This portion,
on holiness, opens up deeper meanings of the Ten Commandments. For example, we
are instructed not only to remember the seventh-day Sabbath, but to observe all
Sabbaths (including Sabbatical years) in a respectful manner. Also, we are
instructed not only against worshipping idols, but to give them no credence
whatsoever.
Chapter 20
establishes penalties for violations of instructions from last week’s portion.
It also instructs us to make a distinction between the clean and the unclean: we
are to be holy.
First
Commandment [I am Yahweh your God]
(Lev 19:2)
“You shall be holy; for I, Yahweh your God, am holy.” We are in the midst of
several lessons detailing this subject. Our God is not like the gods of other
peoples, and we are not to be like other peoples. We are to separate ourselves
from the world’s ways, by refraining from not only what is expressly forbidden,
but from overindulgence in what is permitted. Our lives are to be dedicated to
the service of Yahweh – service according to His instruction (Torah). We were
created and redeemed to fulfill His design and purposes.
Second
Commandment [Have no other gods]
Lev 20:2-5)
The penalty is death by stoning for sacrificing children to false gods (abortion
for hedonistic convenience?). If the judges do not act against the offender,
then God says He will cut off both the offender and his family.
Third
Commandment [Don’t take Name in vain]
(Lev
19:11-12) We are to be honest in our speech, and especially never use God’s name
to affirm a falsehood. This forbids some very common errors among professing
Christians: presumptuous statements that God has shown us some answer or some
hidden actions of others, and attributing our intuition to the Holy Spirit –
believing what seems right.
Fourth
Commandment [Keep Sabbath holy]
(Lev19:3b)
“And you shall keep My Sabbaths; I am Yahweh your God.” We should all learn
the Scriptures that explain the Fourth Commandment, how to keep the Sabbath
holy.
1. The day. It is, specifically, the seventh day of the week,
from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset (Lev 23:32). We are to
“distinguish” (Eze 20:20) this day from other days. By marking out the
beginning and end of the day, we do not dishonor God by sliding past the
starting time, or by being lax about when we resume our usual activities. This
“distinguishing” is traditionally done by lighting candles before (Erev
Shabbat) and after Sabbath (Havdallah), because lighting fires is
specifically prohibited on the Sabbath (Ex 35:3). This day, with its
distinguishing acts, is an historic memorial of creation (Ex 20:11), and
a prophetic symbol of the world to come (Isa 66:23).
2. The negative. “Rest” means to put aside our normal work (Deu
5:14). We are not to even speak our own words (Isa 58:13-14). We are
not to travel (Ex 16:29), transport items (Jer 17:21-22), or buy
and sell (Neh 10:31, 13:15-18). Thus, it is not a day for performing
duties of one’s occupation (Ex 16:26), for sports or play, or for going
on vacation trips. ”Rest” does not mean catching up on sleep lost to over
busyness of other days: that is robbing God, and robbing oneself of spiritual
blessing.
3. The positive. It is a day to set aside for the worship of
our creator and redeemer. This does not mean going to the beach to enjoy God’s
creation. We are to have a public assembly for worship (Lev 23:3), and
God established an order for its conduct. We should visit the sick and
incarcerated to bring them spiritual uplift. We should provide for the immediate
needs of the poor and infirm: longer term needs should be taken care of on
another day.
We should
fulfill commandments that take precedence. One may travel “a Sabbath Day’s
journey” – to the local house of worship. One may perform duties of his
occupation if that is serving in the worship service (such as priestly duties),
caring for children, the aged, or the infirm, or serving in emergency
occupations such as fire, police, and military. Rest is not meant to stop
children from play – harshness is not the spirit of the day.
Fifth
Commandment [Honor parents]
(Lev 19:3a)
“Every one of you shall reverence his mother and his father”. As we
understand that each of the Ten Commandments is detailed by several other
instructions, this Fifth Commandment calls up the group of instructions on
respecting authority under God. Cursing father or mother is a capital offense (Lev
20:9). Servants are to be respectful of their masters (1 Pet 2:18).
We are not to speak evil of those whom God has appointed to make halachic
rulings – “rulers” (Exodus 22:28 & Acts 23:5). We are to be in subjection
to our government (Rom 13:1-8).
