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TRANSCRIPT
1 Chronicles 17:7 Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith Yehovah of hosts, “I took thee from the
2-5-2010 Version
DIVIDE THE FOLLOWING UP.
Click Here for ‘I Am Here.’
Matthew 3:1
Done
Yochanan and Yeshua
Matthew 4:1
Done
Parable Wars
Matthew 4:12
Done
Servicing the Diverse Multitude
Matthew 5 – 7
Done
The Blesseds (Beatitudes)
Matthew 8:1
Done
The Leper
Matthew 8:5
Done
Sitting with Avraham in the Kingdom/Centurion and His Slave
Matthew 8:14
Done
The Mother-in-Law’s Hand
Matthew 8:16
Done
Casting Out Spirits
Matthew 8:18
Done
Following Yeshua
Matthew 8:21
Done
Dead Burying Dead
Matthew 8:23
Done
Calming the Raging Sea
Matthew 8:28
Done
Demons and Swine
Matthew 9:1
Done
Sins and Walking
Matthew 9:13
Done
Grace and Not Sacrifice
Matthew 9:14
Done
Parables of Garments and Wine
Matthew 9:18
Done
A Woman and a Little Lamb
Matthew 9:35
Done
Servicing and the Harvest
Matthew 10:1
Done
Fleeing, and a Cup of Cold Water
Matthew 11:2
Done
John the Baptist and the Kingdom
Matthew 11:25
Done
Babies and Light Burdens
Matthew 12:1
Done
Eating Grain, and Grace
Matthew 12:9
Done
Doing Well on the Sabbath
Matthew 12:22
Done
Beelzebub and Divided Houses
Matthew 12:38
Done
Seeking an Unnecessary Sign
Matthew 12:46
Done
Yeshua’s Mother and Brethren
Matthew 13:1
Done
Sowers: Parables of Distinctions
Matthew 13:10
Done
Speaking in Parables
Matthew 13:18
Done
Explanation of the Sower
Matthew 13:24/36
Done
Tares: Parable of Justice
Matthew 13:31
Done
Mustard: Parable of Disaster
Matthew 13:33
Done
Leaven: Parable of Disaster
Matthew 13:44
Done
Stolen Treasure: Parable of Disaster
Matthew 13:45
Done
Senseless Acquisition: Parable of Disaster
Matthew 13:47
Done
Deadly Separation: Parables of Severing and Tossing
Matthew 14:13
Done
Feeding Well Over 5,000
Matthew 15:1
Done
Defiling a Man
Matthew 15:21
Done
A Woman and Dogs
Matthew 16:1
Done
Signs Part 2
Matthew 16:5
Done
Leaven of Pharisees and Sadducees
Matthew 16:13
Done
Yeshua’s Identity and The Rock
Matthew 16:21
Done
Standing Firm against the Plan of God
Matthew 16:24
Done
The Cross and Saving a Life
Matthew 16:28
Done
The Transfiguration
Matthew 17:10
Redo!
Elijah and John the Baptist
Matthew 17:14
Done
Faith as a Grain of Mustard Seed
Matthew 17:24
Done
Fish and Taxes
Matthew 18:1
Done
One Little Child
Matthew 18:15
Done
Sinning, and Binding and Loosing
Matthew 18:23
Done
Forgiveness Reversal: Parable of Renewed Debt
Matthew 19:3
Done
Divorce
Matthew 19:13
Done
Sending the Children Away
Matthew 19:16
Done
Obtaining Everlasting Life
Matthew 19:23
Done
Difficulty Entering the Kingdom: Parable of Impossibility
Matthew 20:1
Done
A Denari a Day: Parable of Payment
Matthew 20:20
Done
Sitting at the Right Hand and Baptism
Matthew 20:29
Done
Two Blind Men
Matthew 21:1
Done
Riding Two Asses
Matthew 21:12
Done
House of Prayer and Den of Robbers
Matthew 21:18
Done
Cursing the Fig Tree
Matthew 21:14
Done
Hosha Na
Matthew 21:23
Done
Yeshua’s Authority
Matthew 21:28
Done
Parable of an Obedient Son and a Disobedient Son
Matthew 21:33
Done
The Vineyard Owner Sends His Son, Version 2
Matthew 22:1
Done
Marriage Guests: Parable of Proper Dress
Matthew 22:15
Done
Image and Superscription
Matthew 22:23
Done
Wives in the Resurrection
Matthew 22:34
Done
The Greatest Commandment
Matthew 22:41
Done
Whose Son is the Messiah?
Matthew 23:1
Done
Seven Woes to Hypocritical Scribes and Pharisees
Matthew 24:1
Done
When Shall These Things Be?
Matthew 25:1
Done
Oilless Virgins: Parable of Unpreparedness
Matthew 25:14
Done
Good and Bad Investors: Parables of Profitability
Matthew 25:31
Done
Sheep-Goat Separation: Prophecy of the Judgment
Matthew 26:6
Done
Valuable Perfume on His Head
Matthew 26:17
Done
Treachery and Passover Conversation
Matthew 26:31
Done
Promise of Denial
Matthew 26:36
Done
The Cup and The Arrest
Matthew 26:57
Done
Art Thou the Messiah?
Matthew 27:11
Done
Yeshua’s Silence
Matthew 27:45
Done
Being Left Alone
Matthew 28:16
Done
Israel’s Assignment
Mark 1:14
Done
The Kingdom of God is Near
Mark 1:16
Done
Fishers of Men
Mark 1:29
Done
The Mother-in-Law’s Hand
Mark 1:32
Done
Casting Out Spirits
Mark 1:35
Done
Yeshua’s Purpose
Mark 1:40
Done
The Vocal Leper
Mark 2:3
Done
Sins and Walking
Mark 2:18
Done
Parables of Garments and Wine
Mark 2:23
Done
Eating Grain, and Grace
Mark 3:1
Done
Doing Well on the Sabbath
Mark 3:19
Done
Beelzebub and Divided Houses
Mark 3:31
Done
Yeshua’s Mother and Brethren
Mark 04:01
Done
Sowers: Parables of Distinctions
Mark 04:21
Done
Bushel and Bed Candles: Parable of the Lamp
Mark 04:24
Done
Measuring and Discerning: Parable of the Wheat Plant
Mark 04:30
Done
Mustard: Parable of Disaster
Mark 4:35
Done
Calming the Raging Sea
Mark 5:1
Done
Demons and Swine
Mark 5:21
Done
A Woman and a Little Lamb
Mark 6:1
Done
Who is He?
Mark 6:7
Done
Two by Two
Mark 6:30
Done
Feeding Well Over 5,000
Mark 7:1
Done
Washing and Defiling
Mark 7:24
Done
A Woman and Dogs
Mark 7:31
Done
The Speech and Hearing Impediment
Mark 8:10
Done
Sign Seeking
Mark 8:14
Done
Leaven of Pharisees and Herod
Mark 8:22
Done
Men as Trees
Mark 8:27
Done
Yeshua’s Identity
Mark 8:31
Done
Get Behind Me!
Mark 8:34
Done
Take Up His Cross
Mark 9:1
Done
The Transfiguration
Mark 9:11
Done
Elijah and John the Baptist
Mark 9:14
Done
The Dumb Spirit
Mark 09:33
Done
Rank in the Kingdom
Mark 10:1
Done
Divorce
Mark 10:13
Done
Sending the Children Away
Mark 10:17
Done
Obtaining Everlasting Life
Mark 10:23
Done
Difficulty Entering the Kingdom: Parable of Impossibility
Mark 10:32
Done
Frightful Events
Mark 10:35
Done
Sitting at the Right Hand and Baptism
Mark 10:46
Done
Blind Man’s Faith
Mark 11:1
Done
Riding Two Asses
Mark 11:12
Done
Cursing the Fig Tree And Forgiving
Mark 11:15
Done
House of Prayer and Den of Robbers
Mark 11:27
Done
Yeshua’s Authority
Mark 12:1
Done
The Vineyard Owner Sends His Son, Version 2
Mark 12:13
Done
Image and Superscription
Mark 12:28
Done
The Greatest Commandment
Mark 12:35
Done
Whose Son is the Messiah?
Mark 12:38
Done
Seven Woes to Hypocritical Scribes and Pharisees
Mark 12:41
Done
The Poor Widow
Mark 13:1
Done
When Shall These Things Be?
Mark 14:3
Done
Valuable Perfume on His Head
Mark 14:12
Done
Treachery and Passover Conversation
Mark 14:27
Done
Promise of Denial
Mark 14:32
Done
The Cup and the Arrest
Mark 14:53
Done
Art Thou the Messiah?
