The Holy Spirit led me to study my Father's covenants because it seemed nonsensical to me that dispensational Church doctrine claims holds to promises that are specifically addressed to the houses of Judah and Israel.   This as if in their minds the Church has replaced Judah and Israel.  So I went deeper into the Word and discovered that this was not so.  YHWH is faithful and it would be uncharacteristic for YHWH to just forget His promises to the patriarchs.  This discovery led me to appreciate more fully the immutable character of our Father and Creator.

 

That the Messiah and the disciples were on a mission to reach out to the lost sheep of Israel is clear also from Isaiah 49:5-6 because this is His main mandate.  Furthermore, Y'shua said so himself.

 

Matthew 10:6  But rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Matthew 15:24  But He answered and said, I am not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 

 

How come no preacher teaches this?   How come Billy Graham, put any famous televangelist name here, does not preach the main mandate of the Messiah to gather Judah and Israel (Ephraim) to make them one again? No wonder the New Testament letters (epistles) are addressed to the scattered among the nations from the twelve tribes.  

 

That led me to understand that you and I and everyone else, who have gladly received the gospel from Y'shua and seek sanctification from His Torah, are most likely the physical descendents of the lost tribes of Ephraim.  But even if we were not one of them, we are adhering to Yahweh like Ruth the Moabite stubbornly did.  And thus we are by grace the heirs of the promises in Genesis 48:19-20.    We need to fulfill everything and be born of the water and of the Spirit as it is the only way to become part of the seed of the woman promised in Genesis 3:15.

 

I have written up most of what I have learned while led by the Holy Spirit to study the Word. I know that I have much to learn but at least now the narrative and relation between the Old and New Testament is making sense now.   There is unity and coherence in reading the entire canon.   Please read it and I would really like to read your comments. 

 

Here is my objective reading of the covenant that conclusively shows that there is only one Torah and one Way (halakhah), that of Y’shua haMoshiach, for the "kelulah" (the Lamb's bride assembly of believers comprising both Jews and gentiles).

 

Abraham the Hebrew (meaning one who crossed over) and his descendants the Israelites, that is the 12 tribes were covenanted by YHWH to be His own.  Yahweh chose two families (Jeremiah 33:24) and there are two houses (Jeremiah 33:14) comprising these 12 tribes, that consist of one nation: the Jews plus the Ephraimites.  These two, yet to be made one, were called to become a nation of priests and servants unto Him alone and thereby making Him known to all flesh. 

 

There are two miracles here, not just the miracle of the survival of the Jewish Race and Identity, even after more than 2000 years of dispersal, against all odds.   An equally important but hidden great miracle is the survival and calling out of the descendants of Ephraim (which means double fruitful).   Ephraim, by grace became the firstborn of Joseph (which means an increase), who himself by election became the firstborn of Jacob (the heel catcher, that is the supplanter) whose name and thus his character was changed to Israel (he who will rule with Elohim).  The apple or pupil of YHWH is Jacob (Deut 32:9-10),  who fathered the twelve tribes not just the tribe of Jew-dah.  "They shall come with weeping, and with prayers I will lead them. I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way; they shall not stumble in it, for I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn." Jeremiah 31:9 

 

In Genesis 48:19, it was foretold that Ephraim (which means double fruitful) was to become the father of multitude of nations (melo hagoyim).   This prophecy began to unfold after the Davidic kingdom of Israel (aka Zion) split into the southern kingdom and the northern kingdom.   The northern kingdom was identified as Israel or Ephraim depending on the prophet and it was dispersed among the nations due to its apostasy.  Unlike the descendents of the southern kingdom the Jews, the israelites lost their national identity because they were unfaithful to YHWH and didn't keep: Sabbaths (Lev 24:8), feasts (1 Kings 12:32) and the Torah (Ex 34:27-28; Lev 26:15).  But the miracle often missed is that YHWH promised to become a little sanctuary for them, the dispersed northern tribes, in their diaspora (Ezekiel 11:16). Reading further about this sanctuary in Isaiah 8:14 together with John 2:18-22 we understand that it is the sancuary of Y'shua's body that became a stumblingblock for both houses of Israel.  Faithful YHWH didn't forget His promises to the patriarchs and prophets so He is receiving His prodigal son Ephraim back into His home with a divine feast and untold honours.  Jew-dah (Judaism) is the older brother of the prodigal son in the parabole who is unfortunately upset at this generous display of His Father's paternal love. 

