Light at a Time of Darkness.

The Book of Ruth, in the Tanakh (the Old, or First, Testament), is a love story with a difference! It is certainly not a "Mills & Boon" romantic novel. There is the love shown by Ruth, to her mother-in-law, Naomi; and the love that blossomed between Ruth and Boaz. There is also, on the part of all three, an obvious love of Almighty God, characterised by their trust in Him.

We may better appreciate the significance of this story by placing it in its proper context. The stories described in the Book take place at the same time as the events of the Book of Judges – a dark and difficult era for the people of Israel. After the death of Joshua, the tribes of Israel each operated independently of one another. Lacking unity, the tribes were weak and vulnerable to attack from neighboring countries and plundering tribes. At the same time, without consistently strong leadership, the Israelites frequently turned away from God and worshiped the pagan gods of surrounding nations. The Book of Judges can be described as a painful cycle: the people become complacent and turn away from God; God sends foreign enemies to subjugate the people; the people cry out and God sends a savior to redeem them; finally, saved from their enemies, the people become complacent and the cycle is repeated once again.
Is there a message, here, for the people of Israel today, as the war with Hamas rages on?
After selflessly following her mother-in-law to Judea, Ruth is rewarded with a life of poverty and no marriage prospects. However, Ruth finds herself at the farm of a man named Boaz who, unknown to her, is a near kinsman of Naomi, and he is kind to her. (One can almost hear the wedding bells!) But once again, Ruth is disappointed. The harvest season ends and nothing happens. Boaz fails to act.
In a bold move, Naomi instructs Ruth to sneak into the threshing floor where Boaz is asleep. And yet, instead of a romantic scene, Boaz essentially tells Ruth: “There is another redeemer-kinsman, more closely related than I. Wait, and I shall speak with him tomorrow.” This other relative is given the opportunity to marry Ruth, but he turns it down – yet another moment of rejection and disappointment! It is only then, at the very end of the book, that we finally reach the moment we’ve been waiting for. Boaz takes her to be his wife. Ruth was a Moabitess; Boaz was descended from Rahab, the prostitute from Jericho.  Yet from this union, the Messiah is born. How amazing is the grace of Almighty God!
The lesson of the Book of Ruth is particularly important for both Jews, and Gentile and Jewish disciples of Yeshua (Jesus). In many ways, the modern State of Israel is re-experiencing the era of the Book of Judges. Modern Israel is divided into “tribes” – religious and secular; Orthodox Jews who seek to scrupulously live by the Torah and Messianic Jews who have accepted Yeshua as HaMashiach; Jews of Middle Eastern origin and Jews from Europe; Jews who believe the State of Israel is the harbinger of redemption and Jews who reject its religious significance altogether. At the same time, dangerous enemies like Iran and its terror proxies such as HamaS (remember HamaN? see Esther 3:6 ff), threaten Israel from without, while "Palestinian" terrorists murder as many Jews as they can within Israel. From this perspective, Israel is living through an era of great pain and national disappointment.
But the Book of Ruth teaches us that it is precisely during times like this that the seeds of redemption are sown. Perhaps, at this very moment of civil strife and external threats, the story of the final Redeemer, Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus, the Messiah), is being set in motion – right under our noses!
Ruth reminds us that the people of Israel, and disciples of Jesus, must never give up hope, for God will not forsake His people - whether His Chosen people, or those who are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. Take strength, for the redemption will come!

For such a time as this!

A couple of days after my previous post, the Jewish people celebrated the Feast of Purim. The historical background to this festival is found in the Book of Esther - a book that doesn't take too many minutes to read. Indeed, at Purim, in synagogues around the world, the entire scroll of Esther, which is called the Megillah, is read twice - once on the night of Purim and once on the following day of Purim (the Jewish day starts in the evening, at sunset.). During the reading, the listeners participate by cheering whenever the hero Mordechai, guardian of Esther, is mentioned, and by booing whenever Haman - the influential anti-Semite who had called for the annihilation of all the Jews of Persia - is mentioned.

Esther is Purim’s heroine. The Scroll of Esther is one of the five Biblical Scrolls, which are highlighted on Jewish holidays. The others are: Song of Songs (Passover), Scroll of Ruth (Pentecost), Lamentations (the 9th day of Av – destruction of the Jewish Temple), and Ecclesiastes (Feast of Tabernacles).

