17th of the 2nd month 2018/2019
Shalom all,
Mattithyahu/Matthew 24:37-39 “And as the days of Noaḥ, so also shall the coming of the Son of Aḏam be. 38 “For as they were in the days before the flood, eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noaḥ entered into the ark, 39 and they did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also shall the coming of the Son of Aḏam be.”
In this Chapter 24 of Mattithyahu/Matthew our Master describes the preceding events of His coming at the end of the age, where He warns us against being led astray by falsehood, where He describes how lawlessness will increase and love for Elohim will diminish. He then tells us, as quoted here above, that His coming will be as in the days of Noaḥ. It is very fitting for us to understand what the days of Noaḥ were like, so that we can be properly equipped in the Truth and dressed in the proper garments of righteousness, guarding to do all our Master commands in order to stay in Him and show our fervent love for Elohim, amidst a wicked and depraved world that is on the decay!
In a message called, AS IN THE DAYS OF NOAḤ, I would like to take a closer look at these words of our Master and look at how the world, as we know it today, is pretty much as depraved as it was in the days of Noaḥ.
What stirred me to look once again at these words and reference to the days of Noaḥ, was today’s date, which is the 17th of the 2nd month. So, what is it about this date? Well, this date is the day on which something unique happened in the days of Noaḥ… let us take a closer look:
Berěshith/Genesis 7:11 “In the six hundredth year of Noaḥ’s life, in the second new moon, the seventeenth day of the moon, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of the heavens were opened.”
On the 17th day of the second new moon the waters began to be poured out upon the earth!!! For seven days prior to this Noaḥ and his sons, along with all the animals that were to be taken according to the command of יהוה, went into the ark and then on this day, the 17th of the 2nd month, we see something very important that happened too, which we are told in:
Berěshith/Genesis 7:13-16 “On that same day Noaḥ and Shěm and Ḥam and Yapheth, the sons of Noaḥ, and Noaḥ’s wife and the three wives of his sons with them, went into the ark, 14 they and every life form after its kind, and every beast after its kind, and every creeping creature that creeps on the earth after its kind, and every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort. 15 And they went into the ark to Noaḥ, two by two, of all flesh in which is the breath of life. 16 And those going in, male and female of all flesh, went in as Elohim had commanded him, and יהוה shut him in.”
On that same day…the 17th of the 2nd month… look what happened…! Verse 16 tells us that all went in as Elohim commanded Noaḥ… and then… יהוה shut him in!!!
I will repeat this: יהוה shut him in! It was on this day, the 17th of the 2nd month that יהוה shut the door of the ark!!!
This date, in itself, is a date whereby we can learn some valuable lessons, especially as we consider the words of our Master and Elohim, יהושע Messiah, telling us that His coming and the end of the age will be ‘as in the days of Noaḥ!’ What this key Scripture of interest is able to teach us is that it is YHWH who closes the door, so to speak, and when the door is shut then those who are still outside will not be able to enter in, while those who are inside, will be preserved and protected in the covering and refuge of our Master, Saviour and Redeemer!
While I am not saying that this date is a specific date where the door will once again be closed, in type, what I am saying is that, as we learn from the accounts of the days of Noaḥ, we can clearly recognise that there will be a time where the door and access to the Master’s reign will be shut and those who have been foolish, like the parable of the 5 foolish maidens, describes, and lack oil in their lamps, will have no access and be rejected as not being known by the Master!
Especially in light of the depravity of our times, where these days are clearly as in the days of Noaḥ, this date should be a reminder to us all that we, who are in the Master, must make sure that we stay in our Master and be on guard against being led astray by the increase of lawlessness and the love of many that is growing cold at an alarming rate!
When our Master tells us that in the days of Noaḥ the people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noaḥ entered the ark, what He was basically saying is that people were carrying on as usual… business as usual, so to speak, as they had no care or concern for the coming judgement against unrighteousness and lawlessness. This is not a verse that teaches against marriage but is simply a picture parable of how people were just simply going about their daily wicked and depraved routines, without any care or concern for the Truth, despite having heard!
