Tuesday, July 17, 2012

AZAMRA Bible: Jeremiah 39-40

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AZAMRA?

So that through them The האור Light, רפואה The Healing and The ואהבה Love of ישועת יהוה Yeshuath YHWH may come back to הארץ The Land of Israel?

BS"D KNOW YOUR BIBLE: Jeremiah 39-40
Study Notes by Avraham ben Yaakov

JEREMIAH CHAPTER 39

The narrative now reaches its climax with the story of the flight and capture of King Tzedekiah and the exile of Judah to Babylon. A parallel account of the capture of Jerusalem is also found in the closing chapter of Jeremiah (ch 52), which after many intervening chapters about later events then rounds off the book with that event in order to show God's justice in punishing the nation with destruction for failing to heed the warnings of His prophets. However, the purpose of the narrative in our present chapter and those that follow is not so much to recount the details of the destruction as to trace what happened to those who survived, among whom Jeremiah played as active a role as the one he played in Jerusalem before its capture.

V 4: "And they fled and went out at night from the city by way of the king's garden through the gate between the walls and he went out on the way to the Aravah." The Aravah is the Jordan valley. Having inhabited Jerusalem for many hundreds of years, the kings of Judah had had ample time to prepare for various contingencies, and they had evidently had the foresight to prepare the long tunnel which – according to tradition – Tzedekiah used from Jerusalem to the plains of Jericho in the hope of making his escape. However, precisely as he was about to emerge from the cave, God sent a deer which the Babylonian forces sighted and pursued. The deer entered the cave and the Babylonians went after it – and saw Tzedekiah coming out, and captured him (Tanchuma Numbers #9). This was in fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel: "I have spread out My net against him" (Ezekiel 12:13; see Rashi on Jer. 39:4).

V 7: "And he blinded Tzedekiah's eyes…" – "Rava asked Rabbah bar Meri, Surely this contradicts what was prophesied of Tzedekiah, that 'you shall die in peace' (Jer. 34:5). He replied in the name of Rabbi Yohanan that the latter prophecy was fulfilled because Nebuchadnezzar died in his lifetime" (Mo'ed Katan 28b).

V 10: "But some of the poor people who owned nothing Nevuzaradan left in the land of Judah…" The Babylonians exiled the upper classes of Judah in order to destroy their aspirations for independence, but there were not bent on destroying Judea and its agriculture completely.

V 11: "And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave instructions concerning Jeremiah…" Nebuchadnezzar understood better than the rulers of Judah that Jeremiah was a true prophet, and treated him with great respect, as he did Daniel and his companions.

V 14: From a careful analysis of the texts (cf. Jer. 40:1), RaDaK infers that initially Jeremiah was taken by junior Babylonian officers from the "Courtyard of Confinement" (the king's prison) together with the other exiles and like them put in chains to be taken to Babylon. Only afterwards did these officers learn that Nebuchadnezzar's chief officer, Nebuzaradan, had received special instructions from the king to leave Jeremiah free to choose what he wanted to do, and they then took him to Gedaliah son of Ahikam.

According to Rashi and Metzudas David, prior to the capture of Jerusalem Gedaliah had gone over and submitted to the Babylonians on the instructions of Jeremiah, and when the city was captured, Nebuchadnezzar appointed Gedaliah as governor over the remaining inhabitants of Judea.

CHAPTER 40

V 1: "The word that came to Jeremiah… after Nevuzaradan sent him off from Ramah… when he was bound in chains among all the exile of Judah and Jerusalem…" The Midrash tells that Jeremiah wanted to accompany the exiles on the road to Babylon and of his own volition stuck his own neck in among convoys of chained exiles in order to empathize with them and encourage them (cf. Rashi on this verse). According to the Midrash, the "word" that now came to Jeremiah was that he was to stay in Judea and join Gedaliah – this teaching is derived from a careful analysis of verse 5 of the present chapter, "He had not yet turned back [when he was told], Turn back (VE-SHUVAH) to Gedaliah…" However, according to the simple, non-midrashic meaning of V 1, the "word" that came to Jeremiah is the prophecy that will be recounted below in Chapter 42 vv 7ff.

V 3: "…and HaShem brought it about and did as He said…" Coming from the mouth of Nebuchadnezzar's chief officer, this shows that the destruction of Jerusalem was not only a message for the Jews but a sanctification of God's name in the eyes of all the nations.

Vv 6ff: Jeremiah joined Gedaliah at Mitzpah, where the latter now had his headquarters as governor of the remaining poor farmers of Judea. The officers of the forces who were "in the field" (v 7) were the Judean officers who had fled from Jerusalem in the face of the Babylonians. They now gathered around Gedaliah, who swore to them that as long as they submitted to the king of Babylon he would act as a loyal intermediary with the Babylonians on their behalf and protect them from any acts of vengeance. They were then joined by more Judeans who had fled from the Babylonians to the surrounding territories of Moab, Ammon and Edom etc. Had the surviving Judean officers been willing to heed Gedaliah and Jeremiah, a remnant of Judah could have remained living peaceably in their land. But the tragic assassination of Gedaliah and the survivors' refusal to heed Jeremiah led to the final collapse of all vestiges of Judean independence.

