1. The Fourth Forgiveness Saying
2. The Haftarah Totah Portion Yitro (יתרו)
3. The mashal of the sower, seed, and soils
4. The mystery of the kingdom of Heaven
5. Only when we recognize the true Messiah can we enter the Kingdom
6. The entire first Jewish Gospel is a midrash on just Isaiah 6:9-10
7. Understanding the judicial and forensic language of Isaiah 6:9-10
8. HaGe’ulah – the redemption that both forgives and heals
9. See, hear, understand, and obey with the heart; return and be healed!
10. Summary

The Fourth Forgiveness Saying:

Mattai 13:10-15

{Classic and Mishnaic Hebrew}

וַיִּגְּשׁוּ אֵלָיו הַתַּלְמִידִים וַיֹּאמְרוּ לָמָּה זֶּה בִּמְשָׁלִים תְּדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם׃ וַיַּעַן וַיּאֹמֶר כִּי לָכֶם נִתַּן לָדַעַת אֶת־סוֹדוֹת מַלְכוּת הַשָׁמָיִם וְלָהֶם לֹא נִתָּן׃ כִּי מִי שֶׁיֶשׁ־לוֹ נָתֹן יִנָּתֵן לוֹ וְיַעֲדִיף וּמִי שֶׁאֵין לוֹ גַם מָה־שֶׁיֵּשׁ־לוֹ יִנָּטֵל מִמֶּנּוּ׃ עַל־כֵּן בִּמְשָׁלִים אֲדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם כִּי בִרְאֹתָם לֹא יִרְאוּ וּבְשָׁמְעָם לֹא יִשְׁמְעוּ אַף־לֹא יָבִינוּ׃ וּתְקֻיַּם בָּהֶם נְבוּאַת יְשַׁעְיָהוּ הָאֹמֶרֶת שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמוֹעַ וְאַל־תָּבִינוּ וּרְאוּ רָאוֹ וְאַל־תֵּדָעוּ׃ כִּי הַשְׁמֵן לֵב־הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָזְנָיו הַכְבֵּד וְעֵינָיו הָשַׁע פֶּן־יִרְאֶה בְעֵינָיו וּבְאָזְנָיו יִשְׁמַע וּלְבָבוֹ יָבִין וָשָׁב וְרָפָא לוֹ׃

{Modern Hebrew}

נגשו התלמידים ושאלו: מדוע אתה מדבר אליהם במשלים? השיב ואמר: מפני שלכם נתן לדעת את סודות מלכות השמים, אך להם לא נתן. כי מי שיש לו נתון ינתן לו ושפע יהיה לו, אך מי שאין לו, גם מה שיש לו ילקח ממנו. לכן במשלים אני מדבר אליהם, כי בראותם אינם רואים ובשמעם אינם שומעים אף אינם מבינים. ומתקימת בהם נבואת ישעיהו לאמר: שמעו שמוע ואל-תבינו וראו ראו ואל-תדעו. השמן לב-העם הזה ואזניו הכבד ועיניו השע, פן-יראה בעיניו ובאזניו ישמע ולבבו יבין, ושב ורפא לו. פ

נִגְּשׁוּ הַתַּלְמִידִים וְשָׁאֲלוּ: מַדּוּעַ אַתָּה מְדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם בִּמְשָׁלִים? הֵשִׁיב וְאָמַר: מִפְּנֵי שֶׁלָּכֶם נִתַּן לָדַעַת אֶת סוֹדוֹת מַלְכוּת הַשָּׁמַיִם, אַךְ לָהֶם לֹא נִתַּן. כִּי מִי שֶׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ נָתוֹן יִנָּתֵן לוֹ וְשֶׁפַע יִהְיֶה לוֹ, אַךְ מִי שֶׁאֵין לוֹ, גַּם מַה שֶּׁיֵּשׁ לוֹ יִלָּקַח מִמֶּנּוּ. לָכֵן בִּמְשָׁלִים אֲנִי מְדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם, כִּי בִּרְאוֹתָם אֵינָם רוֹאִים וּבְשָׁמְעָם אֵינָם שׁוֹמְעִים אַף אֵינָם מְבִינִים. וּמִתְקַיֶּמֶת בָּהֶם נְבוּאַת יְשַׁעְיָהוּ לֵאמֹר: שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמוֹעַ וְאַל־תָּבִינוּ וּרְאוּ רָאוֹ וְאַל־תֵּדָעוּ. הַשְׁמֵן לֵב־הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָזְנָיו הַכְבֵּד וְעֵינָיו הָשַׁע, פֶּן־יִרְאֶה בְעֵינָיו וּבְאָזְנָיו יִשְׁמָע וּלְבָבוֹ יָבִין, וְשָׁב וְרָפָא לוֹ. פ