Kěpha tells us that Noaḥ was a proclaimer of righteousness (Kěpha Bět/2 Peter 2:5)
The Greek word that is translated as ‘proclaimer’ is κῆρυξ kērux – Strong’s G2783 which means, ‘a herald or messenger vested with public authority, ambassador and proclaimer of the Word of Elohim, preacher’, which comes from the root word κηρύσσω kērussō – Strong’s G2784 which means, ‘to be a herald, proclaim, preach, preaches, proclaiming, announce in an official capacity, tell, announce publicly, proclaim with the goal to persuade’, and is translated as ‘proclaiming and proclaim’ in:
Romiyim/Romans 10:14-15 “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without one proclaiming? 15 And how shall they proclaim if they are not sent? As it has been written, “How pleasant are the feet of those who bring the Good News of peace, who bring the Good News of the good!”
We all, as ambassadors of Messiah, have been sent to proclaim, just as Noaḥ was commanded to proclaim righteousness! Do not get disheartened by the fact that most refuse to hear, as they stubbornly go about their lives as usual! Be strengthened in the truth to proclaim righteousness and guard to do all our Master commands, so that, whether in word or deed, you do all in the Name of יהושע Messiah… even in the face of the increase of lawlessness!
Why? Because the day is coming where the door will be shut and those who have not had ears to hear what the Spirit says, will be shut out forever!
The Hebrew word that is translated as ‘shut him in’ is וַיִּסְגֹּ֥ר – vayyisgor and comes from the root word סָגַר sagar – Strong’s H5462 which means, ‘to shut, close, deliver’. This word is used in:
Yeshayahu/Isaiah 22:22 “And I shall place the key of the house of Dawiḏ on his shoulder. And he shall open, and no one shuts; and shall shut, and no one opens.”
Here this prophecy in Yeshayahu clearly speaks of Messiah being the One who shuts and opens:
Ḥazon/Revelation 1:17-18 “And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead, and He placed His right hand on me, saying, “Do not be afraid, I am the First and the Last, 18 and the living One. And I became dead, and see, I am living forever and ever. Aměn. And I possess the keys of the grave and of death.”
Ḥazon/Revelation 3:7 “And to the messenger of the assembly in Philadelphia write, ‘He who is set-apart, He who is true, He who has the key of Dawiḏ, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens, says this”
We have this assurance in Messiah, as we guard to do all He has commanded us, that He will be with us through waters and through fire, and no harm shall come upon us, as He Himself ‘shuts us up’ in Him!
Yeshayahu/Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I am with you; and through rivers, they do not overflow you. When you walk through fire, you are not scorched, and a flame does not burn you.”
This root word is also used to describe those that will be delivered up to the wrath of Elohim:
Amos 6:8 “The Master יהוה has sworn by Himself, יהוה Elohim of hosts declares, “I am loathing the pride of Ya‛aqoḇ, and I have hated his palaces. Therefore I shall deliver up the city and all that is in it.”
In speaking of the day of the wrath of יהוה, we see how the wicked shall be shut up in prison until judgement!
Yeshayahu/Isaiah 24:22 “And in that day it shall be that יהוה punishes on high the host of exalted ones, and on the earth the sovereigns of the earth. 22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and be punished after many days.”
Understanding the clear separation of the righteous from the wicked, we can see from the use of this root word, how the shutting of the door carries a clear metaphor and parable of those who are righteous shall be covered and have a refuge in Messiah versus those who are wicked and shall be delivered up and separated for judgement!
It is with this clear parable of ‘shutting the door’…which יהוה Himself does… that I want to highlight how vitally important it is for us to be a ‘hearing, guarding and doing of the Torah’ people of Elohim as we guard against any compromise and lawlessness that causes love for Elohim to grow cold!
Messiah warns us in Mattithyahu/Matthew 24:11-12 that many false prophets will rise up and lead many astray and because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold!
The Greek word for ‘lawlessness is ἀνομία anomia – Strong’s G458 meaning, ‘lawlessness or lawless deeds, unrighteousness’ and comes from the word ἄνομος anomos – Strong’s G459 meaning, ‘lawless or without law, transgressors’.
When we guard righteousness, we are guarded against the deception of the lawless one!
Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 3:4 “Everyone doing sin also does lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.”
The Greek word for ‘sin’ is ἁμαρτία hamartia – Strong’s G266 which means, ‘sin, failure, miss the mark, to miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honour, to do or go wrong’, and also carries the meaning of, ‘wandering from the law of Elohim, violate the law of Elohim’.
Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 5:17-19 “All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not unto death. 18 We know that everyone having been born of Elohim does not sin, but the one having been born of Elohim guards himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. 19 We know that we are of Elohim, and all the world lies in the wicked one.”
