Readings: Oct. 18, 2025

Starting after Sukkot 2024, Hallel Fellowship switched to a three-year cycle of Torah and parallel Bible readings (2024–2027), outlined by TorahResource. While there’s ancient evidence for a triennial cycle, a major benefit is to provide more time to mine more of Scripture for lessons.

Readings

• Exodus 8:20–9:35
• Isaiah 34:11–35:4
• Hebrews 12:14–17

Corresponding reading from 1-year cycle

Insights from this week’s readings

Connecting threads

Divine sovereignty displayed in judgment and signs

In Exodus the plagues show Yahweh’s authority over Egyptian gods and Pharaoh’s hardening (God acts to reveal his name/wonders). This same motif of God executing justice on nations appears in Isaiah 34’s oracle of judgment. Hebrews reads those OT realities through the lens of covenant-faithfulness and Messiah’s moral urgency: obey and persevere. (Bible Hub)

Judgment paired with eschatological restoration

Isaiah 34 (judgment on the nations, desolation) is immediately paired with Isaiah 35 (healing, return, water in the desert). Messianic readers see Isaiah 35’s healing imagery fulfilled in Yeshua’s ministry (healing equates to the in-breaking of the eschatological salvation). (Blue Letter Bible)

Hardness, apostasy, and irreversible loss

Exodus’ repeated “Pharaoh’s heart was hardened” resonates with Hebrews’ warning about Esau (who lost his birthright) and the danger of falling away — both stress the moral/spiritual consequences of refusing God’s covenant. Paul and the Hebrews author use the Septuagint (LXX) vocabulary to make this theological point for a Greek-reading audience. (Bible Hub)

Holiness/peace as covenant life

Hebrews’ twin call “pursue peace (εἰρήνη) and holiness (ἁγιασμός/ἁγιωσύνη)” functions as the covenantal ethic that responds to God’s judgment/restoration pattern in the OT — holiness preserves participation in the covenant future promised in Isaiah. (Bible Hub)

Key Hebrew and Greek terms

A common Bible study tool is to use the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures (Septuagint, LXX) to see how these the Hebrew and Greek terms in the source texts were understood in Gospel times. That method is used to explore key words from this week’s readings.

חָזַק khazaq / קָשָׁה־לֵב qashah-leyv (harden / harden the heart)

• Hebrew sense: “to be/become hard” (a heart obstinately resisting God).
• LXX Greek: σκληρύνω skleruno / σκληραίνω skleraino (to harden). Exodus narratives in the LXX render Pharaoh’s “heart was hardened” with this vocabulary. (Bible Hub)
• NT use: σκληρύνω skleruno occurs in Romans and elsewhere to describe God’s judicial hardening (e.g., Romans 9:18 uses the same LXX verb pattern). Thus Paul and Hebrews can echo Exodus’ theological point about divine-judicial hardening when addressing covenant faithfulness. (billmounce.com)

Messianic insight: The Hebrew scriptures courtroom/sovereignty language about hardening becomes a pastoral warning in Hebrews: refuse God’s covenant now and you risk the same irreversible moral hardening (cf. Pharaoh/Esau motif). (Bible Hub)

דֶּבֶר dever / נֶגַע nega (pestilence / plague / boils)

• Hebrew sense: disease, plague (the fifth and sixth plagues).
• LXX Greek: λοιμός hoimos / νόσος nosos / ἔλκος elkos (varied terms depending on translator/context) — the LXX narrates the plagues with the usual Greek disease vocabulary. (Bible Hub)
• NT parallels: The same Greek disease-words (νόσος nosos, λοιμός loimos) appear in NT narrative/healing contexts (and in apocalyptic judgment language), so the LXX lexical frame links Exodus’ plagues with later Hebrew/Greek thinking about sickness, divine plague, and divine mercy. (Biblia)

Messianic insight: Jesus’ healings (NT use of disease vocabulary) are read as the eschatological reversal of the curse/plague imagery: where Yahweh once brought and controlled pestilence, Messiah brings healing-restoration. (Bible Hub)

שְׁמָמָה shamamah (desolation, ruin, desert)