As soon as Yeshua was alone his followers, along with the twelve, began asking him, “Why do you speak to them in meshalim?” Yeshua answered them, “To you it has been granted to know the mystery and mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but it is not granted to those who are outside. They get everything in meshalim. For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him. In their case, the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says,

‘Listen well, but you will not understand.
Look closely, but you will not know;
Fatten the heart of this nation,
And make its ears heavy and seal its eyes
So that it will not see with its eyes, or hear with its ears,
Or understand with its heart, or return and be healed.’

Therefore, I speak to them in meshalim, so that while seeing they may see and not perceive, and while hearing, they may hear and not understand, otherwise they might return and be forgiven.”

The Haftarah Torah Portion Yitro (יתרו):

The Fourth Forgiveness Saying of the Messiah is rooted and grounded in the Haftarah Parshat Yitro (Isaiah 6:1-7:6 & 9:5-6). Haftarah refers to the reading of the prophets that compliments the weekly Torah reading. Rabbi Yeshua’s teaching on forgiveness today is a midrash on the Torah Portion Haftarah of Yitro (Isaiah 6:9-10):

ויאמר לך ואמרת לעם הזה שמעו שמוע ואל־תבינו וראו ראו ואל־תדעו׃ השמן לב־העם הזה ואזניו הכבד ועיניו השע פן־יראה בעיניו ובאזניו ישמע ולבבו יבין ושב ורפא לו׃

וַיֹּאמֶר לֵךְ וְאָמַרְתָּ לָעָם הַזֶּה שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמֹועַ וְאַל־תָּבִינוּ וּרְאוּ רָאֹו וְאַל־תֵּדָֽעוּ׃ הַשְׁמֵן לֵב־הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָזְנָיו הַכְבֵּד וְעֵינָיו הָשַׁע פֶּן־יִרְאֶה בְעֵינָיו וּבְאָזְנָיו יִשְׁמָע וּלְבָבֹו יָבִין וָשָׁב וְרָפָא לֹֽו׃

He said, “Go, and tell this people:
‘Keep on listening, but do not perceive;
Keep on looking, but do not understand.

“Render the hearts of this people insensitive (fat),
Their ears dull (heavy),
And their eyes dim (besmeared),
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears,
Understand with their hearts,
And return and be healed.”

The mashal of the sower, seed, and soils:

Meshalim (parables, proverbs) are a common method of rabbinical teaching (oral and written) that are used by Rabbi Yeshua to reveal truth to his disciples (talmadin) while at  the same time concealing these truths from others who are not his disciples.

Just prior to Rabbi Yeshua’s delivery of today’s midrash on the above Parshat Haftarah Yitro (Isaiah 6:9-10) he teaches the following “mashal of the sower, seed, and soils.” This mashal is found in three of the *Four Faces of the heavenly Messiah witnessed to by the prophet Ezekiel. Here we read:

*Besorat HaGe’ulah (בשורת הגאולה found in the Four Jewish Gospels.

וַיֶּרֶב לְדַבֵּר אֲלֵיהֶם בִּמְשָׁלִים לֵאמֹר הִנֵּה הַזּוֹרֵעַ יָצָא לִזְרֹעַ׃ וַיִּזְרַע וַיִּפֹּל מִן־הַזֶּרַע עַל־יַד הַדָּרֶךְ וַיָבֹאוּ הָעוֹף וַיֹּאכְלֻהוּ׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל־מְקֹם הַסְּלָעִים אֲשֶׁר אֵין שָׁם אֲדָמָה הַרְבֵּה וַיְמַהֵר לִצְמֹחַ כִּי אֵין לוֹ עֹמֶק אֲדָמָה׃ וַיְהִי כִּזְרֹחַ הַשֶׁמֶשׁ וַיִּצָּרֵב וַיּיבָשׁ כִּי אֵין־לוֹ שֹׁרֶשׁ׃ וְיֵשׂ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל בֵּין הַקֹּצִים וַיַּעֲלוּ הַקֹּצִים וַיְמַעֲכֻהוּ׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל־הָאֲדָמָה הַטּוֹבָה וַיִּתֵּן פֶּרִי זֶה מֵאָה שְׁעָרִים וְזֶה שִׁשִׁים וְזֶה שְׁלֹשִׁים׃ מִי אֲשֶׁר לוֹ אָזְנַיִם לִשְׁמֹעַ יִשְׁמָע׃

