Plan A PLAN B: THE BLOODLINE OF REDEMPTION

Transcription

1 Plan A PLAN B: THE BLOODLINE OF REDEMPTION

2 A quick lesson from John 21 (so what s the big deal about 153 fish??

3 John:21 1 After these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. 3 Simon Peter said to them, I am going fishing. They said to him, We are going with you also. They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.

4 4 But when the morning had now come, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 5 Then Jesus said to them, Children, have you any food? They answered Him, No. 6 And He said to them, Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some. So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. 7 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, It is the Lord!

5 Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea. 8 But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from land, but about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with fish. 9 Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. 10 Jesus said to them, Bring some of the fish which you have just caught.

6 11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken. 12 Jesus said to them, Come and eat breakfast. Yet none of the disciples dared ask Him, Who are You? knowing that it was the Lord. 13 Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish. 14 This is now the third time Jesus showed Himself to His disciples after He was raised from the dead.

7 11 Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not broken.

8 ...full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three;... We have seen repeatedly that nothing is in scripture for no reason. So why do we need to know there were 153 fish? Why even mention the number? Do we need to know that? Wouldn t it have sufficed to just indicate that the net was so full they couldn t bring it into the boat, and that this was a truly miraculous catch? What is the significance of the 153 fish?

9 Most commentators don t even mention it, or say it has no significance other than indicating it was a large catch, but others have gone off on wild tangents about it. There are some pretty amazing and far-fetched ideas about that number. However, we know everything is in scripture for a reason, even down to the number of fish in a net. This is not just a simple recording of a large catch. This event is about the commission of the disciples (and our commission) to become fishers of men, the work Jesus has for us in His absence and more.

10 We are to be fishers of men. When God blesses the fishing process, we will haul in very full nets, and those nets will never break. So what about the 153 fish is important? What about this whole passage is important? Many commentators have just scratched their heads and remained puzzled by this reference. To fully understand we have to think like Jews and understand the New Testament through the lens of the Old Testament, the original Hebrew scriptures.

11 There are a few other basic understandings critical for us to remember when we study scripture: Perhaps the first to remember is the fact that THE WORD OF GOD WAS NOT WRITTEN IN ENGLISH!! Those of us in the West tend to think this way. But originally God s Word was given in Hebrew, then translated into other languages (such as Greek, the Septuagint, etc.) and then into a language we could understand.

12 We need to keep in mind whatever language we are reading in, other than Hebrew, will most likely NOT capture the full intent of the words as first written. So keep in mind, first and foremost, the Bible was not written first in English. What does that mean for us? It means we have to do a little digging, and look for the original meanings.

13 Sometimes those meanings are lost over thousands of years, especially the inuendos, nuances, tone, etc. However, going back to the original words and their definitions as understood today can bring huge new light and understanding to our studies. (A little more later about how easy this is to do.) Another thing we must remember is that the Bible is Israel and Jerusalem centric. That means the Word of God does not center around America or any other Gentile nation.

14 The redemptive plan of God centers around His people, Israel, and Jerusalem, His City. Everything we read must take into consideration first and foremost its relationship or position with or about Jerusalem and God s people. It is not written about Americans. We often think we are the center of the world!

15 In some ways, todays church has hijacked a faith and turned it into a religion they built on tradition and ritual and a loose and limited understanding of God s Word. Constantine was much to blame for this mindset, which most of us were raised with, but we won t go there right now. Also keep in mind this is not a Christian book. It is a book about God s plan of redemption for the entire world, and involves coming to Him in faith, not religion. Religion is man-made.

16 It is a collection by over 40 different authors over a span of more than 2000 years, engineered and inspired by the Holy Spirit. Every word is Godbreathed. It is a most remarkably connected body of words, stories and events which are all designed to reveal ONE thing the Redeemer and salvation through Him (Elohim s Plan of redemption) His plan to return us to fellowship with Him. The most incredibly engineered book ever known to man. The redeemer is found on EVERY page.

