Torah Pearls – Balak – Numbers 22:2-25:9 – Nehemia Gordon & Keith Johnson
Was Yehovah Balaam’s God? What kind of prophet was Balaam? Why did God seek to kill Balaam? Does Numbers 22:22 really say that the angel of Yehovah was Satan? Did Balaam announce the first recorded messianic prophecy in the Torah?
Click here to read Nehemia’s article “The Ass Speaks Out”
Join us for this year’s Tanakh Tour of Israel!
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Awesome Episode, Bileam is also one of my favourite Stories in Scripture. I had to pause for laughing out aloud. Great work, keep it up brothers, this is one of the best ways to learn about Torah.
Stay sharp and set-apart!
YAH´blessings from Berlin!
Did you know that you do these Torah portions specifically for me, personally? 😉 (*wink) They are personal messages directly to me ;). Every time I even mumble under my breath, “I would like to look into this or that particular subject etc..” Your program pops up on my facebook page and the last three times I have listened have been exactly what I ‘wanted’ to hear within a few days of my ‘mumbles’. That being said I don’t get to listen as regularly as I would like but after three or four experiences like that I am pretty sure that I need to make sure I start to listen in regularly, 😉 In all sincerity though, humor aside, the program has already really blessed me and my family..thank you..Love and Blessings from Bethlehem Georgia, USA-Tina Brooks and Family 🙂
For some reason not downloading automatically in iTunes. Yoel and Devorah’s did but not Keith and Nehemia’s. Shall go on iTunes and see if I can download it from there.
awesome cant wait to hear about pinchas next week!!
I recommend these teachings / discussions to as many as I can. YHVH bless you all.
Being married for almost 49 years, thank you for leaving in the part of the portion where Nehemia’s fiance told us the rest of the story. It was an important part and having experience in this area I understand.
Fabulously packed with pearls, gentlemen! As you use all your different versions, I use yet another one which I have found very close ro Nehemia’s readings from the Hebrew Tanakh. It is called The Scriptures. I have enjoyed using it as my husband and I study with you each week. Also, could someone post the transliteration of the prayer in Psalms 119? You may have done this already and I may have missed it but….please? Many thanks and blessings to you all. Jana
🙂
Torah Pearl:
The translation of the Hebrew word ki (khaf, yud) in Num 22:22 as “because” confuses. It may also be translated as “when,” as in Num 34:2. If “because” is used, then it makes it sound as if YHVH is angry “because” Balaam does exactly what YHVH tells him to do. If, however, “when” is used the word simply expresses the time that YHVH’s anger is expressed, not the reason for His anger. The reason for YHVH’s anger is not revealed until Balaam’s eyes are opened and the messenger reveals the reason for YHVH’s anger to Balaam’s journey as seen in Num 22:32: ” … because your way is reckless before Me.”
In the first command (Num 22:12), Elohim prohibs Balaam from going and cursing. In the second (Num 22:20) He permits Balaam to go and speak. Is it possible that Balaam understands the lifting of the first prohibition – not to go – as applying also to the second prohibition – not to curse? It may be that Balaam understands the situation this way: “Don’t go and don’t curse” and the second time as “Go and curse.”
The Torah is monotheistic in its approach to good and evil (Deu 32:39). The dualistic understanding of YHVH, good on one side, and Satan, evil on the other, was a much later development. Also, in Mat 16:23 Yeshua calls Kepha “Satan”. If He does mean that Kepha is the evil one, after having promised him a few verses earlier: “… you are a stone and I will build upon you my house of prayer. The gates of Gehenna will not prevail against yo”, then none of us is on safe ground. When Yeshua tells Kepha “go away hashatan”, He simply calls him His adversary in accomplishing His mission! Kepha was not “demon-possessed” but an adversary in that particular situation to the will of Yeshua.
Shalom!
