T53 - Ha'azinu

Torah Portion 53 - Ha'azinu

Portion (parasha) for this week:

Ha'azinu | האזינו | "Listen"
Torah: Deuteronomy 31:30 - 32:52
Prophets: 2 Samuel 22:1-51; Hosea 14:1(2)-9(10);
Brit Hadasha: John 21:1-25; Romans 10:14 - 11:12, 12:14-21
(click on a selected reading to be taken directly to it)

"Torah Portions" are a systematic teaching schedule that includes a portion of scripture from the Torah, Prophets, and Brit Hadasha each week.  This schedule is known all over the world, and serves as a great way to facilitate discussion and learning with others in the Body of the Messiah.

This Week's Torah Portion

Deuteronomy 31:30 - 32:52

English Standard Version (ESV) 

 

The Song of Moses

30 Then Moses spoke the words of this song until they were finished, in the ears of all the assembly of Israel:

32 “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak,
    and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.
May my teaching drop as the rain,
    my speech distill as the dew,
like gentle rain upon the tender grass,
    and like showers upon the herb.
For I will proclaim the name of YHWH;
    ascribe greatness to our Elohim!

“The Rock, his work is perfect,
    for all his ways are justice.
A Elohim of faithfulness and without iniquity,
    just and upright is he.
They have dealt corruptly with him;
    they are no longer his children because they are blemished;
    they are a crooked and twisted generation.
Do you thus repay YHWH,
    you foolish and senseless people?
Is not he your father, who created you,
    who made you and established you?
Remember the days of old;
    consider the years of many generations;
ask your father, and he will show you,
    your elders, and they will tell you.
When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance,
    when he divided mankind,
he fixed the borders[a] of the peoples
    according to the number of the sons of Elohim.[b]
But YHWH's portion is his people,
    Jacob his allotted heritage.

10 “He found him in a desert land,
    and in the howling waste of the wilderness;
he encircled him, he cared for him,
    he kept him as the apple of his eye.
11 Like an eagle that stirs up its nest,
    that flutters over its young,
spreading out its wings, catching them,
    bearing them on its pinions,
12 YHWH alone guided him,
    no foreign god was with him.
13 He made him ride on the high places of the land,
    and he ate the produce of the field,
and he suckled him with honey out of the rock,
    and oil out of the flinty rock.
14 Curds from the herd, and milk from the flock,
    with fat[c] of lambs,
rams of Bashan and goats,
    with the very finest[d] of the wheat—
    and you drank foaming wine made from the blood of the grape.

15 “But Jeshurun grew fat, and kicked;
    you grew fat, stout, and sleek;
then he forsook Elohim who made him
    and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.
16 They stirred him to jealousy with strange gods;
    with abominations they provoked him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons that were no gods,
    to gods they had never known,
to new gods that had come recently,
    whom your fathers had never dreaded.
18 You were unmindful of the Rock that bore[e] you,
    and you forgot the Elohim who gave you birth.

19 “YHWH saw it and spurned them,
    because of the provocation of his sons and his daughters.
20 And he said, ‘I will hide my face from them;
    I will see what their end will be,
for they are a perverse generation,
    children in whom is no faithfulness.
21 They have made me jealous with what is no god;
    they have provoked me to anger with their idols.
So I will make them jealous with those who are no people;
    I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
22 For a fire is kindled by my anger,
    and it burns to the depths of Sheol,
devours the earth and its increase,
    and sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.

23 “‘And I will heap disasters upon them;
    I will spend my arrows on them;
24 they shall be wasted with hunger,
    and devoured by plague
    and poisonous pestilence;
I will send the teeth of beasts against them,
    with the venom of things that crawl in the dust.
25 Outdoors the sword shall bereave,
    and indoors terror,
for young man and woman alike,
    the nursing child with the man of gray hairs.
26 I would have said, “I will cut them to pieces;
    I will wipe them from human memory,”
27 had I not feared provocation by the enemy,
    lest their adversaries should misunderstand,
lest they should say, “Our hand is triumphant,
    it was not YHWH who did all this.”’

28 “For they are a nation void of counsel,
    and there is no understanding in them.
29 If they were wise, they would understand this;
    they would discern their latter end!
30 How could one have chased a thousand,
    and two have put ten thousand to flight,
unless their Rock had sold them,
    and YHWH had given them up?
31 For their rock is not as our Rock;
    our enemies are by themselves.
32 For their vine comes from the vine of Sodom
    and from the fields of Gomorrah;
their grapes are grapes of poison;
    their clusters are bitter;
33 their wine is the poison of serpents
    and the cruel venom of asps.

