The Tetragrammaton  =  hwhy = YaHuWaH

Proverbs 3:19 By Wisdom YaHuWaH founded the earth. By understanding, He established the heavens. 8:22 “ YaHuWaH possessed Me [Wisdom/YaHuWSHuWaH] in the beginning of His work, before His deeds of old. 8:23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, before the earth existed. 8:24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. 8:25 Before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was brought forth; 8:26 while as yet He had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the beginning of the dust of the world. 8:27 When He established the heavens, I was there; when He set a circle on the surface of the deep, 8:28 when He established the clouds above, when the springs of the deep became strong, 8:29 when He gave to the sea its boundary, that the waters should not violate His Commandment, when He marked out the foundations of the earth; 8:30 then I was the craftsman by His side. I was a delight day by day, always rejoicing before Him,  8:31 Rejoicing in His whole world.

B'Rayshiyth

The book of beginnings chiefly focuses on how YaHuWaH brings order out of chaos. This is portrayed through the creation account, through a re-starting after a great deluge, and through the creation of the people of Ysra'al after yet another setback. The rest of Scripture indeed shows how every time we reintroduce chaos and confusion back into the mix, YaHuWaH makes a way to restore order. The purpose in it has always been so He could have relationship with the people He made in His image. As we bear this simple truth in mind, it brings clarity to the often-complex themes that run through the whole book.

1:1 In a beginning (B'raysheet) Aluahiym ALEPH TAW created from nothing the heavens and the earth. [B'raysheet bara Aluahiym  ET (Aleph Taw) ha'shamayim w'ET (and Aleph Taw) ha'aretz.

This verse is saying that the heavens and the earth were completed right then (all His works were finished from the foundation of the world) - perfect from beginning to end. He spoke and it was, He commanded and it stood fast. Shaul said that the world we see was made from things not seen. Ibriym 11:3 and Iyob 38:4 -7 "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? ….. when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of Aluahiym shouted for joy?"

(For-a-beginning Aluahiym-Alpha-Taw made from nothing the-heavens Alpha-Taw and-the earth.) actual ancient Ibriy

Originally: or "in a beginning" (not necessarily the very beginning of all things). In fact, the word is based on "head", but comes from a root meaning "to shake". It was the shaking of something that had existed before (see v. 2 and compare Khaggai 2:6 For this is what YaHuWaH Master of Armies says: ‘Yet once more, in a little while, and I will shake the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the dry land;). In addition to making or “creating” men, this term “transformed” is used of cutting down a forest to carve out more living space (Yahuwshuwah 17:18), making oneself fat (1 Shmu’el 2:29), and renewal of a pure mind and right attitude within a man. (Psalm 51:10) This does not mean his old physical heart was taken out, but that something changed within him, and these other usages all describe drastic changes in either the form or usage of a thing. Aluahiym, the name emphasizing the Creator's judgment, which comes out during each day of creation, when He looks upon His work and judges it to be appropriate. Aluahiym is a generic term that can also refer to a whole gamut of other beings from angelic entities to simply human judges. (Yahuwchanan 10:34, based on Psalm 82:6) It literally means "mighty ones" or "powers". The verbs are all singular, showing that YaHuWaH (the specific name of this Aluahiym Who created, as seen in 2:4) is so extraordinarily superior to His creation that a plural word is used to describe Him, much like the Queen of England’s  saying :“We are not amused.” (See also note on v. 26.)

1:2 And the earth came to be desolate and ruined. ["the earth became tohu and bohu ]  Darkness was on the surface of the deep. Aluahiym’s Ruwach/Breath was hovering over the surface of the waters. 

Had become: the verb is usually not used if it simply means "was", with no change involved. The creation described here is really a reconstitution after some sort of cataclysm--probably related to Heylel (Lucifer) and accomplices being cast down to earth and judged. (YashaYahuw 14:12ff; Y’hezq’el 28:13-19) The "depth" or "deep" often refers to an ocean or a surging, uproarious mass of water, but in the Greek Septuagint (LXX) it is translated "abyss" (a scene of disaster or place of punishment). Such an age may have included the reign of a now-disembodied race of heavenly beings (compare chapter 6), and may explain the appearance that the earth is more ancient than the 6,000-year history of mankind. YashaYahuw 45:18 tells us that YaHuWaH did NOT create the earth "a chaotic ruin"--the same word used here. So we know something changed. It became confused and was emptied out as something that came before was destroyed. This is the aftermath, compared to the result of YaHuWaH’s vengeance on another occasion (YashaYahuw 34:8-11) For YaHuWaH has a Day of Vengeance, a year of recompense for the cause of Tsiyown. Its [Edom's] streams shall be turned into tar, its dust into brimstone,  And its land shall become burning asphalt. It won’t be quenched night nor day. Its smoke shall ascend a long time. From generation to generation, it shall lie waste. No one shall pass through it forever and ever.  But the pelican and the porcupine shall possess it. The owl and the raven shall dwell in it. Then He shall stretch the measuring line of chaos over it, and the plumb line of emptiness [waste].

 when the end result is also chaos and emptiness—the same words used here, with numerous other examples of destruction and desolation given in the same context. Obscuring darkness: like that which protected YaHuWaH's people during the Exodus, in which we also see the other elements mentioned here of “an ancient wind”, water, dry land being brought out of the waters, confusion for the pursuers, and the revelation at daybreak that they were all dead. In that act, YaHuWaH transformed a group of slaves into a new nation which would be the vessel for bringing still further order to the world. (Ex. 14:19ff) Darkness is called YaHuWaH's temporarily dwelling in 2 Sam. 22:12, yet still there is said to be a brightness that precedes Him; compare Iyob 36:23) A mighty wind: This sentence could read "a Ruwach of Aluahiym intervened deliberately upon..." But there is no definite article here, and Aluahiym is occasionally used as a superlative adjective (paralleled in English with words such as "god-like"). "Fluttered" can also be translated “hovered” or "brooded", as a dove waits over her hatched young until all is in readiness. On a more metaphorical level, "a ruin and desolation" could be translated "an empty space and a void". Other forms of the word for “transform” or "create" (v. 1) mean "to cut out" or "to make fat". The mystical retelling continues: the Endless One, wanting to share Himself, yet being all that there was, had no one to communicate with, so He created a "vacuum"--a space within Himself, which was "not Himself", so He could fill it with creatures who could know and enjoy Him. A mother's womb is an excellent illustration of this idea. Into this empty space, He sent a single point of light, the maximum amount of His nature that this new universe could as yet tolerate: (Yahuwshuwah)

1:3 Aluahiym said, “Let there be Light [YaHuWSHuWaH],” and  Light came to be.

[The Aramaic phrase "BaReshiyth aytohi hwa miltha" (In the beginning was the Miltha) breaks a most basic rule of Aramaic grammar by combining a feminine noun - miltha- with two masculine verbs for "to be" - aytohi and hwa. This is unheard of in Aramaic literature other than in verse 1 and in 1 Yahuwchanan.

Yahuwchanan 1:1 In the beginning was the Miltha [(Word/Manifestation/Instance/Substance) - this manifestation of YaHuWaH’s nature that “was given a life of its own”], and that Miltha/Word was with Aluahiym, and Aluahiym was that Word. [This verse when literally translated says, "In a beginning I AM the Word and the Word I AM with the ‘Aluahiym and ‘Aluahiym I AM the Word.] 1:2 The same was with Aluahiym at the origin [of the Universe]. 1:3 Everything existed through His hands and without Him not even one thing existed of the things which have existed.  1:4 In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men. 1:5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.

2 Cor. 6 For Aluahiym, Who said, "Let there be Light in the darkness, "has made us understand that this Light is the Brightness of the Splendor (Qabod) of YaHuWaH that is seen in the face of YaHuWSHuWaH the Anointed. 7  However we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that this all-surpassing Power is from YaHuWaH, and not from us. 

Said: The Law of entropy says that everything when left to itself becomes more chaotic; the only exception is the life force, which creates more energy than it takes in. Yahuwchanan 1:4 tells us that life itself is in none other than YaHuWaH's Word, which was needed to revive this desolation. This context as well as Psalm 36:9 juxtapose light with life [For with You is the fountain of life. In Your Light shall we see light.]

2 Ezra 6:38 and 43 describe YaHuWaH as speaking a word at the beginning of creation, and the word itself completing the work or carrying it out. YaHuWaH's "Word", which expresses His thoughts and nature precisely, is also categorized as Aluahiym (Yawch. 20:28), since it is our judge and since this Word “participated” in the creation of all else. (Yahuwchanan 1:1-5) This “means by which He created” is also called YaHuWaH's Arm, Right Hand, Branch, and Associate. The Aramaic targums (interpretations of the Hebrew Scriptures translated in the final centuries B.C.E.), commonly use the term Memra as an athropomorphization of this “living word” by which YaHuWaH Himself can have a less-threatening interface with mankind. The targum adds to this verse, “according to the decree of His Memra.” The writings called the Renewed Covenant describe how this chief messenger and agent that "came down from heaven" on numerous occasions, was, 4,000 years after the time frame described here, "made flesh" by YaHuWaH (Yahuwchanan 4:24; 5:23, 30; 6:38, etc.); that is, a man so perfectly embodied what YaHuWaH had in mind when He spoke (Yahuwchanan 1:18) that he could say “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (Yahuwchanan14:9). This must, of course, be read within parameters set by the Torah in regard to the worship of none but YaHuWaH and the clarifications that this “Word” is the firstborn of creation (Colossians 1:15) and the "beginning [first in a series or leader] of the creation of YaHuWaH" (Rev. 3:14), having proceeded (as the light in v. 3) from the One, Whom even after His resurrection He still calls "My Aluahiym" (20:17)—i.e., He is clearly subordinate to YaHuWaH. This separating of YaHuWaH's word from Himself so that we could grasp something of His unfathomable nature was the first of many divisions that were part of creation, and the second is seen in the distinction made in verse 1 between heaven and earth. Thus began a great "expansion" seen over and over in this book, which continued with the distinction between Ysra'al and the nations, the division of the Kingdom into "two witnesses" for YaHuWaH, and He continues creating until a "fullness" is reached (Rom. 11:25), but then when it is at the limit, there is a rapid "contraction" back to the ancient ways is seen, culminating in YaHuWSHuWaH himself giving the Kingdom back to the Father after He puts everything under His feet, so He may again be All in all (1 Cor. 15:28). “In That Day, YaHuWaH will be One and His Name One.” (Zkh. 14:9) 

1:4 Aluahiym gazed at the Light, and saw that it was good. Aluahiym divided the Light from the darkness. 

1:5 Aluahiym called the Light “day,” and the darkness He called “night.” There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], one day.

Day: from a root meaning "to be hot". Evening: the root meaning is mixing or "transition"; morning: dawning, daybreak, that which is sought after or looked for, when things are distinguishable from one another. This was prior to the creation of the sun, so the measure of time would have had to be from YaHuWaH's own perspective alone. Note that scripturally the day begins at sundown, with the evening first. Thus each day is a repetition of creation in which light shines out of darkness. If the day consists of evening and morning (but not night), there is no darkness in the day, according to this text. (Compare Yahuwchanan 9:4; I must work the works of Him who sent Me, while it is day. The night is coming, when no one can work. 12:35)YaHuWSHuWaH therefore said to them, “Yet a little while the Light is with you. Walk while you have the Light, that darkness doesn’t overtake you. He who walks in the darkness doesn’t know where he is going.

1:6 Aluahiym said, “Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” Expanse: space, vault, dome, spread or stretched-out surface "beaten out very thin".

1:7 Aluahiym organized this expanse and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so. 

Organized: or "made", but it is a different verb from "created" in v. 1. It means "produced" or "prepared"--i.e., He took the raw materials He had made and set them in their proper order. Waters...above it: This "firmament" has the sense of being solid in Hebrew; there may have been a crystalline "window" of ice in a heat sink 11 miles above the earth's surface, where extra water was held in reserve for a special contingency (7:11). It would also act as a receiver for the "music of the spheres", screen out much of the sun's harmful radiation and produce a stable, “hothouse" climate, even-tempered throughout the world; these allowed for the radically-longer lives seen in the chapters ahead.

1:8 Aluahiym called the expanse “heavens.” There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], a second day.

"Heavens": or "skies"; the word is dual rather than plural in form, indicating that there is a pair of two matching things that are described thereby. In traditional Hebrew thought, it refers to the sky and something “behind” it which in some way matches it. YaHuWaH has concealed some concepts in His Word that He intends for us to search out. (Prov. 25:2) In verse 1 the heavens already existed, but now YaHuWaH gave it a more specific meaning. Psalm 68:33 tells us that YaHuWaH rides on the “Heaven of heavens”—a Hebrew idiom for a “heaven” superior to or higher than the one we can see—“which were of old”, so this is what we are dealing with here at this most ancient point of the revealed history of the universe. "To Him Who rides on the shemaya of shemaya, which are of old; behold, He utters His Voice, a mighty Voice."

1:9 Aluahiym said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear;” and it was so. 1:10 Aluahiym called the dry land “earth,” and the gathering together of the waters He called “seas.” Aluahiym saw that it was good. 

Gathering: Heb. miqbeh, usually used for waters of ritual purification. The root word also has the sense of waiting in expectation, and from it is also derived the word tiqbah, or hope. Note that on the first two days, before the scene of punishment was washed clean of its defilement, was this creation called "right". This is like a tidal wave that does not destroy us, but completely washes away the old order of confusion. From under heaven: "waters" seem to describe the beings that lusted for YaHuWaH's position, overrunning the mountains (a symbol of YaHuWaH's throne) before being confined to the "deep" (v. 2; Psalm 104:6-9). The final uprising of this age also begins from "the sea" (Rev. 13:1). Earth: Yet there was already an earth in verse 1. Now He narrows its definition to the dry ground. Later, the same word would come to have the specialized meaning of the Land of Ysra'al in particular, for all of this creation is ultimately for the sake of Ysra'al, because the whole point of all of this is to draw out a people for Himself. Seas is plural, but earth is singular, for it was not until the day of Peleg that the land was divided into the continents as we know them now. (10:25) In the same way, Ysra'al was scattered. Earth can only be unified again as Ysra'al is unified, though there is a great counterfeit afoot.

1:11 Aluahiym said, “Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with its seed in it, on the earth;” and it was so. 1:12 The earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with its seed in it, after their kind; and Aluahiym saw that it was good. 1:13 There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], a third day.

1:14  Aluahiym said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for appointed times (Moedim), and for days and years;

Signs: distinguishing marks (see 15:5; Psalm 19:1; Rev. 12:1). The Sabbath is also called a "sign" (Ex. 31:13). The Sabbath and new moon are often grouped together in Scripture. The root word for "sign" means "to be in agreement". In our day, when there are many calendars, only the sighting of the new moon can bring us to agreement on when a time or season actually begins. Appointed times: or, appointments (Lev. 23:2), the first of which is the Sabbath, which is reckoned by cycles of the sun’s setting. The heavenly bodies were given not as things to be worshiped, but as reminders to keep YaHuWaH's appointments. Years: the root meaning is "to fold over" or "reduplicate", since the end of the year brings us back to the place we began, only wiser. There are repeating patterns of cold and heat, and a season for growth in each; if we remain in the same place from year to year, we are out of order. As the Hebrew word for night means at its root “a spiral staircase”, even YaHuWaH’s calendar includes times of darkness which forge brighter light (like Hanukkah and Purim). The spiral brings us closer to YaHuWaH with each round, and each time we can bring more light out of darkness. Plants existed before there was a sun (v. 11), so these days are not likely to have been long ages.

1:15 and let them be for lights in the expanse of heavens to give light on the earth;” and it was so. 1:16 Aluahiym made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars.

These two lights were not given names here, only descriptions, because men tended to worship them. Much of Christianity as it has become is based on sun-worship, Islam has moon-worship at its root, and the sun-worshippers condemn the moon- and star-worshippers, and vice versa. The later Hebrew terms for the sun and moon are simply “the servant” and “the white one”. They work for YaHuWaH; He does not work for them. They are only to rule the times and seasons, not us. They tell His story (Psalm 19), tell us when to plant and harvest, and show what is going on in the unseen realm that will soon be manifested in the physical world. We are to watch them, like a clock, for they affect our lives, but we are not to fear them. As the one actually reflects the light of the other, YaHuWSHuWaH said that we, like Himself, could be the "light of the world", having been "chosen in Him before the foundation of the world". (Eph. 1:4)

1:17 Aluahiym set them in the expanse of heavens to give light to the earth,

This is not a scientifically-fallible book. The fact that the sun, moon, and stars are all “in” the expanse tells us that the expanse consists of more than just the earth’s atmosphere as such. So there are still waters beyond the heavens; they are not merely rain-clouds, but something beyond what we would call the “universe”. This is a “kink in the rubber band”, but as the narrative of the “stretching out”: continues, it will be brought to further clarity. The term “Kingdom of the Heavens” is used only in MatithYahuw’s account (the only “Gospel” we are sure was written in Hebrew). So there is something in both of the heavens that separates the one type of water from the other.

 1:18 and to regulate the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. Aluahiym saw that it was good. 1:19 There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], a fourth day.

The creation week is often seen as a microcosm of human history, in which each "day is as a thousand years" (Ps. 90:5); the Mashiyach, the Light of the World, entered the scene at the end of the "fourth day" of this "world week". A 6,000-year-old universe need not conflict with the appearance of age. Trevor Norman and Barry Setterfield compared 163 measures of the speed of light through the centuries and found it (well beyond expected margins of error) to be slowing down in a cosecant-squared curve. Graphs of "light-year"- based accounting and earth-revolution-based time converge about that long ago by this measure. The electric permittivity of space has not changed, but the magnetic permeability has been "stretched out" (cf. YashaYahuw 42:5; YirmiYahuw 10:12). The "red shift" may be caused by this decay in the speed of light. The reason for such universal entropy is found in. 3:17ff.

1:20 Aluahiym said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of heavens.”

 The first place we see life is in the waters. Then we see birds—supposedly what dinosaurs came from. Orderwise, this reconciles with what science has been able to legitimately hypothesize. But which waters are being discussed here? Clearly, the waters below the expanse—the waters we can see regularly—have such creatures in them; we need to watch in Scripture to see whether any counterpart in the waters above the expanse turns out to have been created as well. Lively animals: literally, "swarmers having a soul of life", with the nuance of merriment; LXX, reptiles. Birds: LXX, winged creatures. Face of the expanse: i.e., the inner atmosphere, the “sky”, our interface with the heavens.

1:21 Aluahiym created the great reptiles, and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. Aluahiym saw that it was good.

Reptiles: alternately translated elsewhere as dragons, serpents, or sea monsters. This may be a reference to dinosaurs. Is that why they are worthy of being singled out here? Or is there a different reason? Targum Pseudo-Jonathan calls them “Leviathan (taninim) and his mate, which are designated for the day of consolation”. The Hebrew word is taninim, and As we have seen, the Hebrew word for “created” means “drastically altered”.  Later in Scripture, taninim do show up in conjunction with Leviathan (YashaYahuw 27:1) and some are said to be as poisonous as the cobra (Deut. 32:33), which is the symbol on Pharaoh’s head. Note that it is the "great" taninim spoken of here. Smaller ones do appear in the first sign given to Pharaoh (Ex. 7:9)—not serpents, as in the sign YaHuWaH gave to Moshah in the desert, but probably crocodiles, which the Egyptians considered creators of the Nile. In Y’hezq’el (Ezekiel) 29:3 the “great tanin” (phrased exactly as mentioned here) that says it created (transformed) his river itself is indeed linked with Pharaoh. (Compare Y’hezq’el 32:2.) Most Scriptures about taninim and Leviathan do hearken back to the Exodus (Psalm 74:13, 14; YashaYahuw 51:9), yet they are spoken of in terms of being “ancient”, which suggests a connection with this creation account. But as in the targum, YashaYahuw 27:1 speaks of YaHuWaH again punishing and slaying them “in that Day”, an idiom for the Messianic Kingdom. So there is something behind Pharaoh that both predates and outlives him and remains YaHuWaH’s enemy throughout history. Here we are reminded that even YaHuWaH’s enemies were created by Him and answerable to Him. He spoke, then created, for He always states His intention before He acts. He says He does nothing before revealing it to His prophets. (Amos 3:7) He even gave Pharaoh a fair warning. If He says He is going to bring judgment, He generally gives us time to repent if we do not like what we hear. His word has never failed, though some of what He promised is still in process. He has said He will regather and bring Ysra'al back home, but there is still some formation that has to take place. Our job is to flesh it out. Amphibian: "living soul that creeps". According to its kind: Cross-bred species are possible but last only one generation, being sterile. Category: Ps.-Jon. Says this refers to “both clean and unclean”.

 1:22 Aluahiym blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.” 1:23 There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], a fifth day.

Blessed: the verb form indicates intensity or even "caused them to be a blessing". "Blessed" literally means, "bent the knee"; i.e., in His case, He is not recognizing them as superior to Himself, but is stooping to their level to pay attention to them as a parent does with his children. This is the first blessing and also the first command to living things. He makes them able to procreate, and expects them to. Indeed all creatures have within them the desire to do so, and if we are walking in His Torah in other areas, this is indeed a blessing.

1:24 Aluahiym said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind;” and it was so.  1:25 Aluahiym fashioned from the earth its living things after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. Aluahiym saw that it was good.

From the earth: Again we see another aspect of creation being drawn out of something that was visible earlier. Did living things come from the inanimate soil? Does this just mean He made them from the same elements and added the aspect of life? The point of this account is not so much to enable us to explain the mechanics of creation, but to see this as something not just historical, but ongoing, and to discover what it tells us about our part in carrying it on. The pattern is that whatever He tells us that He wants us to do, He gives us the raw materials for it in advance, whether they be motivation, energy, resources, or an open door. What will we do with them? If we do not do our part to reshape our priorities into His and bring them forth, they will not get done.

1:26 Aluahiym said, “Let Us make humans in Our image, after Our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 

Us: again, the “majestic plural” (see note on v. 1). Targum Pseudo-Jonathan says He was speaking to the angels who minister before Him and were created on the second day ??. It is not to be read as a literal plurality, for every other deity worshipped by the pagans is called an Aluahiym as well (1 Shmu’el 5:7, 1 Kings 11:33), and each of these was considered a singular entity. It would too greatly diminish the One Who is greater than all else if we were not to use the “royal we”. Should we see YaHuWSHuWaH as being included in this? Not in the way Christian doctrine postulates. While the “word” that Philo called a "lesser YaHuWaH" was not entirely separable from "the" YaHuWaH, the "One without end" in mystical terms, still he was subordinate to the Father, whom no one could ever survive seeing. He is called YaHuWaH's "branch" or "arm", and makes known to us as much about the Father as our finite beings can tolerate, so that YaHuWSHuWaH can indeed say "He who has seen me has seen the Father" without contradicting the fact that He is another entity sent by the Father, who worships the Father as his Aluahiym and promises to one day raise us to His level. (1 Yahuwchanan 3:2) In our image: i.e., able to relate to "Us". The word “image” really means "shadow", and indeed we present an "outline" of what He is like, but in Scripture, "shadow" is often used to mean being under His protection. Likeness: resemblance of moral character; similarity, but not identity. However, in v. 27, only the image is mentioned again. Not until chapter 3 do we see another appearance of the concept of being "like Aluahiym", but there it was coveted wrongly. Still there is nothing we can see that bears His likeness (Yash. 40:18); David does not expect to bear His likeness until He is resurrected. (Ps. 17:15) To accomplish that, the Word of YaHuWaH had to take on the likeness (same word as used here in the Septuagint/LXX) of men (Romans 8:3; Phil. 2:7), and die a death that could finally conquer death. Only as we participate in the "likeness" of his death can we also be raised to finally bear His likeness. (Rom. 6:5) Rule over: guide toward the fullest potential and benefit of all.

1:27 Aluahiym created Man in His Own image [and the Powerful One filled the man with His shadow]. In Aluahiym’s image He created him; male and female He created them.  

So Elohiym filled man with Himself, in the character of Elohiym filled he him; male and female created he them. Bereshiyth1:27

 Man: Heb., Adam, which includes the concept of a single particular person (“him”) or the entirety of Mankind (“them”). At this stage both were the same. Again, the two are both a description of The "Ancient Adam" once bore the "full image of YaHuWaH", which has in it both masculine and feminine qualities, until the two were separated (see below) in order to be able to voluntarily come back together. Thus the image was lost (more completely in ch. 3), but at the right time in history the Messenger and Message of YaHuWaH was "made flesh" (by YaHuWaH) and there again existed a Man "in whom the fullness of Aluahiym's nature dwelt bodily", who could rightfully be called "the image of the invisible Aluahiym" (Colossians 1:15; 2:9), who revealed and manifested as far as possible the One no one can ever see. (Yahuwchanan 1:18) His obedience (at the precise point at which the first Adam failed, see Philippians 2:6 Who, existing in the form of Aluahiym, didn’t consider equality with Aluahiym  a thing to be grasped, (as did Huwah and Adam - Gen. 3:6 - "be like Aluahiym") ) made it possible for others to have the hope of sharing the restoration in the Day in which we see him. (1 Yahuwchanan 3:2) Male and female: the root words themselves mean "marked" and "pierced"--the very description of the one who later did what was necessary to restore the full image of Aluahiym. (Yash. 53; Zkh. 12:10) Because he made a way to get us back to “oneness”, restoring the possibility of relationship that Adam had with YaHuWaH, we are told that in Him there is neither male nor female. (Galatians 3:28)

1:28 Aluahiym blessed them. Aluahiym said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 

Be fruitful and multiply: Part of His blessing to Abraham would be to multiply him exceedingly (17:2), and He made this possible in a very vivid way after it had not previously been possible. Fill: or (in light of v. 2), "replenish" (as also used in 9:1, after the Deluge when a new beginning is also needed). This is an additional command not given to the animals in v. 22. Bring into subjection: subdue, have dominion over, or "scrape out" its bounty and find the appropriate uses for it. It does not refer to forcing his way to their detriment, but making sure they are properly cared for, like a shepherd. YaHuWaH gave humankind, unlike the animals, responsibility over other things.

1:29 Aluahiym said, “Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 

This will be your food: After another great reworking of the earthly order, meat would also be permitted (9:3), but limits are also placed on which types of meat the righteous person—or anyone wanting to be in covenant with YaHuWaH--will eat (Lev. 11:3ff), and an inkling about this distinction was already available prior to the mandate for one who had discernment (See 7:2). Seed-bearing fruit: or, fruit with its seed in itself—the seeds themselves being a source of protein and an anti-disease agent. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan also says He gave us non-fruit-bearing trees for building and burning. The leaves of trees that do not bear fruit are not said to be appropriate for us to eat, being a picture of the fact that He does not want our lives to fruitless.

 1:30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the heavens, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;” and it was so.

Not just human beings, but every animal was vegetarian at this time; none was a carnivore, including lions and wolves. This has less to do with not eating flesh than with not shedding blood. At present, it is said that once dogs acquire a taste for blood, they remain bloodthirsty. How we arrived at that point will be seen in the next few chapters. One day the scenario seen here will be restored, during the Messianic Kingdom, and the animals will again lose their taste for blood. (YashaYahuw 11:6; 65:25) Implements of war will be converted into gardening tools. After YaHuWSHuWaH’s resurrection, he appeared to be a gardener. (Yahuwchanan 20:15) That was the first step back toward the conditions seen here. As we carry out our role as Ysra'al, this can be brought closer to becoming reality again.

1:31 Aluahiym saw everything that (asher) He had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening [dusk] and there was morning [dawn], a sixth day.

Just right: Targum Onqelos says “very proper”. This is due to the creation of Adam and the fact that everything was now put together, and the whole was greater than any of its parts. Note the parallels between the two sets of three days in creation: 

 Day 1 - lights; Day 4 - light bearers 

 Day 2 - heavens and waters; Day 5 - their inhabitants 

 Day 3 - land; Day 6 - its inhabitants.

The fact that man was created on the sixth day has led to a Hebrew tradition that six is “the number of a human being”. We see this exact phrase show up in Revelation 13:18, where we are told that wisdom will allow us to calculate the number of “the Beast’s” name, and that his number is given as 666. Many, not thinking Hebraically, have speculated about whose name might have this number in it, and have been barking up the wrong tree. To the original readers, “calculate” would mean to figure out the numeric value of the Hebrew letters that comprise it. We do not know this name, but there are only three places in the Torah that include a word whose letters total up to 666. Actually the value of the numbers, individually, are 600, 60 , and 6. The 6 refers to one man—this “beast”. Sixty would therefore mean “ten men”, which, based on YaHuWaH’s allowing for S’dom to be spared if there were at least ten righteous there (Gen. ), is again linked in Hebrew tradition with the quorum required to constitute a congregation. It is therefore a group of ten men united in association with another man. Right in the first verse of Revelation 13 we find a beast with ten horns. 17:7-12 tell us that these ten horns are ten kings who have authority with the beast for one hour. But this same beast with ten horns is identified in Dani’el 7:7 as the fourth beast, which the progression in history makes clear is Roma. And sure enough, in Roman history, we find a group specifically called “the ten men”—decem viri in Latin—whose influence remains today, though in their corruption they were in power for less than two years (“one hour” in the overall scale of history). Why? Because they rose up in opposition to the nobles and established the Senate, in which every man was to have a voice. I.e., they established democracy, and the Senate remained, revived in our own day. Most of the United States Constitution is based squarely on twelve letters these ten men wrote. So the middle “6” of 666 is democracy. While it may be YaHuWaH’s temporary provision for our protection in exile, it is not the way of Scripture, where authorities based on the Torah have the final say, not the people’s wishes or desires. Ultimately, one Man will have the final word on what is law. The first 6 (that is, 600) would represent 100 men. One rule of Scriptural interpretation is that the first time something appears in Scripture, it sets the tone for the figurative meaning of the term throughout the remainder of Scripture. The first time the number 100 appears in Scripture (other than someone’s age) is in Gen. 33:19, where it is the sum of the pieces of silver used in a purchase. Therefore, 600 would indicate “the men with the money”, and indeed in the same immediate context (Rev. 13:17) we see this beast linked with control of the commerce system. At the beginning, when YaHuWaH provided food right on the trees for all mankind and all animals, how could anyone be richer than anyone else? There were no price tags. Animals did not need to be corralled because we were not keeping them for food. Our only concern was to preserve what YaHuWaH had made—an ecosystem He considered “just right”. Once bloodshed began, it became about who was out front, and it thus became man against man and man against animals. And that, in a nutshell, is the story of how the world got to be how it is today. Commerce, violence, and bloodshed all go together. The beast sheds blood to keep the money and to keep control of the whole world through money.  But we are told here that someone with understanding can calculate its meaning properly, and the implication is that we can thereby overcome this “beast”. Psalm 111:7-10 tells us understanding is derived from practicing YaHuWaH’s commandments and Psalm 119 repeatedly tells us it is gained by meditating on YaHuWaH’s precepts. Calculating the number of a name, for one with understanding, therefore, would involve finding words within YaHuWaH’s Torah that have the numerical value of 666. There are only two (and one of them is repeated). The first is in Lev. 25:14, and its meaning is “you [will] sell”—a clear reference to the commerce we spoke of above. The second word with the numerical value of 666 is “you shall turn aside” or “deviate”. It appears in both Deuteronomy 5:29 and 17:11. And as with snake venom, the poison includes the antidote right within it, because Lev. 25:14 reads, in full, “And if you [will] sell anything to your associate, or buy anything from your associate's hand, you shall not oppress each other.” If we put the Ysra'alite community instead of self first in whatever necessary dealings with commerce we may have, we can wrest “unrighteous Mammon” from the beast and use it for eternal purposes. (Luqa 16:9) Deut. 5:29 reads, “So you must be careful to act according to what YaHuWaH your Aluahiym has commanded you; you must NOT turn aside to the right or to the left.” Deut. 17:11 reads, “"You must do according to the word of the instruction by which they [the Levitical priests] direct you and the decision with which they answer you; you must NOT deviate from the sentence which they make known to you, [neither] to the right not to the left.” Thus we negate the “666”, whereas if we reckon it the wrong way, we are part of the beast system which indeed “turns aside” from YaHuWaH’s intent that one man (without the “men” and the “money”, without elections, and without merchandising) has the rule over the entire world. (YashaYahuw 11) The Torah therefore tells us how to handle these snakes when we must, and not be bitten. We get there—back to the world without violence, bloodshed, or commerce--by taking care of one another. We overcome by the innocent blood shed by the Lamb (to redeem his lost brothers), the word of our testimony, and by not loving our own lives, even to the point of death (Rev. 12:11), as YaHuWSHuWaH exemplified.

2:1 The heavens and the earth were completed, and all their vast array.

Completed: The root word is related to both “bride” and “being finished off” or “destroyed”. In the latter we can read a prophecy of the new heavens and a new earth, because we see another creation account in this chapter. But we also see a bride emerge in this chapter. Since Ysra'al is called to be YaHuWaH’s bride, we choose each day by our priorities actions, and attitudes whether we will move toward being the bride or toward chaos and destruction again. YaHuWaH tells us to choose life, not death (Deut. 30:15), and calls this completed heaven and earth as His witnesses. Those that issue forth from them: or, are mustered; literally, armies or soldiers. He thus had called up all the “troops” He might need for His purposes in this world.

 2:2 On the seventh day, Aluahiym finished the workmanship that He had been constructing; and He ceased on the seventh day from His work. 

Fulfilled: or finished. He has begun the process of being done, but He is also putting the finishing touch on creation with this final act of disengaging from the forming and setting in order. What did He finish on the seventh day? Set-apartness. (It is the first thing He declared set-apart, verse 3.) On this day He brought forth a new ruwach--one of cessation from everything else, so that He can actually enter into what He has created. The rest that was created on this day was the fruition of the other six days, as a ring of six circles naturally creates a seventh of the same size in its center. The Sabbath is said to be "last in creation, but first in YaHuWaH's intention". It closes off the rest of the week, and now everything is different. There is more provision as we shut out the other days; sealing it off creates a window by which we can receive from the coming Kingdom, the seventh millennium, which it foreshadows (see note on 1:19), for there “remains a rest for His people”. (Heb. 4:19) It is the training ground for that Kingdom. Ceased: the verb form of “Sabbath”. The Sabbath is a time to stop learning and teach, thus serving others, which is allowable on this day. "Workmanship" (mal’akhah) can also be translated "message", because the creation is our teacher. But this is also the type of work we are commanded to refrain from on the Sabbath. (Lev. 23:3) It is from the same root word as a messenger—one who represents someone else. It is the type of work which we do for someone else for the sake of pay. There is another Hebrew word also translatable as “work” (avodah), and it means service, the kind of work we do not do with the intent of receiving something back from. This kind of work remains valid on the Sabbath, as the priests worked twice as hard in the Temple on this day. In fact, by stopping the mal’akhah, we make room for the avodah, which is established firmly on the Sabbath, to come forth--and it should certainly spill over to the other days. To participate in the Sabbath makes us its co-creators as we build what Rabbi Heschel has called "a palace in time". This is the finishing work—to “serve one another through love.” (Gal. 5:13)

2:3 Aluahiym blessed the seventh day, and made it Set-apart, since on this day He had rested from the the work involved in creating and appointing everything.

Fulfilled: or finished. He has begun the process of being done, but He is also putting the finishing touch on creation with this final act of disengaging from the forming and setting in order. What did He finish on the seventh day? Set-apartness. (It is the first thing He declared set-apart, verse 3.) The set-apartness of the Sabbath ("ceasing") was established from the very start. He blessed it but did not tell it to multiply this time, for there is only to be one Sabbath each week; because without common things to be set apart from, nothing can be set-apart. This blessing belongs to no other day, and man cannot move it to another day, try as he might. Kerry Alexander points out the connection between the prohibitions of work on this one day (a test, Exodus 16:4, 25; 35:2) and of eating the fruit of just one tree in the garden (v. 17 below). “He who watches Ysra'al neither slumbers nor sleeps.” (Psalm 121:4) He was refreshed by it (Ex. 31:17), and if one takes this break, he is able to be more fruitful when he begins working again. But all the energy that ever has been emanates from YaHuWaH as if it were mere excess. So how would it benefit Him to rest? He rested so that we could follow His example. YaHuWSHuWaH said,“The Sabbath was made for man.” (Marqos 2:27) It is a specially-crafted gift from Him, which is all the more reason we should not despise it. The Sabbath is credited with being the only thing that preserved the Jews as a people while the other tribes lost their identity. As the rest of us take our place again as Ysra'al and stop creating and serving other things on the Sabbath and serve one another, we can rebuild ourselves into a people so that there will be enough drawn out of the darkness to bring the Kingdom about.

[YEAR 1 / 4000 BC]

2:4 This is the history of the births of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the Day that  YaHuWaH  Aluahiym set them in readiness. 

Births: or generations, begettings, i.e., history; Targum Onqelos, outgrowths—that is, what was drawn forth from the original substance; Targum Neofiti, genealogical pedigree; LXX, origins. YaHuWaH: the name by which He revealed Himself to Moshah (Moses) and the prophets. This is the first place it appears in the Hebrew text. YaHuWaH Aluahiym: Mystically, this combination of name and title is a special designation for the combination of His attributes of understanding and strength.

2:5 No plant of the field was yet in the earth, and no herb of the field had yet sprung up; for YaHuWaH Aluahiym had not caused it to rain on the earth. There was not a man to till the ground,

Till: literally "work" or "serve" (from the same root as avodah). Upon the earth: i.e., on top; the plants had not yet sprung up, but they may have been present in the soil in seed form. Being diligent to find and bring forth what is hidden inside is one way we continue the process of creation. (Prov. 25:2-3) But we could argue, the trees and plants were created in chapter 1. This is a flashback to where the structure of the account did not lend itself to stating this detail regarding the separation of the waters above from the waters below. The earth cared for itself without the waters above, but there was no greenery, only mud. But it was this from which the physical part of man was taken, and it existed before the other aspects of creation were fleshed out, giving man a basis for his right to rule the things that would come into being later.

 2:6 but a mist went up from the earth, and watered the whole surface of the ground.

Mist ascended: or, "a surge welled up", probably from the "fountains" reserved for the event described in 7:11. (Compare 2 Kepha 3:5-7.) The targums say this was a cloud that emerged from under YaHuWaH’s throne.

 2:7 YaHuWaH Aluahiym formed man (adam) from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life(s) (Yah-hoooo-ah); and man became a living being.  [the "nephesh chayah" - "living being/soul" of Bereshith 2:7 - is best understood as the "ruwach of speech"]

(... and the Powerful One filled the man with His shadow/character)

Breath [n'shamah]: from the idea of panting; the act of exhaling as opposed to inhaling. Thus he inhaled something that YaHuWaH exhaled. In Hebrew anthropology it is something included in the direct image of Aluahiym having to do with intellect, distinct from and higher than the kind of soul (drive, appetite) that animated the other creatures, and the ruwach or spirit (which motivates on another level). It is sometimes called the "second soul", now said to be imparted to man only on the Sabbath day so as to be better able to commune with YaHuWaH, as a foreshadowing of how our full nature will be restored in the 7th millennium, the Messianic Kingdom. (Note the parallel with the two stages seen in Yahuwchanan 20:22 [ As the Father  has sent Me, even so I send you.” 20:22 When He had said this, He Breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive Ruwach Ha'Qadosh] and Acts of the Envoys chapter 2.) Thus having YaHuWaH’s own breath is part of what it means to be human. It gives us something in common with Him. Our ruwach (which also means “breath”) is how the common life (soul) can again take on the higher nature that more fully bears the image of YaHuWaH. In YaHuWSHuWaH, that connection remained stronger than it does for most people, because he never damaged or interfered with this “hotline”.  But it can be strengthened in each of us to the extent that we give it space to do so. Dust: tiniest particles, possibly a description of atoms. But if the mist watered the whole surface of the land, how could there be dust? The water makes the dust bond together. This in itself is an important allegory, because water is a picture of YaHuWaH’s word (Ephesians 5:25) and dust is a description of the descendants of Abraham and particularly Ysra'al. (13:16; 28:14) But it sounds very much like He is working with clay, and indeed He often likens His creation of man to a potter working with clay who has the right to restart the job at any point. 

9:3 YaHuWSHuWaH answered, “Neither did this man sin, nor his parents; instead, [he was born blind] in order that the works of YaHuWaH might be manifested within him. 9:4 I must work the works of Him Who sent Me, while it is day. The night is coming, when no one can work.  9:5 While I AM in the world, I AM the Light of the world.” 9:6 When He had said this, He spat on the ground, made clay with the saliva, anointed the blind man’s eyes with the clay, 9:7 and said to him, “Go, wash/mikvah (immerse) in the pool of Shalach” (which means “Sent forth”). ... 9:16 Some therefore of the Parash said, “This Man is not from Aluahiym, because He doesn’t keep the Shabbath, and He formed clay!”(YashaYahuw 64:8; YirmiYahuw 18, 19) Ground: Heb., adamah, which is related to Adam’s name. A living soul: Aramaic, a ruwach uttering speech.

 2:8 YaHuWaH Aluahiym planted a garden in Eden from the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. 

Garden: "Paradise" in the Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. East, not north, is the true "orientation" in Hebrew thought. But the term here (qedem), which sometimes means “east", means "ancient" at its root, so the garden could have been planted from a remnant of the world that had preceded this one, the seeds being still left in the soil, as verse 5 suggests. All the Aramaic targums take it this way, rendering it alternately “from the beginning”, “in ancient times”, and “before the creation of the world”. "Eden" means luxury or delight. Note that the man was not formed from the ground IN Eden, but outside it, then put into the garden. (3:23)

2:9 And YaHuWaH Aluahiym caused to spring up from the ground every kind of tree that is aesthetically pleasing, and appropriate for food. The Tree of Life was in the middle of the garden, as was the Tree of the Knowledge of Right and Wrong.

The order of creation appears different from that in chapter 1. Here, man appears before the trees. This clues us in that something else is being discussed. And indeed, the context here is the garden, not the world at large. These are not the recently-created trees of the earth, but trees planted anciently and now transplanted here for Adam’s sake. How YaHuWaH treasured this epitome of His creation, to put him in such a special place prepared long beforehand! It was like a husband planting and walling off a pleasure garden for his wife, then presenting it to her as a gift. In any case, the man is new but the garden is not. And YaHuWaH had now breathed something ancient into the man as well, and put him in this place full of life that emanates directly from YaHuWaH. There are also some implied contrasts here. The Tree of Life was apparently not aesthetically pleasing, and indeed the sight of the Mashiyach dying on a tree that brought the potential for life back to us was not pleasant. Taking hold of life as YaHuWaH intended it does not look pleasant to our fleshly eyes, but once we embrace it, like the Sabbath and all of the Torah, it is the most delightful thing. And, as we will see more clearly below, the Tree of Knowledge of Right and Wrong was not appropriate for food.

 2:10 A river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from there it was parted, and became four heads.

The imagery of four heads shows up often in Scripture: notably the appearance of the heavenly beings called kh’ruvim, which first appear in chapter 3. (Yechezqel 1:6; 10:14; Rev. 4:7). Note that the garden is not in Eden, but the river flows from it into the garden. A river that divides rather than converging is an example of how it formed a reverse “mirror image” of how things on earth operate—or rather, the earthly is really the mirror of the heavenly. Hebrew tradition says Eden hovered directly over Yahrushalum, based on the wording in Psalm 122:3, which says it is a “city joined together”.  Here it is said that heaven and earth--the “waters above” and the “waters below”--meet. This is substantiated in verse 13 below. Y'chezq'El  44 tells us that a river will one day again flow from the Mashiyach's throne—where else but in Yahrushalum?--and divide into two flows, eastward and westward. In the Time of the Restoration of All Things, the original heaven and original earth will again meet here.

 2:11 The name of the first is Piyshown [spreader - increase]: this is the one which flows through the whole land of Chawiylah, where there is gold; 

Targum Neofiti identifies Chawilah as India, but this river probably changed its course during one of the catastrophes in Scripture. Chawilah was one of the sons of Kush (10:7). Since Nimrod, who built Babylon (10:10), is called a “son” of Kush, yet is not listed with the rest of his sons, but mentioned later, the Hebrew allows for it to simply mean “descendant”. Since we are not certain who his direct father was, this verse strongly suggests that it could have been Chawilah. In Mikha 5:3ff we see the Mashiyach defeats “the land of Nimrod” (5:6), and YirmeYahuw 51:41ff tells how the nations will no longer flow to Babylon, but it would be judged, allowing Ysra'al to go freely back to her Land. Babylon will no longer swallow up the nations. In fact, we see a serpent spewing out a flood against Ysra'al in Revelation 12, indicating that this flood is those nations it has swallowed. (More on this warfare in the next chapter.) Note how the names of all four rivers carry the theme of expansion (see note on 1:1), but this one specifically circles back like a lasso, reining in what may be the land of Nimrod and thus picturing the fact that by heading back to our origins as Ysra'al is the way we can strangle the influence of Nimrod, which is still strong today. In any case, the next river forms the noose for all of Kush’s descendants (v. 13)

2:12 and the gold of that (huw #1931) land is good. There is bdellium gum resin and the onyx stone.

