Weekly Torah Portion: Va'era

The ten plagues that made G-d's name known in all the world happened many years ago in the land of Egypt. The process they began of bringing the knowledge of G-d's presence and power to all humankind for all generations continues till today. They resound and reverberate every time a Pharaoh arises and says "I do not know Hashem."

Torah Portion: Exodus 6:2 - 9:35. Parashat Vaera is the 14th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading.

Next read in the Diaspora on 04 February 2017. Parashat Bo is the 15th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading.

http://rabbisacks.org/freedom-truth-vaera-5777/

What the Torah is telling us in these six narratives in Genesis and the seventh in Exodus is the connection between freedom and truth. Where there is freedom there can be truth. Otherwise there cannot. A society where people are forced to be less than fully honest merely to survive and not provoke further oppression is not the kind of society God wants us to make.

Powerful Haftorah:

Thus saith the Lord GOD; When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the people among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the heathen, then shall they dwell in their land that I have given to my servant Jacob.

And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the LORD their God.

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>> “And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell with confidence, when I have executed judgments upon all those that despise them round about them; and they shall know that I am the LORD their God.” <<

The fulfillment of this prophecy will be during his millennial kingdom, after all of is enemies have been demolished.

Look for this to begin as winter begins in 2024, after Yeshua and his Bride have returned and fought the battle of “Armageddon.”
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The overriding reason for this tete a tete between Moses and Pharaoh was to allow Pharaoh to choose his destiny, which was to harden his heart, time after time, and thus to show the glory of HaShem in delivering His people from Pharaoh's bondage. It is clear from the following that Pharaoh was not dealing in good faith, albeit Moses did not lie to him; he deflected Pharaoh's request to ask HaShem to change the terms. Moses was not going to be a hostile witness; he was thoroughly devoted to HaShem.

And Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God in the land. And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians to the Lord our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us? We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God, as he shall command us. And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very far away: intreat for me. And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I will intreat the Lord that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not letting the people go to sacrifice to the Lord. And Moses went out from Pharaoh, and intreated the Lord. And the Lord did according to the word of Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people; there remained not one. And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people go.

Exodus, Catholic chapter eight,Protestant verses twenty five to thirty two,
as autorized, but not authored, by King James

Deut 32:8 When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.

So the nations have 'bounds' and they have an 'inheritance'. Sounds like a good life, providing the nations go up to Jerusalem for Sukkot.

Zech 14:16 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.

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