34 “‘Is not this laid up in store with me,
    sealed up in my treasuries?
35 Vengeance is mine, and recompense,[f]
    for the time when their foot shall slip;
for the day of their calamity is at hand,
    and their doom comes swiftly.’
36 For YHWH will vindicate[g] his people
    and have compassion on his servants,
when he sees that their power is gone
    and there is none remaining, bond or free.
37 Then he will say, ‘Where are their gods,
    the rock in which they took refuge,
38 who ate the fat of their sacrifices
    and drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise up and help you;
    let them be your protection!

39 “‘See now that I, even I, am he,
    and there is no god beside me;
I kill and I make alive;
    I wound and I heal;
    and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.
40 For I lift up my hand to heaven
    and swear, As I live forever,
41 if I sharpen my flashing sword[h]
    and my hand takes hold on judgment,
I will take vengeance on my adversaries
    and will repay those who hate me.
42 I will make my arrows drunk with blood,
    and my sword shall devour flesh—
with the blood of the slain and the captives,
    from the long-haired heads of the enemy.’

43 “Rejoice with him, O heavens;[i]
    bow down to him, all gods,[j]
for he avenges the blood of his children[k]
    and takes vengeance on his adversaries.
He repays those who hate him[l]
    and cleanses[m] his people's land.”[n]

44 Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and Joshua[o] the son of Nun. 45 And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 he said to them, “Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. 47 For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”

Moses' Death Foretold

48 That very day YHWH spoke to Moses, 49 “Go up this mountain of the Abarim, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, opposite Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the people of Israel for a possession. 50 And die on the mountain which you go up, and be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, 51 because you broke faith with me in the midst of the people of Israel at the waters of Meribah-kadesh, in the wilderness of Zin, and because you did not treat me as holy in the midst of the people of Israel. 52 For you shall see the land before you, but you shall not go there, into the land that I am giving to the people of Israel.”

Footnotes:

  1. Deuteronomy 32:8 Or territories
  2. Deuteronomy 32:8 Compare Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text sons of Israel
  3. Deuteronomy 32:14 That is, with the best
  4. Deuteronomy 32:14 Hebrew with the kidney fat
  5. Deuteronomy 32:18 Or fathered
  6. Deuteronomy 32:35 Septuagint and I will repay
  7. Deuteronomy 32:36 Septuagint judge
  8. Deuteronomy 32:41 Hebrew the lightning of my sword
  9. Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text Rejoice his people, O nations
  10. Deuteronomy 32:43 Masoretic Text lacks bow down to him, all gods
  11. Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text servants
  12. Deuteronomy 32:43 Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint; Masoretic Text lacks He repays those who hate him
  13. Deuteronomy 32:43 Or atones for
  14. Deuteronomy 32:43 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew his land his people
  15. Deuteronomy 32:44 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew Hoshea

 

 

 


2 Samuel 22:1-51

English Standard Version (ESV) 


David's Song of Deliverance

22 And David spoke to YHWH the words of this song on the day when YHWH delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said,

“YHWH is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
    my[a] Elohim, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
    my stronghold and my refuge,
    my savior; you save me from violence.
I call upon YHWH, who is worthy to be praised,
    and I am saved from my enemies.

“For the waves of death encompassed me,
    the torrents of destruction assailed me;[b]
the cords of Sheol entangled me;
    the snares of death confronted me.

“In my distress I called upon YHWH;
    to my Elohim I called.
From his temple he heard my voice,
    and my cry came to his ears.

“Then the earth reeled and rocked;
    the foundations of the heavens trembled
    and quaked, because he was angry.
Smoke went up from his nostrils,[c]
    and devouring fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
10 He bowed the heavens and came down;
    thick darkness was under his feet.
11 He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he was seen on the wings of the wind.
12 He made darkness around him his canopy,
    thick clouds, a gathering of water.
13 Out of the brightness before him
    coals of fire flamed forth.
14 YHWH thundered from heaven,
    and the Most High uttered his voice.
15 And he sent out arrows and scattered them;
    lightning, and routed them.
16 Then the channels of the sea were seen;
    the foundations of the world were laid bare,
at the rebuke of YHWH,
    at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.

17 “He sent from on high, he took me;
    he drew me out of many waters.
18 He rescued me from my strong enemy,
    from those who hated me,
    for they were too mighty for me.
19 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but YHWH was my support.
20 He brought me out into a broad place;
    he rescued me, because he delighted in me.

21 “YHWH dealt with me according to my righteousness;
    according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
22 For I have kept the ways of YHWH
    and have not wickedly departed from my Elohim.
23 For all his rules were before me,
    and from his statutes I did not turn aside.
24 I was blameless before him,
    and I kept myself from guilt.
25 And YHWH has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
    according to my cleanness in his sight.

