What is a Son of Peace?

5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ 6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages; do not go from house to house. Luke 10:5-6

The context of this verse, is the sending out of the seventy. They were going  to Jewish communities to announce the Kingdom. Something that the Jews were expecting any day. They all knew of Daniels Seventy Weeks Prophecy, and new the time was fulfilled. This is not about general evangelism to people who know nothing of God’s plans and purposes.

The passage is also in a culture of hospitality. There were no hotels, campgrounds, or other accommodations for travelers. Towns and individuals were expected to be hospitable, taking travelers in and providing food and shelter.

The “son of peace,” is a Hebrew idiom, meaning a hospitable person.

To be a “son of something,” means to be in the group of what ever the something is. We see this usage in 2Kings. 

And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the LORD will take away your master from over you?” And he said, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.” 2Kings 2:3

Shalom has many meanings; completeness, contentment, friendship, quiet, safety, soundness, tranquility, welfare, and of course lack of conflict. However these are people looking for the Sar Shalom i.e. the Prince of Peace.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Is. 9:6

Messiah is instructing the seventy to go where they are welcomed and wanted. Where there are people who know the Kingdom is coming and are seeking to understand that Kingdom. 

The Song of Songs: Life in the Harem of God

 Download $15.00

Is now available in the bookstore

A look at the typology of the Song of Songs.

God gave us the gift of a love song.  However, because He gave it with a great deal of erotic content the Church has sought over the centuries to discourage believers from even peeking at their gift. However, there comes a time when a believer is mature enough to handle the information contained in this little package.  Don’t let the overpious keep you from tearing the wrappings off your divine package.

He meant for this sensual book to bring us into a deeper and more authentic relationship with Him, as we come to realize that we are meant to be God’s lovers.  We begin to realize that His omnipresence allows for all of us individually to be His one and only, His favorite! if you will.  He uses the literal harem of Solomon as a springboard to explain the intimate relationship He wants with His people.

Jephthah’s Daughter

Jephthah’s Daughter – Bon Boullogne (1649–1717)

The puzzling story of Jephthah’s daughter falls into two opinions among scholars. Most of the Christian commentators feel that Jephthah killed his daughter, where most of the Jewish commentators say that she lived out her life serving in the tabernacle.

29   Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed through Gilead and Manasseh, and passed on to Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead he passed on to the Ammonites.  30 And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD, and said, “If thou wilt give the Ammonites into my hand,  31 then whoever comes forth from the doors of my house to meet me, when I return victorious from the Ammonites, shall be the LORDs, and I will offer him up for a burnt offering.” Judg. 11:29-31

He won the war.

34   Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah; and behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances; she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter.  35 And when he saw her, he rent his clothes, and said, “Alas, my daughter! you have brought me very low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me; for I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot take back my vow.”  36 And she said to him, “My father, if you have opened your mouth to the LORD, do to me according to what has gone forth from your mouth, now that the LORD has avenged you on your enemies, on the Ammonites.”  37 And she said to her father, “Let this thing be done for me; let me alone two months, that I may go and wander on the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my companions.”  38 And he said, “Go.” And he sent her away for two months; and she departed, she and her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains.  39 And at the end of two months, she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had made. She had never known a man. And it became a custom in Israel 40 that the daughters of Israel went year by year to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in the year. Judg. 11:34-40

The Daughter of Jephthah 1876 by Edouard Bernard Debat-Ponsan 1847 – 1913

Those that feel Jephthah killed her, stress that she told him to do according to what he vowed. 

Those who think she lived out her life in the tabernacle, stress that her companions bewailed her virginity and not her life. This period of lamenting did not continue, nor are we informed when it stopped. It seems to have been a very localized custom as it is not mentioned during the time of the kings or when they return from Babylon.

Some point out that women were not allowed in the temple. That is true of the second temple. But they seemed to have been allowed in the tabernacle and Solomon’s temple, e.g., Hannah seems to have been in the outer court of the tabernacle. [1Sam. 1:9 -11] The Alamoth were singing in the tabernacle or temple. (See Also: Psalms 46, According to the Alamoth)

Precedence

According to the Torah, humans could be living sacrifices.

. . . and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that it may be theirs to do the service of the LORD. Num. 8:11

And the Levites purified themselves from sin, and washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as a wave offering before the LORD, and Aaron made atonement for them to cleanse them. Num. 8:21 

It seems unlikely that the daughter of Jephthah was a burnt offering sacrifice. More likely she served in the tabernacle for the rest of her life. But the Text is unclear.