The story is beautiful in its simplicity - and there is a fair amount of irony, and intrigue, as well! It begins with Queen Vashti refusing to obey an order from her husband, the Persian King Ahasuerus (Xerxes). She is summarily dismissed, and replaced by a young Hebrew girl named Hadassah (= Myrtle) - whose name was changed to Esther (= hide, conceal) in order to hide her Jewish background.

Meanwhile Mordechai, Esther's older cousin, and guardian, had become a government official and foils a plot to assassinate the king. However, the other main character in the story, Haman - an ambitious, self-serving, descendant of Agag the Amalekite (I Sam.15) - was appointed second-in-command in the Persian Empire. He had no time for Mordechai, who refused to bow to him (3:2-4), and decides to arrange for his death, and that of all of the Jews in Persia (modern Iran - history can, indeed, repeat itself!). Haman then persuades the king to issue an edict condemning the Jewish people - without actually identifying them as such (3:8-9) and the edict was issued in the citadel of Susa (the capital city). Mordechai learns of Haman's plot, and sends a message to Esther that she should go to the king and plead on behalf of her people. 

Esther is, by now, familiar with court protocol that states that she may be killed for entering the king's inner chamber without being summoned, and responds to her cousin appropriately. His response is the true centre of the book: "... if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” (4:14). However, Esther enters the king's presence, after three days of fasting and prayer in which she is joined by all of the Jews in the capital city.

The queen invites her husband to a banquet, which the only other invited guest is Haman - much to his delight! The king asks Esther what she wants from him, and she replies that she wants both of them to come to another banquet on the following day, when she will make her request. However, that night the king is suffering from insomnia and, as one does, flips through some records in the royal archives. He reads of the assassination plot that was foiled by Mordechai, and is astonished that such an act had never been rewarded! Later, he asks Haman what should be done for the man the king wished to honour. Haman, being Haman, assumes that the king is referring to him, and makes some lavish suggestions. Imagine his horror when the king instructs him to do all of that to Mordechai, whom he hates! 

At the second banquet, the king again asks Esther what she wants, and she tells him that someone has plotted to kill her, and her people - and she names Haman as the culprit! The king rises, and walks out to the garden and, in his absence, Haman begs Esther for his life. However, as the king returned, Haman was falling on the couch on which Esther reclined (as was the custom). The king was livid, interpreting this as an assault upon the queen.

Haman is taken away, and one of the eunuchs who attended the king informs his master that Haman had prepared a high gallows for Mordechai! The king immediately decrees that Haman should be the one hung thereon.

The final act in this true story sees Mordechai appointed as the new Prime Minister and, with the king's approval, he arranges for a new edict that would permit the Jews to defend themselves. "And in every province and in every city, wherever the king’s command and his edict came, there was gladness and joy among the Jews, a feast and a holiday. And many from the peoples of the country declared themselves Jews, for the fear of the Jews had fallen upon them." (8:17).

One of the interesting things about the Book of Esther is that there is no direct reference to God! However, that is an important lesson in itself. Events may occur in our lives that seem random, but the book of Esther reveals that God is in control, no matter how powerful our enemy or how bleak the situation. Whatever our situation or circumstance, we can rest in the assurance that our times are truly in God’s hands. (Psalm 31: 15).

Because of Esther's courage, the nation was spared. Seeing her God-given opportunity, she grasped it, with no thought for her own safety. She made a difference. You and I may not be the means by which a nation is spared - but if we watch for opportunities, we will see God work in our lives. Could it be that He has chosen you "... for such a time as this?"!

Plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose !

It was Solomon, the last king of a united nation of Israel, who wrote the book in the Bible that is known as Ecclesiastes (not to be confused with the Apocryphal book, Ecclesiasticus!), who gave us the well-known adage "... there is nothing new under the sun." (Eccl 1:9).

I was reminded of those words during my personal devotions this morning, as I read from Psalm 83. There were three specific passages that spoke to me, the first of which was "Come, let us wipe them out as a nation; let the name of Israel be remembered no more!" (v.4).

