November 28, 2012
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Understanding Matthew 21:43
שמע ישראל ה 'הוא האלוהים שלנו הוא אחד
Shema Yisrael Adonai Elohaynu Adonai Echad
Hear, Israel, Adonai is our God, Adonai is One.The Jewish Teachings of Rebbe Y'shua: 
Understanding Matthew 21:43
By John of AllFaith © 11.28.12
Also posted at AllFaith.comB"H Our text: Matthew 21:43 Therefore I say to you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing out its fruits.These verses are often misinterpreted by Christians to teach a false doctrine: that HaShem has abandoned His people and selected the Gentiles. This heresy needs to be understood and quickly rejected. Scripture is clear:
"For I am Adonai, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed -- Malachi 3:6
And Rebbe Y'shua affirmed:
John 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
Rebbe Y'shua clearly is not contradicting himself nor HaShem with this teaching (may G-d forbid) so we must try and understand what he meant. We must always "rightly divide the Word of truth" (II Timothy 2:15) in order to discover the correct understandings. Some texts are clear, some require deeper consideration.
The Greek uses the term "ethnos" or people here. This can mean an entire people group or nation as most translations have it, however its root is etho, a primary verb; to be used (by habit or conventionality); neuter perfect participle usage: - be custom (manner, wont).
This is significant here. The Rebbe is addressing the leaders of the people who have chosen to reject him and thereby his anointed mission to lead the nation into the Kingdom. Matthew 21:43 in context is not referring to the "70 nations" of people groups but to the leaders of Israel he was speaking with.
Rebbe Y'shua frequently references the prophecies of Daniel, sometimes by name, sometimes not. Here is the prophecy he is referring to as those rabbis clearly understood in context:
Daniel 2:44 And in the days of these kings, the God of Heaven shall set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed. And the kingdom shall not be left to other peoples, but it shall crush and destroy all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.
2:45 Because you saw that the stone [i.e. the coming Messiah] was cut out of the mountain [i.e. Mount Zion] without hands [i.e. by the Will of HaShem not human plans], and that it crushes the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, [i.e. the Gentile nations/powers he had previously foretold would rule the earth] the great God has made known to the king what shall occur after this. And the dream is certain, and its meaning is sure.This is the "stone" in this verse. It represents the authority given by HaShem to lead His people. That stone or authority comes from Zion. The rabbis (the leaders of the people) were granted this authority to rule under the Roman occupation forces, but they had fallen short by not recognizing the anointing of John the Immerser and Rebbe Y'shua. Our text directly affirms this when read in context as we'll see in a moment. So, our present text says:
Matthew 21:43 Therefore I say to you, The kingdom of God [i.e. the one spoken of by Navi Daniel] shall be taken from you and given to a nation bringing out its fruits.
21:44 And he who falls on this Stone [i.e. haMoshiach, through whom the Kingdom will be established, whom they rejected] shall be broken, but on whomever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.This was done in 70 CE when, as Rebbe Y'shua prophesied, the Temple was destroyed and not a stone was left upon a stone (Matthew 24:1-3). The Temple on Mount Zion is the outward sign that HaShem is with the Nation. That sign was removed by another another nation: the Roman Empire, as the Rebbe foretold 30 years or so before. In the future the Global Union of the Little Horn (as Navi Daniel refers to the Rex Mundi or Antichrist) will be utterly crushed by haMoshiach and the Kingdom will be established by the Will of HaShem, May He be praised!
Affirming this understanding, we keep reading:
21:45 And when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they knew that he spoke of them.
The rabbinim present understood that by this comment Rebbe Y'shua was saying that their abuses of power was leading to the destruction of the Temple. As the orthodox rabbinim officially rejected Rebbe Y'shua as haMoshiach the physical nation of Israel was destroyed, the Temple was destroyed as foretold at Matthew 23 and 24, and People Israel were exiled throughout the world according to HaShem's desire. As the prophets foretold, they would not be allowed to return to the Land until the End of Days. They returned in 1948/1967.
Today significant numbers of religious Jews are awaiting the coming of haMoshiach. Some, especially the Nanachs, are even publicly dancing in the streets in celebration of their faith in his soon coming. Of course they do not believe haMoshiach will be the returning Rebbe Y'shua, but as the prophecies are fulfilled haMoshiach will come and through him HaShem will establish the Kingdom.
"For I am Adonai, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed -- Malachi 3:6
John 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
With blessings of Shalom
John of AllFaith
Yochanan
The Jewish Way
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Comments (4)
Very interesting thanks Bro John.
Mat_19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
Rom_2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom_2:29 But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.
Rom 10:19 But I say, Did not Israel know? First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.
Rom 10:20 But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.
Rom 10:21 But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.
@Lewis1122 - Shalom Lewis,
I know your heart is true. Please don't read anything into this 
I always appreciate your posts. My response here is to the verses you cited, but goes beyond that into a sort of rant
It helps the conversations along when you share your understanding on what the offered verses mean. Your offered verses are abbreviated, mine are spelled out for clarity.