So why are the Scriptures vague in some instances? Well, the main point of the Bible is that the Creator wants a personal intimate relationship with each and every human. (which is also the whole point of this blog). If something is not really pertinent to that essential point it is often left out because it is inconsequential to that end. The point of the tail of Jephthah’s daughter is to stress that one should not make hasty vows to God without full consideration of the consequences.

Later in Jewish tradition, vows were not made without a written contract. This gave the vower time to consider.

Good Eye, Bad Eye

22   “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light;  23 but if your eye is not sound, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! Matt. 6:22-23

34 Your eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is sound, your whole body is full of light; but when it is not sound, your body is full of darkness. Luke 11:34

When translators do not know what a passage means they tend to woodenly translate word for word. In doing this, idioms or Hebraisms get lost in translation, and this is certainly one of those.

Quite simply in Hebrew thought, to have a good or sound eye is to be generous, and to have a bad eye is to be stingy.

No Other Gods

One of the many problems with the post-modern church’s teachings is that they excuse putting things before God. Sometimes they even encourage it. They no longer teach truth to error. Are we faithful brides to our Lord or are we whores?

They teach that if good things happen to one then God is blessing, if bad things happen it is Satan’s fault. There is no responsibility for ones own condition.

That’s not exactly what the Word says.

25   Therefore, putting away falsehood, let every one speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.  26 Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,  27 and give no opportunity to the devil.  28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his hands, so that he may be able to give to those in need.  29 Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for edifying, as fits the occasion, that it may impart grace to those who hear.  30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, with all malice,  32 and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Eph. 4:25-32

Holding to false teachings, being angry, not working for what our grandparents called an honest living. All these things grieve the Spirit and give opportunity to the devil.

If Satan has an opportunity he will surely take it. If we entertain false teachings, false prophecy, or false beliefs, then we leave ourselves open to attack.

“. . . and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8:32

All lies come from Satan. So if your belief is in falsehoods you are following Satan and not following God. Especially if those lies are of a religious nature. In a conversation Messiah had with the Pharisees, he told these teachers of the Bible that they were not teaching truth.

You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. John 8:44

The devil has not changed his stripes. He works the same way he did back then. So how is our faith? Is it Biblical? Or is it the Traditions of men?

There are Ten Commandments they were not suggestions. They are the “Perfect Will of God.”

It all comes down to That very first commandment.

1   And God spoke all these words, saying,  2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. 3   “You shall have no other gods before me. Ex. 20:1-3

What are we putting before God?

See Also: The Pagan Origins of Christmas

Faith

What is Faith?

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Heb. 11:1 

We’ve all heard the charlatan healers claim that the reason they cannot heal is because the sick person’s faith is not strong enough. However healing is not what our faith is primarily for. For it is a faith in things NOT seen.

We tend to think that faith is a feeling. However faith is the assurance of the things we hope for. We are as sure of the things of God, as we are that the chair will hold us up, that gravity will keep out cup on the table, and the sun will rise in the east and set in the west.

We are sure that Yeshua (Jesus) of Nazareth is the promised Messiah. We are sure of our salvation. We are sure of new and incorruptible bodies. We are sure that we will present ourselves before the judgment Throne of God with Messiah’s righteousness imputed to us, that we come under no condemnation.

The things unseen are of the kingdom of Messiah, it is all around us, the armies of His heavenly host in battle with the forces of evil.

. . . because we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen; for the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. 2Cor. 4:18

What we see is old Jerusalem the one of bricks and stone, but out hope, our faith is in New Jerusalem, the Jerusalem that is above and for now is unseen.

Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy! Psa. 137:6

But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Gal. 4:26

He who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. Rev. 3:12

We watch as friends and family die. Their bodies seem dead and cold. But our faith is that we will have the victory over sin and death. It is ours, we just can’t see it. [See Also: What Happens when we Die?]

 

See Also: Hope

The Congregation is Firstborn

Here’s a surprise for some. All believers are considered first-borns.

22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering,  23 and to the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,  24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel. Heb. 12:22-24

We now all have the special blessings and therefore the responsibilities of a firstborn.

The first responsibility is to take care of our mother.

But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Gal. 4:26

The other responsibility of the firstborn is to take care of the rest of the family.

And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 1John 3:23

So our first thought and action of each morning is to seek the Kingdom of God and to build it up.

Even the Messiah understood that the Father’s will come first.

