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...what does it really mean?
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The Birth Series
Unequally Yoked
by haRold Smith
a citizen of the Commonwealth (Ephesians 2:19)
"Now the sons of Eli were sons of B'liya'al.
They did not know YaHoVeH." 1Samuel 2:12
"Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership does righteousness have with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness?
What accord has the Messiah with B'liya'al?
Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?" 2Corinthians 6:14-15
"Truly, I say to you, all manner of sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, but
whoever blasphemes against Spirit
never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin." Mark 3:28-29
With the article The Origin of Christmas (click on highlighted words to view content),
several wrote to ask basically, the same question: "My family does not recognize the Ten Commandments. Specifically, they refuse to abide by the scriptural Sabbath as being Saturday, not Sunday, and they keep Christmas and Easter instead of the Feasts. To keep the peace, I have just kept my head down and my mouth shut. How do I present the Truth of scripture to them so that they might see?" The real question being asked is - just how much wickedness are we to tolerate among those closest to us? This is a hard question to answer because it requires an honest appraisal of the words of Yeshua haMashiach - whose example we are to follow:
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"Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.
Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." Matthew 10:34-38
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Deuteronomy 13:12-15
shows how severely Spirit demands we are to approach this question. Sha'ul suggests in this verse that what it means to be LAWless is to be without a yoke. Those who do not follow
Torah
are not yoked to YaHoVeH. Christians are often taught that being yoked is a heavy burden; but, Yeshua approached it as beneficial when He said to
"...take My yoke upon you
and learn of Me..." To be as He is, which is
yoked to His Father's words
of Torah - that is where we find rest. There are many teaching that this verse has to do with a
marriage relationship;
but notice that in the entire chapter of 2Corinthians 6 - marriage is never mentioned. Sha'ul applies what it means to be unequally yoked to
the Temple
now being within or among those who embrace the Life of Yeshua. So, since words mean things, just what does the Hebrew rabbi Sha'ul mean to be unequally yoked to B'liya'al in this verse? Who or what is
B'liya'al?
This Hebrew word means "worthlessness, destruction, wicked, wickedness" and actually comes from two Hebrew words: the first is
beli
meaning, a "wearing out, unconcerned, unrestrained, without" and the other is
ya'al
meaning, "to confer or gain profit or benefit" (to give or to gain something does not necessarily mean money). When understanding this concept and term as derived from these two words we can see that the two sons of Eli in the first verse above, even though they were priests supposedly set apart for service to YaHoVeH, were foolishly unrestrained and unconcerned as to how they gained benefit for themselves; showing no regard for the Torah of Elohim - and, as a result, they
DID NOT KNOW YaHoVeH
even though they thought their position compensated for their lack of respect. As a result of not fearing YaHoVeH, they became arrogant and thought that they could do whatever they wanted to, however they wanted to and still remain in
the Present Presence.
It was in the disregard of their words and deeds that clearly showed their blasphemy toward
the Name of YaHoVeH
- whom they thought they were serving.
Several have also written to ask just what blasphemy is (fearful of having said or done something that might have placed them into judgment). As mentioned earlier, words mean things. The Hebrew word translated "blaspheme" in the verse from
Psalm 74:10
is na'ats
and means "to spurn, despise, abhor, deride, to reject with contempt and derision". The Greek word translated in the verse from Mark 3:28-29 above is
blasphemeo
which carries a similar meaning, "to speak reproachfully, rail at, revile, to be evil spoken of". The Hebrew phrase
ruach
ha
kodesh
(reading right to left is Hebrew for "the holiness of spirit") has been used inadvertently as a substitute for the English "Holy Spirit" appearing in their bibles. This is incorrect as there is no capitalization in Hebrew; thus, there is no personification, no third person
"Holy Spirit".
Scripturally, apart from the Spirit of YaHoVeH, man is devoid of any spirit
intrinsic to himself.
What is the holiness of spirit? Holiness is the Nature abiding in Spirit, Who is YaHoVeH. The holiness of spirit is something that is
cultivated
within an individual by that individual. Once we have seen that the term "Holy Spirit" is a convoluted translation of the Hebrew perspective of there being only
One Spirit
spoken of throughout scripture, then, simply put from a scriptural basis, blasphemy is to proclaim that what YaHoVeH says is good is really evil and what YaHoVeH says is evil is really good. Selah (Hebrew for, "pause and think about this for a minute"). This might be uncomfortable to hear, but isn't that precisely what the religion "Christianity" does by redefining the words of scripture according to
its own predetermined theology
and promoting that theology as Truth - theology that directly countermands the words written? Isn't that the very definition of what it means to "bear false witness" contained in the
Ten Words?
