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Nisan 28, 5761 / April 21, 2001
Nisan 26, 5764 / April 17, 2004
Nisan 26, 5767 / April 14, 2007
Nisan 26, 5770 / April 10, 2010
Nisan 26, 5773 / April 6, 2013
Nisan 29, 5776 / May 7, 2016
Nisan 29, 5779 / May 4, 2019
Zeh Sefer Toldot / This is the Book of Generations
SCRIPTURES (should be read first)
On
this Sabbath (in 2016) we say:
“Blessed
are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe,
Who has sanctified us by His Word, and instructed us to count the Omer.
Today is fourteen days of the Omer; it is two weeks of the Omer.”
"This
is the Book of Generations" (v.5:1). It
is important, for understanding Scripture, that one has a concept of the
Biblical timeline.
Note: We suspect the current year to be actually
a couple-hundred years later than rabbinic count of AM 5761.
Adam and Noah, in total
time, lived about one-third of the world’s history! Methuselah, the longest
living man at 969 years, died just before (the sages say the day before) the
great flood. Adam and Methuselah's lives spanned the entire time from creation
to the flood.
Genesis 5:1 – 6:8 was
originally the fourth chapter of Genesis, entitled Sefer Toldot – the
Book of Generations. It is showing the priestly line from creation until the
great flood, from Adam until Methuselah: that is the basic subject.
(V.6:1) When men from
other sons of Adam began to multiply on the earth, and daughters were
born to them, the sons of the God – the priestly line of Seth, saw that the
daughters of these other men were beautiful, and married them – corrupting the
priestly line. Thus righteous leadership waned. Here we see the basis of
negative commandments no. 158, 159, & 160 of the 613 (Lev 21:7), which apply to
marriage within the substitute Levitical priesthood (Num 3:12).
The
Levites were taken for the priesthood in place of the firstborn.
Numbers
3: 12
"Now, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the sons of Israel instead of
every firstborn, the first issue of the womb among the sons of Israel. So the
Levites shall be Mine.
Commandments were given that they were only allowed to marry Hebrew women – only
women of the chosen line.
Leviticus 21:
1 Then Yahweh said to Moses,
"Speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them: . . . 13
'He shall take a wife in her virginity. 14 “A widow, or a divorced
woman, or one who is profaned by harlotry, these he may not take; but rather he
is to marry a virgin of his own people, 15 so that he will not
profane his offspring among his people; for I am Yahweh who sanctifies him."
Genesis 6:2 (Bnei haelohim) The sons of God saw the daughters of man
that they were pleasant, so they took themselves wives from whomever they
chose.
“The
sons of God” would be a proper designation for the priesthood – the firstborn
descendants listed in this chapter – Adam through Methuselah. This priesthood is
later referred to as “Malchi tzedek” – rulers of righteousness. Yeshua
was a priest through this original order, not through the order of the Levitical
priesthood (as He was a Judahite, not a Levite).
Matthew 22:30 & Mark 12:25 “For in the resurrection they neither marry nor
are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.”
This
would seem to preclude heavenly angels from “taking wives”.
Jude 1:6 And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned their
proper abode, He has kept in eternal bonds under darkness for the judgment
of the great day.
The
context includes various sins that bring men to eternal darkness as some
heavenly angels were brought to eternal darkness. There is no evidence here that
heavenly angels married women: “abandoning their proper abode” logically refers
to abandoning their rightful positions serving God. There has never been a
commandment forbidding women from marrying heavenly angels – there is no such
issue considered in Scripture.
Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into
the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because
all sinned,
If all
sin entered the world through one man, then it follows that none entered through
heavenly angels marrying women and having descendants inheriting a sinful nature
through angelic fathers.
The
chapter’s subject is the generations of the priesthood, and how it became
corrupted so that the whole world was only sinful. In the next chapter, the
tenth generation of the priesthood – Noah, would be a righteous priest. This
position is presented as strictly Torah.
“Yahweh saw that the
wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts
of his heart was only evil continually” (v.6:5).
Yahweh was sorry that He
had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. And Yahweh said
(speaking in terms of men), “. . . I am sorry that I have made man,” or
(an alternate rendering of the Hebrew), “I am comforted in how I have
made man (mortal)”. But Noah found favor (grace) in the eyes of Yahweh.
So, how have we fared
since? “We have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as
it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who
understands, there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together
they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.
Their throat is an open grave, with their tongues they keep deceiving, the
poison of asps is under their lips; whose mouth is full of cursing and
bitterness; their feet are swift to shed blood, destruction and misery are in
their paths, and the path of peace have they not known. There is no fear of God
before their eyes’ ” (Rom 3:9-18, from Psalm 14 & 53).