• Hebrew: “desolation, a state of being laid waste” (Isaiah 34 uses vocabulary of desolation). (QBible)
• LXX Greek: ἔρημος eremos / ἐρημία eremia — the LXX renders Hebrew desolation terms with ἔρημος (see Isaiah LXX). (Blue Letter Bible)
• Apostolic Scriptures use: ἔρημος is the standard Greek for “wilderness/desert” in the Gospels (e.g., Jesus led into the ἐρήμῳ; see Matt. 4:1) and for prophetic/judgmental desolation language. The LXX → NT reuse binds Isaiah’s desolation motif to Jesus’ wilderness themes and to apocalyptic expectation. (Blue Letter Bible)

Messianic insight: Isaiah’s 34–35 movement (ἔρημος → water/renewal) parallels Yeshua’s ministry: He enters the spiritual “desert” and brings restoration (cf. wilderness imagery in the Gospels). (Bible Hub)

רָפָא rafa (heal)

• Hebrew: רָפָא rafa — “to heal, make whole” (explicit in Isaiah 35:5–6 imagery). (QBible)
• LXX Greek: ἰάομαι — the LXX renders Hebrew healing verbs with ἰάομαι in Isaiah and other prophetic texts (e.g., Isaiah 35 LXX uses forms of healing). (Bible Hub)
• Apostolic Writings use: ἰάομαι is the dominant verb for miraculous healing in the Gospels (Matt 9:35; many uses). That shared verb anchors the Messianic claim that Jesus fulfills Isaiah’s healed-world prophecy. (Bible Hub)

Messianic insight: the LXX’s use of ἰάομαι in Isaiah sets up the expectation Jesus meets (Gospel healings = eschatological signs of God’s restorative reign promised in Isaiah 35). (Bible Hub)

יָשַׁע yasha / יְשׁוּעָה yeshuah (salvation, deliverance)

• Hebrew: יְשׁוּעָה / יָשַׁע — deliverance, salvation (Isaiah’s restoration language). (QBible)
• LXX Greek: σῴζω / σωτήρ / σωτηρία — the LXX often renders the saving verbs/nouns with sōzō/ sōtēria. Isaiah’s salvation language is thus framed with Greek salvation vocabulary in the LXX. (Bible Hub)
• NT use: σῴζω / σωτηρία are core Christological and soteriological terms in the NT (e.g., Gospel/healing, Pauline salvation language). This lexical continuity is why Messianic readers find in Isaiah an explicit salvation promise that the Messiah effects. (billmounce.com)

קָדוֹשׁ qiddush / קִדּוּשׁ qadosh (holy / holiness) → LXX ἅγιος / ἁγιασμός

• Hebrew: קדוש / קָדַשׁ family — holiness, separation to God (implicit in covenant ethic).
• LXX Greek: ἅγιος hagios / ἁγιασμός hagiasmos — used throughout the LXX for the Hebrew קדוש.
• NT use: Hebrews 12:14’s ἁγιασμός (“sanctification/holiness”) picks up this terminology as the ethical requirement for seeing the Lord. The LXX → NT lexical chain ties OT covenant holiness to the NT call to holiness in Messiah. (Bible Hub)

Messianic insight: Because the LXX uses ἁγιασμός for the Hebrew קדוש qadosh, the author of Hebrews can seamlessly appeal to TaNaKh sanctification expectations while addressing a Greek-speaking, Torah-rooted community. (Bible Hub)

בְּכֹרָה bekhorah / בְּכֹר bekhor (firstborn / birthright) → LXX τὰ πρωτοτόκια ta prototokia

• Hebrew: בְּכֹרָה / בְּכוֹר — firstborn/birthright (Genesis narrative about Esau/Jacob).
• LXX: τὰ πρωτοτόκια — rendered that way in LXX and taken by Hebrews to warn against despising the covenantal privileges. Hebrews 12:16 uses that Greek term in the Esau reference. (Bible Hub)

Messianic insight: The Hebrews author uses LXX vocabulary to reinterpret the Genesis story (Esau sells his birthright) as a pastoral warning against trading covenant blessings for immediate gratification — an application coherent for Messianic believers who read both Torah and Messiah together. (Bible Hub)