Bdellium: The only other place in Scripture it is mentioned is in referring to the color of manna in Numbers 11:7. The root word is the same as the “distinction” between light and darkness seen in 1:4. Onyx represents the tribe of Yoseph (Ex. 28:20) and supported the high priest's whole breastplate. The stone was first worn by Lucifer--in Eden (Yechezqel 28:13ff; cf. Gen. 3:1).

 2:13 The name of the second river is Giychown [gusher - bursting forth]: the same river that flows through the whole land of Kuwsh.

Gihon: ChizqiYahuw channeled this river right into the city to enable it to withstand an Assyrian siege--a picture of hiding YaHuWaH's Word within our hearts so we have access to it under any circumstances (Ps. 87:7; 119:11; Yahuwchanan 7:38). Its terminus formed the Pool of Shiloach ("sent"), where healing was found when YaHuWSHuWaH sent a blind man there to wash (Yahuwchanan 9:7). This internal water source travels underground and remains hidden until it reaches the place it is needed. Thus it pictures the waters of Eden, which are now hidden, but will re-emerge when the time comes for full healing and restoration.

 2:14 The name of the third river is Chiddeqel[rapid]: this is the one which flows in front of Ashshuwr. The fourth river is the Perath [fruitfulness].

The Chiddeqel is the Hebrew name for the Tigris. The meanings of the names of the four river branches (increase, bursting forth, rapid, fruitfulness) reiterate the only command that had been given to mankind thus far, and His first blessing, already spoken, thus comes out of this “river of life” which is not part of this creation, but flows into it. These are not the waters of the earth, but those from above the firmament, yet they flow back into the waters below. (More will come for a different purpose in chapter 7.) The restoration back "upstream" to Eden will also take place "in rapid succession". (Rev. 1:1)

2:15  YaHuWaH Aluahiym took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to serve her and to guard her.

Took the man: Targum Pseudo-Jonathan adds “from the mountain of worship, the place where he had been created. Cultivate: literally, serve, but not for gain (avad). Until we serve one another, we cannot be part of the Man who is designed to live in this Garden. And the Torah shows us how. The Hasidim have long said that we will hasten the coming of Mashiyach by keeping Torah, and this is substantiated here, for the term here for “care for” or “keep” (shamar) literally means to guard it. We are likewise told to guard both the Sabbath and the Commandments. (Deut. 6:17ff) So they are gates back to the Garden. We cannot see it until we keep them. (Deut. 6:24)

 2:16  YaHuWaH Aluahiym commanded the man, saying, “Of every tree (Atsah also means counsel and advice) of the garden you may freely eat;  2:17 but of the tree of the [experiential] Knowledge of Good and Evil, you shall not eat of it; for in the day that you eat of it you will surely die.”

YaHuWaH did not intend for us to make this distinction. (Compare verse 25.) We have come to see individual actions or words as right or wrong, wanting to be individual moral agents in our own right. He instead wanted us to remain in relationship--to come directly to Him for instruction with each decision, so that we could determine how best to love one another in each season. Everything was to be seen as useful at its proper time. (Qeoheleth/ Ecclesiastes 3.)

2:18  YaHuWaH Aluahiym said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.”

This is the first thing declared to not be right. The Hebrew word for “alone” is “bad”! When in the ancient place, it is not right to be alone, for who can we then serve? Suited: correlated as a counterpart, or "opposite"; Pseud-Jonathan, a support alongside him. This is seen in the opposing sexual complementation, but Avi ben Mordechai also brings out the sense in which the wife is "opposed to" her husband, as a paper held in the air is too flimsy to write anything on, but when there is something inclined toward it (see 3:16) to prop it against, it not only is "grounded" in a specific place, but has a "backing" which finally makes it useful rather than existing abstractly as in a vacuum. If she were just like him, they would both fall into the same traps. He needs her different perspective on things to keep him balanced (but never through nagging—because the "helper” part comes first!) The Hebrew word for “bride” (kalah) also means “one that completes”. The “helpful opposition” (which includes refutation and rebuke) is about upholding one another, not belittling each other’s differences. The same must hold true for the two houses of Ysra'al—and for YaHuWaH and His bride, which Mashiyach escorts to Him. It is actually made up of many “brides”; we cannot build the Kingdom without Him, and He has given us a role to play in birthing it too.

2:19 Out of the ground YaHuWaH Aluahiym formed every living being of the field, and every bird of the heavens, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. What ever the man called every living creature, that was its name.  2:20 The man gave names to all livestock, and to the birds of the heavens, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper suitable for him.

The memory and insight required in classifying so many creatures demonstrates Adam's original mental capacity. Naming also implies authority over the one named. But Aluahiym's main purpose here was to show Adam that he had no counterpart as each of the animals had. His recognition of this is evident in v. 23. The Hebrew pattern is to put the syllable –ah at the end of the masculine name when its feminine counterpart is named. But adamah already meant “ground” or “soil”, and this clearly, though like a mother to him, was not his spouse!

 2:21 YaHuWaH Aluahiym caused a deep numbing to fall on the man, and he slept; and he took one of his sides (ribs), and closed up the flesh in its place.

Numbing: trance, stupor, or deep sleep. The Second Adam, too, had part of His Body separated from Himself in a spiritual sense, and they will be reunited again in the end of days. They both have the same name (YirmiYahuw 23:6; 33:16). The "sleep" of Mashiyach was also necessary for His bride to be formed. The same term is used in YashaYahuw 29:10, the verse that Sha'ul quotes in Romans 11:8 in speaking of the "ruwach of insensibility" that came over Ysra'al so that another intent of YaHuWaH could be accomplished. Ribs: Targum Pseudo-Jonathan specifies that it was the 13th rib of the right side. But this word “ribs” translated "sides" everywhere else the term is used, having to do with the sanctuary or its implements in every case, indicating that not only a bone, but a psychological "side" of him also, was made into another person, so that each mindset could be carried to its full extent, much as the separation of the two houses of Ysra'al was "of YaHuWaH" (1 Kings 12:15) and enabled two themes of His to be taken further, even though it caused significant lack of unity much of the time due to the incompleteness of each when they tried to act on their own rather than in tandem with the other. Closed up: stopped up, or repaired. It could also mean that He replaced the missing side with flesh--which often scripturally  means carnal desire or over-fatness (especially over the "heart", needing to be "circumcised" away)--possibly the reason men are generally less spiritually sensitive than women and need more reminders to be set-apart. A wife is given to lend men support in the battle against their own flesh.

2:22 He made the side (rib), whichYaHuWaH Aluahiym had taken from the man, into a woman, and brought her to the man.  2:23 The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken out of Man.”

Bone: can also mean "body (part)" or "the selfsame" or "bound tightly to". Flesh: basar, which can also mean "glad news".  Woman: Hebrew "Ishah", the feminine form of "ish" (male human being). The term "ish" is not used until here, when the two have been separated. It is the shortened form of "enosh", which means "mortal" or "frail", for now that he was separate, he no longer bore the full image of Aluahiym, which included both male and female. In the restoration of Adam, the unification of unlike elements is also necessary. Note that he named himself as well. YaHuWaH had called him Adam, emphasizing his connection to the dust and thus his fragility like a clay vessel. We see ourselves as men with rights, but it is He who decides whether each is a vessel for honor or a vessel fit for destruction.

 Ephesians 5:29 No one hates his own body but lovingly cares for it, just as haMashiyach cares for His Body, which is the Assembly.  30 And we are members of His Body,  of His flesh and of His bones. 

 2:24 Therefore a man will leave his father and his mother, and will join with his wife, and they will be one [unit of] flesh.

Thus the image of Aluahiym was divided, and no longer could any one person bear the complete image unless they were brought back together to operate in unified symmetry. Their flesh is intertwined, but it is important to note that they are not one soul. 

 2:25 They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any living creature of the field which YaHuWaH Aluahiym had made. He said to the woman, “Has Aluahiym really said, ‘You shall not eat of any tree of the garden? ....’”

Serpent: literally whisperer, practicer of divination (thus one able to cast a spell; how could we ever apply such a term as "divine" to YaHuWSHuWaH, or even YaHuWaH?) Whispering catches the attention better even than shouting, for it hints at intimacy and being taken into one’s confidence. The word is also related to the word for bronze—and indeed, it was a dazzlingly impressive creature at that time (Y'hezq’el 28:13ff). Another animal speaks in Numbers 22:28-31, but here the woman does not seem surprised; in an uncursed world there may have been nothing unusual about talking animals, but apparently this one was either inhabited or influenced by haSatan (the Adversary), the former archangel and "kh’ruv who covers", who had become the sworn enemy of Aluahiym and who was jealous of mankind's being given the rulership of earth which Heylel (Lucifer) had once possessed. More crafty: And there are some other pretty crafty creatures, such as the fox, the monkey, and the lion that crouches still for hours waiting to pounce. None of them were predators at this point, but they had skills. Than any: The contrast may be between the field and the garden; the animals of the field were from the new creation, while the serpent, like everything else in the Garden, was from the prior creation. (YaHuWaH placed new things into an old setting to see if the result would be any different.) The serpent’s craftiness is shown in its reframing of the prohibition in an exaggerated form, throwing her off balance and influencing her to overreact. It appears to be leading up to the suggestion they that can make an exception to the commandment, but already it is casting YaHuWaH in a bad light. But what we miss in English is the interesting play on words, for the word for "naked" in the previous verse is from the same root as "crafty" here. The serpent had indeed lost a far more glorious covering than mankind had (Y'chezqel 28). Its covering is described just like that of the New Yahrushalum (Rev. 21), which is described as YaHuWaH's bride, as Ysra'al also is. In this context, the kh’rubim atop the Ark of the Covenant are considered to represent YaHuWaH and Ysra'al in a close relationship. Humanity, at first, and later Ysra'al in particular, is thus a replacement for a rebellious bride, which is why haSatan was so eager to have Adam and Hhawah disqualified from this position. We can sense the bitterness in “her” leading statements that reflect “her” own experience of YaHuWaH’s ill will. We can well imagine her saying under her breath, “Just watch; He won’t let you have anything you want!”

3:2 The woman said to the serpent, “Of the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat, 3:3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the center of the garden, Aluahiym has said, ‘You shall not eat of it, neither shall you reach out to touch it, lest you die.’”

She interrupted the serpent to clarify the ambiguous “any”, which in Hebrew can also mean “all”. She added a "fence" to what Aluahiym said—generally a healthy practice which can keep us one step away from sinning, but which can breed discontentment with Aluahiym's protective commands if we forget all that we really are offered, and seek greater fulfillment through going outside the bounds He really has set. It was the man’s job to guard, so Adam was probably the one who had added the fence, and she understood his ruling to be from Aluahiym. This fence, though, may have been counterproductive, since, as she did not die when she touched the fruit, she may have thought there would be no harm in eating it either. Center: the tabernacle, likewise, would later be an "off-limits" zone in the center of the camp of Ysra'al. It is in the center, yet somehow it is not included among the trees of the garden.

3:4 The serpent said to the woman, “You won’t really die as in "death",

Targum Pseudo-Jonathan adds, “But every craftsman hates his fellow craftsman” and explains that the serpent was slandering its creator—that is, casting the truth in such a light as to make His motives look evil.

 3:5 for Aluahiym knows that in the day you eat it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like Aluahiym - [intimately] knowing [both] good and evil.”

This is both a deadly truth and a lie at the same time. (We would expect half-truths from Satan.) While YaHuWaH "understands" evil better than anyone (since it is anything that is contrary to His nature), He has never experienced it in the way Adam's race does now. This is not referring to being able to distinguish between right and wrong. Thus far nothing had been proclaimed wrong; only one thing had been “not appropriate”, and that had been remedied. There was nothing to discern—except this serpent. So was it evil that caused the chaos and destruction that preceded this beginning? We must not give too much credit to haSatan, who also serves YaHuWaH (albeit reluctantly) and must ask His permission to do any damage. (Iyob 1:6ff) YaHuWaH lets him oppose us in order to strengthen us, but our main focus must be on obedience to YaHuWaH rather than on directly targeting the “devil” or demons (which seldom appear in the Torah) for attention. But it is no small thing that the Hebrew word for wrong or evil became the name of the primary ruling spirit of the Egyptians (Ra). But there was no way to know evil in this pleasure garden unless she ate of this tree. Since the serpent has experienced YaHuWaH’s punishment, “she” wants this same familiarity to affect the woman as well, possibly so she can commiserate. She was already intimately familiar with what was right, for everything was; the only thing this fruit really offered was the intimate knowledge of wrong. Why would anyone want this? Yet the crafty serpent made it look desirable. Like Aluahiym: to be just like Him.  Something that YaHuWSHuWaH did not cling to.

3:6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food [lust of the flesh], and that it was a delight [craving] to the eyes [lust of the eyes], and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise [pride of life], she took of its fruit, and ate; and she gave some to her husband with her, and he ate.

"Beneficial...to the eyes...insight": Compare these three areas of temptation as seen in Matt. 4:2-10 and 1 Yahuwchanan 2:16. Actually the first two characteristics were true of every tree in the Garden (2:9), and the third was only her perception, for this would not be inherently visible in the fruit itself. Satan took advantage of the innate traits in the woman that were necessary for sympathetic mothering, but her husband, who had been placed in authority over her to protect this area of vulnerability, knew better, and thus bore the greater guilt (1 Timothy 2:14). If he was with her, why did he not stop her? Maybe he could argue that he did not get the fruit from the tree, but from her; but it may be that at this point he loved her enough to wish rather to be condemned along with her than to retain his purity but lose her to Aluahiym's judgment. Thus, in a way, Adam left his Father to cling to his wife (2:24). A craving: or, lust; the serpent made it look as if this was something they should want.

 3:7 The eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked. They sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.

While Adam and Hhawah did not fall over dead during the same 24-hour period, the process of physical death did begin, along with the immediate psychological fragmentation evidenced by their shame, terror of Aluahiym, and blame of one another. They died spiritually, separated from their Source like an unplugged electrical appliance. But by the logic of Ps. 90:4 and 2 Kepha 3:8, man cannot live more than 1,000 years. Though antediluvian conditions allowed very long lives, no one reached 1,000 years; thus they "died the same day". At this point, some aspects of Aluahiym's image (1:27) were lost, so there may have been a perceptible change in their appearance, which was once mostly light. Satan's rule of the earth had been justly removed from him and given to Adam, but now he had usurped it again. But the Kingdom of Aluahiym could not be given to Satan; it was withdrawn to heaven until another Man could win it back (see 3:15). Their eyes were only opened to their guilt, and they were therefore just like the serpent (rather than just like Aluahiym) in this regard. Fig leaves: Does this mean it was a fig tree they ate from? Quite possibly, for the real issue was not necessarily the kind of fruit, as if it held some magic or poison, but the fact that this was a test: did they love Aluahiym or not? She had only one prohibition; would she incline toward obedience or toward the whisperer and what her heart was telling her she needed? They were trying to pretend they were not really naked after all (compare Rev. 3:17) rather than admitting guilt and doing something about it. If this tree was the fig, the tree of life (etz chayim) would be the grapevine, for the Kingdom will be characterized by everyone sitting under his own vine and his own fig tree. It is no small thing, then, that we greet one another with "L'chayim!"--to life!--when we drink the fruit of the vine. It is to be a reminder that we are heading back toward the tree of life.

3:8 They heard the Voice [Word] of YaHuWaH Aluahiym walking in the garden in the breezy part of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the face of YaHuWaH Aluahiym among the trees of the garden.

Sound: or voice. Breezy part: literally "ruwach". This seems to have been a special time when He would regularly visit them. Face: or presence. They even used camouflage to blend in with the trees, as if it was natural to know evil. Interestingly enough, trees are often a symbol for people in Scripture. Maybe He would not see them. This is the very reason the Babylonians would not voice the names of their ruling spirits, and the Jews brought this practice back from Babel.

3:9  YaHuWaH Aluahiym called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?”

It was not that He needed to know; He wanted the man and woman to stop and take stock of their condition. Each year forty days before Yom Kippur, we begin a special time of self-examination to inquire about where we stand.

3:10 The man said, “I heard your Voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.”

Heard your voice: yet his response makes it clear that he really only heard the noise, not what He was really saying. (Voice and sound are the same word in Hebrew, and this suggests a connection with the sound of the shofar blown each day as the Day of Atonement approaches, reminding us of our need for YaHuWaH's covering--the Hebrew meaning of atonement; cf. Rev. 3:17ff). I am naked: not "I was". Though he was now physically clothed, every aspect of his being came to be out of balance. Hid: or withdrew. The Hebrew word is khaba’. If we change the final alef to the letter beyth, which means “house”, we get a word that means “hide away” in the sense of cherishing. The difference between hiding oneself and hiding away in YaHuWaH’s love is one of motivation—are we about ourselves or about His House? Adam was a member of YaHuWaH’s household, but went out and got mixed up with the whisperer, who turned his priorities toward interest in his own prestige instead. We were made to experience pleasure, yet to exist for YaHuWaH’s pleasure as well. (Rev. 4:11) To experience His presence is pleasure, yet that is just what they ran from. When we are in His presence, He is pleased, and everyone benefits; if not, we are intimate with Ra.

3:11 Aluahiym said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”

His fatherly prohibition had been intended to preclude such a predicament, not to withhold anything beneficial from them. By asking him the question, YaHuWaH gave him the option of owning up. Though difficult at first, confession ultimately frees us from the weight of the guilt and strengthens us so we can more easily say “no” the next time and strengthen others against temptation as well. Had he admitted his fault, his penalty might have been reversed, or at least mitigated like David's. Instead, he presented himself as the victim and ultimately laid the blame on YaHuWaH:

3:12 The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”

"The light shone in darkness, but the darkness did not overcome it (or admit it)." (Yahuwchanan 1:1-5) A failure to "admit" the light would parallel another mystical metaphor, that of golden light being poured into earthen vessels (a metaphor for humanity, cf. 2 Corinthians 4:7) and causing them to shatter because it is too intense. Adam and Hhawah desired something that they could not contain. The job of Ysra'al, the mystics say, is to regather the millions of shards of light from wherever they are found and reassemble the fallen Adam. They couch this idea in another metaphor, that of the "Most Ancient Adam", a symbolic "body" built of all the isolated aspects of Aluahiym's image--that "point of light" (in 1:2, 3) refracted into many different colors so we could know Him in many ways. But although "all the king's men" have tried unsuccessfully to do put him back together again, "Ysra'al" (the entity ordained to bring the restoration) is also one title of the Mashiyach (promised in v. 15 below), who would indeed make this regathering of Adam's seed possible. Understanding this imagery makes Rav Sha'ul's deep teachings understandable, for he ties all of these metaphors together by describing YaHuWSHuWaH the Mashiyach as "the second Man" (1 Cor. 15:47) and "the last Adam" (15:45), as well as the "firstfruits" and the "head of the body, those called out" (Col. 1:18). The head is what is born first, and the word "first" in Hebrew is based on "head". After him comes the rest of the body; it is our job to complete the picture of recovering what Adam lost. This is the theme of the rest of Scripture, though the account runs on “fast forward” until it reaches the beginning-point of Ysra'al, the exception to the rule of "vanity of vanities" which began here in the garden, and the embodiment of YaHuWaH's glorious solution to this tragedy. He finishes His work of repair by again pouring the same "light that shone out of darkness" into once-shattered human hearts (2 Cor. 4:6). The darkness at the time of YaHuWSHuWaH's death was also a harbinger of this "reconstitution" of the human race--the light that again shone out of this darkness.

3:13 YaHuWaH Aluahiym said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”

The woman said, “The serpent enticed me, and I ate.”

She, too, makes excuses for doing what something in herself wanted. “The devil made me do it” is the same kind of failure to take responsibility, and this, not the initial disobedience, was what earned them such severe punishment.

3:14 YaHuWaH Aluahiym said to the serpent,

“Because you have done this,

you are cursed more than any beast,

and above every animal of the field.

On your belly you shall go,

and you shall eat dust all the days of your life.

Since the serpent did start the process, YaHuWaH sentences it first and most severely. Belly: the part of a reptile’s skin that “bursts forth” to let it moult off. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan adds, “Your feet will be cut off, and you will suffer pain in the casting off of your skin every seven years, and the poison of death will be in your mouth.” Snakes do indeed have what appears to be the vestiges of bones at the point where lizards have legs.

3:15 I will create hatred between you and the woman,

and between your seed and her Seed.

He will bruise your head though you will you will bruise His heel.

[and hostility I sat down between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed, he will fall upon you a head and you will fall upon him a heel..] RMT

[And enmity I will put between you and between the woman and between your seed and between her seed, (s)he (הוא)will crush your head while you will strike at the heel.]

Heel: aqeb, which can also mean "rear guard of the troops", reminding us of Amaleq, who attacked those in the rear who were weak or slack. (Exodus 17:8) The myth of Achilles' heel probably originated from a memory of this promise. Ya'aqob’s name is also based on this word for “heel”. In crucifixion, one's heel was literally worn away as he pushed himself up to breathe. The theme of the serpent's seed is picked up again in MatithYahuw 3:7 and Yahuwchanan 8:44. The serpent's seed almost crowded out the human, but Aluahiym preserved it (Gen. 6:4, 9), The seed normally comes from the male, but if the Gospel accounts as we now have them are still correct, Mashiyach did not have the seed of man in him. Geneticists have found that the reproductive cells carried by women are actually immortal until they are "poisoned" at fertilization by something carried by the sperm. Arthur Custance suggested that this may be due to a mutation acquired from the forbidden fruit itself which affects both genders but is carried only by the male. By being the "seed of woman" apart from a man, the Mashiyach could be free from this, and thereby be back on the same footing as Adam had until he became righteous instead of merely innocent by passing the same tests Adam failed. When haSatan the usurper was allowed to kill this Second Man, he lost his legal rights to earth, for he had become a murderer by killing one who had no sentence of death on him, since he had not sinned. Thus the legal deed to the earth could be given back to a Man. Thus, as Adam’s sin put us all on the wrong footing, Mashiyach’s obedience can set us back on the road to recovery. (1 Yahuwchanan 3:9; Yasha. 53:10, 11; Romans 8:29; Heb. 2:10)

3:16 To the woman he said,

“I will greatly increase your pain in childbirth.

In pain you will bring forth children.

Your desire/ambition will be for your husband (authority),

but he will rule over you.”

Increase: since, due to the presence of death, mankind would now have to replace itself each generation, not just fill the earth once. "Desire" can mean "ambition"; she would strive for dominance over him--for his position--but would not achieve it. She chose to use her inclination toward her husband to oppose him rather than help him, so now the balance is tipped against her. Today’s effort to put women on equal footing with their husbands must take this into account. She knew first that she was naked, and yet still chose to pass this on to him, and she has a price to pay for that. But 1 Tim. 2:15 says the woman's salvation comes through her bearing children, so the remedy is included right in the punishment. Simply overlooking it could never demonstrate YaHuWaH’s mercy as well as this, for this actually gave her a way to learn to overcome the other desire that had gotten her into this initial trouble.

3:17 To Adam he said,

 [Adam is a compound word of Al and Dam, which means the blood of Al, in the flesh. So as the first blood of Al fell, it took the second blood of Al, YaHuWSHuWaH, as a savior.]

“Because you have listened to your wife’s voice, and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground for your sake. In toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.

YaHuWaH had given Adam her voice to add to his insight, but it is never meant to override YaHuWaH’s voice. If “the other side of the coin” is in any way contrary to His word, it is the man’s responsibility to shut down his wife’s voice in that regard. King Ahab also listened to his wife Yisabel's advice and killed a man so he could have, of all things, a garden. But the serpent was the prototype for Yisabel (Jezebel), for “she” wanted her garden back. Ground: the feminine version of Adam in Hebrew. Thus, not the Garden, but “mother earth” out of which he had come, was also cursed (giving us even less reason to worship it), for he listened to what the world said rather than YaHuWaH’s word.

3:18 Thorns also and thistles will it bring forth to you;

and you will eat the herb of the field.

The thorns seem more to be a statement about the course nature must now take, rather than a curse in themselves. They result when an area once cultivated by man is abandoned again to nature. (Custance) Aluahiym's mercy does shine through in that He did not rescind provision of food, but it would no longer come with the ease or joy he knew in the garden. Barley and wheat, the staples of the Ysra'alite diet, are actually grasses—from the ground rather than from the trees. The first two pilgrimage festivals actually focus on these two grains; only the third focuses on fruit, for Sukkoth is about the healing of the nations (which lies in the leaves of the tree of life) and is thus a foretaste of being back in the Garden. In the days to come, the tree of life will bear fruit year-round; now we are only given one season to remember Eden. The rest of the time we are reminded of the curse so we can deal with its causes. Because of our trading (which was how the King of Tzur, who was reminiscent of haSatan, profaned the whole world, according to Y’hezq’el 28:16), we are able to have any fruit at any time of the year that we wish, perpetuating the myth that we are “like Aluahiym”. 

3:19 By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Unfallen man, with no fears or emotional stress and a perfect physical efficiency, must have had a slower metabolic rate and hence little need for sweat. (Custance) Animals react to us with hostility chiefly because they detect sweat, whereas they are friendlier toward children who do not know enough yet to fear them. Linen garments, which symbolize purity, do not produce sweat (Y’hezq’el 44:18), and that is what will be given to the saints in the resurrection. The intensity of the Mashiyach's sweat (Luk. 22:44) made the true bread (Yahuwchanan 6:50ff) available to us again. Dust: the very thing the serpent was told he would consume (v. 14), and in a way it did so.

3:20 The man called his wife Huwah , because she was the mother of all who are alive.

It was not Huwah who ate the fruit (for she had not yet been named that yet); Ishah did. Adam now changed her name, and it was no longer a feminine version of his. Now her name is related to the word chai, meaning "life" or "alive".  She had not yet had any children of her own. So "mother" may have been metaphorical at this point. As Adam was the gardener, perhaps she was more involved in animal husbandry--a division of labor we see in their first two sons. But if the word “alive” is read as “living creatures” (as it is the same word used in verse 1), this is not a compliment at all, for it suggests that because of her, their offspring would be like the beasts of the field—as some have indeed turned out to be.

 3:21YaHuWaH Aluahiym made coats of skins for Adam and for his wife, and clothed them. 

(This implies that YaHuWaH performed the very first slaughter in the presence of Adam and Hawah. To typify the necessity to shed blood for the sin of disobedience and to "cover" [labash - H-3847] ones nakedness.) [WaYiqra 1:6 He shall skin the burnt offering, and cut it into pieces. ….  7:8 The priest who offers any man’s burnt offering, even the priest shall have for himself the skin of the burnt offering which he has offered. ]

Fig leaves were the worst thing to wear, because they secrete juices that are strong enough to eat holes in the skin if left there long enough! Skin: possibly of an animal that He slaughtered so its blood could provide temporary atonement, or simply skin as we now know it: what formerly ran through their veins was more like light, and their bodies held a glow which was now missing. Blood as we now know it, which carries the soul in it, is the corrupted form of this light which bore Aluahiym's image in a much fuller way. The words for "light" and "skin" sound the same in Hebrew (owr), though they have a different spelling. So we could say their lack of "’owr" was covered up with "owr". The word used in Aramaic also means “chaff”—that which covers the edible part of the wheat. Now the fact that we were ever in YaHuWaH’s presence is hidden (as Moshah’s face shone after having been in YaHuWaH's presence, Ex. 34:30ff; 2 Cor. 3:7ff.) Guilt needs to be covered, but this creates a useless layer between ourselves and Him. Adam could have offered to hunt down and destroy the serpent or do whatever he needed to do to demonstrate repentance, but instead he just decided to suffer whatever he needed to instead of actually repenting, so his light was diminished by this extra layer. YaHuWSHuWaH did not try to find a way around his suffering once he knew there was none. He had no “chaff” obscuring his connection to the Father, so he could be the “light of the world”. We can be, too, if we are after obedience no matter what. Removing this chaff, we can again be “naked and not ashamed”. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan says YaHuWaH clothed them with the skin that the serpent had cast off. In fact, the high priest’s breastplate does bear a strong resemblance to what this creature had looked like in Eden. (Compare Y’hezq’el 28:13 with Exodus 28:17ff; along with Revelation 21, we can see the common theme of the divesting and replacement of rebellious Heylel with Ysra'al through its Mashiyach, just as Hadassah/Esther replaced the disobedient queen Vashti.) Like Adam, the high priest stood as a representative of a whole people, and thus restored his original position to the greatest extent possible prior to the Messianic Kingdom.

3:22 YaHuWaH Aluahiym said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. Now, lest he put forth his hand, and also take of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever...” 

They now officially had intimate knowledge of evil, yet were they satisfied? Look where it got them! YaHuWaH did not want him to remain in that double-minded state forever, so He mercifully kept us from eating of the tree of life until the process of true repentance had been brought to fruition. If he could live forever without having to stop sinning, what motivation would he have? YaHuWaH had opened every door to repent, and he did not, so why should He make it easy on us any longer? We have to learn just how evil the “Ra” we had chosen really is. He hopes that by finding out just how everything else treats us, we will want Him again, like the Prodigal Son. David got the point: “It is better to be a doorkeeper in YaHuWaH’s house than to dwell in the tents of Wickedness.” (Psalm 84:10) However, there are ways in which we can get tiny tastes of it during the journey back. In the Torah, YaHuWaH says, He sets the choice of life or death in front of us—and our seed! (Deut. 30:19; cf. v. 15 above.) If we choose obedience now, at whatever point we are, we can start heading back toward life. But the book of Proverbs calls several other things a tree of life: wisdom (3:18); the fruit of the righteous (11:30, where it is compared to the wisdom of acquiring souls, as Abraham did in Gen. 12:5, which became his household and community, his “true brothers and sisters and mother”); the reaching of what is desired (13:12, as contrasted with deferred hope); and a healing tongue (15:4). And YaHuWSHuWaH promises that the one who overcomes libertarian doctrines and returns to the first love from which he had fallen, doing his first deeds again, can eat of the tree of life. (Rev. 2:7)

3:23 ThereforeYaHuWaH Aluahiym sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. 

Adam could have direct communication with YaHuWaH before he decided he wanted to be an independent moral agent. Now he was divorced as haSatan had been. The communication line was cut. Now only YaHuWaH's Word came to mankind, because His direct presence would destroy us. Now that the price has been paid, the Ruwach of Mashiyach gives us a temporary connection for more direct revelation until we again become a complete Adam.

 3:24 So he drove out the man; and he placed keruwbiym from the east to the garden of Eden, and the flame of a sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the Tree of Life.

Kh’ruvim: a class of Messengers associated with guarding Set-apart places (like the Most Set-apart of the Temple--which is the way YaHuWaH gave us to get back to the Tree of Life). They are more like winged sphinxes than the unthreatening baby "cherubs" of  Western art, though they are also innocent like children. From the east: or, possibly, from the ancient (world that had preceded this one). Notice YaHuWaH's mercy in not allowing mankind's bodies to become immortal by eating of the Tree of Life in their fallen condition. He thus gave them hope of regaining their lost estate when they would die physically. (Rev. 22:2 seems to say the Tree of Life, to be restored when the curse is gone, is a species that will bear a different kind of fruit each new moon, and says its leaves are for the healing of the nations. So it may be that the tree had to be eaten of on any occasion of injury in order to maintain life rather than making the eater immortal once and for all.) The Gihon (2:10-14) originates just east of Yahrushalum. So this is another evidence that Eden was right there above it. (See note on 2:10.) Targum Pseudo-Jonathan on verse 23 said Adam went and settled on Mount Moriyah, which is where the Temple would later sit. Revelation 21 speaks of a Heavenly Yahrushalum, and Hebrews 9:8-24 tells us that the Temple on earth was a copy or shadow of the one above it. Thus YaHuWaH would have shown His greatest pictures of redemption--the provision of a ram in place of Yitzhaq (22:8-14) and the Temple offerings (an exact replica of what is in heaven, Heb. 8:5)--at the same location, and set in motion the final solution for the problems Adam started on another "tree" which was erected on this same mountain! He stipulated that pictures of kh’ruvim be woven into the veil guarding the way to the Set-apart of Set-aparts to strengthen this reminder of what it was all about. The main gate to the Temple was visible from another garden directly east of the city, where the final battle for the restoration of Ysra'al was won, and Messengers participated in that drama. (Markos 14:32-36) Though the main gate to Eden is closed off, there is another way back to fellowship with YaHuWaH, but it is a long, roundabout one. As the eastern gate to Yahrushalum (see photo above) is now blocked off, and in YaHuWSHuWaH's day the Temple was usually entered from the south after a ritual washing, entering through long tunnels and crossing a wide courtyard, likewise, after repentance, the cleansing by YaHuWSHuWaH's blood, dying to self, and re-learning the right patterns of life through the Torah, we are only then back at the starting point for what it really means to worship YaHuWaH. In Jewish tradition, Adam continued to ritually bathe in the rivers that flowed out from Eden, thereby maintaining a connection to it. The Tree of Life is hidden until we (corporately) are obedient. No single one of us can experience it. But as we at least one aspect of what keeps us from it is time, an illusion that would have meant nothing had Adam remained immortal. Now that he had only one “day”—no more than 1,000 years—left to live, suddenly time mattered. He could not live forever. Time limited him. Paradoxically, the way YaHuWaH gives us to get back to it is His appointed times. There we are in His presence again in a limited way. By walking in the proper times we can get a taste of eternity again, and thus can eventually overcome time. Obedience is what kept us in the Garden. If we want to hear His voice again, we can do so if we walk in the Torah where it has been recorded. It might not be as spectacular as some alternatives available today, but it will be real. The Torah is to be guarded like the Garden, and it is what teaches us to love YaHuWaH’s presence again. It even holds the command not to eat of the fruit of trees for a certain period (Lev. 19:23ff)—a vivid reminder of where we came from and a test of whether we will obey this time. It teaches us to establish community, where we can be closer to Him more often. As we work toward establishing a better resting place for Him, it no longer matters if we die, because we can enter back in by means of resurrection, if we have made the right choices while we live. Our hope is in YaHuWSHuWaH’s resurrection, insofar as it was one part of the path back to the lost relationship with YaHuWaH. But we cannot take it as something that cancels our responsibility, write our own version of the contract on that basis, and expect YaHuWaH to honor it if He never signed it as well! He has covenant only with Ysra'al, but as we become part of that entity, we can, as a restored Adam, a unified new man, return to what the ancient Adam lost.

4:1 The man knew Hhawah his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Qayin, and she said, “I acquired a man ((at))  YaHuWaH.” (I have acquired a man, specifically YaHuWaH)

[some translate this text like this: Now, the man having come to know Hhawah his wife -- she conceived, and bare Qayin, and said, I have gotten a Man, even YaHuWaH! or "I have acquired a man, specifically YaHuWaH"]

They were obedient to the command to be fruitful. YaHuWSHuWaH also constantly spoke about planting the seeds of the Kingdom, and emphasized how important it is to have the right kind of ground—community—to grow it in. The Torah teaches us how to discern the soils and, to change the analogy, how to operate as a team in synchronized motion so as not to waste our efforts in getting back to the Garden. Because Hhawah did not take responsibility for her wrongdoing, childbirth became painful for her. To expand her family requires contractions! The time just prior to Ysra'al’s return to the Land is called “the birthpangs of the Mashiyach”. Even those who go down to the dust (a reference to the curse in chapter 3) will worship Him; those who cannot live on into the Kingdom will be represented by their seed as if they themselves were there. (Psalm 22:28-31) A child will be born who will know to refuse the evil and choose what is right—the opposite of what took place in the Garden. He will eat curds—the result of separating the solids and liquids in milk. (YashaYahuw 7:14-25) Milk is a picture of the Torah (1 Keyfa 2:2) By rightly dividing the Word of YaHuWaH, we can learn to not be intimate with evil. As at creation, all will be shaken out of place as this “woman” is in childbirth, bringing great desolation to those who are not walking in Torah. (YashaYahuw 13:6-13) This cleansing must take place before the proper rule can be established in the earth. Be sure you are on the right side! It will seem like we cannot accomplish the delivery, the job that we know has been given to us; we need the rest of Ysra'al, so YaHuWaH will raise those who have died in order to complete the army so we have enough to subdue the earth. (YashaYahuw 26:17-19; compare Y’hezq’el 37:1-14) That is the purpose of the resurrection. The Mashiyach himself came forth before the labor pains began (and his mother may have escaped some of the curse of such suffering, for she was called “most blessed among women”). But there are plural children yet to be born as soon as the labor begins. Streams that went out from Yahrushalum will flow back to it from all the nations. (YashaYahuw 66:7-12) The Labor pains—or at least the “false labor” that conditions the body to give birth—have begun already. There is still much vengeance and retribution for the earth to go through, but the children of Tsiyon are already being revealed. Our numbers seem very few now, for it is contraction that brings about the birth; but one day there will be too many to fit in the Land of Ysra'al. (YashaYahuw 49:18-22) If YaHuWaH has to do such damage to the earth so that His children will be born, then He will not close up the womb. He will not stop the progress until it is accomplished. We are created for intimacy with YaHuWaH, and when we are pleased to be pleasing Him, we are maturing and on the road back toward the Garden. With YaHuWaH: i.e., with His help; she thought he might already be the redeeming seed promised in 3:15, but the right time was not to come for another 4,000 years. Qayin means "possession", and is related to the word "acquired" here.

 4:2 Again she continued to bear, Qayin,’s brother Hebel. (implies twins ?) Hebel was a keeper of sheep, but Qayin, was a tiller of the ground.

A "keeper of flocks" also symbolically means one who watches over the welfare of others (see v. 9), while Qayin was literally a "servant of the ground" (see v. 5) This is what false prophets will claim to be when they begin to be punished. (Zkh. 13:5) 

4:3 As time passed  it happened that Qayin, brought an offering to YaHuWaH from the fruit of the ground (earth).

(Course of time: literally, "from the utmost end of days",  so this is a prophecy of something to come later as well. According to Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, a widely-held opinion in the second Temple period was that this took place on the 14th of Nisan, the day on which the Passover lamb would later be slain, and just before the day that would later be the firstfruits of the barley harvest. As the expansion seen in chapters 1-2 is beginning to reverse in our day, unity is the byword, and it will take place on both the "heavenly" and "earthly" levels, so that while all of true Ysra'al unites, all that is not Ysra'al will also unify against it, so that in the end there are only two real entities, symbolized here by these two brothers, one of whom has his eyes on YaHuWaH, and the other who worships the earth and his own skillfulness. This is the essence of the "beast" of Revelation. ....  It was not even the fruit of a tree, but directly from the ground, which is precisely what was cursed. This tells us that YaHuWaH only pays attention when we bring Him our first and best. 

 4:4 Hebel also brought some of the firstborn of his flock and of its fat.  YaHuWaH had regard for Hebel and his offering,

[Both knew that blood had to be shed in the offering to Yahuwah]  Had regard for: paid attention to, respected, gazed long upon (with satisfaction); Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, turned a friendly face to.

 4:5 but He showed not regard for Qayin, and his offering. Qayin, burned greatly with angry, and the expression on his face fell. 

Nothing is directly said about slaughter here, but it is likely that this was the form this tribute took, as it later would in the Temple. Although Qayin was not a shepherd like Hebel, both had to shed blood (Heb. 9:22). Nothing originating from earth can substitute for the payment of the soul, which is given by Aluahiym, and contained in the blood (Lev. 17:11). Downcast: not toward YaHuWaH but toward the ground that he served (v. 2). He had a “long face”! He took his eyes off the giver and onto the gift--the classic root of all idolatry, which does not always despise YaHuWaH, but sidelines Him.

4:6   YaHuWaH said to Qayin,, “Why are you angry? Why has the expression of your face fallen? 4:7 If you do well/better, will it not be lifted up? If you do not do well/better, sin crouches at the door. Its desire is for you, but you are to rule over it.”

Yahuwdah (Jude) 11 ties Qayin's sin to Bila'am's greediness and Korach's slander of properly-constituted authority. The opening or door was the place on which the lamb's blood was later applied in order to keep the death angel from one's house (Exodus 12:7). Crouching: ready to pounce like a lion, not just lying there idly. If he did not deal with the one sin that was blocking the opening to the tent of meeting with YaHuWaH (lack of repentance), a worse one waited to devour him. He paved the way for the next sin by not undoing the first. Whatever sin we perpetrate on others will wait to eat us up if we do not do better, just as Pharaoh’s slaughter of innocent boys led to his own firstborn son having to die. Rule over it: Note the similarity to 3:16.

4:8 But Qayin challenged Hebel, his brother,  and it happened when they were in the field, that Qayin, rose up against Hebel, his brother, and murdered him.

Challenged: or simply, spoke to. “You think you’re special, don’t you?!” Why does he speak to him if he wants him dead? We can kill in more than one way. The rabbis say that if we bring the blood to someone’s face (by shaming him undeservedly), it is tantamount to shedding his blood. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Prov. 18:21) Targum Pseudo-Jonathan says Qayin complained to his brother that his judgment was unjust, but Hebel said YaHuWaH’s favor was his because the fruit of his deeds was better and more prompt. Then Qayin drove a stone through his forehead.

4:9   YaHuWaH said to Qayin, “Where is Hebel, your brother?”

He said, “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper [as in shepherd]?”

Where? Again, YaHuWaH already knows the answer, but wants him to see where he stands. Instead, this first child ever born already exhibits the human tendency to lie. Am I my brother’s keeper? This is the most profound question in Scripture, and the rest of Scripture is YaHuWaH’s answer to it: absolutely! Not everyone is our brother, but if we have the same father (YaHuWaH) and mother (Torah), we are indeed responsible for one another. Keeper: or guard. We guard the Torah by guarding one another, and vice versa. We don’t naturally like being guarded or having to watch out for one another, but when the trouble is obvious, like on a battlefield, we are more ready to do so. We have to get the weapons out of the hands of those who are inept or immature so that they do not kill themselves, and we must guard them from anyone else who may wish to harm them. If Aharon had stopped Moshah from striking the rock a second time, he, too, probably would have been able to enter the Promised Land.

4:10   YaHuWaH said, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries to Me from the ground.

Who will take care of Hebel’s sheep now? How will you make that better? You are their keeper now, too! Blood cries out: This is the first mention of blood in Scripture, and we are told that when it is in the earth it makes a sound that YaHuWaH can hear. Once we realize we can remove the life by letting the blood go, everything changes. Blood is bright red, and gets our attention effectively. It speaks to us and tells us there is big trouble! Part of the purpose of the blood is so that we can be spoken to. Such an outcry is seen again in 6:13 and 18:20, as well as in Rev. 6:9ff. All unjustly-spilled blood will be disclosed, and YaHuWaH will bring about complete justice for these victims at a time like the first Passover (Ex. 12:21ff), as the birthpangs of the nation begin again, when He tells us to go into our rooms and shut the door until His indignation is past, so that the destroyer cannot affect us. (YashaYahuw 26:20-21) Passover cannot be done alone; it is an event that must be shared with a number of intimates. The place of safety is in community. The purpose of Passover is to prepare our children to ride out the birthpangs. When the plagues began, all Ysra'al assembled in Goshen after having been spread throughout all Mitsrayim. When the plagues begin this time, the door to regather will be opened again.

 4:11 Now you are cursed even more than the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 4:12 From now on, when you till the ground, it won’t yield its strength to you. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth.”

This curse has a name: exile. The Deluge would come because men were violent against each other; the sages say the Temple was destroyed because brothers hated one another for no reason, but were only interested in having their own opinions heard. We, too, have been in exile for 2,730 years. Do we want to go home? If we do right, won’t we also be accepted? (See Y’hezq’el 3:17-21; 18:4-24) That can be the end of the story--if we allow it to be.

4:13  Qayin, said to YaHuWaH, “My punishment is greater than I can bear. 4:14 Behold, You have driven me out this day from the surface of the ground. I will be hidden from Your face, and I will be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth. It will happen that whoever finds me will kill me.”

So despite his pride and stubbornness, Qayin really did enjoy YaHuWaH’s presence. He understands that there is safety there, yet still does not take responsibility. Anyone: literally, "everyone"! Of course, he might live to see many more people born, but who was there at this time but his own parents? They would have to be his judges, and like Ribqah (27:45), they would be expected to have to do justice and thus see both of their sons die the same day. Who else there might be to kill him, we do not know, but he knew that being away from YaHuWaH’s presence would mean trouble. But YaHuWaH would not let him use this as leverage against Him.

