195 Guidelines to Scripture study | nazareneisrael2house

Guidelines to Scripture study.

Scriptural Keys and aids are useful tools when studying Elohim’s word, but cannot replace the guidance of a qualified teacher in our search for Scriptural truths. Yahshua our Messiah resumed the teacher/discipleship program started by Moses when he taught Joshua in the congregation in the wilderness and did not start a new congregation at Pentecost in 31 CE as some assert. The original congregation of Elohim was started in the wilderness as witnessed in Acts 7: 37 & 38, in this way: “This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘ELOHIM SHALL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR BRETHREN.’ (38) This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness together with the angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, and who was with our fathers; and he received living oracles to pass on to you.” Talking about the teacher/discipleship program, Yahshua said in Luke 6: 39 & 40: “A blind man cannot guide a blind man, can he? Will they not both fall into a pit? (40) A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.” We know from the Scriptures that Messiah’s discipleship program lasted about 3½ years.

Rav Shaul also spoke about getting to know YHVH and His ways in Romans 10: 13 & 14, saying: ‘For “WHOEVER WILL CALL UPON THE NAME OF YHVH, WILL BE SAVED.” (14) How then shall they call upon Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?’ Messiah told His disciples In Matthew 16: 18 that He will continue to build His congregation and that the gates of Hades (death) shall not prevail against it (meaning it will remain) until He returns to earth. He instructed His disciples (and by implication also us His modern day disciples) in Matthew 28: 18 - 20, saying: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (19) Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Set-apart Spirit, (20) teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” However, this should be understood in the context of what He said to His disciples in Matthew 10: 5 – 8, when He instructed them, saying: “Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; (6) but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (scattered throughout the world because of their idolatry). (7) And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ (8) Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons; freely you received, freely give.” Yahshua came only to bring the lost sheep of the house of Israel back to the covenant they made together with the house of Judah at Mount Sinai with YHVH (as He told the Canaanite woman who asked Him to heal her demon-possessed daughter in Matthew 15: 24)[1], in order to re-establish the tabernacle of David which has fallen, as Rav Yaa’cov explained in Acts 15: 15 – 18, saying: “And with this the words of the Prophets agree, just as it is written, (16) ‘AFTER THESE THINGS I will return, AND I WILL REBUILD THE TABERNACLE OF DAVID WHICH HAS FALLEN, AND I WIILL REBUILD ITS RUINS, AND I WILL RESTORE IT, (17) IN ORDER THAT THE REST OF MANKIND MAY SEEK YHVH, AND ALL THE GENTILES WHO ARE CALLED BY MY NAME,’ (18) SAYS YHVH, WHO MAKES THESE THINGS KNOWN FROM OF OLD.”

The congregation of Elohim is presently made up of Torah observant members of the house of Judah, plus a remnant of believers from the lost-ten-tribes of Israel, whom YHVH is busy calling out of the religious systems of the world. It also includes a number of real Gentiles from all over the world, who are called to replace some of the Israelites whom YHVH calls, but who are spiritually too blind to see the truth, or too rebellious to change and as a result lose their future crowns to Gentiles. Nevertheless, those whom YHVH is busy calling from amongst the Gentiles need to be mindful of the Messiah’s parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22: 2 – 14; that they like any Israelite who answers Elohim’s call, should follow Him in the same way that He specified for all Israel. They need to put wedding garments on by washing their robes in the word of Elohim (by obeying Torah[2]). It is as Moses wrote in Numbers 15: 15, saying: ‘As for the assembly, there shall be one statute for you and for the alien who sojourns with you, a perpetual statute throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the alien be before YHVH.’ This as well as the fact that not only the dispersed of Israel will be gathered to YHVH is confirmed by Isaiah in Isaiah 56: 6 – 8, as follows: “Also the foreigners who join themselves to YHVH, to minister to Him, and to love the name of YHVH, to be His servants, everyone who keeps from profaning the Sabbath, and holds fast My covenant; (7) Even those I will bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable on My altar; for My house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples.” (8) YHVH Elohim, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, “Yet others I will gather to them, to those already gathered.”’ We all need to make sure that we have our wedding garments on at Messiah’s return by continually washing our robes in the word. Brethren we currently have people in South Africa, the USA, the U K, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, India, Kenya, Lesotho and elsewhere in Africa who are obeying Elohim’s call to come out of Babylon the false church system, through which Satan has deceived the whole world. They are our brethren and we should regularly pray for them.