Sixth
Commandment [No murder]
(not addressed here)
Seventh
Commandment [No adultery]
(Lev
20:10-21) Adultery, homosexual acts, and bestiality are all capital offenses.
Eighth
Commandment [No stealing]
While this
may basically refer to kidnapping, it covers actions that diminish the life of
another.
(Lev 19:13)
We are to pay our debts in a timely manner. We should not sign for credit
charges when we haven’t the ability to promptly pay the debt. We may not delay
payment of wages to a hired worker.
(Lev
19:35-36) We are to be just in our dealings, using honest and fair measurements
and prices in trade.
Ninth
Commandment [No false witness]
While this
may primarily apply to testimony before the judges, it can cover any kind of
false testimony.
(Lev 19:14)
We must be respectful of others, even when they wouldn’t know the difference. We
are not free to curse a deaf person, feigning innocence because he can’t hear
us. We may not put an obstacle in the path of a blind person, feigning innocence
because he cannot see us. This, obviously, is loving our neighbor as ourselves.
(Lev
19:17-18) We are required to reprove our neighbor when we see him sin, but we
may not hate him, or slander him (this includes defaming true statements), or
take vengeance, or even bear a grudge. Going beyond the reproof makes us
sinners, except, against certain types of sin, we are required to take testimony
before judges.
(Matthew
18:15-17) “And if your brother sins, go and reprove him in private; if he
listens to you, you have won your brother. But if he does not listen to you,
take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses
every fact may be confirmed. And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the
(judges of the) church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church,
let him be to you as a Gentile (idolater) and a tax-gatherer.”
(Matthew
18:32-35) We are to forgive, as we are forgiven.
"Then
summoning him, his lord said to him, 'You wicked slave, I forgave you all that
debt because you entreated me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow
slave, even as I had mercy on you?' And his lord, moved with anger, handed him
over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. So shall My
heavenly Father also do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from
your heart."
Tenth
Commandment [No coveting]
This
commandment brings the others to a deeper level: not only the outward act, but
the inward thought; not only the physical, but also the spiritual. Murder and
the hatred behind it are both sin. Adultery and the lust behind it are both sin.
Stealing and the covetousness behind it are both sin. Lying and the dishonest
motivation behind iot are both sin.
However, this
should not be misconstrued to mean that the thought is equally as evil as the
action! We can repent and overcome hatred through God’s love, but murder
requires death penalty and God requires that it be unforgivable in the human
court. We can repent and overcome desires for things not ours through faith in
God’s provision, but stealing hurts others and God requires restitution – with
penalties added (sin offerings and additions to the restitution). Yeshua’s
discourse (Matthew 5) expounded prior Torah instruction: He was not giving new
meanings to the commandments.
Amos 9:
God gave His
instruction to Israel. Because they profaned Him, he vowed to destroy them, but
not completely eradicate them. God will save a remnant that will enjoy the
fulfillment of a restored earth. The harvests will be so bountiful that the
grapes will be ready for making into juice before anyone has planted.
Ezekiel 20:
When we arrive
there, “Then you will know that I am Yahweh when I have dealt with you for My
name's sake, not according to your evil ways or according to your corrupt
deeds.”
Isaiah 4:
(V.2-3) “In
that day the Branch of Yahweh will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of
the earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel. And it
will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be
called holy-- everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem.”
Psalm 84:
(V.1-2, 11-12)
How lovely are Thy dwelling places, O Yahweh of hosts! My soul longed and even
yearned for the courts of Yahweh; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the
living God. . . . Yahweh gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold
from those who walk uprightly. O Yahweh of hosts, how blessed is the man who
trusts in Thee!
Matthew 18:
(V.12-14)
“What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone
astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for
the one that is straying? And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to
you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone
astray. Thus it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of
these little ones perish.”
Sabbath
Verses (Lesson Y2-40)
Lev 23:32
"It is to be a Sabbath of complete rest to you, . . . from evening
until evening you shall keep your Sabbath."
Eze 20:20 'And
sanctify (separate from other days) My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign
between Me and you, that you may know that I am Yahweh your God.'
Ex 35:3
"You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath
day."
Ex 20:11
"For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all
that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore Yahweh blessed the
Sabbath day and made it holy.