διώκω diōkó (pursue)

• Hebrews usage: Διώκετε τὴν εἰρήνην… (“Pursue peace…”) (Heb. 12:14). (Bible Hub)
•  LXX usage: Commonly used to render Hebrew רָדַף radaf-type verbs (to chase/pursue) in historical narratives (e.g., Gen. 14:15 uses ἐδίωξεν). (Blue Letter Bible)
• Hebrew lemma translated: רָדַף radaf (and related roots meaning “pursue, chase”). (Bible Hub)

Insights: Hebrews repurposes a familiar LXX pursuit-verb to urge ethical striving (not violent pursuit but moral/relational pursuit) — the same Greek the LXX uses for concrete pursuit in the Hebrew Scriptures now names spiritual effort in the covenant community.

εἰρήνη eirḗnē (peace)

• Hebrews usage: τὴν εἰρήνην (Heb. 12:14). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: LXX regularly uses εἰρήνη eirene / εἰρήνην eirenen to translate Hebrew שָׁלוֹם shalom (peace, welfare, covenant wholeness) in many Torah and prophetic contexts. (Blue Letter Bible)

Insights: εἰρήνη in Hebrews carries the covenantal meaning of שָׁלוֹם — not mere absence of conflict but covenantal well-being. That semantic link is inherited through the LXX.

ἁγιασμός hagiasmós (sanctification, holiness)

• Hebrews usage: τὸν ἁγιασμόν (Heb. 12:14). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: The hagios family of words in the LXX (ἅγιος / ἁγιασμός / ἁγιάζω) is the standard way to render Hebrew קָדֹשׁ qadosh / קָדַשׁ qadash (holy, to sanctify). The LXX uses these forms across Torah and prophetic texts. (Bible Hub)

Why it matters: Because the LXX maps קדש qadash to ἁγιασμός hagiasmos, Hebrews can call for “holiness” using Greek vocabulary that already carries covenantal, cultic, and moral senses from the Hebrew Scriptures.

ὄψεται opsetai / ὁράω horao (see / behold)

• Hebrews usage: ἄπαντες ὄψονται τὸν κύριον (“all will see the Lord”). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: LXX uses ὁράω / ὀπτάνομαι / βλέπω to translate Hebrew רָאָה ra’ah and related sight verbs. Interlinear LXX examples show this is the default mapping. (Bible Hub)

Why it matters: The prophetic promise “they shall see God” in Isaiah-type texts (Hebrew ראה ra’ah) is already carried into Greek by ὁράω — Hebrews quotes theologically with the same expectant imagery (eschatological vision of Adonai).

βλέπετε blepete (see / beware / watch)

• Hebrews usage: βλέπετε μή τις ὑστερῶν … (“See that no one fails to obtain the grace… / watch that none…”) (Heb. 12:15 context). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: LXX uses βλέπω blepo / βλέπετε blepete for Hebrew הִשָּׁקֵל hishaqeyl? — more commonly for Hebrew ראָה in prophetic warnings or narrative attentions. The overlap in function (attention/warning) is why the Hebrews author’s warning resonates with TaNaKh prophetic admonitions.

ῥίζα rhíza (root) & ἐμφυτεύματος emphuteumatos / ἐνφυτεύω enphuteuo (rooted / implanted)

• Hebrews usage: ῥίζαν πικρίας ἀναβλύζουσαν (“a root of bitterness springing up”) (Heb. 12:15). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: LXX ῥίζα commonly translates Hebrew שֹׁרֶשׁ / שָׁרָשׁ (root, rootstock). Concordances show ῥίζα appears where Hebrew uses root imagery (and LXX carries that metaphor into Greek). (Bible Hub)

Why it matters: Hebrew “root” imagery in the TaNaKh (e.g., שֹׁרֶשׁ shoresh) becomes ῥίζα rhiza in Greek. Hebrews borrows that living metaphor (rooted bitterness) with the same semantic force the LXX gives earlier prophetic uses.