4:15   YaHuWaH said to him, “Therefore whoever slays Qayin,, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold.” YaHuWaH set a mark on Qayin, lest any finding him should kill him.  (this is the first "mark" of the "beast" - in Rev. at the end time, we have the second "mark of the Beast")

Yet though out of His presence, he still had YaHuWaH’s watch-care. A mark on the forehead is seen as a special seal of protection in Song of Songs 8:6; Yahuwchanan 6:27; 2 Tim. 2:19; Eph. 4:13; Rev. 7:3. In Y'Hezq'el/Ezekiel 8 and 9, the mark of protection is given to those who do not participate in the prototypes of "Easter" sunrise services, but rather lament them, and they are passed over like those spared at Passover when YaHuWaH's wrath came on the idolaters. Thus Qayin, the man who would not kill a lamb, had to be taught the "way of Passover".

4:16  Qayin, went out from YaHuWaH's presence, and lived in the land of Nowd, east of Eden.

Presence of YaHuWaH: geographically, the place bearing His name (Deut. 26:2; 2 Chron. 6:20). “Nod” means vagrancy, exile, wandering. Though Adam and Hhawah had sinned, they had a goal to work back toward; Qayin’s life was now aimless.

 4:17  Qayin, knew his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Chanowk. He built a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Chanowk.

 Chanokh: Early cities were often named for their first settler, 11:32. Near eastern documents added a cuneiform notation to a proper name if it referred to a city, except in the case of Unuk, which is linguistically similar to Chanokh (Enoch). If it were the only city in existence when built, no such classifier would have been needed. This name also ties directly to the word for city in earlier languages (Uruk > Ur > Ir). The Deluge would have destroyed the original, but it was common to rebuild on an ancient site. But the significance of Chanokh’s name may be that it is the root from which we derive Hanukkah, and means “dedicated”. Was Qayin starting to learn from his mistakes after all by dedicating his own firstborn to YaHuWaH? Or was he building a permanent settlement to try to break the curse of having to wander all his days? Even if so, he would have to guard a city, and in learning to guard, he would bring reparation for his unwillingness to guard his brother. (v. 9) The purpose of our exile is that we will learn to repent.

 4:18 To Chanowk was born Iyrad. Iyrad became the father of Mechuwya'el [smitten of Aluahiym]. Mechuwya'el [one of the few men associated with Aluahiym] became the father of Methuwsha'el. Methuwsha'el became the father of Lemek [Desparing]. 4:19 Lemek took two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Tsillah. 4:20 Adah gave birth to Yabal [Conduct], who was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock.

Wasn’t Hebel the first who had livestock? Yes, but he regarded them as something to protect rather than a possession to acquire. Actually, the term used here could simply mean he began to acquire possessions; alternately it could mean “live in tents along with his livestock”!

 4:21 His brother’s name was Yuwbal, who was the father of all who handle the harp and pipe. 

Yubal: the root word for "jubilation" and the year of release; probably tied more to lively music here. Pipe: probably the bagpipe.

4:22 Tsillah also gave birth to Tuwbal Qayin,, the forger of every cutting instrument of brass and iron. Tuwbal Kayin’s sister was Na'amah.

The relative strength of the earliest patriarchs would make them seem like gods to "descendants" who were showing signs of the gradually-debilitating fall into sin. Hammerer of every engraving tool: or, instructor/sharpener of every craftsman working in bronze and iron. THUVAL-QAYIN was probably the real personage behind the legend of Vulcan, the god of fire and metal-forge, the smith of the Roman TUBIListrum. In other words, his reputation grew larger than life, possibly because he taught the skills needed by those who wanted to make idols. Qayin means "smith", and near eastern smiths even today refer to iron splinters struck off the anvil as "TUBAL". The Sumerian word for "iron" is BARZILLU, the Assyro-Babylonian way to say "son of Tsillah". (The Hebrew word for iron is similar: barzel.) The three names Yabal, Yubal, and Thubal all share the same root word, meaning “flowing” or “a stream of water”. Were these “three streams” flowing from Lamekh a counterfeit of the four flowing from Eden? Or is there a fourth, and these occupations that made the construction of YaHuWaH’s dwelling place (a tent, livestock, music, and metal-working) a picture of the way back to Eden? Since Qayin was barred from agriculture, all of these descendants of his invented alternative occupations, all of them designed to make life in exile easier, thus in a sense escaping the curse. But Adam, while continuing to till the soil, would have a constant reminder of what he had lost and, as he humbly submitted to his punishment, would be reminded of the hope of redemption his seed would one day bring.

 4:23 Lemek said to his wives,

“Adah and Tsillah, hear my voice.

You wives of Lemek, listen to my speech,

for I have slain a man for wounding me,

a young man for bruising me.

4:24 If Qayin, will be avenged seven times,

truly Lemek seventy-seven times.”

Tradition says the man he killed was Qayin (based on his statement in v. 24). For wounding me: or, to my wounding…to my hurt.

4:25 Adam knew his wife again. She gave birth to a son, and named him Sheth, “for Aluahiym has appointed me another seed instead of Hebel, for Qayin, killed him.” 

Does this mean Hhawah thought the redemptive seed was Hebel rather than Qayin, or only that Qayin disqualified himself? In any case, a replacement is now granted for the one that was killed, for since Qayin had also left home, she was without seed until Sheth was born. This goes along very well with the Jewish tradition that the first Mashiyach would be killed in battle (in his case, spiritual battle), and a second Mashiyach would come and reign permanently. In YaHuWSHuWaH's case they are one and the same (since Miryam is dead, and both Mashiyachs, according to this foreshadowing, have to come from the same mother!), but Hebel and Sheth played out a rehearsal of this theme. Paul also often compares YaHuWSHuWaH to Adam, since he took the place of the one who fell and thus "died" to any right he had to rule the earth. YaHuWSHuWaH is called "the second man" and the "last Adam" (1 Cor. 15:45-47). Aluahiym is the title used here, unlike YaHuWaH in v. 1 at Qayin's birth, because Aluahiym is the name used when emphasizing His judgment and justice. Sheth is now the one through whom the promised seed (3:15) will pass. 5:3 tells us how long a time this chapter covers.

[Year 235 / 3765 BCE]

 4:26 There was also born a son to Sheth, and he named him Enowsh. Then men began to call on YaHuWaH's Name.

Those who had not had a direct experience of YaHuWaH (as Adam and Hhawah had) began to call on His name as a result of Sheth naming his son Enosh (which means "mortal", "frail", or "fragile"). Those who recognize their frailty commonly do turn to the help that He provides. Calling on His name particularly as YaHuWaH has only been widely restored in the past few years. What momentous results will this have spiritually?

5:1 This is the book of the genealogies of Adam. In the day that Aluahiym created man, He made him in Aluahiym’s likeness. 

This term "genealogies" (tol’doth) --also translatable as "births", "generations", or "history" is found throughout the book and in Num. 3:1, as well as in Matt. 1:1. In Aramaic it is translated as “pedigree” or “line”. Its repeated use may indicate that what preceded each one was an account appended by the person named therein (Adam wrote chapters 1-4, etc.), with the possible exception of notations later added to Terach's, possibly by Abraham. Moshah, the redactor and editor, would simply have completed the account. In that case, most of Genesis was written by eyewitnesses. Josephus writes, "Those who then lived...noted...with great accuracy, both the births and deaths of illustrious men." The scrolls would undoubtedly have been given to Abraham by Shem (Melkhitzedeq) then kept safe while in Mistrayim by the Levites, who maintained more freedom than the rest of Ysra'al, as evidenced by Aharon’s being able to leave at will to go meet Moshah in the desert. After its initial use in 2:4 (generations), before the fall of Adam, from this verse on ward, it is spelled “defectively”, that is, missing the second “[waw]”, which does not change the pronunciation. The “[waw]”, which has the numeric value of six, and therefore represents a man, is restored only in Ruth 4:18, after the blessing of being like Peretz is given to Ruth (4:12), for Peretz was also one who carried on the line from which Mashiyach would eventually come after it appeared to have been cut off. The word “[waw]” means a hook, and reminds us of the peg on which David’s lineage is said to hang (YashaYahuw 22:23-24)—for this was made possible through these two restorations of the royal line.

5:2 He created them male and female, and blessed them, and He called their name (at) “Adam,” in the day when they were created.

Note the interplay between the description of Adam as both "him" and "them". The two together were counted as one entity. Thus we see that the likeness of Aluahiym is only seen in its fullness when both male and female are present. Both aspects are seen in YaHuWaH. Some of His titles even reflect the combination of the two: Al Shaddai describes Him as both a stern judge and a breast that is adequate to nourish His children. The pagans had goddesses of fertility, but we do not need statues, for YaHuWaH provides all we need. The name YaHuWaH means He will be whatever He needs to be at the moment. It too is a nurturing name, but when attached to Tz’baoth (armies), it brings back the balance we need to view Him as, and imitate. For Ysra'al to finish forming the restored image--the second Adam of which Mashiyach is the head--and then return to Eden, we must have the proper balance brought by both sides—judgment in mercy and mercy in judgment, in the right measures. YaHuWaH wants to dwell in an orderly place. We cannot walk properly without balance. In order to be in balance, we must weigh everything out. The Torah already represents the perfect balance. The more we die to self, the closer we can come to that balance. The things not directly covered by Torah must be weighed out by seeing how they fit together and considering more than just how they will affect “me and mine”. The Hebrew word for weigh is shaqal, from which we derive sheqel, which is actually a particular weight in silver. The half-sheqel Temple tax demonstrates how we always need another Ysra'alite to complete us. Being joined to community sets our individual idiosyncrasies straight, keeping us from “majoring on the minors”; the details of Torah are important, but the people takes priority over the person. Wisdom is the ability to weigh things out and bring balance. Our first thought should be how a prospective action or even thought will affect the congregation or the kingdom as a whole. Wisdom is gained by consuming—and carrying out—the Torah. When YaHuWaH judged, He still provided. When He was seen as all in all, He still went to war. Finding the proper balance may mean helping our enemy’s ox out of a ditch, but then stoning our own offspring if they are rebellious. His ways are not ours. The voice of the serpent still influences us and when we heed it, we get out of balance. It can sound very much like the Torah at times, and will use YaHuWaH’s words against us if possible, just as it tried to do with YaHuWSHuWaH. A key to discerning which is which is that the Torah assigns different weight to the same thing in different seasons. At Passover, deliverance and teaching our children receive the heaviest emphasis; at Sukkoth, it is what will bring most joy that takes priority and can help us determine which course to take. Not working on the Sabbath balances out the working on the other six days; true refreshment can only come on the seventh day. The balancing out simply cannot come on any other day.

5:3 Adam lived one hundred thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him (at) Sheth 

[appointed]. (Ibry dates are reckoned from Sheth's birth.) 

Here Adam carries on what YaHuWaH did with him. It is significant that he did not truly have a son, or "another Adam", until Sheth, for both Qayin and Hebel were lost. Qayin was not in Adam’s likeness; in any case, he was banished, and his descendants are not counted in the book of the genealogy of Adam. But Sheth did resemble him, and carried in him "the Seed" that would later come to fruition in YaHuWSHuWaH as the Head of the Second Adam.

5:4 The days of Adam after he became the father of Sheth were eight hundred years, and he became the father of sons and daughters. 

Yet we do not know their names. Together with Qayin’s line, they made conditions worse for the line that bore the Seed. Even those that were not evil were not as weighty as the firstborn, who inherits a double portion so he can carry out his role as priest (officiator, mediator) to the family in his generation. He was responsible to see that the rest did the right thing. Only one branch of the family in each generation bore this special relationship to YaHuWaH, and they later bring forth a “man whose name is the Branch”. (Zkh. 3:8; 6:12; YashaYahuw 4:2; Yirmeyahuw 23:5; 33:15) This is the Seed that counts. It does not always flow through the physical firstborn, but rather the one who loves the inheritance and will stand up and take charge to ensure that it remains intact (Ya'aqob and Dawiyd being notable examples). 

5:5 All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.

Apparently Hhawah died at the same time as her husband, since “Adam” includes both male and female. (v. 2) He could not live past 1,000 years, for YaHuWaH said that in the day Adam ate of the forbidden fruit, he would die. Psalm 90:4 explains how YaHuWaH saw this: 1,000 years to Him is like yesterday when it is past. It is up to Him whether He will see a day as 1,000 years or as 24 hours. The serpent knew the fullness of death would not come within 24 hours (though they did go through a tremendous loss), and so used the ambiguity of YaHuWaH’s own words to deceive. YaHuWaH chose the definition that allowed for more mercy for these mortals so that they might be cured of what got them expelled. But did men really once live so long? Actually, science now asks why, given the right advances, such bodies as ours should die at all (cf. YashaYahuw 65:20f). Before the Deluge, a thicker atmosphere (cf. 2:6; 9:13) screened out most ultraviolet radiation, and the gene pool had not yet deteriorated far enough for inbreeding to cause genetic debilitation, which required ten generations to take full effect. Men's life expectancy began to stabilize at 120 years (cf. 6:3) 10 generations after Noah.

5:6 Sheth lived one hundred five years, and became the father of (at) Enowsh [mortal danger]. 5:7 Sheth lived after he became the father of (at)Enowsh eight hundred seven years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:8 All the days of Sheth were nine hundred twelve years, then he died.

[Year 325 / 3675 BCE]

5:9 Enowsh lived ninety years, and became the father of (at) Qeynan. [“mournful lamentation”, “to form, build, or nourish”] 5:10 Enowsh lived after he became the father of Qeynan, eight hundred fifteen years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:11 All the days of Enowsh were nine hundred five years, then he died.

[Year 395 / 3605 BCE]

5:12 Qeynan lived seventy years, and became the father of (at) Mahalal'el. 5:13 Qeynan lived after he became the father of Mahalal'el eight hundred forty years, and became the father of sons and daughters 5:14 and all the days of Qeynan were nine hundred ten years, then he died.

The trend of diminishing life-spans has some slight exceptions in Qeynan, Yared, Methushalach, and Noah below.

[Year 460 / 3540 BCE]

5:15 Mahalal'el lived sixty-five years, and became the father of (at) Yared [He shall descend]. 5:16 Mahalal'el lived after he became the father of Yared eight hundred thirty years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:17 All the days of Mahalal'el were eight hundred ninety-five years, then he died.

[Year 622 / 3378 BCE] 

5:18 Yared lived one hundred sixty-two years, and became the father of (at)Chanowk [training, dedicated]. 5:19 Yared lived after he became the father of Chanowk eight hundred years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:20 All the days of Yared were nine hundred sixty-two years, then he died.

[Year 687 / 3313 BCE]

5:21 Chanowk lived sixty-five years, and became the father of (at)Methuwshelach [His death shall send]. 5:22 Chanowk walked with Aluahiym after he became the father of Methuwshelach three hundred years, and became the father of sons and daughters.

Walked with: Targum Neofiti, served in truth before; Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, worshipped in truth before. He did not just call on YaHuWaH’s Name, like those who came before him (4:26); he actually walked with Him. I.e., he was more after what YaHuWaH wanted, and YaHuWaH played a larger role in his life.

 5:23 All the days of Chanowk were three hundred sixty-five years. 5:24 Chanowk walked with Aluahiym, and he was not, for Aluahiym took him.

 In any case, the key is in his name: dedicated. He was so consumed by his walk with YaHuWaH that he was no more. He was so wrapped up in YaHuWaH that he became wrapped up in YaHuWaH! That is eternal life. It should be our prayer that we are each so dedicated to walking with YaHuWaH that we will no longer be identifiable as separate persons, just as wheat that is ground into flour is no longer identified as separate kernels, but is mixed together to become one loaf of bread. We are no longer who we were before we were in Mashiyach’s body. Many even change their names to reflect this “death of the old man” in Shaul’s terms. Our individual giftings remain, but for the service of the whole community. Ya'aqob was a man, but when his name was changed to Ysra'al he became a people and his walk changed.

[Year 874 / 3126 BCE]

5:25 Methuwshelach lived one hundred eighty-seven years, and became the father of (at) Lemek [powerful or despairing]. 5:26 Methuwshelach lived after he became the father of Lemek seven hundred eighty-two years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:27 All the days of Methuwshelach were nine hundred sixty-nine years, then he died.

Lamech would have been 56 years old when Adam died. According to Jewish tradition, when Chanokh was taken away, all the kings of the earth proclaimed Methushalach the ruler of the earth. He taught the truth and rid the earth of thousands of demons through fasting for three days and using a sword inscribed with YaHuWaH’s Name. Simple math shows that he died the year of the Deluge. His name is a prophecy that means "His death shall send (it)." Jewish tradition says that the reason the flood did not come for seven days after YaHuWaH shut the door of the ark is that these were the days of mourning for Methushalach.

5:28 Lemek lived one hundred eighty-two years, and became the father of a son, 5:29 and he named him (at) Noah [Comfort], saying, “This same will comfort us in our work and in the toil of our hands, because of the ground which YaHuWaH has cursed.” 

Though "despairing", Lamech was clearly a prophet and was thus indeed strong. It may be that his desperation led him to the truth, because "If you seek Me, you shall find Me, if you search with all your heart." (YirmeYahuw 29:13) Contrast him with the Lamech in Qayin’s line: strength came much sooner for Qayin than for Sheth, but so did despair. Both lines also had a Chanokh. Both were dedicated, but Qayin’s line was dedicated to their own accomplishments, and Sheth’s to YaHuWaH. The only difference seems to have been their priorities. The set-apart line did continue to eat bread by the sweat of their brow (a picture of wearing themselves out for the community), as YaHuWaH had commanded. They thus learned to work the ground in a way He would accept, in contrast with Qayin, whose line seems to have given up the practice altogether. They just ignored the cursed ground, while the set-apart line fought against it. Qayin’s line soon lost track of the fact that the world was against them, because they were just leaving it alone. They would thus have had to buy bread from the line of Sheth, because they had lost interest in doing so, and were busy with other pursuits. A shepherd should not have been necessary, for each one should have been doing the right thing for themselves, but because they were not, YaHuWaH had to train some to teach others. With Noah something would change. Deliverance from some of the effects of the curse could come.

5:30 Lemek lived after he became the father of Noah five hundred ninety-five years, and became the father of sons and daughters. 5:31 All the days of Lemek were seven hundred seventy-seven years, then he died.

His father outlived him by five years, possibly showing a genetic weakening.

[Year 1556 / 2444 BCE]

5:32 Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Cham, and Yepheth.

Shem is the firstborn, but it appears that they were all triplets. Based on 11:10, these sons would have been born 2 years after Lamech died. The above lineage defines the “sons of Adam” alluded to so often throughout Scripture, in the fullest sense. Qayin’s line is not referred to by that name. So “Son of Adam” identifies those from the original line who walked with YaHuWaH, carried the Seed, and took responsibility for the rest of their brothers. The Mashiyach referred to himself by this title often, for He indeed took responsibility for Ysra'al when no one else would. Psalm 8:4 contrasts the fact that YaHuWaH keeps all kinds of men (ish) in mind (He sends the rain on the unjust too), but He visits, looks after, cares for the Son of Adam. Psalm 80:17 identifies the Son of Adam as the “Man of YaHuWaH’s Right Hand”. Y’hezq’el is often called “son of Adam” by YaHuWaH’s messengers and so was Dani’el once (8:17), for they were the ones held responsible for the Kingdom in their generation. Dani’el prophesies of one called “Bar Enash”—the Aramaic form of Ben Enosh—who is given the Kingdom. Son of a mortal! This troubled Dani’el—and continued to trouble men, so they turned the Mashiyach into deity so he could be worthy of a kingdom. But, as in Eden, YaHuWaH gives it to a Man. He is called Ben Enosh, because in the days of Enosh, men began to call on YaHuWaH’s name. (4:26) And now, as the Kingdom approaches, the wider use of YaHuWaH’s name is again being restored.

6:1 It happened, when men began to multiply on the surface of the ground, and daughters were born to them,

Men began to multiply: literally, "the Adam became great". In the next few verses, each instance translated "men" literally says "the Adam", or the human entity--now truncated, but after beginning to call on YaHuWaH's name, growing in set-apartness once more as a community, so the Adversary had to counter with a corrupting influence again.

 6:2  that Aluahiym’s sons saw that men’s daughters were beautiful, and they took for themselves wives of all that they chose.

Sons of Aluahiym: elsewhere this refers to a class of messengers who were present at creation and had some authority over the earth (e.g., Iyob 1:6; 2:1; 38:4ff).  or it refers to the sons of Sheth marrying the daughters of Qayin .... both speculation!

 6:3   YaHuWaH said, “My Ruwach will not strive [dispute] with the Adam forever, because he also is flesh; yet will his days be one hundred twenty years.” (120 Yubilee years - 6000 yrs.)

 6:4 The Nephilim  [giants/tyrants/bullies] were in the earth in those days, and also after that, when Aluahiym’s sons came in to men’s daughters. They bore children to them. Those were the mighty men which are from a distant time, men of title.

Nefilim: fallen ones; LXX, "earth-born", which is similar to the word for “giants” and thus some have interpreted it this way. Were they the unnatural hybrid offspring of the unions in v. 2, to which multiple ancient cultures seem to refer in their stories of the demi-gods? Champions: these may have been the "people" capable of building such colossal monuments as Stonehenge, the Great Pyramid, and the Easter Island statues. Their sires may be those to which Yahuwdah 6 refers as the messengers who "left their proper estate and went after strange flesh". This is probably why Aluahiym considered the whole earth corrupt. (6:11; compare Lev. 18:25) YaHuWSHuWaH spoke of fugitive spirits seeking embodiment until "the time" set for their judgment. (Mat. 8:29; 12:43) Worship of "the gods" is forbidden not because they do not exist, but because they are not our creators, though some demonic overlords are apparently given jurisdiction over those who will not deal directly with the "Aluahiym of Aluahiym" (cf. Daniel 10:13, 20). If this is at all what YaHuWSHuWaH was referring to when he said “As it was in the days of Noah”, it would be just before he returns (Luk. 17:26), it should make us sober to hear reports of humans being contacted by "alien" creatures who claim to hold the key to "the next step in our evolution", when they are sexually probed by these “space brothers”. Afterwards: The Nefilim show up again in Num. 13:32 and Deut. 3:11 in the Land of Kana'an, unless the fearful spies were exaggerating. If they were indeed very large, how could this have resulted from two human lines being mixed? Science actually shows that when a gene pool is closed, there is a negative effect on those born from it, contrary to Hitler’s philosophy. We have seen examples of inbreeding, and the children that result are less intelligent and less well-formed. So introducing a different strand into the genetic mix does tend to produce stronger and smarter people. But if they were earth-born, from what had they fallen? It is not necessary to interpret the Nefilim as themselves being these great heroes, for the text only says they were present at the same time. Could they have been messengers that fell with Heylel (Lucifer) prior to this creation, and who came with the same intent as the serpent—to encourage the corruption of this new creation So which is being talked about here? A Hebraic outlook can accept all of these levels of interpretation as possible, because they would all teach us the same lesson—that YaHuWaH does not want us unequally yoked. All of the ways to interpret should be in our toolbox in case we need them later. All of the options have to do with seed. What it all comes down to is that YaHuWaH does not want His people partaking of those who worship other Aluahiym. He wants His people separated from the other lines. (Ex. 34:14ff) This does not mean “racially” as we think of it today (which is really an erroneous concept since all people now alive stem from Noah, as seen in the coming chapters. There have always been people of other nations who married into Ysra'al and became part of Ysra'al. The intermarriage YaHuWaH does not want is with those who do not give up their pagan ways. This confuses the children. NekhemYahuw got so angry when some Jews had children who were speaking the languages of their other parents and no longer knew Hebrew that he pulled out their hair, hit them, and cursed them! (Nkh. 13:23ff) It does not protect the seed, but results in their turning away from YaHuWaH. (Deut. 7:2-4) We cannot be part of the peoples around us if we are to be people of Torah. That is what we are separated unto. In a previous return to Torah, those who had taken pagan wives had to divorce them as well as sending their children away. (Ezra 9; Nekhemyah 10:28ff) This should show us how seriously YaHuWaH takes the sin of marrying those outside of His covenant. Even King Shlomo, who YaHuWaH loved, was corrupted by pagan wives, and this influence continued throughout the history of both Houses of Ysra'al. We need to reverse this tide as we return this time. Men of renown: Everyone knows of their fame, but because they are not completely for YaHuWaH, they are not counted as being for Him at all. Today, much of Ysra'al is in the same situation. Because we have mixed paganism into our worship, or made compromises in other areas, there are power and politics involved in the motivations of the leaders everyone looks up to, YaHuWaH counts the resulting religious climate as evil.

6:5   YaHuWaH saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6:6   YaHuWaH was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him in his heart. 6:7   YaHuWaH said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the surface of the ground; man, along with animals, creeping things, and birds of the heavens; for I am sorry that I have made them.”

"Beast...creeping thing...bird of the heavens": each of these specific categories is elsewhere in Scripture compared to or descriptive of demonic beings as well.

6:8 But Noah found favor in YaHuWaH's eyes.

Noah means "rest" or "quietness". He dwelt in shalom rather than fear, despite all the evil around him.

6:9 This is the genealogy of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, had remained without blemish in his generation. Noah walked with Aluahiym.

Without blemish: But in the context of the possible attempt by evil spirits to pollute the human gene pool and so prevent a truly human Mashiyach from being born to break the curse Adam had brought on his race, this being “without blemish” may mean Noah was one of only a few left who were completely human in pedigree, explaining why Aluahiym had to go to such an extreme measure to preserve the pure human stock. The root word for "generation" is "cycle" or "revolution", and this suggests that Noah was in tune with YaHuWaH's calendar, in which lies the story of Yahuwshuwah and a proper understanding of Who He is. Having walked in these cycles for 600 years, he would have come to a high degree of maturity. Walked with the Aluahiym: Just what Adam had done before he sinned, and what Hanokh had done. In the account of Noah, we see the repetition of many aspects of creation.

 6:10 Noah became the father of three sons: Shem, Cham, and Yepheth.

Shem means "name" or "reputation"; Cham means "hot", and Yefeth means "opened up" or "made spacious".

 6:11 The earth was corrupt before Aluahiym, and the earth was filled with violence (Hamas). 6:12 Aluahiym looked upon the earth, and saw that it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.

Corrupt: ruined, marred, spoiled, decaying; hints at sexually-transmitted disease. Violence: malice, cruelty, or injustice. The Hebrew word is familiar due to a terrorist group that bears its name: hamas. Compare Kena'an just before Ysra'al came to put an end to its defilement (Lev. 18:25) We could certainly read here a prophecy that the “land [of Ysra'al] was filled with Hamas” right before YaHuWaH again brings about an end to the age, as this may be the last straw needed to bring about the collapse of the “Ysra'al” that continues to compromise with its enemies.

6:13 Aluahiym said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

 Flesh: everything mortal. Rabbinic commentary points out that the phrase “Through them the earth is filled with violence” has the same numeric value in Hebrew as the term for incest (galuy drayoth), giving us another clue to what may have been going on in verse 4, since both “sons of Aluahiym” and “sons of Adam” have proven to be able to refer to the line that was supposed to remain kodesh; i.e., some of them may have been noticing the beauty of their own daughters! Destroy: the same word as "corrupt" in the previous two verses. I.e., some had spoiled His earth, so He would ruin them. The same thought is seen again in YaHuWaH's coming judgment. (Rev. 11:18)

 6:14 Make a ark of gopher wood. You shall make rooms in the ark, and shall cover it inside and outside with pitch.

Ark: a box or chest that can float. The only other place the term is used in Scripture is in reference to the box used to keep Moshah afloat on the Nile. (Ex. 2:3)  "Cover" is the same as the word translated elsewhere as "atone", “redeem”, or “ransom”. (Ex. 21:30; 30:2; Num. 35:31; Prov. 21:18; YashaYahuw 43:3) i.e., the price of a life, sometimes described in terms of YaHuWaH sacrificing the wicked to preserve the righteous, which is exactly what He did here. The sealant outside the ark kept the wrath of Aluahiym from touching those inside it, just as the Mashiyach's shed blood "seals us for the Day of Redemption", Ephesians 4:30.

 6:15 This is how you shall make it. The length of the ark will be three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits.

 [or 450x75x45 feet, which has been proven in simulated tests to be the most stable proportion possible, enabling the "ship" to right itself even if thrust upward perpendicular to the water by the massive tidal action that took place—or if capsized! Only in about the past century have ocean liners exceeded this size.]

 6:16 You shall make a skylight in the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit upward. You shall set the door of the ark in its side. You shall make it with lower, second, and third levels.

 Noah had to make sure the flocks he was caring for had light. The "skylight" [tzohar] is usually the word for "noonday", and by extension means "brightness"; the root meaning is "to press the oil out". A Jewish mystical book by the same title suggests that "prism" might be the best understanding, as its main theme is light reflected and refracted from an outside source. Elsewhere tzohar has been translated as a gleaming, splendid, self-illuminating, transparent crystal--which would indicate a very high level of technology before the Deluge.

 6:17 And behold! I, even I, do bring the flood of waters on this earth, to destroy all flesh having the breath of life from under the heavens. everything that is in the earth will die. 6:18 But I will establish My covenant with you. You shall come into the ark, you, your sons, your wife, and your sons’ wives with you. 

"I will establish My covenant with you": the same phrase by which YaHuWaH marks those whom He has selected to continue the ancestry of Mashiyach--see 17:4, 21; Lev. 26:42; 2 Chron. 21:7. Note the similarity of the second sentence with YashaYahuw 26:20: "Come, My people, enter your chambers and shut the door around you; withdraw yourself for a short moment until the indignation has passed by." This is a reference to the "secret place of the Most High" (Psalm 91) that will be provided during "Ya'aqob's trouble" (YirmeYahuw 30:7), a.k.a. the "Great Tribulation".

6:19 Of every living thing of all flesh, you shall bring two of every sort into the ark, to keep them alive with you. They shall be male and female. 6:20 Of the birds after their kind, of the livestock after their kind, of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every sort shall come to you, to keep them alive.  6:21 Take with you of all food that is eaten, and gather it to yourself; and it will be for food for you, and for them.”  6:22 Thus Noah did. According to all that Aluahiym commanded him, so he did.

In keeping all these animals, he may have had to do something he was unfamiliar with. Certainly building a ship so large was not a common thing in his day, when there was only one continent and rivers may have been the only water people had to navigate on. But deliverance was brought to him when he did. Abraham was one who stood against sacrificing one’s own children, yet to stretch him beyond “status quo”, Yahuwah asked him to do just that. (ch. 22) In growing into a responsibility he might not think he should be held accountable for, he became a truly faithful servant, not just a decent one. To get all the flocks past the coming judgment, we must do so as well.

7:1   YaHuWaH said to Noah, “Come with all of your household into the ark, for I have seen your righteousness before Me in this generation. 7:2 You shall take seven pairs of every clean animal with you, the male and his female. Of the animals that are not clean, take two, the male and his female. 7:3 Also of the birds of the heavens, seven and seven, male and female, to keep seed alive on the surface of all the earth. 7:4 For after seven more days, I will cause it to rain on the earth for forty days and forty nights. every living thing that I have made, I will destroy from the surface of the ground.”

Literally "seven days again"; this could also indicate that there is a prophetic level of interpretation, perhaps corresponding with the 70th week of Daniel. The ark was already completed by this time. The Aramaic targum Pseudo-Jonathan renders it, “I will give them an extension of seven days; if they repent, it shall be pardoned them, but if they do not, after a further period of seven days, I will cause a downpour…” Some things in the Hebrew text do seem to support the possibility that there were two periods of seven days, e.g., if we compare verses 7 and 10.

7:5 Noah did everything that YaHuWaH commanded him.

 And well over 200 cultures worldwide have been found to have preserved accounts of such a Deluge, so it seems to have affected the ancestry of everyone alive today.

7:6 Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came on the earth. 

[Year 1656 / 2344 BCE; date corroborated by the historian Josephus.]

7:7 Noah went into the ark with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives, because of the waters of the flood. 

Even the righteous apparently waited until it was already beginning to rain to enter the ark, just as Ysra'al waited until Pharaoh drove us out before leaving Egypt. In both cases, though, they were prepared in advance to go immediately, and that made all the difference. They prepared by gathering together. If we find reasons to put off doing what YaHuWaH is calling us to, we will also be “rained on” to some extent, but the crucial thing is to begin gathering for the exodus back to the Land that YaHuWaH has told us is coming. We need to respond quickly and not take the margins YaHuWaH gives us as excuses to delay and walk in at the last minute. Remember the five virgins. We have already reached—and passed—the 6,000th year of earth’s history; the rabbis have already declared that we are in the time of Ya'aqob’s trouble, and we are not organized for the Kingdom. We do not have the luxury of dragging our feet, for we are behind schedule, and the door will not be open forever. His command should be enough reason to move quickly.

 7:8 Clean animals, animals that are not clean, birds, and everything that creeps on the ground  7:9 went by pairs to Noah into the ark, male and female, as Aluahiym commanded Noah. 7:10 It happened after the seven days, that the waters of the flood came on the earth. 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep were burst open, and the sky’s windows were opened. 7:12 The rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.   

[8:14 In the 601st year in the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry.] (370 days between these two events.)

The "deep" is considered the abode of demons, and the heavens, of messengers. There was certainly a spiritual battle going on here as well, and the atoning covering of tar symbolically protected men from the fury of both. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan even says the sons of the giants placed their children into the springs of the abyss to try to plug it up! The 17th of the second month: in the late autumn, possibly on the day on which many cultures celebrate death even today. (halloween?) Well over 200 cultures worldwide have been found to have preserved accounts of such a Deluge, so it seems to have affected the ancestry of everyone alive today. 

 Windows of the sky: the ice shield 11 miles above the earth’s surface (see note on 1:7) was shattered and melted, probably dumping huge torrents of rain, far more than could fall from rainclouds as the earth is today. Added to the rain were the subterranean pockets of water ("reserved" for this need, 2 Kefa/Peter 3:5-7).

 Forty days and nights: The number 40 in Scripture always speaks of a time of transition or testing.

7:13 In the same day Noah, and Shem, Cham, and Yepheth, the sons of Noah, and Noah’s wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, entered into the ark; 7:14 they, and every animal after its kind, all the livestock after their kind, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 7:15 They went to Noah into the ark, by pairs of all flesh with the breath of life in them.  7:16 Those who went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as Aluahiym commanded him; and YaHuWaH shut him in. 

(And YaHuWaH shut [the door] tightly at his heels.) This imagery relates to the later closing of the Temple gates on the Day of Atonement; both picture the end of the open door for deliverance in the latter days. 

7:17 The flood was forty days on the earth. The waters increased, and lifted up the ark, and it was lifted up above the earth. 7:18 The waters prevailed, and increased greatly on the earth; and the ark floated on the surface of the waters. 7:19 The waters swelled on the earth, stronger and stronger until all the high mountains that were under the whole sky were concealed. 7:20 The waters rose up yet another fifteen cubits, hiding the mountains.

This seems redundant, or might seem to say the ark had a 15-cubit clearance above the highest mountains. But if, as it will be in the "Time of the Restitution of All Things", the kodesh mountain which would be the site of the House of YaHuWaH (and thus the site of the only gateway back to Eden), was higher than all other hills (YashaYahuw 2:1ff; Micha 4:1), this and the “daughters of Yahrushalum” that surround it would be worthy of additional mention. That it will again be exalted above the rest is no fairy tale, but is established this early in history. Will another crustal tide swell the ground under Yahrushalum and push it higher, or will all the other hills simply be lowered? (YashaYahuw 40:4) Yahrushalum itself is likely the site where the ark was built, and Noah watched these particular mountains be covered.

These 15 cubits also correlate with the 15 songs of ascent (Psalms 120-134) sung during pilgrimages to the Temple. One of them, Psalm 124, alludes directly to this deluge: "Had it not been for YaHuWaH Who was on our side, ...the waters would have engulfed us; the raging waters would have swept over our soul";  the level of the Temple mount itself was only covered by half a cubit (9 or 10 inches) of water--not an overwhelming inundation as in the rest of the earth. Yashayahuw 43:2 can read, "Because you pass...through the waters, they will not engulf you" just as well as "when you pass". Though Yahrushalum will receive some strong chastening in the coming time of judgment, YaHuWaH’s presence will be our only refuge while it is going on, so return there for protection under the wings of the One who is carrying it out.  Look for additional allusions to the flood in these 15 psalms; they are there!

 7:21 All flesh perished that moved on the earth, including birds, livestock, animals, every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every man.

Perished: Aramaic, melted away. Swarming insects: This massive "miqveh" or "baptism" would cleanse the earth of the bacteriological results of the "corruption of all flesh", and ritually purify it again for the blood shed since Qayin's day.

 7:22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of the ruwach of life, of all that was on the dry land, died.  7:23 every living thing was destroyed that was on the surface of the ground, including man, livestock, creeping things, and birds of the heavens. They were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those who were with him in the ark.  7:24 The waters prevailed on the earth one hundred fifty days - (5 months). (type of Rev. 9:5)  Thus the line of Qayin was entirely snuffed out.

8:1 Aluahiym kept Noah in mind, along with all the animals, and all the livestock that were with him in the ark; and Aluahiym made a wind to pass over the earth. The waters subsided.

Kept in mind: or "remembered", but more basically “marked” (for special attention). He has a book of remembrance of those who think on His Name, so he can specially treasure them up. (Mal. 3:16-17)

 8:2 The fountains of the deep and the windows of the sky were also stopped and the rain from the sky was restrained. 

Deep: or "abyss"--another correlation with chapter 1. The waters separated at creation had been brought back together again, creating another "chaos"; now they were separated again, though the vapor canopy was not re-established, so that human life would not last as long. Reserves: sluices, Greek Septuagint (LXX), "flood-gates". "Sky" and "heavens" are the same word in Hebrew as well. Restrained: or restricted—to certain times; now there would be seasons for rain.

 8:3 The waters retreated from upon the land, continually advancing and returning (huge tidal waves), ---

 Rapid erosion of the crust along the new fault would lay down wave upon wave of sediment, leaving many fossils. The gap created at the "seams" would allow magma to form the mid-oceanic ranges, and causing the newly-formed crustal plates to slide over the molten material beneath at up to 70 km. per hour until they collided, buckling upward to form higher mountain ranges and downward to form oceanic trenches that parallel them, allowing the water to run off. The continental drift, however, may have taken place later (see 10:25) --- 

and the waters had diminished by the end of one hundred fifty days.

Note that a month was then exactly 30 days long (compare v. 4 and 7:11), prior to the change in earth’s orbital length at the time of Hizqiyahu’s sundial incident in 701 B.C.E.

 8:4 And the ark rested in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on Ararat’s mountains.  

 The date is very significant, for it repeatedly relates to supernatural preservation, Aluahiym’s redemption, and new beginnings: on the same day of the year (Abib 17), the Ysra'alites emerged unscathed from Egypt and the Reed Sea; Haman and his sons were sentenced to be hung, ending the attempt at Semitic genocide; and the Mashiyach rose from the dead as the fulfillment of the feast of Firstfruits which that year also fell on this day, three days after Passover. This was considered the seventh month until the time of the Exodus, when YaHuWaH changed it to the first for Ysra'al. (Ex. 12:2) ("He changes the times and the seasons" - Daniel 2:21)

8:5 The waters receded continually until the tenth month. In the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen.

8:6 It happened at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made, 

Window: Targum Onqelos, aperture; Targum Neofiti, door. As per v. 4, 40 days after Yahushuah's resurrection a "window" was opened for him to be taken up into heaven. That would be on the 27th of the second month, and the 40th day of Counting the Omer. This date is the 10th of the 11th month.

 8:7 and he sent forth a raven. It went back and forth, until the waters were dried up from the earth. 

He had only two ravens, yet was letting one go as a test. Even the unclean could serve a purpose for the righteous. The raven could live off floating carcasses as a scavenger. (cf. Mat. 24:28) It was the only bird out there, so it could feast to its heart’s content. The raven is a crafty bird, and very selfish, reminding us of the serpent in chapter 3, and of haShatan who roams to and fro throughout the earth seeking someone to devour. (1 Kefa 5:8)

 8:8 He sent forth a dove from himself, to see if the waters were abated from the surface of the ground,

It does not say he sent the raven “from himself”,  but here he was identifying with the clean animal.

  8:9 but the dove found no resting place for her foot, and she returned to him into the ark; for the waters were on the surface of the whole earth. He put forth his hand, and took her, and brought her to him into the ark.

In English we miss the play on words: "resting place" in Hebrew is m'noach, very similar to Noah, which means "rest". Thus far, Noah was its only m’noach. YaHuWaH speaks of stretching out His hands all day long to receive rebellious Ysra'al back. (YashaYahuw 65:2), and His outstretched Arm is how He often describes His miraculous acts of redemption. The Ruwach of Set-apartness rested visibly on Yahuwshuwah in the form of a dove, so the dove has come to symbolize the Ruwach of Set-apartness. So YaHuWaH’s “Ruwach/Breath” was again “fluttering over the deep” (as in 1:2).

 8:10 He waited anxiously yet another seven days; and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark.

 Waited anxiously: different from the word for "waited" in v. 12. The root means to writhe, dance, or tremble, or be intent about something to the point of mental strain. It may denote a nervous pacing back and forth.

8:11 The dove came back to him at evening, and, behold, in her mouth was an olive leaf plucked off. So Noah knew that the waters were abated from the earth.

"Flood" is an idiom for the raging armies of the Gentile nations, often called the "sea", and the raven, an unclean bird, is a picture of the counterfeit Mashiyach, sent seven years before the Qadosh Ruwach could find a place of true peace. Olive: especially associated with Ysra'al and the Temple; its oil symbolizes gladness and, of course, light. From this event, the dove and olive leaf have come to symbolize peace and hope in the midst of a situation where one might despair. Since the highest mountain prior to this had been the Temple Mount, did the dove find this branch on the nearby Mount of Olives? Birds usually pluck branches only to build nests. Plucking a green leaf would mean this tree was still alive after all the destruction. An olive tree does readily grow back after being cut down to a stump. (Yashayahuw 11:1; Iyob 14:7)

 8:12 He stayed yet another seven days, and sent forth the dove; and she didn’t return to him any more.

 Seven days: Noah was acting according to a cycle of shabbaths--times of completeness or satisfaction--also related to the waiting period required to verify that unclean bodies or items had been purified.

8:13 It happened in the six hundred first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from the earth. Noah removed the covering of the ark, and looked. He saw that the surface of the ground was dried. 

 The 601st year foreshadows the 6001st year after creation, when there is also a new beginning.

 8:14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth was dry.

 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on the same day all the fountains of the great deep were burst open, and the sky's windows were opened.

(The "flood" of destruction was on the earth for 370 days while YaHuWaH's people (Noah and family) were safe in His ark. ---  This was 370 days after the flood began, or one year and ten days, at that time—the same length as the interval between one Feast of Trumpets until Yom Kippur the following year. ... this is the type of the Great Day of YaHuWaH at which time He will pour out His wrath on a wicked world - but save His Flock.] [the "ten days" of the 370 days will be at the "end -  and seems to coincide with the following texts:    Rev.  2:10 Don’t be afraid of the things which you are about to suffer. Behold, the slanderer is about to throw some of you into prison, that you might be pressured; and you shall have oppression for ten days.

[This is a literal ten days - for from Trumpets - the resurrection of the righteous - to Atonement, the gathering of the living - is 10 days. (From the resurrection of the righteous to His appearing to gather the living who are on the verge of being destroyed is a literal ten days!) YashaYahuw 27:12 It shall happen in That Day, that YaHuWaH shall thresh from the flowing stream of the Perath to the brook of Mistrayim; and you shall be gathered one by one, children of Ysra'al. 27:13 It shall happen in That Day that a Great Shofar shall be blown (Day of Atonement); and those who were ready to perish in the land of Ashshuwr(Babel), and those who were outcasts in the land of Mistrayim (churchanity), shall come; and they shall worship YaHuWaH in the qodesh Mountain at Yahrushalum.  (gathering of the living set-apart ones -----

Matt. 24:31 & Marq 13:27  He shall send out His messengers with the sound of the Great Shofar [Day of Atonement], and they shall gather together His chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other. [ this is the gathering of His living ones - the dead were raised 10 days earlier on Yom Teruach.]

 (Note * 24:31: The Great Shofar is blown on Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement), and is also blown at the introduction of the Jubilee Year. - the dead are raised 10 days earlier at the" " last shofar" - Day of Trumpets/Yom Teruach .)  

