9.2.26 – Lean on Me

Since we are in Christ, we are officially Abraham's seed (Gal. 3:28–29) and part of God's engrafted people (Rom. 11); we are no longer strangers and foreigners to the covenants of Israel (Eph. 2:11–22). On this rainy, no-work day, I wanted to whet your appetite for something a little chunkier. I hope you will grab your Bible and notepad, take a nice swim in the living water, and enjoy resting against the Tree of Life as you start your weekend.

When Jesus Christ (Messiah Yeshua) was on the earth, He would go to the synagogue each Sabbath, where a portion of Scripture was read from the Torah, the Prophets, and the general writings. This Shabbat, He would have been reading Nitzavim ("You are standing") and Vayelekh ("He went" or "He walked")—Deuteronomy 29:10–31:30.

There is a powerful anticipation evoked by the name of the Torah portion, Nitzavim: "You are standing!" These last Torah portions in the book of Deuteronomy (Devarim) are strong, imparting a sense of our place in the universe—and especially of where we locate ourselves relative to the Land of Israel and its spiritual counterpart, the Garden of Eden.

The last four Torah/instruction portions include: When you go out... When you come in... You are standing... And he went...

Vayelech is even stronger in its connotation. "And went" can also be translated as "And walked." In the Garden of Eden were four rivers. The outer two rivers "circled" the Garden; the inner one, the Tigris, "walked"—it walked the tightest path around the Tree of Life. Adam and his honey bunny could hear the voice of Elohim walking in the Garden before they fell out of it (Gen. 3:8). What we learn in Nitzavim—standing—is preparation for walking around the Tree of Life, because in next week's portion, we will give ear (Ha'azinu) to the Song of Moses, just as Adam and his Ezer Kenegdo (the helper who opposes him) heard the voice in the Garden.

"You stand today, all of you, before the LORD your God: your chiefs, your tribes, your elders and your officers, even all the men of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and the alien who is within your camps, from the one who chops your wood to the one who draws your water—that you may enter (avar) into the covenant with the LORD your God, and into His oath which the LORD your God is making with you today, in order that He may establish you today as His people and that He may be your God, just as He spoke to you and as He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now not with you alone am I making this covenant and this oath, but both with those who stand here with us today in the presence of the LORD our God and with those who are not with us here today." (Deut. 29:9–15)

So what we hear as we stand in Nitzavim is related to the covenant sworn to Abraham. Not so coincidentally, the first mention of the verb netzavim is found in Genesis, just after Abraham has been circumcised into the covenant—while he is still in the natural pain of circumcision:

"Now the LORD appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, while he was sitting at the tent door in the heat of the day. When he lifted up his eyes and looked, behold, three men were standing opposite him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them and bowed himself to the earth, and said, 'My Lord, if now I have found favor in Your sight, please do not pass Your servant by. Please let a little water be brought and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree...'" (Gen. 18:1–4)

So yes, a circumcised heart guarantees that we will experience pain in this world. Gloriously, though, when one voluntarily enters the Covenant, he begins to "lift his eyes"—a Hebraic phrase meaning to see into the spiritual realm, a realm concealed to the natural eye. Once we fell from the Garden, we became blind to it. But as one surrenders to life in the Word, he begins to experience a divine kiss, when his natural, painful body catches a glimpse of the Garden and the Tree of Life that hovers above him. Two realms meet. Hence, Yeshua's prayer teaches us how to pray: "Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven" (Matt. 6:10).

When Abraham says "rest yourselves," he uses the verb sha-an, which means "to lean on for support," as in Proverbs 3:5:

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding."

In ancient times, a king made public appearances leaning upon his closest supporters. It was a display of trust in them—and them in him. Instead of inviting the travelers into his tent, Abraham urges them to lean on the tree, not under "the oaks of Mamre." Later, he stands and serves them "under the tree." Leaning is an equivalent expression to trusting—faith. This is the kind of faith that the children of Abraham need: the ability to lean on and serve under the Tree of Life, to see the resurrection of the dead and restoration to the Garden, to be a people who go out, come in, stand, walk, and hear the voice of their Creator in the Garden.

Before the standing angelic visitation in which Abraham received a "fulfill-by" date on the covenant, he experienced the "Covenant Between the Pieces":

"It came about when the sun had set, that it was very dark, and behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces." (Gen. 15:17)

The verb avar—to pass into or cross—is linked to natzav, or stand, in covenant. The Israelites are told they are standing to pass into the Covenant. Natzav also means "to set, to put in place." It is not passive, but actively putting oneself in that position. It is to stand with intent, to make a stand for something. When one takes a stand under the Tree of Life and leans on the Tree of Life, then he or she begins to avar, or cross over, to the Garden. Yes, Abraham demonstrates that it is possible to live today with one foot already in the Garden, for he is the first to be called a Hebrew—an Ivri, one who has passed over!

Happy middle of the week! The fall feasts are less than two weeks away... stand with the people of God and enjoy the celebration!

Shalom,
Alan 

Feel free to go to  lightintorah.org to get caught up on past studies.