26 “With the merciful you show yourself merciful;
    with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
27 with the purified you deal purely,
    and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
28 You save a humble people,
    but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them down.
29 For you are my lamp, O YHWH,
    and my Elohim lightens my darkness.
30 For by you I can run against a troop,
    and by my Elohim I can leap over a wall.
31 This Elohim—his way is perfect;
    the word of YHWH proves true;
    he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.

32 “For who is Elohim, but YHWH?
    And who is a rock, except our Elohim?
33 This Elohim is my strong refuge
    and has made my[d] way blameless.[e]
34 He made my feet like the feet of a deer
    and set me secure on the heights.
35 He trains my hands for war,
    so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
36 You have given me the shield of your salvation,
    and your gentleness made me great.
37 You gave a wide place for my steps under me,
    and my feet[f] did not slip;
38 I pursued my enemies and destroyed them,
    and did not turn back until they were consumed.
39 I consumed them; I thrust them through, so that they did not rise;
    they fell under my feet.
40 For you equipped me with strength for the battle;
    you made those who rise against me sink under me.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs to me,[g]
    those who hated me, and I destroyed them.
42 They looked, but there was none to save;
    they cried to YHWH, but he did not answer them.
43 I beat them fine as the dust of the earth;
    I crushed them and stamped them down like the mire of the streets.

44 “You delivered me from strife with my people;[h]
    you kept me as the head of the nations;
    people whom I had not known served me.
45 Foreigners came cringing to me;
    as soon as they heard of me, they obeyed me.
46 Foreigners lost heart
    and came trembling[i] out of their fortresses.

47 “YHWH lives, and blessed be my rock,
    and exalted be my Elohim, the rock of my salvation,
48 the Elohim who gave me vengeance
    and brought down peoples under me,
49 who brought me out from my enemies;
    you exalted me above those who rose against me;
    you delivered me from men of violence.

50 “For this I will praise you, O YHWH, among the nations,
    and sing praises to your name.
51 Great salvation he brings[j] to his king,
    and shows steadfast love to his anointed,
    to David and his offspring forever.”

Footnotes:

  1. 2 Samuel 22:3 Septuagint (compare Psalm 18:2); Hebrew lacks my
  2. 2 Samuel 22:5 Or terrified me
  3. 2 Samuel 22:9 Or in his wrath
  4. 2 Samuel 22:33 Or his; also verse 34
  5. 2 Samuel 22:33 Compare Psalm 18:32; Hebrew he has blamelessly set my way free, or he has made my way spring up blamelessly
  6. 2 Samuel 22:37 Hebrew ankles
  7. 2 Samuel 22:41 Or You gave me my enemies' necks
  8. 2 Samuel 22:44 Septuagint with the peoples
  9. 2 Samuel 22:46 Compare Psalm 18:45; Hebrew equipped themselves
  10. 2 Samuel 22:51 Or He is a tower of salvation

 

Hosea 14:1(2)-9(10)

English Standard Version (ESV) 

A Plea to Return to YHWH

14 Return, O Israel, to YHWH your Elohim,
    for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.
Take with you words
    and return to YHWH;
say to him,
    “Take away all iniquity;
accept what is good,
    and we will pay with bulls
    the vows[a] of our lips.
Assyria shall not save us;
    we will not ride on horses;
and we will say no more, ‘Our Elohim,’
    to the work of our hands.
In you the orphan finds mercy.”

I will heal their apostasy;
    I will love them freely,
    for my anger has turned from them.
I will be like the dew to Israel;
    he shall blossom like the lily;
    he shall take root like the trees of Lebanon;
his shoots shall spread out;
    his beauty shall be like the olive,
    and his fragrance like Lebanon.
They shall return and dwell beneath my[b] shadow;
    they shall flourish like the grain;
they shall blossom like the vine;
    their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.

O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols?
    It is I who answer and look after you.[c]
I am like an evergreen cypress;
    from me comes your fruit.

Whoever is wise, let him understand these things;
    whoever is discerning, let him know them;
for the ways of YHWH are right,
    and the upright walk in them,
    but transgressors stumble in them.

Footnotes:

  1. Hosea 14:2 Septuagint, Syriac pay the fruit
  2. Hosea 14:7 Hebrew his
  3. Hosea 14:8 Hebrew him

 

Joel 2:15-27

English Standard Version (ESV) 

15 Blow the trumpet in Zion;
    consecrate a fast;
call a solemn assembly;
16     gather the people.
Consecrate the congregation;
    assemble the elders;
gather the children,
    even nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom leave his room,
    and the bride her chamber.

17 Between the vestibule and the altar
    let the priests, the ministers of YHWH, weep
and say, “Spare your people, O YHWH,
    and make not your heritage a reproach,
    a byword among the nations.[a]
Why should they say among the peoples,
    ‘Where is their Elohim?’”