17 The Bible is not a book of disjointed stories and events. The events are real, and have been carefully chosen to reveal to us what we need to know about God and His nature (and how He works, He is very consistent!), man and his nature, and the extent to which God has gone and will go to reunite us. While reading scripture devotionally (reading only and taking only the surface understanding) is always good, the Word of God is designed and meant for study and real digging. The surface meanings are just that, surface, and not by any means complete.

18 The Bible is not a book of disjointed stories and events. The events are real, and have been carefully chosen to reveal to us what we need to know about God and His nature (and how He works, He is very consistent!), man and his nature, and the extent to which God has gone and will go to reunite us. While reading scripture devotionally (reading only and taking only the surface understanding) is always good, it is designed and meant for study and real digging. The surface meanings are just that, surface, and not by any means complete.

19 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter. (Proverbs 25:2)

20 Keep in mind also that dates and times in scripture are not based on what we know today, but on Hebrew time keeping, and the Hebrew calendar, especially the one given them by God that aligns with the appointed times. (the moadim and the re-aligned calendar given to Moses) We often make the mistake of trying to interpret scripture through the lens of western timekeeping, western ideology, and western egocentricity.

21 The Word of God was written in the most unusual language on the planet. Hebrew is very different from other languages. It has 22 letters (the aleph-bet), no vowels, and no correct or incorrect spellings. It is based on sounds only. Also, every letter has a meaning, or concept. The paleo and ancient Hebrew letters all have individual meanings, and were originally expressed in picture form (pictograph).

22 Early Hebrew Middle Hebrew Late Hebrew Modern Hebrew For example, the letter shin is something that consumes, like teeth and was originally depicted as teeth.

23 When we put those letters together and understand their original pictographic meanings, the words take on new depth for us. Also, each Hebrew letter has been assigned a number value, which promotes something called gematria, the use of numbers in scripture. This is NOT numerology, but merely a recognition that God s Word, and His creation, are so incredibly and mathematically precise. More on this in a few minutes.

24 Now a little lesson in Hebrew scripture interpretation. Hopefully this will give us all a little more desire to truly study God s Word, and look more closely than usual. Will try to make this the easy class on Hebrew hermeneutics (philosophy and methodology of text interpretation). It can get pretty deep! Those of us in the west, generally unfamiliar with the Hebrew language, are usually limited to only two ways to interpret scripture:

25 Exegesis: interpretation by critical analysis and thorough investigation of the text in order to discover original meanings. Word comes from a Greek word = to lead out of. (get the meaning FROM the text, rather than reading into it.) Eisegesis: the opposite, which means to read into a particular text. Essentially, EXEgesis is mostly a literal interpretation, where EISEgesis reads something into the text, generally making it allegorical, not literal.

26 This allegorical assumption can be dangerous because passages that should be interpreted literally, are often given only allegorical meanings, usually to support various theological positions. The ancient Hebrew/Jewish approach to understanding the Bible is a lot more complicated and technical. To really understand scripture, we must see it through Hebrew eyes, even the portions thought to originally be written in Greek, because the writers were Hebrews/Jews, and knew the Hebrew scriptures and thinking.

27 THE TORAH HAS SEVENTY FACES According to the rabbis, scripture has 70 faces, or facets, like a diamond. When light enters a diamond, it is reflected and refracted revealing an array of colors. But if the diamond is not cut right, the refraction of light is greatly reduced. Similarly, there are basic guidelines for interpretation of the Word that must be observed.

28 According to ancient Hebrew principles of interpretation, Scripture has four levels, called by the acronym PaRDeS, meaning Paradise. Pardes provides the overall structure of Hebrew hermeneutics, but there are detailed principles of interpretation that must be used.

29 COMMENTARY: From the first sentence of John, it is immediately obvious it is on a different level than the Synoptic Gospels. Mark begins his account at the beginning of Yeshua s ministry, proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven. Matthew traces the genealogy of Yeshua to Abraham, the beginning of the nation of Israel. Luke s genealogy digs to the very root of the human family tree to Adam HaRishon, the First Man. John begins with B resheet, the Beginning, the very origins of the Universe, revealing Mashiach as the embodiment of the Living Torah, the Instrument of all Creation.