Isa 66:23
"And from Sabbath to Sabbath, all mankind will come to bow down before
Me," says Yahweh.
Deu 5:13-14 'Six
days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of
Yahweh your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your
daughter or your male servant or your female servant or your ox or your donkey
or any of your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you, so that your male
servant and your female servant may rest as well as you.
Isa 58:13-14 "If
because of the Sabbath, you turn your foot from doing your own pleasure on My
holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of Yahweh honorable, and
shall honor it, desisting from your own ways, from seeking your own pleasure,
and speaking your own word, then you will take delight in Yahweh, and I will
make you ride on the heights of the earth; and I will feed you with the heritage
of Jacob your father, for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken."
Ex 16:29
"See, Yahweh has given you the Sabbath; therefore He gives you bread for
two days on the sixth day. Remain every man in his place; let no man go out of
his place on the seventh day."
Jer 17:21-22
'Thus says Yahweh, "Take heed for yourselves, and do not carry any load
on the Sabbath day or bring anything in through the gates of Jerusalem. And you
shall not bring a load out of your houses on the Sabbath day nor do any work,
but keep the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your forefathers.’
Neh 10:31
As for the peoples of the land who bring wares or any grain on the
Sabbath day to sell, we will not buy from them on the Sabbath or a holy day; and
we will forego the crops the seventh year and the exaction of every debt.
13:15-18 In those days I saw in Judah some who were treading wine
presses on the Sabbath, and bringing in sacks of grain and loading them on
donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs, and all kinds of loads, and they brought
them into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I admonished them on the day they
sold food. Also men of Tyre were living there who imported fish and all kinds of
merchandise, and sold them to the sons of Judah on the Sabbath, even in
Jerusalem. Then I reprimanded the nobles of Judah and said to them, "What is
this evil thing you are doing, by profaning the Sabbath day? Did not your
fathers do the same so that our God brought on us, and on this city, all this
trouble? Yet you are adding to the wrath on Israel by profaning the Sabbath."
Ex 16:26 "Six
days you shall gather it, but on the seventh day, the Sabbath, there will be
none."
Readings:
"Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,
Who chose us from among all peoples by giving us Your Torah.
Blessed are You, Yahweh, giver of the Torah."
Leviticus 19:1 – 20:27
Reader 1*
Amen. 1 Then Yahweh
spoke to Moses, saying: 2 "Speak to all the congregation of the sons
of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy, for I Yahweh your God am holy.
3 'Every one of you shall reverence his mother and his father, and
you shall keep My sabbaths; I am Yahweh your God. 4 'Do not turn to
idols or make for yourselves molten gods; I am Yahweh your God. 5
'Now when you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to Yahweh, you shall offer it
so that you may be accepted. 6 'It shall be eaten the same day you
offer it, and the next day; but what remains until the third day shall be burned
with fire. 7 'So if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an
offense; it will not be accepted. 8 'Everyone who eats it will bear
his iniquity, for he has profaned the holy thing of Yahweh; and that person
shall be cut off from his people.
Reader 2*
Amen. 9 'Now when you
reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your
field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10 'Nor
shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your
vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am Yahweh
your God. 11 'You shall not steal, nor deal falsely, nor lie to one
another. 12 'You shall not swear falsely by My name, so as to profane
the name of your God; I am Yahweh. 13 'You shall not oppress your
neighbor, nor rob him. The wages of a hired man are not to remain with you all
night until morning. 14 'You shall not curse a deaf man, nor place a
stumbling block before the blind, but you shall revere your God; I am Yahweh.
15 'You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial
to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly.
16 'You shall not go about as a slanderer among your people, and you
are not to act against the life of your neighbor; I am Yahweh. 17
'You shall not hate your fellow countryman in your heart; you may surely reprove
your neighbor, but shall not incur sin because of him. 18 'You shall
not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you
shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am Yahweh.