Scholars are unsure as to the exact background to this psalm, but these words, in context, make clear that Israel is under threat from those who are referred to as the enemies of God (v.2). They are working together with just one aim in view - the total destruction of the Children of Israel. I had to look twice to ensure that an article from this morning's newspaper hadn't found its way into my Bible!

There was certainly nothing new in those words. The Chosen People of Almighty God have been the object of hatred and opposition since their years of exile in Egypt. The Egyptian Pharaoh sought to destroy them - but the Lord preserved a baby who was given the name of Moses and who, in God's timing, led the nation out of Egypt. Later, a senior civil servant in the court of the Persian (modern Iran) king, Ahasuerus (Xerxes I), a man named Haman sought to destroy the Jewish people - but the Lord had Mordecai, and his niece, Esther, ready, and it was Haman who perished on the very gallows that he had had especially constructed for Mordecai (read the full story in the Book of Esther). Fast forward many more centuries, noting the Roman attempt to disperse and destroy the national identity of the Jews, and the many more local persecutions particularly in western Europe (including England!), and we come to the 20th century and the rise to power of Adolf Hitler. His attempt at the genocide of the Jewish nation also failed - even although he was responsible for the deaths of some six million. Indeed, every would-be destroyer of the Jews has been, in one way or another, defeated and humiliated.

Today, the same aim is expressed by a number of groups - either explicitly, or implicitly. One of the best-known Islamic terrorist organisations is Hamas (the Islamic Resistance Movement, and one of the wings of the Muslim Brotherhood). In its Charter, it states that "... our struggle against the Jews is extremely wide-ranging and grave, so much so that it will need all the loyal efforts we can wield, to be followed by further steps and reinforced by successive battalions from the multifarious Arab and Islamic world, until the enemies (i.e. the Jews) are defeated and Allah's victory prevails." Other groups - Hezbollah; the Palestinian Authority; Iran; etc - have the same aim: the destruction of the Jewish people.

The second verse that particularly caught my attention, reads: "Let us take possession for ourselves

of the pastures of God." (v.12). This time, the context shows that this is the aim of the enemies of God, from historical events. However, one does not need to be a Biblical scholar to be aware that this is also part of the aim of the various Islamic groups who make quite clear that they wish to take over the whole of the Holy Land. "From the river to the sea, "Palestine" shall be free" we have all heard chanted at various pro-"Palestinian", anti-Israel gatherings. By the way, there is no such land as "Palestine" - but that is too big a subject for a digression here!

Asaph, the inspired composer of this psalm (we often refer to "the Psalms of David", but the psalmist-king actually penned slightly less than half of those in the Psalter!) then prays about this situation. It is that prayer that constitutes the third point that "jumped out" at me. It reads:

"O my God, make them like whirling dust,

like chaff before the wind. 

As fire consumes the forest,

as the flame sets the mountains ablaze, 

so do Thou pursue them with thy tempest

and terrify them with Thy hurricane! 

Fill their faces with shame,

that they may seek Thy name, O YHWH. 

Let them be put to shame and dismayed for ever;

let them perish in disgrace. 

Let them know that Thou alone,

whose Name is YHWH,

art the Most High over all the earth." (vs.13-18).

There are two things of note, I believe. The first is that, in spite of the request for the destruction of Israel's enemies, Asaph also seeks their salvation! "Fill their faces with shame, that they may seek Thy name, O YHWH." (emphasis added). He is asking that these enemies would be ashamed, and dismayed, and turn to the Living God. Wow! Secondly, all of this is for the honour and glory of YHWH, the God of Israel. He isi the Sovereign God of the universe - and every nation on earth, whether or not any of them accept His sovereignty. As we look at our contemporary world - and not just the situation in the Middle east - we could be tempted to despair. That, however, is one thing we should never do!

Remember the words of the second of the Psalms:

"Why do the nations conspire,

and the peoples plot in vain? 

The kings of the earth set themselves,

and the rulers take counsel together,

against YHWH and His anointed, saying, 

"Let us burst their bonds asunder,

and cast their cords from us." 

He Who sits in the heavens laughs;

YHWH has them in derision. 

Then He will speak to them in His wrath,

and terrify them in His fury, saying, 

"I have set my king

on Zion, my holy hill." (vs.1-6).

