Beth Elohim Messianic Synagogue
Parashah#42-3: Mattot (Tribes) and (Masa’ei) (Stages) B’midbar (Numbers) 30:2-36:13
Haftarot: Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 1:1-2:3; 2;4-28-4:1-2
B’rit Chadashah readings: Mattityahu (Matthew) 5:33-37; Ya’akov (James) 4:1-12
In regular years Parashah 42 is read together with 43
Today’s teaching will focus on Parashah #42: Additional teachings on this parashah and Parashah #43 are located on the website at https://rabdavis.org under the parashah link.
The topic of oaths and vows that starts our lesson today connects the description of votive and freewill offerings in chapter 28-9. A votive offering is an outward expression or follow-through of an inward vow made in gratitude, reverence, or petition. A sworn statement made in G-d’s Name defines the seriousness of the pledge (Ex. 20:7; Deut. 5:11). Vows and oaths are different with a vow being conditional. It binds the individual making the vow after G-d fulfills the requested blessing. One may ask, what about marriage? The penalty of breaking the marriage contract or vow releases the other partner through the divorce process. Biblical vows are based on Exodus 21 being a person’s obligation to nourish, care for, and love their spouse.
The basic value of honesty and “keeping your word” is a biblical concept brought to our attention in this parashah. However, the vows of women in various life stages seems to take the focus of the narrative. Remember that the laws of G-d are universal and there was a time when nuclear families were the norm. Exceptions were made for widows, but the optimal family situation included a man, a woman, and children. The man was the spiritual leader of the home, and he was the one who provided for the needs of his family. Why are women the main focus in this narrative concerning vows? In a family situation where every family had what they needed and possibly more, a woman living in a family with material abundance at her disposal might become overzealous in her love of G-d and His laws and vow to obligate more than the family could actually “afford,” upsetting the household economy. In such a case, the husband could nullify her vow, and she would be forgiven. If, however, he agreed with it or held his peace, the vow stood as made by the woman.
Specific examples that facilitate our understanding of a vow include the narrative where Ya’akov vowed to erect a shrine at Bethel if G-d would save him from Esau’s wrath (Gen. 28:20,22). A second example is when Jephthah vowed to sacrifice whatever came out of his tent door upon his return if G-d would give him victory over the Ammonites (Judg. 11;30-31). A third example is when Hannah vowed to dedicate her son to the service of the sanctuary if she conceived (1 Sam. 1:11).
By definition a vow is a personal promise made by an individual, while an oath is a promise made before an authority, often involving legal or social obligations. Oaths are a higher level of accountability and in the context of G-d and his Torah, violating a oath can and has resulted in the physical and/or spiritual death of the offending individual or nation.
As one example, King Zedekiah swore an oath before G-d of allegiance to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon as a requirement for his appointment to the throne of Judah. However, Zedekiah later rebelled against Babylon, seeking an alliance with Egypt, violating his oath. This act of unfaithfulness and breaking his oath led to the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, Zedekiah’s capture, and the execution of his sons right in front of him (Jer. 34; Ezek. 17; 2 Chron. 36:13).
Numbers 30:2 reads “If a man vows a vow to the L-rd or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.” Yahshua expounded on the seriousness of making an oath in Matthew 5:33-7: “ Again, you have heard it said to those of old, ‘ You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the L-rd what you have sworn.’ But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of G-d, or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.”
The remainder of chapter 30 explains the laws regarding vows and oaths made by a young woman as a minor living at home under her faither’s authority, a married woman, a divorcee, and a widow. Essentially, a woman is obligated to fulfill any vow or oath unless in the case of a minor living with her father he negates her vows, or in the case of a married woman her husband negates her vows on the day he learns of them. If the husband tries to make them null and void after the day he heard of them, he must let them stand and he will bear the consequent guilt (Num. 30:16-16).
Numbers 30 is referenced in the Dead Sea Scroll texts such as the Damascus Covenant (CD), and the Temple Scroll(11QT), outlines conditions in which a man can annul his wife’s vow or oath, establishing a difference in their authority that is consistent with G-d’s Torah. The consistency of the biblical narrative establishing the laws concerning vows, oaths, and the authority of a father or husband to annul or honor those made by a daughter or wife described in the Dead Sea Scroll texts, the Septuagint, the Interlinear Bible, and the Hebrew-English Bible is irrefutable and serves to testify to the unchanging truth of G-d’s Torah.
During Yahshua’s time on Earth, the rabbis developed a system that defeated the purpose of oaths. They taught that oaths might or might not be binding depending on how one swore. For instance of one swore by Jerusalem it was not binding, but if an oath was made toward Jerusalem, it was. This is just one example of how certain teachers manipulated G-d’s Word. The rabbinic teaching perverted the purpose of oaths. Instead of calling on G-d to assure honesty, oaths were phrased to avoid G-d’s punishment when speaking dishonestly. So, since oaths no longer had any significance, Yahshua removed the artificial distinction between vows that invoked G-d’s Name which were binding from those that did not invoke His Name and were not binding. Yahshua reigned in the entire concept of vows and oaths by teaching that whatever one swears by refers to G-d 9Matt. 5:34-6. All oaths call G-d to witness, for he is the Creator of the universe and everything in it, even our hair!