30 While all of the events in John are true, and literally happened, he did not write his Gospel on a literal level. Like the Torah itself, it is not even chronological. John arranged his book to explore Yeshua through the Sod Level. (Vayechi: The Mystery of the 153 Fish) Posted by Ben Burton) SOD = SECRET

31 Rabbi Hillel was one of Israel s greatest rabbis, and many have seen the comparison of his method of teaching with that of Yeshua s (more toward the Spirit of the Law rather than the letter of the Law). Although he didn t invent them, Hillel was the first to write down the ancient rules of interpretation of the Torah/Tanakh (entire word, and also used in the NT) These are called the Seven Principles of Hillel

32 7 Principles of Hillel 1. Kal v Chomer Light and Heavy 2. Gezera Shavah Equivalent Expressions 3. Binyan Ab Mi-Katuv Echad Building a Family from asingle Text 4. Binyan Ab Mi-Shene Ketuvim Building a Family from Two or More Texts 5. K lal u Perat General and Specific 6. Ka-Yotze Bo Mi-Makom Acher Analogy Made from Another Passage 7. Davar Hilmad Me Anino Explanation Obtained from Context

33 The rabbis didn t invent these, but they put them in an organized format. They can be found throughout the Tanakh and the NT uses them extensively. Not going to look at all of these (just the first two), though they would make some very good study tools. (more later, if you want!).

34 1. Kol v Chomer Kol v Chomer makes an argument from lesser weight based on one of greater weight. A kol v Chomer argument is often, but not always, indicated by a phrase like "how much more..." Rabbinical writers recognize two forms of Kol v Chomer, one where the meaning is explicit and plain, and the other where it is only implied.

35 Examples: Behold the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth: much more the wicked and the sinner. (Proverbs 11:31) If you have run with footmen and they have wearied you, then how can you contend with horses? (Jeremiah 12:5a) Both Yeshua and Paul make great use of this form in the New Testament.

36 What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep? Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:11-12)

37 2. G'zerah Shavah (Equivalence of expresions) Where an analogy is made between two separate texts on the basis of a similar phrase, word or root. Example: By comparing 1 Samuel 1:11 Then she took a vow; she said, ADONAI-Tzva ot, if you will notice how humiliated your servant is, if you will remember me and not forget your servant but will give your servant a male child, then I will give him to ADONAI for as long as he lives; and no razor will ever come on his head.

38 to Judges 13:5 For indeed you will conceive and bear a son. No razor is to touch his head, because the child will be a nazir for God from the womb.. Using the phrase "no razor shall touch his head" that describes Samson, we may conclude that Samuel, like Samson, was a Nazarite.

39 One is appropriate for our understanding of the verse here about the fish. We re going to look at the second principle, gezera shavah or equivalent expressions, which allows passages to be linked with one another by similar phraseology and words. Notice in verse 1 of chapter 21 the disciples are at the Sea of Tiberius. This is the Galilee. First, the word sea is important, and secondly, Tiberius is the Roman designation of this body of water. It s GENTILE name.

40 In the Bible and in Rabbinic literature, sea refers to the nations, or Gentiles, as Revelation illustrates: He said to me, The waters which you saw are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages. (17:15) [there are several other references to the seas in scripture representing the nations, or Gentiles] Using this 2nd principle of Hebrew interpretation, that of equivalent expression we can make an assumption that seas in scripture will represent the nations, or Gentiles. Use of the Tiberias name here would seem to underscore that.

41 We then hear the disciples have been fishing at night, in darkness, That night, they caught nothing. In the morning (daylight), Yeshua was seen at the seashore. Light represents Messiah. The Menorah in the Tabernacle/Temple represents the light of the Messiah. Remember the first verses in this book:

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43 Learning that Yeshua is standing on the seashore is more than a mere positional detail. Consider this: I will most certainly bless you; and I will most certainly increase your descendants to as many as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants will possess the cities of their enemies, and by your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed because you obeyed my order. (Genesis 22:17-18, CJB, Yahweh reiterates the Abrahamic covenant)

44 To the Hebrew mind, the fact that Jesus stands on the seashore is an equivalent expression that represents the covenant He made with Abraham to bless all nations through His descendants (Yeshua!)

