What Is Torah
I had planned to drop this in as a Wiki link for another lesson, but in reading and rereading in the preparation phase, I realized it really is a standalone piece. So, that’s how I am posting it. But I will label it as a supplement to the new “MANY vs FEW” lesson that is coming very fast. You will likely see links to this added to several of my older posts and in a lot of coming future posts.
What Messiah taught was Tanak, primarily the Torah. What the writers of the other epistles taught was commentary on Torah and the Messiah’s first coming, with a little prophecy about the return.
Tanak is an acronym, like NASA. It stands for Torah, Nevi’im (prophets), and Ketuvim (writings and history) — T a N a K, Tanak.
All of Scripture after Torah falls into three categories: Prophecy, history, and poetry/verse (praise and commentary). The history is pretty straight forward: this happened, then this happened. Poetry and verse includes all the writings that are not Torah or history, including the books of the Apocrypha. Then we all have a basic understanding of the prophets who told what is to come, warned for false belief or blasphemous worship and such, and offered deeper insight into the Torah — commentary. The writings contain good sayings in line with Torah (Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon), but a lot of the writings are also commentary on Torah (a large portion of the Psalms, in fact). The Apostolic Writings fall into these same three categories: History (first coming and early believers, through Acts), with commentary (writings — the epistles), and prophecy (Revelation and several passages in the Gospels and a few epistles).
What is there only one of?
Torah
It is fair to compare the gospels to the Torah in that the Torah is the gospel in advance. However, more accurately, the gospels fall into the category of history, with commentary and prophecy.
If you have been taught that Torah is the man-made rules and ordinances of Orthodox Judaism,
you’ve been lied to,
either deliberately or through ignorance. Let me set this straight for you right here and now:
TORAH is:
Genesis through Deuteronomy. Only.
TORAH is NOT:
Man-made or man-given
TORAH IS:
Given by YHVH and His Spirit to Moshe and the end of Deuteronomy was given to Yeho’shua (Joshua).
TORAH is NOT:
Orthodox Judaism
Screeeeeech!
“It’s not Orthodox Judaism? What are you saying?”
The Talmud
Orthodox Judaism is based on the Talmud, the oral torah, a gathering of rules that build walls around the Torah to protect the Torah but does it in such a way as to obliterate the Torah in the process. In Matthew 15 (Mark 7) when the debate is about eating bread with “common” hands (unwashed, not unclean, that’s a mistranslation), the debate is about Torah! There is no instruction given by the Almighty that deals with washing of the hands before eating. It is Talmudic (oral tradition) to use a double-handled silver pitcher filled with blessed water from the Temple or synagogue that you: pour first over the back of your left hand, then over the back of your right hand, then over the palm of your left hand, then over the palm of your right hand — repeat until the water is gone. This is a ceremonial handwashing that follows the oral traditions of the Pharisees and has absolutely no basis in Torah!
⬆️Ceremonial hand washing cup
Yes, there is a single instruction in Torah about hand washing. It applies exclusively to the priestly practices within the Temple to a priest about to enter the holy place and includes washing of the hands, then the feet, then the entire body (mikvah), and changing robes. It does not apply to individuals sitting down to eat — no matter what they are sitting down to eat. Washing your hands properly is just good hygiene (and with Covid-19 and other viruses, probably a pretty good idea even between meals).
These oral traditions show up repeatedly throughout the gospels and the epistles. When they interfere or deviate true service to the Master, they are criticized as unnecessary and pointless. (Sha’ul uses them as valid protocol in the assembly several times, especially in the letters to Corinth.) It is exactly these rules to which Kefa is referring in Acts 10 when he uses both unclean (defined in Torah) and common (expanded in Talmud) to defend his eating habits.
Here is a disciple, one of the inner three at that, who a long time later — whether you subscribe to the unsubstantiated “few months” or the considerably more verifiable “up to 5-years” — is still using Talmudic — oral tradition — to defend his eating habits. Why? Torah was done away with, right? Why is He still following it? And again, why is he still stuck in religion’s oral traditions?
Even later — definitely YEARS later — Sha’ul has to once again publicly berate him for falling back into those engrained traditions when Kefa withdraws from the Gentile believers after a bunch of Yehudim believers arrive in Antioch from Jerusalem <Gal 2:11–14>.
