Parashah #14:Va’era (I appeared) Sh’mot (Exodus)

Beth Elohim Messianic Synagogue
Parsahash#14: Va’era (I appeared) Sh’mot (Exodus) 6:2-9:35
Haftarah: Yechezk’el (Ezekiel) 28:25-29:21
According to one of Newton’s laws of motion, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. While this law holds for the physical universe, all bets are off when we examine and consider the spiritual realm. Indeed, there is no equal an opposite reaction of two entities from the spiritual perspective. Rather, G-d’s Word clearly teaches and reiterates a cause-and-effect relationship between man and G-d. In the case of Pharaoh, So it is between G-d and Pharaoh. If Pharaoh had not remained obstinate and continued to resist G-d, his testings, and judgments, he and his entire army would not have been destroyed. Similarly, blessings and curses related to our willingness to lovingly keep G-d’s commands or reject them presents a clear description of the “if-then” paradigm of following G-d’s commands out of love, humble unconditional repentance, and G-d’s acceptance such individuals into a Covenant relationship with Ephraim Israel and Judah Israel described in Ezekiel 37:17-28.
G-d as Adonai tells Pharaoh through Moshe to let the Israelites go and worship him (G-d) or else! G-d tells those who would be considered true believers the same thing (Ex. 15:25-6). For every action there is an opposite and equal reaction in the natural universe. However, in the spiritual realm we know or should know by now that YHVH/Yahshua has done and does more for us than we can ever do for Him. He needs nothing from us. What we do for Him is a reasonable service and an ongoing system of checks and balances designed for our spiritual growth (Rom. 12:1-2). We should not be deceived into thinking that artificial manipulation of our bodies makes us a living sacrifice (set apart) for G-d with which He will be pleased. Being set apart for G-d as one of His people means coming to Him as we are on the outside with a changed heart; one that wants to serve only Him. Being set apart for YHVH/Yahshua includes everything we think, say, and do (Deut. 6:4). If we strive to incorporate, internalize, act upon the Words of G-d’s Torah, we will continue to ascend toward G-d as we descend in our love of self. Again, the reciprocity of energy expenditure is manifest in this concept. Interestingly, it is a relationship of inverse ratios. The more we nullify self, the closer we get to G-d in our spiritual growth. Another way to look at this in a physical sense is to imagine a bride walking down the aisle toward her groom. The closer she gets to him (the spiritual leader of the home), the closer she gets to relinquishing certain freedoms she enjoyed as a totally autonomous individual. Likewise, the closer she gets to the groom, the closer he gets to assuming the responsibility for her protection and well-being and relinquishing his individual freedom to move from one relationship to another without commitment.
G-d seeing the people He is about to separate unto Himself, begins the process of removing all threats from her by way of dealing with Pharaoh (Egypt). Yet, the process still provides an opportunity for the aggressor to repent before experiencing each consequence metered out for each act of rebellion willingly chosen by Pharaoh. Pharaoh’s responses foretell the stubbornness we may observe in our own society now, and in the future even when people are burned by intense heat when the fourth bowl is poured described in the Book of Revelation. These people will still curse G-d! (Rev. 16:9).
We must read our parashah carefully and prayerfully. Pharaoh chose his destiny. The statement that YHVH hardened the heart of Pharaoh is a Hebrew idiom in which an action verb is used to express not the doing of something, but permission to do it. G-d allowed Pharaoh to choose his destiny. G-d responds to our freewill choices (Jer. 18:8, 10) and condemns those who ascribe this to fate by stating that we have no free will (Jer. 18:12); a point also reflected in 2 Tim 2:20-21. In another context, we must remember to exercise patience when people visit the synagogue or ask us questions about our faith in other venues. Using the parashah as an example once again, a giant, great plague would not have convinced the Egyptians as thoroughly of G-ds existence as several smaller ones. If Egypt had been wiped out at the first moment of refusal, they never would have been afforded the opportunity of teshuvah, repentance. After each plague, Pharaoh and the Egyptians had an interval in which they had time to think about their errors and repent. In the context of a visitor to the synagogue, if they tell us they are going out to a Pork Lovers of America Pig Roast, we should not condemn them. That is for the Ruach HaKodesh to address. We must give them time to learn the basics and internalize them before the rabbi or other clergy makes the line of tolerance known.
Returning to our Parashah, we read in Exodus 9:17 and forward it reads as G-d had told Moshe to say to Pharaoh in his continued arrogance: Since you are still setting yourself up against my people and not letting them go, tomorrow about this time, I will cause a hailstorm so heavy that Egypt has had nothing like it from the day it was founded until now. Therefore, send and hurry to bring indoors all your livestock and everything else you have in the field. For hail will fall on every human being and animal left in the field that hasn’t been brought home, and they will die.
But as we continue reading, we find that there are a few who feared Adonai and followed his instructions: “Whoever among Pharaoh’s servants feared what Adonai had said had his slaves and livestock escape into the houses; but those who had no regard for what Adonai had said left their slaves and livestock in the field.” This verse has prophetic references including the remnant who will be saved (Rom. 9:26-8); Jews and Gentiles who fear Adonai and lovingly follow His commands/instructions. In our narrative we realize that these servants chose to answer to G-d as a higher Authority over Pharaoh. We are not told what happened to them after this event, but we know their slaves and livestock did not perish.