Elohim tells us through the writings of Rav Shaul in 1 Thessalonians 5: 19 – 22, ‘Do not quench the Spirit; (20) do not despise prophetic utterances. (21) But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; (22) abstain from every form of evil.’ Each one of us has a role to play, but Elohim have provided faithful teachers to teach Elohim’s word without distorting it. This is why Rav Shaul instructed Titus saying in Titus 1: 5 – 9, ‘For this reason I left you in Crete, that you might set in order what remains, and appoint elders in every city as I directed you, (6) namely, if any man be above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. (7) For the overseer must be above reproach as Elohim’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious (contentious), not fond of sordid gain, (8) but hospitable, loving what is good, sensible, just, devout, self-controlled, (9) holding fast the faithful word which is in accordance with the teaching, that he may be able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict.’ Messiah predicted that deceivers would claim to represent Him, even using His name, saying in Matthew 7: 15 – 23: “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. (16) You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? (17) Even so, every good tree bears good fruit; but the bad tree bears bad fruit. (18) A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. (19) Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. (20) So then, you will know them by their fruits. (21) Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. (22) Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Master, Master, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name performed many miracles?’ (23) And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.’ A teacher must faithfully teach and obey Elohim’s Torah teachings. The prophet Isaiah wrote in Isaiah 8: 16 – 20: ‘Bind up the testimony[3], seal the law among my disciples. (The words ‘bind up’ and ‘seal’ denote that we as disciples of truth need not add anything to the doctrines already specified in the Scriptures). (17) And I will wait for YHVH who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will even look eagerly for Him. (18) Behold, I and the children whom YHVH has given me are for signs and wonders in Israel from YHVH of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. (The children of Israel who are doing what Elohim’s chosen people Judah are doing as Mount Zion[4].) (19) And when they say to you, “Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people consult their Elohim? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? (20) To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn (or light[5]).’ That tells us as disciples of Yahshua, that the bases of our faith have been established and we need not come up with new doctrines or commandments, but believe in those already bound up and sealed in the word of Elohim.

The Scriptures describe the characteristics of the congregation that Elohim called out of the religions of the world, as follows: ‘A little or small flock.’ Yahshua our Messiah referred to those who make up His congregation in Luke 12: 32, saying: “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom.” He further referred to them in Matthew 7: 13 & 14 as those who follow a narrow, difficult way which not many in this world are willing to follow, saying: “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. (14) For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.” Rav Yaa’cov warned believers throughout the ages not to befriend the world and its values, in James 4: 4, saying: ‘You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward Elohim? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of Elohim.’ This clearly shows that Elohim’s congregation is not part of the most populous religions of this world and that the Scriptures cannot be understood without guidance from Elohim. It is therefore important that we always ask Elohim to open our hearts and minds to understand what we study in His word. Elohim defines the attitude and approach He expects from those who study His word in Isaiah 66: 2, saying: “’For My hand made all these things, thus all these things came into being’, declares YHVH, ‘but to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.’” It is clear from this that Elohim chooses those to whom He wills to reveal spiritual truths and understanding to, as is shown in Luke 24: 44 – 45, when He opened His disciples minds to understand the Scriptures after His resurrection, saying: ‘“These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” (45) Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.’ It is not our intellect that let us understand the Scriptures, it is by Elohim’s help (or his divine presence) that we understand the Scriptures.