 

This is the main mandate of Messiah in:

 

Isaiah 49:5-6   And now, says YHWH who formed Me from the womb to be His servant, to bring Jacob again to Him, Though Israel is not gathered, yet I shall be glorious in the eyes of YHWH, and My Elohim shall be My strength. 
Isa 49:6  And He said, It is but a little thing that You should be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to bring back the preserved ones of Israel; I will also give You for a light to the nations, to be Y’shua to the end of the earth. 

 

This is the Restoration spoken by Peter in Acts 3:21.  This is the Regeneration in Matthew 19:28.  This is the renewal of the covenant (brit chadasha) spoken by Jeremiah 31:33.  It is also the gathering of Israel (Ephraim) from among all the nations  and joining them with Jew-dah in Ezekiel  37:16-17, look up also Hosea 1:11 the same theme is repeated over and over through the Tanach and missed by both  gentile Churchianity and Judaism.  

 

Churchianity misses it due to the false gospel of substitution and dispensationalism.  Whereas this is intentionally missed by the rabbinate due to their egocentric and ethnocentric view of the covenant (Ezekiel 11:15-33:24)!  But the true gospel of Y'shua is for "The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah (which means I will praise/worship) shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim." Isaiah 11:13  The true gospel of Y'shua is for the restoration of all of the twelve tribes (not just Jew-dah) under one Moshiach (Anointed) Melek (King) Ezekiel 37:24.....It is the gospel of the betrothed (kelulah) by YHWH of the once adulterous and divorced northern Israel (Hosea 2:20).  This Gomer (meaning fullness, completion, fullfilment, finished) the adulterous wife of prophet Hosea foreshadows northern Israel.  Note the words of Y'shua at the cross:  "It is finished (Gomer)"

 

This restoration gospel is also the grafting of wild olive tree branches in the cultivated olive tree which is the renewed and restored  "kelulah" of Shavuot (Pentecost) after Y’shua’s atonement death and resurrection. This happened after the Shekinah (Holy Spirit) fell as a mighty ruach (wind or spirit) with tongues of fire unto those Jew-hudim followers of Y'shua assembled in the upper room. 

 

There is an incorrect teaching that Hashem has a different plan for Jew-dah as this is calling Y'shua a liar. It is the false gospel that we were warned about by Paul (and in 1 John 2:22-23).   It is false because He (Y'shua) said that "No one can go to the Father unless through Him (Y'shua)."   Not even the Jews can go directly to the Father for one law (Torah) shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you (Exodus 12:49; Leviticus 24:22; Numbers 15:16).  During the trouble of Jacob, they the Yerushalamites will cry out to Him whom they have pierced Zechariah 12:10 .  BARUCH HABBA B'SHEM YHWH that means Blessed be He who comes in the name of YHWH.

 

Likewise, the benei anusim, Israelites captives and scattered among the nations where they were forced to convert to pagan rites, are returning to YHWH realizing that we have inherited lies and deceit even from wrong church doctrines.

 

Jeremiah 16:19  O YHWH, my strength and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the nations shall come to You from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and there is no profit in them.

 

The roman church was foreshadowed by Jeroboam who took the northern kingdom of Israel into apostasy by creating competing feasts days that precluded Israelites from fulfilling the three pilgrimage feasts to Jerusalem.  Likewise, the roman church changed Sabbath observance for Sun-day until this day.  It was Constantin, not Y'shua who declared this "venerable day of the Sun worship" an official day of rest on March 7, 321 AD.  Yet, in spite of this:  "Some early Christians observed the Sabbath as the day of rest, while others met for worship on Sunday. However, in the year 363, the meetings on the Sabbath as the seventh day were prohibited by Canon 29 of the Council of Laodicea.3 4"

 

3 "Christians must not Judaize by resting on the sabbath, but must work on that day honoring the day of the Lord, and,  can relax then as Christians. But if a man be found judaizing, be anathema from Christ".  Fratricide AND contrition: Brief History of Christian anti-Semitism (Caracas: Elena Dantas, 2006) Page 33.
4 "Canon 29 of the Council of Laodicea".  Ccel.org (June 1 2005).  Consulted on 29 February 2012. (In English)

 Yet, we can read that Y’shua's message to the leadership of the church of Laodicea in Revelations 3:14-16 is not complimentary.