Yahuw'el 2:32 '"“And it shall be, everyone who shall have called on the Name of YaHuWaH, he shall be delivered!  For on the Mountain of Tsiyown and in Yahrushalum shall the escaped remnant be; just as YaHuWaH said, even among the survivors whom YaHuWaH is calling.”  YashaYahuw 32:10 For days beyond a year you shall be troubled, you careless women; for the vintage shall fail. The harvest won’t come.   This (370 days) may indicate the length of time the Mashiyach's bride is with Him in the "inner chambers", hidden away until YaHuWaH's indignation is past (YashaYahuw 26:20 Come, My people, enter into your [innermost] chambers, and shut your doors behind you. Hide yourself for a little moment, until the Indignation is past: Innermost chambers: Like the Set-apart of the most Set-apart, but this term has a special meaning in regard to the nuptial chamber of a bride and groom, for while YaHuWaH's wrath overthrows the wicked, the Mashiyach, our bridegroom, will bring us into the wedding chamber He has built in His Father's house. (Yahuwchanan 14:6) [Indignation: a special term for YaHuWaH's final overthrow of Babel when the tables are turned to prepare for Yahuwshua's Kingdom.] - [the trumpets & plagues] - Yasha. 26:20 "Come, My people, enter your chambers and shut the door around you; withdraw yourself for a short moment until the indignation has passed by." This is a reference to the "secret place of the Most High" (Psalm 91) that will be provided during "Ya'aqob's trouble" (YirmeYahuw 30:7), a.k.a. the "Great Tribulation".... similar to Noah being shut-up in the ark during the flood.]

 Since a bridegroom may not go to war for the first year of his marriage (Deut. 24:5), this time must last at least one year.

8:15 Aluahiym spoke to Noah, saying, 8:16 “Go out of the ark, you, and your wife, and your sons, and your sons’ wives with you.  8:17 Bring forth with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh, including birds, livestock, and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, that they may breed abundantly in the earth, and be fruitful, and multiply on the earth.”

8:18 Noah went forth, with his sons, his wife, and his sons’ wives with him. 8:19 every animal, every creeping thing, and every bird, whatever moves on the earth, after their families, went out of the ark.

8:20 Noah built an altar to YaHuWaH, and took of every clean animal, and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 8:21  YaHuWaH smelled the pleasant aroma.  YaHuWaH  said in His heart, “I will not again curse the ground any more for man’s sake, because the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; neither will I ever again strike everything living, as I have done. 

i.e., "Though I have washed everything clean, mankind has not changed." The evidence of this shows up shortly hereafter. Though Adam (mankind) has not changed, the adamah (the feminine form of Adam, meaning the ground) is no longer cursed. Yahuwshuwah did not come to break this curse; it was already broken here, for Noah was born for this purpose. Yahuwshuwah came to break the curses that were on the Northern Kingdom of Ysra'al.

 8:22 Until the earth's days are filled up, Seeding-time and harvest, and Cold and heat, Summer and winter, and day and night shall not fail to recur on schedule.”

This again suggests a polar shift at this time (which could also explain the back-and-forth motion of the waters in verse 3), as there would have been no changing of seasons before the axis was tilted to its current position. Winter keeps the insect population in check; in a greenhouse environment, they would have proliferated uncontrollably, especially since man had become slack about governing creation. Insects that devour crops would now be culled back by the freezing temperatures each year. Note that Hebraically, there are two seasons, not four, and there are times of transition between them. There is a balance in YaHuWaH, and our deliverance depends on doing what is right in the right season.

9:1 Aluahiym blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth. 9:2 The fear of you and the dread of you will be on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the heavens. everything that the ground teems with, and all the fish of the sea are delivered into your hand.

The types of animals He wanted man to domesticate are those of which he had left seven times as many. We were not to learn the ways of dogs or pigs; YaHuWaH created them to show us what not to be like. We are not meant to be intimate with unclean beasts. There is one exception to this, which will be brought out later in the chapter.

 9:3 every moving thing that lives will be food for you. As the green herb, I have given everything to you. 

 Food: though we see animals slaughtered as offerings to YaHuWaH before this allowance is made, now for the first time mankind is overtly permitted to eat animals. All through Scripture we see the separate categories of livestock, beasts, flying creatures, fish, and "crawling things”, which elsewhere seems to be a reference to reptiles, amphibians, and insects, very few of which are kosher. The latter category is left out of the covenant with "every living soul" in v. 10, while the others are listed. YaHuWaH does not forbid any type of animals from being eaten at this point, but the knowledge of which animals were acceptable as offerings was well-known to Noah. This time the test comes not in His saying “Do not eat of it” as in the Garden, but whether we will seek out the witnesses He has already given as to the distinctions He has already made between clean (a picture of selflessness) and unclean (a picture of selfishness). He has already made known which animals He is willing to “consume”, and they are later called His food (Num. 28:2). So in letting man eat whatever he wants, He is building into this new order a test of whether we will choose to eat what YaHuWaH is pleased to eat, or what pleases us—or is easiest to get. Will we follow His example and make the distinctions He makes and be discriminating in what we eat, or just try some of everything? Will we make things better than before? He is opening the door for us not just to serve Him (which is mandatory), but also to choose Him, be intimate with Him—to choose between life and death even before there is a Torah that specifies which meats Ysra'al may eat, for this is what will be food in His Kingdom. “You are what you eat” has some truth to it, and we are not meant to be like the pig, which will devour another pig and has no way to rid its body of impurities; we are to be like the sure-footed animals and those that chew the cud, processing and again meditating on the words He gives us as our food.

 9:4 But flesh with its life, its blood, you shall not eat. (Acts 15:20) 9:5 I will surely require your blood of your lives. At the hand of every animal I will require it. At the hand of man, even at the hand of every man’s brother, I will require the life of man. Even animals that kill men are to be “executed”. (See Ex. 21:28)  9:6 Whoever sheds man’s blood, his blood will be shed by man, for Aluahiym made man in His own image. 9:7 Be fruitful and multiply. Bring forth abundantly in the earth, and multiply in it.”

9:8 Aluahiym spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, 9:9 “I --mark My words-- I am causing  My Covenant with you to be established, and with your offspring after you, 9:10 and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the livestock, and every animal of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, even every animal of the earth.  9:11 I will establish My Covenant with you: all flesh will not be cut off any more by the waters of the flood, neither will there Ever again be a flood to destroy the earth.” 9:12 Aluahiym said, “This is the token of the covenant which I make between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: 9:13 I set My bow in the cloud, and it will be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth.

 [Bow: The new atmospheric conditions produced this beautiful phenomenon, which could not have been seen in the antediluvian firmament.] 

 9:14 It will happen, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud, 9:15 and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh, and the waters will no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. 

These people had never seen a rain cloud that did not bring massive destruction, so He placed a comforting factor right within the scenario that might otherwise bring terror. But the rainbow is more for His sake than ours. He never actually says "rainbow", though, but only "bow". If He drew back an arrow toward the earth with His bow, it would be doomed, so He aims the bow back at the heavens to remind Him that if He were to break His word, He would have to destroy Himself as well!

9:16 The bow will be in the cloud. I will look at it, that I may remember the everlasting Covenant between Aluahiym and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”  

Noah built the first altar in the new world, as Hebel had in the former, and a reparation was made in YaHuWaH's heart. Noah's righteous offering showed Him that it was possible for a man to do the right thing. This was a foreshadowing of Yahuwshuwah, who would remedy all that the first man, Adam, had ruined.

9:17 Aluahiym said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”

9:18 The sons of Noah who went forth from the ark were Shem, Cham, and Yepheth. Cham is the father of Kena'an. 

Cham’s claim to fame in YaHuWaH’s eyes was being Kena'an’s father. He is not even the eldest son, but is the focus of the Hamitic line from that point on in Scripture (other than Egypt, briefly). YaHuWaH looks back at whose seed they are. 

9:19 These three were the sons of Noah, and from these, the whole earth was populated.

9:20 Noah began to be a farmer, and planted a vineyard. 9:21 He drank of the wine and got drunk. He was uncovered within his tent. 9:22 Cham, the father of Kena'an, gazed upon [stared at] the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. 9:23 Shem and Yepheth took a garment, and laid it on both their shoulders, went in backwards, and covered the nakedness of their father. Their faces were backwards, and they didn’t see their father’s nakedness.  9:24 Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his grandson, Kena'an, had done to him. 9:25 He said,

“Kena'an is cursed.

He will be servant of servants to his brothers.”

9:26 He said,

“Blessed be YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of Shem.

Let Kena'an be his servant.

9:27 May Aluahiym enlarge Yapheth. (enlarge = pathah -paw-thaw = entice/deceive)

Let him dwell in the tents of Shem. (tents = where the live - land of Ysra'el -- can also mean taught by)

Let Kena'an be his servant.”

[But also on the personal level. Gen. 5:32 suggests that Shem, Cham, and Yefeth were triplets, all born when Noah was 500 years old. So they represent three sides of Noah, who is the ancestor of us all—the teacher, the teachable, and the worldly. Each of us has these three within us.] Enlarge: Heb., yaft, a play on Yefeth's name, which means to open up, broaden, or grant an entrance. YaHuWaH is called the Aluahiym of Shem, and Yefeth’s blessing is that he would be inhabit the tents of Shem. This is an idiom for being taught by Shem. (Ya'aqob is called a dweller in tents in Gen. 25:27, and these plural tents were the tents of Shem.) Numbers 24:5 and YashaYahuw 54:3 associate "tents" with the spread of Ysra'al's influence through the Messiah. “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of your habitations; don’t spare: lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes. 54:3 For you shall spread out on the right hand and on the left; and your seed shall possess the nations, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.]

 Thus, the religious culture of Yefeth's children has been strongly influenced by the knowledge and love of Shem's Aluahiym. But if both righteous sons were to be blessed, why does the rest of Scripture only speak of the “religious” blessings to Shem? The key is that, beginning at 10:5, we see that Yefeth was counted the ancestor of the "Gentile" inhabitants of the "coastlands" or "islands", which is used elsewhere in a special sense (e.g., YashaYahuw 42:4, 10; 51:5) in conjunction with the House of Ysra'al (the northern tribes) and Efrayim, the tribe that led them astray into admixture with the Gentiles. (Ya'aqob prophesied that Efrayim would be greatly multiplied, 48:19-22, and that his seed would in particular be the "fullness of the Gentiles" of which Sha'ul wrote in Romans 11:25.) It was specifically the "lost sheep of the House of Ysra'al" to which Yahuwshuwah said He was sent (Mat. 10:6; 15:24) as Kinsman-Redeemer (the Consolation of Ysra'al for which Shim'on was waiting, Luk. 2:25), and Sha'ul says it was precisely this mixture which set the stage for some Gentiles to be redeemed as well, since their proximity with the "Lost Sheep" whom Yahuwshuwah sent His followers to seek out, would afford them the occasion to hear about the Aluahiym of Ysra'al and enter into a relationship with Him, thus becoming part of the "commonwealth of Ysra'al". YashaYahuw builds on Noah's promise very directly (Yash. 49:6; 54:2). Since it was these children of Yefeth with which the greatest part of the House of Efrayim mingled themselves (Hoshua 7:8), YaHuWaH indeed kept His promise to bless Yefeth in this way, and the evidence of how far this has reached is only now beginning to come to our awareness. It was necessary for Yefeth to inhabit Shem’s tents because the other part of Yefeth’s blessing was that he would be “enlarged”. The root meaning of his name actually means “made wide open”, and is used elsewhere in Scripture with the connotation of being “open” to deception (Deut. 11:16; 2 Shmu’el 3:25), to being enticed (Judges 14:15), persuaded in a negative direction (2 Chron. 18:19), or flattered. (Psalm 78:36) Shem had a clear inclination toward the ways of YaHuWaH, and Kena'an had a clear tendency away from it, but Yefeth had the proclivity to be open-minded and thus easily persuaded to go astray. Noah means “rest”, and Shem, the firstborn, received a double portion of this rest. Notice that even when they covered up Noah (v. 23), Shem was mentioned first, indicating that he was the initiator of this reparation. Under Shem’s leadership, Yefeth (whose descendants consist of mainly those we consider Europeans today) could learn to do the right thing, but if influenced by Kena'an, he would be led to follow his belly. Men are to walk uprightly, but animals walk with their stomachs parallel to the earth. Ysra'al is not to eat the animals that creep on the ground (Lev. 11:42), because we are not meant to be like them. Kena'an means “to bend the knee”, and so suggests getting down on all fours like this. What we hunger for determines how we walk. Kena'an wanted pleasure at any cost, and thus was turned over to his animal nature. He would take the permission in verse 3 as a license to eat anything he wanted, though YaHuWaH still makes a distinction, and therefore will call some the least in the Kingdom. (Mat. 5:19) Shem’s intake, on the other hand, is defined by what YaHuWaH prefers, not what the world says. Yefeth goes whichever way he is influenced. The serpent’s punishment was that he would take this to the extreme—be on its belly at all times (Gen. 3:14), since that was the direction it wanted to take humanity. The reason the Kena'aniy had to be thoroughly removed from the Land was because that Land is a picture of the Kingdom, when there will be no Kena'aniy there. (Zkh. 14:21) Kena'aniy here is an idiom for a merchandiser or trafficker. In the figurative sense, even up to our day, the Kena'aniy lives on within Efrayim (the whole Northern Kingdom of Ysra'al), though this is not something that will be acceptable in YaHuWaH’s household in the Kingdom. Thus it is not acceptable to have them in this particular Land, even as servants. The animal nature is not to occupy the Land where the Kingdom will be established. Outside the Land, some learning might be possible, but no “belly-crawlers” are to be within. Our job is to oust Kena'an, not only in the form of the lying religions that can lead us astray, but also on the personal level. Gen. 5:32 suggests that Shem, Cham, and Yefeth were triplets, all born when Noah was 500 years old. So they represent three sides of Noah, who is the ancestor of us all—the teacher, the teachable, and the worldly. Each of us has these three within us. Noah apparently knew Kena'an’s tendencies to indulge his flesh, so he gave him a curse that was actually a blessing—that he would serve Shem and Yefeth. Yahuwshuah told his disciples to make anyone who desired to be first into their (i.e.,, Shem’s) slaves. (Mat. 20:25ff) The one unclean animal that Ysra'al may domesticate is the donkey, if one redeems it with a lamb. (Ex. 13:13) This does not hold true for a dog. (YashaYahuw 66:3) A donkey’s stubbornness can become beneficial if it submits to being a beast of burden. It is the only way some can learn. By becoming enslaved he could at least be useful toward a worthwhile cause, and there was hope that he might learn from Yefeth to become teachable and open to the truth, then take the next step and actually learn what Shem had to teach. To be great, one must serve the great. If we want to be the greatest (like Shem) in the Kingdom, we must enslave Kena'an now by serving one another. In whatever area we keep back for self instead of allowing ourselves to be taught the better way is where Kena'an still dwells with us. By the end of the Kingdom, whatever is Kena'an will be done away with (Rev. 20:12), for He wants no one lukewarm in His Kingdom (Rev. 3:16)—at least not anywhere near Him. They may get some crumbs on the outskirts. The question is, will we go down with Kena'an? If we let him have free rein, we too will be cast out of the Kingdom. Instead, we should turn Kena'an into Yefeth. YaHuWaH gave us tzitziyoth to remind us not to follow after our heart or eyes, after which we tend to stray, but to follow the Torah, which means “teaching”. (Num. 15:38-39) Kosher animals have four stomachs rather than one. This is a picture of community, wherein we serve not only our own bellies but those of our neighbors, thus turning over our appetites to community instead of self. When Ysra'al is in unity, it is called Yeshurun—the upright one. Gorillas walk on their knuckles when in the wild, but when around humans, they begin to imitate men and walk on two legs. However much further they might or might not be able to progress, by becoming teachable like Yefeth we can go through a genuine evolution (or chiropractic treatment, if you prefer) toward the upright position of Shem, and be qualified to then be a light to the nations as well, as a whole “kingdom of priests”. We are to become students not in order to be always learning (and never coming to the knowledge of the truth), but to go on to become teachers, giving YaHuWaH a return on His investment. Notice that Cham is not even mentioned in this blessing/curse. Noah was probably so disgusted with Cham for doing nothing that he did not even want to mention his name again. We have a choice. YaHuWaH has shown us what is fitting; we must choose life. We cannot be treated like Shem if we act like Kena'an. There are three books that will be opened when the bill comes due. Those whose name is still in the middle book cannot be in the Book of Life as well—at least at the beginning of the Kingdom, and where we are then is what will seal the position we hold then.

9:28 Noah lived three hundred fifty years after the flood. 9:29 All the days of Noah were nine hundred fifty years, then he died.

10:1 Now this is the history of the generations of the sons of Noah and of Shem, Cham, and Yepheth. Sons were born to them after the flood.

The "Table of Nations": Ethnic names vary according to time and language, so when Aluahiym prophesies about a given people, He often refers back to their earliest ancestors. Thus, when He wants to speak of the Slavs, He did not use their then-current name, Skythians, nor their present-day name, such as Russia, but Magog, their ancestral name, to make their identity clearest.

10:2 The sons of Yepheth: Gomer, Magowg, Maday, Yawan, Tuwbal, Meshek, and Tiyreya. 10:3 The sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, Riyphath, and Towgarmah.  10:4 The sons of Yawan: Eliyshah, Tarshiysh, Kittiy, and Dodaniym. (see Yehezqel 38-39] 10:5 Of these were the islands of the nations [gentiles/goyim] spread out into their lands, everyone after his language, after their families, in their nations. 

 [Spread out: but not at this point; this is a preamble to chapter 11. According to language, clan, and nation: Thus they were divided on the basis of what language they spoke (again, not until chapter 11;]  To be a unified nation, we need to have the same story. What sayings does Ysra'al have in common? The words of YaHuWaH’s Torah. They unite us, though we are still spread far and wide. What is our story? For the most part, it began with Abraham. But the Passover, in which YaHuWaH brought a people scattered throughout Mistrayim together, defines us as a nation. In it He gave us a history that He wants us to recount to our children. This is what He did for us, not just our ancestors. We need to see ourselves in the Torah. Our story does not begin in Matithyahuw (Matthew). That is the story about Yahuwshuwah, but the story He told was the Torah. We are now coming back from many ethnicities and thus bring different strengths, but those were our parents’ story; ours is different. We have another common story today, for YaHuWaH is again doing something in Ysra'al right now, pulling us out again from the Gentile nations with which we have been mixed for thousands of years, for we are NOT Gentiles! The language of Christianity, by which we spoke about Yahuwshuwah when we thought we were Gentiles, makes little sense to us anymore.

At 10:5, we see that Yefeth was counted the ancestor of the "Gentile" inhabitants of the "coastlands" or "islands", which is used elsewhere in a special sense (e.g., YashaYahuw. 42:4, 10; 51:5) in conjunction with the House of Ysra'al (the northern tribes) and Efrayim, the tribe that led them astray into admixture with the Gentiles. (Ya'aqob prophesied that Efrayim would be greatly multiplied, 48:19-22, and that his seed would in particular be the "fullness of the Gentiles" of which Sha'ul wrote in Romans 11:25.) It was specifically the "lost sheep of the House of Ysra'al" to which Yahuwshuwah said He was sent (Mat. 10:6; 15:24) as Kinsman-Redeemer (the Consolation of Ysra'al for which Shim'on was waiting, Luk. 2:25), and Sha'ul says it was precisely this mixture which set the stage for some Gentiles to be redeemed as well, since their proximity with the "Lost Sheep" whom Yahuwshuwah sent His followers to seek out, would afford them the occasion to hear about the Aluahiym of Ysra'al and enter into a relationship with Him, thus becoming part of the "commonwealth of Ysra'al". 

It was necessary for Yefeth to inhabit Shem’s tents because the other part of Yefeth’s blessing was that he would be “enlarged”. The root meaning of his name actually means “made wide open”, and is used elsewhere in Scripture with the connotation of being “open” to deception (Deut. 11:16; 2 Shmu’el 3:25), to being enticed (Judges 14:15), persuaded in a negative direction (2 Chron. 18:19), or flattered. (Psalm 78:36) Shem had a clear inclination toward the ways of YaHuWaH, and Kana'an had a clear tendency away from it, but Yefeth had the proclivity to be open-minded and thus easily persuaded to go astray. Noah means “rest”, and Shem, the firstborn, received a double portion of this rest. Notice that even when they covered up Noah (v. 23), Shem was mentioned first, indicating that he was the initiator of this reparation. Under Shem’s leadership, Yefeth (whose descendants consist of mainly those we consider Europeans today) could learn to do the right thing, but if influenced by Kena'an, he would be led to follow his belly.

10:6 The sons of Cham: Kuwsh, Mitsrayim, Puwt, and Kena'an. 10:7 The sons of Kuwsh: Seba, Chawiylah, Sabta, Ra'amah, and Sabteca. The sons of Ra'amah: Sheba and Dedan.

Chawilah/India: -note the etymology of the Hindu Kush mountains near the Indus River--not to be confused with the Shemite Chawilah of v. 29; 25:18; 1 Shmuel 15:7.

10:8 Kuwsh became the father of Nimrowd. He profaned and was the first mighty hero upon the earth. 10:9 He was a mighty hunter in the face of YaHuWaH. Therefore it is said, “ He is just like Nimrowd, a mighty hunter in the face of YaHuWaH.”

Profaned: Aluahiym's name; or "made a new start" as in 9:20. The Sumerian ideograph Nin-mirud ("son of rebellion",  from the same root as Merodach) can also be read Nin-girshu, possibly the root for "Nigeria", whose Yoruba tribe has a legend that the "Kishites" (Kushites?) moved into Africa from Mesopotamia (Shinar). Other sons of Kush did settle Africa, especially Ethiopia.

[Before YaHuWaH: this can either mean “in YaHuWaH’s presence” or “in YaHuWaH’s face”, and which way we will go depends on our priorities and our choices. Nimrowd was not in YaHuWaH’s presence (for, as we will see it with Esau in chapter 26, being a hunter precluded this, for he was a man who lived for his belly. Rather, he was “in YaHuWaH’s face, i.e., in defiance of Him. .... Tradition says Shem killed Nimrod for his sins, and a myth began that he was resurrected as his own son, born of his wife and the sun god after Nimrod's death, and this grew into many pagan customs worldwide, most notably that of "mourning for Tammuz" (Yechzq. 8:14), who incidentally was born December 25. The proof she cited that “the father could be the son” was that an evergreen tree had grown out of the stump of one cut down, explaining the connection between that date and evergreen trees that continues to our own day. Statues and paintings of this Semiramis with her son were later called the Madonna and "mother of God"--another example of how Constantine painted a thin veneer of Christianity over existing paganism, thus allowing it to continue. It predated Christianity by over 2,000 years.

 10:10 The beginning of his kingdom was Babel, Erek, Akkad, and Kalneh, in the land of Shin'ar.  10:11 Out of that land he went forth into Ashshuwr, and built Niyneweh (northern Iraq), Rechobowth Ir, Kelach, 10:12 and Resen between Niyneweh and Kelach (the same is the great city). 10:13 Mitsrayim became the father of Luwdiy, Anamim, Lehabiym, Naphtuchyim, 10:14 Pathruciy, Kasluchiym (which the Pelishtiym descended from), and Kaphtoriy.

10:15 Kena'an became the father of Tsiydown (his firstborn), Cheth, 10:16 the Yebuwciy, the Emory, the Girgashiy, 10:17 the Chiwy, the Arqiy, the Siyniy (orientals), 10:18 the Arwadiy, the Tsmariy, and the Chamathiy. Afterward the families of the Kena'aniy were spread abroad. 10:19 The border of the Kena'aniy was from Tsiydown, as you go toward Gerar, to Azzah; as you go toward Sedom, Amorah, Admah, and Tsebo'iym, to Lesha. 10:20 These are the sons of Cham, after their families, after their languages, in their lands, in their nations.

10:21 To Shem, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Yepheth, to him also were children born.

Though Shem is not the youngest, but the literary technique used here is to build up to the punchline. Moshah gets the other peoples out of the way first, so the story that continues will flow from its true context, that of Shem. Eber is mentioned before his place in the genealogy, flagging us to pay careful attention to him. His name is based on “crossing over”, but his name actually means “the land on the other side”—to which we cannot get unless we do cross over. He is thus the first “Hebrew”, for it is based on his name. There are many crossings-over along the way; we become what we cross over into, and do not remain in what we left behind. We are not Hebrews until after we cross over, not while we merely contemplate doing so. Eber is the one who carries on the school of Shem, whose responsibility is to teach the other nations to know and love YaHuWaH. Yafeth proved to be a true brother, and so is mentioned here, while Cham is not.

10:22 The sons of Shem: Eylam, Asshur, Arpakshad, Luwd, and Aram. 10:23 The sons of Aram: Uwts, Chuwl, Gether, and Mash. 10:24 Arpakshad became the father of Shelach. Shelach became the father of Eber. 10:25 To Eber were born two sons. The name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided. His brother’s name was Yoqtan. 10:26 Yoqtan became the father of Almowdad, Sheleph, Chatsarmaweth, Yerach, 10:27 Hadowram, Uwzal, Diklah, 10:28 Owbal, Abiyma'el, Sheba, 10:29 Owphiyr, Chawiylah, and Yowbab. All these were the sons of Yoqtan. 10:30 Their dwelling was from Meysha, as you go toward Sephar, the mountain of the east. 10:31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their languages, in their lands, after their nations/goyim. [70 nations]

[They are 70 in total, giving rise to the Hebraic idea that in reality there are "70 nations" in the world, despite further divisions later. This is borne out by Deut. 32:8 (which correlates this number with the number of the sons of Ysra'al, which in Gen. 46:27 is listed as 70), and Yahuwshua's sending out 70 disciples as a symbolic prelude to opening redemption to the whole world. Ysra'al would be an offshoot of Peleg.]

10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations/goyim. Of these were the nations divided in the earth after the Deluge.

11:1 The whole earth was of one language and one speech. 

 Language: literally "lip". The fact that all the names up to this point make sense in Hebrew may give us a clue as to what that one language was. Few: literally, the plural of the word "one"! "Few words" give little room for argument, and all of them still had the same story—that of the Deluge.  

11:2 It happened, as they traveled east, that they found a plain in the land of Shin'ar, and they lived there. 

It seems they all traveled together. Shin'ar: Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). This is a large flat plain, where they would not have mudslides or need terracing to farm, and there is plenty of water. From the east: from Mount Ararat by way of Persia.

 11:3 They said one to another, “Come, let’s make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” They had brick for stone, and they used asphalt for mortar. 

But Prov. 14:11 tells us that "the house of the wicked will be overthrown, but the tent of the upright will flourish", reminding us that we are sojourners on earth during this age.

11:4 They said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the heavens, and let’s make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth.”

 One of the biggest commodities people use as their security comes from the petroleum which the abundance of pitch here indicated was also present. The pitch from which we pave our roads and shingle our roofs is now a by-product of petroleum. So the system of trade that would later begin here has come back home again, for this region again has the world “over a barrel”. Oil is now the language all the merchants of the world speak. (Compare Revelation 18:9. (The kings of the earth, who committed whoring and lived wantonly with her, will weep and wail over her, when they look at the smoke of her burning) We have more repercussions from the destruction of oil refineries by recent hurricanes than all the lives and homes lost because of them. Since the religion now at home in the region destroyed the other center of trade (some other towers), its people are again uniting in resentment against foreign occupation and keeps the news focused on the world’s most ancient places once again. Because the most populous nations are now demanding more oil than the West, they can raise prices (though there is no shortage), and this is shifting the balance of power back to its ancient seats, and the old major players are returning to the scene. The focus is on the ancient world again, because that is where the oil is. Rev. 20 speaks of Yahuwshua’s witnesses being beheaded in the last days. For a long time Babel was thought to be what the book of Revelation was referring to as “mystery Babel”, and there are some parallels, but now the nation that was literally rebuilding Babel is the one doing the beheading that is in the news now. Interestingly, Iran recently spoke of having the power to “cut off the hand and place the sign of disgrace on the forehead” of its enemies (uncannily close to some other statements in revelation) because oil has bought it the ability to build a nuclear arsenal. A new tower of trade is being cemented together by another byproduct of oil—money! Babel is now literally selling the bodies and souls of men. YaHuWaH does not need towers of stone and mortar; He delivers us through His word. We do not need to hide from judgment, because He says that we will live if we walk in His instruction.

11:5  YaHuWaH came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built. 11:6    And YaHuWaH said, "Behold, the people are one unit, and they all have the same language, and if this is just what they are starting to do, nothing that they can dream up will be beyond their reach.

One unit: the same word used for Elohim's unity--acting in unified harmony. Our globalizing culture is beginning to take the same attitude: 'If we can dream it, we can do it!' Such widespread communication will be allowed just this once more to seal the final division between the righteous and rebellious. They did have a unity, but the house they were building was "built on sand". In fact, this phrase in Mat. 7:26 was an allusion to the dream Nevukhadnetzar had right at this same location. (Dan. 2:33-34) This tower is clearly the root of that “other house”.  

11:7 Come, let Us go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.” 11:8 So YaHuWaH scattered them abroad from there over the face of all the earth. They stopped building the city. 11:9 Therefore its name was called Babel, [confusion] because there YaHuWaH confused the language of all the earth. From there, YaHuWaH scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth.

Babel: In their minds its name meant "Gate of Aluahiym", but sounds like the word for "confusion". We get the English word “babble” from this. Centuries later, Babel’s strength would be in their ability to overcome the confusion. They took people from many languages and nations and tolerated all their ways to the point that most Jews found it more advantageous to remain there than to return to their own land. They took many people’s stories and transformed them into the common language of prosperity. Yet its feet are of clay; it will ultimately fall apart and the hands of YaHuWaH’s Kingdom, which cannot pass away.

[Year 1996 / 2004 BC]

 11:10 This is the history of the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old and became the father of Arpakshad two years after the flood. 11:11 Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpakshad, and became the father of sons and daughters.

[Thus Shem died in the year 2158 / 1842 BC, so his life overlapped with the patriarchs Abraham, Yitzhaq, and Ya'aqob, and tradition says he had a Yeshiva (school of the knowledge of Aluahiym) which all of them attended.]

[Year 1693 / 2307 BC]

11:12 Arpakshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelach. 11:13 Arpakshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Shelach, and became the father of sons and daughters. Notice the consistently shortening lifespans.

[Year 1723 / 2277 BC]

11:14 Shelach lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber: 11:15 and Shelach lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Eber, and became the father of sons and daughters.

Eber’s is the line that preserved the original language, even giving it its present name: Ibrit (Hebrew). A team of 150 scholars has been bringing to light the Hebrew root of all languages.

11:16 Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg. 11:17 Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and became the father of sons and daughters. Eber is the only one of Shem’s descendants mentioned here that outlived Shem.

11:18  Peleg lived thirty years, and became the father of Re'uw. 11:19 Peleg lived two hundred nine years after he became the father of Re'uw, and became the father of sons and daughters.

11:20 Re'uw lived thirty-two years, and became the father of Seruwg. 11:21 Re'uw lived two hundred seven years after he became the father of Seruwg, and became the father of sons and daughters.

11:22 Seruwg lived thirty years, and became the father of Nachowr. 11:23 Seruwg lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nachowr, and became the father of sons and daughters.

Serug means “intertwined branch”. Was he the one who started introducing idolatry even into Shem’s line? We see in Yahushua 24:2 that Terach (mentioned in the next verse) served other elohim than YaHuWaH. Jewish tradition says that he was even an idol-maker by trade.

11:24 Nachowr lived twenty-nine years, and became the father of Terach. 11:25 Nachowr lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terach, and became the father of sons and daughters.

11:26 Terach lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nachowr, and Charan.

11:27 Now this is the history of the generations of Terach. Terach became the father of Abram, Nachowr, and Charan. Charan became the father of Lowt.  11:28 Charan died before his father Terach in the land of his birth, in Uwr of the Kasdiy. 11:29 Abram and Nachowr took wives. The name of Abram’s wife was Saray, and the name of Nachowr’s wife, Milkah, the daughter of Charan who was also the father of Iscah. 11:30 Saray was barren. She had no child. 11:31 Terach took Abram his son, Lowt the son of Charan, his son’s son, and Saray his daughter-in-law, his son Abram’s wife. They went forth from Uwr of the Kasdiy, to go into the land of Kena'an. They came to Charan and lived there. 11:32 The days of Terach were two hundred five years. Terach died in Charan.

[Year 1997 / 2003 BC]

12:1 Now YaHuWaH said  to Abram, “Proceed for yourself from your land and your native people and your father's household, and go to the land that I will show you.

 Proceed for yourself: Literally walk (away). Abram had come the first leg on his father's terms, but now he is called to act on his own and totally leave familiar territory. Your land: Originally Ur, his actual place of birth. Native people: the term actually includes everything into which he was born—natural family, as well as the culture and circumstances into which he was born. Yet he had already left Ur long ago. In doing so, his route had to take him through Babel, the first ancestral home of everyone who descended from Noah. To get where he was going he had to revisit where he had come from, because he needed to leave Babel. Whether or not he himself was an idolater, many of his traditions undoubtedly stemmed from Nimrod’s religion just because of where he was born. We, too, did not realize that many of our traditions, like crosses, steeples, Christmas trees, and a trinity were pagan ideas that started all the way back with Nimrod and came down to Christianity through Mithraism. 

12:2 I will make of you a great nation/goyim. I will bless you and make your name great. You will be a blessing.  12:3 I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who despises you. All of the families of the earth will be blessed in you.”[be grafted]

"Be grafted": or simply "bless themselves", but the former rendering is supported by such usage of this tense (Nif'al) in the Mishnah, and forms the basis for Sha'ul's discourse in Romans 11. So as to fulfill His promise to bless Shem, yet not to show favoritism to any of the 70 nations, YaHuWaH took a man away from his own land and created a new culture, a counter-history that put men's plans to shame and was an exception to the rule that "under the sun, all is vanity". The one who despises you: perhaps any individual, but probably an allusion to haShatan (the adversary), whose malice toward Abram underlies everyone else's. The blessed ones, though, are plural, reminding us of a similar contrast in Exodus 34:7, where a curse remains for 3 or 4 generations, but a blessing lasts for thousands.

12:4 So Abram went, as YaHuWaH had spoken to him. Lowt went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed out of Charan. 12:5 Abram took Saray his wife, Lowt his brother’s son, all their substance that they had gathered, and the beings whom they had gotten in Charan, and they went forth to go into the land of Kena'an. Into the land of Kena'an they came. 

 It was now not his father’s house, but his own. Persons whom they had prepared: literally, “souls they had made”. None of these were his blood relatives; already people were being grafted into his family (v. 3). By eleven years later we see 318 trained men who have been “born in his household”. (14:14) This began well before he left Charan, and/or some of them were not born physically in his household, but were “born” into his sphere of authority by deciding to be dedicated to what Abram had taught them.

12:6 Abram passed through the land to the place of Shekem, to the oak of Elon Mowreh [oak tree of the Teacher]. The Kena'aniy was then in the land.

(This tree may also have had some connection to Shem, the great teacher, himself, who would still be alive for two more generations. We later see him living about 30 miles away from here.)

[Year 2000 from creation / 2000 BC]

12:7  YaHuWaH appeared to Abram and said, “I will give this land to your seed.”

Appeared: YaHuWaH was no longer just a voice in the wind, speaking from a distance. He allowed Abram to perceive Him here, as He had said He would. (v. 1) He is now in the position to become not just the servant, but the friend of YaHuWaH. (Ya'aqob 2:23) This promise was later narrowed to specific descendants of his. Little by little, YaHuWaH was indicating through whom the promised "Seed" of the woman would be born, for "seed" is a singular word. 

He built an altar there to YaHuWaH, Who appeared to him. 12:8 He left from there to the mountain on the east of Bayith-Al, and pitched her tent, having Bayith-Al on the west, and Ay on the east. There he built an altar to YaHuWaH  and called on [invoked] YaHuWaH by Name. [met with a representative (messenger) of YaHuWaH] 12:9 Abram traveled, going on still toward the South.

 He was in sight of Beyth-Al, the "House of Elohim". Ay means "Twisted ruin" (see Yahushua 8:3). East also means "ancient" in Hebrew, so in the context of tents (a symbol of religious study), we see him at the place of decision between the "water" of YaHuWaH's word versus the ruins of his heritage at the tower of Babel. Here where he could choose between the two, Abram learned to call on Aluahiym by the name of YaHuWaH. There were more aspects of its meaning that He would show to Moshah (Ex. 6:3), but His Name was not unknown at this time. This would also be the perfect place to teach Kena'anites the two extremes of what they could become.

12:10 There was a famine in the land. Abram went down into Mitsrayim to sojourn as a foreigner there, for the famine was very grievous in the land. 12:11 It happened, when he had come near to enter Mitsrayim, that he said to Saray his wife, “See now, I know that you are a beautiful woman to look at.[ Beautiful: literally, shapely. Saray was already over 65 years old!]  

12:12 It will happen, when the Mitsriy will see you, that they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me, but they will save you alive.

 This was not an imaginary fear; this was a common practice among pharaohs as described by contemporary papyri. This may be why Dawiyd was chastised so heavily for doing the same; he was following the practice of Gentile kings.

 12:13 Please say that you are my sister, that it may be well with me for your sake, and that my being may live because of you.”

 This was not quite a lie, but only a half-truth (see 20:12). Having descended into the Land that pictures the church of today, he used a loophole and just did not mention the part about her being his wife also. He said, in essence, "I love you, but I do not want to die for you!" Those who stay in the church, already knowing they are intimately connected to the Torah, are tempted to compromise like this, though not forsaking her altogether. They feel they dare not appeal to YaHuWaH's instruction lest they be "stoned" for following it too closely. Instead of declaring their commitment to it, they may just call it "wisdom", our "sister". (Prov. 7:4)

12:14 And sure enough when Abram had come into Mitsrayim, the Mitsriy saw that the woman was very beautiful. 12:15 The princes of Par'oh saw her, and praised her to Par'oh; and the woman was taken into Par'oh’s house. 12:16 He dealt well with Abram for her sake. He had sheep, cattle, male donkeys, male servants, female servants, female donkeys, and camels.

 The order of what was given to him may show the value that the Mitsrayim set on each. They worshipped sheep, which may be why they are placed before oxen. All of the animals here are redeemable except camels, yet they too were invaluable for travel in that region. In any case, he got what he needed; he gained more servants, thus building up his household and the new nation he was forming.

 12:17  YaHuWaH plagued Par'oh and his house with great plagues because of Saray, Abram’s wife. 12:18 Par'oh called Abram and said, “What is this that you have done to me? Why didn’t you tell me that she was your wife? 12:19 Why did you say, ‘She is my sister,’ so that I was taking her to be my wife? Now therefore, see your wife, take her, and go!

 Was taking: or took--a common Hebrew term for the betrothal stage of marriage, but there was as yet no consummation. Abram did not explain his rationale here as he would in 20:12, when he was speaking to someone who had more understanding of YaHuWaH—possibly one of the Kena'anites Abram had already influenced.

12:20 Par'oh commanded men concerning him, and they brought him on the way with his wife and all that he had.

 Pharaoh means “great house”, but Sarai already belonged to another house. Orders: probably to spare his life. This scenario is a picture of the Bride of the Mashiyach being held in a pagan household, because it is not realized that she belongs to a Hebrew. Though we have been enriched by the sojourn, once it is recognized who we are, it is clear that we do not belong in a place of exile, and together they will all return to the Land promised to both houses of Ysra'al. Abram also opened a portent here for his descendants to later plunder Mitsrayim, who would also go there because of a famine and then be driven out with great possessions. He thus foreshadowed many of the events in their lives.

13:1 Abram went up out of Mitsrayim: he, his wife, all that he had, and Lowt with him, into the Negev.  13:2 Abram was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold.

Rich: literally, heavy. And indeed, riches often do prove to weigh us down. Yahuwshuwah would tell a man who thought he had been keeping all the commandments that if he was wealthy, he must not really be fulfilling the commands toward his fellow men, because too many around him were still poor. (Mat. 19:16-30) 

 13:3 He went on his journeys from the south even to Bayith-Al, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bayith-Al and Ay, 13:4 to the place of the altar, which he had made there at the first. There Abram called on the Name of YaHuWaH. 13:5 Lowt also, who went with Abram, had flocks, and herds, and tents. 13:6 The land was not able to bear them, that they might live together: for their substance was great, so that they could not live together. 13:7 There was a strife between the herdsmen of Abram’s livestock and the herdsmen of Lowt’s livestock: and the Kena'aniy and the Perizziy lived in the land at that time. 

Notice it is not the relatives themselves who are at odds, but their hireling shepherds. Abram's descendants are called “dust” (v. 16), and dust makes up a land. So it is really a picture of people who are being fought over by those who think Abram's descendants are only food for their sheep and not something set-apart in themselves. The ones they are trying to teach are being taught two different ways, and strife is inevitable. Peritzite means "dweller in unwalled villages". They seem to interrupt the flow of the narrative here, but they are actually mentioned in the right place. The Peritzites are also Kena'anites, and thus are servants of the flesh. Their presence was having some influence on Lot, and even if some of their advice about how to get along in the world was worthwhile, it was not what YaHuWaH’s community needed. He, too, ended up serving his flesh:

13:8 Abram said to Lowt, “Please, let there be no strife between me and you, and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen; for we are relatives. 13:9 Isn’t the whole land before you? Please separate yourself from me. If you go to the left hand, then I will go to the right. Or if you go to the right hand, then I will go to the left.”

13:10 Lowt lifted up his eyes, and saw all the plain of the Yarden, that it was well-watered everywhere, before YaHuWaH destroyed Sedom and Amorah, like the garden of YaHuWaH, like the land of Mitsrayim, as you go to Tso'ar. 

Yarden River: At that time it probably flowed all the way to the Red Sea. It was a beautiful place, but Yarden means "descender"—which should have warned him that if he chose that direction, he would indeed end up in a “lower” place than where he was at this time.

13:11 So Lowt chose the Plain of the Yarden for himself. Lowt traveled east, and they separated themselves the one from the other. 

For himself: this was where his downfall began. He chose to leave behind the Land of Kena'an proper, which was where YaHuWaH had called Abram. He saw a different “mission field”:

13:12 Abram lived in the land of Kena'an, and Lowt lived in the cities of the plain, and pitched his tent as far as Sedom. 

As far as S’dom: or toward S'dom, possibly with the hint of beginning to lean toward its philosophy of life. This was another step downhill for him.

13:13 Now the men of Sedom were exceedingly wicked and sinners against YaHuWaH.

13:14   YaHuWaH said to Abram, after Lowt was separated from him, “Now, lift up your eyes, and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward, 

"Lift up your eyes" is a phrase often linked to prophecy, and indeed the promise has reached its full borders only in a token sense for a short time during the reign of Shlomo; a greater fulfillment still awaits us.

13:15 for all the land which you see, I will give to you, and to your offspring forever.  13:16 I will make your offspring as the dust of the earth, so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then your seed may also be numbered. 

[Like the dust of the earth: of course the main parallel is with inability to count his descendants, and one of the reasons for this is that many of them do not realize that they are his descendants. But Adam was also created from the dust of the earth (the only reference to dust in the Scripture prior to this), and again "seed" is singular (though it can refer to all his descendants).] 

13:17 Get up! Walk through the land in its length and in its breadth; for I will give it to you.”

13:18 Abram moved his tent, and came and lived by the oaks of Mamre, which are in Chebrown, and built an altar there to YaHuWaH.

 Abram had not built an altar while he was in Mitsrayim; YashaYahuw. 19 tells us an altar to YaHuWaH will not be there until the Messianic Kingdom.

14:1 It happened in the days of Amraphel, king of Shin'ar, Aryowk, king of Ellasar, Siddiym, king of Eylam, and Tid'al, king of Goyim [nations], 

Amrafel: "sayer of the darkness" or "fall of the sayer". Shin’ar: land of two rivers (Mesopotamia), the kingdom started by Nimrod. Ariokh: "Lion-like" (Sumerian, Eri-Aku). Ellasar: "Al is chastener". Kedarlaomer: Kudur-Laghamaru, "servant of an Eylamite goddess". Eylam: east of Babylonia, between Assyria and Persia. Tidal: "Great son". Tidal: or Tud-khula. Nations: probably a particular alliance, but the word is Goyim, also used in particular of the sea peoples, certain of the Yafethites (10:5), or Gentiles in general.

14:2 that they made war with Bera, king of Sedom, and with Birsha, king of Amorah, Shinab, king of Admah, and Shemeber, king of Tsebo'iym, and the king of Bela (the same is Tso'ar).

Made war: In Hebrew, the root is related to the word for bread (or in general what is eaten), hence they intended to completely “devour” these former vassal city-states. Bera: "Son of evil". S’dom: "burning". Birsha: "Having wickedness". Ghamorah: "submersion" or "a pile of ruins". (Story in chapter 19.) Shin’av: "Splendor of the father", or "father is altered", king of "the ground" (a picture of Lucifer, who was cursed to crawl the ground after once having been the most splendid being). Shem’ever: "name of lofty flight", king of "gazelles"; and the king of "destruction". Bela: “swallower”—described in Aramaic as the city that would swallow it's inhabitants. Burning, submersion, and destruction were indeed the very way these cities would meet their end!

