Parsha #21 Ki Tissa (When you take) Shemot (Ex) 30:11-34:35

Haftarah: M’lakhim Alef (1 Kings) 18:1-39

B’rit Chadasha: Luke 11:14-20; Acts 7:35-8:1; 1 Corinthians 10: 1-13; 2 Corinthians 3: 1-18

Parasha:

In this Parsha we read that B’nai Yisrael sinned by making a golden calf while Moshe was on the mountain. I want you to pay special attention that YHVH told Moshe to descend because YOUR people have sinned. I find that interesting. Aren’t they YHVH’s people also? Or because of this sin is He alienated from them and they are no longer His? It reminds me of parents whose offspring have gone astray. All of a sudden it is YOUR child not our child. I’ve often wondered what is YHVH teaching us by His choice of words. Could it mean we could lose our salvation by gross sin even if we believe? They certainty believed in YHVH. They had witnessed YHVH’s miracles first hand. They had even experienced His presence. Yet not one of them set foot into the Promised Land. Or perhaps, it is to teach us that we are responsible for those we teach in the Way of YHVH Elohim. They are our people and as such we have a responsibility for them. We must be careful to guide and even correct them when they leave the path of Torah. It is certain that nothing in the Torah is by chance. There is a lesson to learn here and the Ruach will teach it to us if we listen.

We also see Moshe "arguing" with YHVH in defense of the people to save them from destruction. A Midrash tells us that Moshe appealed to YHVH by bringing up the Patriarch’s merits in defense of the nation. Moshe is reported to have replied to YHVH’s offer of making him the father of a new nation thusly: If a stool with three legs (Avraham, Yitzhak, and Yaacov) can’t stand on its own then a one legged stool founded upon Moshe doesn’t stand a chance of remaining upright. Clever but doesn’t quite fit the narrative.

More likely, YHVH was testing Moshe’s compassion for his charges. YHVH knew Moshe response, but like Avraham and Isaac, Moshe and Avraham did not know how they would respond to a given situation until they were in the circumstances. YHVH allows and tests our trust of Him, and He knows the outcome before the beginning, but we do not know until our trust is put to the test. We learn from YHVH’s tests of our faith. They make us more faithful and stronger when we succeed in meeting these challenges.

One other lesson is to be learned from Moshe’s actions. He realized that the people’s failure rested with him, their teacher, for a teacher must never blame the students alone when they fail, and he/she must find a way to rectify the situation.

Halftarah Connection: (1 Kings 18:1)

In the Parsha B’nai Yisrael commit the first very grave sin. Moshe was gone longer than they thought he should be so they constructed and worshipped and idol. The Sages in a half-hearted attempt to justify Israel say that it was only supposed to be representation of YHVH, but it cut into the Commandment not to bow down to idols.

During the reign of King Ahab, the ten northern tribes, Israel served Ba’al a false god. The prophet Eliyahu confronts them and proves there is only one true El.

The Halftarah takes place 600 years after the sin of the golden calf and B’nai Yisrael still have not learned their lesson.

Wisdom of the Sages:

"Everyone included in the census must give a half-shekel." (30:13)

Moshe asked everyone to give a half-shekel in order to count the people. Why not just give a whole shekel?

There is a saying, "No man is an Island unto himself." Perhaps we are being told no one can achieve perfection by themselves. In order to become whole you need someone else. In life we should have a mate to make us whole or Echad and before YHVH Elohim we need the covering of the blood of Yahshua to make us whole, Echad.

Michelangelo created a sculpture of Moshe with horns on his head. How could he make such a mistake? When Moshe descended from the mountain the Torah says his face glowed. The Hebrew word for "glow" is karan. The same root word in Hebrew also means, "horn." Michelangelo read an incorrect translation of the Torah and because of this many people think Jews have horns.

Gematria:

In the census from the age of 20 every Israelite had to give a half-shekel. Why was the age 20 chosen for this assessment? The Sages say that only those accountable for their sins could bring a half-shekel. The numeric value of shanah vamaalah, which means "20 years and up," is 506.

The numeric value of the phrase "for punishment," li’onashim, is 506. The Yerushalim Talmud points out that the age of 20 was chosen as the earliest age to bring the half-shekel for that is the earliest age a person is accountable for his sins.

Shalom and Brachas,

Rabbi Davis