DIVINE LOVE 1.1
The vital ingredient that I see a lot of my Hebrew brothers and sisters overlook as they attempt to present the Truth as they perceive it is love. But what is love, and how does it relate to Hebraic fundamentalism. With all things, we must realize that language is merely a medium of thought and that we must have the proper cultural context for these ideas. As we peel back the layers of confusion to the true meaning of the texts the bible is translated from we must go back to the original language to grasp the original idea.
The following is an excerpt from the forthcoming book "the Impregnable Spirit":
"The Holy Scriptures Define Love
The Hebrew word for lust, TA-AH-VEH, is translated in various scriptures as desire, and shares the same root with the Hebrew word for iniquity, AH-VON. In some scriptures the context of the word is equivalent to the English word desire so it is a matter of degree. When the behavior that is the object of the TA-AH-VEH (i.e., sexual gratification), is against Yah's commandments, the feeling is defined as lust. When it is acted upon continuously it is AH-VON (iniquity).
The story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is a salient illustration of the corrupted state of the human condition. In this paradigm, after the loss of innocence due to disobedience to the Creator, the destiny of the woman is set forth in the following discourse:
. . .and thy desire shall be to thy husband and he shall rule over you. Genesis 3:16
The Hebrew word translated as desire here was TI-SHOO-KAH, which would be better translated as affection. The modern Hebrew word for "kiss", NI-SHEE-KAH derives from the same root. The sense of the word by New World definition connotes a relationship based on touch.
In Deuteronomy 6:5, Israel is instructed:
And thou shalt love YHWH Eloheykah with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
The key phrase in this passage is "all thine heart". If one loves the Creator with all one's heart, what room is left in the heart for love of a wife, husband, children, etc.? The answer lies in the fact that the source of love is not the "below" but the "above". But what is love?
For this is the love of Yah that we keep his commandments. I John 5:3
Under divine inspiration, the writer makes it clear that love is not an emotion but obedience to the Creator. Elsewhere the writer speaks simply, but eloquently:
Herein is love, not that we loved Yah, but that he loved us . . I John 4:10
Human beings are not the source of love, but the Creator. To love our Creator with all our heart, soul, and might, is to be obedient to His commandments. When we do so, His love flows through us to our wives, husbands, children, and all people. This is called agape or universal love. Then what is the true nature of the feeling between men and women universally labeled as "love"?
The serpent was subtle over all the beasts of the field and deceived Adam and Eve and indeed, the whole world. The human race was seduced into elevating the physical over the spiritual (the nature of the Creator), in a subtle, veiled manner by defining physical, conjugal relations between men and women as LOVE. Sex is placed on the altar of our hearts and minds in place of obedience to Yah. The translations of scripture from the Holy Language and the fusion of the Greek worldview with Judaic principles facilitated this in the ordering of modern civilization (See "Yeshua the Hebrew Messiah or Jesus the Christian Christ Part Two, the Final Confrontation" Research Guide, by Ben Ammi, (2002)). The idea of sex in today's world is imbued through and through with Greek hedonism. As a result we witness the steady deterioration of human relationships--in relation to Yah, and the consequent crisis of morality prevalent in today's societies. Fruit does not fall far from the tree. Craftily, the meaning of the Hebrew word TI-SHOO-KAH, (affection) is fused with the meaning of the Hebrew word TA-AH-VEH (lust/iniquity), culminating in the emergence of the word desire in the English language.
This sad state of affairs had its roots in the Garden of Eden and proliferated as history unfolded. When King David lusted, then committed adultery and murder because of his desire for Uriah's wife Bathsheba, the prophet Nathan rebuked him:
Why have you hated the commandment of YHWH to do evil in his sight? (2 Samuel 2:9)
David's actions in disobedience to Yah's commandments, were equated with emotional hatred. In his own mind, King David did not attribute his actions of adultery and murder to a "feeling" of hatred toward Yah's commandments. Yet his actions are defined by Yah as hatred.
This premise is further clarified in the following chapter of 2 Samuel, when Amnon raped his sister Tamar:
Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. 2 Samuel 13:15
To be sure, the incestuous feeling Amnon first felt for his sister referred to as "love" in this passage of scripture led to devastating consequences for all concerned. In the twinkling of an eye the feeling "love" was transmuted into the feeling hatred and cost him his life. Today we witness a plethora of shocking headlines of "serial killers" who rape and then murder (love and then hate), myriad women. Psychologists report that in many of the perpetrators' twisted minds, they "loved" the women who became their victims. Most people can readily recognize the demented state of the rapist/murderer's mind and the anti-social behavior it fosters. It is not so easy to recognize that the same principle on a less violent scale, is responsible for much of the unhappiness in society, the deterioration of family values, the spiraling divorce rate, and the burgeoning rate of children raised in broken homes.
Like his father, at first, Amnon would not have attributed the yearning for his sister to hatred. In the rape then rejection of Tamar, both actions were precipitated by a carnal "feeling". The Creator left no stone unturned in instructing us about the inconsistency of our carnal "feelings" with our best interest. We have all heard of marriages wherein, with the passage of time, "love" becomes hatred and ends in divorce. Equating "love" with a carnal feeling has resulted in a skyrocketing level of frustration and a concomitant rise of violence in the modern world. These "feelings" are not spiritual, yet all other concerns are too often subordinated to their demands.
