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The study of the Bible in its historical context - with a focus on the archaeology, history, geography, customs , culture, and even the languages of the ancient Middle East. WE ask what did they understand THEN - the original intent of the Lord - so that we can expand and enrich our understanding NOW and thus become true disciples of Adonai Yeshua as in John 8:31-32.
Episodes
Friday Jan 10, 2025
Friday Jan 10, 2025
AN IMPORTANT LESSON SHOWING
THE VERACITY OF GOD'S WORD
Abram arrives at Shechem (lesson 26) in 2091 B.C. Really? Who says? Time goes on and then we read in Exod. 12:40 that the sons of Israel (Jacob) lived in Egypt 430 years till they left with Moses. Where does that number come from? Why doesn't anyone explain it? Also it is taught to us that the early date of the Exodus was 1446 B.C. and no one ever justifies this date. It is just stated. Why won't anyone help us understand that this date of 1446 B.C. is supported by REAL archaeology and not someone's opinion or speculation. Well, I will. This lesson is to show that the early date of the Exodus, 1446 B.C. is very likely considering the archaeology supporting it and the study of the events in their historical context.
I mentioned I will provide a number of links to resources to help you study further. These links and resources are shown below.
Link 1 - slides that may help you put all this together - https://www.dropbox.com/s/jdvuqdvqg6q88fh/Egypt%20W%
Link 2 - an article on Edwin Thiele that shows how he connects the Assyrian King List (calendar) to 1 Kings 6:1 - https://www.dropbox.com/s/m9au2fpr9suktj8/Dating%20Old%20Testament%20History%20Thiele.pdf?dl=0
Link 3 - video from the Associates for Biblical Research on dating of Exodus Part 1 - https://biblearchaeology.org/mediainfo/digging-for-truth/digging-for-truth-episodes/4538-digging-for-truth-episode-43-archaeological-evidence-for-the-early-date-of-the-exodus-part-one
Link 4 - part 2 of the previous video - https://biblearchaeology.org/mediainfo/digging-for-truth/digging-for-truth-episodes/4544-digging-for-truth-episode-44-archaeological-evidence-for-the-early-date-of-the-exodus-part-2
Link 5 - Dr. Bryant Wood's article on setting the date for the Exodus - https://biblearchaeology.org/research/chronological-categories/exodus-era/3288-recent-research-on-the-date-and-setting-of-the-exodus
Link 6 - Dr. Bryant Wood's video on the Hebrews in Egypt part 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DT6giGYerx4
Link 7 - part of of previous video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJn09u8cYRA
Link 8 - part three of previous video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EMecjtl-MA
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0
Wednesday Jan 08, 2025
Wednesday Jan 08, 2025
In this lesson (two parts) we ask where does Stephen come up with that idea that Moses is 40 years old when he killed the Egyptian and fled to Midian? The Torah is silent. It does not give Moses' age and yet about 1400 years later Stephen says he is. Where did he get it from?
On top of that did Moses commit first degree murder? It sure seems like he did when we read it in English! Uh oh. If we go into the Hebrew do things become clearer; do they make more sense? Hmmm. I wonder.
Who is Reuel? Who is Jethro? Who is Hobab? The Bible implies Reuel and Jethro and Hobab are the father-in-law of Moses. Huh? Oh sure. They are all the same guy right? I mean that is what we are taught. This can't be since the Bible is clear; Hobab is the son of Reuel and Hobab is the father-in-law of Moses but Reuel is the father of Zipporah, Moses' wife. This is crazy. Must mean the Bible can't be trusted right? Wrong.
Finally, we learn that the Hebrews cry out in Exod. 2:23 and it is a blessing that God heard their cry. Why? The Hebrews cried out to no one! We miss that. We think they cried out to the Lord. That is putting words in the Bible that aren't there. They didn't know the God of their fathers anymore. They had assimilated into the Egyptian culture. The Bible proves it yet we missed it. All they knew were the gods of Egypt. It is easy to get Israel out of Egypt but it is nigh impossible to get Egypt out of Israel.
