The Torah reading ויגש Vayigash (“he approached,” Genesis 44:18–47:27) covers the response of Yehudah (Judah) and the brothers to the accusation by Yosef (Joseph). It’s important to understand why Yosef is doing this, because it helps us understand God and ourselves in a different light. This passage gives us a shadow of the great interceding mercy and sacrifice of Yeshua the Mashiakh (Jesus the Christ).
Why Yeshua (Jesus) went to the Temple on Chanukah, aka the Festival of Dedication and the Festival of Lights, wrapped in the history recorded in 1-4 Maccabees.
Those are prequels of sorts to the Gospels. You see why the Romans are in the Holy Land, why Yeshua warned in Matthew 24 that in the last days God’s people will have to “run to the hills,” and what the “abomination of desolation” (Dan. 11:31; 12:11; Matt. 24:15; Mark 13:14) actually looks like.
From the Torah reading וישב Vayeshev (“he settled,” Genesis 37:1-40:23), we’ll be focusing this time on a comparison between Judah’s relationship with Tamar and Joseph’s relationship with Potiphar’s wife. As we look into this “intermission” in the story, we’ll take a detour into Hosea 3-4, which will give us insight into why the men in those stories were guilty of a far greater evil than the sins of Tamar and Mrs. Potiphar.
The LORD sends us into the world to be His ambassadors (2Cor. 5:20) and part of the kingdom of priests (Ex. 19:5–6; 1Pet. 2:9–10; Rev. 5:9–10). Will we go? Will we face challenges of our own making or ones that are out of our control? Division is toxic to the Kingdom of God. How are we living this out?
In this study of the Torah reading וישלח Vayishlach (Genesis 32:3–36:43), we will go over a few of Yeshua’s parables that will make Ya’akov’s WWE match with the Angel of the LORD look logical. We will learn more about how God teaches us. We have been sent to a world full of brokenness while experiencing brokenness ourselves. How we deal with the brokenness of others and divisions and disagreements in the Body is a sign of our spiritual maturity.
The Torah reading Vayera (“and He appeared,” Genesis 18–22) aptly describes how the Creator of the Heavens and Earth shows up “in the fullness of time.”
We will see messianic parallels between the “days of Lot” in Sodom, the “days of Noah” and the Day of the LORD preceding the return of Yeshua (Jesus), the Son of Man (Matthew 24; Luke 17).
The Torah portion לח לח Lech-Lecha (Genesis 12-17) includes Abraham being called out of Ur of the Chaldeans. But there’s a specific event in Genesis 14 that deserves special focus: Abraham’s encounter with the mysterious Melchizedek. We meet this ancient pre-Israel king of Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) again in the books of Psalms and Hebrews. Why is he so important, and what does he have to do with Yeshua haMashiakh (Jesus the Christ)?
“‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. … That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.'” (John 3:3, 6 NASB)
The Torah reading Noakh, covering Genesis 6:9–11:32, is a testimony of the origin of Abraham and Israel, of different people groups and of languages. This is real history, not legend or allegory. That is important, because it’s a testimony about the intentions and actions of the Creator.
And the “days of Noah” (Matt. 24:36–44; Luke 17:22–37) teach us how we become “born again” via the Mashiakh (Christ) of God.