Mark 14:66
Done
The Cock and Denial
Mark 15:1
Done
Yeshua’s Silence
Mark 15:6
Done
The Vinegar with Myrrh
Mark 15:25
Done
Save Thyself
Mark 15:33
Done
Being Left Alone
Mark 16:9
Done
Yeshua Appears after Arising
Mark 16:15
Done
Signs Following
Luke 2:1
Done
Angelic Announcement of a Saviour
Luke 2:21
Done
Circumcision and Prophecy
Luke 2:41
Done
Lost in the Temple Area
Luke 4:1
Done
Parable Wars
Luke 4:16
Done
Words of Grace; Words of Antagonism
Luke 4:31
Done
Commanding Unclean Spirits
Luke 4:38
Done
The Mother-in-Law’s Hand
Luke 4:40
Done
Casting Out Spirits
Luke 4:42
Done
Yeshua’s Purpose
Luke 5:1
Done
The Big Haul
Luke 5:12
Done
The Leper
Luke 5:17
Done
Sins and Walking
Luke 5:27
Done
Parables of Garments and Wine
Luke 6:1
Done
Eating Grain, and Grace
Luke 6:6
Done
Doing Well on the Sabbath
Luke 6:20
Done
The Blesseds (Beatitudes) in Different Form
Luke 6:39
Done
Blind Surgery and Good/Bad Fruit
Luke 7:1
Done
Centurion and His Slave
Luke 7:11
Done
Resurrecting the Dead Son of a Widow
Luke 7:19
Done
John the Baptist and the Kingdom
Luke 7:36
Done
Valuable Perfume on His Feet
Luke 8:04
Done
Sowers: Parables of Distinctions
Luke 8:16
Done
Bushel and Bed Candles: Parable of the Lamp
Luke 8:19
Done
Yeshua’s Mother and Brethren
Luke 8:22
Done
Calming the Raging Sea
Luke 8:26
Done
Demons and Swine
Luke 8:41
Done
A Woman and a Little Lamb
Luke 9:1
Done
Two by Two
Luke 9:10
Done
Feeding Well Over 5,000
Luke 9:18
Done
Yeshua’s Identity
Luke 9:23
Done
The Cross and Saving a Life
Luke 9:27
Done
The Transfiguration
Luke 9:37
Done
Faith as a Grain of Mustard Seed
Luke 9:43
Done
Veiling Truth from the Disciples
Luke 9:46
Done
Rank in the Kingdom
Luke 9:51
Done
No Reception and Fire
Luke 9:57
Done
Following Yeshua
Luke 10:1
Done
Two by Two
Luke 10:25
Done
Everlasting Life and the Good Samaritan
Luke 10:38
Done
Martha’s Protest
Luke 11:1
Done
How to Pray
Luke 11:14
Done
Beelzebub and Divided Houses
Luke 11:29
Done
Signs and Light
Luke 11:37
Done
Insults
Luke 12:1
Done
Impersonation, Whom to Fear and What to Say
Luke 12:13
Done
The Stupid, Dead Investor and Other Slaves
Luke 12:49
Done
Yeshua’s Purpose for Coming
Luke 12:54
Done
Judging What is Right
Luke 13:01
Done
The Fig Tree Threat
Luke 13:18
Done
Mustard: Parable of Disaster
Luke 13:20
Done
Leaven: Parable of Disaster Leaven: Parable of Disaster
Luke 13:23
Done
Few Being Saved
Luke 13:31
Done
Tempting Yeshua to Run; When Israelis Will See Salvation
Luke 14:1
Done
The Edematous Man
Luke 14:07
Done
The Supper and Excuses
Luke 14:25
Done
Hating Family and Carrying the Cross
Luke 15:01
Done
Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin
Luke 15:11
Done
The Prodigal Son and The Remaining Son
Luke 16:01
Done
The Wise Crooked Steward
Luke 17:1
Done
Millstone and Offences
Luke 17:11
Done
Ten to One
Luke 17:20
Done
When is the Kingdom of God Coming?
Luke 18:01
Done
Unrighteous Judge: Praying and Not Fainting
Luke 18:09
Done
Two Prayers: One Bad, One Good
Luke 18:15
Done
Sending the Children Away
Luke 18:18
Done
Obtaining Everlasting Life
Luke 18:31
Done
Accomplishing What Was Written
Luke 18:35
Done
A Begging Blind Man
Luke 19:1
Done
Zachai the Tree Hugger
Luke 19:11
Done
Good and Bad Investors: Parables of Profitability, Part 2
Luke 19:28
Done
Riding a Colt
Luke 19:41
Done
Jerusalem’s Destruction
Luke 19:45
Done
Casting Merchants from the Temple
Luke 20:1
Done
Yeshua’s Authority
Luke 20:09
Done
The Vineyard Owner Sends His Son
Luke 20:21
Done
Image and Superscription
Luke 20:27
Done
Wives in the Resurrection and Whose Son is the Messiah?
Luke 21:1
Done
The Poor Widow
Luke 21:5
Done
When Shall These Things Be?
Luke 21:29
Done
The Fig Tree Again
Luke 22:1
Done
Yeshua’s Arrest and Trial
Luke 23:1
Done
From Pilate to the Tomb
Luke 24:1
Done
Yeshua Shows Up Again
John 1
In the Beginning
John 1:29
Done
Yeshua Gains Disciples
John 2:1
Done
Water, Wine and Signs
John 2:13
Done
House of Prayer and Den of Robbers
John 2:23
Done
Believing on His Name
John 3:1
Done
Nicodemus and Being Born from Above
John 3:22
Done
Yeshua Baptizing
John 4:1
Done
A Samaritan Conversation
John 5:1
Done
Yehudeem Chase Yeshua
John 6:1
Done
Over 5,000 Eat Bread
John 6:16
Done
Yeshua Walks on Water and Transports
John 7:1
Done
Going to Succot
John 8:1
Done
The Adulterous Woman and the ‘Believing’ Yehudeem
John 9-10
Done
Who is this Yeshua?
John 11
Done
The Raising of Lazarus
John 12
Done
Miriam Anoints Yeshua’s Feet; Others Refuse to Believe
John 13
Done
Passover Footwashing, New Commandment, Denial
John 14:1
Done
Yeshua’s Departure Location
John 15:1
Done
The Speech and the Friends
John 16:1
Done
Grief, Joy, and Being Courageous
John 17:1
Done
Being In Them and Being Glorified
John 18:1
Done
Yeshua’s Arrest and Kingship
John 19:1
Done
Pilate Concedes and Crucifies Yeshua
John 20:1
Done
Recognition of the Resurrection
Acts 1:1
John 9:39/John 10
Done
The Two Folds
____________________________
Yochanan and Yeshua
Matthew 3:1 And in those days Yochanan the Immerser comes, proclaiming in the wilderness of Judea 2and saying, “Repent! For the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!” 3For this is He Who was spoken by Isaiah the prophet saying, “A voice is calling in the desert: ‘Turn ye the way of Yehovah!’ Make-straight His paths!” 4And Yochanan himself had his raiment of hair of a camel, and a girding of leather around his loins. And his food was locusts and wild honey. 5Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the country around the Jordan exited to him! 6And they were immersed in the Jordan by him, confessing their sins! 7And having seen many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his immersion, he said to them, “Offspring of vipers! Who forewarned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance! 9And don’t think to say within yourselves, ‘We have Father Avraham!’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Avraham from these stones! 10And the axe is also already applied to the root of the trees! Therefore every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and is cast into fire! 11Indeed, I immerse you with water to repentance. And He Who is coming after me is mightier than I, the sandals of Whom I am not fit to carry! He will immerse you with the Spirit of the Holy-[One] and with fire 12the winnowing fan of whom is in His hand! And He will thoroughly purge His floor! And He will gather His wheat into the granary! And He will burn-up the chaff with unquenchable fire!” 13Then Yeshua comes from Galilee to the Jordan to Yochanan to be immersed by him. 14And Yochanan was hindering Him, saying, “I have need to be immersed by thee! And thou comest to me?” 15And Yeshua answering said to him, “Send-away now; for thus it is becoming to us to fulfill all righteousness!” He then sends Him. 16And having been immersed, Yeshua immediately ascended from the water. And behold, the heavens were opened to Him! And he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon Him! 17And behold, a voice from the heavens is saying, “This is my Son the beloved in Whom I have found delight!”
“And in those days Yochanan the Immerser comes, proclaiming in the wilderness of Judea 2and saying, ‘Repent! For the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!’”
Yochanan the Immerser is truly from the priestly lineage. His father served in that capacity. Yet, Yochanan comes into this area from the desert. The text doesn’t tell why he lived in the desert, and why he wasn’t part of the functioning priests. That must be acquired from secular history, and from hints in the Bible. The priesthood had become corrupted, being bought. Murders of priests occurred. Yochanan’s desert life kept him from these events. When he reappeared, his clout with so many of the Israelis was very high! He spoke with the authority of a real priest and with the authority of Yehovah! Thus, when he said, “Repent, for the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near,” so many of the Israelis trusted in his speeches of Truth!
