Nitzavim “you are standing”
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 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 Name and Readings-
The Nitzavim Torah Portion is named after the Hebrew word for “you are standing”, the weekly reading is found in Deuteronomy starting in chapter 29 verse 10 and going through chapter 30 and verse 20.
Prophets and New Testament-
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 readings come from the book of Isaiah in chapter 61 verse 10 through chapter 63 verse 9.
The gospel readings incorporated with the weekly Torah portion readings come from the book of John in chapter 12 with verses 41 through verse 50.
Torah Portion Overview-
In this Parashat Nitzavim Moses sets out to bring the second generation of Israel into the covenant. They are reminded not to commit idolatry and warned that if they do they will receive the curse of the law. However, if they repent God would have mercy and restore Israel and bless them. Instead of telling Israel to circumcise their hearts Moses promises that Yahweh will do this Himself! He, not they, will cause them to obey. He then gives them hope with their obedience, for he promises that God’s commandments are not difficult to keep, nor are they too far away. They are not unknown, they are not hidden. Lastly Moses promises that if Israel obeys they will be blessed by God, but if they disobey they will be cursed and they would only find death. The Torah Portion in Deuteronomy 29:10-30 encourages us to obey and not worship other gods, and not to get discouraged in our obedience. It encourages us to hold fast to God’s covenant and walk with Him.
Today I noticed something that I have never noticed before! The promise that God’s commandment was given AFTER the promise that God would circumcise the hearts of Israel.
“Moreover, the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live… Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?’ No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe.”
Deuteronomy 30:6, 11–14 (NRSVue)
I believe the point of this is that God’s commandments are not to hard IF we have a circumcised heart! That changes things completely. This explains why Israel could not keep the Torah and failed to obey it. It also explains why no unbeliever can keep it perfectly. Indeed, Paul explained that the natural state of man, at his base level, is one of rebellion against God. The mind of man, at his heart, rejects the law of God. This is because the natural sinful state of man cannot obey the law of God. It is not capable of doing so.
“For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law—indeed, it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
Romans 8:5-8 (NRSVue)
But we are not called to stay in this state. We are not called to rebellion or rejection. Instead, we are called to walk in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is put within us when we are saved. It is this Spirit which causes us to walk in obedience to Him.
“But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, then the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.”
Romans 8:9-10 (NRSVue)
Knowing this changes how we seek to obey Him. For all too often we seek to obey God with our own will power and strength. Yet He does not call us to do this, but to obey Him through the power of the Holy Spirit! It is the Spirit of God which allows us to obey, because He gives us the desire to obey.
We are given a new and soft heart to God. We are no longer hard and rebellious. We are not called to sin but to live a life of righteousness.
“But thanks be to God that you who were slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted and that you, having been set free from sin, have become enslaved to righteousness. I am speaking in human terms because of your limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness, leading to even more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, leading to sanctification. When you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.”
Romans 6:17-20 (NRSVue)
We are free, we are not in bondage. Before, being slaves to sin, we were bound to disobedience. We were not able to obey. Now, we have been set free! The cross of Christ, His work, it has set us free! Now we are called to walk in righteousness, but in freedom. This is the difficulty that so many have, they struggle to be free. We see from the Torah, so many times those who were slaves continue to act as slaves. It is easy to judge them, yet we should be careful and look at ourselves! When we see God’s commandments as something that rules us, we look to it as a master. Yet we are not slaves of the law, we are slaves of righteousness!
“In the same way, my brothers and sisters, you have died to the law through the body of Christ, so that you may belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead in order that we may bear fruit for God. For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. But now we are discharged from the law, dead to that which held us captive, so that we are enslaved in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the written code.”
Romans 7:4-6 (NRSVue)
What is the difference between being a slave to the law and being a slave to righteousness? A slave of the law looks at the law as his master. He does what it says because it says. A slave of righteousness looks at God as His master.
“But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the fruit you have leads to sanctification, and the end is eternal life.”
Romans 6:22 (NRSVue)
There is a difference here. The Pharisees were slaves of the law and yet they did not know Him.
“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you lock people out of the kingdom of heaven. For you do not go in yourselves, and when others are going in you stop them.”
Matthew 23:13 (NRSVue)
Let us live a life of obedience to God, not as slaves to the law, but as slaves to God! Let us remember that He has given us a new heart. It is this new heart that allows us to say that it is not to difficult to obey Him. We are enabled by the Holy Spirit to have a soft heart, one that loves, and one that obeys. Let us walk in that obedience.
Torah Portion Scriptural Highlights-
Deuteronomy 29:10 Moses made a covenant with the second generation.
Deuteronomy 29:16 Those who turned to idolatry would receive the curse of the law.
Deuteronomy 30:1 If Israel repented of their idolatry then Yahweh would have mercy and restore them.
Deuteronomy 30:6 Yahweh promised to circumcise Israel’s hearts and cause them to obey.
Deuteronomy 30:11 God’s commandments are not too hard or to far away.
Deuteronomy 30:15 If Israel obeyed they would be blessed, but if they disobeyed they would be cursed and die.
Haftarah (Prophets) Scriptural Highlights-
Isaiah 61:10 The prophecy of One who will be clothed with righteousness and salvation and the sprouting of righteousness and praise.
Isaiah 62:1 Yahweh will save Jerusalem and glorify her.
Isaiah 63:1 The day of Yahweh’s wrath and vengeance.
Isaiah 63:7 Yahweh became Israel’s savior and was afflicted.
Brit (Gospel) Scriptural Highlights-
John 12:41 Many believe in Jesus, even the authorities but did not confess Him because they were afraid of men and wanted glory.
John 12:44 Jesus came to the world to save it but whoever rejects Him will be judged by His words.
To Watch an overview of this week’s Torah Portion CLICK HERE