Congregation Shema Yisrael

By the rivers of Babylon we sat and also wept when we remembered Zion. There on the branches we hung our harps, and our captors asked us for songs of joy; they said, “Sing for us from Zion’s songs!” How can we sing the songs of the Hashem upon the alien soil? If I forget you, O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. May my tongue adhere to my palate if I do not remember you, if I do not consider Jerusalem above my foremost joy. -Psalm 137:1-6

Tisha B’Av or the Ninth of Av (the ninth day of the month of Av in the Hebrew calendar) ended at sunset last night. This is the culmination of a period of mourning that began three weeks earlier, on the 17th of Tammuz. Tisha B’Av is an annual fast day that commemorates the destruction of both the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem, as well as marking the day when the Children of Israel failed to enter and take Canaan at the command of God (see Numbers 13 and 14).

Yesterday, as is tradition, Jews came from all over Israel and perhaps the world, to Jerusalem to once again march around the walls of the Old City and to pray at the Kotel or Western Wall, mourning the loss of the Temple, and grieving the absence of God’s House. This is as close as any Jew today can come to praying to God from the Temple Mount. Unfortunately, access to the Temple Mount itself is forbidden to Jews (amazingly enough), due to the presence of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, standing on the southeast corner of the mount, facing Mecca, as well as the Dome of the Rock, another Islamic shrine.

Imagine how frustrating it must have been yesterday, for all the Jewish faithful of Hashem to be so close, yet be denied what was once easily accessible to thousands of Jews millennium ago. Even though I’m not Jewish, the very thought of these two Muslim structures standing where the Holy Temple should be is very upsetting. But how should I really be feeling right now?

Anyone who follows me on twitter knows I can get pretty “wound up” about events in the Middle East, particularly about Gaza, the building of “settlements” in Judea and Samaria as well as East Jerusalem, and other, similar matters. As a humble Bible student, I know that the Land; all of it, belongs to the Jewish people as a permanent inheritance, and no command of God allows for another nation to exist within Israel’s Biblical and national borders. The attitudes of my nation’s Government and particularly, my country’s current President are at least baffling to me, if not completely infuriating. But besides complaining, what can I do? The answer is nothing and everything.

Vengeance is mine. I will repay. In due time their foot will slip; their day of disaster is near and their doom rushes upon them. -Deuteronomy 32:35

Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay, “says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. -Romans 12:19-21

We see both Moses, speaking the words of God to the Children of Israel, on the western banks of the Jordan, just before they enter the Land, and Paul’s commentary on the prophesy of Moses. Although the context of Deuteronomy 32 (see v33 “The LORD will judge his people and have compassion on his servants …”) as well as Paul’s commentary both point to “your enemy” as being a member of your community that you don’t get along with, the scriptures also have applications to the larger context of the enemy of God’s people. Among others, this includes those who have temporary possession of the Holy Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

It’s traditional to read the Book of Lamentations on Tisha B’Av. The book contains five separate poems written by the Prophet Jeremiah, lamenting the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. God had given Israel over to their enemies as the result of their sin, and abandonment of their God and their Torah, and had exiled the Israelites to an “alien soil”.

While the Jewish people were eventually restored to their Land, they were once again exiled, this time for a much longer period, starting in the year 70 C.E., only to be repatriated in 1948, almost 1900 years later. The restoration of Israel is not yet complete, as anyone who can watch the evening news can attest. There are still aliens in Israel claiming parts (or all) of the Holy Land for themselves, enormous international pressure upon the modern Israeli Government to surrender at least parts of Israel to the Arab people (in direct violation of God’s commands), and even a division among Jews as to whether or not they can “trade land for peace” (which certainly didn’t work when Gaza was surrendered). Where is the promised deliverence of Israel from the hands of their enemies? Why does Messiah wait so long to come and restore his people to their former splendor?

Yeshua himself described it this way:

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” -Luke 13:34-35

The event prophesied by the Messiah has yet to occur. He isn’t here yet. We know he is coming, though. He said so.

He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Yeshua. -Revelation 22:20

We know from the rendition of John’s vision in the Book of Revelation, that Messiah will come as a conquering King, to wage war and restore the Throne of God, and of the Lamb, bringing a New Jerusalem and an era of peace to those who have kept the faith. Yet, when John wrote the words “I am coming soon”, did he think Yeshua would return in his lifetime, or if not, the lifetime of his children? We’re still waiting almost 2000 years later. When is “soon”?

I occasionally get phone calls from a believer I know who lives in another state. She usually phones me somewhat anxiously, and her first question is always, “Do you still believe in Yeshua?” I assure her I do, and though somewhat comforted, she goes on to express her concerns about having to continue to live in “Babylon”, and wondering when it will all end. I do my best to reassure her, but I don’t doubt there are many more like her out there, who are also worried and upset about how evil and darkness seem to be blotting out the light we cast (see Matthew 5:14-16).

I used to suffer from anxiety attacks. The first one happened on a flight from Boise to Virginia some years ago. I thought that my “carry on” luggage, which I was informed was too large, and would have to be left at the end of the skyway before I boarded the aircraft, wouldn’t make it with me. I wasn’t happy about the trip I was taking anyway, so this didn’t help. The attack hit as we were climbing to cruising altitude. It was more than troubling, especially since before that time, I really enjoyed flying. Even at complete rest, my heart rate never dropped below 140 beats per minute. Waiting during my layover in Denver didn’t help. Nothing helped, and I was still very upset when I finally reached my destination over 12 hours later.