Most people overlook this vitally important fact when studying the Scriptures. Even if we are the cleverest people on the earth, if Elohim does not open our minds, the Word of Elohim will remain a closed book to us. It is as Rav Shaul explains in 1 Corinthians 2: 11 – 15, saying: ‘For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so the thoughts of Elohim no one knows except the Spirit of Elohim. (12) Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from Elohim, that we might know the things freely given to us by Elohim, (13) which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. (14) But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of Elohim; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. (15) But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no man.’ Since Elohim inspired the Scriptures, it is not a book that takes only human intellect to understand. Elohim reserves the right to give understanding of His truths to whomever He wills. This is why when YHVH calls us as first-fruits out of the religions of the world, immersion is the very first step that we should take to obtain Elohim’s Spirit, to firstly show Him that we are serious about our calling and secondly to ensure our understanding of His spiritually appraised things better. It is for this reason crucial for us to understand that our motivation for studying the Scriptures is important. If we feel we have to study the Scriptures as a religious duty, Elohim will not likely open the meaning of what we read in the Scriptures to our minds. But if we seek to understand Elohim’s word with all our being, He will reveal His truths to us as He promised in Deuteronomy 4: 29, saying: ‘But from there you will seek YHVH your Elohim, and you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart (your belief system) and all your soul (the way you live your life).’ This is saying that we will find Elohim, if we put our faith into actions in our lives – obey Elohim’s law because we trust that the promises He made in His word will come to fruition in the near future, when Messiah comes to rule the world from Jerusalem. The reason why attitude is so important is as Rav Shaul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1: 26 – 29, saying: ‘For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; (27) but Elohim has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and Elohim has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, (28) and the base things of the world and the despised, Elohim has chosen, the things that are not, that He might nullify the things that are, (29) that no man should boast before Elohim.’ No one will ever be able to boast that he was able to correctly understand Elohim’s spiritual truths with only his own intelligence and effort.

If we come humbly before YHVH our Elohim and are committed to obey what He teaches, we are on the right track, as Yahshua also explained in Matthew 18: 3 & 4, saying: “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven. (4) Whoever then humbles himself as this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” So, it has nothing to do with our intelligence, if we do not humble ourselves and become as teachable as a little child, Elohim will not help us to understand His word! Elohim promises those who humbly ask Him for wisdom and understanding, to give it to them, as Rav Yaa’cov wrote in James 1: 5, saying: ‘But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of Elohim, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.’ Throughout the Scriptures there are examples of individuals who humbly asked for wisdom from Elohim and were rewarded. An example that most people are able to recall is that of Solomon, when YHVH gave him the opportunity to ask for whatever he wants and Solomon asked for discernment as recorded in first Kings 3: 7 - 12, saying: “And now, O YHVH my Elohim, Thou hast made Thy servant king in place of my father David, yet I am but a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. (8) And Thy servant is in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, a great people who cannot be numbered or counted for multitude. (9) So give Thy servant an understanding heart to judge Thy people to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Thine? (10) And it was pleasing in the sight of YHVH that Solomon had asked this thing. (11) And Elohim said to him, ‘Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice,’ (12) behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you.”

On the other hand we also have examples of those who relied on their own ability and were consequently humiliated such as Cain, Pharaoh, King Saul, and Nebuchadnezzar. A very good example of an appropriate, humble approach to learning Scriptural truths is described in Acts 17: 10 – 12, as follows: ‘And the brethren immediately sent Shaul and Silas away by night to Berea; and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. (11) Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so (not, not so). (12) Many of them (Jews) therefore believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men.’ Unlike others even today, the Bereans did not immediately reject what Rav Shaul was teaching. They carefully reviewed the Scriptures that he used in His teaching, with an open mind, to make sure that what he was teaching was in accordance with their own long-held beliefs. If we want to understand Scriptural truths we need to similarly to the Bereans, have a humble attitude and be willing to learn. We need to carefully review the Scriptures, not taking our beliefs for granted, because our own ideas could be wrong. However, humility is not the only attribute required when we study Elohim’s word. The Scriptures clearly show that some who come to an understanding of certain basic revealed spiritual truths will lose that understanding because they do not act on what they learnt. By tacitly rejecting knowledge revealed by Elohim, they chose to put aside their humility and exalt their point of view. It is for this very reason that Hosea wrote in Hosea 4: 6, saying: ‘My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being My priest. Since you have forgotten the law of your Elohim. I also will forget your children.’ So we see that it is not that knowledge is not available, but it is because they reject the knowledge given to them, by their actions – and even though YHVH called them to come out of the world, to become kings and priests, if they reject His truth He will ultimately reject them from being priests as He also rejected King Saul.

