Mattot “Tribes”
It is customary for religiously practicing Jews to read from an annual cycle of weekly Old Testament readings called Torah Portions. This is said to be the same reading schedule that was taught every Sabbath in the Synagogues during the times of Jesus in the first century.
As Christians who profess our faith in Jesus, we study the Old Testament to understand the historical, cultural, and contextual background of the history of our heritage in Jesus. This is commonly known as the Messianic teachings of Christianity and is a part of our Saturday Church in Norman, Oklahoma.
While customs are not commandments there is beauty for believers in Jesus (Yeshua) to understand their identity as grafted into the covenants with Israel. As descendants of Abraham, all Christians are heirs according to the promise given to Abraham even before Sinai. Christians should study and learn the Torah and show respect for their Jewish brothers and sisters. It is through the study of the law that we see another level of greatness in Jesus who is the lawgiver and the greatest Torah teacher of all time.
Mattot is the Hebrew title for “Tribes” and is the name for the weekly Torah portion reading for the Book of Numbers starting in chapter 30 and going through chapter 32 verse 42.
It is also important to point out that along with the Torah portion readings and teachings, there are what are called Haftarah portions which are readings from the Bible in the books of the prophets. This week’s haftarah reading comes from the book of Jeremiah in chapter 1 verse 1 through chapter 2 verse 3.
The gospel readings that are incorporated with the weekly Torah portion readings come from the book of Luke in chapter 13 with verses 1 through 9.
As Christians exploring the Torah portion cycle we must maintain a balance of including the Old Testament, the prophets, and the gospels in our weekly bible study.
Torah Portion Overview-
The forty-second reading from the Weekly Torah Portion cycle is called Mattot in Hebrew, which means “tribes” in English. The Torah Portion name comes from the words at the beginning of Numbers 30:1, which state, "Then Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel." In chapter 30 of Numbers, it outlines the laws of vows and oaths. In chapter 31 of Numbers, it tells the story of the war with Midian that Israel had. In chapter 32 of Numbers, it tells us how the Gadites, Reubenites, and half of the tribe of Mannaseh came to inherit the land east of the Jordan River. Mattot is also commonly read as a part of a double Torah Portion with the Torah Portion Massei, except in the biblical calendar leap years.
Torah Portion Scriptural Highlights-
Numbers 30:1 Women’s Vows
Numbers 31:1 The War against Midian
Numbers 31:13 The Return from War
Numbers 31:25 Disposition of Captives and Booty
Numbers 32:1 Conquest and Division of the Jordan River land
Haftarah (Prophets) Scriptural Highlights-
Jeremiah 1:1 Introduction
Jeremiah 1:4 The Call and Commission of Jeremiah
Jeremiah 2:1 God calling Israel to Repentance
Brit (Gospel) Scriptural Highlights-
Luke 13:3 Jesus calls for repentance
Luke 13:6 Jesus tells a parable
The Book of Numbers “Bamidbar” which means “In the Wilderness.”
The Old Testament is commonly referred to as the Torah. It is the most sacred of all of Israel’s Scriptures. Most of our modern Bibles include the Old Testament “Torah” as the first five books in the Bible. The name in Hebrew of the fourth book of the Bible (Numbers) is Bamidbar. The name “Bamidbar” comes from one of the opening phrases in the book of Numbers which means “In the Wilderness,”
The Greek Septuagint is where we find the English name for “Bamidbar” called “Numbers.”
In the Book of Numbers, we see the recounting of the story of Israel’s quest through the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. It is a journey that could have been negated if it weren’t for the bad report of the ten spies. It also outlines how the generation who came out of Egypt would die in the wilderness and give way to the triumph of the second generation in leading their way into taking the promised land as their inheritance.
As Messianic Christians, we find the book of Numbers and the stories therein, as a historical account of how we as believers are grafted into the covenants and promises of God with our forefathers and how we can learn to walk and learn from their actions.
To Watch an overview of this week’s Torah Portion CLICK HERE