YHWH Had Pity

18 Then YHWH became jealous for his land
    and had pity on his people.
19 YHWH answered and said to his people,
“Behold, I am sending to you
    grain, wine, and oil,
    and you will be satisfied;
and I will no more make you
    a reproach among the nations.

20 “I will remove the northerner far from you,
    and drive him into a parched and desolate land,
his vanguard[b] into the eastern sea,
    and his rear guard[c] into the western sea;
the stench and foul smell of him will rise,
    for he has done great things.

21 “Fear not, O land;
    be glad and rejoice,
    for YHWH has done great things!
22 Fear not, you beasts of the field,
    for the pastures of the wilderness are green;
the tree bears its fruit;
    the fig tree and vine give their full yield.

23 “Be glad, O children of Zion,
    and rejoice in YHWH your Elohim,
for he has given the early rain for your vindication;
    he has poured down for you abundant rain,
    the early and the latter rain, as before.

24 “The threshing floors shall be full of grain;
    the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
25 I will restore[d] to you the years
    that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
    my great army, which I sent among you.

26 “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
    and praise the name of YHWH your Elohim,
    who has dealt wondrously with you.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.
27 You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
    and that I am YHWH your Elohim and there is none else.
And my people shall never again be put to shame.

Footnotes:

  1. Joel 2:17 Or reproach, that the nations should rule over them
  2. Joel 2:20 Hebrew face
  3. Joel 2:20 Hebrew his end
  4. Joel 2:25 Or pay back

 

Micah 7:18-20

English Standard Version (ESV) 

Elohim's Steadfast Love and Compassion

18 Who is a Elohim like you, pardoning iniquity
    and passing over transgression
    for the remnant of his inheritance?
He does not retain his anger forever,
    because he delights in steadfast love.
19 He will again have compassion on us;
    he will tread our iniquities underfoot.
You will cast all our[a] sins
    into the depths of the sea.
20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob
    and steadfast love to Abraham,
as you have sworn to our fathers
    from the days of old.

 

John 21:1-25

English Standard Version (ESV) 

 

Yeshua Appears to Seven Disciples

21 After this Yeshua revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Just as day was breaking, Yeshua stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Yeshua. Yeshua said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. That disciple whom Yeshua loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards[a] off.

When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. 10 Yeshua said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. 12 Yeshua said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Yeshua came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. 14 This was now the third time that Yeshua was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.

Yeshua and Peter

15 When they had finished breakfast, Yeshua said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 He said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Yeshua said to him, “Feed my sheep. 18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go.” 19 (This he said to show by what kind of death he was to glorify Elohim.) And after saying this he said to him, “Follow me.”

Yeshua and the Beloved Apostle

20 Peter turned and saw the disciple whom Yeshua loved following them, the one who also had leaned back against him during the supper and had said, “Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?” 21 When Peter saw him, he said to Yeshua, “Lord, what about this man?” 22 Yeshua said to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” 23 So the saying spread abroad among the brothers[b] that this disciple was not to die; yet Yeshua did not say to him that he was not to die, but, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?”

24 This is the disciple who is bearing witness about these things, and who has written these things, and we know that his testimony is true.

25 Now there are also many other things that Yeshua did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

Footnotes:

  1. John 21:8 Greek two hundred cubits; a cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
  2. John 21:23 Or brothers and sisters

 

 

Romans 10:14 - 11:12

English Standard Version (ESV) 

14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?[a] And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” 16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of HaMashiach.

18 But I ask, have they not heard? Indeed they have, for

“Their voice has gone out to all the earth,
    and their words to the ends of the world.”

19 But I ask, did Israel not understand? First Moses says,

“I will make you jealous of those who are not a nation;
    with a foolish nation I will make you angry.”

20 Then Isaiah is so bold as to say,

“I have been found by those who did not seek me;
    I have shown myself to those who did not ask for me.”

21 But of Israel he says, “All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and contrary people.”

The Remnant of Israel

11 I ask, then, has Elohim rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham,[b] a member of the tribe of Benjamin. Elohim has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to Elohim against Israel? “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” But what is Elohim's reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.

What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, as it is written,

“Elohim gave them a spirit of stupor,
    eyes that would not see
    and ears that would not hear,
down to this very day.”

And David says,

“Let their table become a snare and a trap,
    a stumbling block and a retribution for them;
10 let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see,
    and bend their backs forever.”

Gentiles Grafted In

11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion[c] mean!

Footnotes:

  1. Romans 10:14 Or him whom they have never heard
  2. Romans 11:1 Or one of the offspring of Abraham
  3. Romans 11:12 Greek their fullness

 

 

Romans 12:14-21

English Standard Version (ESV) 

 

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly.[a] Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it[b] to the wrath of Elohim, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Footnotes:

  1. Romans 12:16 Or give yourselves to humble tasks
  2. Romans 12:19 Greek give place