אז דבר אליהם רבות במשלים ואמר: הנה הזורע יצא לזרע. כאשר זרע נפלו כמה זרעים בשולי הדרך ובאו צפרים ואכלו אותם. אחרים נפלו על אדמת טרשים, במקום שלא היתה להם הרבה אדמה, ומהרו לצמח מפני שלא היתה להם אדמה עמקה. אולם כשזרחה השמש נצרבו ובאין שרש התיבשו. אחרים נפלו בין קוצים, אך הקוצים צמחו והחניקו אותם. ואחרים נפלו על אדמה טובה ועשו פרי – זה פי מאה, זה פי ששים וזה פי שלושים. מי שאזנים לו, שישמע! פ

[Mattai] He spoke to them at length with meshalim (מְשָׁלִים) saying:

“The sower went out to sow seed. As he sowed, some of the seed fell by the road, and the birds came and ate it. There was some that fell on rocky places where there was not much soil, and it sprouted quickly, because it had no deep soil. When the sun shone, it was scorched and dried up, because it had no root. There was some that fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and crowded it out. There was some that fell on the good soil and bore fruit, one hundred times, another sixty, and another thirty. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear.”

וַיְלַמְּדֵם הַרְבֵּה בִּמְשָׁלִים וַיּאֹמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם בְּלַמְּדוֹ אוֹתָם׃ שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמוֹעַ הִנֵּה יָצָא הַזֹּרֵע לִזְרֹעַ׃ וַיְהִי בְזָרְעוֹ וַיִּפֹּל מִן־הַזֶּרַע עַל־יַד הַדָּרֶךְ וַיָּבֹאוּ עוֹף הַשָּׁמַיִם וַיֹּאכְלֻהוּ׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל־מְקוֹם הַסֶּלַע אֲשֶׁר אֵין־לוֹ שָׁם אֲדָמָה הַרְבֵּה וַיְמַהֵר לִצְמֹחַ כִּי לֹא־הָיָה לוֹ עֹמֶק אֲדָמָה׃ וַיְהִי כִּזְרֹחַ הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וַיִּצָרֵב וַיִּיבָשׂ כִּי אֵין־לוֹ שׁרֶשׁ׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל בֵּין הַקֹּצִים וַיַּעֲלוּ הַקֹּצִים וַיְמָעֲכֻהוּ וְלֹא נָתַן פֶּרִי׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל הָאֲדָמָה הַטּוֹבָה וַיִּתֵּן פְּרִי עֹלֶה וְגָדֵל וַיַּעַשׂ זֶה שְׁלֹשִׁים שְׁעָרִים וְזֶה שִׁשִּׁים וֵזֶה מֵאָה׃

הוא למד אותם דברים רבים במשלים ובלמדו אותם אמר להם: שמעו! הנה יצא הזורע לזרע. כאשר זרע נפלו כמה זרעים בשולי הדרך ובאו צפרים ואכלו אותם. אחרים נפלו על אדמת טרשים, במקום שלא היתה להם הרבה אדמה, ומהרו לצמח מפני שלא היתה להם אדמה עמקה. כשזרחה השמש נצרבו ובאין שרש התיבשו. אחרים נפלו בין הקוצים, אך הקוצים צמחו והחניקו אותם ולא נתנו פרי. אחרים נפלו על אדמה טובה ונתנו פרי עולה וגדל – זה פי שלושים, זה פי ששים וזה פי מאה. פ

[Markos] He taught them many things with meshalim, and he said to them as he taught them:

“Listen closely: The sower went out to sow seed. As he sowed, some of the seed fell by the road, and the birds of heaven came and ate it. There was some that fell on a rocky place where there was not much soil, and it sprouted quickly because it did not have deep soil. When the sun shone, it was scorched and dried up because it had no root. There was some that fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and crowded it out, and it did not bear fruit. There was some that fell on the good soil, and it bore fruit, coming up and growing. One made thirty times, another sixty, and another a hundred.”

