Beth Elohim Messianic Synagogue
Parashah #41: Pinchas (Phinehas) B’midbar (Numbers) 25:10-30:1
Haftarah: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 18:46-19:21
B’rit Chadashah: Mattityahu (Matthew) 26:1-30
This parashah picks up from the last paragraph of the last where we learn that Pinchas who was the grandson of Aharon the Cohen got up from the middle of the crowd when a man from Israel came by with a woman of Midian and ran a spear through both individuals. Twenty-four thousand Israelites died in a plague before G-d caused it to end as a result of Pinchas ’action.
We might ask how G-d could sanction the killing of two people with an eternal covenant of peace, promising that that the office of Cohen would remain in that line forever. We find the answer in chapter 25:14-19. The name of the man was the son of Salu who was the leader of one of the clans of the tribe of Shim’on. This man, Zimri, knew better than to bring in a woman from outside the camp, from a people whose women intentionally seduced the men of Israel. Interestingly the name Zimri translates as “praiseworthy.” This was a man was considered a prince within his tribe. Zimri openly defied Moshe before the people who were standing at the entrance to the Tabernacle. We must remember that we can fall from grace (2 Pet. 3:17) and that to whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48). Like Joseph, we are not to fall prey to the lust of the flesh or the eyes. Like Joseph, we are to run from temptation and not look back. Zimri had been given a position of great responsibility and visibility. We are to put the animal aspect of human nature aside and think beyond it before reacting to life’s trials and temptations. Recall that Moshe failed to do this when he struck the rock twice instead of simply speaking to it which would have glorified G-d even more than striking it out of frustration. We can certainly sympathize with Moshe’s frustration but we must learn to follow G-d’s instructions and deal with our emotions in a different way and time.
People are watching us every day; those who know us and those who simply see us acting in a way different than the majority in various situations. We need to grow up in G-d’s Torah, walk the King’s Highway, and not allow peers, friends, family, or anyone else sway us from what we know to be true according to G-d’s Torah. This is what Pinchas did in a dramatic show of bravery and trust in G-d.
Kozbi, the Midianite woman was the daughter of Tzur who was the head of the seduced Zimri. Kozbi translates as “deceiver or deception.” She was a Midianite princess. It may be no coincidence that the spear was thrust through her belly as this is the center of life for a woman. Her name may have been given by her Midianite parents as a result of her being born a girl instead of a boy, but the essence of her name fit the narrative perfectly. This “coincidence” is another example of G-d’s omniscience and omnipotence.
As for Pinchas, he had the heart of a Cohen and man of G-d. G-d rewarded him for his zealousness for G-d stated twice by Adonai in verses 10 and 13. Today we should also become zealous for G-d. This does not mean running around passing out fliers or tracks or anything else. Pinchas lived his testimony for G-d through his actions to the point of going against the complacent majority of the Israelites present during the incident involving Zimri and Kozbi and literally standing up for and defending G-d’s instructions.
Haftarah: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 18:46-19:21
G-d mentions Ba’al in this haftarah referring back to those Israelites who “hasn’t bent down before Ba’al and every mouth that has not kissed him.” He was speaking to Eliyahu was sore afraid that he was the only believer left because the majority of Israelites had abandoned G-d’s covenant, broken down His altars and killed the prophets. G-d assured him that there were some who had not abandoned G-d. He instructed Eliyahu to “Go back by way of the Dammesek Desert. When you get there, anoint Haza’el to be king over Aram. Also anoint Yehu the son of Nimshi to be king over Israel, and anoint Elisha the son of Shafat of Avel-M’cholah to be prophet after you. Yehu will kill whoever escapes the sword of Haza’el and Elisha will kill whoever escapes the sword of Yehu” (1Kings15-18). We see a multi –layer execution of G-d’s justice in these verses. G-d starts at the top and moves systematically down to Elisha. Aram included the areas of Syria and Mesopotamia including where Damascus and Aleppo now stand.
We see a different kind of zealousness for G-d in the character of Eliyahu. Eliyahu feared for his life and that is a perfect human reaction to what he witnessed. After all, his own people had abandoned G-d and killed the prophets. Yet, G-d desires that we learn to trust in Him and develop an unshakable faith that will enable us to have G-d’s Shalom no matter the situation. In this narrative we see an example of G-d’s tender mercy and encouragement, much like that of a mother bird as she encouraged her nestlings to stand on the edge of the nest and jump. She knows they are ready for the test, yet they don’t know it until they take the leap and fly. So it was with Eliyahu and is with us. We need to develop the faith and trust in G-d to the point when He says “jump” we obey knowing He is there to catch us if we falter. Just as Eliyahu had to go through his “mountain-top” encounter, we do too, often more than once until we have shed our “down” and developed our “feathers.” Like the mother bird, G-d will not ask us to do anything without preparing us for the task.
B’rit Chadashah: Mattityahu (Matthew) 26:1-30
Although we did not cover Chapter 28 in our teaching today, this chapter covers G-d’s instructions for offerings and the food required for each. Verses 16-31 specifically cover Pesach addressed in Matthew and the Feast of First Fruits.
Matthew 26: 1-30 Yahshua opens this chapter by speaking to his talmidim (disciples) about Pesach (Passover, Ex. 12:1-13:16) and His coming execution two days hence. The central event of the original Passover was the slaughtering by each Israelite family of a lamb “without blemish or spot,” whereupon YHVH spared the firstborn sons of Israel but slew the firstborn of the Egyptians. When Yochanan the Immerser (John the Baptist) speaks of Yahshua as the “lamb of YHVH (Yn. 1:29)” he is invoking the imagery of the Temple and Pesach. In the B’rit Chadashah (“New Testament”) this event called the “Last Supper,” and is so rendered in most English translations is understood by most scholars as having been a Passover meal or Seder. There is a controversy that this “Last Supper” was not Pesach, but I support arguments that He was crucified on Pesach. He said he would in Mark 14:13. We must remember that the day begins at sunset and Yahshua ate matzah during this meal as we do today, before the feast of Unleavened Bread. Furthermore, in Hebrews 11:28 we read “ By trusting, he (Moshe) obeyed the requirements for the Pesach, including the smearing of the blood, so that the Destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.” However, without getting into the controversy surrounding when and what this last meal was, this event (vv. 17-30) is rich with Pesach themes that are deepened and given new levels of meaning for the Believer. Time will not permit me to teach on the symbolic themes of Pesach at this time but there are scriptures in the Old Testament and the B’rit Chadashah that reflect Old Testament scriptures alluding to Yahshua as the perfect sin offering and the Messiah. I invite you to look them up for your continued learning.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Tamah Davis-Hart