3 “For this is He Who was spoken by Isaiah the prophet saying, ‘A voice is calling in the desert: ‘Turn ye the way of Yehovah!’ Make-straight His paths!’”
Isaiah prophesied Yochanan himself. Yochanan called the Israelis in the desert to turn the way of Yehovah and to make-straight His paths. (Too many teachers in Israel had made the paths of Yehovah seem very circuitous instead of straight; the Israelis were going in a direction that wasn’t the way of Yehovah.)
The text refers to one way and to a plurality of paths. That way is the way of righteousness, justice, etc. The paths of Yehovah will be upon what individuals walk as they do His will. (The will of Yehovah is always to save lives if possible, and not to take lives; this is a major difference between Biblical faith and other faiths that make heroes and heroines of killers who seek to purify their own groups.)
4 “And Yochanan himself had his raiment of hair of a camel, and a girding of leather around his loins. And his food was locusts and wild honey.”
His crude attire and food was of a man who lived in the wild (for good reason: some had sought to murder him). He truly was in the legitimate priestly line; those who were now in the higher priestly positions were not legitimately in the lineage for those positions.
The locusts that he ate refer to the insect, not to the tree with the same name. Locusts are the only kosher insect.
5 “Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the country around the Jordan exited to him!”
Excitement that Yochanan both lived and taught drew the Israelis! His message resonated with so many in Israel; they believed him (as they should have). Jerusalem and Judea and that entire area was where the most fervent followers of the Teaching (Torah) lived. (Yeshua did much of His teaching in the far more ‘liberal’ areas of Israel: the Galilee region.)
6 “And they were immersed in the Jordan by him, confessing their sins!”
This gave the appearance of a real revival! (That doesn’t mean that all who came were born of God.)
7 “And having seen many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his immersion, he said to them, ‘Offspring of vipers! Who forewarned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance!’”
Yochanan was not openly friendly to many of the Pharisees or the Sadducees who came to his immersion. He openly insulted them: “Offspring of vipers!” (That is as bad or worse than calling someone a son of a bitch.) He then asked, “Who forewarned you to flee from the coming wrath?” Thus, he identified them, the spiritual leaders of Israel, as targeted by the wrath of Yehovah! He then warned them, “Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance!” They now had to live according to their repentance, demonstrating that their repentance was a true repentance!
9 “And don’t think to say within yourselves, ‘We have Father Avraham!’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Avraham from these stones!”
Some leaders had maintained that they had ‘Father Avraham,’ thus giving themselves Spiritual clout. Yochanan denied this as being important, since “God is able to raise up children to Avraham from these stones!”
10 “And the axe is also already applied to the root of the trees! Therefore every tree not producing good fruit is cut down and is cast into fire!”
Yochanan did not explain the event that he described: “the axe is also already applied to the root of the trees.” He was describing a slaughter from one axe, starting with the root of the trees (which isn’t normally where one aims an axe to cut down a tree). Since a person is compared to a tree in the Bible, and a person who is compared to a tree is normally a very strong and stable person (not like the chaff that describes persons who are of little heaviness and can easily be blown away), this statement was a direct threat to the leaders of Israel whose ‘roots’ were being axed so that they would soon topple unless they produced good fruit. (Certain leaders of the Pharisees did produce good fruit, like Nicodemus and his true friends.)
11 “Indeed, I immerse you with water to repentance. And He Who is coming after me is mightier than I, the sandals of Whom I am not fit to carry! He will immerse you with the Spirit of the Holy-[One] and with fire 12the winnowing fan of whom is in His hand! And He will thoroughly purge His floor! And He will gather His wheat into the granary! And He will burn-up the chaff with unquenchable fire!”
Yochanan compared his immersion with two other immersions. Yochanan’s immersion was with water, and it was to repentance. He then described another “Who is coming after me,” referring to Yeshua. He described Yeshua as “mightier than I,” and as having sandals that “I am not fit to carry.” (This both showed the great rank of Yeshua and something problematic about Yochanan, since the Israeli Saints when Yeshua arrives will be a footstool for His feet, showing that they are worthy to carry His sandals.)
Yochanan was a prophet; his prophecies were infallible. That doesn’t mean that he understood the prophecies that he spoke. He had to study them just as anyone has to study them.
“He will immerse you with the Spirit of the Holy-[One] and with fire 12the winnowing fan of whom is in His hand!”
Yeshua’s immersion will be of all the Israelis. Part of the Israelis will be immersed with the Spirit of the Holy One of Israel; that immersion will be into the Body of the Messiah of Israel, and for life. Part of the Israelis will be immersed with fire, which will be for and to everlasting death. Yeshua has the winnowing fan in His hand; that will separate wheat from chaff: those who are born of God from those (not matter their rank and importance) who will get everlastingly ‘blown away!’ Yeshua will be the Judge since He holds that fan!
“And He will thoroughly purge His floor!” This ‘floor’ is Israel! He will thoroughly purge that winnowing floor of Israel from all chaff so that only the ‘wheat’ (those who are righteous) will remain in Israel.
“And He will gather His wheat into the granary!”
That ‘granary’ will be Mount Zion; the timing is the Tribulation.
“And He will burn-up the chaff with unquenchable fire!”
That will be consigning the rest of the Israelis who didn’t produce the fruit of righteousness to everlasting fire.
13 “Then Yeshua comes from Galilee to the Jordan to Yochanan to be immersed by him. 14And Yochanan was hindering Him, saying, ‘I have need to be immersed by thee! And thou comest to me?’ 15And Yeshua answering said to him, ‘Send-away now; for thus it is becoming to us to fulfill all righteousness!’ He then sends Him.”
Yeshua did not exclude Himself from doing what was right for all Israelis to do (if they could physically participate): to be immersed by Yochanan, the fulfillment of the Isaiah 40 text. Yochanan did not desire to immerse Yeshua; that didn’t seem right to him. He told Yeshua, “I have need to be immersed by thee! And thou comest to me?” Why did Yochanan feel the need to be immersed by Yeshua? Why didn’t he insist that Yeshua immerse him after he immersed Yeshua? Yochanan knew Yeshua’s very high rank before Yehovah. That is why he asked, “And thou comest to me?” Guard this knowledge that Yochanan had regarding Yeshua; three years from now, Yochanan’s reaction to Yeshua will be quite different.
Yeshua responded, “Send-away now; for thus it is becoming to us to fulfill all righteousness!” The first part, “Send-away,” uses a word that is often used in the Greek of the so-called ‘New Testament.’ If anyone is sent or is sent away, that person is being given liberty to go or continue on a journey or to do an action. In this case, sending away is the opposite of hindering. Yeshua told Yochanan to refrain from hindering Yeshua in this action.
Yeshua gave the reason: “For thus it is becoming to us to fulfill all righteousness.” It is very appropriate and fitting for Yeshua and Yochanan to fulfill all righteousness, including this act of righteousness. Yochanan understood, and he then sent Yeshua to immerse Him.
16 “And having been immersed, Yeshua immediately ascended from the water. And behold, the heavens were opened to Him! And he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon Him! 17And behold, a voice from the heavens is saying, ‘This is my Son the beloved in Whom I have found delight!’”
Yeshua immediately ascended from the water; He didn’t linger there. What happened next isn’t clearly described: “the heavens were opened to Him.” I have no idea how that appeared. Those who saw this did clearly understand that the heavens were opened to Him, though.
The text continues, “And he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon Him!” I didn’t capitalize the first he, thinking that this referred to Yochanan. It could have referred to Yeshua; I cannot tell. In either case, he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove—with the same appearance as a dove (see Luke 3:22). This dove-shaped appearance of the Spirit of God came upon Yeshua.
17 “And behold, a voice from the heavens is saying, ‘This is my Son the beloved in Whom I have found delight!’”
The voice from the heavens isn’t identified in this text. Since the voice calls Yeshua a Son, that is how the reader can tell that this voice is from Yehovah the Father. Yehovah said three things about Yeshua:
· “This is my Son.” If Yochanan heard this, as I am thinking he did, that should be enough testimony for Yochanan to be sure.
· “This is my Son the beloved.” Yehovah openly declared His great love for Yeshua.
· “I have found delight [in Him].” Yehovah is delighted in Yeshua, and has been delighted in Yeshua.
Parable Wars
Matthew 4:1 Then Yeshua was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted under the devil. 2And having fasted forty days and forty nights, He afterwards hungered. 3And the tempter having come to Him said, “If thou art Son of God, speak so that these stones will become loaves.” 4But He answering said, “It has been written, ‘The Adam will not live himself only upon the bread; for the Adam shall live upon everything exiting from the mouth of Yehovah.’” 5Then the devil takes Him to the holy city. And he sets Him upon the edge of the Temple. 6And he says to Him, “If thou art Son of God, cast thyself down! For it has been written, ‘He shall give His angels charge concerning thee. And they shall bear thee up in their hands lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.’” 7Yeshua said to him, “Again it has been written, ‘Thou shalt not tempt Yehovah thy God.’” 8Again the devil takes Him to an exceedingly high mountain and shows to Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9And he says to Him, “I will give all these things to thee if thou wilt worship me falling down!” 10Then Yeshua says to him, “Get thee away, adversary! For it has been written, ‘Thou shalt worship before Yehovah thy Gods,’ and, ‘Thou shalt serve Yehovah Himself alone.’” 11Then the devil leaves Him. And behold, angels came. And they ministered to Him.
