Posted by Navah on Dec 15, 2020 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Who are the mothers of the tribes of Israel and what do we know about them? We know much about Sarah, Rivkah, Leah, and Rachel, the recognized and honored matriarchs of Israel. Sadly, little honor is given to the other wives of the patriarch Ya’akov, the forgotten Bilhah and Zilpah, to the point that they are rarely mentioned and hardly recognized as matriarchs of Israel, as Leah and Rachel are. But how much do we know about the unknown mothers of the tribes of...
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Posted by Navah on Nov 26, 2020 in The Patriarchs' Saga
How many people know that the unloved wife of Ya’akov Leah spoke prophetically and thus destined the priesthood of her third son Levi? All the other eleven children of Ya’akov were named by their mothers, as it is written “And she called his name”. The exception is with the youngest of Ya’akov’s sons whom Rachel called Ben-Oni “son of my sorrow”, but Ya’akov called him by the name Binyamin “son of the right hand”. But in Gen 29:34,...
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Posted by Navah on Nov 25, 2020 in Hebrew Study, The Patriarchs' Saga
The patriarch Avraham made two mistakes in his life, even three. Two of these mistakes cost his descendants a great deal of trouble. Had Avraham listened carefully to words of the Creator the history of the world would have been quite different. And I shall make you a great nation, and bless you and make your name great, and you shall be a blessing! And I shall bless those who bless you, and curse him who curses you. And in you all the families of the earth shall be grafted...
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Posted by Navah on Apr 8, 2020 in The Patriarchs' Saga
There is a secret Yoseph (Joseph) kept all his life. He was the favorite son of his father Ya’akov from his beloved wife, who dreamed two prophetic dreams about the family. But those dreams were not the secret Joseph kept in his heart. What was that secret Joseph kept, because the Torah tells us nothing about it? Ya’akov’s sons sold Yoseph in slavery in Egypt and he would not see him for 22 years until they were once again united. We should notice a...
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Posted by Navah on Jan 5, 2020 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Who are the forgotten matriarchs of Israel, and why have they been forgotten in the first place? Sarah, Rebekah, Leah, and Rachel are the matriarchs of Israel and they have their honorable place in the nation’s history, as every Shabbat in the synagogues around the world the Jewish women are blessed in the name of “Sarah, Rebekah, Leah, and Rachel”: “May the Lord make you like Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah!” But why only in the names of the four...
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Posted by Navah on Nov 15, 2019 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Two apostles have made seemingly contradicting statements whether Avraham was declared righteous by works of faith or his faith alone was reckoned for righteousness. From the very beginning, righteousness was the state in which man was first created in the image of the Creator, but it was lost due to his works in opposition to His will. Yes, there was readiness expressed in the will of Adam, but his works made him lose his stand before the Creator and consequently to lose...
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Posted by Navah on Dec 30, 2018 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Avraham (Abraham) and Iyov (Job) were righteous men, but why did God choose Abraham over Job? Both Avraham and Iyov were descendants of Shem and both were found righteous men (Gen 15:6 and Iyov 1:1), but God chose Avraham to make him a father of many nations as He told Avraham, not Iyov, to leave his land to make His Covenant with him. Iyov was known in Israel as a recognized righteous man, for Ezekiel and Ya’akov (Eze_14:14, Jam_5:11) wrote about him. He was as...
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Posted by Navah on Dec 10, 2017 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Something odd happened when Ya’akov (Jacob) remained alone that night: Jacob wrestled with an angel until the breaking of the day. What did exactly happen when Jacob wrestle with an angel of YHVH? Was that wrestling at all? Twenty years went by and Ya’akov left the land of Paddan Aram where he served Lavan his father-in-law (Gen 31:41). He headed for the land of Canaan with all his household, servants, and livestock. On his way the messengers of Elohim joined...
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Posted by Navah on Nov 12, 2017 in The Messiah, The Patriarchs' Saga
In the story of the banishment of Ishmael in Genesis 21, YHVH told Avraham that in his son Yitschak (Isaac) his seed was called (Gen 21:12), but in Gen 22:2 YHVH seems to have turned the promise upside down when He told Avraham to sacrifice him. And in the culmination of the story in Gen 22:12, it seems that YHVH had “changed” His mind again when He told him not to sacrifice Yitschak thus having created another internal challenge for Avraham. This, however,...
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Posted by Navah on Oct 30, 2017 in The Patriarchs' Saga
Avraham and Sarah have become father and mother of many nations by the promise of YHVH, who said, And no longer is your name called Avram, but your name shall be Avraham, because I shall make you a father of many nations. And I shall make you exceedingly fruitful, and make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. (Gen 17:5-6) Avram in Hebrew, אַבְרָם, is an acronym of av ram, and is a contracted form of another Hebrew name, אֲבִירָם aviram: אָב av, father and the verb...
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Posted by Navah on Nov 6, 2016 in The Patriarchs' Saga
From the popular Bible movies we got used to see the little Isaac carrying a bunch of dry sticks before he was offered for sacrifice. But how old was he? Can we know? The Torah tells us that Yitshak (Isaac) was old enough to walk, to observe the world around him, to reason for himself, and to carry a bundle of cut wood up a fairly rugged and steep mountain for three days. And last but not least, he was also old enough to be responsible for his actions and decisions. Per...
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Posted by Navah on Oct 24, 2016 in Prophecy Insight, The Patriarchs' Saga
Most if not all translations say that Ishmael, the son of Avraham from the Egyptian Hagar, “mocked” the little Yitschak (Isaac), while JPS renders the verb in question as “making sport”. But what did really happen between Ishmael and Yitschak? Are the translation correct to say that Ishmael mocked Isaac? Did he just mock, or there is something we misread? We read, And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking....
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