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Av 29, 5761 / Aug 18, 2001
Av 27, 5764 / Aug 14, 2004
Av 27, 5767 / Aug 11, 2007
Av 27, 5770 / Aug
7, 2010
Av 27, 5773 / Aug
3, 2013
Av 30, 5776 / Sept 3, 2016
Av 30, 5779 / Aug 30, 2019
Av 30, 5782 / Aug 27, 2022
V'Av'raham zaqen / Now Av'raham was old
SCRIPTURES should be read first
Avraham is now old – 140 years, Sarah died three years ago,
and Yitzchak is forty. Avraham – the Father of Many Nations
– has no grandchildren by his son of promise.
Sixty
years earlier, Eliezer had been Avraham’s most trusted
servant (v.15:2). Now Eliezer is the elder of Avraham’s
household (v.2). His job now is to find a suitable wife for
Yitzchak, a worthy successor to Sarah to be the matriarch of
the promised great family. Eliezer is sent to the birthplace
of Avraham and Sarah, to seek a wife from their family.
Avraham did not expect to live much longer. Through Yitzchak
the land was to be populated. Avraham did not want Yitzchak
to leave the Promised Land to find a wife, nor to marry a
morally degenerate Canaanite. Therefore, in case Avraham did
not live until Eliezer returned, He required Eliezer to
swear, by the sign of the Covenant – his circumcision, that
his instructions would be fulfilled.
(V.10)
Avraham sent with Eliezer a will, to show prospective
in-laws that all of his wealth went to Yitzchak. Eliezer was
not looking for a wealthy girl with servants, but one who
would be drawing her own water. Rivqa fulfilled his
character test, agreeing not only to give him water, but
freely offering water for his camels as well. (V.20) Rivqa
would run to fulfill a mitzvah, displaying a character like
Avraham’s. Eliezer gave Rivqa two bracelets, weighing ten
shekels: this is seen as representing the two stone tablets
with the Ten Commandments.
(Eph.
5:15-17) “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as
unwise men, but as wise, making the most of your time,
because these are days of wasteful toil. So then do not be
foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”
Av'raham was 140 years old. He was uncertain of living much
longer (though he lived another 35 years). He had learned to
trust and walk with God
Having the promise of
becoming the “father of many nations” through Yitzchak
(Isaac), he (prophetically portraying our Heavenly Father)
would now seek a wife for his only son (portraying Yeshua).
Being old, he did not go himself, but sent his servant
Eliezer (representing Moses) to find a willing bride (the
church in the wilderness). (Eph. 5:32) “This mystery is
great; but I am speaking with reference to Messiah and the
church.”
(Eph.
5:18-19) “ . . . be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking
to one another in “Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs”,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord”.
“Psalms” refers to Book 1 (Psalms 1-41) and Book 2
(Psalms 42-72); “Hymns” refers to Book 3 (Psalms 73-89);
“Spiritual Songs” refers to Book 4 (Psalms 90-106) and Book
5 (Psalms 107-150). We are instructed to be filled with the
Holy Spirit, and with God’s inspired Psalms (all 5 books) –
singing them in our hearts, and even speaking to others in
their words. This is repeated in Colossians 3:16, which says
that we should teach and admonish in their words. It was not
until the fourth century AD that songs other than the
inspired Psalms were used in worship services (except in the
most liberal/unorthodox groups). Being “filled with the
Spirit” would seem to relate to using God’s inspired
words/songs.
(Eph.
5:20) “Always giving thanks for all things – in the name
of our Lord Messiah Yeshua to God, even the Father”.
(Genesis 24:26-27) “Then the man bowed low and worshiped
Yahweh. And he said, ‘Blessed be Yahweh, the God of my
master Av'raham, who has not forsaken His lovingkindness and
His truth toward my master; as for me, Yahweh has guided me
in the way to the house of my master's brothers.’ ” We
see how Eliezer gave thanks – “Blessed be Yahweh . . .”
We
bless God for His provision, rather than blessing what He
provides. Saying a blessing over something (such as food or
drink) is pronouncing God’s Name over it: “Blessed are You,
‘ - - ’ our God, King of the Universe, who (created fruit,
gave us Torah, etc.).”
Therefore the rabbis teach that after saying a blessing, we
should immediately use that thing, so that the pronouncing
of His Name is not in vain. "You shall not use the Name of
Yahweh your God in vain" (Exodus 20:7).
We are
instructed, by both Biblical command (Matthew 6:9) and
Biblical example, to pray only to our Heavenly Father.