Matthew 24
“When the Son of Man
returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.” . . . “one
will be taken, the other left.”
Genesis 7: 23
Thus He blotted out every living thing that was upon the face of the land, from
man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky, and they were blotted
out from the earth; and only Noah was left, together with those that were
with him in the ark.
So, what is wrong with
“people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time
Noah entered his boat”? Was it not like today? People are completely caught up
in their enjoyment – whatever feels good, with no regard for God, or repentance
from dead works, or what their eternal future holds.
A sign near my house used
to say, “Pray for peace;” now it is painted over with, “Cry for mercy.” Our own
country, through TV and politicians and courts, are promoting gross sin – not
only in our country but around the world.
Many “believers” say that
as long as we believe, that is all that matters. Yeshua says, “If the master
returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward.”
An eternal reward! “But what if the servant is evil” He will “assign him a place
with the hypocrites.”
Yes, it is good to enjoy
what God gives us to enjoy in this life. But there is judgment coming!
Readings:
Reader 1* Amen
32
Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and
Japheth.
Reader 2* Amen
6:1 Now it came about, when men began to multiply on
the face of the land, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the
sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful; and they took wives
for themselves, whomever they chose. 3 Then Yahweh said, "My Spirit
shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his
days shall be one hundred and twenty years." 4 The Nephilim were on
the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the
daughters of men, and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who
were of old, men of renown.
Reader 3* Amen
5
Then Yahweh saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that
every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6
Yahweh was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His
heart. 7 Yahweh said, "I will blot out man whom I have created from
the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the
sky; for I am sorry that I have made them." 8 But Noah found favor in
the eyes of Yahweh.
Isaiah 30:8-15
Reader 8* Amen
8
Now go, write it on a tablet before them and inscribe it on a scroll, that it
may serve in the time to come as a witness forever. 9 For this is a
rebellious people, false sons, sons who refuse to listen to the instruction of
Yahweh; 10 who say to the seers, "You must not see visions"; and to
the prophets, "You must not prophesy to us what is right, speak to us pleasant
words, prophesy illusions. 11 "Get out of the way, turn aside from
the path, let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel." 12
Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel, "Since you have rejected this word
and have put your trust in oppression and guile, and have relied on them,
13 therefore this iniquity will be to you like a breach about to fall, a
bulge in a high wall, whose collapse comes suddenly in an instant, 14
Whose collapse is like the smashing of a potter's jar, So ruthlessly shattered
that a sherd will not be found among its pieces to take fire from a hearth or to
scoop water from a cistern." 15 For thus Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of
Israel, has said, "In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and
trust is your strength." But you were not willing,
Ezekiel 38:13
Reader 9* Amen
“Sheba and Dedan
and the merchants of Tarshish with all its villages will say to you, ‘Have you
come to capture spoil? Have you assembled your company to seize plunder, to
carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to capture great
spoil?’ ”
Psalm 4
(to be sung)
For the choir
director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.
1
Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved me in my
distress; be gracious to me and hear my prayer. 2 O sons of men, how
long will my honor become a reproach? How long will you love what is worthless
and aim at deception? Selah. 3 But know that Yahweh has set apart the
godly man for Himself; Yahweh hears when I call to Him. 4 Tremble,
and do not sin; meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and trust in Yahweh. 6
Many are saying, "Who will show us any good?" Lift up the light of Your
countenance upon us, O Yahweh! 7 You have put gladness in my heart,
more than when their grain and new wine abound. 8 In peace I will
both lie down and sleep, for You alone, O Yahweh, make me to dwell in safety.
Matthew 24
Reader 10*
Amen. 35 Heaven and earth will
disappear, but my words will never disappear. 36 "However, no one
knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in
heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. 37 "When the Son of
Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah's day. 38 In those days
before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings
right up to the time Noah entered his boat. 39 People didn't realize
what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is
the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. 40 "Two men will be
working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. 41
Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
42 "So you, too, must keep watch! For you don't know what day your
Lord is coming. 43 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when
a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken
into. 44 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will
come when least expected.
Reader 11*
Amen. 45 "A faithful, sensible
servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his
other household servants and feeding them. 46 If the master returns
and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 47
I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns.
48 But what if the servant is evil and thinks, 'My master won't be
back for a while,' 49 and he begins beating the other servants,
partying, and getting drunk? 50 The master will return unannounced
and unexpected, 51 and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign
him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and
gnashing of teeth.
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