14:3 All these joined together in the valley of Siddiym (the same is the Salt Sea). 14:4 Twelve years they served Siddiym, and in the thirteenth year, they rebelled. 14:5 In the fourteenth year Siddiym came, and the kings who were with him, and struck the Rephaim in Ashtarowth Qarnayim, and the Zuwziym in Cham, and the Eymiym in Shaweh Qiryathayim, 

Refaim means "slackers" or "lazy ones", or possibly a type of giants; targum Onqelos calls them “mighty ones”. Ashteroth-Qarnayim: "stars of the two horns/peaks". Zuzim: "roving creatures" or “movers”; Ham: possibly a variation on Cham, "hot" or "sunburnt"; Eymim: "terrors" or “fearsome ones”. They occupied the area that would later be known as Moab. (Deut. 2:10-11)

14:6 and the Choriy in their Mount Se'iyr, to Eyl Pa'ran, which is by the wilderness. 

[Choriy: "cave dwellers"—so cavemen are a very recent phenomena, contrary to popular belief. They were not prehistoric; they are recorded right here in history. Pa'ran also means "caverns"]

14:7 They returned, and came to Eyn Mishpat (the same is Qadesh), and struck all the country of the Amaleqiy, and also the Emoriy, that lived in Chatsetown Tamar. 14:8 The king of Sedom, and the king of Amorah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Tsebo'iym, and the king of Bela (the same is Tso'ar) went out; and they set the battle in array against them in the valley of Siddiym; 14:9 against Siddiym king of Eylam, and Tidal king of Goiim, and Amraphel king of Shin'ar, and Aryowk king of Ellasar; four kings against the five. 

 14:10 Now the valley of Siddiym was full of tar pits; and the kings of Sedom and Amorah fled and they fell into them, and those who remained fled to the hills.

[The whole valley was called "Slime Pits", also translatable as "oil wells". (Oil has been discovered deep under a salt dome here.) Later, clods of bitumin did rise to the surface of the Dead Sea, known in Josephus' day as "Lake Asphaltitis, and the Nabateans grew wealthy by selling it as caulk for ships. Lightning storms would set it ablaze, earning this "Salt Sea" the nickname "the Lake of Fire". An earthquake later sealed off the seepage, but a quake when the Mashiyach returns to Yahrushalum may open it back again, allowing Rev. 19:20 to come true literally.]

14:11 They took all the goods of Sedom and Amorah, and all their food, and went their way. 14:12 They took Lowt, Abram’s brother’s son, who lived in Sedom, and his goods, and departed.

14:13 One who had escaped came and told Abram, the Ibriy (Hebrew). Now he lived by the oaks of Mamre, the Emoriy, brother of Eshkol, and brother of Aner; and these were allies of Abram.

 By tradition he (the "one")  came on the eve of the day that would later be Passover, when Abram was preparing unleavened bread. This is the first time anyone is described as a Hebrew, which means "a descendant of Eber", the one whose name means “the one from the other side”. 

 14:14 When Abram heard that his relative was taken captive, he led forth his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen in number, and pursued as far as Dan. 14:15 He divided himself against them by night, he and his servants, and struck them, and pursued them to Chowbah, which is on the left hand of Dammeseq. 14:16 He brought back all the goods, and also brought back his relative, Lowt, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.

14:17 The king of Sedom went out to meet him, after his return from the slaughter of Siddiym and the kings who were with him, at the valley of Shaweh (that is, the King’s Valley).

King of S'dom: again, his name meant "son of evil" and his city means "burning", so he is a picture of the Adversary, who tries to lay claim to the hero who passes through his area of jurisdiction. (See v. 21) He must have remained hidden in the tar pit he fell into until the attackers were gone (v. 10), then escaped, for he has not been carried away captive himself. Shaweh: "Equal", or by extension, "leveled".

 14:18 Melekiy-Tsedeq king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was priest of Al Most High. (Pesach elements) 14:19 He blessed him, and said, “Blessed be Abram of the Al Most High, Owner of Heaven and Earth:  14:20 and blessed be Al Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.” Abram gave him a tenth of all.

Tithe: ten percent, the portion later due the Levitical priests for their livelihood (Num. 18:21) and also tribute paid to a teacher. Tradition says that Shem and his grandson Eber set up a yeshiva (school) where knowledge of the one true Aluahiym was passed down, and that the patriarchs studied there in Yahrushalum under them.  Shem did not die until Ya'aqob was 35 years old. "Lewi" (while within his great-grandfather Abram) paid tithes to Melchitzedeq, thus acknowledging the precedence taken by the latter's order of priesthood (Hebrews 7:10), to which Yahuwshuwah (not a Lewite) belonged. However, Abraham represents one of the ten characteristics that make up the "Adam Qadmon" (Ancient Adam), also called "the tree of life" and the "Al-head" in mystical terms. Thus he is, in a sense, a tithe himself. By tradition, a line of firstborns constituted the priesthood from Noah until the Levitical system was set up under Moshah. Shem was apparently Noah's firstborn--and thus the one to inherit the priesthood before it was assigned to the Levitical line. Here the tithe was not strictly agricultural as it would always be after Moshah's time. Melkhitzedeq (Shem) was not a Hebrew himself in the same way that Abram was not an Ysra'alite—they were the ancestors of the ones through whom their character was preserved. This king took no armies to this battle, but he has come out to celebrate a brother delivering a brother. He is thus recognizing that Abram, who now teaches in the “tents of Shem”, is representing him well, and in supportiveness of him, passes the priesthood of the family along to him. Some of the further covenants yet to be conferred on Abram could not come about until the “mantle of the firstborn” had been passed on to him. Abram in turn recognizes him as his teacher and his priest.

14:21 The king of Sedom said to Abram, “Give me the people, and take the goods to yourself.”

14:22 Abram said to the king of Sedom, “I have lifted up my hand to YaHuWaH, Al Most High, Owner of Heaven and Earth, 

Raised my hand: in oath. He had to live by his word. YaHuWaH is named directly, so there is no doubt as to whom the highest Aluahiym is.

14:23 that I will not take a thread nor a sandal strap nor anything that is yours, lest you should say, ‘I have made Abram rich.’ 

He would not let a man take credit for what YaHuWaH has brought about. He would not put himself in a position in which someone outside the camp was taking care of him. Thread means "cord" or "string", as one would expect, but its verb form means "to repair foundations" or "patch up". Thong is from a word for "twisted" or "entangled". A sandal is for walking. So in relation to these pagans whom he refused to credit for who he became, Abram refused to be "bound" to them or "entangled" in any of the ways they "walked", nor would he even allow them to "patch up" the pagan foundations of his life that YaHuWaH had already overthrown. He knew this was not where true riches lay.

14:24 I will accept nothing from you except that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men who went with me: Aner, Eshkol, and Mamre. Let them take their portion.”

Anyone else, who measured things the way this king did, could have all they wanted. They were not against Abram, and thus were for him (cf. Mark 9:40), so he did not begrudge them any of this world's goods, nor did he force them to live up to his convictions. He was grateful and they received a just reward, but his own standard had to be higher. The only thing we, who from our fathers, like Abram's, have also inherited lies (Yirmeyahuw 16:9), should carry away from them is that which truly fed us--for YaHuWaH has not left Himself without witness. The popular church does have some truth mixed in with error, and He brought us step by step by a path He chose for each of us. But once we learn enough to transfer our faith to its only real object, we have to reject any other source of inheritance in order to choose the "pearl of great price" (Luk. 14:26; Matt. 13:46). Though by leaving his family and prior commitments in Ur he must have seemed a "traitor", someone had to get out of the quicksand and onto firm footing in order that all nations could also be led into purer truth.

[Year 2018 / 1982 B.C.E.]

15:1 After these words, the Word of YaHuWaH [Memra] came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Don’t be afraid, Abram. I AM your Shield, your Exceedingly Great Reward. (wages)

These words: those in 14:22-24, in which Abram revealed where his heart really was. He had proven his fellowship was with Shem, not with S’dom. This is therefore when THE Word comes to him.

15:2 Abram said, “Master YaHuWaH, what will you give me, seeing I am going about utterly stripped of everything? And he who will inherit my estate is Eliy'ezer of Dammeseq?”  

What can you give me? He has just passed up another kind of wage, so he asks an honest question, not in a rebellious way, for he calls Him “Master” (for the first time). YaHuWaH has just said He would be his wages; now he asks what He will be paying. He Stripped: Literally, "razed", a cultural idiom for childlessness (Neofiti).

15:3 Abram said, “Behold, to me you have given no seed. Indeed, one born in my house is my heir.”

15:4 Behold, the Word of YaHuWaH  came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir, but he who will come forth out of your own body will be your heir.” 15:5  YaHuWaH brought him outside, and said, “Look now toward the sky, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” He said to Abram, “So shall your seed be.” 

The primary idea is that his descendants would be innumerable. But again the term "seed" is singular (Gal. 3:16), and so a secondary interpretation concerns the Mazzaroth--the original, pure zodiac--"signs", cf. 1:14, which foretold the story of the promised Redeemer: "Enumerate the stars in order--this is what [Mashiyach] will be like!" (cf. Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the honor of Aluahiym. The expanse shows His handywork. ff: i.e., the promised Seed will fulfill this other form of prophecy as well).

15:6 He believed/trusted in the Word of YaHuWaH [Memra]; and He reckoned it to him for righteousness.

Believed: stood firm in his trust or confidence; based on the verb form of "amen", which means "established" or "trustworthy". He merited being written in the Book of the Righteous (Dan. 7:10; Rev. 20:12) because he trusted confidently in YaHuWaH's promise, though it was impossible! This can apply to us too. (Gal. 3:9) The same affirmation is given to Pin’has (Ps. 106:31) because he acted on his belief: he intervened when even Moshah stood by, and held off a plague. But Romans 4:9ff points out that Abram was counted righteous before he was circumcised--before he had done any particularly religious acts, though he could not have gotten to where he was without trusting YaHuWaH at each juncture. Now he believes his line will continue, but he still had to do his part in fathering a child. He must still walk in a way that proves he believes. (Ya'aqob 2:20ff) If he had stopped here, none of this would have come about.

15:7 He said to him, “I AM YaHuWaH Who brought you out of Uwr of the Kasdiy, to give you this land to inherit it.”

He is saying, “Think about Who I am. Remember where I brought you from—and why. Consider what I have already done, and continue trusting in My promise. Remember Who is in control, even when My ideas of how it needs to be accomplished are different from your own.”

15:8 He said, “ My Master YaHuWaH, how will I know that I will inherit it?”

15:9 He said to him, “Bring Me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.”

[The number three is heavily featured here, possibly because there are also three parties to this covenant—Abram, YaHuWaH, and Abram’s seed.]

  15:10 He brought Him all of these, and divided them in the middle, and laid each half opposite the other; but he didn’t divide the birds.

A "covenant-cutting" included the exchange of weapons, robes, names (17:5), and blood (Mat. 26:28), and told a vassal, "This is what will be done to you if you break the treaty." (Compare YirmeYahuw 4:18-22) The kingdom of Ysra'al was indeed cut in two when we did not keep our part of the covenant. They walked between the pieces in a figure 8, symbolizing the eternal nature of the covenant. Birds were the offering of those who could not afford anything better. They are not cut because trusting YaHuWaH only in small things is not enough for this covenant. These birds were very young, and the immature cannot satisfy YaHuWaH without further training in the Torah.

 15:11 The birds of prey came down on the carcasses, and Abram drove them away.

15:12 When the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. Now terror and great darkness fell on him. 

 YaHuWaH often puts people into this deep sleep (Heb., tardemah) to set the stage for great things He wants to do, as in Gen. 2:21; 1 Sh'muel 26:12; Yash. 26:10, interpreted by Rom. 11; Yahuwchanan 11:11ff; 1 Thess. 4:14.

15:13 He said to Abram, “Know for sure that your seed will be foreigners for four hundred years in a land that is not their own, and will be servants and slaves to the inhabitants, and will be afflicted by them.

Not that they'd be enslaved for the full 400 years; rather, his seed (those not yet born) would be without a land of their own for that long. Even while in the Land of Ysra'al they would still be sojourners (e.g., ch. 26, Zlotowitz). They would actually be enslaved fewer than 83 years, because Aharon, 3 years older than Moshah, did not have to be protected as Moshah was, and Moshah returned at age 80 to deliver them. They were delivered from slavery 430 years later (to the day, Ex. 12:41; cf. Gal. 3:17; the Torah was given just 7 weeks later). It also foreshadows the exile of Abraham's spiritual children in the present age (Heb. 11:13; 1 Kefa 2:11). What sort of promise is this? Kena'an, not Shem, is supposed to be the one enslaved. But this bondage is part of His plan, so that we can see who is really in control. Part of the reason for the Shabbath is to recall this time of slavery, so we can again disengage from the idea that we are the ones in control. Entering this new covenant seems dark and scary. Much more is at stake than the responsibility we feel upon signing a mortgage. But again, He says in so many words, “Do not be afraid; it will be worth it if you hang on long enough”.

15:14 I will also judge that nation, whom they will serve. Afterward they will come out with great wealth, 15:15 but you will go to your fathers in peace. You will be buried in a good old age. 15:16 But in the fourth generation after they have entered that nation, they will come here again, for the willful sin of the Emoriy is not yet full.” 15:17 It came to pass that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold, a smoking oven, a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 

The smoke shows that the oven is still being heated up; it has to get to over 600 degrees Fahrenheit. When this stage is finished, the fuel and fire are removed, and the heat the earth or brick oven retains is enough to bake bread. The torch is to light the fire and to provide light. The word for “torch” here is the same word used of the “lightning flashes” seen at Mt. Sinai when YaHuWaH gave the Torah. (Ex. 20:18) Thus the responsibility of Abram’s seed in the covenant is to “bake bread” (form a community as per 1 Qorinthians 10:17) and to be a light to the nations. [1 Kings 17:12] Yashayahuw  31:9 reveals that this will take place in Yahrushalum, from which righteousness and deliverance will go forth (62;1) as the Torah goes forth from it. (Mikha 4;2) The way Abram knew he would inherit this Land in particular was because here YaHuWaH showed him Yahrushalum—and his descendants within it. The original Hebrew text does not have the vowel points or even spaces between words. Part of this verse, if the words are cut differently, reads,"Fire, fire an evil [thing] into Rabin, decrees the Aluahiym on that day." As soon as the shabbath on which this portion was read in synagogues all over the world in 1995/ 5756 was over, Ysra'al's Prime Minister Rabin was shot twice by a man claiming Elohim had told him to do it!

15:18 In That Day YaHuWaH made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your seed I have given this land, from the river of Mitsrayim to the great river, the river Perath: 

In That Day: This is the first occurrence of this oft-repeated phrase that, on the prophetic level, alludes to the Day of YaHuWaH (Yahuwchanan 2:1). Ysra'al had these borders for a short time under Dawiyd and Shlomo, whose reigns of justice, peace, and wisdom foreshadow "That Day"--an idiom for the final "day" of the "world-week", the millennial Messianic Kingdom, when the promise will be fulfilled in entirety.

15:19 the Qeyniy, the Qenizzy, the Qadmoniy, 15:20 the Chittiy, the Perizziy, the Repha, 15:21 the Emoriy, the Kena'aniy, the Girgashiy, and the Yebuwciy.” (10 nations)

16:1 Now Saray, Abram’s wife, bore him no children. She had a handmaid, an Mitsriy, whose name was Hagar. 16:2 Saray said to Abram, “See now, YaHuWaH has restrained me from bearing. Please go in to my handmaid; maybe I can be built up from her..” Abram listened to the voice of Saray.

Built up: the Hebrew word for "son" is from a root word meaning "build". "House" in Hebrew can also mean "household", and a household is built up through children. Sarai attributed her barrenness to being frowned on by her Aluahiym, but she does not include Abram in this perceived curse. This was not a new idea that she came up with. Hammurabi’s code, which was in force in the area where Abram had grown up, said that if a woman was barren, she could give her female slave to her husband and any offspring she had would remain with her mistress. Adoption would not be necessary, because Sarai owned her, so any son she had would also belong to her. Listened to: Includes the idea of accepting what she said. When Adam had listened to his wife’s voice (saying essentially the same thing—“take the fruit, and you will continue”), thorns, thistles, and death resulted. On a later occasion YaHuWaH would tell Abram that his wife was right (21:12), but this time it was just her human logic.

16:3 Saray, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Mitsriy, her handmaid, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Kena'an, and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife. 16:4 He went in to Hagar, and she conceived. When she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. 16:5 Saray said to Abram, “My wrong be upon you. I gave my handmaid into your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes. YaHuWaH judge between me and you.”

16:6 But Abram said to Saray, “Behold, your maid is in your hand. Do to her whatever is good in your eyes.” Saray dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her face.

 Note that a woman could own female slaves that were not technically the property of her husband. Because of this rift between them, Sarai apparently released her claim to Hagar’s son. Hammurabi’s code also stipulated that a slave girl taken as a surrogate mother could not be sold or driven out because she has been humiliated (and the Torah has similar rulings in Deut. 21:14; 22:29). Therefore Sarai probably beat her to the point where she would want to leave of her own volition.

16:7 The Malak YaHuWaH found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way to Shuwr. 16:8 He said, “Hagar, Saray’s handmaid, where did you come from? Where are you going?”

She said, “I am fleeing from the face of my mistress Saray.”

16:9 The Malak YaHuWaH said  to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hands.”

YaHuWaH did judge in favor of Sarai (as she requested in v. 5).

16:10 The Malak YaHuWaH  said  to her, “I will greatly multiply your seed, that they will not be numbered for multitude.”

Because of the tangled web Abram wove, being a seed of Abram, part of this promise to Abram had to apply to Yishma’el as well.

16:11 The Malak YaHuWaH  said  to her, “Behold, you are with child, and will bear a son. You shall call his name Yishma'el, because YaHuWaH  has heard your affliction. 16:12 He will be like a wild ass of a man. His hand will be against every man, and every man’s hand against him. He shall dwell in the presence all of his brothers.”

Wild ass of a man: or "an undomesticated Adam", as all of us have been to some degree--still human, bearing some of YaHuWaH's image, but not the refined, submitted persons we were meant to be; Targum Onqelos has “a rebel among mankind”. This is probably the main reason Hagar was told to return to Sarai for a while, for before he was turned loose in the world, this wild man had to have a certain amount of Abram’s influence in order to bring some honor to his father. Yet they may be the only ancient people other than the tribe of Yehudah who have maintained a clearly separate identity for 4,000 years. And wild donkeys are not loners; they run in herds, and so this may also be a prophecy that he will be a tribal people. His descendants still are; mostly Arabs knowing their tribal heritage well.

16:13 She praised and prayed in the Name of the Word of YaHuWaH Who spoke to her, “Al-Who-Is-Seen,” for she said, “Have I also seen Him Who sees me? ”  16:14 Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi. (Well of the Living One Who sees me.) Behold, it is between Qadesh and Bered.

16:15 Hagar bore a son for Abram. Abram called the name of his son, whom Hagar bore, Yishma'el. 

Hagar was told to name him Yishmael, but Abram actually ended up having the privilege of doing so. She must certainly have recounted the story to him.

16:16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Yishma'el to Abram.

17:1 And Abram was a son of the ninetieth year and nine years, and YaHuWaH appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am Al Shaddai. Walk before me, and be blameless. 17:2 I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceeding-exceedingly.” 

(Al Shaddai is used when YaHuWaH is dealing with and blessing the individual. …. especially the Patriarchs - The Ibriy word "me'ode is used twice in this blessing signifying that His blessing will be beyond measure !!)

 Al Shaddai: YaHuWaH is presenting another side of who He is. It is often translated "Almighty", but it seems to be related to shad (breast), i.e., Elohim's nurturing side. The Torah is often likened to milk. Here, the context has been Sarai’s lack of fertility. YaHuWaH is saying, “Look to Me for this as well, rather than anywhere else. What you are seeking will not be found among the Mitsrayim or the seed of Hagar. Trust Me to be all that you need. I will increase you as and when you need to be increased, though it may not be the way you expect.” Dai means “enough”, so “Shad dai” would mean “the one whose provision is sufficient”. But the root word of shad can also mean“to devastate”, and depending on our response to Him, He will be either nurturing or destructive. Before Me: or in My presence; literally, “in front of My face”, which is where a child must be to be nursed. As Esther let herself be seen by the king, we need to prepare well for our approach to Him. As Ya'aqob says, “Draw near to YaHuWaH, and He will draw near to you.”

17:3 Then Abram fell on his face and Aluahiym talked with him, saying, 17:4 “I am here! My Covenant is with you. You will be the father of a roaring crowd of nations/goyim. 17:5 Neither will your name any more be called Abram, but your name will be Abraham; for I have made you the father of a roaring crowd of nations/goyim. 17:6 I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations/goyim of you. Kings will come out of you.  17:7 I will establish My Covenant between Me and you and your seed after you throughout their generations for an everlasting Covenant, to be a Aluahiym to you and to your seed after you. 17:8 I will give to you, and to your seed after you, the Land where you are traveling, all the land of Kena'an, for an everlasting possession. I will be their Aluahiym.”

17:9 Aluahiym said to Abraham, “As for you, you will keep My Covenant, you and your seed after you throughout their generations. 17:10 This is My Covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your seed after you. every male among you shall be circumcised. 17:11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin. It will be a token of the Covenant between Me and you. 17:12 He who is eight days old will be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he who is born in the house, or bought with money from any foreigner who is not of your seed.

 Abraham's lineage represented this for the whole world. The final day of the feast of Sukkoth, like the Sabbath, pictures the "glorious rest" of Messiah's Kingdom; the eighth day looks forward to the "new heaven and new earth" that follow the seventh Millennium (2 Kefa 3:8ff; Rev. 20-22). A graphic reminder of this wonderful time is built right into one's own body! 

17:13 He who is born in your house, and he who is bought with your money, must be circumcised. My Covenant will be in your flesh for an everlasting/perpetual Covenant. 17:14 The uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that being shall be cut off from his people. He has broken My Covenant.”

17:15 Aluahiym said to Abraham, “As for Saray your wife, you shall not call her name Saray, but her name will be Sarah. 17:16 I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her. Yes, I will bless her, and she will be a mother of nations/goyim. Kings of many ethnic groups will come from her.”

A name change indicated a change in identity. In this particular case, a rebalancing, in which Sarai's attitude (16:6) was made more submissive and she could function as truly female, was accomplished when YaHuWaH “made change” by taking an "i" (yodh) from Sarah's name, with its numeric value of 10, and placed an "h" (hey, numeric value 5) in each of their names. 

17:17 Then Abraham fell on his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to him who is one hundred years old? Will Sarah, who is ninety years old, give birth?” 17:18 Abraham said to Aluahiym, “Oh that Yishma'el might live before You!”

17:19 Aluahiym said, “On the contrary,  Sarah, your wife, will bear you a son. You shall call his name Yitschaq [he laughed] I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him. 17:20 As for Yishma'el, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He will become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. 17:21 But My covenant I establish with Yitschaq, whom Sarah will bear to you at this appointed time next year.”

[Appointed time: usually denotes one of the mandated festivals. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan says this day was the 14th of Nisan—the day on which the Passover would later fall. This was the Jewish tradition in Yahuwshua’s day. In the next chapter, we will see ample evidence for this. (See notes on 18:5, 6.)]

17:22 When He finished talking with him, Aluahiym went up from Abraham. 17:23 Abraham took Yishma'el his son, all who were born in his house, and all who were bought with his money; every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in the same day, as Aluahiym had said to him.

That same day: Passover (see note on v. 21). Interestingly, Passover is the only festival that one is specifically required to be circumcised in order to participate in (Ex. 12:48).

 17:24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 17:25 Yishma'el, his son, was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. 17:26 In the same day both Abraham and Yishma'el, his son, were circumcised. 17:27 All the men of his house, those born in the house, and those bought with money of a foreigner, were circumcised with him.

   Learn then, my sons, concerning all things richly, that Abraham, the first who enjoined circumcision, looking forward in ruwach to Yahuwshuwah, when he circumcised having received the secrets of the three letters.

8.       For the Scripture says,

“And Abraham circumcised ten, and five, and four hundred men of his household.”

What, then, was the knowledge given to him in this?  Notice that he mentions the fifteen first, and then after a pause the four hundred.  The ten and the five are thus denoted: Ten by y, and Five by h [the name of Yahuw hy (יָהֻ)]: here you have Yahuwshuwah.  And because the gallows-cross hanging in the letter t (taw) was to convey the favor, he says also, “Four Hundred.”  Therefore He shows Yahuwshuwah by two letters, and the gallows-cross hanging in the other one.

9.       He knows this, Who has put within us the engrafted gift of His doctrine.  I have permitted no one else to have a more excellent lesson than this, but I know that you are worthy. ??? Letter of Barnabus  

18:1  Then YaHuWaH appeared [yera'] to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day.

Then: linked to his having circumcised himself, his son, his 318 trainees, and any sons they had. Being at least 14 years after he had taken them to rescue Lot, a conservative estimate would place this at probably 1,000 men and boys. In other words, he had done his part to initiate the covenant, proving his faith genuine through his actions, so Yahuwah returns in a fuller measure to carry out His next step. Every covenant has “ifs”, and though it offends our modern sensitivities, Yahuwah also showed that He had confidence in Abraham simply by asking him to do this. He also will not ask of us anything that is impossible. (Deut. 30:10ff) Yahuwshuwah would not have told us to follow him if we could not actually do so. Therefore Mamre means "strength", setting the tone for this passage, in which the man whose greatest strength is lovingkindness or mercy needs to operate in the area of judgment, bringing his personality to a place of balance and wholeness. The tent: it does not say "his tent". On the literal level it may have been, but on a deeper level, a tent is often symbolic of a place of spiritual learning. Sitting is a Hebrew idiom for study; the word “Yeshiva”—a Jewish seminary—is based on the word for “sit”. Yahuwah appeared to: or “Yahuwah was perceived by”. Being focused on Yahuwah, he had a deeper level of ruwachal insight.

 18:2 He lifted up his eyes and looked, and saw that three men stood opposite him. When he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself to the earth, 18:3 and said, “My Masters, if now I have found favor in your sight, please don’t go away from your servant. 18:4 Now let a little water be fetched, wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree.

 "Rest" here denotes leaning against, trusting in, or supporting oneself upon. Since it is “the tree”, not just “a tree”, it also refers to Yahuwshua’s execution stake. He is teaching them the "Gospel": after we repent, we find rest under "the tree of strength”. Entering his rest is also an idiom for the Sabbath (Hebrews 4). The third element is partaking of “one bread” (1 Qorinthians 10:17)—which symbolizes a unified congregation:

18:5 I will get a morsel of bread so you can refresh your heart. After that you may go your way, now that you have come to your servant.”

A morsel: not a whole loaf, but a part that is broken off. This strongly hints of Passover, when Yahuwshuwah stated that broken bread symbolized His body (Matt. 26:26), that "one bread". 

They said, “Very well, do as you have said.”

18:6 Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Quickly make ready three measures (se'im) of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes.”

[Matt. 13:3]

 In a parable, Yahuwshuwah compares the Kingdom of Heaven to leaven that a woman hid in three measures of flour. (Matt. 13:3) Sarah is the only woman we see in Scripture preparing three measures of flour. So while Sarah did not literally leaven this bread, Yahuwshuwah added an element to the allegory: what we are to offer to our neighbors is the Kingdom.    Three se’im is 28 cups (or 20 liters) of flour! 

18:7 Abraham ran to the herd, and fetched a tender and good calf, and gave it to the youth. He hurried to dress it. 18:8 He took butter, milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them. He stood by them under the tree, and they ate.

18:9 They asked him, “Where is Sarah, your wife?”

He said, “There in the tent.”

18:10 He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and see, Sarah your wife will have a son.”

Note the parallel in Elishua’s words to the woman of Shunem (2 Kings 4:16). I will return: yet there is no record of this “messenger” ever returning to Abraham in the same way that he had come this time. He came back through the birth of this promised son, who kept the lineage going. Time of life: the period of gestation, but the word for life can mean "green", suggesting the green ears of barley that mark the arrival of the month in which Passover will fall at the full moon. On the opposite side of the calendar), six months later, there is another "first" month (the civil or secular one), commemorating the birth of the world. The two calendars parallel each other in many ways. It appears that Abraham's son was born at one, and his other son (Yahuwshuwah), whom this one foreshadows, was born at the other. He would also “return the life” to Sarah’s womb.

(Sarah was listening in the tent door, that was behind him.) 18:11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age. It had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 18:12 Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old will I have this pleasure, my master being old also?”

 Old: two different words are used here. Sarah was "worn out, used up, withered"-- could no longer bear children, naturally speaking. Abraham, however, was only "aged"; he ended up having more children. (25:2) Pleasure: can include delicate [skin] or softness; but the Hebrew word is "eden"! Thus she speaks for the whole human race while awaiting the continuation of the Messianic line which now seemed unlikely: "After being withered, will I again have Eden? Will I again be clothed with light rather than this skin that wears out?" She will become the garden for Abraham’s seed to repair the damage done in the first garden. Taking care of one another is how it is done.

18:13   YaHuWaH said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Sure! Will I give birth - old woman that I am?’ 18:14 Is anything too difficult for YaHuWaH? At the set time I will return to you, when the appointed time comes round, and Sarah will have a son.”

Too difficult: "beyond" or "wonderful/miraculous". Thing: word or matter. Could also read: "Is a word from YaHuWaH a wonder [or not]?" This rhetorical question emphasizes that we should expect things to look impossible when YaHuWaH is about to speak a word--especially the "Word" that is Mashiyach, Who came through this child's line. "Appointed time" is a term used of the prescribed feast days of YaHuWaH. This was an anniversary in advance of the event it foreshadowed. As we have seen, it appears to be Passover, the time of death for the Mitsrayims, but the time of life for those freed from them. The blood on the lintels and doorposts would have also formed the Hebrew letter “khet”, which is the first letter in the Hebrew word for life.

18:15 Then Sarah lied, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid.

He said, “Yes, you did laugh.”

18:16 The men rose up from there, and looked toward Sedom. Abraham went with them to see them on their way.

18:17   YaHuWaH said, “Will I hide from Abraham what I do, 18:18 seeing that Abraham has surely become a great and mighty nation/goyim, and all the nations/goyim of the earth will be blessed in him? 18:19 For I have known him, to the end that he commands his children and his household after him, that they may keep the Way of YaHuWaH, to do righteousness and justice; to the end that YaHuWaH may bring on Abraham that which He has spoken of him.” 

18:20   YaHuWaH said, “Because the cry of Sedom and Amorah is great, and because their sin is very grievous, 18:21 I will go down now, and see whether their deeds are as bad as the reports which have come to me. If not, I will know.”

18:22 The men turned from there, and went toward Sedom, but Abraham yet stood before YaHuWaH.   Abraham drew near, and said, “Will You really sweep away the innocent along with the guilty ? 

Only two of the messengers arrived in S'dom, for, according to the Targums, one was sent to rescue Lot and the other to destroy S’dom; the third had come to announce Sarah's conception, and thus would not need to continue on, but could remain behind as YaHuWaH's special emissary (Rashbam).

18:24 What if there are fifty righteous within the city? Will You consume and not spare the place for the fifty righteous who are in it?

 This is the first time a man is recorded as interceding in prayer on another's behalf. As the ruwachal "father of many nations", he is sorrowful over the doom even of the most wicked.  He foreshadows his Seed, who "lives to make intercession for [us]" (Heb. 7:25).

 18:25 It would be foreign to Your nature to do such a thing as this - to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that be far from You. Should not the Judge of all the earth do justice?”

Foreign: or profaning. Abraham's descendant, the Mashiyach, echoed this theme when he spoke of disregarding 99 sheep to rescue one.

18:26   YaHuWaH said, “If I find in Sedom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sake.” 18:27 Abraham answered, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to my Masters, who am but dust and ashes. 

My Masters: Heb., Adonai, which can also be a majestic-plural way to speak of YaHuWaH.

 18:28 What if there will lack five of the fifty righteous? Will You destroy all the city for lack of five?”

The word "righteous" here is masculine, while the adjective "five" is feminine (the same with "ten" in v. 32), so that they do not agree, possibly symbolizing that his request did not line up with true justice.

He said, “I will not destroy it, if I find forty-five there.”

18:29 He spoke to Him yet again, and said, “What if there are forty found there?”

He said, “I will not do it for the forty’s sake.”

18:30 He said, “Oh don’t let the Master be angry, and I will speak. What if there are thirty found there?”

He said, “I will not do it, if I find thirty there.”

18:31 He said, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Sovereign. What if there are twenty found there?”

He said, “I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.”

18:32 He said, “Oh don’t let the Sovereign be angry, and I will speak just once more. What if ten are found there?”

He said, “I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.”

Ten was the bare minimum, for it represents ten omers or one whole congregation. He will not spare for anything less than a righteous congregation. If we are not about one another, it does not count if we are individually righteous. From this came the custom of ten being a quorum, or "minyan", for a public prayer. All ten "s'firoth"/character emphases (see note on verse 6) are needed to hold back YaHuWaH's judgment. Mashiyach, as the Head, represented the whole Body of the restored Man in holding back His wrath upon earth, but we are still called to join together as a body that lives out all aspects of righteousness and brings a complete healing to a condemned world. There were only eight righteous people left after Methushelach died--not enough to hold back the deluge. When Mashiyach's bride is taken out of the world, again "that which restrains will be taken out of the way" and lawlessness will be dealt with. (I Thess. 2:7) The letter that has the numeric value of ten is yodh, which depicts a hand. For the sake of His “right hand” (Mashiyach), His righteous One, He has spared Ysra'al and the world.

18:33  YaHuWaH went His way, as soon as He had finished communing with Abraham, and Abraham returned to his place.

[Year 2047 / 1953 BC]

19:1 The two messengers came to Sedom at evening. Lowt sat in the gate of Sedom. Lowt saw them, and rose up to meet them. He bowed himself with his face to the earth, 

He was a paradox of a man. He had left Abram before his camp was circumcised, so he was not part of that covenant, yet though he was involved in all of this city’s worldly affairs, he had not lost Abraham’s influence completely. He was very much a hybrid, too close for comfort to what Christians are today--and this chapter shows what the results of that will be.

19:2 and he said, “See now, my masters, please turn aside into your servant’s house, stay all night, wash your feet, and you can rise up early, and go on your way.” They said, “No, but we will stay in the open square all night.”

19:3 He urged them profusely, and they came in with him, and entered into his house. He made them a feast, and baked Unleavened Bread, and they ate. 

[Note the additional Passover themes--unleavened bread as a precursor of the urgency with which the messengers would drive them out (see v. 15 below), as Par'oh did, and a Malak death. Many such catastrophes occurred throughout history on the anniversary of Passover (see note on v. 24 below)]

19:4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sedom, surrounded the house, both young and old, all the people from every quarter! 

From every quarter: literally, "from all the city limits". Note how complete the wickedness of the city was. They were all in one accord, but for the wrong reasons. This underscored the fact that indeed there were by no means “ten righteous” there.

19:5 They called to Lowt, and said to him, “Where are the men who came in to you this night? Bring them out to us, that we may have sex with them.”

19:6 Lowt went out to them to the door, and shut the door after him. 19:7 He said, “Please, my brothers, don’t act so wickedly. 19:8 See now, I have two virgin daughters. Please let me bring them out to you, and you may do to them what seems good to you. Only don’t do anything to these men, because they have come under the shadow of my roof.”

Not that he took his daughters' virginity (and probably their lives) lightly. Rather, it shows how seriously he took his hospitality; this was an extreme, last-ditch effort to dissuade them from doing something far worse. In Middle Eastern hospitality, once someone comes "under one's roofbeam", he is responsible to protect them at any cost--even if they were former enemies. If a guest died in your household, his family had a legitimate blood libel against you. These city dwellers saw things in the opposite way: “If you come within our gates, you had better have something to offer us!”

19:9 They said, “Stand back!” Then they said, “This one fellow came in to live as a foreigner/sojourner , and he has been judging and judging us! Now will we deal worse with you, than with them!” They pressed hard on the man Lowt, and drew near to break down the door. 19:10 But the men put forth their hand, and brought Lowt into the house to them, and shut the door. 

Shutting the door behind one would be yet another characteristic of Pesakh, adding yet another confirmation that this was the season. Lot had “gone to seminary”, and now he wanted to be “out among the people” who needed what he had to teach. But the messengers of Yahuwah did not invite the rest of them inside in order to “have the Gospel preached to them”. They brought in the only one who was supposed to be inside, and shut out the ones who should be outside. People know where to find the door, and if they really want it, they will come looking for you. Yahuwshuwah already said he was the door; are we to try to do his job?

19:11 They struck the men who were at the door of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they wearied themselves to find the entrance.

The entrance: literally, “opening”, the same as where Abraham sat at his tent. Remember, these are people whom Abraham had rescued, and thus symbolize those who have been offered salvation through Yahuwshuwah, but, having been used to the less strict Gentile ways, find his lifestyle too difficult and thus decide to compromise, building a house to their own liking instead of continuing to search for the narrow gate. (Luqa 13:23-30) Those who would not come in for the right reasons find that they no longer have eyes to see. Yahuwah did this to our ancestors, but thankfully He is now allowing us to reach back further and lay claim to the legacy of our earlier ancestors, the patriarchs. We have been on the outside, but now we have the choice to come inside; woe to us if we do not take it. From the small to the great: a picture of everyone who receives Babylon’s mark (Rev. 13:16) just before it too goes up in smoke (14:8-11).

19:12 The men said to Lowt, “Do you have anybody else here? Sons-in-law, your sons, your daughters, and whoever you have in the city, bring them out of the place: 

While only Lot was required to leave (v. 22), others were offered the choice. Moshah (the Torah) and EliYahuw (the spirit of the one who restores all things) have come to take us out of the lawless system as well, because they are going to destroy it.

19:13 for we will destroy this place, because the outcry against them has grown great before YaHuWaH and YaHuWaH has sent us to destroy it.”

19:14 Lowt went out, and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up! Get out of this place, for YaHuWaH will destroy the city.”

But he seemed to his sons-in-law to be joking. (Prophetic?) 19:15 When the dawn came, then the messengers hurried Lowt, saying, “Get up! Take your wife, and your two daughters who are here, lest you be consumed in the iniquity of the city.”

[Dawn: at another Passover, the Ysra'alites stayed indoors until the sun rose, then left Egypt.]

 19:16 But he lingered; and the men grabbed his hand, his wife’s hand, and his two daughters’ hands, YaHuWaH being merciful to him; and they brought him out, and didn't let them go until they got outside of the city. 19:17 It came to pass, when they had taken them out, that he said, “Escape for your life! Don’t look behind you, and don’t stay anywhere in the plain. Flee to the mountain, lest you be consumed!”

YaHuWaH had apparently given orders to remove Lowt from the city either by persuasion or force--whether he appreciated the mercy of this - or not. This was real love; if He had let them hesitate it would have proved He did not really care about their welfare. Lowt was not a “vessel for destruction”; to be rescued was a decision made for him. 

The mountain: all the clues in the context suggest that this refers to Hebron, the mountaintop location where Abraham was. It is not enough just to leave the false temple; He advised them of the best place they could go. 

19:18 Lowt said to them, “Please, not that, Masters. 19:19 See now, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your loving kindness, which you have shown to me in saving my life. I can’t escape to the mountain, lest the evil overtake me, and I die. 

The evil: Possibly he thought enemies might attack him if he went back to living in a tent like Abraham. There is no natural protection in a tent; one must trust Yahuwah directly, and Lot, though righteous, was not ready for that level of trust.

19:20 See now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one. Oh let me escape there (isn’t it a little one?), and my being will live.”

19:21 He said to him, “Behold, I have granted your request concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow the city of which you have spoken.  19:22 Hurry, escape there, for I can’t do anything until you get there.”

 [I cannot do anything: The Messengers are told to do nothing to judge the earth until the 144,000 who have a special calling are sealed. Rev. 14] 

Therefore the name of the city was called Tso'ar. 

19:23 The sun had risen on the earth when Lowt came to Tso'ar.  

The word for "risen" here specifies that the sun was visible in the sky--later than the dawn, because the eastern horizon here is very mountainous. But this also exemplifies the fact that Yahuwah does His work in broad daylight, not stealthily. (Contrast Luk. 22:53) By Jewish tradition, Yahuwah destroyed the city at the sun's first appearance to demonstrate the impotence of the sun, their chief deity, to save them.

19:24 Then YaHuWaH [Memra] rained on Sedom and on Amorah sulfur and fire from YaHuWaH out of Heaven. 19:25 He overthrew those cities, all the plain, all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew on the ground. 19:26 But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

19:27-28 Abraham got up early in the morning to the place where he had stood before YaHuWaH.  He looked toward Sedom and Amorah, and toward all the land of the plain, and looked, and saw that the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace.

19:29 It happened, when Aluahiym destroyed the cities of the plain, that Aluahiym remembered Abraham, and sent Lowt out of the middle of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lowt lived.

19:30 Lowt went up out of Tso'ar, and lived in the mountains, and his two daughters with him; for he was afraid to live in Tso'ar. He lived in a cave with his two daughters.  19:31 The firstborn said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth. 19:32 Come, let’s make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s seed.” 19:33 They made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father. He didn’t know when she lay down, nor when she arose. 19:34 It came to pass on the next day, that the firstborn said to the younger, “Behold, I lay last night with my father. Let us make him drink wine again, tonight. You go in, and lie with him, that we may preserve our father’s seed.” 19:35 They made their father drink wine that night also. The younger went and lay with him. He didn’t know when she lay down, nor when she got up. 19:36 Thus both of Lowt’s daughters were with child by their father. 19:37 The firstborn bore a son, and named him Mow'ab. He is the father of the Mow'ab to this day. 

Moab's territory was the mountains southeast of the Dead Sea. The Moabites were significant enough by the day of Egypt's Ramses the Great that he boasted of having conquered them. Ruth became the first Moabite to enter the assembly of Ysra'al; others had not been allowed to make reparation for Lot’s choice. (Deut. 23:3) But she represented the return of the lost northern Kingdom, because Moab can also mean "away from the Father"  - that is Yahuwah.  For a time they were called "not my people" (Lo-Ammi, cf. Hoshua) --noteworthy in the context of the name of Lot's other son/grandson (v. 38).

19:38 The younger also bore a son, and called his name Ben Ammiy. He is the father of the children of Ammown to this day.

At least some worthwhile fruit came out of Moab—Ruth, who became Dawiyd’s and Yahuwshua’s ancestress; there was no such redeeming factor in Ammon. Sons of Ammon: B'ney Ammon--the same pattern as the name of their ancestor, in the plural. The evidence that they inhabited the region north of Moab is carried on in the name of Jordan's capital (Amman) to THIS day.

20:1 Abraham traveled from there toward the land of the South, and lived between Qadesh and Shuwr. He lived as a foreigner in Gerar. 20:2 Abraham said about Sarah his wife, “She is my sister.” Abiymelech king of Gerar sent, and took Sarah. 20:3 But Aluahiym came to Abiymelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Behold, you are a dead man, because of the woman whom you have taken. For she is a man’s wife.”

Abiymelech’s name means "My father is a king"--a Ibriy name, so he may have been a descendent of Shem, preserving the original language, but not in Abraham's immediate family. 

20:4 Now Abiymelech had not come near her. He said, “Sovereign, will you kill even a righteous nation?

 [YeshaYahuw 26:2 the only other place this term is used.  26:1 In That Day, this song shall be sung in the land of Yahuwdah:  “We have a strong city! Aluahiym appoints deliverance for walls and ramparts! 26:2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation that guards the Truth may enter! 26:3 You shall keep whoever’s mind is steadfast in perfect peace,  because he trusts in You. 26:4 Trust in YaHuWaH  forever; for in Yahuw YaHuWaH, is the Rock of the Ages.

]  20:5 Didn’t he tell me, ‘She is my sister?’ She, even she herself, said, ‘He is my brother.’ In the integrity of my heart and the innocence of my hands have I done this.”

20:6 Aluahiym said to him in the dream, “Yes, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also withheld you from sinning against Me. Therefore I didn’t allow you to touch her. 20:7 Now therefore, restore the man’s wife. For he is a prophet, and he can intercede for you, and you will live. If you don’t restore her, know for sure that you will die, you, and all who are yours.”

Intercede: This is the first time this particular word is used in Scripture. It means to pray as a mediator, but with a sense of discriminating or judging. This is the only time Abraham is called a prophet (again like Yahuwshuwah), but YaHuWaH said it, so once is enough.

