣ם לֵאמֹ֑ר מִקֵּ֣ץ׀ שֶׁ֣בַע שָׁנִ֗ים בְּמֹעֵ֛ד שְׁנַ֥ת הַשְּׁמִטָּ֖ה בְּחַ֥ג הַסֻּכּֽוֹת׃

11 בְּב֣וֹא כָל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל לֵרָאוֹת֙ אֶת־פְּנֵי֙ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ בַּמָּק֖וֹם אֲשֶׁ֣ר יִבְחָ֑ר תִּקְרָ֞א אֶת־הַתּוֹרָ֥ה הַזֹּ֛את נֶ֥גֶד כָּל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל בְּאָזְנֵיהֶֽם׃

12 הַקְהֵ֣ל אֶת־הָעָ֗ם הָֽאֲנָשִׁ֤ים וְהַנָּשִׁים֙ וְהַטַּ֔ף וְגֵרְךָ֖ אֲשֶׁ֣ר בִּשְׁעָרֶ֑יךָ לְמַ֨עַן יִשְׁמְע֜וּ וּלְמַ֣עַן יִלְמְד֗וּ וְיָֽרְאוּ֙ אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֔ם וְשָׁמְר֣וּ לַעֲשׂ֔וֹת אֶת־כָּל־דִּבְרֵ֖י הַתּוֹרָ֥ה הַזֹּֽאת׃

13 וּבְנֵיהֶ֞ם אֲשֶׁ֣ר לֹֽא־יָדְע֗וּ יִשְׁמְעוּ֙ וְלָ֣מְד֔וּ לְיִרְאָ֖ה אֶת־יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם כָּל־הַיָּמִ֗ים אֲשֶׁ֨ר אַתֶּ֤ם חַיִּים֙ עַל־הָ֣אֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר אַתֶּ֜ם עֹבְרִ֧ים אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֛ן שָׁ֖מָּה לְרִשְׁתָּֽהּ׃ פ

As mentioned yesterday, the public reading of the Torah is introduced to us, but today we also have the pesukim that mentions Chag Hasukkot! (the Feast of Sukkot).  Remember, that Sukkot is one of the three Pilgrimage Festivals (Pesach, Shavuot, & Sukkot).  Three times a year all males were required to travel to Jerusalem (when the Temple stood) and offer sacrifices there at the Temple in Jerusalem.  This is why you read very often Yeshua "going up to Jerusalem" to a "feast".  Sukkot was a time for the nation to be reminded of the Torah, to hear it and be taught...

So it will be in the age to come, in the age of Messiah, during the 1,000 Millennial Reign of the Messiah, that all nations will someday be "required" to go to Jerusalem at this time and learn Torah...

Zechariah 14:16 Then all the survivors from all the nations that attacked Jerusalem will go up from year to year to worship the King, Adonai-Tzva’ot, and to celebrate Sukkot. 17 Furthermore, if any of the nations on earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Adonai-Tzva’ot, they will have no rain. 18 If the Egyptians do not go up and celebrate, they will have no rain. Instead, there will be the plague that Adonai will inflict on the nations that do not go up to celebrate Sukkot. 19 This will be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not go up to celebrate Sukkot. 20 In that day “Holy to Adonai” will be inscribed on the bells of the horses and the pots in House of Adonai will be like the sacred bowls in front of the altar. 21 In fact every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be Holy to Adonai-Tzva’ot, so that everyone who comes to sacrifice will take them, and cook in them. In that day there will no longer be a Canaanite in the House of Adonai-Tzva’ot.

Yes we see that in that day, in a future age, all nations will be REQUIRED to go up to Jerusalem during Sukkot.  But how do they learn Torah?  Zechariah doesn't seem to say anything about that...

Remember, one of the purposes of going during Sukkot was to learn Torah...

Micah 4 Tree of Life Version (TLV)

4 But at the end of days the mountain of Adonai’s House will be established as chief of the mountains, and will be raised above the hills.
Peoples will flow up to it.
2 Then many nations will go and say:
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of Adonai,
    to the House of the God of Jacob!
Then He will direct us in His ways,
    and we will walk in His paths.”
For Torah will go forth from Zion,
and the word of Adonai from Jerusalem.
3 He will judge between many peoples
and decide for mighty nations far off.
They will beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning shears.
Nation will not lift up sword against nation,
    nor will they learn war again.
4 But each man will sit under his vine
    and under his fig tree,
    with no one causing terror,
for the mouth of Adonai-Tzva’ot has spoken.
5 Though all the peoples will walk
each in the name of his god,
so we ourselves will walk in the Name of Adonai Eloheinu,
    forever and ever.

6 “In that day”
—it is a declaration of Adonai—
“I will gather her who is limping,
and her who was banished will I collect,
even those whom I have afflicted.
7 I will make her who was limping into a remnant,
    and her who was banished a mighty nation.
Adonai will reign over them on Mount Zion
    from that time and forever.”

It is important to remember, that this is speaking of a "future age", the age of Messiah who has returned in Jerusalem.  Today, we are still living in the age of the Gentiles.  And until "that day", we live by the ruling of the Apostles (Acts 15 & 21), that we do not put obstacles or burdens on the Gentiles.  They are NOT required to live Jewish lifestyles in order to be saved.  Not all of Torah is obligatory on them, nor should we get ahead of ourselves today and start telling Christians and Churches that they got the Sabbath wrong and that they need to change their ways...

No, it is clear, that it is the Messiah's job to change that.  Our job today is to get this good news of Salvation in Messiah Yeshua out to our Jewish people first, and then "whosoever".  Leave the arguments about Torah with Gentiles to the Messiah.  He'll take care of that Himself, and besides, He does a better job at that then we could ever hope to do ourselves.

Have a good fast, (Tzom Gedaliah today),

R' Eric