“I can do nothing on my own authority; as I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.” John 5:30

Ephraim is my Firstborn

There is a lot of odd teachings about Ephraim out there. They all center around this group or that group or Christians in general being Ephraim. Why would anyone of Gentile decent want to be of Israel. They are under God’s judgment. Is it not enough to be adopted into the Family of God? His love is for the individual who will follow Him, not some group that must have the right parentage.

With weeping they shall come, and with consolations I will lead them back, I will make them walk by brooks of water, in a straight path in which they shall not stumble; for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my first-born. Jer. 31:9

The tribe of Ephraim had gone astray from God, was no more worthy to be called a son, a first-born son and as such is to be given the double portion.

The same reason that was given for their release out of Egypt is given for their release out of Babylon; they are free-born and therefore must not be enslaved. They are born to God and therefore must not be the servants of men.

However the odd thing here is that Ephraim was not taken by Babylon but rather Assyria. They were relocated with the rest of the Ten Northern Tribes in Persia, now called Iran. (See Also: The Ten Lost Tribes)

In pure birth order Ephraim is the last born of the tribes, as he is Joseph’s second son.

The name of the second he called Ephraim, “For God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.” Gen. 41:52

At the time of the blessing of the tribes Judah/Israel gives Ephraim the blessing of the firstborn.

13 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him. 14 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it upon the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand upon the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands, for Manasseh was the first-born. Gen. 48:13-14

So he blessed them that day, saying, “By you Israel will pronounce blessings, saying, ‘God make you as Ephraim and as Manasseh”; and thus he put Ephraim before Manasseh. Gen. 48:20

The Curse of rebuilding Jericho

The city of Jericho from the ruins of the old walls

A little known passage about Jericho.

Joshua laid an oath upon them at that time, saying, “Cursed before the LORD be the man that rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho.  At the cost of his first-born shall he lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest son shall he set up its gates.” Josh. 6:26 

And yes someone over 400 years later did rebuild Jericho.

In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho; he laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his first-born, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun. 1Kings 16:34

The Law of the Firstborn

We see a great deal of strife thought out the book of Genesis in the family dynamic of the chosen family of God. For various reasons the firstborn is rejected.

Issac and Ishmael

And Abraham said to God, “O that Ishmael might live in thy sight!” Gen. 17:18

Jacob and Esau

Jacob said to his father, “I am Esau your first-born. I have done as you told me; now sit up and eat of my game, that you may bless me.” Gen. 27:19

And you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD, Israel is my first-born son, Ex. 4:22

Jacob’s Sons

This is interesting for it is exactly what happened with Jacob’s children. However it was not because of how Jacob felt about them but rather because of their rash actions. Reuben the first born slept with his father’s concubine which lost him the right of the firstborn. Next came Simeon and Levi who for the sake of their sister Dinah killed all the males of Shechem. So the scepter passed to Judah.

 3 Reuben, you are my first-born, my might, and the first fruits of my strength, pre-eminent in pride and pre-eminent in power.  4 Unstable as water, you shall not have pre-eminence because you went up to your father’s bed; then you defiled it — you went up to my couch!  5 Simeon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their swords.  6 O my soul, come not into their council; O my spirit, be not joined to their company; for in their anger they slay men, and in their wantonness they hamstring oxen.  7 Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce; and their wrath, for it is cruel! I will divide them in Jacob and scatter them in Israel.  8 Judah, your brothers shall praise you; your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies; your father’s sons shall bow down before you.  9 Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as a lioness; who dares rouse him up?  10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.  11 Binding his foal to the vine and his ass’s colt to the choice vine, he washes his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes;  12 his eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk. Gen 49:3-12

Manasseh and Ephraim

Joseph called the name of the first-born Manasseh, “For,” he said, “God has made me forget all my hardship and all my father’s house.” Gen. 41:51 

3 And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand toward Israel’s left hand, and Manasseh in his left hand toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them near him.  14 And Israel stretched out his right hand and laid it upon the head of Ephraim, who was the younger, and his left hand upon the head of Manasseh, crossing his hands, for Manasseh was the first-born.  15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has led me all my life long to this day,  16 the angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and in them let my name be perpetuated, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth.” Gen. 48:13-16

The Law of the Firstborn

We don’t find out what all these special rights are until Deuteronomy.

. . . 16 then on the day when he assigns his possessions as an inheritance to his sons, he may not treat the son of the loved as the first-born in preference to the son of the disliked, who is the first-born, 17 but he shall acknowledge the first-born, the son of the disliked, by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the first issue of his strength; the right of the first-born is his. Deut. 21:16-17

No matter what a father feels about his children’s mother the rights of the firstborn are not to be abridged.