The Greek word for ‘unrighteousness’ is ἀδικία adikia – Strong’s G93 which means, ‘unrighteousness, iniquity, wrong, deed violating law and justice’ and comes from the word that means to be without justice or penalty. This is a very clear and sobering warning of what love for Elohim is NOT – it does not rejoice over lawlessness!!!
When shooting an arrow or other object to a target, the distance that one misses is measured with a cord. The wrong actions of one are also measured against the correct action! The Torah is, in a manner of speaking, the ‘chord’ or ‘plumb-line’ that we are ‘measured against’; for we would not know what we have missed if there were no measuring line to guide and instruct us! Sinners are those who walk contrary to the Torah and ‘miss the mark’, so to speak, of the called for set-apartness and obedience to the Torah.
Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 3:4 spells it out very plainly for those who seem to miss the fact that to not walk in the Torah is sin! It is as though Yoḥanan was spelling out this fact very bluntly and straightforward for those who struggle with a Greek mind-set and see no need to walk in the Torah – well right here in the Greek it is clear – If you are lawless (that is to walk contrary to the Torah) then you are indeed sinning!
Sin is lawlessness: ἁμαρτία hamartia is ἀνομία anomia!
Ok…so… unrighteousness is sin – ἀδικία adikia is ἁμαρτία hamartia – that is pretty clear!
That means that:
unrighteousness is lawlessness, which is sin.
Therefore, when our Master tells us that lawlessness will increase, it is the same as saying that sin will increase or that unrighteousness will increase! And because of this, love of many will grow cold!
Lawlessness is simply living without the Torah of Elohim!!!
This verse of Mattithyahu/Matthew 24:12 struck me again this week as I considered the days of Noaḥ and it certainly brought great clarity as to understanding why many are so cold, and why so many who say they are friends can be so cold hearted and hate you!
As lawlessness increases…! In other words, as the refusal to walk in the Torah increases, so will their love grow cold. The Greek word for ‘cold’ is ψυχρός psuchros – Strong’s G5593 and is understood as being a metaphor for ‘sluggishness’ and comes from the verb ψύχω psuchō – Strong’s G5594 which means, ‘wax cold’ and is used as a metaphor for waning love. Without Torah there can be no love, but only a superficial counterfeit emotion that proves false through trials! יהוה is Love – יהוה is our Salvation through the Blood of יהושע – יהושע is the Living Torah – the Torah made flesh. יהושע Messiah is Love. Therefore, the Torah is, in effect, our Love language that teaches us how we are to live and communicate in this world!!! Without Torah there is no Love! As people increase their ignorance and rebellion to the Torah, so will the love they have diminish and grow cold. But we who endure to the end, by walking in the Torah of Elohim, which is to be diligently walking in Love, shall be saved!! The fullness of our salvation, for which we have been sealed in the Spirit as we stay in the Master, will be completed at His return. May we certainly be found to have endured and held on to His love by walking in His perfect Torah and not be found to be outside when the door shuts!!!
The Greek word that is used in the LXX (Septuagint – Greek translation of the Tanak – O.T.) in Berěshith/Genesis 7:16 for ‘shut in’ is κλείω kleiō – Strong’s G2808 which means, ‘to shut, close, lock, shut’ and is used in the warning that Messiah gave to the scribes and Pharisees for shutting up the entrance to the reign through their falsehood!
Mattithyahu/Matthew 23:13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you shut up the reign of the heavens before men, for you do not go in, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.”
The scribes and Pharisees were hypocrites. The Greek word that is translated as hypocrite comes from the root word ὑποκριτής hupokritēs – Strong’s G5273 which means, ‘one who answers, pretender, actor, dissembler (one who hides under a false appearance)’, and a ‘hypocrite’ referred originally to “one who judged from under the cover of a mask” thus, assuming an identity and a character which he was not. This term was typically referred to the actors on the Greek stage – that is one who took the part of another, giving the appearance of a false identity in order to indulge the fantasies of the audience.
The scribes and Pharisees were religious actors, so to speak, in that they pretended to be something on the outside, what they were not on the inside.
What we must remember is that, while man looks at the outside, יהוה looks at the heart!
Harsh words were indeed spoken by יהושע to the hypocrites of the time, hypocrites who indeed tried to display the appearance of worship unto Elohim, yet their religious works were simply shown up and revealed by Messiah as an act of hypocrisy and lawlessness. It was their religious hypocrisy and lawlessness that was shutting up the reign of the heavens before men!!! The lawless shut themselves out by their sin and lack of love for Elohim!