For decades in my walk as a Christian, I was told and accepted that blasphemy was attributing the things of the Father to "the devil" - something I thought I was in keeping with. But, if my understanding of evil was encapsulated in a
false persona
of "the devil" - how could I really know what was good from evil to keep from becoming a blasphemer?
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...the Ten Words are Easy
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Mention to a devout follower of Christianity (especially someone in a position of Christian
"leadership")
that the scriptural Sabbath
is Saturday and that to proclaim otherwise is to follow the
precepts of men
instead of the Words of the Holy One of Israel as recorded in
Exodus 20:1-17
- and witness for yourself if the kind of response you get falls into the "reproachful" category or not. Mention the same about the pagan rites of
Christmas
or Easter
and watch what happens - all that "love" stuff these Christians proclaim to be under girding their faith flies right out the window. Christianity takes the position that everything west of the book of Matthew does not apply anymore because "Christ died on the cross for me" even when (as seen in the article,
Not A Sinner)
there is no scriptural support for this stand - except for a twisted redefining of
the words of the One
they claim to follow. The scriptural definition of evil is
to separate from.
To say the Words of YaHoVeH do not apply to me is to proclaim that what He has said is good is really evil because, as the sons of Eli, I purposefully separate myself from those Words. Usually, because followers of this Christian religion just don’t know precisely what scripture says, they end up listening to someone tell them what to believe and, without realizing it, the Words of YaHoVeH spoken of in scripture, upheld and supported by the
Words of His Son
become redefined according to their own traditions, their own social and cultural morals - thereby, becoming
nullified and declared void.
The Words of YaHoVeH contained in the Book are not guidelines on what the world considers to be
"proper morals"
- they are not "right and wrong, good and bad" rules. All of the words contained in the Book were written by Hebrews primarily to those within
the family of YaHoVeH
who are in a covenant relationship with Him - not to the world. The words of the Book are given to YaHoVeH's Family as
instructions
(not rules) on how to remain in the Kingdom of His family - how to keep from being
separated
from His Presence of Light.
When a person becomes a citizen of any kingdom in the world, there is no question about whether that citizenship includes a behavioral observance of the laws governing that kingdom. Why would anyone think that citizenship in YaHoVeH's Kingdom is any different?
Scripture
tells us that Gentiles are INTO
the Hebrew Kingdom of YaHoVeH of which Yeshua
is presently the King of
- not the other way around. Yeshua even proclaimed it to be His
Father's Kingdom.
If Christians say that they are citizens of YaHoVeH's Kingdom, then what gives them the audacity to pick and choose which of His instructions and definitions apply to them? Could it be they are following the
tradition of men
instead of the Words of the Son? "But, what about all the millions who have followed Christianity for the past 1700 years - were they all deceived?" is often a common retort given by those who want to justify their position in defiance of the Words of YaHoVeH. Just because a belief becomes popular does not make it Truth. Many millions of the Islamic religion over centuries have died believing Allah is a supreme god - are they also exempt from the Truth of scripture simply because they believe wholeheartedly in a popular cultural phenomena?
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"On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy
in your name,
and cast out demons
in your name,
and do many mighty works
in your name'?
And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me,
you workers of LAWlessness." Matthew 7:22-23
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Most Christians believe this verse applies to everyone who is not a Christian engaged in some kind of cultural immoral behavior. But, again - words mean things. Notice that these folks who did not know Him were throwing His Name around as if they knew Him intimately. We have to ask ourselves, "What do these words really mean?" Remembering that there were no "Christians" around at the time these words were written, what would it mean to
KNOW
YaHoVeH to the people Yeshua was speaking to? The Greek word translated "lawlessness" or "iniquity" in this verse is
anomia
which means "contempt and violation of law". It is the same word used in
1John 3:4
to define what sin is. The only "law" that was referred to when any of these words were written was
Torah.
Evil is defined in scripture
as defiance to YaHoVeH's Words exhibited by a behavioral opposition
to those Words. So, then, how are we to act toward those outside the Kingdom - those who treat YaHoVeH's Torah with contempt?
1Corinthians 5:11-13
says we are to "…purge the evil person from among you". Sha'ul was quoting the words of
Deuteronomy 13:5
which say the means of preserving the brilliance of Light is to purge, to expel anyone from you who would lead you astray from the Light of YaHoVeH's Words - into darkness, not some moral stance of the world. He says do not have anything to do with such people. He does NOT say, try to "convert them" or "persevere with them" or "tolerate them" or "convince them they are wrong" - he says "do not associate with them". That means do not engage with them in their pagan revelry. Ouch! Oh, man - this is getting even more uncomfortable. "But, what about my brother, sister, son, daughter, mother, father, etc. - do I just abandon them?" is usually the next question that follows. How did Yeshua respond to this question? He answered it in
Matthew 12:46-50
saying, "...whoever does the will of my Father IS my brother and sister and mother". For those who embrace the paradigm of what it truly means to be a part of YaHoVeH's family, that means embracing the One Authority who determines what is good and what is evil. That authority is YaHoVeH as exampled in the Life of Yeshua. What He says is good IS good. What He says is evil IS evil. And there is no argument or appeal or exception or excuse or picking and choosing which of His instructions and definitions apply. When the King speaks, the citizens obey. And, in this case, the citizens are also the family of the King. Anyone not adhering to the Words of the King is considered an illegal alien. And, as with all illegality, there comes a
Separation.