“Then Yeshua was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted under the devil.” The Spirit of Yehovah intentionally led Yeshua into the wilderness to undergo these things.
“And having fasted forty days and forty nights, He afterwards hungered.” Yeshua’s being tempted started with a 40-day fast. Yeshua now hungered. This is the background for the temptations.
“And the tempter having come to Him said, ‘If thou art Son of God, speak so that these stones will become loaves.’” Yeshua had the power to turn stones to bread, and He was hungry. The temptation also included this: “If thou art the Son of God, command…” This was a simple dare.
“But He answering said, ‘It has been written, “The Adam will not live himself only upon the bread; for the Adam shall live upon everything exiting from the mouth of Yehovah.”’” This response was curious. Yeshua was very hungry; yet He was showing that folks can live even under starvation conditions by Yehovah just speaking. Yeshua didn’t need to have the food to live as long as Yehovah sustained Him. This will occur for some in the Tribulation. Some folks who should be starving and weary from the lack of food will not need food for a time while Yehovah sustains them. He will speak; they will do fine.
This first temptation fit the pattern of the first of the three in the following series:
1 John 2:16 Because all that which is in the world—the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the vaunting of life—isn’t of the Father, but rather is of the world.
This was the lust of the flesh temptation of Yeshua.
“Then the devil takes Him to the holy city. And he sets Him upon the edge of the Temple. And he says to Him, ‘If thou art Son of God, cast thyself down! For it has been written, “He shall give His angels charge concerning thee. And they shall bear thee up in their hands lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.”’”
This text indicates that the devil was able to fly Yeshua to that location; that location was not accessible by climbing stairs.
What Psalm 91:11-12 actually says is the following:
Psalm 91:11 For He will command His messengers to thee to guard thee in all thy ways. 12They shall carry thee upon palms lest thy foot will strike into a stone.
The phrase, “to guard thee in all thy ways,” was not part of the devil’s quote according to this text. This subtraction changed the entire meaning of the quote, since all thy ways implies either walking on land or the walk of righteousness, not free-falling through the air.
The devil again said, “If thou art Son of God,” implying that Yeshua might not be, and had to prove it: the typical dare. The devil then tempted Yeshua to presume upon Yehovah by trying the free-fall to see if the angels would come to His rescue. The Psalm isn’t referring to Yeshua, but rather to another being (it could be human, or it could be a location, like Jerusalem or Mount Zion). This ‘out of context’ misuse of the Scriptures has been one of the main techniques done by the devil and adopted by nearly all preachers in Christianity and rabbis in Judaism.
“Yeshua said to him, ‘Again it has been written, “Thou shalt not tempt Yehovah thy God.”’” Yeshua did not attempt to explain the wrong use of texts, and He didn’t try to explain the evils of presumption. He instead just stated what He did.
This temptation was the lust of the eyes.
“Again the devil takes Him to an exceedingly high mountain and shows to Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he says to Him, ‘I will give all these things to thee if thou wilt worship me falling down!’” That must have been a high mountain, since the kingdoms of the world cannot be seen from one mountain. (Did he use a vision?) The devil promises to give him all these things if Yeshua will fall and worship him. The devil’s desire is to obtain Yeshua’s loyalty and service.
“Then Yeshua says to him, ‘Get thee away, adversary! For it has been written, “Thou shalt worship before Yehovah thy Gods,” and, “Thou shalt serve Yehovah Himself alone.”’” Yeshua focused on two parts of the devil’s pitch: that of worshipping him and that of serving him. Both are direct violations for any Israeli.
This temptation was the pride of life.
“Then the devil leaves Him. And behold, angels came. And they ministered to Him.” The angels did come; they just weren’t catchers of a jumping Yeshua, but rather sustainers of a very hungry Yeshua.
Hebrews 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted, like-as without sin!
Luke 4:1 And Yeshua, full of the Spirit of the Holy-[One], returned from the Jordan. And He was led in the Spirit into the wilderness 2forty days, being tempted under the devil. And He ate nothing in those days. And they afterwards being ended, He hungered. 3And the devil said to Him, “If thou art Son of God, speak to this stone so that it will become bread!” 4And Yeshua answered to him, saying, “It has been written, ‘The Adam will not live himself only upon the bread; for the Adam shall live upon everything exiting from the mouth of Yehovah.’” 5And the devil leading Him up into a high mountain showed Him all the kingdoms of the habitable world in a moment of time. 6And the devil said to Him, “I will give to thee all this authority and their glory! For it has been delivered to me. And to whomsoever I wish, I give it. 7Therefore, if thou wilt worship before me, all things shall be thine!” 8And Yeshua answering him said, “Get thee behind me, Adversary! For it has been written, “Thou shalt worship before Yehovah thy Gods,” and, “Thou shalt serve Yehovah Himself alone.” 9And he led Him to Jerusalem. And he set Him upon the edge of the Temple. And he said to Him, “If thou art the Son of God, cast thyself down from here! 10For it has been written that he will give charge concerning thee to his angels to keep thee, 11and that they shall bear thee in hands lest thou strike thy foot against a stone.” 12And Yeshua answering said to him, “It has been said, ‘Thou shalt not tempt Yehovah thy God.’” 13And having finished every temptation, the devil departed from Him for a time.
“And Yeshua, full of the Spirit of the Holy-[One]…” That is, He was full of the Spirit of the Holy One of Israel, and He is the Holy One (the owned One) of Israel. Israel owns Yeshua. (One of these days, Israel will realize this.)
Being full of the Spirit of the Holy One is what is necessary if a person or group will do miraculous and necessary good works.
“And Yeshua, full of the Spirit of the Holy-[One], returned from the Jordan.” That was where the Spirit of Yehovah came upon Him.
“And He was led in the Spirit…” Thus, He wasn’t about to go to some event by a violation. This was in the Spirit—in the very plan and power of God.
“And He was led in the Spirit into the wilderness forty days, being tempted under the devil.” The temptations had a backdrop of an extreme climate that would physically weaken Yeshua.
He was tempted under the devil—that is, under the hand of and by the authority of the devil.
“And He ate nothing in those days.” That is a long time to go without food.
“And they afterwards being ended, He hungered.” Yeshua was now hungry after being tempted and starved for forty days and nights.
“And the devil said to Him…” Now, after all this time, the devil will tempt Yeshua three more times.
“If thou art Son of God…” That if set Yeshua’s identity into question. It was also stated to give Yeshua the impression that Yeshua had to prove something.
“If thou art Son of God, speak to this stone so that it will become bread!” The challenge: Prove that thou art Son of God! What is implied: If thou wilt not do it, thou art not Son of God.
Yeshua later taught,
Matthew 7:9 “What man is there of you who he will give him a stone if his son asks bread?”
That is what the Adversary did with Yeshua when he saw that Yeshua was hungry. That was the first of three temptation forms: the lust of the flesh—
1 John 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
“And Yeshua answered to him, saying, ‘It has been written, “The Adam will not live himself only upon the bread; for the Adam shall live upon everything exiting from the mouth of Yehovah.”’”
This was why Yeshua was physically doing so well. Life is from Yehovah, not only from bread (food).
“And the devil leading Him up into a high mountain showed Him all the kingdoms of the habitable world in a moment of time.” That must have been quite a tour!
“And the devil said to Him, ‘I will give to thee all this authority and their glory!’” The devil’s interest was not in authority over all the kingdoms and the glory (importance) of all the kingdoms, but instead was in stopping Israel, and therefore stopping Yeshua from arriving and putting all the demons into prison for a thousand years.
“For it has been delivered to me.” The only one who could deliver this to the Adversary is Yehovah the Father. Both the authority and the importance of all kingdoms are in Satan’s hands, according to Satan. Is he right?
“And to whomsoever I wish, I give it.” The devil is deceived. Part of his deception includes his thinking he has more power than he really has. Another text teaches that all ranks in this world are given by God:
Romans 13:1 Every soul shall be subject to authorities above [him]. For there is no authority except from God. And those who are authorities have been appointed by God 2so that he who sets himself against the authority resists the ordinance of God. And they who resist shall receive judgment to themselves.
So, who does the giving of authority and glory?
“Therefore, if thou wilt worship before me, all things shall be thine!” Why would Yeshua desire to worship before one of inferior rank? Does Yeshua desire the authority and glory of kingdoms? He will take all kingdoms in the future.