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0
Sunday Jan 05, 2025
Sunday Jan 05, 2025
In this Bible study podcast we will complete Exodus 22. Once again we will see that because Jesus' Bible, the Bible He had available when He was here among us, the Hebrew Scriptures or the Old Testament, that Jesus is a great Torah teacher! What we may think as NEW concepts and NEW ideas or teachings that we might assume are 100% Christian, are not. Jesus is teaching Torah and Torah, sometimes the name for the first five books of the Bible, does not mean LAW but TEACHING (Hebrew word H8451 in Hebrew as תּרה Torah - pronounced TOE - RA and it means teaching or instruction coming from the Hebrew word meaning to teach). Jesus in His own words said of the Torah ...
"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill (the Greek word that translates into fulfill is G4137 or πληρόω play-ro'-o and means to complete, to finish). For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven." (Mat 5:17-20)
In these words of Jesus the Greek word that is translated as LAW is G3551 or νόμος pronounced NO - MOS is the same Greek word used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) to translate the Hebrew word תּרה Torah. Jesus is not speaking about the laws in the first five books of the Bible but the actual words of God, the scriptures themselves, the very word of God, the Bible, God's teaching or instruction. He came not to fulfill the teaching but to COMPLETE IT.
We'll see that in this lesson. We will consider the law in Lev. 19:18 to love our neighbor as ourselves. Who is our neighbor? The Lord in the Torah says it is Egyptians besides one's fellow Hebrew. Check it out in verses Exodus 3:22, 11:2-3, and 12:35. The Lord is clearly implying the Egyptians are to be considered the "neighbors" of the Hebrews. Then the Lord uses the parable of the "Good Samaritan" to take this idea deeper and finally these words of the Lord ...
"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." (Mat 5:43-45)
Jesus is not only saying that the hated Samaritans (Jews and Samaritans hated each other) were their neighbors but even our enemies! So, from the Torah written in the 15 century B.C. to the days of Yeshua, we see how the Lord took the basic teaching and expanded upon it and completed it.
To understand Jesus, to understand the Lord we need to understand the Torah, the Hebrew Scriptures. This is our foundation and the foundation of the New Testament. This is so clear in this lesson as we complete Exodus 22.
Here's a great article that I urge you to access. Again it shows that the New Testament, the teachings of Jesus, the Torah of Adonai, has its foundation in the Torah.
Link - https://mymorningmeditations.com/2013/06/20/the-purpose-of-torah-in-new-testament-judaism-part-1/
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/8qth6w4e56oub9js1w1gu/BackgrndTeacher-mar-25-2020.pdf?rlkey=f14fr2wmde5fezjmnrny8cycl&st=8kag3nil&dl=0
Friday Jan 03, 2025
Friday Jan 03, 2025
If there is a Torah foundation related to Jesus’ statement in John 5:39 that scripture testifies of Himself, this lesson and the previous are it. If you haven’t listened to lesson 25 yet, I urge you to do so since 25 and this lesson go together.
(Link for lesson 25 - https://lightofmenorah.podbean.com/e/genesis-25-gen-121-3-all-the-failies-of-the-earth-will-be-blessed-grafed-in/?token=d9d77c41f718882414251c4bc602ad22)
If you ever wanted to study scripture that testifies of Jesus’ coming and His mission, these are two Torah lessons that are foundational to our understanding of the coming of the Messiah and the REASON FOR THE SEASON and a direct connection to John 5:39.
In this lesson we will focus on one location. We must turn to geography to see how God picks one place to help us SEE His redemption plan.
Shown below are maps. This shows the likely route Avram took from Haran to Canaan and his first stop, Shechem.
Map 1
Map 2
Map 3
In this lesson I mentioned Joel Kramer. He is an OUTSTANDING evangelical Christian archaeologist. He did a Bible study tour recently to Israel when he was studying for his advanced degree in archaeology. One spot they studied was Shechem – the location I mentioned above that God picked. Below is a link to Joel’s video on site in Israel at the ancient ruins of Shechem. You won’t want to miss this. Also, I provided a link to Joel Kramer’s website as well. You MUST go to his website and see the free videos from Israel that will blow you away.