Reader 3* Amen. 19 'You are to keep
My statutes. You shall not breed together two kinds of your cattle; you shall
not sow your field with two kinds of seed, nor wear a garment upon you of two
kinds of material mixed together. 20 'Now if a man lies carnally with
a woman who is a slave acquired for another man, but who has in no way been
redeemed nor given her freedom, there shall be punishment; they shall not,
however, be put to death, because she was not free. 21 'He shall
bring his guilt offering to Yahweh to the doorway of the tent of meeting, a ram
for a guilt offering. 22 'The priest shall also make atonement for
him with the ram of the guilt offering before Yahweh for his sin which he has
committed, and the sin which he has committed will be forgiven him. 23
'When you enter the land and plant all kinds of trees for food, then you shall
count their fruit as forbidden. Three years it shall be forbidden to you; it
shall not be eaten. 24 'But in the fourth year all its fruit shall be
holy, an offering of praise to Yahweh. 25 'In the fifth year you are
to eat of its fruit, that its yield may increase for you; I am Yahweh your God.
Reader 4* Amen. 26 'You shall not
eat anything with the blood, nor practice divination or soothsaying. 27
'You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads nor harm the edges of
your beard. 28 'You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead
nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am Yahweh. 29 'Do not
profane your daughter by making her a harlot, so that the land will not fall to
harlotry and the land become full of lewdness. 30 'You shall keep My
sabbaths and revere My sanctuary; I am Yahweh. 31 'Do not turn to
mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out to be defiled by them. I am Yahweh
your God. 32 'You shall rise up before the grayheaded and honor the
aged, and you shall revere your God; I am Yahweh. 33 'When a stranger
resides with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. 34 'The
stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you
shall love him as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt; I am
Yahweh your God. 35 'You shall do no wrong in judgment, in
measurement of weight, or capacity. 36 'You shall have just balances,
just weights, a just ephah, and a just hin; I am Yahweh your God, who brought
you out from the land of Egypt. 37 'You shall thus observe all My
statutes and all My ordinances and do them; I am Yahweh.'"
Reader 5* Amen. 20:1
Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "You shall also say to the sons
of Israel: 'Any man from the sons of Israel or from the aliens sojourning in
Israel who gives any of his offspring to Molech, shall surely be put to death;
the people of the land shall stone him with stones. 3 'I will also
set My face against that man and will cut him off from among his people, because
he has given some of his offspring to Molech, so as to defile My sanctuary and
to profane My holy name. 4 'If the people of the land, however,
should ever disregard that man when he gives any of his offspring to Molech, so
as not to put him to death, 5 then I Myself will set My face against
that man and against his family, and I will cut off from among their people both
him and all those who play the harlot after him, by playing the harlot after
Molech. 6 'As for the person who turns to mediums and to spiritists,
to play the harlot after them, I will also set My face against that person and
will cut him off from among his people. 7 'You shall consecrate
yourselves therefore and be holy, for I am Yahweh your God. 8 'You
shall keep My statutes and practice them; I am Yahweh who sanctifies you. 9
'If there is anyone who curses his father or his mother, he shall surely be put
to death; he has cursed his father or his mother, his bloodguiltiness is upon
him.
Reader 6* Amen. 10
'If there is a man who commits adultery with another man's wife, one who commits
adultery with his friend's wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely
be put to death. 11 'If there is a man who lies with his father's
wife, he has uncovered his father's nakedness; both of them shall surely be put
to death, their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 12 'If there is a man
who lies with his daughter-in-law, both of them shall surely be put to death;
they have committed incest, their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 13
'If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of
them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their
bloodguiltiness is upon them. 14 'If there is a man who marries a
woman and her mother, it is immorality; both he and they shall be burned with
fire, so that there will be no immorality in your midst. 15 'If there
is a man who lies with an animal, he shall surely be put to death; you shall
also kill the animal. 16 'If there is a woman who approaches any
animal to mate with it, you shall kill the woman and the animal; they shall
surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltiness is upon them. 17 'If
there is a man who takes his sister, his father's daughter or his mother's
daughter, so that he sees her nakedness and she sees his nakedness, it is a
disgrace; and they shall be cut off in the sight of the sons of their people. He
has uncovered his sister's nakedness; he bears his guilt.
Reader 7* Amen. 18
'If there is a man who lies with a menstruous woman and uncovers her nakedness,
he has laid bare her flow, and she has exposed the flow of her blood; thus both
of them shall be cut off from among their people. 19 'You shall also
not uncover the nakedness of your mother's sister or of your father's sister,
for such a one has made naked his blood relative; they will bear their guilt.
