Sermon Tone Analysis

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Hello.

There’s something very endearing and heart warming about the words we find in and of all the Torah portions, Eikev is a dear one.

There’s something very endearing and heart warming about the words we find in .

In preparing for this week, I felt as if the words themselves don’t need any man, or any voice, to speak on their behalf.

There’s something about this portion that lacks confusion and that completely lacks pretense.

It’s message is just there in all it’s simplicity; in all it’s glory; and it bears almost no comment.

This week the words of Scripture bear no elaboration and need no man to speak on their behalf.

Granted, Scripture never does, but here the message both shallow and deep, high and low, is plain for people to see.

Eikev has a simplicity that all can easily grasp.

By means of a few questions, let me try and demonstrate what I’m getting at;

This portion that lacks a little something that seems to shroud other words in the Bible.

Here in Eikev, we have a simplicity that is truly touching and glorifying to our God in Heaven.

Who is God?

What does He want from us?

Why does God care about us?

We, who were once strangers to Him, Eikev teaches are brought near.

How do we know He would remember our Fathers and deliver us?

Where is He taking us?

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Speaks for itself does it not?

Absolutely.

But with that said, we’re here now, so I’ll do my best to add just a little bit of flavour to the message which Eikev is giving us today.

First Thoughts;

I’ll start by starting with this very simple fact; God has dominion over everything.

Another very simple fact I want you to comprehend.

So God, who has dominion over absolutely everything, ‘chose’ to love Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their descendents.

Choice is one of the main concepts of the Eikev and the implications of such a simple action are profound.

In light of God’s choice we can infer the doctrine of election and of salvation by grace.

You can learn of the character of our God who chooses us only because He desires us and loves His people.

We can know that we have a God who is devoted and faithful.

In light of God’s choice we can infer the doctrine of election, of salvation by grace, and learn of the character of our God who chooses us only because He desires us and loves His people.

The message of Eikev is there in just a few short sentences.

The message of Eikev is there in just a few short sentences.

God loves you because He chose you.

Bachar

Given that, I thought I’d take a look at the Hebrew for ‘choice’ because not only does it teach us about God but obviously, choice is how we engage in relationship with Him in return.

The word ‘choice’ is ‘yivchar’ in Hebrew; the root is ‘bachar’ and it means, unsurprisingly, ‘to choose’.

God has dominion over EVERYTHING.

God therefore CHOSE Israel

The word ‘choice’ is ‘yivchar’ in Hebrew; the root is ‘bachar’ and it means, unsurprisingly, ‘to choose’.

Yivchar is used 30 times in the book of Deuteronomy and all but twice it’s referring to God’s choice of Israel or something to do with Israel’s life.

It starts with;

God’s choices, throughout the Bible, shape Israel’s history.

A few examples;

His “choice” led to their redemption from Egypt (Deut.

7:7–8), sent Moses and Aaron to work miracles in Egypt (Ps.

105:26–27), and gave them the Levites “to bless in the name of the Lord” (Deut.

21:5).

He “chose” their inheritance (Ps.

47:4), including Jerusalem, where He dwelt among them (Deut.

12:5; 2 Chron.

6:5, 21).

The word ‘bachir’ in Hebrew is translated as ‘chosen ones’.

It’s the noun form of the word ‘bachar’ as opposed to ‘yichar’ which, being a verb, is to choose.

Bachir, ‘chosen ones’, is used 13 times in the Old Testament.

I’ll explain in a little why this is profound, but ‘bachir’ is used 13 times in the Old Testament.

The Hebrew noun for ‘choose’, as opposed to the verb, is used 13 times and is always; I stress, always, used to refer to God’s chosen people.

For example;

One example is;

The noun ‘bachir’ is always; I stress, always, used to refer to God’s chosen people.

For example;

In the Septuagint ‘bachar’ is primarily translated with the Greek word ‘eklegein’ and as a word is likewise central to the doctine of God’s choosing His people.

For example;

And this one;

COVENANT.

The method of choosing is the COVENANT.

Covenant is God’s way of doing relationship.

Covenant is God’s way of doing relationship.

I won’t belabour the concept today because it’s mostly understood by people, but a covenant binds 2 parties together and stipulates the conditions of that relationship.

This is completely unique in the Ancient World between a group of people and a god.

In describing other gods scholars have coined the term ‘The Great Symbiosis’.

This term refers to the co-dependent nature of the gods relationship with people because in the ancient world the gods had no qualms admitting that they relied on and responded to people feeding them, housing them and clothing them.

In ancient eyes this was the function of the temple and of ziggurats.

In return for people’s provision, the gods protected them and blessed their crops etc. thereby establishing a relationship that was co-dependent (aka.

symbiotic).

Referring to the ancient world scholars have coined the term ‘The Great Symbiosis’ which refers to the nature of the gods and their relationship with people.

The term ‘the great symbiosis’ refers to the co-dependent nature of this relationship because in the ancient world the gods had no qualms admitting that they relied on and responded to people feeding them, housing them and clothing them.

Such was the function of the temple in pagan religions.

In return, the gods protected their people and blessed their crops etc. thereby establishing a relationship that was co-dependent (aka.

symbiotic).

Israel stands in stark contrast and ‘the great symbiosis’ is rejected in the Bible.

God makes it clear that He does not need us.

We do not feed Him, we do not clothe Him and the Temple is not a place a He needs to live in.

In the ancient world the gods’ relationship with people was determined by their needs.

With the God of the Bible, YHWH, the relationship was ordered by means of God’s covenant with us.

Moses makes it very clear that there’s nothing we can do to ‘earn’ the favour of our God.

God’s relationship with Israel, again, is simply because He chose us and loves us.

He doesn’ need you, but that’s ok, He’s willingly with you, always.

YAHWEH - THE WHO COVENANTS

No surprises then that YHWH, the name of our God, can actually be understood as meaning ‘

YHWH

HE IS FAITHFUL

The very nature of YHWH as the covenental and loving God is seen is His very name itself.

You may have heard it said that YHWH means ‘to be’, that is, ‘to exist’.

This is true, and not only does it speak to existence of God but given that YHWH is a verb in Hebrew, it speaks to the fact that He is the one causing all things to exist.

In analyzing the name scholars have made some further observations.

They note that 1) the root word of YHWH’s name can be seen in other semitic languages where it speaks of relationship and a union between people and 2) scholars note that in the ancient world names spoke to function and purpose.

It’s not enough in ancient eyes to accept that YHWH simply means to ‘exist’, but what for what function does existence serve.

Sure, YHWH is the creator God, but what is the purpose and function of creation?

Scholars answer, and in light of their research into the culture and language, suggest that YHWH not only means that He is a God who creates, but that He is a God who creates in the sense of someone seeking to enter into a relationship.

YHWH, they say, actually refers to a ‘God who enters into covenant.’

YHWH, be definition then, is believed to refer to God who ‘enters into covenant’.

Unlike the Ancient World, our God sustains all things and despite being the almighty Lord of Lords, He seeks covenant with all His chosen.