He is still in control. He is still working all things in accordance with His plan and purposes. He is still the God Who inhabits eternity, and Who is worthy of all of the honour, and praise, and worship, and adoration, that we can bring to Him - and of much more besides! 

One day - I believe much sooner than many expect - He will "call time". There will be the rapture of the true church, followed by the time of tribulation, and then the Lord Jesus, the only-begotten Son, will return with His bride (the church). Then "... at the name of Jesus every knee [shall] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil 2:10-11; emphasis added).

Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus.

Beginnings: Part 2

Continuing this look at Genesis 1, from a Hebrew perspective, we may note that the Word of God, spoken in faith, is powerful and effective to create light in the darkness and order out of confusion and emptiness. In the beginning, everything in God’s creation worked perfectly and everything made perfect sense.  He had spoken all into existence in faith, hope, and love.

After six days of actively creating, God instituted the Sabbath – a time to cease from labour, and to simply rest and be refreshed.

“By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.  Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made.”  (Genesis 2:2–3).

This holy day of rest is so important that God included it in the Aseret HaDevarim (Ten Words, or Ten Commandments), chiselling these words onto the stone tablets:

“Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.  Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of YHWH your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. For in six days YHWH made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore YHWH blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.”  (Exodus 20:8–11).

Father God also dealt with the problem of loneliness.

“And YHWH Elohim said: ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet (suitable) for him.’”  (Genesis 2:18).

When Adonai placed man in Gan Eden (the Garden of Eden), He declared that it is not good for a man to be alone. He saw man’s need for a helper, counterpart, and companion and, therefore, put Adam into a deep sleep, and took from him a rib to create a suitable partner for him.

“And YHWH Elohim caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the place with flesh instead thereof.  And the rib, which YHWH Elohim had taken from the man, He made into a woman, and brought her unto the man.”  (Genesis 2:21–22).

In Hebrew, a man is called ish and a woman, isha, the feminine form of ish.  God uses this term when He woos Israel and promises a time when Israel will regard Him with fond affection, rather than stand at arm's length from Him, viewing Him as a stern authority figure.

“‘It will come about in that day,’ declares YHWH, ‘That you will call Me Ishi (my Man) and will no longer call Me Ba'ali (my Master).’”  (Hosea 2:16).

God wants Israel to serve Him out of love – love like that of a woman for her husband.  Likewise, His love for Israel is that of a devoted, tender husband. I wonder if Paul was thinking of these words when he was writing to the Ephesian believers:

“Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, be subject to your husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, His body, and is Himself its Saviour. As the church is subject to Christ, so let wives also be subject in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present the church to Himself in splendour, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. Even so husbands should love their wives as their own bodies.” (5:21-28). 

God is deeply concerned with our intimate relationships – with Him and with one another.  He wants our relationships to be borne of love and devotion, not ruled through domination, control, manipulation, and coercion. 

Once again, the Hebrew eye sees more than the Gentile one! Although the word describing Eve has often been translated as ‘helper’ or ‘helpmate’ the word used for the role of a wife in Genesis 2:18 is ezer kenegdo, which literally means a helper against him.

One medieval Torah commentator, Rashi, comments on this text, saying: "If he [Adam] is worthy, [she will be] a help [ezer].  If he is not worthy [she will be] against him [kenegdo] for strife."

The word ezer means a protector, a guard, an aid, and a help.  So we can understand from this text that helping a husband doesn't means always agreeing.  Woman was not created to be a 'yes person'.  There are times when she must stand in opposition to her husband if he is planning something that is ungodly or unwise. We can look at the non-Jewish example of Haman’s wife in the book of Esther. She tried to warn her husband that his attempts to destroy Mordechai would never succeed because he (Mordechai) was of Jewish origin. The anti-Semite Haman did not listen to his ezer kenegdo - and, eventually, must have regretted his decision!

As well, being a wife does not mean that the woman is less important or inferior to her husband. After all, the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) is also called The Helper.  And while being the helper in Scripture connotes superiority, the addition of kenegdo to the word ezer reveals that the position of wife is a position of equality. My wife and I are equal in importance. It is function and responsibility that we are different!