Link to video lesson by Kramer at Shechem - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5Cp4dQvxJo
Link to Joel Kramer's website - https://sourceflix.com/
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/8qth6w4e56oub9js1w1gu/BackgrndTeacher-mar-25-2020.pdf?rlkey=f14fr2wmde5fezjmnrny8cycl&st=8kag3nil&dl=0
Wednesday Dec 25, 2024
Friday Dec 20, 2024
Friday Dec 20, 2024
Get ready for one explosive lesson. It all focuses on Gen. 12:1-3 ...
Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go forth from your country, And from your relatives And from your father's house, To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed." (NASB Gen 12:1-3)
If there is one place in the TORAH, if there is one instance in the Old Testament where God proclaims "good news" for all of us, it is right here. I normally do not rely on Orthodox Rabbinic commentary to help me understand the Bible. Too many times rabbis interpret the Bible in ways that are not based on the historical or cultural context or make up explanations that they need to deal with a scriptural difficulties or issues too tough to answer rationally. It is like the miracle of the oil at Chanukah. It never happened. I am not stating my opinion. I am just telling you what scholarly Jewish sources teach. We Christians fall into the trap of assuming the Orthodox rabbis are THE resource for understanding the Bible from a Jewish point of view. Far from it. For example the Orthodox say the 1st temple was destroyed in 423 B.C. based upon their personal interpretation of some verses in Daniel. However, they are wrong. Archaeology and history prove the temple was destroyed in 586 B.C. So, we need to be very very careful when accessing Orthodox Rabbinic Bible commentary. Here's a link to one of those sources to help you understand that the miracle of the oil never happened on Hanukkah.
Link - https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/transforming-hanukkah/
However, Rabbinic commentary is not always so off; that is not always the case. I do access rabbinic commentary, not as my primary source, but I need to glean from their ideas and thoughts. In the case of Genesis 12:1-3 their commentary blew me away as I think it will you. Their contributions to understanding these three verses are truly amazing and show us that the foundation of the New Testament is the TORAH. Here we will see, thanks to the rabbis, the gospel of the Kingdom, their view that this is a new start for all mankind, and that the Hebrew of these verses gave Paul insights into his picture of us Gentiles being "grafted in."
We recall the verse ...
But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree ... (Rom 11:17)
Here's a picture of branches grafted into an olive tree ...
Here's an article you may find interesting that goes into the Hebrew of these verses that relate to the Gospel, the Good News, that God inspired Moses to write about.
Link – https://moedtorah.blogspot.com/2012/10/torah-portion-lech-lecha-blessed-and.html
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/8qth6w4e56oub9js1w1gu/BackgrndTeacher-mar-25-2020.pdf?rlkey=f14fr2wmde5fezjmnrny8cycl&st=8kag3nil&dl=0
Wednesday Dec 18, 2024
Wednesday Dec 18, 2024
In part 2 of lesson 3 we will deal with a very important topic. Today there are well meaning pseudo scholars teaching Bible lessons on the radio, podcasts, videos on You Tube, etc. and are 1) incorrectly giving meaning to words or verses since they ignore the Hebrew textual context and the Hebrew conceptual meaning of words, and 2) using improper means to force the Bible to say something it does not say so as to agree with the point they are making, and 3) thus resulting in misleading literally thousands of normal everyday believers around the world.
In lesson 1 we talked about an issue highlighted in the verses below from the King James Version …
Make thee an ark (Borrowed from the ancient Egyptian - H8392 têvâh תֵּבָה) of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. (Gen 6:14)
And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark (H8392 têvâh תֵּבָה) of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink. (Exo 2:3)
And they shall make an ark (H727 ârôn אָרֹן ) of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. (Exo 25:10)
We can obviously see in the verses above the two distinct words in the King James in Hebrew that are translated as ARK. In the first two verses the word ark us used for the ark Noah built and the “basket” or ark Moses was put in by his mother to keep him alive. Moreover the Hebrew word TEVAH is an Egyptian word brought into the Hebrew. Like the name Moses. His name is not Hebrew but Egyptian. The 3rd verse is the ark of the covenant.