Whew! What a run-on. You sure you’re a teacher?
Throughout several of Sha’ul’s letters he addresses the issues of Judaizing, as the translators chose to refer to it. The MANY understand this as anything and everything “Jew/Jewish/Torah”. The FEW have studied this out to understand that it is NOT anything and everything Jewish.
What Judaizing Is:
- Following the oral traditions (Talmud) of the Pharisees (following the man-made religion)
- Physical circumcision for all converts, regardless of ethnic or cultural heritage
- Sacrifices at the Temple (which now no longer exists, but this is another lesson), and strangely, Gentiles, even fully converted ones, could not enter the Temple to perform sacrifices and the Pharisees demanding they accept Judaism knew that! Hypocrites!
- No marriage to anyone outside of the Judaic faith (there is some Torah support for this)
- Meticulous nit-picking rules that regulate everyday functions: bathing, eating (not the food, but the process), clothing to wear (expanding beyond what Torah says), following non-Scriptural fasts (there are four not in Scripture, but are acceptable to Him if practiced from the spiritual heart, not in rote fashion)
- Rote following of Torah without any spiritual understanding — provided following Torah does not conflict with Talmud, then Talmud is the authority (go back to the first item listed)
- Accepting as authority the Pharisees (Rabbis) as representatives of Elohim on earth, or at least that they have the authority to change Biblical Law or understanding to fit doctrine and dogma.
What Judaizing is NOT:
- Following Torah, the Bible, believing all of the Word of Elohim
- Celebrating the Feasts given by YHVH in Torah that Messiah and the disciples and Sha’ul all celebrated
- Keeping the Shabbat (the seventh day, Friday evening through Saturday evening) — This does not necessarily mean a “church service.” The early church met house-to-house and person-to-person. Spend the day with the Father doing His work and studying His Word.
- Following the Word of Messiah, even though it lines up with Torah
- True worship of Elohim in the manner He provides in Scripture
What Christianity is:
Uh oh… He best be careful…
- Following the oral traditions of the church (following the man-made religion) — Christmas, Easter, All-Saints, et. al.
- Mandatory physical acceptance of church regulations (sacraments, water baptism by a “priest/pastor/bishop” whatever — regardless of ethnic or cultural heritage)
- Sacrifices at the idol (flowers at the feet of the statues in the church, venerating the symbol on the wall (┼) sometimes even to the point of worship of it, elevation of leaders to vaunted, unchallenged levels)
- No marriage to anyone outside of the Christian faith (there is a little support for this in Scripture)
- Meticulous nit-picking rules that regulate everyday functions: bathing, eating (including the food and the process), clothing to wear, following non-Scriptural fasts (evangelicals have a list of them, Catholics, too)
- Rote following of church doctrine and dogma without any spiritual understanding
- Accepting as authority the (church leaders) as representatives of Elohim on earth or at least the authority to dictate His will on earth
_________________________________________
The similarities to Judaizing go on and on, but I’ll end here because it will only lead MANY to anger.
I say often (using the borrowed phrase): The Truth will set you free, but it will make you angry first.
One last thing. Churchianity refers to Torah as “the Law.” They capitalize it, usually, and lump all Law (Biblical sounding) together (Torah and Talmud) without understanding that only Torah comes from the Father. SO, with the CAVEAT that the Talmud (oral Torah) is NOT the Word of Elohim, therefore NOT the Law, as so named by the church, if one denies the authority of “the Law”- which is Torah alone — what are they?
You may have seen in your printed (or digital) Bible this word: lawless or lawlessness. The “anitChrist” is “the Lawless One.” Anomia is the Greek word for lawless (no law, technically). Given that the church refers to Torah as “the Law,” this therefore establishes that following any other law outside of Torah is not following “the Law”, which is Torah. So, when the church declares a new “law” (see Canon 16 and Canon 29 for examples of this) and believers follow these new “laws” are they still following “THE Law” of Elohim or instead the tradition (man-made laws, takanot, ma’asim) of religion?
If you are not a keeper of “the Law” what are you? (Hint: jawbreaker).
#TheMANYvsTheFEW #SoundBytes #Ephesians #BookofRomans