וַיְהִי בְּהִתְאַסֵּף הֲמוֹן עַם־רָב אֲשֶׁר יָצְאוּ אֵלָיו מִכָּל־עִיר וָעִיר וַיְדַבֵּר בְּמָשָׁל׃ הַזּוֹרֵעַ יָצָא לִזְרֹעַ אֶת־זַרְעוֹ וּבְזָרְעוֹ נָפַל מִן־הַזֶּרַע עַל־יַד הַדָּרֶךְ וַיֵּרָמֵס וַיֹּאכְלֻהוּ עוֹף הַשָּׁמָיִם׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל־הַסָּלַע וַיִּצְמַח וַיִּיבַשׁ כִּי לֹא הָיְתָה־לּוֹ לֵחָה׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל בְּתוֹךְ הַקֹּצִים וַיִּצְמְחוּ הַקֹצִים עִמּוֹ וַיְמָעֲכֻהוּ׃ וְיֵשׁ אֲשֶׁר נָפַל עַל־הָאֲדָמָה הַטּוֹבָה וַיִּצְמַח וַיַּעַשׂ פְּרִי מֵאָה שְׁעָרִים וַיְכַל לְדַבֵּר וַיִּקְרָא מִי אֲשֶׁר אָזְנַיִם לוֹ לִשְׁמֹעַ יִשְׁמָע׃

כאשר התאספו המוני אנשים שבאו אליו מכל עיר, דבר במשל: הזורע יצא לזרע את זרעו; כאשר זרע נפלו כמה זרעים בשולי הדרך ונרמסו, ועוף השמים אכל אותם. אחרים נפלו על סלע, אך עם צמיחתם התיבשו בגלל חסר לחות. אחרים נפלו בין קוצים, אך הקוצים שצמחו יחד עמם החניקו אותם. ואחרים נפלו על אדמה טובה, צמחו ועשו פרי פי מאה. לאחר שאמר זאת קרא: מי שאזנים לו, שישמע! פ

[Lukas] When a large crowd of people who had come out to him from each town had gathered, he spoke a mashal (מָשָׁל):

“The sower went out to sow his seed, and as he sowed, some of the seed fell by the road; it was trampled on and the birds of heaven ate it. There was some that fell on the rock; it sprouted but dried up because it did not have moisture. There was some that fell among the thorns, but the thorns sprouted along with it and crowded it out. And there was some that fell on the good soil; it sprouted and produced fruit, a hundred times as much.” After he said this, he cried out:

“Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear!”

This mashal-מָשָׁל depicts the presentation of the Besorah (good news) of God’s kindness and favor (grace) as sowing the Word of HaShem (His Seed/seeds) to the people of the world (a field). In the world people respond differently to His Gospel of Redemption (בשורת הגאולה-). Just as various types of soil are hospitable or inhospitable to seed growth these varied responses to the Word of God can be divided into four types of response:

Response #1.  Some persons reject the message from the outset of hearing it.

Response #2.  Others initially accept the good news of the Divine Redemption, however, these persons do so superficially. For when trials and persecution come – due to their public profession that Yeshua is the Messiah – they fall away.

Response #3.  Still others, who do not fall away due to social pressures, fall away when tested by their desires for material wealth and their love of worldly pleasures.

Response #4.  Then there are those persons who are not overcome by suffering, trials, persecution, or the seductive influence of materialism, and the love of worldly pleasures. These persons are identified as the truly converted ones (the good soil). Ultimately, the lives of these Jews and God-fearing gentiles result in many others persons coming to hear, understand, and believe in (obey) God’s Good News Message of Divine Redemption.

The mystery of the kingdom of Heaven:

After Rabbi Yeshua had told his Jewish followers the mashal of the Sower, Seed, and Soils, his disciples asked him why he taught in parables and proverbs. The Messiah of Israel and of the whole world explained to them that for a person to receive truth he or she must have first a proper relationship with the source of truth.

The source of all truth is designated by the word mystery (singular).

The Messiah of God was proclaiming he was the source of all truth and that by following him his disciples had been granted to know the mystery that would give them access to all the mysteries of God. This was so because the mystery in view here was not a special body of knowledge. It was the Messiah himself!

Only when we recognize the true Messiah can we enter the Kingdom:

The reason the Messiah was speaking in parables was because our Rabbi knew all to well that a very large number of persons would espouse to be his followers for very superficial and selfish reasons. He knew that may of his Jewish and later gentile followers would inevitably fall away.

Rabbi Yeshua taught his Jewish disciples in a very special language medium, the meshalim. He did this using carefully selected Hebrew words and phrases that would allow him to (secretly) convey truth to only those persons who were sincerely committed to hearing, understanding, and obeyingthe will of God. Therefore, his Jewish disciples possessed the sole item required to understand all of the mysteries of God- our belief that Yeshua is the true Messiah of Israel and of the whole world.