“And Yeshua answering him said, ‘Get thee behind me, Adversary!’” That was a command to literally put Satan in his place: behind Yeshua in rank.
“For it has been written, ‘Thou shalt worship before Yehovah thy Gods…’” This is found in the following text:
Deuteronomy 26:10 “And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land that thou, Yehovah, hast given me.” “And thou shalt set it before Yehovah thy Gods. And thou shalt worship before Yehovah thy Gods…”
“…and, ‘Thou shalt serve Yehovah Himself alone.’” This is found in the following text:
1 Samuel 7:3 And Samuel spoke unto all the house of Israel, saying, “If ye are returning unto Yehovah via all your heart, put away the gods of the stranger from your midst and the Ashtarot, and establish your heart unto Yehovah. And thou shalt serve Him—Himself alone. And He rescued you from the hand of the Palestinians.”
Yeshua never responded to the devil’s assertion that the devil has all authority over kingdoms.
“And he led Him to Jerusalem. And he set Him upon the edge of the Temple.” They both now had a good view (for the second of the three temptations: the lust of the eyes).
“And he said to Him, “If thou art the Son of God…” It is as if Satan just couldn’t help throwing that in.
“And he said to Him, “If thou art the Son of God, cast thyself down from here!” Satan again wants Yeshua to prove who He is! Some leaders in Israel called for the same thing—for Him to prove who He is by some sign from the heavens.
“For it has been written that he will give charge concerning thee to his angels to keep thee, and that they shall bear thee in hands lest thou strike thy foot against a stone.”
Now, the actual quote follows:
Psalm 91:11 For He will command His messengers to thee to guard thee in all thy ways. 12They shall carry thee upon palms lest thy foot will strike into a stone.
I underlined the part that Satan happened to leave off. He turned it from a text referring to a walk to a text referring to a stunt! He also changed the last part: lest thou strike thy foot against a stone versus lest thy foot will strike into a stone. The two may not sound so different, but they are. One is accidental; the other is because of a stupid stunt.
“And Yeshua answering said to him, ‘It has been said, “Thou shalt not tempt Yehovah thy God.”’” I didn’t find any text like this. The closest I found was this:
Deuteronomy 6:16 Ye shall not tempt Yehovah your Gods as ye tempted in Massah.
Yeshua made this very personal for Satan by using thou. He also warned about not tempting Yehovah; Satan knew that Yeshua is Yehovah, not just the Son of Yehovah, and he knew that Yehovah is Satan’s Gods.
Servicing the Diverse Multitude
Matthew 4:12 And Yeshua having heard that John was delivered up, He withdrew into Galilee. 13And having left Nazareth, having come, He dwelt at Kafar Nakhum that is on the seaside in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali 14so-that what was spoken by Isaiah the prophet will be fulfilled, saying, 15 “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, way of the sea beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the races: 16the people that was sitting in darkness has seen a great light! And to those who were sitting in the country and the shadow of death, light has sprung up to them!” 17Yeshua began to proclaim from that time, and to say, “Repent! For the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!” 18And Yeshua walking by the sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers—Shimon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother—casting a large net into the sea. For they were fishers. 19And He says to them, “Come after me! And I will make you fishers of men!” 20And they followed Him, having immediately left the nets. 21And having gone on thence, He saw two other brothers—James of Zebedee and John his brother—in the ship with Zebedee their Father, mending their nets. And He called them. 22And they followed Him, having immediately left the ship and their father. 23And Yeshua went around all Galilee teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the beneficial proclamation of the Kingdom, and servicing every disease and every bodily weakness among the people. 24And the fame of Him exited into all Syria! And they brought to Him all who were ill, oppressed by various diseases and torments, and possessed by demons, and lunatics, and paralytics; and He serviced them. 25And great crowds followed Him from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and beyond the Jordan!
“And Yeshua having heard that John was delivered up, He withdrew into Galilee.”
Yeshua had no intention of intervening for His cousin, John. Yeshua did not ask Yehovah to secure John’s release. John had served well, and John had publicly spoken out against a specific unbeliever regarding a specific sin, which wasn’t his responsibility or right. He was now under arrest, and he was about to be put to death. Yeshua withdrew into Galilee.
“And having left Nazareth, having come, He dwelt at Kafar Nakhum that is on the seaside in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali so-that what was spoken by Isaiah the prophet will be fulfilled, saying, “Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, way of the sea beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the races: the people that was sitting in darkness has seen a great light! And to those who were sitting in the country and the shadow of death, light has sprung up to them!”
Yeshua specifically made the move to Kafar Nakhum (Village of Consolation) so that Isaiah’s prophecy will be fulfilled (that is, in the future). Isaiah’s prophecy focused on the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali. It focused on the way of the sea beyond the Jordan. It focused on Galilee of the races (that is, the Wheel of the Races where folks from many foreign cultures traveled through the area; thus, it was a very liberal area). In this location, there will be a people that will be sitting in darkness. This people will see a great light! Light will spring up to those in the surrounding country and to those who will be in the land of shadow of death at that time. That light’s source will be Messiah!
“Yeshua began to proclaim from that time, and to say, ‘Repent! For the Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!’” Yeshua called all Israel to repent. His reason was this: “The Kingdom of the Heavens has drawn near!” He didn’t say that it had come; He didn’t say that it would be soon; He said that it has drawn near. If all Israel will repent, that near Kingdom will come. It will only come when Israel is ready. (Were it to come before Israel were ready, the result would be a massive kill-off in Israel, since the King will not tolerate Israeli enemies!)
Repentance is not merely confessing something; it is entirely turning away from it. A person can repent from doing good as easily as from doing bad. Yeshua knew that Israel was doing what was wrong, since sin was still part of Israel’s activities.
The Kingdom of the heavens has four parts, as does any kingdom in this world: a king, citizens, a land, and a rule of law. The King is Yeshua; the citizens are the Israelis along with all Saints from all races; the land is Israel; the rule of law is the Teaching of Yehovah: the Torah. The Kingdom is of the Heavens because it is in exile as long as all Israel isn’t willing to do what is right according to the Torah; it is better for the kingdom to be in exile than for the Israelis to be destroyed.
“And Yeshua walking by the sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers—Shimon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother—casting a large net into the sea. For they were fishers.” There were many Israelis and gentiles there; Yeshua saw two brothers. They were doing what Yeshua desired them to do: net fishing. For Yeshua says to them,
“Come after me! And I will make you fishers of men!”
Thus, Yeshua began addressing student groups—not just individuals. He will give many teachings to groups and for groups that will not be for individuals.
What does a group that fishes for men do?
“And they followed Him, having immediately left the nets.”
How did they know Yeshua? How did they know to leave their nets and their occupations? What drew them? Was it the sweetness of His voice? (I am not convinced of this!) This same thing will happen during the Tribulation: folks will know to leave their occupations and to follow Salvation—to save lives, catching them as in nets.
“And having gone on thence, He saw two other brothers—James of Zebedee and John his brother—in the ship with Zebedee their Father, mending their nets.”
This time, He saw three men busily occupied with net repairs.
“And He called them. And they followed Him, having immediately left the ship and their father.”
Yeshua called two of them—not all three. Two of them left their occupations and their father. (I wonder what their father thought about this abandonment in the middle of net repairs.)
“And Yeshua went around all Galilee teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the beneficial proclamation of the Kingdom…”
Yeshua taught in these synagogues, and not just in the streets. Another name for a synagogue is bayt midrash meaning house of research. These were dedicated to researching Biblical texts.
Yeshua proclaimed the ‘beneficial proclamation’ of the Kingdom. The word gospel actually indicates such a proclamation—one that will be beneficial if obeyed, and often one that will have deadly consequences if ignored. Some of these beneficial proclamations include a threat if ignored! (John 3:16 is one such proclamation.)
The beneficial proclamation of the Kingdom included its nearness—that is, that the Kingdom can arrive at that moment if only all Israel will turn to righteousness from sin. Yeshua explained that the Kingdom’s social order necessarily included Israelis being willing to give their own lives to save fellow Israelis. Some of His parables included this information, and what will happen to Israelis who refuse to love their neighbours.
“And Yeshua went around all Galilee… servicing every disease and every bodily weakness among the people.”
Yeshua serviced every disease and bodily weakness among the people. He didn’t just heal them, but He also serviced their ailments and them. His interest was more than physical healing. The way that the Israelis thought and the way that they understood Yehovah and His plans were often wrong. Yeshua taught them how to properly understand Truth and to see life. This took time, and it also required their thinking.
“And the fame of Him exited into all Syria!”
Not only Israelis heard what Yeshua was saying, but Syrians also heard! Yeshua became famous in all Syria!
“And they brought to Him all who were ill, oppressed by various diseases and torments, and possessed by demons, and lunatics, and paralytics; and He serviced them.”