In Yahshua’s parable of the sower in Luke 8 He showed why some will understand, whilst others will not, saying to His disciples in verses 10 - 15, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of Elohim, but to the rest it is in parables, in order that SEEING THEY MAY NOT SEE, AND HEARING THEY MAY NOT UNDERSTAND. (11) Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of Elohim. (12) And those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they may not believe and be saved. (13) And those on the rocky soil are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no firm root; they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away. (14) And the seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard, and as they go on their way they are choked with worries and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to maturity. (15) And the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.” These words of Messiah are but some of the reasons people fail to grow in spiritual understanding. Most people do not persevere in Elohim’s word because of negligence and a lack of faith. A prayerful humble attitude, seeking help from Elohim and His servants to understand His Scriptural truths, leads us to put into action what we have learnt. These are the initial two keys to understand and apply Elohim’s Torah truths in our lives. Another key to understanding Elohim’s word follows logically from these two first keys, namely:

That the right attitude leads to obedience of Elohim’s Torah. Rav Yaa’cov tells us that we should be ‘doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.’ He continues in James 1: 23 – 25 saying: “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; (24) for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. (25) But one who looks intently at the perfect law (Torah), the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.” It is therefore important to understand, that once we have learnt something new from the Scriptures, we proof our faith by doing or applying what we’ve learnt in our lives, with a humble attitude. We need to realize that for us to understand Elohim’s word, we must learn about and respect His Torah, as aptly explained in Psalm 111: 10, in this way: ‘The fear of YHVH is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.’ Rav Shaul the person many mistakenly claim to have done away with Torah, says in Romans 2: 13, ‘For not the hearers of the Law are just before Elohim, but the doers of the Law will be justified.’ If an individual reads the Scriptures, merely to see what it says and do not do what it teaches, such a person is not pleasing Elohim and can accordingly not expect His help. It is as Solomon advised in Proverbs 28: 9, saying: ‘He who turns away his ear from listening to the law, even his prayer is an abomination.’ The word ‘listening’ as used here implies that you take to heart what you hear and apply it in your life. Even though many believe that Yahshua the Messiah came to do away with Torah, He said just the opposite in the now familiar Matthew 5: 17 & 18: “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. (18) For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass away from the Law, until all is accomplished.” In fact Yahshua continued teaching in verses 19 & 20 that Elohim’s commandments need to be kept better than what the scribes and the Pharisees are keeping it, saying: “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and so teaches others, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. (20) For I say to you, that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Yahshua told those who follow Him, but do not obey Elohim’s commandments in Matthew 7: 21, saying: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.” Messiah expected His followers to have a deep respect for Elohim’s commandments, similar to the way in which He always obeyed them. Throughout His life on earth He upheld and taught Elohim’s commandments. Rav Kepha wrote to people who desire to retain Elohim’s Set-apart Spirit, in Acts 5: 32, saying: “And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Set-apart Spirit, whom Elohim has given to those who obey Him.” Whereas our Jewish Brothers get the Set-apart Spirit by being obedient to Elohim’s Torah, we from the lost sheep of the house of Israel are given a portion of Elohim’s Set-apart Spirit after we are suitably immersed into Yahshua’s saving name. But believers from both houses retain the Set-apart Spirit by remaining Torah observant until we die, or when Messiah returns, whichever occurs first. Yahshua was immersed by a Rabbi (Torah teacher)[6] and expects each and every one of us His followers, to be immersed by a Torah teacher. However, deacons may also immerse new believers, but in such cases an elder (or Torah teacher) have to lay hands on the believer, in order for the believer to receive the Set-apart Spirit, as explained in Acts 8: 12 – 17, in this way: ‘But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of Elohim and the name of Yahshua Messiah, they were being immersed, men and women alike. (13) And even Simon himself believed; and after being immersed, he continued on with Philip; and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed. (14) Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of Elohim, they sent them Kepha and Yochanan, (15) who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Set-apart Spirit. (16) For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been immersed in the name of the Master Yahshua. (17) Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Set-apart Spirit.’ Faithful obedience is therefore another important key, to understand Elohim’s word, the Scriptures.