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"If anyone comes to Me, and does not
hate
his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life,
he cannot be My disciple
." Luke 14:26
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Again - Ouch! What could Yeshua possibly mean by this statement? Most English translations will include some sort of marginal note attempting to explain away the severity of this verse. Even Hebrew translations of this text contain notes suggesting the Hebrew verb
sane
should be understood as "to love less by comparison." But sane is the opposite of
ahav,
so it's hard to see the justification for mollifying its impact. This statement just doesn't want to sit well with any loving person and it hardly seems appropriate of the loving Son of a loving God. We could appeal to the parallel passage in
Matthew 6:24
and say that Yeshua really meant "love them more than me." Or we could try to tone down the Greek verb
miseo
(hate). But this is difficult. Miseo is the opposite of agapao and phileo (love), both commanded by Yeshua. No matter how we slice it, it certainly looks like Yeshua is breaking the fifth commandment to honor father and mother. However, there is one rabbinic comment that might explain Yeshua's remark within the Hebrew context. It is a rabbinic teaching on
Leviticus 19:3
that says, "Even though I have admonished you regarding fearing (your) father, if he shall say to you 'Profane the Sabbath,' do not listen to him." Clearly, the requirement to honor parents or anyone else depends on the condition that these people are encouraging Torah obedience. If Yeshua's remark is taken in this sense, wouldn't this rabbinic exception apply if relatives were instructing you to disregard His
firstborn status
by disregarding His Words? And Yeshua
clearly said
that His Words were not His but those of His Father's.
The context surrounding Yeshua's statement is about understanding the cost of discipleship. He uses a parable about building a tower, He exhorts followers to carry their own crosses and He talks about planning for battle. In fact, the entire context around this difficult verse is about proper evaluation and preparation. His words are directed to those who have been living their lives without serious reflection on the demands of the Kingdom. Now Yeshua says, "Even if your closest family, even if you yourself provide justification for not doing what I demand, what YaHoVeH demands - do not honor them. Repel such suggestions. Hate that alternative by separating yourself from it. Do not let your present view of life prevent you from becoming a follower of the One who is greater than all these." This is a perfectly adequate rabbinic explanation for such a difficult saying, an explanation that does not require us to moderate the meaning of the verbs. It is also an explanation that upholds Torah. But in order to see it, we have to become students of the Greatest Rabbi. Nevertheless, there it is. It is consistent with Torah. There is no reason not to embrace it and, in so doing, maintaining the integrity of the text as it stands. Yeshua's rabbinic approach to discipleship raises an important question for all of us - are we willing to stand and
uphold Torah
no matter who tells us that we don't have to? Are we ready to be His disciples, follow His example and live according to His instructions no matter what? That's the real question.
Evil is real
and it surrounds us. But you and I can decide to have nothing to do with it. Evil will still attempt to seduce us - particularly among those of our natural family. Are we so immune to believe that nothing can touch us or get under our skin? We would not be human if we did. But we refuse to participate! We refuse to actively pursue, encourage, endorse, experiment with, favor, consider, or sanction any of it. We stand for righteousness even when that standing means being exposed to the darkness in others. I hear the applause, "...preach it, brother. That's us. We won't let any of the bad stuff in." But if all we do is circle the wagons, put up the walls, retreat to the monasteries - then we have not understood Yeshua or YaHoVeH.
"Evil I will not know"
means standing in the face of evil and choosing not to partake of it
(Psalm 23:5).
We do not retreat into closed communities of common conscience.
As Yeshua,
we walk among the wounded but we do not accommodate death in any of its forms. We are not still when we are silent before Him. We are not lax to stand before Him in a familiar crowd. We remain gracious but do not accommodate evil "just to get along". My family gathers together at Christmas and I will be among them to reinforce familial bonds by eating a meal with them; but afterwards, as they begin worshiping the tree and gifts - I politely excuse myself and leave.
???Questions???
Please feel free to email me at harold@hethathasanear.com.
While not claiming to have all
the answers, it would be an honor to partake with you of what Spirit is uncovering.
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