One thing to take from this chiasm is that God considers betrothal to be nearly as sacred as the marriage itself. If a man lies with a woman who is betrothed to another man, he is just as guilty of adultery as if she was already married.
Communications channel picker for decade 2020-29
In 2021 we have so many different ways to communicate, I thought it might be helpful to rank them in order of importance and practical usage...
1. In person: Life or death. Someone's going to die if we don't do something now.
2. Voice call: Needs immediate attention. Like...right now. But nobody's going to die. Probably not. Or it's just too complicated for text or chat.
3. Video call: Like a voice call, except I got dressed.
4. Text or chat: Time sensitive. Need information or need something done ASAP.
5. Open a ticket: Need to get this done soon-ish and needs some explaining and maybe CYA tracking. Don't forget it.
6. Email: Heads up, reminder, or more detailed information about an issue raised in a prior call or chat. Especially useful for including a group of people who might want to know but don't need to do anything.
7. Open a ticket: Above my paygrade and I don't care if anything happens with it or not. Fire and forget.
8. Text or chat: Gossip and friendly chatter not directly related to business.
9. Video call: Hey, look! I'm a real person and not a chat bot.
10. Voice call: Umm...why are you calling me? Can you just send me an email or something? The Help Desk phone number is on their website.
11. In person: Wanna grab a beer?
Wait.... Is that a chiasm?
Chiasm and Parallelism in Deuteronomy 9:26-29
Deuteronomy 9:26-29 – A parallelism in a chiasm on God's faithfulness to the covenant
- V26 - Don't destroy your people and heritage, whom you redeemed through greatness and a mighty hand
- V27 - Remember the Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
- Forget the sins of this people
- V28 - YHWH wasn't able to keep his Covenant
- He hated and destroyed the people
- V29 - They are your people and heritage, whom you brought out with great power and an outstretched arm
God keeps his promises and he wants to hear us remind him of it. When it looks like God has forgotten or rejected you, he might just be waiting for you to tell him that you believe in him and trust him to keep his promises.
Chiasm in Mark 11 on the Authority of Yeshua
- V1-11 - Authority of Yeshua recognized by the people
- V12-14 - Yeshua curses the fig tree
- V15 - Yeshua and disciples enter Jerusalem
- V15-18 - Yeshua cleanses the Temple
- V19 - Yeshua and disciples leave Jerusalem
- V20--26 - Disciples see the withered fig tree
- V27-31 - Authority of Yeshua challenged by the elite
Yeshua (Hebrew for "Jesus") doesn't require anyone to recognize his authority for it to be real, but he has chosen the lowly, rather than the religious or political elite, to reveal his purpose and nature to the world. This chiasm is bracketed by people's recognition or opposition to his authority, illustrating that everything between those brackets is under that authority.
There are also three geographic domains of authority within Israel represented by the three scenes of this chapter.
- All of Israel outside of Jerusalem. (The fig tree might actually represent the religious leadership of Judah instead. See this parallelism in Matthew 21.)
- Jerusalem.
- The Temple.
There is no "Court of the Gentiles" in God's design for his Temple. Although no unauthorized people are allowed to enter the Temple itself, all people--Jew and gentile, man and woman, slave and free--are supposed to be able to enter the courtyard and approach the altar. The Jewish leadership at the Herodian Temple had barred gentiles from the area of the altar, relegating them to an outer court, which had also become an open air marketplace. The God-fearing gentiles were left with no place to worship at the Temple in peace. (H/T: Ryan White of Faith of Messiah Ministries)
When Yeshua chased the money changers and vendors from the outer courtyard, he asserted his authority as the Son of God to restore the Temple to its rightful purpose. When he stopped everyone from carrying anything into or out of the Temple area, he effectively suspended all Temple activity. The sacrifices and offerings stopped. In doing this, Yeshua asserted his authority over the entire religious system of Israel.
There is no division between civil and religious law and life in God's plan for his people. The King of Israel is the King of all Israel, the land and the people, inside and out.
Teaching on God's Rules for Eating
Links to some of my teachings that touch on God's rules for eating (and not eating):
- Genesis 1:29 & 9:3 - Did God's Food Laws Change After the Flood?
- Leviticus 7:23 - Go Ahead and Chew that Fat
- Leviticus 11 - 6 Rules and 6 Excuses
- Leviticus 17 - Does the Bible Say It's a Sin to Eat a Rare Steak?
- Leviticus 20 & 11 - Have the Dietary Laws Outlived Their Purpose? A Dialogue
- Deuteronomy 12:7 - Edible, but not Food
- Mark 7:19 - All Foods Are Clean
- Acts 10 - White Sheets, Creepy Crawlies, and Unclean People
- Acts 15 - Does Acts 15 Say We Can Ignore God's Law?
- Acts 15 & 21, 1 Corinthians 8 & 10, Revelation 2 - Eating Meat Sacrificed to Idols
- 1 Corinthians 10:23-33 - Are All Things Really Lawful?