πικρία pikría (bitterness)

• Hebrews usage: πικρίας (Heb. 12:15). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: πικρία occurs in the LXX to translate Hebrew terms for “bitterness” (e.g., the root מָר as in Marah “bitter” — Exod. 15:23 etc. — and other contexts where Hebrew denotes bitterness or sourness). Concordance evidence shows πικρία occurs multiple times in LXX books. (Blue Letter Bible)

Why it matters: Hebrews’ “root of bitterness” uses a Greek noun that already stands in for Hebrew bitterness language in the LXX; thus the pastoral imagery links back to OT examples (bitter water, bitter resentment) audible to readers familiar with the LXX.

πρωτοτόκια prototókia / πρωτοτόκος prototókos (firstborn / birthright)

• Hebrews usage: τὰ πρωτοτόκια — referencing Esau despising his birthright (12:16). (Bible Hub)
• LXX usage / Hebrew equivalence: LXX renders Hebrew בְּכוֹרָה / בְּכוֹר as τὰ πρωτοτόκια / πρωτότοκος (birthright, firstborn), a standard equivalence. (McClintock & Strong Cyclopedia)

Why it matters: Hebrews draws on the LXX lexical bridge. Readers familiar with Genesis in Greek already associate τὰ πρωτοτόκια with the TaNaKh narrative and its covenantal consequences (inheritance, covenant privileges). The Hebrews author invokes the Genesis story via its usage of the same words as the LXX does.

Studies

The illusion of control: Negotiating with God (Exodus 8–9; Isaiah 34–35; Hebrews 12)

Daniel October 18, 2025

In this study of Exodus 8–9, we explored how Pharaoh’s attempts to negotiate with God revealed the futility of seeking control over true submission. We examined the motivations behind biblical negotiations — whether for personal gain or to save lives — and why God honors one over the other. Via parallel passages Isaiah 34–35 and Hebrews 12, we also discussed the destruction of Esau/Edom, compared how pagan gods and the God of Israel love humanity, and reflected on how authentic repentance and selfless motivations matter most when relating to God and others.

Read More

Standing strong or standing stubborn: What’s the difference? (Exodus 6–7)

Jeff October 4, 2025

What does it really means to have a “hardened heart,” like what cause the pharaoh of Egypt at the time of Israel’s Exodus? Three Hebrew words translated “harden” help us see the spiritual condition at work at that time and with us today. This study reflects on the balance between God’s actions and our choices, and how we can pray for softer hearts and “lips” to become more open, compassionate and effective in our internal and external lives.

Read More

Shekinah revealed: How the LORD’s tangible presence refutes the ‘absentee landlord’ myth (Genesis 18; Isaiah 33–34; Luke 8)

Jeff February 1, 2025

This study of Genesis 18 further explores Abraham’s faith journey. His bargaining for the lives of the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah highlights why the LORD knew he was the right choice to establish a legacy of overcoming the world and staying on Heaven’s path of justice and righteousness. This startling example of the LORD’s active presence and involvement in human affairs is far removed from the accusation that He’s an “absentee landlord.” A parallel passage in Luke 8 reveals how the parable of the sower, the healings of the bleeding woman and dead girl, and the Shema (“Hear, O…

Read More

Walking blamelessly before God: A ransomed life moving toward spiritual maturity (Exodus 6–9)

Jeff January 13, 2024

In this study of Torah reading וָאֵרָא‎ Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35), Pharaoh’s unyielding heart despite God’s plagues on Mitzraim (Egypt) foreshadows humanity’s futile rebellion against the authority of the Creator, as echoed in Revelation. Pharaoh’s “hardened” heart yields briefly with his son’s death, which challenged both his lineage and Egypt’s deities. Pharaoh’s obstinacy is part of a prophetic role for Israel to bear witness to the global importance of God’s names El Shaddai and YHWH. That role, which reaches its fullness in Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ), has come with persecution toward those who uphold the righteousness and…

Read More

Torah reading Va’era (וארא): Exodus 6:2–9:35

Hallel Fellowship January 6, 2024

It’s no coincidence that the freedom of Yisra’el from bondage in Mitzraim was accompanied by 10 plagues and the release of mankind on the coming Day of the LORD comes after seven plagues. Why such drastic measures are required to give people freedom is behind this week’s Torah portion, וָאֵרָא‎ Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35).