20:8 Abiymelech rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ear. The men were very scared. 20:9 Then Abiymelech called Abraham, and said to him, “What have you done to us? How have I sinned against you, that you have brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? You have done deeds to me that ought not to be done!” 20:10 Abiymelech said to Abraham, “What did you see, that you have done this thing?”

20:11 Abraham said, “Because I thought, ‘Surely the fear of Aluahiym is not in this place. They will kill me for my wife’s sake.’ 20:12 Besides, she is indeed my sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife. 20:13 It happened, when Aluahiym caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, ‘This is your kindness which you shall show to me. everywhere that we go, say of me, “He is my brother.”’”

20:14 Abiymelech took sheep and cattle, male servants and female servants, and gave them to Abraham, and restored Sarah, his wife, to him. 20:15 Abimelech said, “Behold, my land is before you. Dwell where it pleases you.” 20:16 To Sarah he said, “Behold, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver. Behold, it is for you a covering of the eyes to all that are with you. In front of all you are vindicated.”

[ It may also be a prophecy that Yahuwshuwah will be “repaid” 1,000 years as King since His wife was taken into someone else’s house. (Hos. 1, 2) ]

20:17 Abraham prayed to Aluahiym. Aluahiym healed Abiymelech, and his wife, and his female servants, and they brought forth. 20:18 For YaHuWaH  had closed up tight all the bowels of the house of Abiymelech, because of Sarah, Abraham’s wife. [they were constipated]

21:1  YaHuWaH visited Sarah as He had said, and YaHuWaH did to Sarah as He had spoken. 21:2 Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the appointed time (Moe'dim) of which Aluahiym had spoken to him. 

[Appointed time: or “rehearsal”; the term refers to one of the festivals mandated by YaHuWaH. In this case, it is Passover. (See notes on 18:5-6) So this interlude in Gerar had taken approximately two or three months, so that the son was born at the same time of year the messengers had come to Abraham.]

 21:3 Abraham called his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Yitschaq.  21:4 Abraham circumcised his son, Yitschaq, when he was eight days old, as Aluahiym had commanded him. 

 [The "eighth day" represents a new beginning, and is an idiom for the "new heavens and a new earth" after seven millennia, when the excess flesh will be removed.]

21:5 Abraham was one hundred years old when his son, Yitschaq, was born to him. 21:6 Sarah said, “Aluahiym has made me laugh. everyone who hears will laugh with me.” 21:7 She said, “Who would have said to Abraham, that Sarah would nurse children? For I have borne him a son in his old age.” (about 91 yrs. old)

21:8 The child grew, and was weaned. Abraham made a great feast on the day that Yitschaq was weaned.  21:9 Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Mitsriy, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking. 21:10 Therefore she said to Abraham, “Cast out this handmaid and her son! For the son of this handmaid will not be heir with my son, Yitschaq.”

21:11 The thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight on account of his son. 21:12 Aluahiym said to Abraham, “Don’t let it be grievous in your sight because of the boy, and because of your handmaid. In all that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice. For from Yitschaq will your seed be called. 21:13 I will also make a nation of the son of the bondwoman, because he is your seed.” 21:14 Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder; and gave her the child, and sent her away. She departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Be'er-Sheba. 21:15 The water in the bottle was spent, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs. 21:16 She went and sat down opposite him, a good way off, about a bow shot away. For she said, “Don’t let me see the death of the boy.” She sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept. 21:17 Aluahiym heard the voice of the boy.

The Malak Aluahiym called to Hagar out of the heavens, and said to her, “What ails you, Hagar? Don’t be afraid. For Aluahiym has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 21:18 Get up, lift up the lad, and hold him with your hand. For I will make him a great nation.”

21:19 Aluahiym opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went, filled the bottle with water, and gave the boy drink. 21:20 Aluahiym was with the boy, and he grew. He lived in the wilderness, and became, as he grew up, an archer. 21:21 He lived in the wilderness of Pa'ran. His mother took a wife for him out of the land of Mitsrayim.

21:22 It happened at that time, that Abiymelech and Piykol the captain of his army spoke to Abraham, saying, “Aluahiym is with you in all that you do.  21:23 Now, therefore, swear to me here by Aluahiym that you will not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son. But according to the kindness that I have done to you, you shall do to me, and to the land in which you have lived as a foreigner.”

21:24 Abraham said, “I will swear.” 21:25 Abraham complained to Abiymelech because of a water well, which Abiymelech’s servants had violently taken away. 21:26 Abiymelech said, “I don’t know who has done this thing. Neither did you tell me, neither did I hear of it, until today.”

21:27 Abraham took sheep and cattle, and gave them to Abiymelech. Those two made a covenant. 21:28 Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves. 21:29 Abiymelech said to Abraham, “What do these seven ewe lambs which you have set by themselves mean?”

21:30 He said, “You shall take these seven ewe lambs from my hand, that it may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.” 21:31 Therefore he called that place Be'er-Sheba, because they both swore there. 21:32 So they made a covenant at Be'er-Sheba. Abiymelech rose up with Piykol, the captain of his army, and they returned into the land of the Pelishtiym. 21:33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Be'er-Sheba, and called there on the Name of YaHuWaH, the Everlasting Aluahiym. 21:34 Abraham lived as a foreigner in the land of the Pelishtiym many days.

The Akkeydah (Binding)

22:1 It happened after these things, that Aluahiym tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!”   He said, “Here I am.”

22:2 He said, “Now take your son, your only son, whom you love, even Yitschaq, and go into the land of Mowriy'Yahuw, and bring him up there as an ascending (offering) on one of the mountains which I will indicate to you."

 [ The word "offering" does not appear in the text, and the word “burnt” is not here, although what is burnt will “go up” in smoke. ]

22:3 Abraham rose early in the morning, and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Yitschaq his son. He split the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went to the place of which Aluahiym had told him. 22:4 On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the Place far off. 

[Lifted up his eyes: an idiom for foreseeing in the ruwach as well. A day is like a thousand years to YaHuWaH. (Ps. 90:4) Prophetically, the third millennium after this is when Mashiyach would be seen.] ["The Place" is a Jewish euphemism for where YaHuWaH would set His name (Neh. 1:9), and indeed Mowri'Yahuw would later become the Temple Mount.]

22:5 Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go yonder. We will worship, and come back to you.” 22:6 Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it upon Yitschaq his son.

 [Laid it upon his son: Yahuwshuwah, too, had the "tree" (same word as wood in Ibriy) laid on his back to carry when He was about to be slaughterd.]  

 He took in his hand the fire and the knife. They both went together. 22:7 Yitschaq spoke to Abraham his father, and said, “My father?”

He said, “Here I am, my son.”

He said, “Here is the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for ascending [offering]?”

22:8 Abraham said, “Aluahiym will provide Himself, a lamb for a burnt offering, my son.” So they both went together. [Yahuwchanan 1:36 “Look! It's Aluahiym's own Lamb”] 22:9 They came to the place which Aluahiym had told him of. Abraham built the altar there, and laid the wood in order, bound Yitschaq his son, and laid him on the altar, above the wood.  22:10 Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to kill his son.

22:11 The Malak YaHuWaH called to him from Heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!”

He said, “Here I am.”

22:12 He said, “Don’t lay your hand on the boy, neither do anything to him. For now I know that you really fear/believe Aluahiym, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.”

22:13 Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and saw that behind him was a ram caught in the thicket of thorns by his horns. Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering instead of his son.

[There is a double meaning here: the word for "behind" can also mean "after him (in time)". Abraham had a vision of the antitype, but in v. 8, he had spoken of a lamb (a young sheep) being provided by YaHuWaH, but here it is a ram (a full-grown one). So there remained a prophecy to fulfill. ..... This is what the Immerser had to have been alluding to when he identified Yahuwshuwah as the “lamb of Aluahiym, who bears the sins of the world”.]

 22:14 Abraham called the name of that place  YaHuWaH Will Provide. As it is said to this day, “On YaHuWaH's Mountain, it will be provided.”

22:15 The Malak YaHuWaH called to Abraham a second time from Heaven, 22:16 and said, “I have sworn by Myself [My Memra], 

[Sworn by Myself: thus it is no longer a two-party covenant, but an irrevocable oath. (Heb. 6:13ff; 7:20ff)]  says YaHuWaH, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, 22:17 that I will bless you greatly, and I will multiply your seed greatly like the stars of the heavens, and like the sand which is on the seashore. Your seed will possess the gate of his enemies. 22:18 In your seed will all the nations of the earth be blessed [mingled], because you have obeyed [literally "heard"] My Voice.”

22:19 So Abraham returned to his young men, and they rose up and went together to Be'er-Sheba. Abraham lived at Be'er-Sheba.

22:20 It happened after these things, that it was told Abraham, saying, “Behold, Milkah, she also has borne children to your brother Nachowr: 22:21 Uwts his firstborn, Buwz his brother, Qemuw'el the father of Aram, 22:22 Kesed, Chazow, Pildash, Yidlaph, and Bethuw'el.” 22:23 Bethuw'el became the father of Ribqah. These eight Milkah bore to Nachowr, Abraham’s brother. 22:24 His concubine, whose name was Re'uwmah, also bore Tebach, Gacham, Tachash, and Ma'kcah.

23:1 Sarah lived one hundred twenty-seven years. This was the length of Sarah’s life. 23:2 Sarah died in Qiryath Arba (the same is Chebrown), in the land of Kena'an. Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her. 23:3 Abraham rose up from before his dead, and spoke to the children of Cheth, saying, 23:4 “I am a stranger and a foreigner living with you. Give me a possession of a burying-place with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” (Yitschaq would be about 37 yrs. old)

23:5 The children of Cheth answered Abraham, saying to him, 23:6 “Hear us, my master. You are a prince of Aluahiym among us. Bury your dead in the best of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb. Bury your dead.”

23:7 Abraham rose up, and bowed himself to the people of the land, even to the children of Cheth.  23:8 He talked with them, saying, “If it be your mind that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me, and entreat for me to Ephrown the son of Tsochar, 23:9 that he may give me the cave of Mackpelah, which he has, which is in the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me among you for a possession of a burying-place.”

23:10 Now Ephrown was sitting in the middle of the children of Cheth. Ephrown the Chittiy answered Abraham in the hearing of the children of Cheth, even of all who went in at the gate of his city, saying, 23:11 “No, my master, hear me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the presence of the children of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.”

23:12 Abraham bowed himself down before the people of the land. 23:13 He spoke to Ephrown in the audience of the people of the land, saying, “But if you will, please hear me. I will give the price of the field. Take it from me, and I will bury my dead there.”

23:14 Ephrown answered Abraham, saying to him, 23:15 “My master, listen to me. What is a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver between me and you? Therefore bury your dead.”

23:16 Abraham listened to Ephrown. Abraham weighed to Ephrown the silver which he had named in the audience of the children of Cheth, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the current merchants’ standard.

23:17 So the field of Ephrown, which was in Mackpelah, which was before Mamre, the field, the cave which was in it, and all the trees that were in the field, that were in all of its borders, were deeded 23:18 to Abraham for a possession in the presence of the children of Cheth, before all who went in at the gate of his city. 23:19 After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Mackpelah before Mamre (that is, Chebrown), in the land of Kena'an. 23:20 The field, and the cave that is in it, were deeded to Abraham for a possession of a burying place by the children of Cheth.

24:1 Abraham was old, and well stricken in age. YaHuWaH had blessed Abraham in all things. 24:2 Abraham said to his servant, the elder of his house, who ruled over all that he had, “Please put your hand under my thigh. 24:3 I will make you swear by YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of heaven and the Aluahiym of the earth, that you shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Kena'aniy, among whom I live. 24:4 But you shall go to my country, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son Yitschaq.”

24:5 The servant said to him, “What if the woman isn’t willing to follow me to this land? Must I take your son back to the land you came from?”

24:6 Abraham said to him, “Beware that you don’t take my son back there. 24:7   YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of heaven, who took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my birth, who spoke to me, and who swore to me, saying, ‘I will give this land to your seed.’ He will send His Messenger before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there. 24:8 If the woman isn’t willing to follow you, then you shall be clear from this my oath. Only do not take my son back there .”

24:9 The servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and swore to him concerning this matter. 24:10 The servant took ten camels, of his master’s camels, and departed, having a variety of good things of his master’s with him. He arose, and went to Aram Naharayim, to the city of Nachowr. 24:11 He made the camels kneel down outside the city by the well of water at the time of evening, the time that women go out to draw water. 24:12 He said, “YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham.  24:13 Behold, I am standing by the spring of water. The daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. 24:14 Let it happen, that the young lady to whom I will say, ‘Please let down your pitcher, that I may drink,’ and she will say, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink,’—let her be the one you have appointed for your servant Yitschaq. By this I will know that you have shown kindness to my master.”

24:15 It happened, before he had finished speaking, that behold, Ribqah came out, who (asher) was born to Bethuw'el the son of Milkah, the wife of Nachowr, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher on her shoulder. 24:16 The young lady was very beautiful to look at, a virgin, neither had any man known her. She went down to the spring, filled her pitcher, and came up. 24:17 The servant ran to meet her, and said, “Please give me a drink, a little water from your pitcher.”

24:18 She said, “Drink, my master.” She hurried, and let down her pitcher on her hand, and gave him drink. 24:19 When she had done giving him drink, she said, “I will also draw for your camels, until they have done drinking.” 24:20 She hurried, and emptied her pitcher into the trough, and ran again to the well to draw, and drew for all his camels.

24:21 The man looked steadfastly at her, remaining silent, to know whether YaHuWaH  had made his journey prosperous or not. 24:22 It happened, as the camels had done drinking, that the man took a golden ring of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold, 24:23 and said, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me. Is there room in your father’s house for us to lodge in?”

24:24 She said to him, “I am the daughter of Bethuw'el the son of Milkah, whom she bore to Nachowr.”  24:25 She said moreover to him, “We have both straw and provender enough, and room to lodge in.”

24:26-27 The man bowed his head, and worshiped YaHuWaH.  He said, “Blessed be  YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken His loving kindness and His truth toward my master. As for me, YaHuWaH has led me in the way to the house of my master’s relatives.”

24:28 The young lady ran, and told her mother’s house about these words. 24:29 Ribqah had a brother, and his name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring. 24:30 It happened, when he saw the ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s hands, and when he heard the words of Ribqah his sister, saying, “This is what the man said to me,” that he came to the man. Behold, he was standing by the camels at the spring. 24:31 He said, “Come in, you blessed of YaHuWaH. Why do you stand outside? For I have prepared the house, and room for the camels.”

24:32 The man came into the house, and he unloaded the camels. He gave straw and provender for the camels, and water to wash his feet and the feet of the men who were with him. 24:33 Food was set before him to eat, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told my message.”

He said, “Speak on.”

24:34 He said, “I am Abraham’s servant. 24:35   YaHuWaH has blessed my master greatly. He has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, and camels and donkeys. 24:36 Sarah, my master’s wife, bore a son to my master when she was old. He has given all that he has to him.  24:37 My master made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not take a wife for my son of the daughters of the Kena'aniy, in whose land I live, 24:38 but you shall go to my father’s house, and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son.’  24:39 I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not follow me?’ 24:40 He said to me, ‘YaHuWaH, before whom I walk, will send his messenger with you, and prosper your way. You shall take a wife for my son of my relatives, and of my father’s house. 24:41 Then will you be clear from my oath, when you come to my relatives. If they don’t give her to you, you shall be clear from my oath.’ 24:42 I came this day to the spring, and said, ‘YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of my master Abraham, if now you do prosper my way which I go— 24:43 behold, I am standing by this spring of water. Let it happen, that the maiden who comes forth to draw, to whom I will say, “Give me, I pray you, a little water from your pitcher to drink,” 24:44 and she will tell me, “Drink, and I will also draw for your camels,”—let her be the woman whom YaHuWaH  has appointed for my master’s son.’  24:45 Before I had finished speaking in my heart, behold, Ribqah came forth with her pitcher on her shoulder. She went down to the spring, and drew. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’ 24:46 She hurried and let down her pitcher from her shoulder, and said, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink.’ So I drank, and she also gave the camels a drink. 24:47 I asked her, and said, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuw'el, Nachowr’s son, whom Milkah bore to him.’ I put the ring on her nose, and the bracelets on her hands. 24:48 I bowed my head, and worshiped YaHuWaH, and blessed YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of my master Abraham, who had led me in the right way to take my master’s brother’s daughter for his son. 24:49 Now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master, tell me. If not, tell me, that I may turn to the right hand, or to the left.”

24:50 Then Laban and Bethuw'el answered, “The thing proceeds from YaHuWaH. We can’t speak to you bad or good. 24:51 Behold, Ribqah is before you. Take her, and go, and let her be your master’s son’s wife, as YaHuWaH has spoken.”

24:52-53 It happened that when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself down to the earth to YaHuWaH. The servant brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Ribqah. He also gave precious things to her brother and her mother.  24:54 They ate and drank, he and the men who were with him, and stayed all night. They rose up in the morning, and he said, “Send me away to my master.”

24:55 Her brother and her mother said, “Let the young lady stay with us a few days, at least ten. After that she will go.”

24:56 He said to them, “Don’t hinder me, seeing YaHuWaH has prospered my way. Send me away that I may go to my master.”

24:57 They said, “We will call the young lady, and ask her.” 24:58 They called Ribqah, and said to her, “Will you go with this man?”

She said, “I will go.”

24:59 They sent away Ribqah, their sister, with her nurse, Abraham’s servant, and his men.  24:60 They blessed Ribqah, and said to her, “Our sister, may you be the mother of thousands of ten thousands, and let your seed possess the gate of those who hate them.”

24:61 Ribqah arose with her ladies. They rode on the camels, and followed the man. The servant took Ribqah, and went his way. 24:62 Yitschaq came from the way of Be'er Lahai Ro'i, for he lived in the land of the South. 24:63 Yitschaq went out to meditate in the field at the evening. He lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, there were camels coming. 24:64 Ribqah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Yitschaq, she dismounted from the camel. 24:65 She said to the servant, “Who is the man who is walking in the field to meet us?”

The servant said, “It is my master.”

She took her veil, and covered herself. 24:66 The servant told Yitschaq all the things that he had done. 24:67 Yitschaq brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Ribqah, and she became his wife. He loved her. Yitschaq was comforted after his mother’s death.

25:1 Abraham took another wife, and her name was Qetuwrah. 25:2 She bore him Zimran, Yoqshan, Medan, Midyan, Yishbaq, and Shuwach. 25:3 Yoqshan became the father of Sheba, and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Ashuwriy, Letuwshim, and Le'ummiym.  25:4 The sons of Midyan: Eyphah, Epher, Chanowk, Abiyda, and Elda'ah. All these were the children of Qetuwrah. 25:5 Abraham gave all that he had to Yitschaq, 25:6 but to the sons of Abraham’s concubines, Abraham gave gifts. He sent them away from Yitschaq his son, while he yet lived, eastward, to the east country. 25:7 These are the days of the years of Abraham’s life which he lived: one hundred seventy-five years. 25:8 Abraham gave up the spirit, and died in a good old age, an old man, and full of years, and was gathered to his people. 25:9 Yitschaq and Yishma'el, his sons, buried him in the cave of Mackpelah, in the field of Ephrown, the son of Tsochar the Chittiy, which is before Mamre, 25:10 the field which Abraham purchased of the children of Cheth. Abraham was buried there with Sarah, his wife. 25:11 It happened after the death of Abraham that Aluahiym blessed Yitschaq, his son. Yitschaq lived by Be'er Lahai Ro'i.

25:12 Now this is the history of the generations of Yishma'el, Abraham’s son, whom Hagar the Mitsriy, Sarah’s handmaid, bore to Abraham. 25:13 These are the names of the sons of Yishma'el, by their names, according to the order of their birth: the firstborn of Yishma'el: Nebayowth, then Qedar, Adbe'el, Mibsam, 25:14 Mishma, Dumah, Massa, 25:15 Hadad, Teyma, Yetuwr, Naphiysh, and Qedemah. 25:16 These are the sons of Yishma'el, and these are their names, by their villages, and by their encampments: twelve princes, according to their nations. 25:17 These are the years of the life of Yishma'el: one hundred thirty-seven years. He gave up the spirit and died, and was gathered to his people. 25:18 They lived from Chawiylah to Shuwr that is before Mitsrayim, as you go toward Ashshuwr. He died in the presence all his brothers.

25:19 This is the history of the generations of Yitschaq, Abraham’s son. Abraham became the father of Yitschaq. 25:20 Yitschaq was forty years old when he took Ribqah, the daughter of Bethuw'el the Aram of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban the Aram, to be his wife. 25:21 Yitschaq prayed to YaHuWaH for his wife, because she was barren.  And YaHuWaH answered his prayer, and Ribqah his wife conceived. 25:22-23 The sons struggled together within her. She said, “If all is right why am I this way?” She went to inquire of YaHuWaH.YaHuWaH said  to her,

“Two nations/goyim are in your womb.

Two peoples will be separated from your body.

The one people will be stronger than the other people. The elder will serve the younger.”

25:24 When her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. 25:25 The first came out red all over, like a hairy garment. They named him Esaw. 25:26 After that, his brother came out, and his hand had hold on Esaw’s heel. He was named Ya'aqob. ["He will take by the heel"] Yitschaq was sixty years old when she bore them. [ 60 years old: Thus his twin sons were 15 years old when Abraham died.]

25:27 The boys grew. Esaw was a skillful hunter, a man of the field. Ya'aqob was a man of maturity, living in tents. 25:28 Now Yitschaq loved Esaw, because he ate his venison. Ribqah loved Ya'aqob. 25:29 Ya'aqob boiled stew. Esaw came in from the field, and he was famished. 25:30 Esaw said to Ya'aqob, “Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am famished.” That is why his name was called Edom.

25:31 Ya'aqob said, “First, sell me your birthright.”

25:32 Esaw said, “Behold, I am about to die. What good is the birthright to me?”

25:33 Ya'aqob said, “Swear to me first.”

He swore to him. He sold his birthright to Ya'aqob. 25:34 Ya'aqob gave Esaw bread and stew of lentils. He ate and drank, rose up, and went his way. So Esaw despised his birthright.

26:1 There was a famine in the land, besides the first famine that was in the days of Abraham. Yitschaq went to Abiymelech king of the Pelishtiym, to Gerar. 26:2   YaHuWaH appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Mitsrayim. Live in the land I will tell you about. 26:3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you, and will bless you. For to you, and to your seed, I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath which I swore to Abraham your father. 26:4 I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens, and will give to your seed all these lands. In your seed will all the nations of the earth be blessed, 26:5 because Abraham obeyed My Voice, and kept My requirements, My commands, My decrees and My Torot.”

26:6  So Yitschaq stayed in Gerar.  26:7 The men of the place asked him about his wife. He said, “She is my sister,” for he was afraid to say, “My wife,” lest, he thought, “the men of the place might kill me for Ribqah, because she is beautiful to look at.” 26:8 It happened, when he had been there a long time, that Abiymelech king of the Pelishtiym looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Yitschaq was caressing Ribqah, his wife.  26:9 Abiymelech called Yitschaq, and said, “Behold, surely she is your wife. Why did you say, ‘She is my sister?’”

Yitschaq said to him, “Because I said, ‘Lest I die because of her.’”

26:10 Abiymelech said, “What is this you have done to us? One of the people might easily have lain with your wife, and you would have brought guilt on us!”

26:11 Abiymelech commanded all the people, saying, “He who touches this man or his wife will surely be put to death.”

26:12 Yitschaq sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year one hundred times what he planted. YaHuWaH blessed him. 26:13 The man grew great, and grew more and more until he became very great. 26:14 He had possessions of flocks, possessions of herds, and a great household. The Pelishtiym envied him.  26:15 Now all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, the Pelishtiym had stopped, and filled with earth. 26:16 Abiymelech said to Yitschaq, “Go from us, for you are much mightier than we.”

26:17 Yitschaq departed from there, encamped in the valley of Gerar, and lived there.

26:18 Yitschaq dug again the wells of water, which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father. For the Pelishtiym had stopped them after the death of Abraham. He called their names after the names by which his father had called them. 26:19 Yitschaq’s servants dug in the valley, and found there a well of springing water. 26:20 The herdsmen of Gerar argued with Yitschaq’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” He called the name of the well Eseq, because they contended with him. 26:21 They dug another well, and they argued over that, also. He called its name Sitnah. 26:22 He left that place, and dug another well. They didn’t argue over that one. He called it Rechobowth. He said, “For now YaHuWaH  has made room for us, and we will be fruitful in the land.”

26:23 He went up from there to Be'er-Sheba. 26:24  YaHuWaH appeared to him the same night, and said, “I am the Aluahiym of Abraham your father. Don’t be afraid, for I am with you, and will bless you, and multiply your seed for My servant Abraham’s sake.”

26:25 He built an altar there, and called on the Name of YaHuWaH, and pitched his tent there. There Yitschaq’s servants dug a well.

26:26 Then Abiymelech went to him from Gerar, and Achuzzath his friend, and Piykol the captain of his army. 26:27 Yitschaq said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me, and have sent me away from you?”

26:28 They said, “We saw plainly that YaHuWaH  was with you. We said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, even between us and you, and let us make a covenant with you,  26:29 that you will do us no harm, as we have not touched you, and as we have done to you nothing but good, and have sent you away in peace.’ You are now the blessed of YaHuWaH.”

26:30 He made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 26:31 They rose up some time in the morning, and swore one to another. Yitschaq sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. 26:32 It happened the same day, that Yitschaq’s servants came, and told him concerning the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” 26:33 He called it Shi'bah. Therefore the name of the city is Be'er-Sheba to this day.

26:34 When Esaw was forty years old, he took as wife Yahuwudith, the daughter of Be'eriy the Chittiy, and Bosmath, the daughter of Eylown the Chittiy. 26:35 They grieved Yitschaq’s and Rebekah’s spirits.

27:1 It happened, that when Yitschaq was old, and his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esaw his elder son, and said to him, “My son?”

He said to him, “Here I am.”

27:2 He said, “See now, I am old. I don’t know the day of my death. 27:3 Now therefore, please take your weapons, your quiver and your bow, and go out to the field, and take me venison. 27:4 Make me savory food, such as I love, and bring it to me, that I may eat, and that my being may bless you before I die.”

27:5 Ribqah heard when Yitschaq spoke to Esaw his son. Esaw went to the field to hunt for venison, and to bring it. 27:6 Ribqah spoke to Ya'aqob her son, saying, “Behold, I heard your father speak to Esaw your brother, saying, 27:7 ‘Bring me venison, and make me savory food, that I may eat, and bless you before YaHuWaH before my death.’ 27:8 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice according to that which I command you. 27:9 Go now to the flock, and get me from there two good young goats. I will make them savory food for your father, such as he loves. 27:10 You shall bring it to your father, that he may eat, so that he may bless you before his death.”

27:11 Ya'aqob said to Ribqah his mother, “Behold, Esaw my brother is a hairy man, and I am a smooth man. 27:12 What if my father touches me? I will seem to him as a deceiver, and I would bring a curse on myself, and not a blessing.”

27:13 His mother said to him, “Let your curse be on me, my son. Only obey my voice, and go get them for me.”

27:14 He went, and got them, and brought them to his mother. His mother made savory food, such as his father loved. 27:15 Ribqah took the good clothes of Esaw, her elder son, which were with her in the house, and put them on Ya'aqob, her younger son. 27:16 She put the skins of the young goats on his hands, and on the smooth of his neck. 27:17 She gave the savory food and the bread, which she had prepared, into the hand of her son Ya'aqob.

27:18 He came to his father, and said, “My father?”

He said, “Here I am. Who are you, my son?”

27:19 Ya'aqob said to his father, “I am Esaw your firstborn. I have done what you asked me to do. Please arise, sit and eat of my venison, that your being may bless me.”

27:20 Yitschaq said to his son, “How is it that you have found it so quickly, my son?”

He said, “Because YaHuWaH your Aluahiym gave me success.”

27:21 Yitschaq said to Ya'aqob, “Please come near, that I may feel you, my son, whether you are really my son Esaw or not.”

27:22 Ya'aqob went near to Yitschaq his father. He felt him, and said, “The voice is Ya'aqob’s voice, but the hands are the hands of Esaw.” 27:23 He didn’t recognize him, because his hands were hairy, like his brother, Esaw’s hands. So he blessed him. 27:24 He said, “Are you really my son Esaw?”

He said, “I am.”

27:25 He said, “Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son’s venison, that my being may bless you.”

He brought it near to him, and he ate. He brought him wine, and he drank. 27:26 His father Yitschaq said to him, “Come near now, and kiss me, my son.” 27:27 He came near, and kissed him. He smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him, and said,

“Behold, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which YaHuWaH has blessed.

27:28 Aluahiym give you of the dew of the heavens, 

["Dew" often refers to resurrection (Yashayahuw 26:19) and YaHuWaH's revelation (Deut. 32:2).]

of the fatness of the earth,

and plenty of grain and new wine.

27:29 Let peoples serve you,

and nations bow down to you.

Be master over your brothers.

Let your mother’s sons bow down to you.

Cursed be everyone who curses you.

Blessed be everyone who blesses you.”

27:30 It happened, as soon as Yitschaq had made an end of blessing Ya'aqob, and Ya'aqob had just gone out from the presence of Yitschaq his father, that Esaw his brother came in from his hunting. 27:31 He also made savory food, and brought it to his father. He said to his father, “Let my father arise, and eat of his son’s venison, that your being may bless me.”

27:32 Yitschaq his father said to him, “Who are you?”

He said, “I am your son, your firstborn, Esaw.”

27:33 Yitschaq trembled violently, and said, “Who, then, is he who has taken venison, and brought it me, and I have eaten of all before you came, and have blessed him? Yes, he will be blessed.”

27:34 When Esaw heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceeding great and bitter cry, and said to his father, “Bless me, even me also, my father.”

27:35 He said, “Your brother came with deceit, and has taken away your blessing.”

27:36 He said, “Isn’t he rightly named Ya'aqob? For  these two times he has taken me by the heel (supplanted me)! First he took away my birthright, and look! Now he has taken  my blessing.” He said, “Haven’t you reserved even one blessing for me?”

27:37 Yitschaq answered Esaw, “Behold, I have made him your master, and all his brothers have I given to him for servants. With grain and new wine have I sustained him. What then will I do for you, my son?”

27:38 Esaw said to his father, “Have you but one blessing, my father? Bless me, even me also, my father.” Esaw lifted up his voice, and wept.

27:39 Yitschaq his father answered him,

“Behold, your abode shall be away? from the fatness of the earth and far? from the of the dew of the heavens from above.

27:40 By your sword will you live, and you will serve your brother.

It will happen, when you grow restless [brandish the sword],  that you shall break his yoke off your neck.”

27:41 Esaw hated Ya'aqob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him. Esaw said in his heart, “The days of mourning for my father are at hand. Then I will kill my brother Ya'aqob.”

27:42 The words of Esaw, her elder son, were told to Ribqah.

 [Was told: by whom? Esau had said these words “in his heart” (v. 41), so it must have been YaHuWaH or His messenger who told her.]  

She sent and called Ya'aqob, her younger son, and said to him, “Behold, your brother Esaw comforts himself about you by planning to kill you. 27:43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban, my brother, in Charan.  27:44 Stay with him a few days, until your brother’s fury turns away; 27:45 until your brother’s anger turn away from you, and he forgets what you have done to him. Then I will send, and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”

27:46 Ribqah said to Yitschaq, “I am weary of my life because of the daughters of Cheth. If Ya'aqob takes a wife of the daughters of Cheth, such as these, of the daughters of the land, what good will my life do me?”

28:1 Yitschaq called Ya'aqob, blessed him, and commanded him, “You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Kena'an. 28:2 Arise, go to Paddan Aram, to the house of Bethuw'el your mother’s father. Take a wife from there from the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother. 28:3 May Al Shaddai bless you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, that you may be a company of peoples,  28:4 and give you the blessing of Abraham, to you, and to your seed with you, that you may inherit the land where you travel, which Aluahiym gave to Abraham.”

28:5 Yitschaq sent Ya'aqob away. He went to Paddan Aram to Laban, son of Bethuw'el the Aram, Ribqah’s brother, Ya'aqob’s and Esaw’s mother.

28:6 Now Esaw saw that Yitschaq had blessed Ya'aqob and sent him away to Paddan Aram, to take him a wife from there, and that as he blessed him he gave him a command, saying, “You shall not take a wife of the daughters of Kena'an,” 28:7 and that Ya'aqob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Paddan Aram. 28:8 Esaw saw that the daughters of Kena'an didn’t please Yitschaq, his father. 28:9 Esaw went to Yishma'el, and took, besides the wives that he had, Machalath the daughter of Yishma'el, Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebayowth, to be his wife.

28:10 Ya'aqob went out from Be'er-Sheba, and went toward Charan. 28:11 When he reached the Place, he stopped to spend the night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of the Place, and put it under his head, and lay down in that Place to sleep. "Place" appears here three times--a sign of great emphasis. "The Place" is also shorthand for "the Place where I have set My Name" (Deut. 12), and indeed this does turn out to be the Temple Mount itself (v. 17).

28:12 He dreamed. Behold, a ladder was established earthward, and its top reached to the heavens. Behold, the messengers of Aluahiym were ascending and descending on it! 28:13 Behold,  YaHuWaH stood above it, and said, “I AM  YaHuWaH, the Aluahiym of Abraham your father, and the Aluahiym of Yitschaq. The Land whereon you lie, to you will I give it, and to your descendants.  28:14 Your descendants will be as the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad forcefully to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south. In you and in your Seed will all the families of the earth be blessed. 28:15 Behold, I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go, and will bring you again into this Land. For I will not leave you, until I have done that which I have spoken of to you.”

28:16 Ya'aqob awakened out of his sleep, and he said, “Surely YaHuWaH is in this Place, and I didn’t know it.” 28:17 He was afraid, and said, “How awesome is this Place! This is none other than Aluahiym’s House, and this is the gate of Heaven.”

28:18 Ya'aqob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil on its top. 28:19 He called the name of that place Bayith-Al, but the name of the city was Luz at the first. 28:20 Ya'aqob vowed a vow, saying, “If the Word of YaHuWaH will be my support, and will keep me in this Way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and clothing to put on [labash], 28:21 so that I come again to my father’s house in peace, then shall the Word of YaHuWaH be my Aluahiym, 28:22 then this stone, which I have set up for a pillar, will be Aluahiym’s House. Of all that You will give me I will surely give the tenth to You.”

29:1 Then Ya'aqob went on his journey, and came to the land of the children of the east. 29:2 He looked, and behold, a well in the field, and, behold, three flocks of sheep lying there by it. For out of that well they watered the flocks. The stone on the well’s mouth was large. 29:3 There all the flocks were gathered. They rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the sheep, and put the stone again on the well’s mouth in its place.  29:4 Ya'aqob said to them, “My relatives, where are you from?”

They said, “We are from Charan.”

29:5 He said to them, “Do you know Laban, the son of Nachowr?”

They said, “We know him.”

29:6 He said to them, “Is it well with him?”

They said, “It is well. See, Rachel, his daughter, is coming with the sheep.”

29:7 He said, “Behold, it is still the middle of the day, not time to gather the livestock together. Water the sheep, and go and feed them.”

29:8 They said, “We can’t, until all the flocks are gathered together, and they roll the stone from the well’s mouth. Then we water the sheep.”

29:9 While he was yet speaking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she kept them. 29:10 It happened, when Ya'aqob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban, his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban, his mother’s brother, that Ya'aqob went near, and rolled the stone from the well’s mouth, and watered the flock of Laban his mother’s brother. 29:11 Ya'aqob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his voice, and wept. 29:12 Ya'aqob told Rachel that he was her father’s brother, and that he was Rebekah’s son. She ran and told her father.

29:13 It happened, when Laban heard the news of Ya'aqob, his sister’s son, that he ran to meet Ya'aqob, and embraced him, and kissed him, and brought him to his house. Ya'aqob told Laban all these things. 29:14 Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” He lived with him for a month. 29:15 Laban said to Ya'aqob, “Because you are my brother, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what will your wages be?”

29:16 Laban had two daughters. The name of the elder was Le'ah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. 29:17 Le'ah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in form and attractive. 29:18 Ya'aqob loved Rachel. He said, “I will serve you seven years for Rachel, your younger daughter.”

29:19 Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you, than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.”

29:20 Ya'aqob served seven years for Rachel. They seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had for her.

29:21 Ya'aqob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.”

29:22 Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast. 29:23 It happened in the evening, that he took Le'ah his daughter, and brought her to him. He went in to her.  29:24 Laban gave Zilpah his handmaid to his daughter Le'ah for a handmaid. 29:25 It happened in the morning that, behold, it was Le'ah. He said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Didn’t I serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?”

29:26 Laban said, “It is not done so in our place, to give the younger before the firstborn.  29:27 Fulfill the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you will serve with me yet seven other years.”

29:28 Ya'aqob did so, and fulfilled her week. He gave him Rachel his daughter as wife. 29:29 Laban gave to Rachel his daughter Bilhah, his handmaid, to be her handmaid. 29:30 He went in also to Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Le'ah, and served with him yet seven other years.

29:31 YaHuWaH saw that Le'ah was hated, and he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. 29:32 Le'ah conceived, and bore a son, and she named him Re'uwben. For she said, “Because YaHuWaH has seen my affliction. For now my husband will love me.” 29:33 She conceived again, and bore a son, and said, “Because   YaHuWaH has heard that I am hated, he has therefore given me this son also.” She named him Shim'own. 29:34 She conceived again, and bore a son. Said, “Now this time will my husband be joined to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore was his name called Lewi. 29:35 She conceived again, and bore a son. She said, “This time will I praise YaHuWaH.” Therefore she named him Yahuwdah. Then she stopped bearing.

30:1 When Rachel saw that she bore Ya'aqob no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Ya'aqob, “Give me children, or else I will die.”

30:2 Ya'aqob’s anger was kindled against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in Aluahiym’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

30:3 She said, “Behold, my maid Bilhah. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.” 30:4 She gave him Bilhah her handmaid as wife, and Ya'aqob went in to her. 30:5 Bilhah conceived, and bore Ya'aqob a son. 30:6 Rachel said, “Aluahiym has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son.” Therefore called she his name Dan. 30:7 Bilhah, Rachel’s handmaid, conceived again, and bore Ya'aqob a second son. 30:8 Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed.” She named him Naphtaliy.

30:9 When Le'ah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her handmaid, and gave her to Ya'aqob as a wife. 30:10 Zilpah, Le'ah’s handmaid, bore Ya'aqob a son. 30:11 Le'ah said, “How fortunate!” She named him Gawd.

 [Gawd (pronounced like "God" in American English) sounds just like the word for "fortune" (luck), which is one reason we should not substitute it for YaHuWaH's name. ]  We are commanded not to even have the names of pagan deities on our lips (Exodus 23:13), and Gawd is listed as just that in YashaYahuw 65:11  He was known as Ba'al-Gawd in Yahushua 11:17. Since Gawd is pronounced just like “God” in English, this is too close to “Lord God” for comfort.]

 30:12 Zilpah, Le'ah’s handmaid, bore Ya'aqob a second son. 30:13 Le'ah said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.” She named him Asher.

30:14 Re'uwben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother, Le'ah. Then Rachel said to Le'ah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

30:15 She said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes, also?”

Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.”

30:16 Ya'aqob came from the field in the evening, and Le'ah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me; for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.”

He lay with her that night. 30:17 Aluahiym listened to Le'ah, and she conceived, and bore Ya'aqob a fifth son. 30:18 Le'ah said, “Aluahiym has given me my hire, because I gave my handmaid to my husband.” She named him Yissakar. 30:19 Le'ah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Ya'aqob. 30:20 Le'ah said, “Aluahiym has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” She named him Zebuwluwn. 30:21 Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dynah.

30:22 Aluahiym remembered Rachel, and Aluahiym listened to her, and opened her womb. 30:23 She conceived, bore a son, and said, “Aluahiym has taken away my reproach.” 30:24 She named him Yahuwseph [adding] saying, “May YaHuWaH  add another son to me.”

30:25 It happened, when Rachel had borne Yahuwseph, that Ya'aqob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.  30:26 Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service with which I have served you.”

30:27 Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that YaHuWaH  has blessed me for your sake.” 30:28 He said, “Appoint me your wages, and I will give it.”

30:29 He said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me. 30:30 For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude.  YaHuWaH has blessed you wherever I went. Now when will I provide for my own house also?”

Wherever I went: literally, "at my foot". He is saying, "So I've made you rich; then you can get along without me!"

30:31 He said, “What shall I give you?”

Ya'aqob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it. 30:32 I will pass through all your flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted one, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats. This will be my hire. 30:33 So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be counted stolen.”

30:34 Laban said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”

30:35 That day, he [Laban] removed the male goats that were streaked and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.  30:36 He set three days’ journey between himself and Ya'aqob, and Ya'aqob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

30:37 Ya'aqob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods. 30:38 He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the gutters in the watering-troughs where the flocks came to drink. They were stimulated to mate when they came to drink. 30:39 When the flocks mated before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted.  30:40 Ya'aqob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in the flock of Laban: and he put his own droves apart, and didn’t put them into Laban’s flock. 30:41 It happened, whenever the stronger of the flock mated, that Ya'aqob laid the rods before the eyes of the flock in the gutters, that they might mate among the rods;  30:42 but when the flock were feeble, he didn’t put them in. So the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Ya'aqob’s. 30:43 The man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

31:1 He heard the words of Laban’s sons, saying, “Ya'aqob has taken away all that was our father’s. From that which was our father’s, has he gotten all this wealth.” 31:2 Ya'aqob saw the expression on Laban’s face, and, behold, it was not toward him as before. 31:3 YaHuWaH said to Ya'aqob, “Return to the land of your fathers, and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”

31:4 Ya'aqob sent and called Rachel and Le'ah to the field to his flock, 31:5 and said to them, “I see the expression on your father’s face, that it is not toward me as before; but the Aluahiym of my father has been with me. 31:6 You know that I have served your father with all of my strength. 31:7 Your father has deceived me, and changed my wages ten times, but Aluahiym didn’t allow him to hurt me. 31:8 If he said this, ‘The speckled will be your wages,’ then all the flock bore speckled. If he said this, ‘The streaked will be your wages,’ then all the flock bore streaked.  31:9 Thus Aluahiym has taken away your father’s livestock, and given them to me.

 31:10 It happened during mating season that I lifted up my eyes, and saw in a dream, and behold, the male goats which leaped on the flock were streaked, speckled, and grizzled. 31:11 The Malak Aluahiym said to me in the dream, ‘Ya'aqob,’ and I said, ‘Here I am.’ 31:12 He said, ‘Now lift up your eyes, and behold, all the male goats which leap on the flock are streaked, speckled, and grizzled, for I have seen all that Laban does to you.  31:13 I am the Al of Bayith-Al, where you anointed a pillar, where you vowed a vow to Me. Now arise, get out from this land, and return to the land of your birth.’”

31:14 Rachel and Le'ah answered him, “Is there yet any portion or inheritance for us in our father’s house? 31:15 Aren’t we accounted by him as foreigners? For he has sold us, and has also quite devoured our money.  31:16 For all the riches which Aluahiym has taken away from our father, that is ours and our children’s. Now then, whatever Aluahiym has said to you, do.”

31:17 Then Ya'aqob rose up, and set his sons and his wives on the camels [11 sons & 4 wives = 15 camels], 31:18 and he took away all his livestock, and all his possessions which he had gathered, including the livestock which he had gained in Paddan Aram, to go to Yitschaq his father, to the land of Kena'an. 31:19 Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep: and Rachel stole the house idols that were her father’s.

31:20 Ya'aqob outwitted Laban the Aram, in that he didn’t tell him that he was running away. 31:21 So he fled with all that he had. He rose up, passed over the River, and set his face toward the mountain of Gil'ad.

31:22 Laban was told on the third day that Ya'aqob had fled. 31:23 He took his relatives with him, and pursued after him seven days’ journey. He overtook him in the mountain of Gil'ad. 31:24 Aluahiym came to Laban, the Aram, in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Take heed to yourself that you don’t speak to Ya'aqob either good or bad.”

31:25 Laban caught up with Ya'aqob. Now Ya'aqob had pitched his tent in the mountain, and Laban with his relatives encamped in the mountain of Gil'ad. 31:26 Laban said to Ya'aqob, “What have you done, that you have outwitted me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the sword?  31:27 Why did you flee secretly, and deceive me, and didn’t tell me, that I might have sent you away with mirth and with songs, with tambourine and with harp; 31:28 and didn’t allow me to kiss my grandsons and my daughters? Now have you done foolishly. 31:29 It is in the power of my hand to hurt you, but the Aluahiym of your father spoke to me last night, saying, ‘Take heed to yourself that you don’t speak to Ya'aqob either good or bad.’ 31:30 Now, you want to be gone, because you greatly longed for your father’s house, but why have you stolen my gods?”

