The cost of freedom for enslaved Yisra’el (Israel) was the death of the firstborn of Mitzraim (Egypt), and the cost of our freedom from slavery to the deathward lifestyle away from the Creator is the death of the LORD’s Firstborn, Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ).
The last three plagues, including the coming of the Destroyer for the firstborn of Mitzraim, and the first Pesakh are the focus of Torah reading בֹּא Bo (“come,” Exodus 10:1-13:16).
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 sovereignty of the Creator.
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).
This study of Torah section שְׁמוֹת Shemot (“names,” Exodus 1:1–6:1) delves into the relevance of Moshe beyond Israel’s history, highlighting universal themes of crying out for deliverance and Heaven’s response. God hears enslaved Israel’s cries for liberation and ultimately delivers, irrespective of individuals’ goodness.
Adonai’s deliverance of Israel from the “house of bondage” (Joshua 24:17) parallels each of our salvation and is why the crucifixion of the ultimate Deliverer — Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ) took place on Pesach (Passover), the annual memorial of Israel’s freedom from Mitzraim (Egypt). This one of the “appointments of Adonai” (Leviticus 23:1) isn’t just for Jews. Rather, it’s part of Heaven’s unfolding reunion plan with humanity.
“Man is free, but everywhere he is in chains,” wrote a French philosopher in the mid-18th century, setting off a firestorm in Europe against monarchy. But more than 3,000 years earlier, a greater shockwave resounded from within the superpower empire of Mitzraim (Egypt), and that’s what we see in this week’s Torah reading, שְׁמוֹת Shemot (“names,” Exodus 1:1–6:1).
“Jesus asked [a group of Pharisees] a question: ‘What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?’ They said to Him, ‘The son of David'” (Matthew 22:41–42 NASB95). The scribes and teachers of the Scriptures of Israel knew that the Messiah would descend from through King David thanks to a key phrase in the blessing the Patriarch Ya’akov (Jacob) gave to his son Yehudah (Judah) in the Torah passage וַיְחִי Vayechi (“he lived,” Genesis 47:28–50:26).
But in modern times, scholars have come to doubt that messianic interpretation, and some of the latest Bible translations no longer include “Shiloh” as a key messianic title. This study explores whether that older interpretation and translation is correct, pointing us to Yeshua as Heaven’s “Prince of Peace.”
We’ve been mining the account of the life of Yosef in Mitzraim over the past three weeks (see the sections Vayeshev, Miketz and Vayigash) to see foreshadowings of the coming Mashiakh.
These shadows grow even more defined in this week’s Torah portion, וַיְחִי Vayechi (“he lived,” Gen. 47:28–50:26). In it, we see parallels between pharaoh, Yosef and Ya’akov, and the Father, the Son and the people called Yisra’el.