Read More

The gospel according to Moses

Daniel January 21, 2023

Some may think that the gospel started with the Bible books named after it. But that good news of the Kingdom of Heaven long preceded — and prepared the way for — the arrival of Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ). In the Torah reading וארא Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35), we see how Moses foreshadowed the gospel message and the work of the Messiah.

Read More

Could Pharaoh have repented?: Lessons from Messiah and apostle Paul (Exodus 6–9)

Daniel January 1, 2022

The God that spoke to the Pharaoh of Joseph was the same God Who spoke to the Pharaoh of Moses, who we meet in the Torah reading וארא Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35). God does not change or grow, but He expects us to grow and change for the better. When we do, He is pleased. When we don’t, He is not pleased.  God showed great favor to the “Pharaoh who knew Joseph” because this Pharaoh accepted the warnings given to him by God and by Joseph. He and his people were blessed because of his humility and wisdom.  Similarly, the chief…

Read More

How the plagues of Egypt reveal the Messiah (Exodus 6:2–9:35)

Daniel January 16, 2021

Yeshua (Jesus) said that all the Scriptures tell us about Him. With this in mind, let’s go through each of the plages in the Torah reading וארא Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35) learn how plagues God inflicted on Egypt had parallels in the life and teachings of Yeshua Himself.

Read More

Do we live as if the Creator is really in charge? (Exodus 6:2–9:35)

Jeff January 25, 2020

The Torah reading Va’era (Ex. 6:2–9:35) is the first of two accounts of how the 10 plagues on Mitzraim (Egypt) humbled a superpower of the time to bring freedom not just to Israel but to the entire world. How much more would Heaven’s sending the quintessential Son of Man to humble the “prince of the power of the air” win freedom for Israel, and by extension the whole world.

Read More

Exodus 6:2–9:35: Name dropping the first seven plagues on Mitzraim

Jeff January 9, 2016

The Torah passage Va’era (“I appeared,” Exodus 6:2–9:35) covers the first seven plagues on Mitzraim and the revealing of the Name of the LORD. Elohim’s dealing through Moshe with the pharaoh of Mitzraim to let Yisra’el out of bondage explains Elohim’s plan to save the world from its bondage to the fantasy of self-sufficiency without the Life-giver and Life-sustainer. It’s a preview of the final seven plagues of Revelation 15–16.

Read More

Hard Hearts and Sovereign Plans: Why Pharaoh Didn’t Listen

Richard February 15, 2014

The 10 plagues against Mitsraim (Egypt) were judgments against the false deities of the land, to show the descendants of Yisra’el (Israel) and the people of the land Who was the true God.

Read More

Moshe of ‘uncircumcised lips’ learns The Name (Exodus 6)

Richard February 8, 2014

Moshe (Moses) in Exodus 6 said his lips were “uncircumcised” and insisted that prevented him from sharing The Name of God to Yisra’el (Israel). We know about circumcision of a man’s privates and metaphorically of the “heart,” but what is this, and how is it connected to sharing knowledge of The Name?

Read More

Exodus 7-8 — Aharon’s rod ‘eats’ the magicians’ rods; the first three plagues on Mitsraim

Richard March 6, 2010

The people of Israel didn’t follow Moshe (Moses) initially. Moshe didn’t believe that Pharaoh would hear him either. God affirmed Moshe yet God told Moshe and Aaron to go to Pharaoh anyway. God had a plan to elevate Moshe and Aharon (Aaron) in the eyes of Pharaoh and the people of Israel. The first three plagues were unleashed on Mitsraim (Egypt) but the magicians of Mitsraim have the same power and Pharaoh doesn’t want to believe that the hand of the Creator is at work in Moshe and Aharon.

Read More

When God Reveals His Name: Lessons from Exodus 6

Richard February 27, 2010

In today’s discussion, we explored Exodus 6, focusing on God’s promise to deliver Israel and the meaning behind His name, “I Am, that I Am.” We talked about Moses’ doubts, the Israelites’ broken spirits under oppression, and how God’s actions fulfill His promises. The group reflected on the importance of faith during hardship, the pattern of God revealing Himself, and the significance of genealogy in understanding Israel’s story. We also connected these lessons to our own spiritual journeys.

Read More