The entire first Jewish Gospel is a midrash just on Isaiah 6:9-10:

Discerning the difference between an authentic follower in Yeshua and a false follower is so incredibly important to the writer of the first Jewish Gospel that in his testimony he portrays Messiah as directly quoting only a single fragment of one portion of scripture from the Tanakh—Isaiah 6:9-10. Just as a skilled rabbi might build an expansive sermon around one small section of selected scripture reading, so it is here that the entire Jewish besorah according to Mattai is constructed out of just one very small scripture portion found in the prophet Isaiah.

Understanding the judicial and forensic language of Isaiah 6:9-10:

To better understand the judicial and forensic legal context of this one small Isaiah passage go to the weekly Torah and Haftarah (nevi’im, prophets) portions and study week seventeen (titled Yitro). Therefore, study Exodus 18:1–20:23 and Isaiah 6:1-7:6 & 9:5-6. Especially meditate on the judicial pronouncements that are being expressed from the throne of God as part of the  Proceedings of the Heavenly Court (Isaiah 6:1-13).

HaGe’ulah – the redemption that both forgives and heals:

Included in Rabbi Yeshua’s brief message on the Isaiah passage is his selected translation. He quotes from the Septuagint – the Greek translation of the Tanakh. Interestingly this is the only quotation found in the First Jewish Gospel that can be said to actually be in full agreement with the Septuagint. In his Greek translation the writer of the First Jewish Gospel (Mattai, “Given of God”) uses the Greek word iaomai as a translation of the Hebrew word “heal.” “Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn [Teshuvah, repent], so that I should heal [iaomai] them” (Mattai 13:15b). This word iaomai is a translation of the Hebrew word rapha; which means to heal.

Isaiah 6:10 Greek Version (Septuagint)

ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν αὐτῶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν μήποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν καὶ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς

Mattai 13:15 Greek Version

ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν μήποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν καὶ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς

Markos 4:12 Greek Version

ἵνα βλέποντες βλέπωσιν καὶ μὴ ἴδωσιν καὶ ἀκούοντες ἀκούωσιν καὶ μὴ συνιῶσιν μήποτε ἐπιστρέψωσιν καὶ ἀφεθῇ αὐτοῖς

See, hear, understand, and obey with the heart; return and be healed!

The Rapha (רָפָא) that both forgives and heals!

Both iaomi (Greek-ἰάομαι) and rapha (Hebrew-רָפָא) are indicative of healing in general (physical or spiritual). However, in the phrase “so that I should heal them,” in the third Jewish Gospel of Markos, the Greek word used is aphiemi (forgive-ἀφίημι), not iaomi (heal). Thus, in a very subtle way, the one Hebrew word and two Greek words are put in apposition (made nearly equal) to one another. The Hebrew word rapha as translated in Greek involves both healing and forgiveness. This means that when one repents of one’s sins and professes faith in the Messiah Yeshua this will lead to one receiving the rapha (Hebrew) that both universally heals (iaomai) and forgives (aphiemi).

Summary:

ובא לציון גואל ולשבי פשע ביעקב נאם ה’׃ ואני זאת בריתי אותם אמר יהוה רוחי אשר עליך ודברי אשר־שמתי בפיך לא־ימושו מפיך ומפי זרעך ומפי זרע זרעך אמר יהוה מעתה ועד־עולם׃

וּבָ֤א לְצִיֹּון֙ גֹּואֵ֔ל וּלְשָׁבֵ֥י פֶ֖שַׁע בְּיַֽעֲקֹ֑ב נְאֻ֖ם ה’׃ וַאֲנִ֗י זֹ֣את בְּרִיתִ֤י אֹותָם֙ אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה רוּחִי֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עָלֶ֔יךָ וּדְבָרַ֖י אֲשֶׁר־שַׂ֣מְתִּי בְּפִ֑יךָ לֹֽא־יָמ֡וּשׁוּ מִפִּיךָ֩ וּמִפִּ֨י זַרְעֲךָ֜ וּמִפִּ֨י זֶ֤רַע זַרְעֲךָ֙ אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה מֵעַתָּ֖ה וְעַד־עֹולָֽם׃

[So it is prophesied in the prophet Isaiah:]

And a Redeemer will come to Zion and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob,” says the LORD, “As for Me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit that is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth, shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your seed, nor out of the mouth of your seed’s seed,” says Adonai (the LORD), “from now on and forever.” {Amen, Amen}

Fifth Forgiveness Saying >>