Clearly we have two separate words in Hebrew with two distinct conceptual meanings and in the textual context are not related to each other. And yet there are well meaning Bible teachers who do not have the expertise to work in the Hebrew textual context and not the English textual context. If they ignore the Hebrew textual context and teach the three arks are related; their lesson might prove to be cool and interesting but a lesson promoting misinterpretation and error.
In this lesson we will show how a current so called Pre-Trib Rapture scholar ignores the Hebrew textual context and stays in the English ignoring the conceptual meaning of the Hebrew and how it is used in other verses, and to teach that Enoch was RAPTURED. This teacher goes on to say that even Elijah was raptured. This probably is a way this teacher wants to show that the Pre-Trip rapture is something even in the Torah and the Prophets. His point is that the Pre-Trib rapture was not something made up by a Scottish charismatic pastor in the late 19th century. So, he must force the Bible to support his point. The problem is this “well meaning” teacher is mistakenly leading us into error and does not even know they are misleading many into believing what the Bible does not say. The issue is not the Pre-Trib rapture, but how this well known so called scholar misuses the Hebrew to force the Bible to say something is does not to support his view of the veracity of the rapture.
Also, in this lesson we will put the Torah into its historical context in the 15th century B.C. We will see how those Hebrews coming out of Egypt were hearing explosive ideas as per their culture from God Himself through the pen of Moses. We will see that the Bible is an ancient source for true Women’s Liberation. In our culture today there are those women, who may even be Christian, who criticize the word of God as being anti-women or misogynistic. Once again this shows the major lack in how the church teaches the Bible; the church ignores the historical context of the Bible. If the church had people properly trained in seminaries and Bible institutions, we’d have a proper understanding that the Bible was written to the Hebrews 3400 years ago and was way ahead of its time then. It is as if the Bible, God’s Torah, was the first document that promoted Women’s Liberation in a Godly sense. In chapter 1 and 2 of Exodus the theme song for the key characters in these two chapters is the song sung by Helen Reddy, “I Am Woman.” Yes!! Shiphra, Puah, Yocheved, Miriam, and Pharaoh's daughter - they stand as those made in the image of God and not in the shadow of men and God shows that woman is one the same level as men. If you recall, man was made out of mud. But, in the Hebrew, woman was built and constructed almost as if there was a special design. As soon as SHE was created God looked and finally said that it was VERY GOOD and stopped creating. Way to go girls!!
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0
Friday Dec 13, 2024
Friday Dec 13, 2024
The events of the Tower of Babel story are more applicable to us today than we may have imagined. It is probably something we have not been taught or even considered. For one thing, the people did not just build a tower. They also built a city. They built a city and a tower. This is huge and must be taken into account. What's this all saying?
Also, as the events unfold there is no mention of God. These people probably are not evil. The Bible does not say they are evil. But, these people do not seem to be one's who believe in God. Verses 1-4 they seem to be godless. God shows up finally in verse 5 when He came and saw not just the tower, but the tower and the city. God sees both. The tower is not the focus but the city and the tower. Some Bible teachers will say God was angry with the people and what they did. Huh? There is no mention of God being angry. But God sees that they have one language and they are one people and they will not easily be stopped from doing whatever they wish if this continues. God is saying this is dangerous. Huh? Why? Why is is dangerous. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that humankind never changed after the flood. In Gen. 6:5 and again after the flood in Gen. 8:21, God tells us through Moses' pen that the imagination of men's hearts is to do evil continually. This idea is seemingly repeated here.
Is God warning us that mankind as one people with one language and one worldview without God will lead to uncontrolled evil? Is this perhaps and prediction of the end of days when many will be without God and united as one people and one godless worldview? Let's go see.