To fully understand the Scriptures, it is necessary that we accept the authority of all the Scriptures over our lives. All the books of the Scriptures in both the Tanach and the Renewed Covenant are the inspired word of Elohim. Elohim assured us through the writings of Rav Shaul in 2 Timothy 3: 16 & 17, that: “All Scripture is inspired by Elohim and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; (17) that the man of Elohim may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” This means that we may confidently, without any doubt accept all the books of the Scriptures as originally written as the inspired, infallible word of Elohim. Even though there are occasional human errors (and personal agendas in Scriptures aimed at specific groups) in the different versions and translations, the original versions were correct and it is often necessary to make a comparison among the various versions and translations, to help us arrive at the true meaning or more correct translation of the text. But, what evidence do we have that all the books of the Scriptures are inspired by Elohim? What makes the Scriptures unique in its consistency? About 40 authors wrote the various books contained in the Scriptures over many centuries and only a few of these writers knew one another personally. However, a continual agreement of philosophy and thought are obvious throughout their writings. The Scriptures is not only historically accurate, but its unifying principles are to be found from the beginning to the end. Faith is one of these unifying principles; throughout the centuries of Scriptural history, the same faith is to be found in the accounts of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and the prophets, Yahshua our Messiah Himself, His apostles and the members of the early congregation. Hebrews 11 shows that for millennia a unity of thought was based on the principle of faith. It is therefore important to bear these spiritual principles in mind when we study the Scriptures. Whether we study Torah, the prophets, the Psalms, the four gospels, or the letters of the apostles, we will discover that all are connected to the same underlying principles inspired by Elohim. Even though many views and interpretations of what the Scriptures say are contradictory, not one of these dogmatic views affects the integrity of the Scriptures themselves.

Elohim’s commandments are another unifying principle; they form the spine of the Scriptures and are the basis of His relationship with mankind. The commandments YHVH gave verbally to Noah and Abraham in Genesis, where basic principles were expanded throughout the remainder of the Scriptures. We read accordingly from the final chapter of Revelation in verse 14: “Blessed are those who wash their robes (or as per the KJV: ‘keep the commandments.’), that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city.” Elohim’s commandments remain the same from the beginning of the Scriptures, right up to the end and even though Messiah amplified them in the Renewed Covenant as prophesied by Isaiah in Isaiah 42: 21[7], YHVH inspired all Scriptures, although different authors penned it throughout the centuries. Messiah pointed out that all Scriptures are based on the framework of the commandments of Elohim, in Matthew 22: 37 – 40, saying: “’YOU SHALL LOVE YHVH YOUR ELOHIM WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ (38) This is the great and foremost commandment. (39) The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ (40) On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” Rav Kepha wrote about the inspiration of the Tanach saying in first Peter 1: 10 – 12, ‘As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful search and inquiry, (11) seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Messiah within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Messiah and the glories to follow. (12) It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Set-apart Spirit sent from heaven— things into which angels long to look.’ He continues saying in 2 Peter 1: 20 & 21, ‘But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, (21) for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Set-apart Spirit spoke from Elohim.’ However, even during Rav Kepha’s time some were already twisting parts of the Scriptures to their own demise, as he wrote in 2 Peter 3: 14 – 16, saying: ‘Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, (15) and regard the patience of our Master to be salvation; just as also our beloved brother Shaul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, (16) as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction.’ Before the books of the Renewed Covenant had been canonized, the ‘Scriptures’ to which Rav Shaul referred to was the Tanach. For many decades in the early congregation this was the only Scriptures available. The acceptance of only parts of the Scriptures as a basis for faith has resulted in literally hundreds of different denominations, all with contrary beliefs. However, if we want to do justice to what the Scriptures teach, we should base our faith on the entire Scriptures form Genesis to Revelation, as Yahshua said to Satan in Matthew 4: 4, in this way: “It is written, ‘MAN SHALL NOT LIVE ON BREAD ALONE, BUT ON EVERY WORD THAT PROCEEDS OUT OF THE MOUTH OF ELOHIM.’” We should rely on the Scriptures and not man’s ideas to explain Elohim’s truths. It is one thing to view the Scriptures as a collection of stories, but it is quite another to accept it as the inspired word of Elohim.

