Last week's parashah (Noach) showed how the LORD miraculously preserved Noah and his family from cataclysmic judgment. Just as there were ten generations from Adam to Noah, so there were also ten generations from Noah to Abram. And just as Noah became the father of 70 nations, so Abram would become the father of the Jewish people, through whom the Promised Seed - the Mashiach and Savior of the world - would eventually come.
The third reading from the book of Genesis is named Lech Lecha. It means "go forth." The first verse says, "Now the LORD said to Abram, 'Go forth (lech lecha, לֶךְ־לְךָ) from your country.'" Lech Lecha introduces Abraham and tells the story of his pilgrimage in pursuit of God.
The Haftarah for Lekh Lekha comes from the prophet Isaiah. In the Parashah, it is clear that the youth of Abraham and Sarah is supernaturally restored to them, as they become the conduits of the Promised Seed despite the ravages of old age. Likewise in the Haftarah, those who wait upon the LORD are said to "renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint."
Rashi writes concerning the "wormlike" quality ascribed to Jacob: "Why was Israel compared to a worm? To say to you - just as a worm devastates a tree with its mouth, even though it is soft and the tree is hard, so too, Israel, with the power of prayer, will overcome their enemies who are strong like trees." Other of the Chaz'l (sages) have said that the "worm" here is not a metaphor for the Jews but rather a symbol of the ultimate source of despair - death. God will save His people from even this.
Indeed. Yeshua is the Mashiach who saves His people Israel from their sins - and from the ultimate verdict of sin, namely, death. He is the "First and the Last" and there is no other Savior beside Him. All Israel needs to embrace Him as their long lost Savior and LORD. It is by means of His high priestly work as the Kohen Gadol of the Brit Chadashah that all Israel, indeed, the entire world, is saved.
Avraham Avinu, our father Abraham, was justified by faith in the promises of the LORD - not by works - and indeed the ritual of circumcision (brit milah) was instituted after he was declared righteous by means of his unswerving trust in the LORD to fulfill His promises.
In the Book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul appeals to those who wish to remain under the Torah of Moses to consider what the Torah has to say regarding Abraham's two sons, Ishmael, the child of a slave woman, and Isaac, the child of a free woman. For Ishmael was born "according to the flesh," that is, by means of human design and effort, whereas Isaac was born through the promise and power of God. Here Paul further states that Hagar represents the covenant God made with Israel at Mount Sinai, which bears children for slavery, since her children are those who respond with the aspiration: "all the words which the Lord has spoken we will do" (Ex. 24:3; Deut. 5:27), whereas Sarah represents the covenant God made with Israel through the Child of Promise, Yeshua, who bears children who are free and inheritors of the grace of God.
The reading from the book of Hebrews explains how Yeshua is the great High Priest of the LORD's New Covenant. As Kohen Gadol after the order of Malki-Tzedek, Yeshua's right to office springs from the oath of God, and not through physical descent or carnal ministrations performed in an earthly Temple. Indeed, if salvation had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (as the ceremonial expression of the Torah of Moses), then there would have been no need for Him to become our Intercessor before God. But through His sacrifice on our behalf, a better hope is introduced, and that is how we draw near to God.
When Yeshua died, it was reported that the parochet (veil) that separated Hakodesh (the holy place) from the Kodesh Hakodashim (Holy of Holies) - the most sacred part of the entire Temple - was torn in two, from top to bottom (Matt. 27:50-51). Only the Kohen Gadol was permitted to pass beyond the parochet once each year (during Yom Kippur) to make atonement for the sins of the people (Leviticus chapter 16). Yeshua's sacrifice for us opened the way into the true Presence of God for those who come to trust in Him.
| All Portions this week (LINK) | ||
| Torah | Haftarah | B'rit Chadashah |
|---|---|---|
| Genesis 12.1-17.27 | Isaiah 40.27–41.16 | John 8.51-58 |
| Romans 4.1-25 | ||
| Galatians 4.21-5.1 | ||
| Hebrews 11.8-10 | ||
| COMMENTARY | ||
| Fruits of Torah | Torah Resource | Hebrews for Christians |
| Ardelle -1 | Tim Hegg -1 | Table Talk |
| Ardelle -2 | Tim Hegg -2 | Abraham the Hebew |
| Ardelle -3 | Tim Hegg -3 | Ten Trials of Abraham |
| Tim Hegg -4 | An Unconditional Promise | |
| Tim Hegg -5 | Father of the Faithful | |
| AUDIO COMMENTARY (Nehemia's Wall) | ||
| Portion | Torah Pearls | Prophet Pearls |
| Lekh-Lekha |