Not sure that I got the term correct, but a ‘hapaxlegammenon’ (where the English says ‘your way was perverse before me’) sounds like an Olympic dive to me LOL Seriously, gents, this was a terrific show, helping the scales fall from the eyes of many, including me.Thanks and all blessings ~ dot
Shalom to all,
There is a Hebrew web site of the Leningrad Codex with English transliteration that will be a great help to all. We can follow Nehemiah’s reading in Hebrew and see for yourself the greatness of Torah.
Blessing in Yehovah’s name to all those who love Torah.;
Rafael Medina
Belen, New Mexico
(Leningrad Codex from the web site:
http://www.scripture4all.org/OnlineInterlinear/OTpdf/isa40.pdf
I loved this one. I found that story hard to comprehend…thank you for shedding light 🙂
I don’t even have words to express my thanks to all of you for these lessons each week. I’m so thankful – my hearts desire is to please Yehovah & live for Him. Thank you to each of you for your part in bringing truth to us each week – Here I am ea wk w/ my open Bible & my notebook. I love you all and pray every blessing of Yehovah upon you & hope you will continue to feed those of us who have no other way of getting this information. Shalom
Judi
Great lesson today!
Nehemia has illustrated that for us men it is possible to grasp the complexities and intricacies of the entire Hebrew Scriptures yet fail to recognize proper dining etiquette toward our fiancés and wives.
Open thou mine eyes that I may behold the wondrous thoughts of my wife before she becomes very very angry with me.
Dear Nehemia,
I am trying to learn Hebrew. I was told you can infer from the letters used the essence of the word.
Yarat is a verb.
Yud is a closed hand, meaning God’s thought.
So God knows what Balaam is up to and is against it.
Resh is head, meaning upper limit of poverty.
Balam, you’re a sorry pauper in God’s sight.
Tet is snake or to twist.
Balaam intends to twist his pronouncement for his benefit of reward. This is insidious!
My lexicon says yarat is to be destructive or to be perverse.
But I like the letters which say, “God knows and is against you sorry pauper as you intend to twist your words to get a reward!
So Nehemiah, that’s a beginner’s view of the word. You’ll probably have something to say about that :>)
Congratulations on your engagement and Best Wishes for a lifetime of happiness as man and wife!
YHVH Bless you two!!
Myra
Thank you guys for covering the parsha Balak! I am still confused about why the angel allowed Balaam to prostrate to the ground and worship him? I thought that God YHVH clearly says in Torah you can worship only Him. This also happened with Abraham and Joshua however, the angel in Revelation 22:8 rebukes John for worshiping him. How is this possible? Thank you and keep up being the light to the world!
Nehemia, I just wanted to send you a word of encouragement…if you didn’t receive so much opposition, you wouldn’t be doing the perfect will of YHVH. You and your work are very much appreciated by those that seek the Truth. You are blessed to have been given such talent, wisdom, and understanding. Know that you are very much prayed for. Shalom.
Jono,
After searching the scriptures with much earnest,
it seems “yarat” is actually found in 2 places
the first mentioned by Nehemiah is Leviticus 22:32,
the second one is found in Job 16:11.
The KJV Lexicon definition for “yarat” includes a
couple of word pictures “drive recklessly” applies well to the account in Leviticus and “wring out” corresponds to the condition Job finds himself in.
Numbers 22:32 in the KJV reads:
behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is “perverse” before me.
Using the definition of “recklessly” It could be understood in context as:
behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is
“utterly unconcerned about the consequences of your actions” before me.
Job 16:11 in the KJV reads:
God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and “turned me over” into the hands of the wicked.
Using the definition of “wring” It could be understood in context as:
God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and “extracted me by twisting me frocibly” into the hands of the wicked.
Thank you Jono, Keith & Nehemiah so much for the inspiration to search the sriptures.
Shabbat Shalom from Yerushalyim… y’all really bless my heart! It was great to hear you call my name in the shout-out, even though it’s a year old- that made my day! I miss you guys! comeeee baaaacckkkkkk!