31:31 Ya'aqob answered Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I said, ‘Lest you should take your daughters from me by force.’ 31:32 But as for your household idols, anyone you find your gods with shall not live. Before our relatives, discern what is yours with me, and take it.” (For Ya'aqob didn’t know that Rachel had stolen them.)

31:33 Laban went into Ya'aqob’s tent, into Le'ah’s tent, and into the tent of the two female servants; but he didn’t find them. He went out of Le'ah’s tent, and entered into Rachel’s tent. 31:34 Now Rachel had taken the house idols, put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt about all the tent, but didn’t find them. 31:35 She said to her father, “Don’t let my master be angry that I can’t rise up before you; for the manner of women is on me.” He searched, but didn’t find the house idols.

31:36 Ya'aqob was angry, and argued with Laban. Ya'aqob answered Laban, “What is my trespass? What is my sin, that you have hotly pursued after me? 31:37 Now that you have felt around in all my stuff, what have you found any of your household stuff? Set it here before my relatives and your relatives, that they may judge between us two.

["in that day, the sins of Ysra'al will be sought, but not found." (Yirm. 50:20).]

31:38 “These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not cast their young, and I haven’t eaten the rams of your flocks. 31:39 That which was torn of animals, I didn’t bring to you. I bore its loss. Of my hand you required it, whether stolen by day or stolen by night. 31:40 This was my situation: in the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep fled from my eyes. 31:41 These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for your flock, and you have changed my wages ten times. 31:42 Unless the Aluahiym of my father, the Aluahiym of Abraham, and the 'Fear of Yitschaq', had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty. Aluahiym has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and  last night He delivered the verdict.”

31:43 Laban answered Ya'aqob, “The daughters are my daughters! The sons are my descendants, too, the flocks are my flocks, and all that you see is mine: and what can I do this day to these my daughters, or to their children whom they have borne?  31:44 Now come, let us make a covenant, you and I; and let it be for a witness between me and you.”

31:45 Ya'aqob took a stone, and set it up for a pillar. 31:46 Ya'aqob said to his relatives, “Gather stones.” They took stones, and made a heap. They ate there by the heap. 31:47 Laban called it Yegar Sahadutha, but Ya'aqob called it Gal'ed.

 31:48 Laban said, “This heap is witness between me and you this day.” Therefore it was named Gal'ed  31:49 and Mitspah, for he said, “ YaHuWaH watch between me and you, when we are absent one from another.  31:50 If you afflict my daughters, or if you take wives besides my daughters, no man is with us; behold, Aluahiym is witness between me and you.” 31:51 Laban said to Ya'aqob, “See this heap, and see the pillar, which I have set between me and you. 31:52 May this heap be a witness, and the pillar be a witness, that I will not pass over this heap to you, and that you will not pass over this heap and this pillar to me, for harm.  31:53 The Aluahiym of Abraham, and the Aluahiym of Nachowr, the Aluahiym of their father, judge between us.” Then Ya'aqob swore by the fear of his father, Yitschaq. 31:54 Ya'aqob offered a slaughter in the mountain, and called his relatives to eat bread. They ate bread, and stayed all night in the mountain. 31:55 Early in the morning, Laban rose up, and kissed his sons and his daughters, and blessed them. Laban departed and returned to his place.

32:1 Ya'aqob went on his way, and the messengers of Aluahiym met him. 32:2 When he saw them, Ya'aqob said, “This is Aluahiym’s army.” He called the name of that place Machanayim.

32:3 Ya'aqob sent messengers in front of him to Esaw, his brother, to the land of Se'iyr, the field of Edom. 32:4 He commanded them, saying, “This is what you shall tell my master, Esaw: ‘This is what your servant, Ya'aqob, says. I have lived as a foreigner with Laban, and stayed until now. 32:5 I have cattle, donkeys, flocks, male servants, and female servants. I have sent to tell my master, that I may find favor in your sight.’” 32:6 The messengers returned to Ya'aqob, saying, “We came to your brother Esaw. Not only that, but he comes to meet you, and four hundred men with him.” 

[400 men: Every time this phrase appears in Scripture it is in a military context. It is therefore an idiom that tells Ya'aqob that Esau is armed. The Ibriy letter with the value of  400 is tav, and tav means a “mark” such as could be put on one’s forehead. ]

32:7 Then Ya'aqob was greatly afraid and was distressed. He divided the people who were with him, and the flocks, and the herds, and the camels, into two companies; 32:8 and he said, “If Esaw comes to the one company, and strikes it, then the company which is left will escape.” 32:9 Ya'aqob said, “Aluahiym of my father Abraham, and Aluahiym of my father Yitschaq, YaHuWaH, Who said to me, ‘Return to your country, and to your relatives, and I will do you good,’ 32:10 I am not worthy of the least of all the loving kindnesses, and of all the truth, which You have shown to Your servant; for with just my staff I passed over this Yarden; and now I have become two companies. 32:11 Please deliver me from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esaw: for I fear him, lest he come and strike me, from mother to children! 32:12 You said, ‘I will surely do you good, and make your seed as the sand of the sea, which can’t be numbered because there are so many.’”

32:13 He lodged there that night, and took from that which he had with him, a present for Esaw, his brother: 32:14 two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams,  32:15 thirty milk camels and their colts, forty cows, ten bulls, twenty female donkeys and ten foals.  32:16 He delivered them into the hands of his servants, every herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Cross over (Ibry) before me, and put a space between herd and herd.” 32:17 He commanded the foremost, saying, “When Esaw, my brother, meets you, and asks you, saying, ‘Whose are you? Where are you going? Whose are these before you?’  32:18 Then you shall say, ‘They are your servant, Ya'aqob’s. It is a present sent to my master, Esaw. Behold, he also is behind us.’” 32:19 He commanded also the second, and the third, and all that followed the herds, saying, “This is how you shall speak to Esaw, when you find him. 32:20 You shall say, ‘Not only that, but behold, your servant, Ya'aqob, is behind us.’” For, he said, “I will appease him with the present that goes before me, and afterward I will see his face. Perhaps he will accept me.”

32:21 So the present passed over before him, and he himself lodged that night in the camp.

32:22 He rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two handmaids, and his eleven sons, and crossed over the ford of the Yabboq. 32:23 He took them, and sent them over the stream, and sent over that which he had.

 32:24 Ya'aqob was left alone, and wrestled with a Man there until the breaking of the day. 

He was alone (compare Numbers 23:9 

"For from the top of the rocks I see Him.

From the hills I see Him.

Behold, it is a people that dwells alone,

and shall not be reckoned among the nations.

23:10 Who can count the dust of Ya'acob,

or number the fourth part of Ysra'al?

Let me die the death of the righteous!

Let my last end be like his!”

- yet he wrestled with someone. How could this be? The numerical value of the word here for "alone" is 613--the number of commandments in the Torah. So he was wrestling with the Word that would later be fleshed out as a man. In 48:16, this “man” is called a messenger, and YaHuWSHuWaH as this “man” was often called the “Malak YaHuWaH”.

32:25 When He saw that He didn’t prevail against him, He touched the hollow of his thigh, and the hollow of Ya'aqob’s thigh was dislocated, as he wrestled. 32:26 The Man said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”

Ya'aqob said, “I won’t let You go, until You bless me.”

32:27 He said to him, “What is your name?”

He said, “Ya'aqob.” 32:28 He said, “Your name will no longer be called Ya'aqob, but Ysra'al; for you have wrestled with Aluahiym and with men, and have prevailed.”  

יעקב  Ya'aqob = yod-ayin-qop-bet = ya-a-qob …. the yod carries the sound "ah" - then the ayin gives the next ah sound + the qob-bet = Ya'aqob  == this name comes from the word "aqeb" meaning "heel"

ישראל Ysra'al = yod-shin-resh-aleph-lamed = Ya-sh-ra-Al …. the yod again carries the sound of "ah" - then the sh-ra-Al = Yashra'El  == this name comes from the Ibriy word "sarah" (saw-raw) meaning "have power"

32:29 Ya'aqob asked Him, “Now You divulge Your Name, please.

But He said, “Why do you [still need to] ask about My Name ?” He blessed him there.

 [Another reason he may not have received an answer is that even YaHuWaH is a name for only that part of His infinitude that He can reveal to us. There is more to Him that we cannot know, and indeed, as Sha'ul says in I Cor. 13, all that we know is "in part", that is, by partitioning and distinguishing things from one another. However,  YaHuWaH is "echad"--one, unified, indivisible, the "all in all", so how can His truest name be known? But He does reveal Himself by His attributes and in the fullest sense possible, in His "Word". (Yahuwchanan 14)]

32:30 Ya'aqob called the name of the place Peni'el:[Face of Aluahiym] for, he said, “I have seen Aluahiym face to face, and my life is preserved.” 32:31 The sun rose on him as he passed over Peniel, and he limped because of his thigh. 32:32 Therefore the children of Ysra'al don’t eat the sinew of the hip, which is on the hollow of the thigh, to this day, because He touched the hollow of Ya'aqob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip.

33:1 Ya'aqob lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, Esaw was coming, and with him four hundred men. He divided the children between Le'ah, Rachel, and the two handmaids.  33:2 He put the handmaids and their children in front, Le'ah and her children after, and Rachel and Yahuwseph at the rear. 33:3 He himself passed over in front of them, and bowed himself to the ground seven times, until he came near to his brother.

33:4 Esaw ran to meet him, embraced him, fell on his neck, kissed him, and they wept. 33:5 He lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the children; and said, “Who are these with you?”

He said, “The children whom Aluahiym has graciously given your servant.”  33:6 Then the handmaids came near with their children, and they bowed themselves. 33:7 Le'ah also and her children came near, and bowed themselves. After them, Yahuwseph came near with Rachel, and they bowed themselves.

33:8 Esaw said, “What do you mean by all this company which I met?”

Ya'aqob said, “To find favor in the sight of my master.”

33:9 Esaw said, “I have enough, my brother; let that which you have be yours.”

33:10 Ya'aqob said, “Please, no, if I have now found favor in your sight, then receive my present at my hand, because I have seen your face, as one sees the face of Aluahiym, and you were pleased with me. 33:11 Please take the gift that I brought to you, because Aluahiym has dealt graciously with me, and because I have enough.” He urged him, and he took it.

33:12 Esaw said, “Let us take our journey, and let us go, and I will go before you.”

33:13 Ya'aqob said to him, “My master knows that the children are tender, and that the flocks and herds with me have their young, and if they overdrive them one day, all the flocks will die. 33:14 Please let my master pass over before his servant, and I will lead on gently, according to the pace of the livestock that are before me and according to the pace of the children, until I come to my master to Se'iyr.”

[Yahuwshuwah did something reminiscent of this when He said, "I'm not going to the feast; you go on ahead." He would follow later, but not in the company of those who were pressing him to go “now”]

33:15 Esaw said, “Let me now leave with you some of the folk who are with me.”

He said, “Why? Let me find favor in the sight of my master.”

33:16 So Esaw returned that day on his way to Se'iyr. 33:17 Ya'aqob traveled to Sukkowth, built himself a house, and made shelters for his livestock. Therefore the name of the place is called Sukkowth. 

33:18 Ya'aqob came in peace to the city of Shekem, which is in the land of Kena'an, when he came from Paddan Aram; and encamped before the city. 33:19 He bought the parcel of ground where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Chamor, Shekem’s father, for one hundred pieces of money. 33:20 He erected an altar there, and called it Al-Elohei-Ysra'al. 

34:1 Dynah, the daughter of Le'ah, whom she bore to Ya'aqob, went out to see the daughters of the land.  34:2 Shekem the son of Chamor the Chiwy, the prince of the land, saw her. He took her, lay with her, and humbled her. 34:3 His being joined to Dynah, the daughter of Ya'aqob, and he loved the young lady, and spoke kindly to the young lady. 34:4 Shekem spoke to his father, Chamor, saying, “Get me this young lady as a wife.”

34:5 Now Ya'aqob heard that he had defiled Dynah, his daughter; and his sons were with his livestock in the field. Ya'aqob held his peace until they came. 34:6 Chamor the father of Shekem went out to Ya'aqob to talk with him. 34:7 The sons of Ya'aqob came in from the field when they heard it. The men were grieved, and they were very angry, because he had done folly in Ysra'al in lying with Ya'aqob’s daughter; which ought not to be done. 34:8 Chamor talked with them, saying, “The being of my son, Shekem, longs for your daughter. Please give her to him as a wife. 34:9 Make marriages with us. Give your daughters to us, and take our daughters for yourselves. 34:10 You shall dwell with us, and the land will be before you. Live and trade in it, and get possessions in it.”

34:11 Shekem said to her father and to her brothers, “Let me find favor in your eyes, and whatever you will tell me I will give. 34:12 Ask me a great amount for a dowry, and I will give whatever you ask of me, but give me the young lady as a wife.”

34:13 The sons of Ya'aqob answered Shekem and Chamor his father with deceit, and spoke, because he had defiled Dynah their sister, 34:14 and said to them, “We can’t do this thing, to give our sister to one who is uncircumcised; for that is a reproach to us. 34:15 Only on this condition will we consent to you. If you will be as we are, that every male of you be circumcised; 34:16 then will we give our daughters to you, and we will take your daughters to us, and we will dwell with you, and we will become one people. 34:17 But if you will not listen to us, to be circumcised, then we will take our daughter, and we will be gone.”

34:18 Their words pleased Chamor and Shekem, Chamor’s son. 34:19 The young man didn’t wait to do this thing, because he had delight in Ya'aqob’s daughter, and he carried more weight above all the house of his father. 34:20 Chamor and Shekem, his son, came to the gate of their city, and talked with the men of their city, saying,  34:21 “These men are peaceful with us. Therefore let them live in the land and trade in it. For behold, the land is large enough for them. Let us take their daughters to us for wives, and let us give them our daughters. 34:22 Only on this condition will the men consent to us to live with us, to become one people, if every male among us is circumcised, as they are circumcised. 34:23 Won’t their livestock and their possessions and all their animals be ours? Only let us give our consent to them, and they will dwell with us.”

34:24 All who went out of the gate of his city listened to Chamor, and to Shekem his son; and every male was circumcised, all who went out of the gate of his city. 34:25 It happened on the third day, when they were in their greatest pain, that two of Ya'aqob’s sons, Shim'own and Lewi, Dynah’s brothers, each took his sword, came upon the unsuspecting city, and killed all the males. 34:26 They killed Chamor and Shekem, his son, with the edge of the sword, and took Dynah out of Shekem’s house, and went away. 34:27 Ya'aqob’s sons came on the dead, and plundered the city, because they had defiled their sister. 34:28 They took their flocks, their herds, their donkeys, that which was in the city, that which was in the field, 34:29 and all their wealth. They took captive all their little ones and their wives, and took as plunder everything that was in the house. 34:30 Ya'aqob said to Shim'on and Lewi, “You have troubled me, to make me odious to the inhabitants of the land, among the Kena'aniy and the Perizziy. I am few in number. They will gather themselves together against me and strike me, and I will be destroyed, I and my house.”

34:31 They said, “Should he deal with our sister as with a prostitute?”

35:1 Aluahiym said to Ya'aqob, “Arise, go up to Bayith-Al, and live there. Make there an altar to Al, who appeared to you when you fled from the face of Esaw your brother.”

35:2 Then Ya'aqob said to his household, and to all who were with him, “Put away the foreign gods that are among you, purify yourselves, change your garments. 35:3 Let us arise, and go up to Bayith-Al. I will make there an altar to Al, who answered me in the day of my distress, and was with me in the way which I went.”

35:4 They gave to Ya'aqob all the foreign Aluahiym which were in their hands, and the rings which were in their ears; and Ya'aqob hid them under the oak which was by Shekem. 35:5 They traveled, and a terror of Aluahiym was on the cities that were around them, and they didn’t pursue the sons of Ya'aqob.  35:6 So Ya'aqob came to Luwz (that is, Bayith-Al), which is in the land of Kena'an, he and all the people who were with him. 35:7 He built an altar there, and called the place Al Beth Al; because there Aluahiym was revealed to him, when he fled from the face of his brother. 35:8 Debowrah, Rebekah’s nurse, died, and she was buried below Bayith-Al under the oak; and its name was called The Oak of Weeping.

35:9 Aluahiym appeared [made Himself perceptible] to Ya'aqob again, when he came from Paddan Aram, and blessed him. 35:10 Aluahiym said to him, “Your name is Ya'aqob. Your name shall not be Ya'aqob any more, but your name will be Ysra'al.” He named him Ysra'al. 35:11 Aluahiym said to him, “I am Al Shaddai. Be fruitful and multiply. A nation and a company of nations will be from you, and kings will come out of your body. 35:12 The land which I gave to Abraham and Yitschaq, I will give it to you, and to your seed after you will I give the Land.”

35:13 Aluahiym ascended from him in the Place where He spoke with him. 35:14 Ya'aqob set up a pillar in the Place where he spoke with Him, a pillar of stone. He poured out a drink offering on it, and poured oil on it. 35:15 Ya'aqob called the name of the Place where Aluahiym spoke with him “Bayith-Al.”

The Mashiyach is called an anointed stone, and Ya'aqov "set him up": in a very real sense, his obedience made it possible for the Mashiyach to be born.

35:16 They traveled from Bayith-Al. There was still some distance to come to Ephrathah, and Rachel travailed. She had hard labor. 35:17 When she was in hard labor, the midwife said to her, “Don’t be afraid, for now you will have another son [a breach birth].”

[Boaz redeemed Ruth at this same site (Ruth 4:11), as was the Mashiyach's birth in Beyth-Lekhem, Ephrathah (Micha 5:2).]

35:18 It happened, as her being was departing (for she died), that she named him Ben-'Owniy but his father named him Binyamin. 35:19 Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrathah (the same is Beyth-Lekhem - "house of bread"). 35:20 Ya'aqob set up a pillar on her grave. The same is the Pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day.

 35:21 Then Ysra'al pulled up stakes and pitched his tent beyond the Tower of the Flocks [Eder].

 [The Mishnah says this tower was the boundary of a perimeter around Yahrushalum within which all lambs to be slain for the daily Temple offering (by the priests) had to be born--a major reason it is also mentioned in Micha 4:8 in conjunction with the more precise location of "the first dominion". This refers to its being the birthplace of Mashiyach (the king) at his first coming. ]

 35:22 It happened, while Ysra'al lived in that land, that Re'uwben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Ysra'al heard of it.

Now the sons of Ya'aqob were twelve. 35:23 The sons of Le'ah: Re'uwben (Ya'aqob’s firstborn),Shim'own, Lewi, Yahuwdah, Yissakar, and Zebuwluwn. 35:24 The sons of Rachel: Yahuwseph and Binyamin. 35:25 The sons of Bilhah (Rachel’s handmaid): Dan and Naphtaliy. 35:26 The sons of Zilpah (Le'ah’s handmaid): Gawd and Asher. These are the sons of Ya'aqob, who were born to him in Paddan Aram. 35:27 Ya'aqob came to Yitschaq his father, to Mamre, to Qiryath Arba (which is Chebrown), where Abraham and Yitschaq lived as foreigners.

[From this time on, the number twelve is often symbolic of Ysra'al. Binyamin was not born in Paddan-Aram, but may have been conceived there. All the rest of his children must have been born within the seven years following his marriages to Le'ah and Rachel.]

35:28 The days of Yitschaq were one hundred eighty years. 35:29 Yitschaq gave up the spirit, and died, and was gathered to his people, old and full of days. Esaw and Ya'aqob, his sons, buried him.

36:1 Now this is the history of the generations of Esaw (who/that (huw) is, Edom). 

[ There is a contrast here with Ya'aqob’s line (35:22ff), and from here on the emphasis is on Esau’s being Edom rather than Ya'aqob’s brother.]

 36:2 Esaw took his wives from the daughters of Kena'an: Adah the daughter of Eylown, the Chittiy; and Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Tsib'own, the Chiwy;  36:3 and Bosmath, Yishma'el’s daughter, sister of Nebayowth. 36:4 Adah bore to Esaw Eliyphaz. Bosmath bore Re'uwel. 36:5 Oholibamah bore Ye'uwsh, Ya'lam, and Qorach. These are the sons of Esaw, who were born to him in the land of Kena'an. 36:6 Esaw took his wives, his sons, his daughters, and all the members of his household, with his livestock, all his animals, and all his possessions, which he had gathered in the land of Kena'an, and went into a land away from his brother Ya'aqob.

[This also pictures the church after the era of persecution, when in order to become the unifying factor of the Roman Empire, cut all its ties to Ya'aqob (its Hebraic roots), even forbidding the practice of holy days YaHuWaH had commanded.]

 36:7 For their substance was too great for them to dwell together, and the land of their travels couldn’t bear them because of their livestock. 36:8 Esaw lived in the hill country of Se'iyr. Esaw who is Edom, that is.  

  [Esau who is Edom: reiterated so that there is no doubt who Edom is. He is undeniably Ysra'al’s kinsman, but is not part of the Abrahamic covenant, even spiritually. Ysra'al and the church are two separate entities.]

36:9 This is the history of the generations of Esaw the father of the Edomiy in the hill country of Se'iyr: 36:10 these are the names of Esaw’s sons: Eliyphaz, the son of Adah, the wife of Esaw; and Re'uwel, the son of Bosmath, the wife of Esaw. 36:11 The sons of Eliyphaz were Teyman, Owmar, Tsephow, and Ga'tam, and Qenaz. 36:12 Timna was concubine to Eliyphaz, Esaw’s son; and she bore to Eliyphaz Amaleq. These are the sons of Adah, Esaw’s wife. 36:13 These are the sons of Re'uwel: Nachath, Zerach, Shammah, and Mizzah. These were the sons of Bosmath, Esaw’s wife. 36:14 These were the sons of Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah, the daughter of Tsib'own, Esaw’s wife: she bore to Esaw Ye'uwsh, Ya'lam, and Qorach.

36:15 These are the chiefs of the sons of Esaw: the sons of Eliyphaz the firstborn of Esaw: chief Teyman, chief Owmar, chief Tsephow, chief Qenaz, 36:16 chief Qorach, chief Ga'tam, chief Amaleq: these are the chiefs who came of Eliyphaz in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Adah. 36:17 These are the sons of Re'uwel, Esaw’s son: chief Nachath, chief Zerach, chief Shammah, chief Mizzah: these are the chiefs who came of Re'uwel in the land of Edom; these are the sons of Bosmath, Esaw’s wife. 36:18 These are the sons of Oholibamah, Esaw’s wife: chief Ye'uwsh, chief Ya'lam, chief Qorach: these are the chiefs who came of Oholibamah the daughter of Anah, Esaw’s wife.  36:19 These are the sons of Esaw (that is, Edom), and these are their chiefs. 

[“Esau, who is Edom" is repeated three times. It is important to know whom we are up against.]

36:20 These are the sons of Se'iyr the Choriy, the inhabitants of the land: Lowtan, Showbal, Tsib'own, Anah,  36:21 Diyshown, Etser, and Diyshan. These are the chiefs who came of the Choriys, the children of Se'iyr in the land of Edom. 36:22 The children of Lowtan were Choriy and Heyman. Lowtan’s sister was Timna. 36:23 These are the children of Showbal: Alwan, Manachath, Eybal, Shephow, and Ownam. 36:24 These are the children of Tsib'own: Ayah and Anah. This is Anah who found the hot springs in the wilderness, as he fed the donkeys of Tsib'own his father. 36:25 These are the children of Anah: Diyshown and Oholibamah, the daughter of Anah. 36:26 These are the children of Diyshown: Chemdan, Eshban, Yithran, and Keran. 36:27 These are the children of Etser: Bilhan, Zaavan, and Akan. 36:28 These are the children of Diyshan: Uwts and Aran. 36:29 These are the chiefs who came of the Choriys: chief Lowtan, chief Showbal, chief Tsib'own, chief Anah, 36:30 chief Diyshown, chief Etser, and chief Diyshan: these are the chiefs who came of the Choriys, according to their chiefs in the land of Se'iyr.

36:31 These are the kings who reigned in the land of Edom, before any king reigned over the children of Ysra'al. 36:32 Bela, the son of Be'owr, reigned in Edom. The name of his city was Dinhabah. 36:33 Bela died, and Yobab, the son of Zerach of Botsrah, reigned in his place.

[Botzrah, an Edomite city southeast of the Dead Sea, will figure prominently in the Mashiyach's return with power and esteem: Yeshayahuw 34:6  YaHuWaH’s sword is filled with blood. It is covered with fat, with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams;  for YaHuWaH has a slaughter in Botsrah, And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.; 63:1 Who is this who comes from Edom, with dyed garments from Botsrah? this who is radiant in His clothing, marching in the greatness of His strength?; Yirmiyahuw 48:24 ; 49:13 For I have sworn by Myself, says YaHuWaH, that Botsrah shall become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all its cities shall be perpetual wastes.; Amos 1:12 but I will send a fire on Teyman,  and it will devour the palaces of Botsrah.”.]

 36:34 Yobab died, and Chuwsham of the land of the Teymaniy reigned in his place. 

 [Yobab: could possibly be translated "Father Iyob (Job)". Iyob did live in the land of Utz (v. 28) Chusham means "haste".]

36:35 Chuwsham died, and Hadad, the son of Bedad, who struck Midyan in the field of Mow'ab, reigned in his place. The name of his city was Avith. 36:36 Hadad died, and Samlah of Masreqah reigned in his place. 36:37 Samlah died, and Sha'ul of Rechobowth by the river, reigned in his place.

 36:38 Sha'ul died, and Ba'al Chanan, the son of Akbowr reigned in his place. 36:39  When Ba'al Chanan ["Ba'al (the lord) showed favor"] the son of Akbowr died, and Hadar reigned in his place. The name of his city was Pa'uw. His wife’s name was Meheytab'el, the daughter of Matred, the daughter of Mey Zahab.

36:40 These are the names of the chiefs who came from Esaw, according to their families, after their places, and by their names: chief Timna, chief Alvah, chief Yetheth,  36:41 chief Oholiybamah, chief Elah, chief Piynon, 36:42 chief Qenaz, chief Teyman, chief Mibtsar, 36:43 chief Magdiy-Al

 [Magdi-Al is the traditional ancestor of the Romans, leaving no doubt as to which house Esau was building.],

 and chief Iyram. These are the chiefs of Edom, according to their habitations in the land of their possession. This is Esaw, the father of the Edomiy.

37:1 Ya'aqob lived in the land of his father’s travels, in the land of Kena'an. 37:2 This is the history of the generations of Ya'aqob. Yahuwseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brothers. He was a lad with the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father’s wives. Yahuwseph brought an evil report of them to their father. 37:3 Now Ysra'al loved Yahuwseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age, and he made him a long-sleeved robe reaching to his feet [a priestly garment?].

 [There is a similar word still used in present-day Arabic that literally means "dream-coat". If this is the intended meaning, Ya'aqob gave it to Yahuwseph in recognition that he was the one among all his sons who had the prophetic gifts.]

 37:4 His brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, and they hated him, and couldn’t speak peaceably to him.

37:5 Yahuwseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brothers, and they hated him all the more.  37:6 He said to them, “Please hear this dream which I have dreamed: 37:7 for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and behold, your sheaves came around, and bowed down to my sheaf.”

37:8 His brothers said to him, “Will you indeed reign over us? Or will you indeed have dominion over us?” They hated him all the more for his dreams and for his words.  37:9 He dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brothers, and said, “Behold, I have dreamed yet another dream: and behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me.” 37:10 He told it to his father and to his brothers. His father rebuked him, and said to him, “What is this dream that you have dreamed? Will I and your mother and your brothers indeed come to bow ourselves down to you to the earth?” 37:11 His brothers envied him, but his father kept this saying in mind.

37:12 His brothers went to feed their father’s flock in Shekem. 37:13 Ysra'al said to Yahuwseph, “Aren’t your brothers feeding the flock in Shekem? Come, and I will send you to them.” He said to him, “Here I am.”

37:14 He said to him, “Go now, see whether it is well with your brothers, and well with the flock; and bring me word again.” So he sent him out of the valley of Chebrown, and he came to Sh'khem. 37:15 A certain man found him, and behold, he was wandering in the field. The man asked him, “What are you looking for?” 

  [Sh’khem was also the first town among the non-Jews where Yahuwshuwah began to look for His Father’s lost sheep. (Yahuwchanan 4)

37:16 He said, “I am looking for my brothers. Tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock.”

37:17 The man said, “They have left here, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’”

Yahuwseph went after his brothers, and found them in Dothan. 37:18 They saw him afar off, and before he came near to them, they conspired against him to kill him.  37:19 They said one to another, “Behold, this dreamer comes. 37:20 Come now therefore, and let’s kill him, and cast him into one of the pits, and we will say, ‘An evil animal has devoured him.’ We will see what will become of his dreams.”

37:21 Re'uwben heard it, and delivered him out of their hand, and said, “Let’s not take his life.” 37:22 Re'uwben said to them, “Shed no blood. Throw him into this pit that is in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him”—that he might deliver him out of their hand, to restore him to his father. 37:23 It happened, when Yahuwseph came to his brothers, that they stripped Yahuwseph of his long coat—the embroidered one that reached to his feet— 37:24 and they took him, and threw him into the pit. (since it was an empty one having no water in it.)

37:25 They sat down to eat bread, and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and saw a caravan of Yishma'e'liy was coming from Gil'ad, with their camels bearing spices and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Mitsrayim. 37:26 Yahuwdah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? (first recorded words from Yahuwdah! and the first time "profit" is used in the Scriptures)37:27 Come, and let’s sell him to the Yishma'e'liy, and not let our hand be on him; for he is our brother, our flesh.” His brothers listened to him. 37:28 Just then some men - Midyaniy who were merchants - passed by, and they drew and lifted up Yahuwseph out of the pit, and sold Yahuwseph to the Yishma'e'liy for twenty pieces of silver. They brought Yahuwseph into Mitsrayim.

 The selling of Mashiyach Ben Yahuwseph .... Matt. 26:14 Then one of the twelve, who was called Yahuwdah, man of the city, went to the chief priests, and said, “What are you willing to give me, that I should deliver Him (Yahuwshuwah) to you?” They weighed out for him thirty pieces of silver. 26:16 From that time he sought opportunity to deliver Him.

37:29 Re'uwben returned to the pit; and saw that Yahuwseph wasn’t in the pit; and he tore his clothes.  37:30 He returned to his brothers, and said, “The child is no more; and I, where will I go?”  37:31 They took Yahuwseph’s coat, and killed a male goat, and dipped the coat in the blood. 37:32 Then they dispatched some messengers with the long coat reaching to the feet, and they brought it to their father, and said, “We have found this. Examine it, now, whether it is your son’s coat or not.”

37:33 He recognized it, and said, “It is my son’s long coat. An evil animal has devoured him. Yahuwseph is without doubt torn in pieces.” 37:34 Ya'aqob tore his clothes, and put sackcloth on his waist, and mourned for his son many days. 37:35 All his sons and all his daughters rose up to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. He said, “For I will go down to she'owl to my son mourning.” His father wept for him. 37:36 The Midyaniy sold him into Mitsrayim to Powtiyphar, an officer of Par'oh’s, the chief of the executioners.

[Something about this story of Yahuwdah is meant to shed light on the story of Yahuwseph’s captivity, in which it is a parenthesis. It is a picture of our own day, when Yahuwseph is still in captivity, Yahuwdah’s heart is attached to foreigners, and the Father’s heart is broken.]

38:1 It happened at that time, that Yahuwdah went down from his brothers, and visited a certain Adullamiy, whose name was Chiyrah. 38:2 Yahuwdah saw there a daughter of a certain Kena'aniy whose name was Shuwa. He took her [as a wife], and went in to her.  38:3 She conceived, and bore a son; and he named him Er. 38:4 She conceived again, and bore a son; and she named him Ownan. 38:5 She yet again bore a son, and named him Shelach: and he was at Keziyb, when she bore him. 38:6 Yahuwdah took a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 38:7 Er, Yahuwdah’s firstborn, was wicked in the sight of YaHuWaH and YaHuWaH slew him. 38:8 Yahuwdah said to Ownan, “Go in to your brother’s wife, and perform the duty of a husband’s brother to her, and raise up seed to your brother.” 38:9 Ownan knew that the seed wouldn’t be his; and it happened, when he went in to his brother’s wife, that he spilled it on the ground, lest he should give seed to his brother. 38:10 The thing which he did was evil in the sight of  YaHuWaH, and he caused him to die also. 38:11 Then Yahuwdah said to Tamar, his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house, until Shelach, my son, is grown up;” for he said, “Lest he also die, like his brothers.” Tamar went and lived in her father’s house.

Tamar means "a date-palm tree"--one of the most beautiful sights in a parched land. According to Psalm 92:12, it is symbolic of righteousness.

38:12 After many days, Shuwa’s daughter, the wife of Yahuwdah, died. Yahuwdah was comforted, and went up to his sheep shearers to Timnah, he and his friend Chiyrah, the Adullamiy. 38:13 It was told Tamar, saying, “Behold, your father-in-law is going up to Timnah to shear his sheep.” 38:14 She took off of her the garments of her widowhood, and covered herself with her veil, and wrapped herself, and sat in the gate of Enayim, which is by the way to Timnah; for she saw that Shelach was grown up, and she wasn’t given to him as a wife. 38:15 When Yahuwdah saw her, he thought that she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 38:16 He turned to her by the way, and said, “Please come, let me come in to you,” for he didn’t know that she was his daughter-in-law.

She said, “What will you give me, that you may come in to me?”

38:17 He said, “I will send you a young goat from the flock.”

She said, “Will you give me a pledge, until you send it?”

38:18 He said, “What pledge will I give you?”

She said, “Your signet and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.”

He gave them to her, and came in to her, and she conceived by him.  38:19 She arose, and went away, and put off her veil from her, and put on the garments of her widowhood. 38:20 Yahuwdah sent the young goat by the hand of his friend, the Adullamiy, to receive the pledge from the woman’s hand, but he didn’t find her. 38:21 Then he asked the men of her place, saying, “Where is the prostitute, that was at Enayim by the road?”

They said, “There has been no prostitute here.”

38:22 He returned to Yahuwdah, and said, “I haven’t found her; and also the men of the place said, ‘There has been no prostitute here.’” 38:23 Yahuwdah said, “Let her keep it, lest we be shamed. Behold, I sent this young goat, and you haven’t found her.”

38:24 It happened about three months later, that it was told Yahuwdah, saying, “Tamar, your daughter-in-law, has played the prostitute; and moreover, behold, she is with child by prostitution.”

Yahuwdah said, “Bring her forth, and let her be burnt.” 38:25 When she was brought forth, she sent to her father-in-law, saying, “By the man, whose these are, I am with child.” She also said, “Please discern whose are these—the signet, and the cords, and the staff.”

38:26 Yahuwdah acknowledged them, and said, “She is more righteous than I, because I didn’t give her to Shelach, my son.”

He knew her again no more. 38:27 It happened in the time of her travail, that behold, twins were in her womb. 38:28 When she travailed, one put out a hand, and the midwife took and tied a scarlet thread on his hand, saying, “This came out first.” 38:29 It happened, as he drew back his hand, that behold, his brother came out, and she said, “How did you break through?” Therefore his name was called Parets. 38:30 Afterward his brother came out, that had the scarlet thread on his hand, and his name was called Zerach. 

39:1 Yahuwseph was brought down to Mitsrayim. Powtiyphar, an officer of Par'oh’s, the captain of the guard, an Mitsriy, bought him from the hand of the Yishma'elites that had brought him down there. 39:2   YaHuWaH was with Yahuwseph, and he was a prosperous man. He was in the house of his master the Mitsriy.  39:3 His master saw that YaHuWaH was with him, and that YaHuWaH made all that he did prosper in his hand. 39:4 Yahuwseph found favor in his sight. He ministered to him, and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he had he put into his hand. 39:5 It happened from the time that he made him overseer in his house, and over all that he had, that  YaHuWaH  blessed the Mitsriy’s house for Yahuwseph’s sake; and the blessing of YaHuWaH was on all that he had, in the house and in the field. 39:6 He left all that he had in Yahuwseph’s hand. He didn’t concern himself with anything, except for the food which he ate.

Yahuwseph was well-built and handsome. 39:7 It happened after these things, that his master’s wife cast her eyes on Yahuwseph; and she said, “Lie with me.”

39:8 But he refused, and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, my master doesn’t know what is with me in the house, and he has put all that he has into my hand. 39:9 He isn’t greater in this house than I, neither has he kept back anything from me but you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against Aluahiym?”

39:10 As she spoke to Yahuwseph day by day, he didn’t listen to her, to lie by her, or to be with her. 39:11 About this time, he went into the house to do his work, and there were none of the men of the house inside. 39:12 She caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me!”

He left his garment in her hand, and ran outside. 39:13 When she saw that he had left his garment in her hand, and had run outside, 39:14 she called to the men of her house, and spoke to them, saying, “Behold, he has brought in a Ibriy to us to mock us. He came in to me to lie with me, and I cried with a loud voice. 39:15 It happened, when he heard that I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment by me, and ran outside.” 39:16 She laid up his garment by her, until his master came home. 39:17 She spoke to him according to these words, saying, “The Ibriy servant, whom you have brought to us, came in to me to mock me, 39:18 and it happened, as I lifted up my voice and cried, that he left his garment by me, and ran outside.”

39:19 It happened, when his master heard the words of his wife, which she spoke to him, saying, “This is what your servant did to me,” that his wrath was kindled.  39:20 Yahuwseph’s master took him, and put him into the prison, the place where the king’s prisoners were bound, and he was there in custody. 39:21 But  YaHuWaH  was with Yahuwseph, and showed kindness to him, and gave him favor in the sight of the keeper of the prison. 39:22 The keeper of the prison committed to Yahuwseph’s hand all the prisoners who were in the prison. Whatever they did there, he was responsible for it.  39:23 The keeper of the prison didn’t look after anything that was under his hand, because YaHuWaH was with him; and that which he did, YaHuWaH made it prosper.

40:1 It happened after these things, that the butler of the king of Mitsrayim and his baker offended their master, the king of Mitsrayim. 40:2 Par'oh was angry with his two officers, the chief cupbearer and the chief baker. 40:3 He put them in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, into the prison, the place where Yahuwseph was bound. 40:4 The captain of the guard assigned them to Yahuwseph, and he took care of them. They stayed in prison many days. 40:5 They both dreamed a dream, each man his dream, in one night, each man according to the interpretation of his dream, the cupbearer and the baker of the king of Mitsrayim, who were bound in the prison. 40:6 Yahuwseph came in to them in the morning, and saw them, and saw that they were sad. 40:7 He asked Par'oh’s officers who were with him in custody in his master’s house, saying, “Why do you look so sad today?”

40:8 They said to him, “We have dreamed a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it.”

Yahuwseph said to them, “Don’t interpretations belong to Aluahiym? Please tell it to me.”

40:9 The chief cupbearer told his dream to Yahuwseph, and said to him, “In my dream, behold, a vine was in front of me, 40:10 and in the vine were three branches. It was as though it budded, its blossoms shot forth, and its clusters brought forth ripe grapes. 40:11 Par'oh’s cup was in my hand; and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Par'oh’s cup, and I gave the cup into Par'oh’s hand.”

40:12 Yahuwseph said to him, “This is its interpretation: the three branches are three days. 40:13 Within three more days, Par'oh will lift up your head, and restore you to your office. You will give Par'oh’s cup into his hand, the way you did when you were his cupbearer. 40:14 But remember me when it will be well with you, and show kindness, please, to me, and make mention of me to Par'oh, and bring me out of this house. 40:15 For indeed, I was stolen away out of the land of the Ibriys, and here also have I done nothing that they should put me into the dungeon.”

40:16 When the chief baker saw that the interpretation was good, he said to Yahuwseph, “I also was in my dream, and behold, three baskets of white bread were on my head.  40:17 In the uppermost basket there was all kinds of baked food for Par'oh, and the birds ate them out of the basket on my head.”

40:18 Yahuwseph answered, “This is its interpretation. The three baskets are three days. 40:19 Within three more days, Par'oh will lift up your head from off you, and will hang you on a tree; and the birds will eat your flesh from off you.” 40:20 It happened the third day, which was Par'oh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants, and he lifted up the head of the chief cupbearer and the head of the chief baker among his servants. 40:21 He restored the chief cupbearer to his position again, and he gave the cup into Par'oh’s hand; 40:22 but he hanged the chief baker, as Yahuwseph had interpreted to them. 40:23 Yet the chief cupbearer didn’t remember Yahuwseph, but forgot him.

41:1 It happened at the end of two full years, that Par'oh dreamed: and behold, he stood by the river. 

[“It was the end of two years of days to the day and Par'oh was dreaming, and behold he’s standing by the Nile.”  Ibriy ] [comment - Shamash Ben: I am also reminded here of the fact that Yahuwseph’s progeny (the House of Yisra’el) would one day commit adultery against  YaHuWaH, be divorced by Him and cast out into the nations of the world until YaHuWaH hears the words that the prophet foretells the House of Yisra’el will speak, in Hoshea 6:1-2; ‘Come, and let us turn back to YaHuWaH. For He has torn but He does heal us, He has stricken but He binds us up. After two days He shall revive us, on the third day He shall raise us up, so that we live before Him. Here, Yahuwseph, having “fulfilled” two years of days in prison (his punishment), is raised up to “live” before YaHuWaH and Pharoh. However, being a picture of Yahuwshuwah, Yahuwseph was not guilty; but, innocent.

41:2 And, lo and behold, there came up out of the river seven cattle, sleek and fat, and they fed in the marsh grass. 41:3 But suddenly, seven other cattle came up after them out of the river, ugly and thin, and stood by the other cattle on the brink of the river. 41:4 The ugly and thin cattle ate up the seven sleek and fat cattle. So Par'oh awoke. 41:5 He slept and dreamed a second time: and behold, seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, healthy and robust. 41:6 Behold, seven heads of grain, thin and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them.  41:7 The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven healthy and full ears. Par'oh awoke, and behold, it was a dream. 41:8 It happened in the morning that his spirit was troubled, and he sent and called for all of the magicians and wise men of Mitsrayim. Par'oh told them his dreams, but there was no one who could interpret them to Par'oh.

41:9 Then the chief cupbearer spoke to Par'oh, saying, “I remember my faults today. 41:10 Par'oh was angry with his servants, and put me in custody in the house of the captain of the guard, me and the chief baker. 41:11 We dreamed a dream in one night, I and he. We dreamed each man according to the interpretation of his dream. 41:12 There was with us there a young man, a Ibriy, servant to the captain of the guard, and we told him, and he interpreted to us our dreams. To each man according to his dream he interpreted. 41:13 It happened, as he interpreted to us, so it was: he restored me to my office, and he hanged him.”

41:14 Then Par'oh sent and called Yahuwseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon. He shaved himself, changed his clothing, and came in to Par'oh. 41:15 Par'oh said to Yahuwseph, “I have dreamed a dream, and there is no one who can interpret it. I have heard it said of you, that when you hear a dream you can interpret it.”

41:16 Yahuwseph answered Par'oh, saying, “It isn’t in me. Aluahiym will give Par'oh an answer of peace.”

41:17 Par'oh spoke to Yahuwseph, “In my dream, behold, I stood on the brink of the river: 41:18 and behold, there came up out of the river seven cattle, fat and sleek. They fed in the marsh grass,  41:19 and behold, seven other cattle came up after them, poor and very ugly and thin, such as in Eber saw in all the land of Mitsrayim for ugliness. 41:20 The thin and ugly cattle ate up the first seven fat cattle, 41:21 and when they had eaten them up, it couldn’t be known that they had eaten them, but they were still ugly, as at the beginning. So I awoke. 41:22 I saw in my dream, and behold, seven heads of grain came up on one stalk, full and good: 41:23 and behold, seven heads of grain, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them. 41:24 The thin heads of grain swallowed up the seven good heads of grain. I told it to the magicians, but there was no one who could explain it to me.”

41:25 Yahuwseph said to Par'oh, “The dream of Par'oh is one. What Aluahiym is about to do he has declared to Par'oh. 41:26 The seven good cattle are seven years; and the seven good heads of grain are seven years. The dream is one. 41:27 The seven thin and ugly cattle that came up after them are seven years, and also the seven empty heads of grain blasted with the east wind; they will be seven years of famine.  41:28 That is the thing which I spoke to Par'oh. What Aluahiym is about to do he has shown to Par'oh.  41:29 Behold, there come seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Mitsrayim. 41:30 There will arise after them seven years of famine, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Mitsrayim. The famine will consume the land, 41:31 and the plenty will not even be remembered in the face of what follows -  it will be that severe. 41:32 The dream was doubled to Par'oh, because the thing is established by Aluahiym, and Aluahiym will shortly bring it to pass.