 

The revelation of the Sabbath observance as a perpetual covenant is for all the children of Israel not just for the tribe of Jew-dah Exodus 31:16  Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

I am certainly not a scholar of the scripture but here are my two cents anyway:  our Lord knew and expected that the Sabbath was going to continue to be observed after His death and resurrection and it is evident that there was no condemnation for it in Matthew 24:20.

Also, foreshadowed by Jeroboam (1 Kings 12:27-32), the roman church and her daughters churches became more or less Judeophobic until this day by developing a substitution and dispensationalist theology far apart from the Torah centric faith covenant.  This is not supported by the Holy Scripture.

 

For example,  the assembly of believers, also known as the Lamb's bride is Strong's H3623 (Jeremiah 2:2) transliterated "kelulah" in hebrew . In Acts of the Apostles is Strong's G1577 (Acts 7:38) transliterated "ekklesia" in greek.  Both references show that the Bride and the Church which are one and the same were born in the wilderness after the exodus from the captivity of Egypt.   But the gentile church taught us that the Bride and the Church were born on the day of Pentecost after the Holy Spirit fell on the believers in the upper room.  The covenant was indeed renewed with the kelulah on that day as promised in Jeremiah 31:33 but the kelulah was born on the day of Pentecost (Shavuot) at Mt Horeb in the Sinai after the exodus from Egypt.  Likewise, we were taught there are two covenants, one with the church and one with Israel.  But the biblical narrative speaks of one covenant with the kelulah. YHWH has only one bride, restored Israel. 

 

At Mt. Horeb, the Torah was given on Pentecost to the kelulah: Exodus_12:38  And also a mixed multitude went up with them, and flocks, and herds, very much cattle.  Three thousand people died because of the golden calf worshipping.  Exo_32:28  And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses. And there fell of the people that day about three thousand men. Fast forward to Acts of the Apostles and Act_2:41  Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. And the same day there were added about three thousand souls.   There is continuity and coherence in the scripture.   There is only one new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31) between Elohim and His kelulah (bride).  There is one bride (Isaiah 49:18) and one olive tree (Jeremiah 11:16).  

 

A central trait of Elohim's character is His Oness (Deuteronomy 6:4) and Unity with Moshiach (John 10:30). Likewise, there is unity in His revelation.   The Torah observance under Y’shua’s guidance causes convergence and unity of the faith for both the gentile and the jew.  Or if you want to accept it convergence between Ephraim and Jew-dah in the faith of Y’shua HaMoshiach.  That is why Paul speaks of grafting wild olive tree branches into the cultivated olive tree root.   The end result is one cultivated olive tree not two olive trees.

 

Furthermore, churchianity taught us that grace (chen) and mercy (hesed or chesed) are the transliterated hebrew words that mean: grace, mercy, etc.. They claim this grace only started with the church after Pentecost and that before grace the law (Torah) was enforced....but grace always existed Gen 6:8  But Noah found grace in the eyes of YHWH. Look up Exodus 33:12  And Moses said to Jehovah, Behold, You say to me, Bring up this people. And You have not told me whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My sight.  Jer 31:2  So says YHWH, The people who were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even Israel, when I will go to give him rest.   And Torah has not been abolished by grace and Torah will always be instructed and taught.  Moreover, Torah means instruction and moral principles more than it means law.  How can you enforce to love one another by Law?  Love has to be voluntary! Psalm 119:174 I long for Y’shua and your Torah is my delight.

 

In my understanding there are different sources of biblical jurisprudence just like there is federal law, state law, by-laws, contract laws, common laws. 

 

1) Torah (meaning instruction, moral principles and teaching) given by YHWH interpreted by Y’shua in The Way (halakhah)...it will never be abolished

2) Law of Moses....sacrificial, libations (Hebrews 9:1 & 9:10), ordinances (Ephesians 2:15 & Colossians 2:14), etc. provided for temporary covering for sin...it was abolished forever at the cross, just like the law of sin and death is abolished for those of the faith of Y’shua HaMoshiach (Romans 8:2)

3) Torah interpretations by the Pharisees’s  way (halakhah) subsequently compiled in the Mishnah part of the Talmud.... indicted by Y’shua and deemed useless

 

Here is another issue.  You know that in the anglo jurisprudence, judges make law in court by precedent setting decisions.  Likewise, the scribes & rabbis figuratively sat on Moses seat and made law.   Y'shua recognized this and said that everything that they the scribes and Pharisees asked for observance, the disciples should do but warned them to refrain from doing as they did.  

 

Mat 23:2  saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. 

Mat 23:3  Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, observe and do. But do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.

