This week’s parsha was absolutely wonderful as several amazing events happened that revealed how short man’s memory is! I mean, can you believe that the new Pharaoh didn't know anything about Yosef who had saved Egypt from the great famine and helped Pharaoh increase his wealth? That, in itself, suggests that many, many years had passed. Scripture does that a lot. We often see someone's entire life outlined in just a couple of sentences or paragraphs - but yet, we still get the gist of the story or the lesson we are to learn.
Anyway, turning to Moshe (who seemingly overnight grew from a baby into an adult hero used by YHWH to free Israel from their 400 years of slavery ... Have you ever given much thought to the "burning bush" that Moshe encountered in Exodus 3, where when he received a visit from an "angel of ADONAI in a fire blazing from the middle of a bush?" How awesome this must have been! We can only imagine the terror and amazement Moshe must have experienced.
When Moshe moved in closer to examine this phenomenon, he was told by YHWH to remove his sandals because he was standing on holy ground (Exodus 3:5).
My random thoughts are - and I might be wrong - that this could very well be where the Muslim "final prophet" Muhammed [who borrowed many of his ideas from Torah] got his idea that everyone must remove their shoes before entering the mosques, which are supposedly "holy ground."
But, what I also saw in this passage was that man doesn’t necessarily have to travel to some far-away "holy" site to “meet God” or undergo some personal transformation! YHWH can meet us anywhere He wishes!
Rabbi Michi Yosefi from Sivan Rahav-Meir wrote:
This verse teaches us a vital truth:
TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES: Remove what restricts and confines you
FROM YOUR FEET: The Hebrew for 'feet' can also mean habits, routines
BECAUSE THE PLACE UPON WHICH YOU STAND IS HOLY SOIL: You don't need to find a new place to find what you are seeking. The place you are standing upon at this moment can become holy.
Simple, yet amazing are the nuggets we can receive from Torah!
Agreed Carmen...thanks for your insight...referred a friend to your site as she defends the lies of her church nd that Yah must change the heart to see tho tried to explain for years...the refining fire is something to behold as we do not expect it nd then the responsibility after being set apart...shalom
ReplyDeleteCarmen, I just love doing word searches when reading scripture. The added insight never ceases to amaze me! Sometimes I find a completely different message than what is in the pashat. What an Awesome Elohim we serve, amen.
ReplyDeleteI learned from these scriptures that only God knows what is holy. Moses had no idea he was on holy ground until God told him. Coming out of my protestant upbringing, where holy is often attached to the unholy (Holy Christmas worship serve, etc.) How blasphemous it is to assume that we can declare things holy.
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