[A matter is established by two witnesses that agree. Unlike Yonah's prophecy to Nin'veh, it was determined, confirmed by two "witnesses" and could not be changed.]

Speculation: [This famine may also be a picture of the seven years of Ya'aqob's trouble, which follow the years when both houses of Ysra'al are provided for with abundance to carry them through. The counterfeit "gospel" will be preached at that time and will torment those who follow the true one. The World Bank is storing huge reserves of food in Jordan “for the coming famine”. Interestingly, that will be where reunited Ysra'al will be harbored while YaHuWaH is cleansing His Land again during the time of Ya'aqob’s trouble (YeshaYahuw16), and the counterfeit Mashiyach will not be permitted to overrun it. (Daniel 11:41)]

41:33 “Now therefore let Par'oh look for a discreet and wise man, and set him over the land of Mitsrayim. 41:34 Let Par'oh do this, and let him appoint overseers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt’s produce in the seven plenteous years.  41:35 Let them gather all the food of these good years that come, and lay up grain under the hand of Par'oh for food in the cities, and let them keep it. 41:36 The food will be for a store to the land against the seven years of famine, which will be in the land of Mitsrayim; thus you will prevent the land from being decimated by the famine.”

41:37 The thing was good in the eyes of Par'oh, and in the eyes of all his servants. 41:38 Par'oh said to his servants, “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Rúwach of Aluahiym?”  41:39 Par'oh said to Yahuwseph, “Because Aluahiym has shown you all of this, there is none so discreet and wise as you. 41:40 You shall be over my house, and by your command will all my people be sustained. Only in the throne I will be greater than you.” 41:41 Par'oh said to Yahuwseph, “Behold, I have set you over all the land of Mitsrayim.” 41:42 Par'oh took off his signet ring from his hand, and put it on Yahuwseph’s hand, and arrayed him in robes of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck, 41:43 and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had. They cried before him, “Bow the knee!” He set him over all the land of Mitsrayim. 41:44 Par'oh said to Yahuwseph, “I am Par'oh, and without you shall no man lift up his hand or his foot in all the land of Mitsrayim.” 41:45 Par'oh called Yahuwseph’s name Tsophnath-Pa'neach; and he gave him Asenath, the daughter of Powti Phera priest of Own as a wife. Yahuwseph went out over the land of Mitsrayim.

41:46 Yahuwseph was thirty years old when he stood before Par'oh king of Mitsrayim. Yahuwseph went out from the presence of Par'oh, and went throughout all the land of Mitsrayim.  41:47 In the seven plenteous years the earth brought forth abundantly. 41:48 He gathered up all the food of the seven years which were in the land of Mitsrayim, and laid up the food in the cities: the food of the field, which was around every city, he laid up in the same. 41:49 Yahuwseph laid up grain as the sand of the sea, very much, until he stopped counting, for it was without number. 41:50 To Yahuwseph were born two sons before the year of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Powti Phera priest of Own, bore to him. 41:51 Yahuwseph called the name of the firstborn Menashsheh, “For,” he said, “Aluahiym has made me forget all my toil, and all my father’s house.” 41:52 The name of the second, he called Ephrayim: “For Aluahiym has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”

41:53 The seven years of plenty, that were in the land of Mitsrayim, came to an end. 41:54 The seven years of famine began to come, just as Yahuwseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of Mitsrayim there was bread. 41:55 When all the land of Mitsrayim was famished, the people cried to Par'oh for bread, and Par'oh said to all the Mitsriy, “Go to Yahuwseph. What he says to you, do.” 41:56 The famine was over all the surface of the earth. Yahuwseph opened all the store houses, and sold to the Mitsriy. The famine was severe in the land of Mitsrayim. 41:57 All countries came into Mitsrayim, to Yahuwseph, to buy grain, because the famine was severe in all the earth.

42:1 Now Ya'aqob saw that there was grain in Mitsrayim, and Ya'aqob said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?” 42:2 He said, “Behold, I have heard that there is grain in Mitsrayim. Go down there, and buy for us from there, so that we may live, and not die.” 42:3 Yahuwseph’s ten brothers went down to buy grain from Mitsrayim. 42:4 But Ya'aqob didn’t send Binyamin, Yahuwseph’s brother, with his brothers; for he said, “Lest perhaps harm happen to him.” 42:5 So the sons of Ysra'al came to buy among those who came, for the famine was in the land of Kena'an. 42:6 Yahuwseph was the governor over the land. It was he who sold to all the people of the land. Yahuwseph’s brothers came, and bowed themselves down to him with their faces to the earth. 42:7 Yahuwseph saw his brothers, and he recognized them, but acted like a stranger to them, and spoke roughly with them. He said to them, “Where did you come from?”

They said, “From the land of Kena'an to buy food.”

42:8 Yahuwseph recognized his brothers, but they didn’t recognize him. 42:9 Yahuwseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed about them, and said to them, “You are spies! You have come to see how vulnerable the land is!”

42:10 They said to him, “No, my master, but your servants have come to buy food. 42:11 We are all one man’s sons; we are honest men. Your servants are not spies.”

42:12 He said to them, “No, but you have come to see the nakedness of the land!”

42:13 They said, “We, your servants, are twelve brothers, the sons of one man in the land of Kena'an; and behold, the youngest is this day with our father, and one is no more.”

42:14 Yahuwseph said to them, “That is why I told you that, ‘You are spies!’ 42:15 By this you shall be tested. By the life of Par'oh, you shall not go forth from here, unless your youngest brother comes here. 42:16 Send one of you, and let him get your brother, and you shall be bound, that your words may be tested, whether there is truth in you, or else by the life of Par'oh surely you are spies.” 42:17 He put them all together into custody for three days.

42:18 Yahuwseph said to them the third day, “Do this, and live, (for I do fear Aluahiym.) 

The third day: when YaHuWaH grants a reprieve to the repentant in Ysra'al (Hoshea 6:1, 2; compare 2 Kings 20:5).

 42:19 If you are honest men, then let one of your brothers be bound in your prison; but you go, carry grain for the famine of your houses. 42:20 Bring your youngest brother to me; so will your words be verified, and you won’t die.”

They did so. 42:21 They said one to another, “We are certainly guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the distress of his being, when he begged us, and we wouldn’t listen. Therefore this distress has come upon us.” 42:22 Re'uwben answered them, saying, “Didn’t I tell you, saying, ‘Don’t sin against the child,’ and you wouldn’t listen? Therefore also, behold, his blood is required.”  42:23 They didn’t know that Yahuwseph understood them; for there was an interpreter between them. 42:24 He turned himself away from them, and wept. Then he returned to them, and spoke to them, and took Shim'own from among them, and bound him before their eyes. 42:25 Then Yahuwseph gave a command to fill their bags with grain, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them food for the way. So it was done to them.

42:26 They loaded their donkeys with their grain, and departed from there. 42:27 As one of them opened his sack to give his donkey food in the lodging place, he saw his money. Behold, it was in the mouth of his sack. 42:28 He said to his brothers, “My money is restored! Behold, it is in my sack!” Their hearts failed them, and they turned trembling one to another, saying, “What is this that Aluahiym has done to us?” 42:29 They came to Ya'aqob their father, to the land of Kena'an, and told him all that had happened to them, saying, 42:30 “The man, the master of the land, spoke roughly with us, and took us for spies of the country. 42:31 We said to him, ‘We are honest men. We are no spies. 42:32 We are twelve brothers, sons of our father; one is no more, and the youngest is this day with our father in the land of Kena'an.’ 42:33 The man, the master of the land, said to us, ‘By this I will know that you are honest men: leave one of your brothers with me, and take grain for the famine of your houses, and go your way. 42:34 Bring your youngest brother to me. Then I will know that you are not spies, but that you are honest men. So I will deliver your brother to you, and you shall trade in the land.’”

42:35 It happened as they emptied their sacks, that behold, every man’s bundle of money was in his sack. When they and their father saw their bundles of money, they were afraid. 42:36 Ya'aqob, their father, said to them, “You have bereaved me of my children! Yahuwseph is no more, Shim'own is no more, and you want to take Binyamin away. All these things are against me.”

42:37 Re'uwben spoke to his father, saying, “Kill my two sons, if I don’t bring him to you. Entrust him to my care, and I will bring him to you again.”

42:38 He said, “My son shall not go down with you; for his brother is dead, and he only is left. If harm happens to him along the way in which you go, then you will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to she'owl.”

43:1 The famine was severe in the Land. 43:2 It happened, when they had eaten up the grain which they had brought out of Mitsrayim, their father said to them, “Go again, buy us a little more food.”

43:3 Yahuwdah spoke to him, saying, “The man solemnly warned us, saying, ‘You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.’ 43:4 If you’ll send our brother with us, we’ll go down and buy you food, 43:5 but if you’ll not send him, we’ll not go down, for the man said to us, ‘You shall not see my face, unless your brother is with you.’”

43:6 Ysra'al said, “Why did you treat me so badly, telling the man that you had another brother?”

43:7 They said, “The man asked directly concerning ourselves, and concerning our relatives, saying, ‘Is your father still alive? Have you another brother?’ We just answered his questions. Is there any way we could know that he would say, ‘Bring your brother down?’”

43:8 Yahuwdah said to Ysra'al, his father, “Send the lad with me, and we’ll get up and go, so that we may live, and not die, both we, and you, and also our little ones. 43:9 I’ll be collateral for him. From my hand will you require him. If I don’t bring him to you, and set him before you, then let me bear the blame forever, 43:10 for if we hadn’t delayed, surely we would have returned a second time by now.”

43:11 Their father, Ysra'al, said to them, “If it must be so, then do this. Take from the choice fruits of the land in your bags, and carry down a present for the man, a little balm, a little honey, spices and myrrh, nuts, and almonds; 43:12 and take double money in your hand, and take back the money that was returned in the mouth of your sacks. Perhaps it was an oversight. 43:13 Take your brother also, get up, and return to the man. 43:14 And may Al Shaddai give you mercy before the man, that he may release to you your other brother and Binyamin. If I am bereaved of my children, I am bereaved.”

43:15 The men took that present, and they took double money in their hand, and Binyamin; and got up, went down to Mitsrayim, and stood before Yahuwseph. 43:16 When Yahuwseph saw Binyamin with them, he said to the steward of his house, “Bring the men into the house, and butcher an animal, and make ready; for the men will dine with me at noon.”

43:17 The man did as Yahuwseph commanded, and the man brought the men to Yahuwseph’s house. 43:18 The men were afraid, because they were brought to Yahuwseph’s house; and they said, “Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time, we’re brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, attack us, and seize us as slaves, along with our donkeys.” 43:19 They came near to the steward of Yahuwseph’s house, and they spoke to him at the door of the house, 43:20 and said, “Oh, my master, we indeed came down the first time to buy food. 43:21 When we came to the lodging place, we opened our sacks, and behold, every man’s money was in the mouth of his sack, our money in full weight. We have brought it back in our hand. 43:22 We have brought down other money in our hand to buy food. We don’t know who put our money in our sacks.”

43:23 He said, “Peace be to you. Don’t be afraid. Your Aluahiym, and the Aluahiym of your father, has given you treasure in your sacks. I received your money.” He brought Shim'own out to them. 43:24 The man brought the men into Yahuwseph’s house, and gave them water, and they washed their feet. He gave their donkeys fodder. 43:25 They made ready the present for Yahuwseph’s coming at noon, for they heard that they should eat bread there.

43:26 When Yahuwseph came home, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and bowed themselves down to him to the earth. 43:27 He asked them of their welfare, and said, “Is your father well, the old man of whom you spoke? Is he yet alive?”

43:28 They said, “Your servant, our father, is well. He is still alive.” They bowed the head, and did homage. 43:29 He lifted up his eyes, and saw Binyamin, his brother, his mother’s son, and said, “Is this your little brother, of whom you spoke to me?” [“Little” brother--though he had already fathered ten children! (46:21)] He said, “Aluahiym be gracious to you, my son.” 43:30 Yahuwseph hurried, for his heart yearned over his brother; and he sought a place to weep. He entered into his room, and wept there.  43:31 He washed his face, and came out. He controlled himself, and said, “Serve the meal.”

43:32 They served him by himself, and them by themselves, and the Mitsriy, that ate with him, by themselves, because the Mitsriy don’t eat bread with the Ibriys, for that is an abomination to the Mitsriy. 43:33 They sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth, and the men marveled one with another. 43:34 He sent portions to them from before him, but Binyamin’s portion was five times as much as any of theirs. They drank, and were merry with him.

44:1 He commanded the steward of his house, saying, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man’s money in his sack’s mouth.  44:2 Put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack’s mouth of the youngest, with his grain money.” He did according to the word that Yahuwseph had spoken. 44:3 As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their donkeys. 44:4 When they had gone out of the city, and were not yet far off, Yahuwseph said to his steward, “Up, follow after the men. When you overtake them, ask them, ‘Why have you rewarded evil for good? 44:5 Isn’t this that from which my master drinks, and by which he indeed divines? You have done evil in so doing.’” 44:6 He overtook them, and he spoke these words to them.

44:7 They said to him, “Why does my master speak such words as these? Far be it from your servants that they should do such a thing! 44:8 Behold, the money, which we found in our sacks’ mouths, we brought again to you out of the land of Kena'an. How then should we steal silver or gold out of your master’s house?  44:9 With whoever of your servants it be found, let him die, and we also will be my master’s bondservants.”

44:10 He said, “Now also let it be according to your words: he with whom it is found will be my bondservant; and you will be blameless.”

44:11 Then they hurried, and every man took his sack down to the ground, and every man opened his sack. 44:12 He searched, beginning with the eldest, and ending at the youngest. The cup was found in Binyamin’s sack. 44:13 Then they tore their clothes, and every man loaded his donkey, and returned to the city.

44:14 Yahuwdah and his brothers came to Yahuwseph’s house, and he was still there. They fell on the ground before him. 44:15 Yahuwseph said to them, “What deed is this that you have done? Don’t you know that such a man as I can indeed divine?”

44:16 Yahuwdah said, “What will we tell my master? What will we speak? Or how will we clear ourselves? Aluahiym has found out the iniquity of your servants. Behold, we are my master’s bondservants, both we, and he also in whose hand the cup is found.”

44:17 He said, “Far be it from me that I should do so. The man in whose hand the cup is found, he will be my bondservant; but as for you, go up in peace to your father.”

44:18 Then Yahuwdah came near to him, and said, “Oh, my master, please let your servant speak a word in my master’s ears, and don’t let your anger burn against your servant; for you are even as Par'oh. 44:19 My master asked his servants, saying, ‘Have you a father, or a brother?’ 44:20 We said to my master, ‘We have a father, an old man, and a child of his old age, a little one; and his brother is dead, and he alone is left of his mother; and his father loves him.’ 44:21 You said to your servants, ‘Bring him down to me, that I may set my eyes on him.’  44:22 We said to my master, ‘The boy can’t leave his father: for if he should leave his father, his father would die.’ 44:23 You said to your servants, ‘Unless your youngest brother comes down with you, you will see my face no more.’ 44:24 It happened when we came up to your servant my father, we told him the words of my master. 44:25 Our father said, ‘Go again, buy us a little food.’ 44:26 We said, ‘We can’t go down. If our youngest brother is with us, then we will go down: for we may not see the man’s face, unless our youngest brother is with us.’ 44:27 Your servant, my father, said to us, ‘You know that my wife bore me two sons: 44:28 and the one went out from me, and I said, “Surely he is torn in pieces;” and I haven’t seen him since. 44:29 If you take this one also from me, and harm happens to him, you will bring down my gray hairs with sorrow to she'owl.’ 44:30 Now therefore when I come to your servant my father, and the lad is not with us; seeing that his life is bound up in the lad’s life (and his soul is knot-tied to his soul); 44:31 it will happen, when he sees that the lad is no more, that he will die. Your servants will bring down the gray hairs of your servant, our father, with sorrow to she'owl. 44:32 For your servant became collateral for the lad to my father, saying, ‘If I don’t bring him to you, then I will bear the blame to my father forever.’ 44:33 Now therefore, please let your servant stay instead of the lad, a bondservant to my master; and let the lad go up with his brothers. 44:34 For how will I go up to my father, if the lad isn’t with me?—lest I see the evil that will come on my father.”

45:1 Then Yahuwseph couldn’t control himself before all those who stood before him, and he cried, “Cause every man to go out from me!” No one else stood with him, while Yahuwseph made himself known to his brothers. 45:2 He wept aloud. The Mitsriy heard, and the house of Par'oh heard. 45:3 Yahuwseph said to his brothers, “I am Yahuwseph! Does my father still live?”

His brothers couldn’t answer him; for they were terrified at his presence. 45:4 Yahuwseph said to his brothers, “Come near to me, please.”

They came near. “He said, I am Yahuwseph, your brother, whom you sold into Mitsrayim. 45:5 Now don’t be grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that you sold me here, for Aluahiym sent me before you to preserve life. 45:6 For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are yet five years, in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.

 [Prophetically, does this mean it will not be until two years into Ya'aqob's trouble that Yahuwseph's identity today will be revealed to his brothers?]

 45:7 Aluahiym sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant in the Land, and to save you alive by a great deliverance. 45:8 So now it wasn’t you who sent me here, but Aluahiym, and he has made me a father to Par'oh, master of all his house, and ruler over all the land of Mitsrayim.  45:9 Hurry, and go up to my father, and tell him, ‘This is what your son Yahuwseph says, “Aluahiym has made me master of all Mitsrayim. Come down to me. Don’t wait. 45:10 You shall dwell in the land of Goshen, and you will be near to me, you, your children, your children’s children, your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. 45:11 There I will nourish you; for there are yet five years of famine; lest you come to poverty, you, and your household, and all that you have.”’ 45:12 Behold, your eyes see, and the eyes of my brother Binyamin, that it is my mouth that speaks to you. (he was speaking Ibry) 45:13 You shall tell my father of all my glory in Mitsrayim, and of all that you have seen. You shall hurry and bring my father down here.” 45:14 He fell on his brother Binyamin’s neck, and wept, and Binyamin wept on his neck. 45:15 He kissed all his brothers, and wept on them. After that his brothers talked with him.

45:16 The report of it was heard in Par'oh’s house, saying, “Yahuwseph’s brothers have come.” It pleased Par'oh well, and his servants. 45:17 Par'oh said to Yahuwseph, “Tell your brothers, ‘Do this. Load your animals, and go, travel to the land of Kena'an. 45:18 Take your father and your households, and come to me, and I will give you the good of the land of Mitsrayim, and you will eat the fat of the land.’ 45:19 Now you are commanded: do this. Take wagons out of the land of Mitsrayim for your little ones, and for your wives, and bring your father, and come.[ This is the first mention of wagons in Scripture.] 45:20 Also, don’t concern yourselves about your belongings, for the good of all of the land of Mitsrayim is yours.”

45:21 The sons of Ysra'al did so. Yahuwseph gave them wagons, according to the commandment of Par'oh, and gave them provision for the way. 45:22 He gave each one of them changes of clothing, but to Binyamin he gave three hundred pieces of silver and five changes of clothing. 45:23 To his father, he sent after this manner: ten donkeys loaded with the good things of Mitsrayim, and ten female donkeys loaded with grain and bread and provision for his father by the way. 45:24 So he sent his brothers away, and they departed. He said to them, “See that you don’t quarrel on the way.”

45:25 They went up out of Mitsrayim, and came into the land of Kena'an, to Ya'aqob their father. 45:26 They told him, saying, “Yahuwseph is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Mitsrayim.” His heart fainted, for he didn’t believe them. 45:27 They told him all the words of Yahuwseph, which he had said to them. When he saw the wagons which Yahuwseph had sent to carry him, the spirit of Ya'aqob, their father, revived. 45:28 Ysra'al said, “It is enough. Yahuwseph my son is still alive. I will go and see him before I die.”

46:1 Ysra'al traveled with all that he had, and came to Be'er-Sheba, and offered slaughters to the Aluahiym of his father, Yitschaq. 46:2 Aluahiym spoke to Ysra'al in the visions of the night, and said, “Ya'aqob, Ya'aqob!”

He said, “Here I am.”

46:3 He said, “I am Al, the Aluahiym of your father. Don’t be afraid to go down into Mitsrayim, for there I will make of you a great nation. 46:4 I will go down with you into Mitsrayim. I will also surely bring you up again.[the resurrection] Yahuwseph will close your eyes.”

46:5 Ya'aqob rose up from Be'er-Sheba, and the sons of Ysra'al carried Ya'aqob, their father, their little ones, and their wives, in the wagons which Par'oh had sent to carry him.[Prophetically, Ysra'al will again be taken out of the Land during the time of "Ya'aqob's trouble". (Yirmeyahu 30:7)]

 46:6 They took their livestock, and their goods, which they had gotten in the Land of Kena'an, and came into Mitsrayim—Ya'aqob, and all his descendants with him, 46:7 his sons, and his sons’ sons with him, his daughters, and his sons’ daughters, and he brought all his descendants with him into Mitsrayim. 

 [All his descendants: therefore we were included, so we too could come out of Mitsrayim, just as Sha'ul said we all stood at Mt. Choreb (1 Cor. 10:1).]

46:8 These are the names of the children of Ysra'al, who came into Mitsrayim, Ya'aqob and his sons: Re'uwben, Ya'aqob’s firstborn.

 46:9 The sons of Re'uwben: Chanowk, Palluw, Chetsrown, and Karmiy.

 46:10 The sons of Shim'on: Yemuw'el, Yamiyn, Ohad, Yakiyn, Tsochar, and Sha'uwl the son of a Kena'aniy woman. 

 46:11 The sons of Lewi: Gershom, Qehath, and Merariy.

 46:12 The sons of Yahuwdah: Er, Ownan, Shelach, Perets, and Zarah; but Er and Ownan died in the land of Kena'an. The sons of Perets were Chetsrown and Chamuwl. 46:13 The sons of Yissakar: Towla, Pu'wah (Puwwah #6312 - waw(and) peh-waw-heh -- ופוה), Yowb, and Shimrown.

 46:14 The sons of Zebuwluwn: Sered, Eylown, and Yahchle'el.

 46:15 These are the sons of Le'ah, whom she bore to Ya'aqob in Paddan Aram, with his daughter Dynah. All the beings of his sons and his daughters were thirty-three.

 46:16 The sons of Gawd: Tsiphyown, Chaggiy, Shuwniy, Etsbown, Eriy, Arowdiy, and Ar'eliy.

 46:17 The sons of Asher: Yimnah, Yishwah, Yishwiy, Beriy'ah, and Serach their sister. The sons of Beriy'ah: Cheber and Malkiy'el. 

46:18 These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Le'ah, his daughter, and these she bore to Ya'aqob, even sixteen beings.

 46:19 The sons of Rachel, Ya'aqob’s wife: Yahuwseph and Binyamin. [Again, only Rachel is called Ya'aqob’s wife, just as YaHuWaH never recognized Yishmael as fully a son of Abraham.]

46:20 To Yahuwseph in the land of Mitsrayim were born Menashsheh and Ephrayim, whom Asenath, the daughter of Powtiy Phera, priest of Own, bore to him.

 46:21 The sons of Binyamin: Bela, Beker, Ashbel, Gera, Na'aman, Echiy, Ro'sh, Muppiym, Chuppiym, and Ard. 

46:22 These are the sons of Rachel, who were born to Ya'aqob: all the beings were fourteen. 

46:23 The son of Dan: Chuwshiym. 

46:24 The sons of Naphtaliy: Yachtse'el, Guwniy, Yetser, and Shillem.

 46:25 These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel, his daughter, and these she bore to Ya'aqob: all the beings were seven.

 46:26 All the beings who came with Ya'aqob into Mitsrayim, who were his direct descendants, besides Ya'aqob’s sons’ wives, all the souls were sixty-six. 46:27 The sons of Yahuwseph, who were born to him in Mitsrayim, were two beings being. All the beings of the house of Ya'aqob, who came into Mitsrayim, were seventy.

[70: counting Ya'aqob himself. Only the men are counted. This is the number of the nations listed in chapter 10. Deut. 32:8 correlates this number with the number of the sons of Ysra'al, as listed here, as the factor in determining where and when their borders would be allotted.]

46:28 He sent Yahuwdah before him to Yahuwseph, to show the way before him to Goshen, and they came into the land of Goshen. 46:29 Yahuwseph made ready his chariot, and went up to meet Ysra'al, his father, in Goshen. He presented himself to him, and fell on his neck, and wept on his neck a good while.  46:30 Ysra'al said to Yahuwseph, “Now let me die, since I have seen your face, that you are still alive.”

46:31 Yahuwseph said to his brothers, and to his father’s house, “I will go up, and speak with Par'oh, and will tell him, ‘My brothers, and my father’s house, who were in the land of Kena'an, have come to me. 46:32 These men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of livestock, and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.’ 46:33 It will happen, when Par'oh summons you, and will say, ‘What is your occupation?’ 46:34 that you shall say, ‘Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we, and our fathers:’ that you may dwell in the land of Goshen; for every shepherd is an abomination to the Mitsriy.”

47:1 Then Yahuwseph went in and told Par'oh, and said, “My father and my brothers, with their flocks, their herds, and all that they own, have come out of the land of Kena'an; and behold, they are in the land of Goshen.” 47:2 From among his brothers he took five men, and presented them to Par'oh. 47:3 Par'oh said to his brothers, “What is your occupation?”

They said to Par'oh, “Your servants are shepherds, both we, and our fathers.” 47:4 They said to Par'oh, “We have come to live as foreigners in the land, for there is no pasture for your servants’ flocks. For the famine is severe in the land of Kena'an. Now therefore, please let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen.”

47:5 Par'oh spoke to Yahuwseph, saying, “Your father and your brothers have come to you. 47:6 The land of Mitsrayim is before you. Make your father and your brothers dwell in the best of the land. Let them dwell in the land of Goshen. If you know any able men among them, then put them in charge of my livestock.”

47:7 Yahuwseph brought in Ya'aqob, his father, and set him before Par'oh, and Ya'aqob blessed Par'oh.  47:8 Par'oh said to Ya'aqob, “How many are the days of the years of your life?”

47:9 Ya'aqob said to Par'oh, “The days of the years of my pilgrimage are one hundred thirty years. Few and evil have been the days of the years of my life, and they have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers in the days of their pilgrimage.” 47:10 Ya'aqob blessed Par'oh, and went out from the presence of Par'oh.

47:11 Yahuwseph placed his father and his brothers, and gave them a possession in the land of Mitsrayim, in the best of the land, in the land of Ra'mesace, as Par'oh had commanded.  47:12 Yahuwseph nourished his father, his brothers, and all of his father’s household, with bread, according to their families.

47:13 There was no bread in all the land; for the famine was very severe, so that the land of Mitsrayim and the land of Kena'an fainted by reason of the famine. 47:14 Yahuwseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Mitsrayim, and in the land of Kena'an, for the grain which they bought: and Yahuwseph brought the money into Par'oh’s house. 47:15 When the money was all spent in the land of Mitsrayim, and in the land of Kena'an, all the Mitsriy came to Yahuwseph, and said, “Give us bread, for why should we die in your presence? For our money fails.”

47:16 Yahuwseph said, “Give me your livestock; and I will give you food for your livestock, if your money is gone.”

47:17 They brought their livestock to Yahuwseph, and Yahuwseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, and for the flocks, and for the herds, and for the donkeys: and he fed them with bread in exchange for all their livestock for that year.  47:18 When that year was ended, they came to him the second year, and said to him, “We will not hide from my master how our money is all spent, and the herds of livestock are my master’s. There is nothing left in the sight of my master, but our bodies, and our lands. 47:19 Why should we die before your eyes, both we and our land? Buy us and our land for bread, and we and our land will be servants to Par'oh. Give us seed, that we may live, and not die, and that the land won’t be desolate.”

47:20 So Yahuwseph bought all the land of Mitsrayim for Par'oh, for the Mitsriy sold every man his field, because the famine was severe on them, and the land became Par'oh’s.  47:21 As for the people, he moved them to the cities from one end of the border of Mitsrayim even to the other end of it.  47:22 Only he didn’t buy the land of the priests, for the priests had a portion from Par'oh, and ate their portion which Par'oh gave them. That is why they didn’t sell their land. 47:23 Then Yahuwseph said to the people, “Behold, I have bought you and your land today for Par'oh. Behold, here is seed for you, and you shall sow the land. 47:24 It will happen at the harvests, that you shall give a fifth to Par'oh, and four parts will be your own, for seed of the field, for your food, for them of your households, and for food for your little ones.”

47:25 They said, “You have saved our lives! Let us find favor in the sight of my master, and we will be Par'oh’s servants.”

47:26 Yahuwseph made it a statute concerning the land of Mitsrayim to this day, that Par'oh should have the fifth. Only the land of the priests alone didn’t become Par'oh’s.

47:27 Ysra'al lived in the land of Mitsrayim, in the land of Goshen; and they got themselves possessions therein, and were fruitful, and multiplied exceedingly. 47:28 Ya'aqob lived in the land of Mitsrayim seventeen years. So the days of Ya'aqob, the years of his life, were one hundred forty-seven years.  47:29 The time drew near that Ysra'al must die, and he called his son Yahuwseph, and said to him, “If now I have found favor in your sight, please put your hand under my thigh, and deal kindly and truly with me. Please don’t bury me in Mitsrayim, 47:30 but when I sleep with my fathers, you shall carry me out of Mitsrayim, and bury me in their burying place.”

He said, “I will do as you have said.”

47:31 He said, “Swear to me,” and he swore to him. Ysra'al bowed himself on the bed’s head.

48:1 It happened after these things, that someone said to Yahuwseph, “Behold, your father is sick.” He took with him his two sons, Menashsheh and Ephrayim. 48:2 Someone told Ya'aqob, and said, “Behold, your son Yahuwseph comes to you,” and Ysra'al strengthened himself, and sat on the bed. 48:3 Ya'aqob said to Yahuwseph, “Al Shaddai appeared to me at Luwz in the land of Kena'an, and blessed me, [In the Torah, the name "Al Shaddai" is only used by the patriarchs, and only when it has something to do with the continuation of the family line.] 48:4 and said to me, ‘Behold, I will make you fruitful, and multiply you, and I will make of you a company of peoples, and will give this land to your seed after you for an everlasting possession.’ 48:5 Now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Mitsrayim before I came to you into Mitsrayim, are mine; Ephrayim and Menashsheh, even as Re'uwben and Shim'own, they are mine. 48:6 Your issue, who you become the father of after them, will be yours. They will be called after the name of their brothers in their inheritance. 48:7 As for me, when I came from Paddan, Rachel died by me in the land of Kena'an in the way, when there was still some distance to come to Ephrathah, and I buried her there in the way to Ephrathah (the same is Bayith Lechem / Bethlehem).”

48:8 Ysra'al saw Yahuwseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?”

In B'reshiyth 48, we have the ending of Ysra'al's days. And in the verses pertaining to his coming death, we have some of the most profound and far-reaching prophecies in the Scriptures. In verse 5, Ysra'al claims Ephrayim and Menashsheh as his own and in verse 19 he prophecies that Ephrayim will become the "completeness or fullness" of the nations that Sha'ul speaks about in Romans 11:25.      In verse 8 when Ysra'al saw Yahuwseph's sons he asks a question that resounds all the way through the Scriptures even to the end of days as pictured in Revelation --  And that question is put forth in B'reshiyth 48:8 "Ysra'al saw Yahuwseph’s sons, and said, “Who are these?”  [The question "Who are these?" (Mi eleh?) The term "These" becomes sort of a title or code-word for the descendants of Ya'aqob.    YashaYahuw 60:8 “Who are these? Like a cloud they fly,  and like the doves, to their cotes?"

 Rev. 7:9-10  "After these things I looked, and behold, a huge throng, which no one was able to  count - from among all the nations and the families and the peoples and the languages. (YirmeYahuw 31:8  "Here I am suddenly bringing them from the north country, and gathering them from the ends of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her who travails with child together - a great throng shall return here. )"

 They stand before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with long white robes, with palm branches in their hands. They shout with a great sound, saying "haYahshuah leiEloheinu - the One, Who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb. …… 7:13-16 " One of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these dressed in long white robes, and from where did they come?”  I told him, “Master, you know.” He said to me, “These are the ones coming out from the Great Oppression/Tribulation. They washed their long robes, and made them white in the Lamb’s blood.  Because of this they are before the throne of YaHuWaH, they serve Him day and night in His Hekal. And the One Who sits on the throne shall tabernacle over them (protect them.)" 7:16  "Nor will they be hungry, nor will they be thirsty any more; and they will not be overcome by the heat and the sun; … "

YashaYahuw 49:18 "Lift up your eyes all around, and see: all these gather themselves together, and come to you. [The uncountable multitude of Rev. 7:9-16] As I live,” says YaHuWaH, “you shall surely clothe yourself with them all as with an ornament, and you shall bind them on as the Bride. [Marriage supper of the Lamb]

YashaYahuw 49:21 "Then you shall say in your heart, ‘Who has conceived these for me, seeing I have been bereaved of my children, and am solitary, an exile, and wandering back and forth? Who has brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where were they?’” YashaYahuw 49:9-12: “They shall feed in the ways, and on all bare heights shall be their pasture. They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun strike them: for He Who has mercy on them shall lead them, even by springs of water He shall guide them. I shall make all My mountains a Way, and My highways shall be exalted.  Behold, these shall come from far; and behold, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.”    Rev. 17:14  And these with Him are called and chosen and trustworthy.”

48:9 Yahuwseph said to his father, “They are my sons, whom Aluah has given me here.”

He said, “Please bring them to me, and I will bless them.” 48:10 Now the eyes of Ysra'al were dim for age, so that he couldn’t see. He brought them near to him; and he kissed them, and embraced them. 

[ Yahuwseph’s sons are the only people ever recorded as being embraced by Ysra'al (not even Yahuwseph himself in these terms), so it is very significant.]

 48:11 Ysra'al said to Yahuwseph, “I didn’t think I would see your face, and behold, Aluahiym has let me see your seed also.” 48:12 Yahuwseph brought them out from between his knees, and he bowed himself with his face to the earth. 48:13 Yahuwseph took them both, Ephrayim in his right hand toward Ysra'al’s left hand, and Menashsheh in his left hand toward Ysra'al’s right hand, and brought them near to him. 48:14 Ysra'al stretched out his right hand, and laid it on Ephrayim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Menashsheh’s head, guiding his hands knowingly, for Menashsheh was the firstborn. 48:15 He blessed Yahuwseph, and said, “The Aluahiym before whom my fathers Abraham and Yitschaq did walk, the Aluahiym who has fed me all my life long to this day,  48:16 the messenger who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads, and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Yitschaq. Let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.”

48:17 When Yahuwseph saw that his father laid his right hand on the head of Ephrayim, it displeased him. He held up his father’s hand, to remove it from Ephrayim’s head to Menashsheh’s head. 48:18 Yahuwseph said to his father, “Not so, my father; for this is the firstborn; put your right hand on his head.”

48:19 His father refused, and said, “I know, my son, I know. He also will become a people, and he also will be great. However, his younger brother will be greater than he, and his seed will become the completeness of the nations.” 48:20 He blessed them that day, saying, “In you will Ysra'al bless, saying, ‘Aluahiym make you as Ephrayim and as Menashsheh’” He set Ephrayim before Menashsheh. 48:21 Ysra'al said to Yahuwseph, “Behold, I am dying, but Aluahiym will be with you, and bring you again to the land of your fathers. 48:22 Moreover I have given to you one portion above your brothers, which I took out of the hand of the Emory with my sword and with my bow.”

49:1 Ya'aqob called to his sons, and said: “Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which will happen to you in the days to come. Days to come: or "the end of days - latter days". (acharit-hayamin - Gen. 49:1 first use - prophetically refers to the last 2 millennia of time - the Age of Mashiyach)

49:2 Assemble yourselves, and hear, you sons of Ya'aqob.

Listen to Ysra'al, your father.

49:3 “Re'uwben [see, a son], you are my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength; excelling in dignity, and excelling in power.

49:4 Boiling over as water, you shall not excel;

because you went up to your father’s bed,

then defiled it. He went up to my couch. (Leah's firstborn)

29:32 Le'ah conceived, and bore a son, and she named him Re'uwben. For she said, “Because YaHuWaH has seen my affliction. For now my husband will love me."

49:5 “Simeon [Hearing] and Lewi [joined/attached] are brothers. (Leah's sons)

Their swords are weapons of violence.

49:6 My being, don’t come into their council.

My esteem, don’t be united to their assembly;

for in their anger they killed men.

In their frenzy they also hamstrung an ox.

49:7 Cursed be their anger, for it was fierce;

and their wrath, for it was cruel.

I will divide them in Ya'aqob,

and scatter them in Ysra'al.

29:33 She conceived again, and bore a son, and said, “Because   YaHuWaH has heard that I am hated, he has therefore given me this son also.” She named him Shim'own. 29:34 She conceived again, and bore a son. Said, “Now this time will my husband be joined to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore was his name called Lewi. 

49:8 “Yahuwdah [Yahuwah be praised], your brothers will praise you. (Leah's son)

Your hand will be on the neck of your enemies.

Your father’s sons will bow down before you.

49:9 Yahuwdah is a lion’s cub. 

From the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He stooped down, he crouched as a lion, as a lioness.

Who will rouse him up?

49:10 The scepter will not depart from Yahuwdah,

nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until Shiloh comes.

To Him will the obedience of the peoples be.

49:11 Binding His foal to the vine,

His donkey’s colt to the choice vine;

He has washed His garments in wine,

His robes in the blood of grapes.

49:12 His eyes will be red with wine,

His teeth white with milk.

 29:35 She conceived again, and bore a son. She said, “This time will I praise YaHuWaH.” Therefore she named him Yahuwdah. Then she stopped bearing.

49:13 “Zebuwluwn [dwelling] will dwell at the haven of the sea. (Leah's son)

He will be for a haven of ships.

His border will be on Tsiydown. 

30:20 Le'ah said, “Aluahiym has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will dwell with me, because I have borne him six sons.” She named him Zebuwluwn.

49:14 “Yissakar [man of hire] is a strong donkey, (Leah's son)

lying down between the saddlebags.

49:15 He saw a resting place, that it was good,

the land, that it was pleasant.

He bows his shoulder to the burden,

and becomes a servant doing forced labor.

Le'ah said, “Aluahiym has given me my hire, because I gave my handmaid to my husband.” She named him Yissakar.

49:16 “Dan [judge] will judge his people, (Bilhah's son - Rachel's servant)

as one of the tribes of Ysra'al.

49:17 Dan will be a serpent in the way,

an adder in the path,

That bites the horse’s heels,

so that his rider falls backward.

49:18 I have waited for your deliverance, YaHuWaH.

[ It appears he is contrasting the Counterfeit Mashiyach, whom tradition says will come from the tribe of Dan, with the true Mashiyach, who will come only a short time afterward for those willing to persevere just a little while longer]

 30:6 Rachel said, “Aluahiym has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son.” Therefore called she his name Dan. 30:7  by Bilhah 

49:19 “A troop will press on Gawd [troop/invader/good fortune], (Zilpah's son - Leah's servant)  but he will press on their heel.

30:10 Zilpah, Le'ah’s handmaid, bore Ya'aqob a son. 30:11 Le'ah said, “How fortunate!” She named him Gawd.

49:20 “Asher’s [happy] food will be rich. (Zilpah's son - Leah's servant)

He will yield royal dainties.

30:12 Zilpah, Le'ah’s handmaid, bore Ya'aqob a second son. 30:13 Le'ah said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.” She named him Asher.

49:21 “Naphtaliy [my wrestling] is a doe set free, (Bilhah's son - Rachel's servant)

who bears beautiful fawns.

Rachel’s handmaid, conceived again, and bore Ya'aqob a second son. 30:8 Rachel said, “With mighty wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and have prevailed.” She named him Naphtaliy.

49:22 “Yahuwseph [increaser/adding] is a fruitful vine, (Rachel's son)

a fruitful vine by a spring.

His branches run over the wall.

49:23 The archers have sorely grieved him,

shot at him, and persecute him:

49:24 But his bow remained strong.

The arms of his hands were made strong,

by the hands of the Mighty One of Ya'aqob,

(from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Ysra'al),

49:25 even by the Al of your father, who will help you;

by the Shaddai, who will bless you,

with blessings of heaven above,

blessings of the deep that lies below,

blessings of the breasts, and of the womb.

49:26 The blessings of your father have prevailed above the blessings of your ancestors, above the boundaries of the ancient hills.

They will be on the head of Yahuwseph,

on the crown of the head of him who is separated from his brothers.

30:22 Aluahiym remembered Rachel, and Aluahiym listened to her, and opened her womb. 30:23 She conceived, bore a son, and said, “Aluahiym has taken away my reproach.” 30:24 She named him Yahuwseph saying, “May  YaHuWaH  add another son to me.”

49:27 “Binyamin [son of the right hand] is a ravenous wolf. (Rachel's son)

In the morning he will devour the prey.

At evening he will divide the spoil.”

35:18 It happened, as her being was departing (for she died), that she named him Ben-'Owniy [son of sorrow] but his father named him Binyamin. [son of my right hand]

49:28 All these are the tribes of Ysra'al, two and ten, [already prophesied to be two Houses] and this is what their father spoke to them and blessed them. He blessed everyone according to his blessing. 49:29 He instructed them, and said to them, “I am to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave that is in the field of the Chittiy, 49:30 in the cave that is in the field of Mackpelah, which is before Mamre, in the land of Kena'an, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephrown the Chittiy as a burial place. 49:31 There they buried Abraham and Sarah, his wife. There they buried Yitschaq and Ribqah, his wife, and there I buried Le'ah: 49:32 the field and the cave that is therein, which was purchased from the children of Cheth.” 49:33 When Ya'aqob made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ruwach, and was gathered to his people.

50:1 Yahuwseph fell on his father’s face, wept on him, and kissed him. 50:2 Yahuwseph commanded his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father; and the physicians embalmed Ysra'al.  50:3 Forty days were fulfilled for him, for that is how many the days it takes to embalm. The Mitsriy wept for him for seventy days.

50:4 When the days of weeping for him were past, Yahuwseph spoke to the house of Par'oh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, please speak in the ears of Par'oh, saying, 50:5 ‘My father made me swear, saying, “Behold, I am dying. Bury me in my grave which I have dug for myself in the land of Kena'an.” Now therefore, please let me go up and bury my father, and I will come again.’”

50:6 Par'oh said, “Go up, and bury your father, just like he made you swear.”

50:7 Yahuwseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Par'oh, the elders of his house, all the elders of the land of Mitsrayim,  50:8 all the house of Yahuwseph, his brothers, and his father’s house. Only their little ones, their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen.  50:9 There went up with him both chariots and horsemen. It was a very great company. 50:10 They came to the Threshing Floor of Atad, which is beyond the Yarden, and there they lamented with a very great and sore lamentation. He mourned for his father seven days. 50:11 When the inhabitants of the land, the Kena'aniy, saw the mourning in the Threshing Floor of Atad, they said, “This is a grievous mourning by the Mitsriy.” Therefore, its name was called Hebel Mitsrayim, which is beyond the Yarden. 50:12 His sons did to him just as he commanded them, 50:13 for his sons carried him into the land of Kena'an, and buried him in the cave of the field of Mackpelah, which Abraham bought with the field, for a possession of a burial site, from Ephrown the Chittiy, before Mamre.  50:14 Yahuwseph returned into Mitsrayim—he, and his brothers, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.

50:15 When Yahuwseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “It may be that Yahuwseph will hate us, and will fully pay us back for all of the evil which we did to him.” 50:16 They sent a message to Yahuwseph, saying, “Your father commanded before he died, saying, 50:17 ‘You shall tell Yahuwseph, “Now please pardon the disobedience of your brothers, and their sin, because they did evil to you.”’ Now, please pardon the disobedience of the servants of the Aluahiym of your father.” Yahuwseph wept when they spoke to him. 50:18 His brothers also went and fell down before his face; and they said, “Behold, we are your servants.”  50:19 Yahuwseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for am I in the place of Aluahiym? 50:20 As for you, you meant evil against me, but Aluahiym meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save many people alive. 50:21 Now therefore don’t be afraid. I will nourish you and your little ones.” He comforted them, and spoke kindly to them.

50:22 Yahuwseph lived in Mitsrayim, he, and his father’s house. Yahuwseph lived one hundred ten years.  50:23 Yahuwseph saw Ephrayim’s children to the third generation. The children also of Makiyr, the son of Menashsheh, were brought up on Yahuwseph’s knees. 50:24 Yahuwseph said to his brothers, “I am dying, but Aluahiym will surely visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Yitschaq, and to Ya'aqob.”  50:25 Yahuwseph took an oath of the children of Ysra'al, saying, “Aluahiym will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.” 50:26 So Yahuwseph died, being one hundred ten years old, and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Mitsrayim.