Vv 13ff: Yohanan ben Kare'ach and the other officers of Judah warn Gedaliah that Ishma'el ben Netanyahu had been planted in their midst by the king of Ammon in order to assassinate him. Ishma'el was "from the seed of the kingship" (Jer. 41:1) – i.e. from the royal family of Judah. According to the rabbis, he was the twenty-fourth generation descendant of King David's son Yerahmi-el from his wive Atara, a convert woman of royal origins (see I Chronicles 2:26). Ishma'el was jealous of Gedaliah because of his appointment by the Babylonians as governor of Judea.

V 16: "And Gedaliah said… you are speaking falsely about Ishma'el." Gedaliah rejected what today would be called "credible intelligence" because he was unwilling to accept LASHON HARA, an "evil report" about Ishma'el. This might seem meritorious, but Gedaliah made a mistake that proved to be literally fatal, trying to be more virtuous than the actual Halachah. The prohibition of ACCEPTING an "evil report" about someone means that we should not necessarily BELIEVE what people may tell us about that individual. However, we are still entitled, and indeed duty bound, to take all due precautions IN CASE what they say turns out to be true. Thus the sages said, "Show him respect, but consider him suspect" (KABDEIHU VE-CHASHDEIHU).

ABY

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Please Say Yes to Abba Yahweh and His Laws.

Please read the Mitzvoth go to: Positive Commandments and the Negative Commandments), easy to read. It is very important to know them.

Hab 2:3 For the chazon (vision) is yet for a mo’ed (an appointed time); it speaks of HaKetz (the End), and does not lie; though it tarry, wait for him

Moshiach— see: Sanhedrin 97b, ‘It has been taught; R. Nathan said: This verse pierces and descends to the very abyss:11 For the Vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though he tarry, wait for him (Moshiach); because it will surely come, it will not tarry.12]; because he (Moshiach) will surely come, and will not tarry.

(11) Just as the bottom of an abyss cannot be reached, so is it impossible to grasp the full purport of this verse (Rashi).
(12) Hab. II, 3.

Believe…..

Hab 2:4 Hinei (behold), his nashamah (soul) which is puffed up is not upright in him; but the tzaddik (righteous) shall live by his emunah (believe).

Through Moshiach, Yeshuah from Yahweh who give you emunah (believe)…..

Gen 15:6 And he believed in Yahweh; and He credited emunah (faith)] to him as tzedakah (righteousness).

Please read the whole book of HaNavi Habakuk?

The Koran teaches us that you have to die…….

But, please Yudah (Jews) and Ephraim (most Christians) Listen to His Voice:

Hab 1:12 Art thou not mikedem

(‘everlasting’ also said of Moshiach, indicating Moshiach’s eternal divine nature: Dan 7:14 And there was given Him (Moshiach) dominion, and honor, and sovereignty, that all people, Goyim, tongues, should pey-lammed-chet. [1] (worship as deity) (see Dan 3:12, serve, reverence as deity Him (Moshiach). His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His (Messianic) Kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.] see Michah 5:1[2];)

Yahweh Elohai (my Elohim) Kedoshi (my Holy One)? We shall not die. Yahweh, Thou hast appointed them (these Chaldean) for mishpat (ordinance); O Tzur, Thou hast ordained them (these Chaldean) for reproof.

Please take it serious what Abba Yahweh is telling us in:

Deu 18:15 Yahweh Eloheicha (your Elohim) will raise up unto thee a Navi (prophet) from among thee, of thy achim (bretheren), kamoni (like me.....

Exo 32:30 The next day Moshe said to the people, "You have committed a terrible sin. Now I will go up to Yahweh; maybe I will be able to atone for your sin."); unto him ye must listen;

Deu 18:16 According to all that thou desired of Yahweh Eloheicha (your Elohimin) Chorev (to be burnt dried up, ruined, wasted) in the Yom HaKahal (day of the congregation), saying, Let me not hear again the voice of Yahweh Elohav (your Elohim), neither let me see this eish hagedolah (‘great fire’) any more, that I die not.

Deu 18:17 And Yahweh said unto me, They have well-spoken that which they have spoken.

Deu 18:18 I will raise them up a Navi (prophet) from among their achim (brethren), like unto thee, and will put My words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.

Joh 10:18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have samchut (authority) to lay it down, and I have samchut to receive it again. This mitzvah I received from HaAv (the Father).

Deu 18:19 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not listen unto My words which he shall speak Bishmi (in My Name), I will require it of him.

Joh 8:28 Therefore, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to them, When you perform the hagbah (lifting up) of the Ben HaAdam, you will have da'as (knowledge) that Ani Hu [YESHAYAH 41:4; SHEMOT 3:14-16], and from myself I do nothing, but as HaAv (the Father) of me taught me, these things I speak.

Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiah Yeshuah – is Yeshuah Yahweh. Like it is said in:

Gen_49:18 I have waited for Thy Yeshuah (Salvation), Yahweh.

Exo_15:2 Yahweh is my oz and zimrah (song of praise), and He is become to me Yeshuah (salvation); He is Eli (my Elohim), and I will praise Him; Elohei Avi (the Elohim of my Father), and I will exalt Him.

And not a half-god, or another mighty-one who came between HaShem and us! (Not, ‘It Suph’!) I believe many of us (Jews and Ephraimites!) have to learn that!

[1] Dictionary of the Talmud. M. Jastrow p. 1178 פלח