Who are they who brought all the ill? I know that the Israelis did. I had not considered that the Syrians also did! Yeshua serviced whoever was brought!
Those who were oppressed by various diseases and torments could not get permanent relief; the diseases and torments kept returning.
Friends and relatives brought those who were possessed by demons. Yeshua sent the demons out.
The lunatics had various forms of mental illnesses that were not demonic possessions.
The paralytics had limbs and body parts they could not move.
Yeshua serviced both the ailments and the persons.
“And great crowds followed Him from Galilee and Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and beyond the Jordan!”
Those who were from beyond the Jordan included Syrians! Those from Galilee were from many races, besides those who were Israeli. Yeshua had a crowd from very different cultures. Yet, He came to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.
The Blesseds (Beatitudes)
Matthew 5:1 But seeing the crowds, He went up into the mountain. And He, having sat down, His disciples came unto Him. 2And having opened His mouth, He taught them saying, 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit. For theirs is the Kingdom of the Heavens. 4Blessed are they who mourn. For they shall be consoled. 5Blessed are the meek. For they shall inherit the earth. 6Blessed are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness. For they shall be filled. 7Blessed are the merciful. For they shall obtain mercy. 8Blessed are the pure in heart. For they shall see God. 9Blessed are the peacemakers. For they shall be called the children of God. 10Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. For theirs is the Kingdom of the Heavens. 11Blessed are ye when they shall revile and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake. 12Rejoice and be exceeding glad! For your reward in the heavens is great! For they persecuted the prophets who were before you so. 13Ye are the salt of the earth. But if the salt has lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men. 14Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15And men don’t light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a lampstand. And it gives light unto all that are in the house. 16Let your light so shine before men, that they will see your good works and will glorify your Father Who is in the heavens. 17Don’t think that I am come to destroy the Torah or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill. 18For I say faith unto you: until the heavens and earth pass, one yod or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Torah until all is fulfilled. 19Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the Kingdom of the Heavens. But whosoever shall do and teach, the same shall be called great in the Kingdom of the Heavens. 20For I say unto you that except your righteousness shall exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the Kingdom of the Heavens. 21Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, ‘Thou shalt not kill! And whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment!’ 22But I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the Sanhedrin. But whosoever shall say, ‘Thou fool!’ shall be in danger of the fire of Gehenna! 23Therefore, if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and remember there that thy brother has ought against thee, 24leave thy gift there before the altar, and go thy way. First be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25Agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way with him lest at any time the adversary delivers thee to the judge, and the judge delivers thee to the officer, and thou wilt be cast into prison. 26I say faith unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out from there until thou hast paid the uttermost farthing! 27Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’ 28But I say unto you that whosoever looks on a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29And if thy right eye offends thee, pluck it out and cast from thee. For it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole Body should be cast into Gehenna. 30And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off and cast from thee. For it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not [that] thy whole Body should be cast into Gehenna. 31It has been said, ‘Whosoever shall put away his wife, he shall give her a writing of divorcement.’ 32But I say unto you that whosoever shall put away his wife except for the cause of fornication causes her to commit adultery. And whosoever shall marry her that is divorced commits adultery. 33Again, ye have heard that it has been said by them of old time, ‘Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform thine oaths unto the Lord.’ 34But I say unto you, don’t swear at all—neither by the heavens, for it is God’s throne, 35nor by the earth, for it is His footstool, nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King, 36nor shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou can’t make one hair white or black. 37But your communication shall be ‘Yea! Yea! Nay! Nay!’ For whatsoever is more than these comes from evil. 38Ye have heard that it has been said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth!’ 39But I say unto you that ye don’t resist bad. But whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40And if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat, let him also have thy cloak. 41And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him two. 42Give to him who asks thee, and don’t turn thou away from him who will borrow from thee. 43Ye have heard that it has been said, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy!’ 44But I say unto you, love your enemies! Bless them who curse you! Do good to them who hate you! And pray for them who despitefully use you and chase you 45so that ye shall be the children of your Father Who is in the heavens. For He makes His sun to rise on the bad and on the good. And He sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. 46For if ye love them who love you, what reward have ye? Don’t even the tax-collectors do the same? 47And if ye only greet your brethren, what do ye more than others? Don’t even the tax-collectors do so? 48Be ye therefore perfect even as your Father who is in the heavens is perfect.
Matthew 6:1 Take heed that ye don’t do your alms before men to be seen by them. Otherwise, ye have no reward from your Father Who is in the heavens. 2Therefore, when thou doest alms, don’t sound a trumpet before thee as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they will have glory from men. I say faith unto you, they have their payment. 3But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand does 4so that thine alms will be in secret. And thy Father Who sees in secret shall recompense thee openly Himself. 5And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets so that they will be seen of men. I say faith unto you, they have their payment. 6But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy storeroom. And when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father Who is in secret. And thy Father Who sees in secret shall openly recompense thee. 7But when ye pray, don’t use vain repetitions, as the races do. For they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. 8Therefore, don’t ye be like unto them. For your Father knows of what things ye have need before ye ask Him. 9Therefore pray ye after this manner: ‘Our Father Who art in the heavens, Thy Name is holy! 10Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as in the heavens. 11Give us this day our daily bread. 12And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. 13And don’t lead us into temptation; but deliver us from the evil-[one]. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever! Faith!’ 14For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if ye don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses! 16And when ye fast, don’t be as the hypocrites—of a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces so that they will appear unto men to fast. I say faith unto you, they have their payment! 17But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head and wash thy face 18so that thou shalt not appear unto men to fast, but unto thy Father Who is in secret. And thy Father Who sees in secret shall openly recompense thee. 19Don’t lay up treasures for yourselves upon earth where moth and rust corrupt and where thieves break through and steal. 20But lay up treasures for yourselves in the heavens where neither moth nor rust corrupt and where thieves don’t break through or steal. 21For where your treasure is, your heart will also be there. 22The light of the body is the eye. If thine eye is single, therefore, thy whole body shall be full of light. 23But if thine eye is bad, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If the light that is in thee is darkness, therefore, how great is that darkness! 24No man can serve two masters. For he will either hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. 25Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life—what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink, nor yet for your body—what ye shall put on. Isn’t the life more than food, and the body than raiment? 26Behold the fowls of the air. For they don’t sow and they don’t reap or gather into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t ye much better than they? 27Which of you can add one cubit unto his stature by taking thought? 28And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field—how they grow. They don’t toil and they don’t spin. 29And yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30Therefore, if God so clothes the grass of the field that is today and is cast into the oven tomorrow, not much more you, ye of little faith? 31Therefore, take no thought saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “How shall we be clothed?” 32For the races seek after all these things. For your heavenly Father knows that ye have need of all these things. 33But first, seek ye the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. 34Therefore take no thought for tomorrow. For tomorrow shall take thought for the things of itself! Sufficient unto the day is its bad!
Matthew 7:1 Don’t judge ye so that ye won’t be judged. 2For ye shall be judged with what judgment ye judge! And with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. 3And why dost thou behold the straw-sliver that is in thy brother’s eye, but dost not consider the support-beam that is in thine own eye? 4Or, how wilt thou say to thy brother, “I will pull out the straw-sliver from thine eye!” And behold, a support-beam is in thine own eye! 5Thou hypocrite, first cast out the support-beam from thine own eye, and then thou shalt clearly see to cast out the straw-sliver from thy brother’s eye! 6Don’t give what is holy unto the dogs, and don’t cast your pearls before swine lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and tear you! 7Ask, and it shall be given you. Seek, and ye shall find. Knock, and it shall be opened unto you. 8For everyone who asks receives. And he who seeks finds. And it shall be opened to him who knocks. 9Or, what man is there of you who he will give him a stone if his son asks bread? 10Or, he will give him a serpent if he asks a fish? 11If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father Who is in the heavens give good things to them who ask Him? 12Therefore, all things whatsoever ye desire that men should do to you, do ye even so to them. For this is the Torah and the Prophets. 13Enter ye in at the constricted gate. For the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in there. 14For the gate is constricted and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. 15Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but they are inwardly seizing wolves. 16Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles? 17Even so, every good tree brings forth good fruit, and a corrupt tree brings forth bad fruit. 18A good tree cannot bring forth bad fruit, and a corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit. 19Every tree that doesn’t bring forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20Therefore, ye shall know them by their fruits. 21Not everyone who says unto me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ shall enter into the Kingdom of the Heavens, but he who does the will of my Father Who is in the heavens. 22Many in that day will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! haven’t we prophesied in Thy Name, and have cast out devils in Thy Name, and have done many wonderful works in Thy Name?’ 23And then I will profess unto them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from me, ye who work iniquity!’ 24Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man who built his house upon a rock. 25And the rain descended. And the floods came. And the winds blew and beat upon that house. And it didn’t fall because it was founded upon a rock. 26And everyone who hears these sayings of mine and doesn’t do them shall be likened unto a foolish man who built his house upon the sand. 27And the rain descended. And the floods came. And the winds blew and beat upon that house. And it fell. And the fall of it was great!” 28And it came to pass, when Yeshua had ended these sayings, the people were shocked at His teaching. 29For He taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes. 1When He was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him.