20 'If there is a man who lies with his uncle's wife he has uncovered
his uncle's nakedness; they will bear their sin. They will die childless.
21 'If there is a man who takes his brother's wife, it is abhorrent; he
has uncovered his brother's nakedness. They will be childless. 22
'You are therefore to keep all My statutes and all My ordinances and do them, so
that the land to which I am bringing you to live will not spew you out. 23
'Moreover, you shall not follow the customs of the nation which I will drive out
before you, for they did all these things, and therefore I have abhorred them.
24 'Hence I have said to you, "You are to possess their land, and I
Myself will give it to you to possess it, a land flowing with milk and honey." I
am Yahweh your God, who has separated you from the peoples. 25 'You
are therefore to make a distinction between the clean animal and the unclean,
and between the unclean bird and the clean; and you shall not make yourselves
detestable by animal or by bird or by anything that creeps on the ground, which
I have separated for you as unclean. 26 'Thus you are to be holy to
Me, for I Yahweh am holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.
27 'Now a man or a woman who is a medium or a spiritist shall surely
be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones, their bloodguiltiness is upon
them.'"
"Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,
Who in giving us Yeshua, the Living Torah, has planted
everlasting life in our midst.
Blessed are You, Yahweh, giver of the Torah."
______________________
"Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,
Who selected good prophets, delighting in their words which
were spoken truthfully.
Blessed are You, Yahweh, Who chose the Torah, Your servant
Moses, Your people Israel,
and the prophets of truth and righteousness."
Amos 9:7-15
Reader 8*
Amen. 7 "Are you not
as the sons of Ethiopia to Me, O sons of Israel?" declares Yahweh. "Have I not
brought up Israel from the land of Egypt, and the Philistines from Caphtor and
the Arameans from Kir? 8 Behold, the eyes of Lord Yahweh are on the
sinful kingdom, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth; nevertheless,
I will not totally destroy the house of Jacob," Declares Yahweh. 9
"For behold, I am commanding, and I will shake the house of Israel among all
nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, but not a kernel will fall to the
ground. 10 All the sinners of My people will die by the sword, those
who say, 'The calamity will not overtake or confront us.' 11 In that
day I will raise up the fallen booth of David, and wall up its breaches; I will
also raise up its ruins and rebuild it as in the days of old; 12 that
they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations who are called by My
name," declares Yahweh who does this. 13 "Behold, days are coming,"
declares Yahweh, "when the plowman will overtake the reaper and the treader of
grapes him who sows seed; when the mountains will drip sweet wine and all the
hills will be dissolved. 14 Also I will restore the captivity of My
people Israel, and they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them; they
will also plant vineyards and drink their wine, and make gardens and eat their
fruit. 15 I will also plant them on their land, and they will not
again be rooted out from their land which I have given them," Says Yahweh your
God.
Ezekiel 20:1-49
Reader 9*
Amen. 1 Now in the
seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth of the month, certain of the
elders of Israel came to inquire of Yahweh, and sat before me. 2 And
the word of Yahweh came to me saying, 3 "Son of man, speak to the
elders of Israel and say to them, 'Thus says Lord Yahweh, "Do you come to
inquire of Me? As I live," declares Lord Yahweh, "I will not be inquired of by
you."' 4 Will you judge them, will you judge them, son of man? Make
them know the abominations of their fathers; 5 and say to them, 'Thus
says Lord Yahweh, "On the day when I chose Israel and swore to the descendants
of the house of Jacob and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt, when I
swore to them, saying, I am Yahweh your God, 6 on that day I swore to
them, to bring them out from the land of Egypt into a land that I had selected
for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands. 7
I said to them, 'Cast away, each of you, the detestable things of his eyes, and
do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am Yahweh your God.' 8
But they rebelled against Me and were not willing to listen to Me; they did not
cast away the detestable things of their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of
Egypt. Then I resolved to pour out My wrath on them, to accomplish My anger
against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.