All
prayer is to be for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven. We
are instructed to pray "in the Name of Yeshua" (John 14
:13), that is, as His ambassador or representative. We
should ask our Father for those things that Yeshua would
want in order to enable our service for Him, not things to
"consume on our lusts" (James 4:3). Such prayer changes our
perspectives and attitudes about life.
Praying in the name of Yeshua excludes praying to Yeshua
(Jesus), since we thereby represent Yeshua praying (to the
Father).
We are
instructed (Luke 11:13) to ask Our Father for the Ruach
HaKodesh (Spirit of the Holy One). Never does the Bible
indicate prayer to the Holy Spirit.
What
kinds of things should we “Bless Yahweh” for? [Next lesson:
Blessing.]
(Eph.
5:21) “And be subject to one another in the fear of
Messiah.” We are not to “rule” over one another; we are
to work together, under Yeshua, realizing how “undone” we
are before Him, our speech being unclean at best. This is a
reason to speak (and sing) “His Words,” and that with care.
Paul goes on to explain that this is true in the church, and
in the home (marriage) that typifies Messiah and the
church.
(Eph.
5:27 & 31-32) “. . . that He might present to Himself the
church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any
such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless.”
“For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother,
and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one
flesh: this mystery is great; but I am speaking with
reference to Messiah and the church.”
_________
Notes:
Rebecca is referred to as a nara (girl), a defective
spelling of Narah (maiden), indicating that she was
not fully developed (under 13), until Deuteronomy 22:19.
Av'raham 1948-2123 100 at birth of Yitzchak
Yitzchak 2048-2228 Yitzchzk 40,
Rebecca 14 at marriage
[or 40 and 3]
Yitzchak 60, Rebecca
34 at birth of Yaacov
[or 60 and 23]
Yaacov 2108-2255 Yaacov 84 when he married Leah and
Rachel
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."
Reader 1*
Amen 1 Now Avraham was
old, advanced in age; and Yahweh had blessed Avraham in
every way. 2 Avraham said to his servant, the
oldest of his household, who had charge of all that he
owned, "Please place your hand under my thigh, 3
and I will make you swear by Yahweh, the God of heaven and
the God of earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son
from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live,
4 but you will go to my country and to my
relatives, and take a wife for my son Isaac." 5
The servant said to him, "Suppose the woman is not willing
to follow me to this land; should I take your son back to
the land from where you came?" 6 Then Avraham
said to him, "Beware that you do not take my son back there!
7 "Yahweh, the God of heaven, who took me from my
father's house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke
to me and who swore to me, saying, 'To your descendants I
will give this land,' He will send His angel before you, and
you will take a wife for my son from there. 8
"But if the woman is not willing to follow you, then you
will be free from this my oath; only do not take my son back
there."
Reader 2*
Amen 9 So the servant
placed his hand under the thigh of Avraham his master, and
swore to him concerning this matter. 10 Then the
servant took ten camels from the camels of his master, and
set out with a variety of good things of his master's in his
hand; and he arose and went to Mesopotamia, to the city of
Nahor. 11 He made the camels kneel down outside
the city by the well of water at evening time, the time when
women go out to draw water. 12 He said, "O
Yahweh, the God of my master Avraham, please grant me
success today, and show lovingkindness to my master Avraham.
13 "Behold, I am standing by the spring, and the
daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw
water; 14 now may it be that the girl to whom I
say, 'Please let down your jar so that I may drink,' and who
answers, 'Drink, and I will water your camels also '-- may
she be the one whom You have appointed for Your servant
Isaac; and by this I will know that You have shown
lovingkindness to my master."
Reader 3*
Amen 15 Before he had
finished speaking, behold, Rebekah who was born to Bethuel
the son of Milcah, the wife of Avraham's brother Nahor, came
out with her jar on her shoulder. 16 The girl was
very beautiful, a virgin, and no man had had relations with
her; and she went down to the spring and filled her jar and
came up. 17 Then the servant ran to meet her, and
said, "Please let me drink a little water from your jar."
18 She said, "Drink, my lord"; and she quickly
lowered her jar to her hand, and gave him a drink. 19
Now when she had finished giving him a drink, she said, "I
will draw also for your camels until they have finished
drinking." 20 So she quickly emptied her jar into
the trough, and ran back to the well to draw, and she drew
for all his camels.