- Colossians 2 - What about Colossians 2:16
- Colossians 2 - Did Paul Say the Sabbath and Kosher Laws Don't Matter?
- 1 Timothy 4:1-5 - Every Creature of God is Good
Short Lessons from the Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs records many (but far from all!) of the sayings of King Solomon, plus the words of a few other wise men and women. It includes profound wisdom on living a godly life, on finances, leadership, relationships, and even on farming and war.
Between January 2020 and April 2021 (and later), I recorded eighty-four (and counting) short video teachings on the Proverbs and how they apply to life in modern America. I have also linked almost all of them to one or more of the annual Torah portions. Those links can be found in YouTube playlists and in the topical tags on each video at Rumble, Daily Motion, and YouTube.
These videos are also in a Rumble playlist.
Don't forget to subscribe to my Rumble, Daily Motion and YouTube channels.
Short Lessons from Proverbs:
- Introduction to the Book of Proverbs, Proverbs
- The Fear of Our Fathers, Proverbs 1:7
- Proverbs 1:7 and the fear of the LORD, Proverbs 1:7
- When is it OK to lie, biblically speaking?, Proverbs 1:10-19
- Wisdom is free to whomever is willing to go get it., Proverbs 1:20-33
- The Book of Proverbs Is about Principles, not Laws, Proverbs 1
- Honoring Your Parents, Even the Bad Ones, Proverbs 2
- The Escalating Quest for Wisdom, Proverbs 2:1-8
- Fathers above and below, Proverbs 3:1-12
- The Man of Violence, Proverbs 3:31-32
- The Wisdom of Our Fathers, Proverbs 4:1-4
- A Heritage of Wisdom, Proverbs 4:1-19
- Prize Her Highly, and She Will Exalt You, Proverbs 4:8-9
- The Fires of Youth, Proverbs 5
- The Forbidden Teacher, Proverbs 5:5-6
- Your Sins Will Find You Out, Proverbs 5
- Defeating Laziness, Proverbs 6:6-11
- Fake News, Proverbs 6:12-19
- The Utility of Moral Boundaries, Proverbs 7
- Why so much about women in the Proverbs?, Proverbs 7-8
- Leveling Up in Wisdom, Proverbs 8:1-4
- Four Characteristics of Wisdom, Proverbs 9:1-6
- Teaching Fools and Wise Men, Proverbs 9:7-9
- The OTHER Proverbs 9 Woman, Proverbs 9:13-18
- Three Truths about Diligence and Sloth, Proverbs 10:4-5
- Three Kinds of Speech, Proverbs 10
- Speaking Up and Keeping Silent, Proverbs 10:10-11
- Systemic Injustice in Our Weights and Measures, Proverbs 11, 20
- Civil Government and God's Law, Proverbs 11:7-11
- Ensuring Your Legacy by Honoring Your Parents, Proverbs 11:29
- Two Characteristics of the Super Successful, Proverbs 12:1
- Five Times to Keep Silent, Proverbs 12:22-23
- Parents Just Don't Understand!, Proverbs 13:1
- How is it hateful to spare the rod?, Proverbs 13:24
- Nothing Happens without Some Mess, Proverbs 14:4
- My Best Advice for the Hebrew Roots Movement, Proverbs 14:23
- Tyrants, the People, and God, Proverbs 14:28
- Identifying Good Counsel, Proverbs 14:33,15:22
- Don't Let Your Dark Side Speak for You, Proverbs 15:28
- How to Be a King of Righteousness, Proverbs 16:10-16
- Pride Invites Destruction, Proverbs 16:18
- The Crucible of Hearts, Proverbs 17:3
- The Poor and Rich Alike Bear the Image of God, Proverbs 17:5
- A Deceitful Heart Sees a Deceitful World, Proverbs 17:20
- You weren't meant to be alone - Proverbs 18:1
- Think Before You Retort!, Proverbs 18:2
- There Are Always Two Sides, Proverbs 18:17
- Friends of the Rich and Poor, Proverbs 19:4
- Some People Have to Learn the Hard Way, Proverbs 19:19-20
- The Man of Chesed, Proverbs19:22
- The Dangers of Wine and Kings, Proverbs 20:1-2
- Plow today. Harvest...next year?, Proverbs 20:4
- Beware the Walkers!, Proverbs 20:18-19
- The King's Heart, Proverbs 21:1
- Pure Religion, Proverbs 21:3, 21:27
- The Importance of Diligence and Persistence, Proverbs 21:5
- Choosing a Good Name, Proverbs 22:1
- The Disciplining of a Child, Proverbs 22:15
- Does God Really Repay the Unjust? Proverbs 22
- Ancient Boundary Stones and Traditions, Proverbs 22:28
- Be Not A Friend to Drunkards, Proverbs 23:20-21
- Proverbs 24:1-6 and Enduring Conquest through Self-Discipline, Proverbs 24:1-6
- The Home Is for Healing, Proverbs 24:15-16
- Rejoicing over the Fall of Your Enemies, Proverbs 24:17-18
- Faithless Advisors are Poison to Leadership, Proverbs 25:4-5
- Words Fitly Spoken, Proverbs 25:11-12,15
- Love Your Enemy, Proverbs 25:21-22
- The Causes and Solutions to Laziness, Proverbs 26:13-16
- The Words of Whispers and Sycophants, Proverbs 26:22-23
- Hidden and Fake Love, Proverbs 27:5-6
