Torah Commentary
“I Have Called You Friends”
Moses is likened to a “friend”—specifically, a friend of God. Yeshua is on record promising “friendship” to believers who abide (John 15:14). Then, immediately afterwards, He reiterates the point, saying: “I have called you friends” (15:15). It’s hard to overstate the significance: the relationship with God that believers in Yeshua enjoy is akin to Moses’.
The Glorious Garments of Service
The breastplate bearing the names of the tribes of Israel, each in its place, reminds us also to embrace our God-given place and not to compare ourselves with the other servants; neither to seek a better position than theirs, nor to grovel in our lowliness. Instead, we’re to serve within the space God has prepared for us, and prepared us for.
Organized Religion
The voice of God to Moses, and by extension to the assembly of Israel, came by way of an organized and intentional religious space. It was not random or haphazard. It was not spontaneous or unconstrained. God’s voice came within an organized space and time.
A Way to Live in the Presence of the Lord
At the conclusion of last week’s parasha, Israel is given immortality with its designation as a “Kingdom of Priests and a Holy Nation” (Exod 19:6). Mishpatim, literally “ordinances,” on the other hand, is often thought of as a law book pronouncing mundane rules that deal with a plethora of subjects.
Breaking Bread with God
Moses on the mountain, Isaiah caught up into the throne room of God; these accounts fuel our imagination of God as high and lofty, untouchable, unapproachable. In contrast is a wonderful little line nestled within the opening verses of Parashat Yitro: “And Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.”
Meeting God on the Battle Line
There comes a time when God’s people need to battle. At such times, while some prefer to remain spectators, and others to be support personnel behind the lines, some will engage in the thick of things, believing themselves called to give their all in a time of transition, opportunity, or threat.
Looking for a Leader
It’s election season, but the search for trustworthy leaders in our day seems to always lead to disappointment for many of us, or even for most. This makes the story of the Exodus all the more remarkable. It is not hard to understand why Moses looms so large in Jewish history.
Finding Intimacy with God Through the Journey
In the beginning, Adam walked in the garden with God, and they shared an intimacy of fellowship (Gen 3:8). The oneness represented is the heart of what we know as worship. This is why humans were created. To live life in praise to God: “the people I formed for myself, so they may declare my praise” (Isa 43:21).
God’s Calling is Greater than Our Fears
This week we read of Moses’ first encounter with God at the burning bush. In this conversation on the mountain, Moses finds himself wrestling with the great battle of the saints: Faith vs fear. And his fear nearly won the day.
Finding Life in Egypt
Our parasha begins, Vayechi Yaakov, “Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years.” The language of this opening line is somewhat unexpected. Why say that Jacob lived in the land of Egypt? In English translation it’s unremarkable, but there are other verbs that might have worked in Hebrew.