I considered not placing this lengthy section into this document, since most of what Yeshua said was not a parable. I thought again. I realized that nearly all readers have read this section of text as if it were a parable, and a strange one at that. Thus, I thought to consider it in some detail with readers.
Nearly all educated professors of the Bible, preachers and pastors have gotten this simple section wrong. Hearers also got it wrong. When texts are considered without their timings, they will give very strange results in some cases. Thus, this section of text has been used by anti-war advocates, ‘love everyone all the time’ advocates, anti-self-defense advocates, theological liberals (folks who are very giving in their descriptions of just how nice God is), and others who would very much like to see the God of the Bible as mister super nice guy, the old man upstairs, and Santa Claus. It has been considered a very great text by many who have totally misunderstood it and would hate it if they rightly knew what it was about. It is the backdrop for the ‘Hippie Jesus’ portrayed in the soft pictures of the long-haired, nice-looking, sweet guy praying in the Garden of Gethsemane with his face uplifted and glowing. This text has quite a different thrust if a reader will only take it literally, considering its timing and looking closely at all its pronouns. This is what I will propose to do now, a piece at a time.
“But seeing the crowds, He went up into the mountain.” He didn’t go up into the mountain to escape the crowds, but rather to speak to them in a way that He would be heard. The last verse I set in this section shows this.
“And He, having sat down, His disciples came unto Him.” He spoke this entire sermon to crowds in a seated position. He was high up so that His voice would travel and all could hear Him. The disciples came, but they didn’t block Him from addressing the crowds.
“And having opened His mouth, He taught them…” This teaching went to the crowds, not just the disciples, as some have wrongly read it. If teaching isn’t infallible, it is very harmful.
““Blessed are the poor in spirit. For theirs is the Kingdom of the Heavens.” What are poor in spirit? Is being spiritually poor an advantage with God? All who are damned are spiritually poor.
I saw that the word poor in the Bible was often confused for what should have been translated humble. Poverty and humility are not related, but many translators didn’t seem to know this. One who is spiritually humble has great advantage with God. I therefore understood this text to be referring to one who is spiritually humble. Since a person’s spirit is portrayed in what the person breathes out (just as arrogance is a spirit that some give off even as they enter a room), one whose communications, including body language is humble is what I have understood. But why would a person be blessed just because the person radiates humility? And what is humility? I have proposed that humility is knowing one’s rank and responsibilities before man, and living that way. I also proposed that one who fears the God of the Bible will live humility with a slightly different definition: knowing one’s rank and responsibilities before God and man, and living that way. Rank is one’s position of authority in life. Responsibilities are those areas of life where one has the ability to benefit others who need to be benefited, and therefore must be benefited. A person who is humble in spirit will therefore radiate the rank and benefits to others who need.
Please don’t misunderstand these texts in Matthew 5. They are not referring to Saints—to those who have been born of God. They are referring to non-saints who will do what is right during the Tribulation. These are all Tribulation texts, as the reader who is patient will see. Applying these texts to timings outside of the Tribulation will lead to very perverted results. Viewing them in the Tribulation will be life-saving for those who live during the Tribulation (many centuries from now). A non-saint can easily be humble in spirit.
If this is true, why will a non-saint who is humble in spirit obtain the Kingdom of the Heavens? That person will take responsibility for others, including Messiah’s Brethren the Jews who are greatly in need (including Jewish children and babies who are in danger of being killed or dying from starvation or exposure), and will therefore be the ‘Sheep’ in the ‘Sheep/Goat Judgment’ of Matthew 25:31. The Kingdom has been prepared for folks like them from the foundation of the world. They will live, and they will come to faith after the Tribulation has ended. They are blessed.
“Blessed are they who mourn. For they shall be consoled.” Folks have mourned since sin entered the world. Many have died unconsoled. Why, then, is this guarantee of the consolation of all who mourn guaranteed? This is where timing must be considered. Many will die unconsoled in our present time. Many who mourn will never be blessed, instead going to Sheol and then to the Lake of Fire and Sulfur. Things will be different during the Tribulation. Those who mourn at the loss of loved ones due to violence from bad guys and do to the wrath of Yehovah will not harden themselves into bitterness against God. They will instead see others who are suffering loss, and they will step in and do something. Those who instead don’t mourn and who lapse into bitterness will refuse to aid others who are in need, and will seek to protect themselves regardless of others, including those who are helpless. The Tribulation will be of such a terrible nature, that there will be two categories: those who mourn, and those who harden into bitterness.
Those who mourn will be consoled, since consolation comes by only one means: by determining to benefit others who are in need. When anyone has lost a loved one, and the mourning is so deep, that it will break down the person mourning, concentrating on either the very young who need or on the very elderly or physically/mentally unable who need will bring consolation, since it will bring another who needs that love. These non-believers who mourn will do what is right, and they will be consoled. This is a guarantee. Such a guarantee will never occur in normal times on this planet.
“Blessed are the meek. For they shall inherit the earth.” The word meek should always have been rendered humble. There is no distinction between meekness and humility in the Bible. I will therefore leave the reader to see the above definition of humility.
If this is the case, why is humility mentioned twice? Humble-in-spirit folks and humble folks are two different types of persons. Those who are humble in spirit radiate humility in a natural way; it isn’t pretentious. Those who are humble include some who do not radiate humility in any way, including folks who are high in rank and are leaders (like Moshe); yet they are humble, knowing where they stand in terms of rank and responsibility, and they always live that way.
Such folks will inherit the earth. This shows the timing again, since this will only happen after the Tribulation ends.
“Blessed are they who do hunger and thirst after righteousness. For they shall be filled.” Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness either haven’t acquired it yet, or they have acquired it, but so strongly look for the time when righteousness will be the rule for the entire planet. In either case, they will be filled with righteousness. They will be righteous, eating and drinking from the source of righteousness (the Salvation of Yehovah), and they will see righteousness over the entire planet toward the end of the Tribulation, eating and drinking from its pleasures.
“Blessed are the merciful. For they shall obtain mercy.” Folks who show mercy show favour that hasn’t been merited. Now, I know that this is the common definition given for Biblical grace, but it is not the right definition for grace. It is good for mercy, though mercy in Hebrew has a distinctly different definition: demonstrating wombing a person—that is, treating a person (or group) as if the person (or group) is a young child being held close to the womb. It shows great kindness, affection, a willingness to shield from damage, and a willingness to supply what is needed. Those who are merciful will obtain mercy from others and from Yehovah.
Who are these folks who are being blessed in these verses? A reader might not be able to tell, yet, but all the pronouns are third person: they and theirs. From verse 11 onward, the pronouns will switch to ye, you and your, referring to the Israelis. This is when I realized that this first section is dedicated to heroes and heroines who are not Jewish. I could see that they are not yet born of God, but also being non-Jewish is extremely important. They are the first subjects of Yeshua’s sermon.
“Blessed are the pure in heart. For they shall see God.” The heart in the Bible is almost always the mind. While purity sounds like something that is Godly, it isn’t. A person with a pure mind is one who isn’t deceitful—not deceitful to others, and not deceiving himself/herself, but who thinks and acts in order to do what is right. This person is not disingenuous.
Such persons are present in almost all religions, and the guarantee of their seeing God makes no sense during normal times of earth’s history unless they are also Godly. During the Tribulation, however, such persons will be at the greatest risk since they won’t be seasoned liars. If they will have any opportunity to live, they will either need to travel to a safe place, or they will risk their own lives to give aid to Jews who are need. Their consciences won’t permit them to refuse. Since they have a pure mind, they will be willing to take others who need with them if they will travel to a safe haven. They will see others, including Israelis, who need, and they won’t be able to hide their eyes and their goodness from them. Since they will see others made in the image of God who need, and since they will help, they will also see God—that is, Yeshua guarantees that they will physically see the arrived Gods of Israel who will take His government and rule for a thousand years.
“Blessed are the peacemakers. For they shall be called the children of God.” A peacemaker is one who brings others who have major differences and disagreements to a point of actually working together and being willing to benefit each other. This person doesn’t merely cause folks to temporarily put their war aside, since the war will certainly arise again when the pressure, danger or risk is high, but instead brings two (or more) to true and permanent resolution. Thus, this person is a true diplomat who has great insight into others, into life, and into those things that matter. This peacemaker isn’t born of God; this entire text section isn’t addressing Saints (folks born of God—that is, being the recipients of everlasting Salvation), since Saints will have a much higher standard to meet. This peacemaker is a very wise non-saint who will later be called a child of God. Since Yeshua is the Son of God (if the Bible is Truth), one of His purposes for coming, dying and being resurrected was to make peace. Anyone who is like Him in this regard during the Tribulation will also become a child of God.
“Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. For theirs is the Kingdom of the Heavens.” The word persecuted means chased, pursued. Folks who are being chased may be evildoers who need to be arrested, but they also can be doers of benefit whom others desire to see destroyed.
If they are being chased for the sake of righteousness, it is because they are doing right that they are being targeted to be killed. The Kingdom of the Heavens is prepared for them, and they are not Jewish.
The text switches at this point. Yeshua addressed a new group described by the pronouns ye, you and your. Those who heard the sermon thought that it was about them, but it was instead about a future group of Israelis/Jews that will exist during the Tribulation.
“Blessed are ye when they shall revile and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake.” Now, who are they? The group described by the pronoun they refers to bad guys during the Tribulation. They won’t necessarily permanently be bad guys, but they are the bad guys at first. They can be Jewish or non-Jewish; what they do is what is important.
They will revile and chase this other new group consisting of ye in these texts. Why are they reviling the ye? The group consisting of ye must be doing right, and the group consisting of they must either fear the actions of those in the ye-group or must hate those in the ye-group. In either case, reviling them will be a first step toward being violent against them. Chasing them will be a second step. In the meantime, they will say all manner of evil against those in the ye group, and what they will say will be false. All these things will be “for my sake,” for the sake of Yeshua, or better, for the sake of Salvation.
I will now make up a story to show how these things could occur. In this story, both the ye group and the they group are Jewish. The ye see that other Jews have made agreements with non-Jewish friends of the Assyrian, the world leader who will be identified as the antichrist. These agreements seem necessary in order for Israel to survive. They include a loyalty oath that must never be broken. Those in the ye group refused to cooperate with this agreement, and hate every bit of it, knowing that it is wrong and is contrary to the Torah. It is akin to what occurred under the Maccabees; some Jews fervently went along with Antiochus the Illustrious, refusing to circumcise their children and being willing to go along with his cultural switch—at least for the time being, while others fervently went against Antiochus and his rulings, choosing to stay with the Torah. The two groups were greatly at odds. In the very same manner, there are two opposing groups of Jews.
The compromising group includes some who publicly revile members of the group who refuse to go along with the Assyrian and his plans to rid the world of all religions except one of his own invention. The ‘bad’ group’s leaders are chasing those who don’t go along, fearing that their lack of cooperation will mean the destruction of all Jews. They are also making false accusations against them because they in the ‘good’ group are helping to rescue Jews from the arrests of the leaders of Israel who are compromisers with the Assyrian. Very few of the ‘good guys’ believe in Yeshua; He is far from their thoughts. Many do not believe in Yehovah the Gods of Israel, but they will not side with the Assyrian under any circumstances.
These good guys are blessed, but they certainly don’t know it yet.
“Rejoice and be exceeding glad! For your reward in the heavens is great!” Most of them don’t even believe in a literal heaven, and they certainly don’t have a view of a reward there yet.
“For they persecuted the prophets who were before you so.” Most of these folks don’t even believe in the prophets yet. Yeshua is comparing them with the prophets, and they are not even in faith yet.
“Ye are the salt of the earth.” The next part explains that Yeshua is referring to salt as an issue of savour, not as a preservative as so many have wrongly assumed. Who are these ye? They certainly include the ones in the previous verses who are the good guys, but Yeshua has switched. He is now speaking to all Israelis. The timing is still the Tribulation; yet the Israelis have been the salt of the earth from the beginning of their being a large group in Egypt.
What does being the salt of the earth involve? Humans have many repetitive and tedious tasks in life to do. Some who manually labour in rice fields must weed and tend the rice during its growth, as well as harvest it, plant it, and extract the rice itself. Those who do many kinds of labour find repetition and tedium as part of their lives. Working hours can be most hours of the week. Yehovah gave the Israelis to be salt—that is, to make life very flavorful even during times or repetition and tedium. The Israelis can and will go live among all races—a few here, a few there, like grains of salt in food. They will teach and explain the Teaching of Yehovah, His plans, His ways, His works, His character, and many other things to folks while they work, while they are eating, and while they go to the market—not to a degree that is overbearing and troublesome, but to a delightful degree as they work with folks in the races who are interested in these things. Their presence will give such an added flavour to life. They will indeed be the salt of the earth.
“But if the salt has lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot of men.” This is a warning to the Israelis. They are and have been the salt of the earth. That doesn’t mean that they are being salt for the rest of the earth. Salt used to be less pure than it is now, and therefore had other soluble ionic molecules that were not salty to taste, but were part of the salt that men gathered. Moisture could sap the sodium chloride entirely out, leaving only the other similar-looking impurities. It would look like salt, but it would not act like salt to increase savour. The impurities among the Israelis are individuals who do nothing to increase the savour of life to others by works of the Torah (Teaching) of Yehovah, by righteousness, by justice, by unique, clever and humorous responses, by wisdom, etc. Since Yehovah designed Israelis to be salt to the earth, if they are not, they are worthless on earth except to be cast out and treaded underfoot. They wear the image of the Gods of Israel, but they wear that image to sin and to live a self-centered life that is an insult to Israel’s Creator.
Any Israeli who comes to faith in the God of the Bible and who lives a life that is according to that God and that Bible will be salt to his/her neighbours.
Part of Yehovah’s fury during the Tribulation will be over a mainly saltless Israel.
“Ye are the light of the world.” Yeshua said the same thing about Himself:
John 8:12 Then Yeshua spoke again unto them saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”
If the Israelis are the light of the world, the same thing will be true of anyone who follows them: that person won’t walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.
How can the Israelis be the light of the world if Yeshua is the light of the world, and if Yeshua is God? Consider the sun and its being the source of the light we enjoy on earth. The sun gives off light. Consider the moon and its being a reflector of the light we enjoy on earth. The moon isn’t the source; the sun is. Yet, the Bible classifies one as the greater light and the other as the lesser light. If Yeshua is the source of the light of the world, the Israelis are the reflection of Yeshua if they are behaving as the light of the world. Yet, Yeshua warns,
“A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. And men don’t light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a lampstand. And it gives light unto all that are in the house.” The city will give light at night and will show signs of life during the day. Also, a lamp isn’t put in a place where its light will not be seen. Jewish communities have opted to be mainly invisible for centuries out of fear of gentile hatred. Jews have often either opted or have been forced to live in ghettos—as if they are under a bushel. While this has been for survival, the Tribulation will not be a time when survival will be the most important thing. Those who opt for survival as the main goal will not survive. Those who are willing to risk their lives to save the lives of others will be those who do survive (or participate in the resurrection of life). Making certain that their light shines (by doing good works) will be the best way to attract enemies, but it will also be the best way to attract Yehovah. He is the only One Who can give life during the Tribulation.
The lamp “gives light unto all that are in the house.” Don’t forget about the House of Israel. Some Israelis will give light, and this will begin the process of drawing other Israelis to the light until all Israel finally has light.
“Let your light so shine before men, that they will see your good works and will glorify your Father Who is in the heavens.” The Israelis (as individuals in groups) must do good works (as the Bible describes good works) in front of others. This way, those others will glorify (see as important) the Father of the Israelis (Yehovah) Who is in the heavens, and Who therefore isn’t yet here on earth.
If a reader gets the impression that this light is only spiritual in nature, and isn’t physical light also, the reader hasn’t carefully considered all the texts pertaining to these events. This light is no symbol; it is physical, and it is real!
“Don’t think that I am come to destroy the Torah or the prophets. I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.” Many in modern and historical ‘Christianity’ think and thought that ‘Jesus’ came to destroy (‘do away with’ or abolish) the Torah (the first five, but really the first six books of the Bible). Many have obtained great ‘consolation’ by the thought that Christ abolished the Law—or at least part of it. Yeshua warned the Israelis to not even think that He came to destroy the Torah or the prophets. Those writings are as vital today as they were when they were given, and as vital as they will be during the Tribulation and the Millennium. Anyone who is convinced that ‘Christ came to abolish the Law’ isn’t born of God, and likely never will be. Such a person can be in two categories: one category consists of those who claim to be ‘Christian,’ and are antinomian (against the law of God), and the other category consists of Orthodox Jews who think that the ‘Christian Jesus’ worked to destroy the Torah. Both categories consist of folks who never read the ‘New Testament’ with any understanding worth anything. This is a text that shows that Yeshua was against destroying the Torah and the Prophets.
“For I say faith unto you: until the heavens and earth pass, one yod or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the Torah until all is fulfilled.” When will the heavens and earth pass? This event will be after a thousand generations from the time of the giving of the Covenant to Avraham. That is very far into the future: much further in time to come than the amount of time man has been on the earth. What is a yod? It is the smallest letter of the H