Reader 4*
Amen 21 Meanwhile, the
man was gazing at her in silence, to know whether Yahweh had
made his journey successful or not. 22 When the
camels had finished drinking, the man took a gold ring
weighing a half-shekel and two bracelets for her wrists
weighing ten shekels in gold, 23 and said, "Whose
daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room for us to
lodge in your father's house?" 24 She said to
him, "I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah, whom
she bore to Nahor." 25 Again she said to him, "We
have plenty of both straw and feed, and room to lodge in."
Reader 5*
Amen 26 Then the man
bowed low and worshiped Yahweh. 27 He said,
"Blessed be Yahweh, the God of my master Avraham, who has
not forsaken His lovingkindness and His truth toward my
master; as for me, Yahweh has guided me in the way to the
house of my master's brothers." 28 Then the girl
ran and told her mother's household about these things.
29 Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban; and
Laban ran outside to the man at the spring. 30
When he saw the ring and the bracelets on his sister's
wrists, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister,
saying, "This is what the man said to me," he went to the
man; and behold, he was standing by the camels at the
spring. 31 And he said, "Come in, blessed of
Yahweh! Why do you stand outside since I have prepared the
house, and a place for the camels?"
Reader 6*
Amen 32 So the man
entered the house. Then Laban unloaded the camels, and he
gave straw and feed to the camels, and water to wash his
feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 33
But when food was set before him to eat, he said, "I
will not eat until I have told my business." And he said,
"Speak on." 34 So he said, "I am Avraham's
servant. 35 "Yahweh has greatly blessed my
master, so that he has become rich; and He has given him
flocks and herds, and silver and gold, and servants and
maids, and camels and donkeys. 36 "Now Sarah my
master's wife bore a son to my master in her old age, and he
has given him all that he has. 37 "My master made
me swear, saying, 'You shall not take a wife for my son from
the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live;
38 but you shall go to my father's house and to my
relatives, and take a wife for my son.'
Reader 7*
Amen 39 "I said to my
master, 'Suppose the woman does not follow me.' 40
"He said to me, 'Yahweh, before whom I have walked, will
send His angel with you to make your journey successful, and
you will take a wife for my son from my relatives and from
my father's house; 41 then you will be free from
my oath, when you come to my relatives; and if they do not
give her to you, you will be free from my oath.'
"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."
Isaiah 51:1-2
Reader 8*
Amen 1 "Listen to me, you who
pursue righteousness, Who seek Yahweh: Look to the rock from
which you were hewn And to the quarry from which you were
dug. 2 "Look to Avraham your father And to Sarah
who gave birth to you in pain; When he was but one I called
him, Then I blessed him and multiplied him."
Psalm 19
(To be sung.) For the choir
director. A Psalm of David.
1
The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their
expanse is declaring the work of His hands. 2 Day
to day pours forth speech, and night to night reveals
knowledge. 3 There is no speech, nor are there
words; their voice is not heard. 4 Their line has
gone out through all the earth, and their utterances to the
end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun,
5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his
chamber; it rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6 Its rising is from one end of the heavens, and its
circuit to the other end of them; and there is nothing
hidden from its heat. 7 The law of Yahweh is
perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of Yahweh is
sure, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of
Yahweh are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of
Yahweh is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9 The fear
of Yahweh is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of
Yahweh are true; they are righteous altogether. 10
They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11 Moreover, by them Your servant is warned; in
keeping them there is great reward. 12 Who can
discern his errors? Acquit me of hidden faults. 13
Also keep back Your servant from presumptuous sins; let them
not rule over me; then I will be blameless, and I shall be
acquitted of great transgression. 14 Let the
words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be
acceptable in Your sight, O Yahweh, my rock and my Redeemer.
Ephesians 5:15-33
Reader 9*
Amen 15 Therefore be
careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16
making the most of your time, because the days are evil.
17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what
the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk
with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the
Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with
your heart to the Lord; 20 always giving thanks
for all things in the name of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah to
God, even the Father;
Reader 10*
Amen 21 and be subject
to one another in the fear of Messiah. 22 Wives,
be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23
For the husband is the head of the wife, as Messiah also is
the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the
body. 24 But as the church is subject to Messiah,
so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in
everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as
Messiah also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,
26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed
her by the washing of water with the word, 27
that He might present to Himself the church in all her
glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that
she would be holy and blameless.
Reader 11*
Amen 28 So husbands
ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He
who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no
one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes
it, just as Messiah also does the church, 30
because we are members of His body. 31 “For this
reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be
joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”
32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with
reference to Messiah and the church. 33
Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his
own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that
she respects her husband.
"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." |