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/8qth6w4e56oub9js1w1gu/BackgrndTeacher-mar-25-2020.pdf?rlkey=f14fr2wmde5fezjmnrny8cycl&st=8kag3nil&dl=0
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
Thursday Dec 12, 2024
We are about to study three awesome verses, Exod. 22:18-20. All three refer to commonly accepted practices connected to the immoral and sinful pagan culture in the ancient Near East. All three demand death sentences. What יהוה Yahvay our Lord is teaching us is His total rejection of polytheism and its associated abhorrent practices and rituals. In essence the Lord is teaching the Hebrews then coming out of Egypt that they are to be HOLY. Not the way the church translates holy as without sin or being righteous before God or holy being pure of heart or other ways. The church again dismisses the Hebrew and loses the real idea as to what יהוה Yahvay our Lord is getting at. The Hebrew word used for God wanting His chosen, His elect to be holy is the word קָדֹשׁ or kadosh H6918. It gives us the idea of being separate or ones set apart or those who are distinctly and uniquely different than others. The Lord wants His chosen, His elect, His people to live in such a way that they are not like the pagan polytheists around them. He wants His chosen to be His, set apart, ones who live so that all know they belong to יהוה Yahvay. We remember when He said in His word, in the Torah ...
"For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth. For I am the LORD who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God; thus you shall be holy, for I am holy." (Lev 11:44-45)
We are in His image and thus we are to exhibit those characteristics of our Father. He is קָדֹשׁ kadosh and we are also to be קָדֹשׁ kadosh. This idea carries us into the New Testament. If we are to be disciples of Yeshua, talmideem of Rav Yeshua, then we are to be like Him. Jesus said that He is not of the world and neither are we to be of the world. We are in the world but we are separate, set apart, distinctly different, or not part of the world. Jesus is only teaching from the only scripture they had when He was here, the Hebrew scriptures or the Old Testament and the תּוֹרָה Torah, the first five books of the Bible, considered the foundation of all of God's word in Jesus' day, when He said ...
"I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. "I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. (Joh 17:14-16)
So as we study these verses in Exodus we see they are God's intention for them THEN and for us NOW since through the CROSS and the BLOOD of the LAMB, we have become "grafted in" to the olive tree of Israel and through Jesus have become יהוה Yahvay's chosen, His elect, His sons and His daughters.
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0
Wednesday Dec 11, 2024
Wednesday Dec 11, 2024
This lesson is in two parts. There is just simply too much material in these verses, Exod. 2:1-10, that I had to break it up into two sessions.
Our focus is on the birth of Moses and we will study five distinct perspectives on Moses’ birth. In this first part we will return to the date of 1446 B.C. and use it as the date Moses and the Israelites left Egypt after the first Passover meal and the night the first born throughout the land of Egypt were killed. As we continue with the Exodus Torah study I will provide archaeological support for the date of 1446 B.C. We will see clearly that this date that many of you have heard in sermons, Bible studies or in your own readings, is the date of the Exodus. You will be surprised where this date comes from and how real archaeology supports it.
We will also consider some amazing Jewish legends associated with the birth of Moses. In Jewish thought Moses was considered the first redeemer and he prefigures the final redeemer, the ultimate redeemer, the Messiah.
Also we will study the word “ark.” Noah built an ark and Moses was put in an ark (see the King James and the Jewish JPS versions of the Bible) or a basket in the New American Standard and ESV versions and the ark of the covenant. Some actually teach all three of these “arks” are related. Matter of fact there is a Jewish website that teaches Torah and I just happened to read their lead rabbi relate Noah’s ark, the basket or ark Moses was put in, and the ark of the covenant. We will see that they can’t be related at all. This is proven by Jewish sources and supported by a simple solution - Hebrew. We are dealing with the textual context of the Hebrew and NOT the textual context in English.
I mentioned in this lesson that I would provide some links to enhance your study. The first link is to a video showing suggested possibilities of what was the Star of Bethlehem found in Matt. 2:1-2. The next links are to articles on the Hyksos and the New Kingdom of Egypt that starts with the 18th Dynasty. These I am sure will provide some insights and enhance this lesson.
Link to the video on the star – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMMkWvGz9jI
Link to the article on the New Kingdom – https://www.ancient.eu/New_Kingdom_of_Egypt/
Link to the article on the Hyksos – https://www.ancient.eu/Hyksos/
Rev. Ferret - who is this guy? What's his background? Why should I listen to him? Check his background at this link - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ortnret3oxcicu4/BackgrndTeacher%20mar%2025%202020.pdf?dl=0