Haftarah Mishpatim

Jeremiah 34:8-22

Quote :

8 This word came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI after King Tzidkiyahu had made a covenant with all the people in Yerushalayim to emancipate them. 9 Everyone who had a male or female slave who was Hebrew was to let him go free; none was to keep as his slave a fellow Jew. 10 All the leaders and all the people listened who had entered into the covenant, wherein everyone was to free his male and female slaves and not keep them in bondage any longer. They listened, and they let them go. 11 But afterwards, they changed their minds; they made the male and female slaves, whom they had freed, return; and they brought them back into subjection as slaves. 12 Therefore this word of ADONAI came to Yirmeyahu from ADONAI: 13 "Here is what ADONAI the God of Isra'el says: 'When I brought your ancestors out of the land of Egypt, where they lived as slaves, I made this covenant with them: 14 "At the end of seven years every one of you is to set free his brother Hebrew who has been sold to you and has served you six years. You are to let him go free from you." But your ancestors did not listen to me or pay any attention. 15 Now you repented, you did what is right from my viewpoint when each of you proclaimed freedom to his fellow; and you made a covenant before me in the house bearing my name. 16 But then you changed your minds. You profaned my name when each of you took back his male and female slaves, whom you had set free to live as they wished, and brought them back into subjection as your slaves.' 17 Therefore here is what ADONAI says: 'You did not heed me and proclaim freedom, each to his brother and each to his neighbor; so now I proclaim for you a freedom,' says ADONAI, 'for sword, plague and famine. I will make you an object of horror to all the kingdoms on earth. 18 As for the men who violated my covenant by not living up to the conditions of the covenant which they made in my presence when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts - 19 the leaders of Y'hudah, the leaders of Yerushalayim, the officials, the cohanim and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf; 20 I will hand them over to their enemies, hand them over to those who seek their lives; and their corpses will become food for birds in the air and wild animals. 21 Tzidkiyahu king of Y'hudah and his officials I will hand over to their enemies, to those who seek their lives and to the army of the king of Bavel, which has withdrawn. 22 I will give the order,' says ADONAI, 'and cause them to return to this city. They will attack it, capture it and burn it to the ground; and I will make the cities of Y'hudah desolate and uninhabited.'"

In the opening of this weeks parsha HaShem speaks and says:
These are the rulings you are to present to them:
If you purchase a Hebrew slave............... ( please read the parsha if you haven't already).

It gives specific instructions about Hebrew slaves. Yet it seems this part of Isaiah is in contradiction to this. Yes, the people decided to let them go but look at the reading of the covenant they made, it basically annuls that which Adonai instituted.

Quote :

none was to keep as his slave a fellow Jew

Did the King have the right to change what G-d had commanded?

Notice that the covenant they made was still in the manner practiced from 1000+ years ago when Abraham split the animals and Adonai and Yeshua passed thorough it. But they made this in the Temple.

Notice HaShem says they profaned his name when they went back on their word. Do we realize how many times we may do this? When we make a promise to him to do right, to follow his ways, his path, yet we turn to our own ways. How many times is our witness of him tarnished, when people know we are Christians/ Messianics yet they see us doing something they know is a sin?

WE must be diligent to always be aware that we are living testimonies, and we also can profane his name and Yeshua's by not following his Torah, or practicing what we preach...........

Jeremiah
33:25-26

Quote :

25 Here is what ADONAI says: 'If I have not established my covenant with day and night and fixed the laws for sky and earth, 26 then I will also reject the descendants of Ya'akov and of my servant David, not choosing from his descendants people to rule over the descendants of Avraham, Yis'chak and Ya'akov. For I will cause their captives to come back, and I will show them compassion.'"

I have always found this fascinating. ' fixed the laws". How long did it take to discover those laws, and how many more are there in place that we still don't understand?

There are so many laws that HaShem has established and yet our Torah contains only a small amount of them. Imagine what it will be like when that day comes when he shares all of this with us? hard for me to wait that long..................