But ultimately, we take note that the final shutting is done by יהוה!
Therefore, while there are many who are being shut out by the wicked teachings of lawlessness that is leading them astray, we have an urgent role to play, which is to proclaim righteousness and continue to do so until destruction comes from the Master! While many are being distracted by false teachings of lawlessness, we must be like Noaḥ and guard to do righteousness and make a bold proclamation of the good News, while the Door to His reign remains open! Now, while it is extremely difficult to know when Elohim will shut the door we must do our utmost in guarding righteousness, as we stay in Him and call others to come out of hypocrisy and lawlessness, while the invitation to the reign of the heavens remains open to ears that will hear!
The clear definition of righteousness is given to us in:
Deḇarim/Deuteronomy 6:25 “And it is righteousness for us when we guard to do all this command before יהוה our Elohim, as He has commanded us.”
Our belief in our Master and Elohim must be seen in our works of righteousness as we guard to do all He has commanded us to! The Hebrew word for ‘righteousness’ is צְדָקָה tseḏaqah – Strong’s H6666 meaning, ‘righteousness, righteous acts, merits, righteous deeds’, and is the feminine form of צֶדֶק tseḏeq – Strong’s H6664.
Mishlĕ/Proverbs 12:28 “In the way of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death.”
To follow righteousness alone is to follow our Master and Elohim, and King of Righteousness, יהושע Messiah.
Mattithyahu/Matthew 5:6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, because they shall be filled.”
We know that the Torah teaches us that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of יהוה. With a proper fleeing of that which is false we must be engaged in an active pursuit of that which is True and life to us.
Deḇarim/Deuteronomy 16:20 “Follow righteousness, righteousness alone, so that you live and inherit the land which יהוה your Elohim is giving you.”
Follow righteousness, righteousness alone! The Hebrew wording of the first part of this verse is as follows:
צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף – ‘tseḏeq tseḏeq tirdoph’ which can be literally translated as, “righteousness, righteousness you shall follow”.
The Hebrew word for righteousness – צֶדֶק tseḏeq – Strong’s H6664 is used twice in a row for clear emphasis on what must be followed, and the Hebrew root word that is used for ‘follow’ is רָדַף radaph – Strong’s H7291 and carries the meaning, ‘to pursue, chase, follow closely after, aim to secure, run after, hunt, persecute’ and in the context of pursuing and running after, we note that it is after righteousness and not anything else.
If one is truly pursuing something, then the focus of the pursuit is so intense on that which is being pursued that there can be no effort spared for anything else!
This root word רָדַף radaph – Strong’s H7291 is used in:
Hoshěa/Hosea 6:3 “So let us know, let us pursue to know יהוה. His going forth is as certain as the morning. And He comes to us like the rain, like the latter rain watering the earth.”
This word gives us the picture of running, and in Scripture we are clearly told how we shall know that we know Elohim:
Yoḥanan Aleph/1 John 2:3-5 “And by this we know that we know Him, if we guard His commands. 4 The one who says, “I know Him,” and does not guard His commands, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever guards His Word, truly the love of Elohim has been perfected in him.”
To know Him is to guard His commands, and guarding is a continual action that must be done each and every day through a proper pursuit as pictured by running, as Dawiḏ makes it clear how he runs, in:
Tehillah/Psalm 119:32 “I run the way of Your commands, for You enlarge my heart.”
As in the days of Noaḥ, so shall it be at the end of the age!
And so, we are clearly at the end of the age and take note with a sober observation that the coming of our Master draws near, as we can clearly see an increase of the birth pains of His soon coming becoming abundantly clear and how the increase in lawlessness, which is unrighteousness, which is sin, has caused the love of many to becomes cold!
Ḥazon/Revelation 22:11-12 “He who does wrong, let him do more wrong; he who is filthy, let him be more filthy; he who is righteous, let him be more righteous; he who is set-apart, let him be more set-apart. 12 “And see, I am coming 12 speedily, and My reward is with Me, to give to each according to his work.”
These words of our Master that were spoken to Yoḥanan, after seeing some very intense visions of what is to come, gripped me once again this week as I pondered on the days of Noaḥ being likened to the days of the end of the age and the drawing near of our Master.
As we take some time to consider this command given here, we who are set-apart in the Master need to make sure that set-apartness and righteousness be diligently increased and guarded in our lives, through a proper loving obedience and observance of the Torah and commands of our Master and Elohim, יהושע Messiah!
