Shemot

Parashas Shemot

Exodus/Shemos

1:1 – 6:1

Please pray this prayer

 Before reading

In the name of Yahushua

Our Messiyah,

I pray for the Spirit of Understanding

The Spirit of Knowledge and

 The Spirit of Wisdom

As I read through this Parasha

Parashas Shemot is the thirteen portions of the Torah cycle and the first in Exodus. The word Shemot means name, the names of those who came out of Egypt “Mitsrayim.” The book of Exodus begins with the conjunction “and” to help us relate to the book of Genesis where Jacob’s family began the process of exile by descending to Egypt, and here the narrative of the exile is developed, until it ends with the blaze of miracles that culminated in the exodus and finally the giving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai.

In this Parashas the Torah tells us that baby Moses was taken from the Nile and into the house of Pharaoh, where he was raised by royalty. Many years later after a series of event which led Moses to choose between YAHVEH’S people and Egypt he choose to defend the right of the children of Yisrael, he had to flee to Midian for his life.

The narrative tells us that one day while tending his father-in-law flock in the wilderness, Moses saw a curious forest fire on a nearby hill and he went to investigate. As he drew close to the burning bush, the CREATOR revealed HIMSELF to Moses.

Although Moses decision to investigate the strange enigma of the insignificant burning bush sows the seed of a more dramatic occurrence to come, it is a crucially important moment for Moses.  If Moses had not investigate he would have never encounter the CREATOR. His action also reveals the status of Moses spiritual awareness that nothing comes into our lives by accident, that everything that happen to a believer comes as a sign from the CREATOR.

When Moses observes the burning bush he knew it had a special meaning, so he went to see the manifestation. How many of us would have responded if we saw something out of the ordinary? Most of us would have decided right then and there that is was much to do about nothing and continue on our merry way.

Why is it that the truth is not as clear to us as it was to Moses? The answer is that our spiritual consciousness has not yet reached the spiritual level where we truly understand that there are no coincident! Because we do not see the CREATOR in everything, the CREATOR’S messages are not revealed to us.

This Parashas revealed an insight into the spiritual consciousness of a Mature Believer such as Moses, and it serves as a valuable reminder of just how often we have miss the opportunity in life when we choose to ignore the occurrence of things in the natural. Imagine just how different Moses life would have turned out if he had ignored this simple manifestation.

After arriving at the Burning Bush, the CREATOR appears to Moses and informed him that he was chosen to tell the Yisraelites that their suffering will soon come to an end, for he was chosen to lead the Children of Yisrael out of Egypt.

Moses never doubts that it is YAHVEH speaking to him; he never considers that he might be suffering hallucinations from the heat. Moses recognizes the CREATOR, and he knew how important YAHVEH’S message to the Yisraelites would be. Yet Moses continues to find reason after reason why he cannot go to Pharaoh.

Many a believer used various reasons why we place limits on what we can accomplish, on how much we can help people. When our experience and our preconceptions do not match up with the CREATOR, we allow doubt to cloud our minds. When we see ourselves giving in to doubt we can remind ourselves of the portion of Shemot. We can bring Moses to mind and benefit from his mistakes and from the miracle of freedom that he was able to bring to his people.

Genesis listed the names of all those who came down to Egypt, include Jacob’s grandchildren, whereas Shemot lists only his sons. What this seems to be elucidating that as a family, Yaakov had is family in Yisrael before he came to Egypt. In the context of resisting the corruptive atmosphere of Egypt and preserving the moral and spiritual grandeur of Jacob’s family, his sons were equal to the task.

Because they kept the nation of Yisrael on the high level set by Jacob. Slavery did not begin as long as they were alive. His grandchildren, however, were not as righteous; they like us were not able to maintain the same level of spiritually grandeur. Never the less, the promise made to Jacob had to be fulfilled. So their merit was great enough to prevent the onset of total enslavement as long as they were alive.

The name, the Shem, of the tribal ancestors had been mentioned in their lifetimes and they are repeated here as they pass from the scene, as one often repeats something that is dear to them. They are likened to the stars, which YAHVEH brings out and brings in by number and by name, Isaiah 40:26. Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.

He counts and enumerates when they come out and again when they are gathered in. This shows that the forefathers, like the stars, are precious to ABBA YAHVEH. The twelve tribes are compared to stars because they correspond to the twelve constellations, in that both the tribes and the constellations are composed of many individual units that complement one another. Just like the combination of stars forms the constellation, so too the combination of people forms a tribe and the combination of tribes creates the nation, the Galaxy.

Jacob was like the sun and his sons like the stars; when the sun is out the stars are not visible. When the sun is set like Jacob, the stars his sons begin to shine. When the sun is out, the stars are not visible, but when the sun sets, the stars take over the sky. So too, after Jacob’s death, the tribal ancestors achieved great importance, for the presence of their light in the increasing darkness of Egypt. As long as they are conscious of their true purpose, they are only in physical not spiritual exile.

As time passes this exile is about to be concluded, as promise by EL YAHVEH. This exile like our lives, were condition on who we believe. As long as the children of Yisrael like us obeyed the Word of EL YAHVEH, they would receive a favorite status as Joseph and his brother did, at the conclusion of Genesis it stipulated. As time progress, however, the Yisraelites like the people of today would forget the purpose of being in Egypt. Therefore, they would become subjugated to slavery at the hand of the Egyptians.

Joseph warned his brothers to remember Genesis 50:24 and the purpose of being in Egypt. Like so many time in Scripture, we wander away from the intended goal of Creation, and become subjugated to slavery to the world system. However, because of the promise EL YAHVEH made to Jacob, HE had to fulfill it. Therefore EL YAHVEH rose up a redeemer to carry out this task. And now the rest of the story!