Jehovah Jireh (Our God Who Foresees and Provides)

The word means so much more than we think!

Ever heard of "Jehovah Jireh"? (And its "prosperity exegesis"? 😅). Well, this ain't that.
I should really learn to take it easy the more though, everytime I want to do "lectio divina", the brain just went ballistic. 😂🙏

When יהוה God wants to give descendants to אברהם Abraham, God took him out to רוֹאֶה* see the stars! *Look at the words in pic. When he passed through שְׁכֶם Sichem, when later his grandson עיכוב Jacob saw God's glory in a dream, God promised they will inherit the land. This realization of God's habit of showing people what He would later give them, and Latin motto "Veni Vidi Vici" struck me like thunderbolts of amazement as I pealed through the story in Genesis 22:14 (story of Isaac replaced by God with a ram to be sacrificed by Abraham) which originally shared by a dear friend, Sir Dong Mapanao in our prayer fellowship group ..

So Abraham named that place The Lord Will Provide. And it is said to this day, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be seen and provided.”
Genesis 22:14 AMP

בראשית 22:14 (WLC)
וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָהָם שֵׁם־הַמָּקֹום הַהוּא יְהוָה ׀ יִרְאֶה* אֲשֶׁר יֵאָמֵר הַיֹּום בְּהַר יְהוָה יֵרָאֶה*׃

(VaIqra Avraham Shem HaMaqom HaHu Yahvah (Adonai) Yireh* Asher YeAmer HaYom B'Har Yahvah Yera'e*)

Personally, this is a groundbreaking revelation & clarification, all the more reason to rejoice in the God of our salvation. Through revelation our faith is sure, and should it need reasoning, the grounds are solid!

Gen 22:14 has 2 forms of יראה all at once in the verse, the one that spelled as Yireh יִרְאֶה in "Jehovah Jireh" means "he will see", thus "God will see" (perhaps "see" also means "obtain for provision", thus provide)

It's amazing that this word clearly implies The Triune persons of God's one essence (Trinity). As if He picked/look for a replacement and this only be possible if our One God is at the same time multi-personal.

The next יראה is יֵרָאֶה "Yera'eh", in the last phrase, meaning "it will be visible", in the KJV "it shall be seen", in the full phrase ".. in the mountain of the LORD, it shall be seen", whenever the textual critic points to The Messiah, the realms often overlap. The physical mountain for Abraham was also a metaphor of the real mountain of יהוה The LORD , His presence. He looked for the replacement to atone for our sin in nowhere else but inside His own presence, The Son left this mountain to be with us and died in our place (Phillipians 2).

Even without mentioning הברית החדשה the New Testament, it's still there in the Jewish original text (Tanakh), indications and hints that from acts of God is the past which confirm the Trinity.

This promise of המשיח The Messiah, passed down to the postexilic era, when the promised Land was once again occupied and the people oppressed never ceased to echo. It's as soft as that still small voice heard by Moses. It's as gentle as The Messiah was saying, "Those who have ears let them hear", but it's that same nagging beckoning that haunted Nicodemus, leaving him unsatisfied until he met The Son, passing on to us an account which gave us John 3:16. 

“For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life."(John 3:16 AMP)

Let us welcome this now seen and provided Lamb of God in our hearts and lives. ❤️🙏✨🕊️

#learnhebrew #biblicalhebrew #theologian

Were You Expecting an Ox?

How the tensions and application issues of scriptural texts underline the importance of inclusive, ecumenical communal efforts to approach sanctifying interpretations.

The rereading of some lesson materials revealed new colors post discussion of several books (especially the one wondering, "Why Jephthah had to make such vow? Could there be anything else coming out his house? Was he expecting an ox? 😅📖), and this previously had caused pained chuckle and mild migraine for me, having read previously that he vowed after "The Spirit of the LORD was upon (him)" (Judges 11:29).🤫

It's amazing how Christians today skip the digesting & critisizing of ancient tribal narratives, written far after the actual event (most likely a flashback made in "godly" period of Israel's monarchy) to serve a purpose of making certain (theological) points 🕎. Nowadays, with half eyes opened, we often embrace the reading as is, as a "manual book" on how they understand the works of The Spirit, how they should approach God & people.💬

"And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:

Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom WE gave no such commandment: ...

For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, AND TO US, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things.."

Acts 15:23-24, 28 (KJV)

While I won't make this time a widened discussion on historical apostolic authority, my point is:

It's better to have the Spirit-inspired take on current burning issues rather than maintaining interpretations that's seemingly spiritual but hold little regards for mercy, grace, justice, life, and salvation. It's better to humbly repentant later for being too emotional, inclusive, or progressive, than to approach the texts with the same rigidity ⛔ which disabled the scribes & priests to acknowledge the Messiah when they actually had the privilege to see Him face to face.

These are times when people including the Church is tempted toward polarization, the "progressive" are mocked, as well as the "universalists" and the "conservatives", everywhere you turn theological "stray bullets" are to be expected and cautioned. Many have forgotten that our privilege being citizen of the Kingdom is purposed for "good" works prepared by God Himself. Are we zealously attacking opposing camps without considering that wisdom belongs to God? 

To be Spirit-filled believers in ישוע Jesus is to be faithful disciples of the Word📖🕊️✝️ (orthodoxy) who are open for "progressiveness" (ortho-patos) so that the dicotomy of spiritual & secular living is dedicated toward elimination (ortho-praxis). Sooner or later one would come to the realization than any other motives for exegesis fall secondary to the sincere drive for christlikeness and sanctification.

I therefore won't deny the drive in this typical season of my life to challenge the interpretive lens that are hegemonic, discriminative, and oppresive. The lens once stuck with a hot glue to my eyelids. So let's continue the reality checks.

Whenever we're faced with endless claims and searches of that "one true church" in the criticism of all others we should remember the lessons of biblical figures. Gideon, later known as Jarubaal, won miraculously but later strayed and succumbed to narcism, his descendants were involved in bitter deadly quarrels. Samson was showing God's presence in military victories, later was overthrown by his own lusts. The best of the major judges was (I believe) Barack, decided wisely by letting a woman of God, the prophetess and judge דבורה Deborah to take charge (and literally charging the oppresive darkness), if you observe, so many female godly characters ended up in better manner than their male colleges. (another consideration to rethink ministerial equality?😉) 

And should we revisit Solomon? A great name many scholars believed to most likely be mentioned by Jesus in Matthew 6:29 due to his older years' repentance after a lifelong of compromising and apostasy. Solomon was probably the greatest human figure viewed by religious eyes, but the spiritual eyes would respond with a resounding "amen" to Jesus who says that the eccentric "nobody" whose life ended "tragically" too soon, John the Baptist is in fact the greatest person ever being born.

None of us can claim "spiritual security" from joining any congregation, having Pastor so and so as a mentor, having certain theological liniency, etc, the list can go on forever. At the end of the day, in Revelation 4, the twenty-four elders will be throwing their crowns and worship before the throne of the only One who saves, ישועתה ליהוה "Salvation belongs to the LORD" (Jonah 2:9). We then find comfort and refuge in Christ alone and in that perpetual note, share the joy of salvation and the journey, the sanctifying interpretations (and applications) as co-heirs, siblings in The Kingdom, sons and daughters of The Most High.