I won’t go into the entire chronicle of my history with anxiety, but eventually, even though I was taking medication to control my mood, I decided I couldn’t live on drugs forever and slowly weaned myself. Although I thought I had been depending on God for all my needs previously, I made a greater effort to rely on Him for my security. Since coming off the medication, I have had only one subsequent anxiety attack. Otherwise, although I do get “keyed up” from time to time, I’m able to maintain an equilibrium, thanks to my God and His provision for me.

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” -Matthew 6:23-27

Yeshua continues his commentary on anxiety through the end of the chapter, but he is saying what we should already know; worrying won’t actually change events. God already knows our troubles and concerns, and He already is taking care of us. Becoming anxious doesn’t “help” God help us any faster, and actually prevents us from seeing how God is working in our lives, and in the course of world events.

I’m not hammering on people who suffer from anxiety, depression, or other mood disorders. Believe me, I know what that feels like and I have the deepest compassion for anyone who labors under that burden. I’m certainly not telling anyone to ignore sound medical advice, or to suddenly stop taking any medications prescribed by your doctor. My decision regarding discontinuing my medication was my decision alone, as guided by the Spirit of God.

I’m also not speaking against people who worry where their next meal is coming from, or if they can make their next house payment. We’re human and we’re frail. We worry and we get scared. However, Yeshua is telling us that we are very, very important to God. If not even a single sparrow “falls to the ground apart from from the will of your Father”, how much more important are you and I to Him than a sparrow?

Whether it’s worrying about ourselves and our families, or worrying about when Messiah will return and “fix the world”, we still worry. Yet each of the scriptures I’ve quoted in this article point to the fact that God is telling us He will take care of business. He will repay. We don’t need to worry and worrying won’t help. If the Al-Aqsa mosque is still on the Temple Mount, it will stay until Messiah returns. If President Barack Obama continues to demand that Israel give up portions of the Holy Land to a people who does not honor God, this is temporary. God and Israel will outlast both President Obama and the Palestinian Authority. God will outlast the economy, our jobs, our illnesses, and our grief.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. -Revelation 21:4

The world we currently live in is all temporary. Every bit of it. The troubles will end someday. What’s important is that we stay the course, and keep the faith. What’s important is that we don’t give up, or give in to despair and sorrow; to anxiety and depression. Regardless of our personal circumstances or the state of our fallen world, Yeshua has promised us he will come. God promised never to leave us orphans. We’re not alone. We’re never alone.

If you think you need to do something, serve Him. Do the will of your Father “on Earth as it’s done in Heaven”. In my studies of Jewish commentary and tradition, I came across this today:

The Rambam rules that when the Jewish people are faced with a calamity, they should never claim that it just came about by happenstance. To make such a claim is cruel, since whatever happens to the Jewish people is sent to us from Hashem to encourage us to change. Instead of living in denial and suffering the consequences, people should find their weak points and do teshuva (repentance).

In this regard Rav Yitzchak Zilberstein, shlit”a once said, “During this last period of tensions in Israel, we have seen Arab women who are not afraid to kill even highly trained soldiers and officers in the Israeli Army. This seems quite unnatural since the soldiers are also well armed. This phenomenon has antecedents in Bava Metzia 97, regarding a man who is killed by a woman – it is without rhyme or reason. Rashi explains that he should not have fallen into her hands. Surely we should arouse ourselves to find what may be a cause for this and do teshuvah!

…Before we comment about the behavior of another, we should first make a concerted effort to correct what is wrong within our own dalit amos…People who work on themselves spiritually as a result of the troubles we are facing are the true commandos of the Jewish people.

From the Daf Yomi Digest commentary “Rhyme or Reason” for Bava Metzia 97

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. -Matthew 7:1-5

If you think you’re supposed to have control of anything, take control of your own behavior. If you’ve sinned (and who hasn’t?), turn to God and He will turn to you. Turn away from your sins and back to righteous living. Carrying a burden of sin is a quick way to anxiety, depression, and a sense of hopelessness. Don’t worry about the splinter in your brother’s eye. Just concentrate on taking care of your own “vision problems”.

After the death of Saul and David’s ascension to the Throne of Israel, King David wanted to build the Temple of God. Through the Prophet Nathan, God told David that it was not for him to build the Temple, but for his son and heir. David would never see the Temple built within his lifetime. In part, this is David’s response to God telling him, “Wait”:

“O LORD Almighty, God of Israel, you have revealed this to your servant, saying, ‘I will build a house for you.’ So your servant has found courage to offer you this prayer. O Sovereign LORD, you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant. Now be pleased to bless the house of your servant, that it may continue forever in your sight; for you, O Sovereign LORD, have spoken, and with your blessing the house of your servant will be blessed forever.” -II Samuel 7:27-29

That we should have as much faith as God’s servant David. Psalm 145:16 tells us, “You God, open Your Hand, and satisfy the desire of every living thing”. Gracious is God in everything He does. May the Messiah come soon and in our days.