These words were some of the final words that Yoḥanan would receive in his revelation of Messiah, and that which is to come, and therefore emphasises the sobering fact of how a clear separation of the righteous and the unrighteous will be made clearer, and more evident, as the day of the wrath of יהוה draws near.
As His day draws near we recognise a time that is fast approaching where it is although there will be no more time for people to change their ways as the line in the sand of separation will have been drawn, so to speak!
There is a direct contrast being made here between good and evil and highlights a time where those who are evil will simply continue to be evil and those who are good are called to keep being good, echoing a similar language we find in:
Dani’ěl/Daniel 12:10 “Many shall be cleansed and made white, and refined. But the wrong shall do wrong – and none of the wrong shall understand, but those who have insight shall understand.”
Here in Ḥazon/Revelation 22:11 we are given a parallel of pairs in order to highlight the clear separation that is made between those who shall be declared wrong and those who shall be declared righteous; and what we must take note of here is that these words are not describing two different kinds of bad people (wrong and filthy) or two different kinds of good people (righteous and set-apart), but rather this is an emphatic way of contrasting the bad and good.
Our Master makes it abundantly clear that He is coming soon and when He does He will give each one according to his work, good or bad. Knowing this, we are able to see another clear choice that is being set forth for the hearers of His Word as He sets before us the clear choice of doing what is good and right or doing what is wrong and evil. In other words, the choice of life and death are being presented as a choice here in these very sobering words and the choice that one makes will have consequences, good or bad, life or death…. For the time to mix is over and the time to compromise is over… it is now time for people to choose whom they will serve; and the call that is being made abundantly clear here is that the righteous and set-apart ones of the Most-High must be more righteous and be more set-apart in the Truth that leads to life and let the wrong and filthy carry on in their path of depravity unto death!
With the clear fact that the door will soon be shut by our Master Himself, we need to make sure that we are in the Master and staying in Him as we grow in set-apartness, being more righteous and ore set-apart, all the more as we see the Day of the wrath of YHWH approaching!
This is not a time to be going on with ‘business as usual’, so to speak, as the rest of the world is doing and risk ending up falling into the trap of love growing cold due to the wicked doctrines of demons that have promoted lawlessness as an acceptable standard of man’s twisted theologies. It is time to stand and proclaim righteousness, knowing that we have the assurance of deliverance in the Master who knows how to redeem and preserve those who are in Him, as evidenced through the witness of Noaḥ and his sons!
The Greek word that is translated as ‘do more’ comes from the word ἔτι eti – Strong’s G2089 which is a primary adverb that carries the meaning of, ‘still, yet, besides, further, continue in’, and implies a duration of that which is being done!
In other words – keep on doing what you’re doing! This same word is used for the call for the filthy to be more filthy, and for the set-apart to be more set-apart.
He who is righteous, let him be more righteous! The Greek word that is translated here as ‘be more’ is not the word ἔτι eti – Strong’s G2089 that is translated as ‘be more’ for wrong, filthy and set-apart, but is the word ποιέω poieō – Strong’s G4160 which means, ‘to make, do, accomplish, keep, work, acts’, and is translated as ‘does’ in:
Mattithyahu/Matthew 7:24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does them, shall be like a wise man who built his house on the rock”
A derivative of this word is ποιητής poiētēs – Strong’s G4163 which means, ‘a doer, a maker’, which is translated three times as ‘doer’ in:
Ya’aqoḇ/James 1:22-25 “And become doers of the Word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 Because if anyone is a hearer of the Word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror, 24 for he looks at himself, and goes away, and immediately forgets what he was like. 25 But he that looked into the perfect Torah, that of freedom, and continues in it, not becoming a hearer that forgets, but a doer of work, this one shall be blessed in his doing of the Torah.”
We are to become doers of the Word and not just hearers only! So many may study much on the Appointed Times of Elohim while lack the proper obedience to do what is instructed; and we learn very quickly how greater the understanding of the Word comes in the proper doing of the Word, for without the proper doing or performing of the Word we can easily be deceived by falsehood, which highlights for us the urgency we are to have in being diligent in having our ears attentive to the Torah of Elohim, so that we can delight in guarding to do all that He commands us and express a true and proper love for Elohim in complete obedience to His Word.
To ‘be more’ righteous implies a continual obedience to the proper hearing, guarding and doing of His commands, and in doing so, being diligent in cleansing ourselves from all defilement of the flesh!
