Shoftim “Judges”
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.
Shoftim is the Hebrew title for “Judges” and is the name for the weekly Torah portion reading for the Book of Deuteronomy starting in chapter 16 verse 18 and going through chapter 21 verse 9.
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 Isaiah in chapter 51 verses 12 through chapter 52 verse 12.
The gospel readings that are incorporated with the weekly Torah portion readings come from the book of John in chapter 14 with verses 9 through 20.
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-eighth reading from the Weekly Torah Portion cycle is called Shoftim in Hebrew, which means “Judges” in English.
In the Torah Portion Shoftim, we see the commandment from Yahweh to the king to write a copy of the Torah as a foreshadowing of the lawgiver Jesus. Jesus, Himself is the WORD of God-made flesh. Jesus is the Spirit and essence of the Torah, Prophets, and Gospels in perfection. It is through Jesus's life, death, and resurrection the Torah will no longer be written on stone but on our hearts.
Torah Portion Scriptural Highlights-
Deuteronomy 16:18 Judges and Officers
Deuteronomy 16:21 Forms of forbidden worship
Deuteronomy 17:8 Legal Decisions by Priests and Judges
Deuteronomy 17:14 Limitations of Authority
Deuteronomy 18:1 Privileges of Priest and Levites
Deuteronomy 18:9 Prohibiting magic, divination, and child-sacrifice
Deuteronomy 18:15 (Jesus) A prophet like Moses
Deuteronomy 19:1 Cities of Refuge and their laws
Deuteronomy 19:14 Property Boundaries
Deuteronomy 19:15 Law concerning witnesses
Deuteronomy 20:1 Rules of warfare
Deuteronomy 21:1 The law of murder by unknown persons
Haftarah (Prophets) Scriptural Highlights-
Isaiah 51:1 Blessings for God’s people
Isaiah 52:1 Let Zion rejoice
Brit (Gospel) Scriptural Highlights-
John 14:9 Jesus is the Father
John 14:15 Jesus teaches to keep the commandments
John 14:20 Jesus’ redemptive promise
The Book of Deuteronomy “Devarim” which means “Words.”
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 fifth book of the Bible (Deuteronomy) is Devarim. The name “Devarim” comes from one of the opening phrases in the book of Deuteronomy which means “Words,”
The Greek Septuagint is where we find the English name for “Deuteronomos” called “Deuteronomy.”
The book of Deuteronomy is primarily comprised of the farewell teachings of Moses to the children of Israel. Like all good prophets and leaders in the Torah, Moses encourages the children of Israel to remain faithful to the covenants they made with God.
Moses then continues to review the stories of the giving of the Torah at Sinai, the journey to the Promised Land, the review of some of the Torah laws, and the introduction to new laws.
It is also important to point out that the format of the book of Deuteronomy also follows a general pattern of Ancient Near Eastern treaty documents.
As Messianic Christians, we find the book of Deuteronomy 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