Reader 10*
Amen. 9 But I
acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of
the nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by
bringing them out of the land of Egypt. 10 So I took them out of the
land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. 11 I gave them My
statutes and informed them of My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them,
he will live. 12 Also I gave them My Sabbaths to be a sign between Me
and them, that they might know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies them. 13
But the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not walk
in My statutes and they rejected My ordinances, by which, if a man observes
them, he will live; and My Sabbaths they greatly profaned. Then I resolved to
pour out My wrath on them in the wilderness, to annihilate them. 14
But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight
of the nations, before whose sight I had brought them out. 15 Also I
swore to them in the wilderness that I would not bring them into the land which
I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands,
16 because they rejected My ordinances, and as for My statutes, they
did not walk in them; they even profaned My Sabbaths, for their heart
continually went after their idols. 17 Yet My eye spared them rather
than destroying them, and I did not cause their annihilation in the wilderness.
Reader 11*
Amen. 18 I said
to their children in the wilderness, 'Do not walk in the statutes of your
fathers or keep their ordinances or defile yourselves with their idols. 19
I am Yahweh your God; walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and observe
them. 20 Sanctify My Sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between Me
and you, that you may know that I am Yahweh your God.' 21 But the
children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, nor were they
careful to observe My ordinances, by which, if a man observes them, he will
live; they profaned My Sabbaths. So I resolved to pour out My wrath on them, to
accomplish My anger against them in the wilderness. 22 But I withdrew
My hand and acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the
sight of the nations in whose sight I had brought them out. 23 Also I
swore to them in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the nations and
disperse them among the lands, 24 because they had not observed My
ordinances, but had rejected My statutes and had profaned My Sabbaths, and their
eyes were on the idols of their fathers. 25 I also gave them statutes
that were not good and ordinances by which they could not live; 26
and I pronounced them unclean because of their gifts, in that they caused all
their firstborn to pass through the fire so that I might make them desolate, in
order that they might know that I am Yahweh."'
Reader 12*
Amen. 27
Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them, 'Thus says
Lord Yahweh, "Yet in this your fathers have blasphemed Me by acting
treacherously against Me. 28 When I had brought them into the land
which I swore to give to them, then they saw every high hill and every leafy
tree, and they offered there their sacrifices and there they presented the
provocation of their offering. There also they made their soothing aroma and
there they poured out their drink offerings. 29 Then I said to them,
'What is the high place to which you go?' So its name is called Bamah to this
day."' 30 "Therefore, say to the house of Israel, 'Thus says Lord
Yahweh, "Will you defile yourselves after the manner of your fathers and play
the harlot after their detestable things? 31 When you offer your
gifts, when you cause your sons to pass through the fire, you are defiling
yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be inquired of by you, O
house of Israel? As I live," declares Lord Yahweh, "I will not be inquired of by
you. 32 What comes into your mind will not come about, when you say:
'We will be like the nations, like the tribes of the lands, serving wood and
stone.' 33 As I live," declares Lord Yahweh, "surely with a mighty
hand and with an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be king
over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you
from the lands where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an
outstretched arm and with wrath poured out; 35 and I will bring you
into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with
you face to face. 36 As I entered into judgment with your fathers in
the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you,"
declares Lord Yahweh. 37 "I will make you pass under the rod, and I
will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 and I will purge
from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out
of the land where they sojourn, but they will not enter the land of Israel. Thus
you will know that I am Yahweh.
Reader 13*
Amen. 39 As for
you, O house of Israel," thus says Lord Yahweh, "Go, serve everyone his idols;
but later you will surely listen to Me, and My holy name you will profane no
longer with your gifts and with your idols. 40 For on My holy
mountain, on the high mountain of Israel," declares Lord Yahweh, "there the
whole house of Israel, all of them, will serve Me in the land; there I will
accept them and there I will seek your contributions and the choicest of your
gifts, with all your holy things. 41 As a soothing aroma I will
accept you when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands
where you are scattered; and I will prove Myself holy among you in the sight of
the nations. 42 And you will know that I am Yahweh, when I bring you
into the land of Israel, into the land which I swore to give to your
forefathers. 43 There you will remember your ways and all your deeds
with which you have defiled yourselves; and you will loathe yourselves in your
own sight for all the evil things that you have done. 44 Then you
will know that I am Yahweh when I have dealt with you for My name's sake, not
according to your evil ways or according to your corrupt deeds, O house of
Israel," declares Lord Yahweh.'" 45 Now the word of Yahweh came to
me, saying, 46 "Son of man, set your face toward Teman, and speak out
against the south and prophesy against the forest land of the Negev, 47
and say to the forest of the Negev, 'Hear the word of Yahweh: thus says Lord
Yahweh, "Behold, I am about to kindle a fire in you, and it will consume every
green tree in you, as well as every dry tree; the blazing flame will not be
quenched and the whole surface from south to north will be burned by it. 48
All flesh will see that I, Yahweh, have kindled it; it shall not be quenched."'"