Mat_19:30 But many that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
I'm not sure what you are seeing in this verse. The Rebbe is simply teaching his talmidim the importance of humility.
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Rom_2:28 For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
This verse in context teaches that its not enough to be a Jew by birth or conversion only, one must live as a religious Jew and believe as a religious Jew. Rav Paul is referencing Torah here:
Deuteronomy 10:16 Therefore, circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stiff-necked.
Rebbe Y'shua often criticized his fellow rabbinim for being legalistic and devoid of emunah (faith). Some Christians mistakenly believe Paul is saying that one somehow becomes a Jew if one "accepts Rebbe Y'shua" but that clearly is not the case. As Paul also says:
Romans 11:1 I say then, Did not God put away His people? Let it not be said! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
11:2 God did not thrust out His people whom He foreknew....
In order to be Jewish one must be born into the Covenant or formally convert. Paul references this many times, using the analogy of adoption. One can not simply decide, "Now I'm a Jew!" No, one must be adopted into the holy family through the rabbinic process described in the Shulchan Aruch (Code of Jewish Law) under current Rabbinic authority. For instance:
Romans 8:15 For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption by which we cry, Abba, Father!
This adoption is into and through Torah (Judaism):
Romans 9:4 who are Israelites; to whom belong the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the Law, and the service of God, and the promises;
This chapter describes how the first convert (Avraham avinu) is the seed of the tree of Israel and how others can be grafted into the tree through this root. These people enter the covenant through formal conversion or they serve HaShem from outside the Covenant as Noahides.
===========
Rom_2:29
But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the
heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of
men, but of God.
Rom 10:19 But I say, Did not Israel know?
First Moses saith, I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no
people, and by a foolish nation I will anger you.
Again:
Deuteronomy 10:16 Therefore, circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stiff-necked.
Many Jews are not Torah observant. They are not fulfilling their end responsibilities under the Covenant. Has HaShem abandoned these Jews or replaced with other? "God forbid!" HaShem says: "For I am Adonai, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed -- Malachi 3:6
========
Rom 10:20
But Esaias is very bold, and saith, I was found of them that sought me
not; I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me.
Rom 10:21 But to Israel he saith, All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.
"All day long" without end. As we read the Jews (like the Gentiles) fail time after time but HaShem keeps His people:
Malachi 3:6 For I am Adonai, I change not; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed.
Israel (the Jews) have been a rebellious people and yet "all day" has HaShem shown them mercy. This is clear to anyone who read the Torah and knows Jewish history.
Rebbe Y'shua is clear however that:
Salvation is of the Jews -- John 4:22 and that the rabbis (as a divinely mandated institution) wield the authority of Moses, even when they do so imperfectly -- Matthew 23:1-3.
Their anointing is like that of King Saul. Our attitude should be like David's:
I Samuel 24:6 And he said unto his men, Adonai forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, Adonai's anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of Adonai.
Even where they are wrong, legalistic etc. the rabbinim remain the anointed of HaShem and if we are wise we will honor them as such.
The central lesson of the Bible is how HaShem selected the Jewish people, perfected the Jewish people and how, through them (through the "Lion of the House of Judah"), He will restore Gan Eden and cause it to bloom globally: Paradise Lost to Paradise Restored. A major historic constant is how people have always tried to destroy the Jews and usurp their divinely decree authority. NO ONE, the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Romans, the Nicene Christian Church, Islam, Hitler... NO ONE has or will ever succeed in this. ANYONE who stands against Israel or seeks to usurp the Holy Covenant between them and Adonai will fail in the end.
Genesis 12:3 And I will bless those that bless you and curse the one who curses you. And in you shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Our choice is that of all generations past: Will we stand with (or join through conversion) the Jewish people or we will stand with those who oppose them. This is our only real choice.
John 4:22 Salvation is of the Jews
Romans 11:1 I say then, Did not God put away His people? Let it not be said! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
11:2 God did not thrust out His people whom He foreknew.
Joshua 24:14
"Therefore fear ADONAI, and serve him truly and sincerely. Put away
the gods your ancestors served beyond the [Euphrates]River and in Egypt,
and serve ADONAI!
15
If it seems bad to you to serve ADONAI, then choose today whom you
are going to serve! Will it be the gods your ancestors served beyond the
River? or the gods of the Emori, in whose land you are living? As for
me and my household, we will serve ADONAI!"
16
The people answered, "Far be it from us that we would abandon ADONAI to serve other gods;
17
because it is ADONAI our God who brought us and our fathers up out
of the land of Egypt, from a life of slavery, and did those great signs
before our eyes, and preserved us all along the way we traveled and
among all the peoples we passed through;
18
and it was ADONAI who drove out from ahead of us all the peoples,
the Emori living in the land. Therefore we too will serve ADONAI, for he
is our God."
Shalom my friend.
@johnofallfaith - By your points I can tell you knew what I was saying without ever explaining what they mean to me. LOL We might not agree on everything but we understand what the other is saying, that is the foundation that first must take place.
GBU always
@Lewis1122 - true
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