This vicious cycle of confusion is summed up in the book of Numbers:
Because he has hated the word of YHWH, and broken his commandment, that soul shall be utterly cut off; his iniquity is upon him. Numbers 15:31[/I]
The vital ingredient that I see a lot of my Hebrew brothers and sisters overlook as they attempt to present the Truth as they perceive it is love. But what is love, and how does it relate to Hebraic fundamentalism. With all things, we must realize that language is merely a medium of thought and that we must have the proper cultural context for these ideas. As we peel back the layers of confusion to the true meaning of the texts the bible is translated from we must go back to the original language to grasp the original idea.
The following is an excerpt from the forthcoming book "the Impregnable Spirit":
"The Holy Scriptures Define Love
The Hebrew word for lust, TA-AH-VEH, is translated in various scriptures as desire, and shares the same root with the Hebrew word for iniquity, AH-VON. In some scriptures the context of the word is equivalent to the English word desire so it is a matter of degree. When the behavior that is the object of the TA-AH-VEH (i.e., sexual gratification), is against Yah's commandments, the feeling is defined as lust. When it is acted upon continuously it is AH-VON (iniquity).
The story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is a salient illustration of the corrupted state of the human condition. In this paradigm, after the loss of innocence due to disobedience to the Creator, the destiny of the woman is set forth in the following discourse:
. . .and thy desire shall be to thy husband and he shall rule over you. Genesis 3:16
The Hebrew word translated as desire here was TI-SHOO-KAH, which would be better translated as affection. The modern Hebrew word for "kiss", NI-SHEE-KAH derives from the same root. The sense of the word by New World definition connotes a relationship based on touch.
In Deuteronomy 6:5, Israel is instructed:
And thou shalt love YHWH Eloheykah with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
The key phrase in this passage is "all thine heart". If one loves the Creator with all one's heart, what room is left in the heart for love of a wife, husband, children, etc.? The answer lies in the fact that the source of love is not the "below" but the "above". But what is love?
For this is the love of Yah that we keep his commandments. I John 5:3
Under divine inspiration, the writer makes it clear that love is not an emotion but obedience to the Creator. Elsewhere the writer speaks simply, but eloquently:
Herein is love, not that we loved Yah, but that he loved us . . I John 4:10
Human beings are not the source of love, but the Creator. To love our Creator with all our heart, soul, and might, is to be obedient to His commandments. When we do so, His love flows through us to our wives, husbands, children, and all people. This is called agape or universal love. Then what is the true nature of the feeling between men and women universally labeled as "love"?
The serpent was subtle over all the beasts of the field and deceived Adam and Eve and indeed, the whole world. The human race was seduced into elevating the physical over the spiritual (the nature of the Creator), in a subtle, veiled manner by defining physical, conjugal relations between men and women as LOVE. Sex is placed on the altar of our hearts and minds in place of obedience to Yah. The translations of scripture from the Holy Language and the fusion of the Greek worldview with Judaic principles facilitated this in the ordering of modern civilization (See "Yeshua the Hebrew Messiah or Jesus the Christian Christ Part Two, the Final Confrontation" Research Guide, by Ben Ammi, (2002)). The idea of sex in today's world is imbued through and through with Greek hedonism. As a result we witness the steady deterioration of human relationships--in relation to Yah, and the consequent crisis of morality prevalent in today's societies. Fruit does not fall far from the tree. Craftily, the meaning of the Hebrew word TI-SHOO-KAH, (affection) is fused with the meaning of the Hebrew word TA-AH-VEH (lust/iniquity), culminating in the emergence of the word desire in the English language.
This sad state of affairs had its roots in the Garden of Eden and proliferated as history unfolded. When King David lusted, then committed adultery and murder because of his desire for Uriah's wife Bathsheba, the prophet Nathan rebuked him:
Why have you hated the commandment of YHWH to do evil in his sight? (2 Samuel 2:9)
David's actions in disobedience to Yah's commandments, were equated with emotional hatred. In his own mind, King David did not attribute his actions of adultery and murder to a "feeling" of hatred toward Yah's commandments. Yet his actions are defined by Yah as hatred.
This premise is further clarified in the following chapter of 2 Samuel, when Amnon raped his sister Tamar:
Then Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. 2 Samuel 13:15
To be sure, the incestuous feeling Amnon first felt for his sister referred to as "love" in this passage of scripture led to devastating consequences for all concerned. In the twinkling of an eye the feeling "love" was transmuted into the feeling hatred and cost him his life. Today we witness a plethora of shocking headlines of "serial killers" who rape and then murder (love and then hate), myriad women. Psychologists report that in many of the perpetrators' twisted minds, they "loved" the women who became their victims. Most people can readily recognize the demented state of the rapist/murderer's mind and the anti-social behavior it fosters. It is not so easy to recognize that the same principle on a less violent scale, is responsible for much of the unhappiness in society, the deterioration of family values, the spiraling divorce rate, and the burgeoning rate of children raised in broken homes.
Like his father, at first, Amnon would not have attributed the yearning for his sister to hatred. In the rape then rejection of Tamar, both actions were precipitated by a carnal "feeling". The Creator left no stone unturned in instructing us about the inconsistency of our carnal "feelings" with our best interest. We have all heard of marriages wherein, with the passage of time, "love" becomes hatred and ends in divorce. Equating "love" with a carnal feeling has resulted in a skyrocketing level of frustration and a concomitant rise of violence in the modern world. These "feelings" are not spiritual, yet all other concerns are too often subordinated to their demands.
This vicious cycle of confusion is summed up in the book of Numbers:
Because he has hated the word of YHWH, and broken his commandment, that soul shall be utterly cut off; his iniquity is upon him. Numbers 15:31[/I]
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