45 JUDGMENT Yeshua then told them, Cast the net on the right side of the boat. Why the right side and not the left side? The right side in Hebrew mindset represents mercy, while the left represents judgment. The net was full of fish drawn out of the waters (sea, Gentiles, nations) to the land MERCY

46 The Kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea, and gathered some fish of every kind, which, when it was filled, they drew up on the beach. They sat down, and gathered the good into containers, but the bad they threw away. So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come forth, and separate the wicked from among the righteous. (Matthew 13:47-51) The net represents the Kingdom of Heaven, drawing His people out of the nations to the land the land refers to Israel in scripture.

47 One of the missions of Mashiach (Messiah) is to gather the exiles (and not just Jewish exiles, but all mankind remember Ephraim, the House of Israel?). Yeshua said to the disciples, I will make you fishers of men. (Matthew 4:19) All this, and we haven t even gotten to the number 153! Well, not using the Hebrew principle of equivalent expression, the most logical explanation, since we know the seas represent the nations, is that these 153 represent the known nations at that time.

48 153 was said to be the total number of nations, countries, etc. in existence in the world then. This seems very logical, since we are to go into ALL the world and make believers from all nations and peoples. This concept is also found in the book of Revelation where we see believers from...a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues,... (Revelation 7:9) That s everywhere, and every people. Another lesson on the importance of our work.

49 Wonder how many nations there are today? Well, available info says there are 197 (2017) give or take. Some nations are not recognized. We must remember, however, that regardless of the number of nations now, due to rapidly changing boundaries that number varies. Bigger nations have broken into multiple smaller nations, and vice versa. There were obviously fewer nations at the time of Yeshua.

50 The other miraculous catch of fish (in Luke 5), was similar to this one, but that time the net broke. Some think this is to illustrate the fact that as fishers of men, not all would be believers. Some of the fish swam away, just as some who hear the good news will reject it, and the One who offers it. Here the net does not break, indicating ALL nations will be represented in the Kingdom. No nation, tribe, people or tongue will be denied the opportunity to hear and believe the good news of Yeshua. And those who believe, Yeshua will SAVE THEM ALL.

51 However..there is still a lot more going on than you would ever know with these mysterious 153 fish!! (And speaking of fish, this will make your HEAD swim!)

52 GEMATRIA Introduction to Hebrew Hermeneutics The Hebrew alphabet (alefbet) is unique in all the world. In addition to meanings for the letters, each letter has a numeric value. Gematria is a fancy name for a system of assigning numerical value to a word or phrase, in the belief that words or phrases with the same numerical value bear some relation to each other. Hebrew gematria has been in existence since the Word was first written.

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54 There is no time in this class to fully explore where this can take us. However, let s just look at a few very interesting examples of words whose letters add up to 153, and are well known in Hebrew Gematria.

55 Exodus 31:1 says that Betzalel built the Aron HaBrit, the Ark of the Covenant. We are also told: Moshe said to the children of Israel, Behold, HaShem has called by name Betzalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all kinds of workmanship; and to make skillful works, to work in gold, in silver, in brass, in cutting of stones for setting, and in carving of wood, to work in all kinds of skillful workmanship. Exodus 35:30-33

56 The letters of this name add up to 153. So what? Betzalel son of Uri literally means in the shadow of God s light Betzalel was the builder of the Tabernacle on earth. He was of the Tribe of Judah, and filled with the Spirit of God. This verse connects with a prophecy regarding the Messiah, through gezera shava

57 Betzalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. He has filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, (Exodus) PROPHETIC A shoot will come out of the stock of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of HaShem [Yahweh] TYPE will rest on him: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of HaShem. (Isaiah 11:1-2)

58 Without making this an exceptionally long lesson, basically Betzalel is a remarkable type for the Messiah. He is the Son of My Light, the shadow of the TYPE Almighty (God in the flesh). He is a builder.a carpenter!