 

But, Y'shua gave the keys of the kingdom to Peter (Mat 16:19) to become effective after His death, resurrection and departure.   This means that Peter was given the authority to interpret Torah which is to point the Way (halakhah) going forward. So, the "seat" of Moses' authority was officially removed from the scribes and pharisees and given to Peter. It was Peter who was sent to see the gentile Cornelius.  It was Peter who officially opened the doors of the kingdom of heaven to the gentiles.   Knowing this, let's look at what Peter has to say about the misinterpretation of Paul's teachings:

 

2Pe 3:15  And think of the long-suffering of our Lord as salvation (as our beloved brother Paul also has written to you according to the wisdom given to him 

2Pe 3:16  as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable pervert, as also they do the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction). 

2Pe 3:17  Therefore, beloved, knowing beforehand, beware lest being led away with the error of the lawless, you fall from your own steadfastness.

 

Did you read that?  The error of the lawless = Torah-less.   Read again to whom Peter was addressing this letter

 

2Pe 1:1  Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of our God and our Savior Jesus Christ, 

Did you read Jews there?   Nope!!!!! So the warning against the error of the lawless is for every one of the believers.  

 

If you recall, after Paul spent three years in Arabia he went to see Peter and spent 15 days with him because he knew he was the gatekeeper.  And Paul concludes that in spite all of his pharisee education:

 

Rom 10:12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all, is rich to all that call upon Him,

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:29 And if ye are Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Col 3:11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free: but all things in all with Christ.

 

And Peter’s gospel legacy is clearly articulated in 1 Peter 1:1-25, and it is to be reborn by grace and by sprinkling of the blood of Christ, to be holy like God is holy and to be Torah observant.

 

In Hebrews 4:2 we read that this same gospel (1 Peter 1:25) was preached also to the Israelites in the wilderness after they were delivered from their captivity in Egypt.  But if the same gospel was preached to them before Y'shua was born then this gospel was of Torah sanctification and faith in our future Redeemer.   But it didn't profit them because of their lack of faith.   The history of Israel and Jew-dah shows they abandoned the sanctification of Torah observance in favor of:  oriental practices (Isaiah 2:6); strange practices (Ezekiel 13:18); traditions (Galatians 1:14) and fables (1 Tim 1:4; 2 Peter 1:16).  

Talmudic Judaism claims even today that they study Torah.  The believer in Y’shua haMoshiach should not take this answer at face value.  We shall further inquire which Torah? This is because the rabbis are actually referring to what they call the Oral Torah which was supposedly received by Moses at the same time as the written Torah.  We shall examine whether this claim is supported in the Holy Scriptures. 

 

The Tanakh records that everything that YHWH gave to Moses (or to King David) was immediately committed to writing (look up Numbers 33:2; Joshua 23:6; 2 Kings 22:13; 1 Chronicles 28:19; 2 Chronicles 23:18). There is no mention of Oral Law in the Tanakh.  



Moreover, it took king Josiah's high priest & scribe finding the Torah scrolls and reading it to the king for the king to realize the disastrous falling away of Judah.   If the Oral Law truly existed and was as authoritative as the Torah Scrolls, it would have prevented the Judean kingdom from straying away that far from YHWH.   Furthermore, why did people mourn and weep after reading the Law (Nehemiah 8:9) if they had the Oral Law to keep them obedient to Yahweh?



​Furthermore, the cornerstone for Judaism, the Torah, does not mention Jews or Judaism even once.  It is in the writings of Esther and in the prophets in 2 Kings 16:6 where Jews are first mentioned as a group of people distinct from Israelites. Judaism / Talmudism is a more recent religion that was created after the Davidic kingdom split and subsequently after the Babylonian captivity and the destruction of the first temple. It was further developed as a reaction to Christianity by Akiva and then later further developed by Maimonides. In its present form, Judaism is quite different from the faith walked by Abraham and the patriarchs of the Israelites.

 

For this reason, Paul concludes: “For Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and answers to Jerusalem which now is, and is in slavery with her children.” Galatians 4:25 

 

But this is not slavery to the Torah, as the gentile church has been misled to understand, it is slavery to lies and deceit.

 

In conclusion, both gentile and jew are for the most part trapped in a false system of religion. But YHWH is raising a mighty army (Ezekiel 37) that challenges traditions of men that are unsupported by the Holy Scriptures. Like Jacob, the brother of Y’shua, put it: “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” James 1:27

 Thank you for reading.  I hope it was worth your while.   

Shalom aleichem