It is not enough to quote an isolated verse; we must keep in mind the context. Sometimes only by reading whole chapters and sometimes a number of verses from all over the Scriptures are we able to understand a section correctly. For example some quote Mark 7: 18 – 19 to show that meats declared unfit for human consumption in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14 may now be eaten. Messiah asks here: “Are you so lacking in understanding also? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defile him; because it does not go into his heart, but into his stomach and is eliminated?” Most Scriptures add after the words of Messiah here in brackets (Thus He declared all foods clean) showing that this was added by the people who penned the Scriptures and not by Yahshua Himself. Yet, the context of the chapter reveals the true meaning. If we start reading from verse 5 of Mark 7, we get to understand that the question was not whether particular foods should be eaten or avoided, but the way in which the disciples were eating: ‘And the Pharisees and the scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure (unwashed) hands?” The Pharisees were criticizing Yahshua’s disciples for eating with unwashed hands and nowhere in this section of the Scriptures is clean and unclean foods brought into the discussion, as those who wants us to believe that Yahshua did away with Torah. Messiah answered them in verse 8 of Mark 7, saying: “Neglecting the commandments of Elohim, you hold to the tradition of men.” Even though Messiah did not mean that we should not wash our hands before meals, we need to understand that a little dirt on our hands will not make the food that Elohim declared clean, unclean, when there are no washing amenities available. This same incident is mentioned in Matthew 15, but more details are added, where Yahshua said in Matthew 15: 19 & 20, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. (20) These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.” Taking Messiah’s exhortation in context, we see that the misunderstanding is cleared up. Yahshua was not doing away with Elohim’s Torah about clean and unclean foods in this section; He was stating that small amounts of dirt that might be present on our hands and attached to food we eat will be eliminated through our digestive systems.

There are also various Scriptural aids available that may assist us in understanding Elohim’s word better, since the Hebrew and Greek languages of the Scriptures are very different from our modern languages. Rav Shaul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2: 15, saying: ‘Be diligent to present yourself approved to Elohim as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.’ Rav Shaul was saying that like a workman makes use of certain tools to be able to do his job better, so we should use proper tools to help us understand the Scriptures better. We see that Rav Jude used the Book of Enoch to explain what he was saying in Jude 14, ‘And about these also Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, saying, “behold, YHVH came with many thousands of His holy ones.’ Rav Shaul often quoted from the Tanach to explain some of his discussions. So, we see that besides the Scriptures, these men sometimes used and quoted from other sources to assist the brethren in understanding the word of Elohim better. We could also use other translations of the Scriptures, Bible encyclopedias, dictionaries as well as commentaries to the Scriptures. However, we should be careful in using these works by outside people, since most of the aids available to us today, even though they are useful giving translations of verses into Hebrew and Greek, they could be biased according to the author’s personal beliefs and agendas. It is therefore important to realize that most of these works available to us today, were written by Christian authors – promoters of the religious system we need to get out of. So, we should use such tools with care, understanding that certain commentaries are purely the views of the person who wrote it, and that what he wrote is definitely not part of the Scriptures. These Scriptural aids are to be found in Bible bookstores or libraries, but could also be viewed on the internet.

Since our whole purpose as Nazarene Israelite believers is to conform to the visible image of the invisible Elohim, Yahshua, it is necessary for us to find out exactly what He was like, what He taught and did whilst He was on earth. By comparing the different translations of the Scriptures and by using these various Scriptural aids correctly, we will be able to understand Elohim’s word a great deal better and become perfect like He is perfect, as Yahshua told us in Matthew 5: 48, saying: “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Think about it!

[1] Matthew 15: 24, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” This means that Yahshua’s first advent was to bring the lost sheep of the house of Israel back to the faith into which He was born and not to Christianize the world, as some assert.

[2] We wash our robes by keeping Elohim’s commandments as may be seen by comparing Revelation 22: 14 of the New American Standard Bible to the translation found in the King James version, as follows: NASB – ‘Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter by the gates into the city’: KJV – ‘Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.’

[3] Testimony: a solemn declaration or affirmation made for the purpose of establishing or proving the same fact; such as for example the account (or history) of the first Passover, how YHVH went about to save the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt. The testimony of Yahshua is the account of His life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension to heaven, but also includes His purpose for coming to earth, as well as what He taught and did whilst He was on earth, but more importantly what He said He is coming to do at His return.

[4] Mount Zion refers specifically to Judah as David wrote in Psalm 78: 67 & 68, saying: ‘He also rejected the tent of Joseph, and did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, but chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion which He loved.’

[5] People who do not know Elohim, has no light in them, as witnessed in 1 John 1: 5, ‘And this is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that Elohim is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.’

[6] We read about Yochanan the immerser in John 3: 26, “And they came to Yochanan and said to him, ‘Rabbi, He (meaning Yahshua) who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have borne witness, behold, He is immersing, and all are coming to Him.’”

[7] Isaiah 42: 21, ‘YHVH was pleased for His righteousness’ sake to make the law great and glorious.’