49 Then I said, "Ah Lord Yahweh! They are saying of me, 'Is he not
just speaking parables?'"
Isaiah 4:2-6
Reader 14*
Amen. 2 In that
day the Branch of Yahweh will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the
earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of Israel. 3
It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem will be
called holy-- everyone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem. 4 When
the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and purged the
bloodshed of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment and the spirit
of burning, 5 then Yahweh will create over the whole area of Mount
Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a
flaming fire by night; for over all the glory will be a canopy. 6
There will be a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and refuge and
protection from the storm and the rain.
Psalm 84
(To be sung.) For the choir
director; on the Gittith. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.
1 How lovely are Your dwelling
places, O Yahweh of hosts! 2 My soul longed and even yearned for the
courts of Yahweh; my heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. 3
The bird also has found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she
may lay her young, even Your altars, O Yahweh of hosts, my King and my God.
4 How blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising
You. Selah. 5 How blessed is the man whose strength is in You, in
whose heart are the highways to Zion! 6 Passing through the valley of
Baca they make it a spring; the early rain also covers it with blessings. 7
They go from strength to strength, every one of them appears before God in Zion.
8 O Yahweh God of hosts, hear my prayer; Give ear, O God of Jacob!
Selah. 9 Behold our shield, O God, and look upon the face of Your
anointed. 10 For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand
outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell
in the tents of wickedness. 11 For Yahweh God is a sun and shield;
Yahweh gives grace and glory; no good thing does He withhold from those who walk
uprightly. 12 O Yahweh of hosts, How blessed is the man who trusts in
You!
Matthew 18:1-35
Reader 15*
Amen. 1 At that
time the disciples came to Yeshua and said, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom
of heaven?" 2 And He called a child to Himself and set him before
them, 3 and said, "Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and
become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. 4
Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven. 5 And whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me;
6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to
stumble, it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone hung around his
neck, and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. 7 Woe to the world
because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks
come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes! 8
If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from
you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands
or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. 9 If your eye causes
you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to
enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be cast into the fiery hell.
10 See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to
you that their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in
heaven. 11 For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.
Reader 16*
Amen. 12 What do
you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does
he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that
is straying? 13 If it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you,
he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray.
14 So it is not the will of your Father who is in heaven that one of
these little ones perish. 15 If your brother sins, go and show him
his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16
But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the
mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed.. 17 If
he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen
even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18
Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven;
and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven. 19
Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they
may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. 20
For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their
midst."
Reader 17*
Amen. 21 Then
Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and
I forgive him? Up to seven times?" 22 Yeshua said to him, "I do not
say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. 23 For
this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle
accounts with his slaves. 24 When he had begun to settle them, one
who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25 But since he
did not have the means to repay, his lord commanded him to be sold, along with
his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment to be made. 26
So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, 'Have
patience with me and I will repay you everything.' 27 And the lord of
that slave felt compassion and released him and forgave him the debt. 28
But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a
hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, 'Pay back
what you owe.' 29 So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to
plead with him, saying, 'Have patience with me and I will repay you.' 30
But he was unwilling and went and threw him in prison until he should pay back
what was owed. 31 So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened,
they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their lord all that had
happened. 32 Then summoning him, his lord said to him, 'You wicked
slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33
Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I
had mercy on you?' 34 And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over
to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. 35 My
heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive
his brother from your heart."
"Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,
Rock of Ages, righteous throughout all generations.
You are the faithful God, promising and then performing,
speaking and then fulfilling,
for all Your words are true and righteous.
Faithful are You, Yahweh our God, and faithful are Your words,
for no word of Yours shall remain unfulfilled;
You are a faithful and merciful God and King.
Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, Who are faithful in
fulfilling all Your words."