- A Little Bitter Makes Your Whole Life Sweeter, Proverbs 27:7
- Social Justice vs God's Justice, Proverbs 28:4-5
- Invest God's Resources Wisely, Proverbs 28:19
- When the Righteous Hide, Proverbs 28:28
- Who Understands Justice for the Poor?, Proverbs 29:7
- Sons and Servants, Proverbs 29:21
- Of Whom Should We Be Afraid?, Proverbs 29:25
- Who Wrote Proverbs 30?, Proverbs 30:1
- There's no Compromising with Fire, Proverbs 30:15-16
- Of Mice, Men, Ants, and Lions, Proverbs 30:24-31
- The Burdens of Authority, Proverbs 31:1-9
- A Woman of Valor, Who Can Find?, Proverbs 31:10-12
- The Proverbs 31 Woman Reaches Out to the Needy, Proverbs 31:20-21
- The Gates of Proverbs 31, Proverbs 31:23,31
Progressivism is Satanism
ALL leftist "progressive" politics boil down to two things: rejection of YHVH and the accumulation of power over others.
It's about breaking down resistance, not to vaccines or masks or any other supposed "good for you" commandment of Father State, but to people who rage with revulsion in every cell of their body at the mere existence of people who do not worship them as supreme gods. They point to the golden calf in Washington and say "Here is the god that brought you out of racism and sexism and income inequality!" but the calf is just a wooden puppet that dances and speaks on command from these would-be deities.
Social justice is a scam. Progressives don't care about racism or equality or actual justice. They care about power, about dominating their neighbors, and about eradicating the name of YHVH and everything godly from public society. They are modern day Hamans furious and terrified that Mordechai won't bow, and they are ready to murder anyone who stands against them.
There is no such thing as a progressive Christian. Progressivism is Satanism.
Chiasm in 1 Timothy 6
- v3-5 - Beware of false teachers
- v6-12 - Warning to the rich
- v13 - Praises to God/Jesus
- v14 - Keep the commandments until Jesus appears
- v15-16 - Praises to God/Jesus
- v17-19 - Warning to the rich
- v20-21 - Beware of false teachings
Detestable Abominations and the Like
I did a quick survey of "abomination" and its close synonyms in the Old Testament in response to a question from a good friend. I had to correct a couple of misconceptions that I have entertained for years. There are several Hebrew words used for this idea, but two in particular stood out:
Hebrew: Shekets/shakats/shikuts שׁקץ
English: Something detestable/abominable, to detest, to make detestable
Context:
- Unclean animals of all kinds are to be considered detestable to you. Leviticus 7, 11
- Eating unclean animals will make you detestable. Leviticus 11:43, 20:25
- Unclean animals offered as sacrifice or impure sacrifices. Deuteronomy 29:17, 2 Chronicles 15:8, Jeremiah 4:1, Jeremiah 16:18, Ezekiel 5:11 (Sometimes translated as "abominable idols" or something like that, but "idols" is an assumption of the translator. I'm pretty sure it's referring to the sacrifice, not the idol.)
Hebrew: Toebah תּועבה
English: Abomination
Context:
- Sexual immorality including temple prostitution. Leviticus 18, 20:13, 1 Kings 14:24, Jeremiah 6:15
- Human sacrifice, necromancy, and related practices. Deuteronomy 18, 2 Kings 16:3, 2 Chronicles 28:2-3
- Idolatry and general pagan religious practices. Deuteronomy 20:18, 32:16, 2 Kings 21:2, 23:13, 2 Chronicles 28:2-3, 34:33, Jeremiah 16:18
- Generally wicked behavior. Proverbs
There is definitely a difference between the two words, but it seems to be lost on the English translators. That's more the fault of the English language than of the translators, though. The major difference that I can see is that "shekets" and it's relatives is used when God commands us to hold a thing to be detestable, especially unclean animals, like trying to train a child not to eat something he found on the ground. It’s not that the parent is repulsed by the child eating it so much as he needs to teach the child to be repulsed for himself. On the other hand, whatever is "toebah" is offensive personally to God. It is behavior that he hates: idolatry, sexual immorality, and a love of death. I don't think that English has such a distinction.
With that perspective, it seems perfectly reasonable to say that God told us not to eat unclean animals because it's bad for us to do so. Whether it's bad physically or spiritually or both is another question. The last option gets my vote.
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