There is another application for today from this parashah. Just as with Pharaoh and the Egyptians (and everyone else), proper repentance must be completely unconditional. The penitent must acknowledge the wrong that he or she has done and resolve to improve, regardless of any external factors. Particularly, one’s repentance and subsequent Torah observance should not depend on the “success” of one’s prayer- that is if one’s prayers are answered as “expected.” We must acknowledge as humans we are located on the forest floor; we cannot see above the canopy of our “finite created reality.” People will often remain resolute in their choice to follow G-d only if their prayers have a perceived favourable outcome; otherwise forget it! Even if one’s situation perceivably deteriorates through our limited perception, we must remain steadfast and not deviate from our new level of commitment. If we falter this easily, we can be sure, we are as the fig tree spoken of in Matt. 13:21. If however, we remain on the King’s highway no matter how much “traffic” there is around us, we can be certain that G-d will execute His perfect will for our best (Rom. 8:28-38).
Haftarah: Yechezk’el (Ezekiel) 28:25-29:21
This week’s haftarah starts with the ingathering of the exiles, reflecting on G-d’s promise in our parashah: “I will take you out of the suffering of Egypt.” Ezekiel discusses the decimation of Pharaoh and Egypt, also reflecting the devastation wrought upon Egypt described in the parashah.
Ezekiel tells us what will occur during the ingathering of the exiles. “When I gather in the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they have been scattered, and I have been sanctified through them in the eyes of the nations, then they shall dwell on their land that I gave to My servant, to Jacob. And they shall dwell upon it securely.”
Ezekiel proceeded to convey a prophecy regarding Pharaoh and Egypt, foretelling the fall of the Egyptian empire. Egypt was punished for two reasons. First, they reneged on their promise to assist Israel against the attacking Babylonians. Second, they had incredible arrogance, considering themselves totally self-reliant on the bounty of the Nile instead of G-d. The Nile was their G-d. It is interesting that G-d turned the waters of Egyptian god (the Nile) to blood and killed the life within it. That is a teaching in itself! Therefore, Ezekiel warns them: “And the land of Egypt shall be desolate and in ruins, and they shall know that I am the L-rd!” Because he [Pharaoh] said, “The river is mine, and I have made it.” G-d warns that the land of Egypt will be empty and desolate for forty years, after which G-d will return the people to the land to reinhabit it, but it will no longer be an important nation to be reckoned with. Could this statement foretell the future of the United States? Only time will tell.
The haftarah ends with another prophecy where G-d tells Ezekiel that Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, will be the one to conquer Egypt and take its riches. This was a reward given him by G-d because he was accomplishing G-d’s purpose by defeating the nation of Tyre.
B’rit Chadashah: Romans 9:14-17
Now we will examine the relationship between Ex. 9:16 to Rom. 9:17. In this passage (Rom 8:26-9:29), Paul compares G-d’s promise to believers to his promise to Israel. We know that Israel as the bride of Yahshua is in fact defined as true believers. Therefore, this relationship should come as no surprise. Romans 8:29-30 literally translates from the Aramaic: “And from beforehand he knew them and marked them with the likeness of the image of his Son that he might be the firstborn of many brothers. And those which beforehand he marked, he called and those whom he called he justified and those whom he justified he glorified.”
The Aramaic does not address predestination, but with foreknowledge. The text compares G-d’s promise to believers with his promise to Israel (believers=Israel) in Rom. 9:1-4). Paul tells us that G-d selected/elected/chose Israel (Rom. 9:11). He quotes passages from the Tanakh to support his statement (Rom. 9:12= Gen. 25:23); Rom 9:13=Mal.1:2-3). Take note that G-d hated Esau for giving up his inheritance of his own free will (Gen. 25:24-34).
Paul then quotes the Torah: “I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” (Ex. 33:19=Rom 9:15). This highlights G-d’s sovereign right to choose Israel. Keep in mind that Israel, the one who will become Yahshua’s bride, is a repentant people who follow G-d’s commands out of love for Him.
Paul refers to our parashah (Rom. 9:17= Ex. 9:16), then presents the parable of the potter and the clay (Rom. 9:19-21). A parable common in Jewish literature (Isaiah 29;16; 45:9; Jer. 18:1-10). In this parable the potter is G-d and man is the clay. The point is that G-d is sovereign over man, just as the potter is over the clay. Paul uses this illustration to justify G-d choosing Israel as his elect while “hating” Esau and allowing Pharaoh to continue in his rebellion toward G-d. Paul’s point in Rom. 9 is not to promote the Greek philosophy of fatalism, or to indicate that men have no free will. Rather, his point is to defend G-d’s sovereign right to choose Israel. Furthermore, we can see in this week’s parashah that Pharaoh is not stripped of his free will, but it does express G-d’s sovereign right to create Pharaoh for His purpose. May we as an original “lump of clay” submit to G-d’s just and merciful hands as we are carefully and lovingly shaped into a perfect vessel suitable for the Potter’s use.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Tamah Davis-Hart