As we consider the events that took place on the 17th of the 2nd month, in the days of Noaḥ, we must be reminded how we are to be more set-apart and more righteous! In other words, we must not be led astray by the delusion of lawlessness but rather guard righteousness and boldly declare a fervent love for Elohim!
With the clear picture of the ark door being closed on the 17th of the 2nd month, after which the flood waters were released by Elohim, we are able to glean a great lesson and parable for today and carefully consider the parable our Master gave in:
Luqas/Luke 13:24-27 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, because many, I say to you, shall seek to enter in and shall not be able. 25 “When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Master, Master, open for us,’ and He shall answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 26 then you shall begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 27 “But He shall say, ‘I say to you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of unrighteousness.”
The Greek word that is translated as ‘shut’ in verse 25 comes from the root word ἀποκλείω apokleiō – Strong’s G608 which means, ‘to shut fast or completely’ and clearly emphasizes a door that cannot be opened, after being completely shut fast! This word comes from the two root words:
1) ἀπό apo – Strong’s G575 which is a preposition and participle that means, ‘from, away from, at, in, to’ and
2) κλείω kleiō – Strong’s G2808 which means, ‘to shut, close, lock, shut’, which we have already looked at, being the Greek word used in the LXX in Berěshith/Genesis 7:11 which describes the ark door being shut by יהוה!
When the door is shut no amount of knocking and pleading will get it opened again! Now is the time to come to the Door – which is Messiah, yet the times is fast approaching when that door and access to His reign will be closed and the workers of unrighteousness will be left outside and told to go away, being cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth!
Mattithyahu/Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Master, Master,’ shall enter into the reign of the heavens, but he who is doing the desire of My Father in the heavens. 22 “Many shall say to Me in that day, ‘Master, Master, have we not prophesied in Your Name, and cast out demons in Your Name, and done many mighty works in Your Name?’ 23 “And then I shall declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me, you who work lawlessness!”
No matter how many assumed works are done by those who are lawless and refuse to walk in the Torah, their works of lawlessness and unrighteousness will be rejected, and the door shut, giving the lawless no access to the reign of Elohim!
Sha’ul warns us of the coming of lawlessness and those who do not receive a love for the truth are handed over the delusion in order for them to believe the lies!
Tas’loniqim Bět/2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 “The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power and signs and wonders of falsehood, 10 and with all deceit of unrighteousness in those perishing, because they did not receive the love of the truth, in order for them to be saved. 11 And for this reason Elohim sends them a working of delusion, for them to believe the falsehood, 12 in order that all should be judged who did not believe the truth, but have delighted in the unrighteousness.”
This is a sober warning against not loving the Truth, as it is Elohim who will send the working of a delusion to those who will not love His Torah and love the guarding of His commands! Delusion is a very powerful thing indeed, for the one who is handed over a working of delusion does not know that they are being led astray! How then can we watch and be on guard? By loving the Truth and guarding the commands of Elohim! Dawiḏ loved the Torah and ran in the way of the commands of Elohim, and so should we, as His beloved Bride!
Tehillah/Psalm 119:97 “O how I love Your Torah! It is my study all day long.”
Can you echo the same words of Dawiḏ or is your love for the Torah drowned out by the delusion of being against that which has been established and appointed by Elohim? If one does love the Torah of Elohim then the necessary daily meditation and study will be a pleasure, yet so many today argue that they just cannot find the time to get in to the Word as their lives are so busy with many things, as they go about their days ‘as in the days of Noaḥ, where it is business as usual, having no real concern for what is coming upon the sons of disobedience!
Kěpha Bět/2 Peter 3:17-18 “You, then, beloved ones, being forewarned, watch, lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the delusion of the lawless, 18 but grow in the favour and knowledge of our Master and Saviour יהושע Messiah. To Him be the esteem both now and to a day that abides. Aměn.”
The Greek word that is translated as ‘delusion’ comes from the word πλάνη plane – Strong’s G4106 meaning, ‘wandering, deception, error, deluding, deceitful’ and is simply understood in the Greek as ‘wandering out of the right way’ which is figuratively used to describe being in error! A derivative of this word is πλανάω planaō – Strong’s G4105 which means, ‘to cause to wander, deceive, mislead, misled, led or gone astray’, which is translated as ‘led astray’ in:
Galatiyim/Galatians 6:7 “Do not be led astray: Elohim is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, that he shall also reap.”
