Weekly Scripture
Scriptures for This Week’s Specials
(TORAH): Numbers 22:21-28 (NKJV)
21 So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab. 22 Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the LORD took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 Now the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. So Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road. 24 Then the Angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. 25 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he struck her again. 26 Then the Angel of the LORD went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. 27 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam’s anger was aroused, and he struck the donkey with his staff. 28 Then the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?”
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(HAFTARAH): Ecclesiastes 7:9 (CJB)
“Don’t be quick to get angry, for [only] fools nurse anger.”
Psalm 4:5(4) (CJB)
5 (4) You can be angry, but do not sin!
Think about this as you lie in bed,
and calm down. (Selah)
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(BRIT HADASHAH): Ephesians 4:26-27 (CJB)
26 Be angry, but don’t sin — don’t let the sun go down before you have dealt with the cause of your anger; 27 otherwise you leave room for the Adversary.
For the full Torah portion click here
Pictures from Israel
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Israel-@-MEA-20170712-Natan(N80)-12-Tribes-2-Simeon
The 12 Tribes of Israel – Simeon, the second son
We continue our series of photographs of the 12 tribes of Israel with their symbols and standards. Each of the 12 tribes received a blessing from their father, Jacob, just before his death. In the case of the Tribe of Simeon it said in Genesis 49:5-7, “Shim‘on (Simeon) and Levi are brothers, related by weapons of violence. Let me not enter their council, let my honour not be connected with their people; for in their anger they killed men, and at their whim, they maimed cattle. Cursed be their anger, for it has been fierce; their fury, for it has been cruel. I will divide them in Ya‘akov (Jacob) and scatter them in Isra’el.”
This prophecy was fulfilled when the tribe of Levi received no inheritance except forty-eight towns scattered throughout different parts of Canaan. Simeon was originally given only a few towns and villages in the midst of a larger inheritance of the tribe of Judah. In Joshua 19:1 it confirms that: “… the second lot fell to Simeon, to the tribe of the sons of Simeon according to their families (clans), and their inheritance was within the inheritance of the sons of Judah.”
Simeon was known as the aggressors and one of the emblems commonly used for this tribe is a sword or fortress as shown in the mosaic. Jacob’s pronouncement that, “I will divide them in Jacob, and scatter them is Israel,” came true, because it became the smallest and weakest of all the tribes in that it was forced to share its territory with Judah, a larger and more powerful tribe.
The lesson we can learn from Simeon is through the warning given to his children: “beware, of all jealousy and envy, and walk in singleness of heart, that God may give you also grace and glory, and blessing upon your heads, even as you saw in Joseph’s case—love each one of his brothers with a good heart, and the spirit of envy will withdraw from you”.
Simon’s advice to his children came from wisdom, for he once plotted to kill his brother Joseph through jealousy. Perhaps his wisdom can rub off onto us.
Next week will see the mosaic of Levi. Catch up with you then.
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Pictures from Israel
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Israel-MEA-20170614-(N63)–Art-in-Jerusalem-Mosaic Reuben
Mosaic of the Tribe of Reuben, the first son of Isaac.
Over the next few weeks, we will be featuring each of the 12 tribes of Israel, born to the Patriarch Abraham, whose descendants became known as the Israelite nation.
Reuben was Israel’s (Jacob’s) first born and his father called him his ‘might, and the first sign of his strength’. As first-born, he had all the rights and privileges of a firstborn son, and in his early years, he excelled in honour and power. However, he dishonoured his father by sleeping with Bilhah, his father’s concubine wife. Jacob declared that Reuben ‘would no longer excel’.
By committing this uncleanness with his father’s wife, there would be reproach upon his tribe and the family, to whom he ought to have been an example and a blessing. He forfeited the prerogatives of the birthright, and his dying father demoted him, although he did not disown or disinherit him. He would still have all the privileges of a son, but not of the firstborn. Jacob’s sad prophecy for Reuben certainly came true for his descendants, for there was to be no judge, prophet, ruler, or prince to come from his tribe.
We also learn from Reuben that those who dabble in sin must not expect to save their reputation or maintain a positive influence upon others, and consequently left an indelible mark upon him and his family. If you want to put all this in context, check out Genesis 35:22 and other references to Reuben’s relative.
Copyright exists in all the material on this website and is owned by Messianic Education Australia Ltd. unless otherwise explicitly stated. This copyright extends to the images, logos, layout and presentation styles as well as the text material.