59 He is the Chief Builder of the physical, earthly house of God (Tabernacle). Yeshua is the builder of the spiritual house of God (1 Peter 2:4-5), for which you and I are living stones. As you come to Him, a living stone rejected by men but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Messiah Yeshua. (TLV)

60 And there is more. In 1 John 3:1 (and several other places) we are told: Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. (Note: the word sons in Greek and Hebrew may also be used to mean child not just a male) ( and don t think this phrase only applies to Nephilim!!)

61 Sons of God (or children of God ) is literally ben Elohim. And this phrase in Hebrew also adds up to 153! There is a lot more in this mysterious catch than merely lots of fish! WHO are those fish??

62 In Torah, the heavenly BUILDER is also revealed as the heavenly RESTORER. According to the Rabbis, He will complete the ultimate tikkun olam, the REPAIR OF THE WORLD. And HOW does He do this?

63 By becoming THE Passover! Get rid of the old hametz, [leaven] so you may be a new batch, just as you are unleavened for Messiah, our Passover [Lamb], has been sacrificed. (1 Corinthians 5:7)

64 And now just one more little item. Remember back in Genesis 48 when Jacob blessed Joseph s two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim? He blessed BOTH boys and said: May they grow to a multitude in the midst of the land. (48:16b) The phrase let them grow into a multitude in Hebrew is the word v yidgu. And this word is related to the Hebrew word for fish dagah, which can also mean to grow numerous! Manasseh and Ephraim will both teem like a gigantic school of fish!

65 This verse is about the Messiah, King Yeshua, who is calling His fishermen (disciples then and now) to cast the net (the Good News of the Kingdom) into the seas (nations, Gentiles and Jews) and bring the catch, the fish (the multitudes of exiles, Gentiles and Jews) back to the land (the land of Israel), where the One who fulfills the Abrahamic Covenant is waiting on the seashore, the grains of sand (representing the true spiritual descendants of Abraham.)

66 But that s not all (!). Later in this blessing Jacob singles out the second born Ephraim and says about him: He also will become a people, and he also will become great. But his younger brother will become greater than he and his seed will be the fullness of the nations. (48:19) We have talked about this before. fullness of the nations is melo ha Goyim in Hebrew. It is the same phrase Paul used in Romans 11.

67 We have spoken before about the two sticks in Ezekiel 37 (Judah and Ephraim) being united as one people, one Israel. But that s not the topic here. Or is it????? Guess how many times the word for multitude in the original blessing to both boys is found in the Hebrew scriptures?

68 153!! As the Rabbis say, True? Of course true!

69 Okay, so what can we know from this one verse about catching lots of fish, from a Hebrew hermeneutical point of view? The mystery of the 153 fish is solved by viewing scripture through the lens of the original Hebrew. Remember, the Bible was NOT written in English! Here it is in a nutshell.

70 The writer of John said this: 49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was kohen gadol that year, said to them, You know nothing! 50 You don t take into account that it is better for you that one man die for the people rather than for the whole nation to be destroyed. 51 Now he did not say this by himself; but as the kohen gadol that year, he prophesied that Yeshua would die for the nation. 52 And not for the nation only, but also so that He might gather together into one the scattered children of God. (John 11:49-52). (TLV)

71 And that is what is going on here on the seashore. And 153??? He is calling His children home because He has paid the price of our redemption (He is the Passover), He is the great master Builder of the living house of God, where we become living stones, and have the right to become sons [children] of Elohim.

72 Notice this net does NOT break! None of the multitudes will fall out of the catch among the nations; every tribe, every language, every people are represented there and safely enter the Kingdom of God.

73 It is possible the 153 represents the number of nations on the planet at that time. But whether or not that is true, the 153 represents the amazing connectedness of scripture fulfilled in the Passover Lamb, and the multitude ( sons of God) who come into the Kingdom through Him, the Kingdom and House of God Builder.

74 These kinds of study tools show us the main themes of God s Plan of Redemption, seen over and over again throughout scripture. In one sense, the entire plan is represented in just this one verse, through the eyes of Hebrew hermeneutics, gematria, and the inspiration of the best Teacher the Holy Spirit. We see that indeed the Great Builder, the Restorer and the Passover is written on every page of scripture.

75 Will you dig a little deeper now??