We see this word πλανάω planaō used in the Greek text in the account when, answering the Sadducees over their dispute about the resurrection, יהושע Messiah said to them:
Mattithyahu/Matthew 22:29 “… You go astray, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of Elohim.”
These words are so true for so many today, as they go astray, simply because they do not know the Scriptures, and if they do not know the Scriptures, it is impossible for them to know the power of Elohim!!!
Because of this sad reality, of most people who claim to know Elohim yet do not know Scripture, we see how so many are easily being led astray, misguided and deceived, as they wander aimlessly away from the Truth, instead of running in the way of His commands… no realising that the door is soon to be shut!!!
Many are being led astray because they do not know or properly understand the Scriptures and as a result they are being led astray by crafty doctrines of man that do not follow the clear order, pattern and witness of the Word of Elohim. The Greek word that is translated a ‘lawless’ here in Kěpha Bět/2 Peter 3:17 is ἄθεσμος athesmos – Strong’s G113 which means, ‘lawless, unprincipled men, wicked’, and is understood as ‘one who breaks through the restraint of law and gratifies his lusts’. This word comes from the two root words: 1) α alpha – Strong’s G1 which is the first letter in the Greek alphabet that is used as a negative prefix, and 2) θεσμός thesmos which means, ‘law, custom’ and is a derivative of the word τίθημι tithēmi – Strong’s G5087 which means, ‘to lay up, lay aside, appoint, establish’.
Therefore the ‘lawless’ is being described here as one who is against that which has been established and appointed!
This word ἄθεσμος athesmos – Strong’s G113 is used twice in Kěpha’s second letter and the other verse we see it being used in is describing the indecent behaviour of the lawless that Lot was oppressed by:
Kěpha Bět/2 Peter 2:7 “and rescued righteous Lot, who was oppressed with the indecent behaviour of the lawless”
Indecent behaviour of the lawless! The Greek word that is translated as ‘indecent’ is the word ἀσέλγεια aselgeia – Strong’s G766 which means, ‘licentiousness, sensuality’. Licentiousness means, ‘lacking legal or moral restraint, disregard sexual restraint, disregard for strict rules of correctness’. Sensuality means, ‘gratification of the senses or indulgences of the appetite, devoted to or preoccupied with the senses or appetites, deficient in moral, spiritual, or intellectual interests’.
Those who are deficient in spiritual or intellectual interests have no regard for the order and instructions of Elohim and they therefore are against the appointed and established order of Elohim and can be easily led astray to doing whatever ‘feels’ right in their own eyes!
This is exactly how it is in the world today… just as in the days of Noaḥ!
With that being said, the purpose of this message is to encourage the righteous and set-apart to be more righteous and set-apart, staying in the Master and Elohim, יהושע Messiah, who is the Door and who is our refuge and strength, in whom we can trust! Do not be found to have wandered from the Truth and being left outside when He comes! Stay in Him so that He stays in you!!!
As in the days of Noaḥ! These days are here – do not be found to be left outside! Let this day of eth 17th of the 2nd month be a sobering reminder of our need to guard to do all our Master and Elohim has commanded us and hold fast to the sure hope we have in Him, even as we see many being led astray and falling away to the lusts of the flesh!
The love of many is growing cold – but do not let that happen to you! Learn from the days of Noaḥ and be on guard against any delusion as you become more set-apart and more righteous, for the day of our Master draws near!
What does the reflection of this date of the 17th of the 2nd month mean to you, as you look intently into the mirror of the Word? Does it encourage you to keep on being strong and courageous? If so good, then encourage others too!
Or, is it a sobering call to stop drifting along with those who are outside and are in serious danger of not entering into the reign, as you have been going about with ‘business as usual’ approach and have cast aside any urgency in guarding righteousness? If so, then hear this call to return to your first love:
Ḥazon/Revelation 2:5 “So remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the first works, or else I shall come to you speedily and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.”
AS IN THE DAYS OF NOAḤ!
What does this mean to you? Are you in or are you out?
The door will one day be closed – He who has an ear hear what the spirit says!!!
You may read this message on this day of the 17th of the 2nd month or you may read it on another day. No matter which day you happen to read this, may these words encourage you to be found in the Master as you guard to do all He has commanded us to do!!!
יהוה bless you and guard you; יהוה make His face shine upon you and show favour to you; יהוה lift up His face upon you and give you Shalom!