In the case of children, under Israelite law, parents could overrule their children’s vows. It is not difficult to understand the harmful and serious ramifications of taking this hierarchy away from parents and allowing children to make vows, oaths, and other decisions based solely on their emotions and peer pressure. Children are now being indoctrinated overtly and covertly through social media, other forms of misinformation dissemination streamed on electronic devices; pressure from the department of education and liberal socialists on parents and schools to indoctrinate children on lifestyles that are clearly defined as abominations to G-d, and pressure from influencers by organizations such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) through TikTok as only one major venue. A more up and coming danger is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The CCP exerts significant influence on the development and use of AI in China, prioritizing its use for national strategic objectives, including economic growth, social control, and military modernization. Although the United States leads the way in AI research and development, we can already read the “writing on the wall.”
One of the most worrisome influences of the CCP on AI is the social control arena. The CCP uses AI for surveillance, content moderation, and social credit systems, impacting the public. Many parents are losing control of their children’s education and the importance of a G-dly value system, minimized, and criticized by a growing number of liberal socialists in our government, even to the point of calling believers in Yahshua/G-d, radical fundamentalists, and biblical teaching as “indoctrination.” In direct opposition to the secular humanistic and socialistic pressure to renounce G-d, G-d’s Torah says, “You shall teach them [G-d’s commands] diligently to your children” (Deut. 6:7). “Train children in the way they should go; when they grow old, they won’t depart from it” (Prov. 22:60). If we do not teach our children to love and follow G-d and His commands, they may be taken in by the secular teaching that G-d does not exist and that there are no “rules” that everyone should follow.
Other scriptures concerning teaching children the ways of G-d include Psalm 127:3 and Eph. 6:4. Unfortunately, many parents who were brought up in the 1960s learned a social paradigm of “free love” and acceptance/tolerance of everyone no matter their lifestyle. This lax social paradigm made it easy for the Adversary to permeate the United States and the world with a return of the pagan god/goddess worship of Ishtar, Moloch and Ba’al. Indeed, when G-d and His Torah were “thrown out” of society, the vacancy was ripe for reinvasion and worship of gods that have not been exterminated… yet. Briefly, Ishtar was known as the Queen of Heaven and was the goddess of sex, war, and justice. She was believed to have the ability to change a person’s gender. Moloch was a Canaanite deity associated in biblical sources with the practice of child sacrifice. Child sacrifice through abortion for convenience is available in most states.
Ba’al is associated with the demons and devils; false gods; idols. Interestingly, the sign of Ba’al is the bull; a bronze sculpture of a bull sits right in the business district of Manhattan in New York City. Just think of the symbology related to prophecy as it applies to the United States! A thorough review of these pagan deities is a subject for a separate teaching but mentioning them as “alive and well” in our country is definitely indicated as it relates to what children are beginning to be exposed to and the resulting danger that belief in and participation in a lifestyle or activities consistent with them will incur.
Now that minds and hearts of many children are being filled with pagan teachings, we can know without a doubt that many young people will be taken in by the Antimessiah who is the great imitator of Light. Artificial Intelligence will be used in malicious ways, often promoted as altruistic in order to win advocates for its use. In reality it is not difficult to discern that for all of the good AI is doing in various disciplines such as medicine, there is a very real and upcoming danger that Satan will use this technology to advance his agenda. We are just now beginning to see how the seeds of the future Antimessiah are being sown in the minds of America’s youth, in churches through the false teaching of what it means to be Spirit filled and promoting soulish anti-Torah behaviors. Our government has placed the promotion of cryptocurrency on Fast-track, and the once biblically value-based society where a man’s word was his honor is no longer the rule. Vows and oaths mean nothing to a secular society.
Children are and will be making decisions based on the negative input that is bombarding them on a daily basis. It is no wonder that G-d placed such emphasis on placing the authority for keeping vows and oaths on parents who once had life experience and a G-dly value system.
May G-d protect and strengthen parents who love and follow G-d in these end times. May they teach their children G-d’s commands and may G-d strengthen and protect the children as they grow up in such difficult times that are prophesied to become even more difficult through the Tribulation.
Haftarah: Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) 1:1-2:3
In this haftarah, we are assured as was Jeremiah, that our G-d is with us and will rescue us IF we are but obedient with heartfelt intent to G-d’s Torah (1:6-8). We are reminded that “Israel is set aside for Adonai, the first fruits of His harvest; all that devour him will incur guilt; evil will befall them.” (2:3). However, we are also reminded of how far Israel had fallen away from G-d and that He pronounces His judgments against Israelites and anyone else who abandons Him and chooses his own way. Repentance is still possible while it is day (Heb. 3:13), but there will be a time when it will be too late (Matt. 25:1) and those who continued to rebel against G-d and his Torah will be sent to the outer darkness where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth (Matt. 22:13; Luke 13:28).
“ The worse men are, the less they are bound by oaths; the better they are, the less there is need for them” (Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary).
B’rit Chadashah: Mattityahu (Matthew) 5:33-37
This section reiterates the seriousness of making a vow, a subject addressed at the beginning of our parashah. We must follow through with our choice to either do something we promise to do or not do that which we vowed not to do. Some of the rabbinic commentators say that vows can be used to prohibit something that is permitted, but not to make permitted, that which is prohibited. For the believer, we know that any vows we make are made before G-d. Yahshua took the issue of vows to another level, teaching us that it is better not to make a vow at all, rather than making a vow that we may not keep (Ecc. 5:1-6). After all, only G-d knows what will happen to us from one second to the next. It is actually arrogant for us to make any vow. As Yahshua taught in Matthew 5:37 “Just let your ‘Yes’ be a simple ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ a simple ‘No; anything more than this has its origin in evil.”
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Tamah Davis-Hart
Some of the information concerning the CCP’s influence on AI can be found at henryjacksonsociety.org “China’s Use of AI and its negative Impact on the World”