Who is God

Hebraic Studies - Who is God?

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Please Note: On this page I may show the four letter blessed *“Memorial Name” of the Almighty in Ivrit - - Y-H-V-H, which we usually pronounce as “Adonai” or “HaShem”. At all times treat the most blessed Name with sanctity and when we even see the Name, we should say “blessed be His Sanctified Name.”

*“This is My Name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.” Shemot - Exodus 3:15.

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Who is God?

The answer may shock you!

But I fully believe and love our Elohim, blessed be He!

With Rabbi Reuven Ben-Avraham.

“Is there a blessing for the Czar?”

We begin this morning with a question: “Is there a blessing for the Czar?”

As anyone who has ever seen “Fiddler on the Roof” will recall, that is the question that one of the townspeople ask the rabbi of Anatevka, very early in the play.

And it’s a good question, right? For after all, we have a blessing for this, and a blessing for that. Surely we have a blessing for the Czar. But if so, what is it?

And the Rabbi’s answer, as we all know, is quite clever: “May God bless and keep the Czar -far away from us!”

We are going to come back to that answer in a few minutes. We ’re going to find that the rabbi didn’t have to do a lot of research to come up with his blessing for the Czar because he knew it quite well. In fact, just about everyone of the adult males -in Anatevka should have known it quite well few introductory questions:

First: When and how -and why---or at least all , … but first, a did the notion of Jews praying for the emperor, ruler, king or queen of the land wherein we happened to live, arise?

Second: What can we learn from this history that can hel p us understand how and why we pray for the officers or representatives or, collectively, the government, of this land in which we live today, the United States of America, a land which is so very different from the kingdoms in which we Jews used to live?

So, first, where does it all begin? Where do we first see Jews praying for the rulers of the land in which they happen to live?

The answer, of course, is in the Bible.

When Jews were first exiled from Judea to Babylonia -- it was in 597 BCE -- the prophet Jeremiah writes a letter to them, to the deported exiles from Judea.

“Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders of the captivity, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon” Yirmyahu – Jeremiah 29:1 (JPS).

And what does he say to them? “Settle down there! Marry! Have kids! Multiply!”

“Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all the captivity, whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jerusalem unto Babylon: Build ye houses, and dwell in them, and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply ye there, and be not diminished. And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto the LORD for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace”

And, in addition: “Seek the shalom”, translated as “the welfare” - “of the city to which you have been exiled. And pray for its welfare, for in its welfare you will find your own.” “B’shlomah yihyeh lachem shalom.”

There is a similar message in the apocryphal Book of Baruch -- ostensibly the work of Jeremiah’s scribe. He writes: “Pray for the life of Nebuchadnezzar.” This is shocking. Nebuchadnezzar! Recall that Nebuchadnezzar was the conqueror of Jerusalem -- the one who plundered the Temple and deported its inhabitants to Babylonia! And yet, Baruch is calling on us to pray for him and his son Belshazzar. Why? So that “their days on earth may be like the days of heaven.” Really? The Book of Ezra says essentially the same thing: “Pray for the life of the King and his sons.” (Ezra 6:10) So, we have a tradition going back millennia that, wherever we happen to be living, we should pray for the welfare of the community, and of its rulers -- even if they have caused us great misfortune. Why would this be? Well, according to Rabbi Hanina, whose words are preserved in Pirkei Avot (published c. 225 CE), it is clear. “Pray for the welfare of the malchut (the ruling regime),” he says, “for but for the fear of it, men would swallow one another alive.” Hanina, who lived sometime after the lifetime of Caligula, was referring to the Roman regime. He was urging his listeners to pray for Rome’s welfare. Rome! And why? Because he feared anarchy -- which can occur whenever an emperor, a dictator, or a strongman, falls. 3 Hanina knew that, as bad as things can be with an emperor, they can be worse when he disappears. The stakes -- for individuals and, collectively, the Jewish community -- are high. And, sure enough, Jews did what Hanina (and Jeremiah and Baruch and Ezra before him) urged them to do. They prayed for the welfare of the (autocratic) leaders of the nations wherein they dwelled. We have the text of such a prayer going back to the early 11th century that invokes God’s blessings on “the Fatimid Caliph and ruler of Egypt, the 16th Imam of the Ismaili branch of Shia Islam.” Note how focused the prayer is on self-preservation: It asks God’s blessing on: our lord, the great king, the prince of the sons of Kedar,1 our master and lord, the Imam, and for his sons, the royal family, and everyone in his entourage who serve the king …. May God … help them and help us; may He subdue their foes and ours; and may God fill their hearts with kindness toward us and toward all His people, the House of Israel.” (italics added) So the Bible and the texts of early prayers make clear not only we should pray, but also why: because we’re strangers; we’re aliens. We lack rights. We live at the sufferance of, at the mercy of, the ruler or rulers of the land where we happen to live. We’re begging to God that those rulers will be nice to us. Hence, although we may literally be praying that God should be merciful to the rulers of our land, the ultimate concern of our prayer is our own safety and security. By the Middle Ages, we already have a widely adopted text to fulfill this object. This text is known by its first words, “Ha-Notein Teshua la-Melachim,” “May the One Who grants victory to kings” (a quotation from Psalms 144:10-11). This 1 Kedar is the Biblical name for the nomadic Arab tribes who dwelt in the north-west of Arabia; see Isaiah 21:16, 42:11, 60:7; Jeremiah 2:10; and Ezekiel 27:21. 4 prayer soon becomes a prominent part of the regular public worship of Jews on Shabbat throughout the Jewish world. The prayer reads as follows: Ha-Notein Teshua la-Melachim, … -- May the One Who grants victory to kings and dominion to princes, ... bless, protect, guard and help, and exalt, magnify and uplift -- [the rulers of our land]. May the supreme King of kings mercifully grant them life and protect them, and save them from every trouble, woe and injury, … and may they succeed in all their endeavors. May the Supreme King of Kings mercifully inspire them to deal kindly with us. (emphasis added). What kind of a prayer is this? This is a prayer of a vulnerable, frightened people, a people that has been exiled, and who are powerless to overcome their lowly state. This is a prayer that seems the epitome of unctuousness. That is, it is petitionary, subservient, obsequious. It almost doesn’t matter where the Jews happen to live: wherever Jews live -- the generic prayer suggests -- they don’t belong, and they know it. So they beg that their gentile rulers will be healthy and happy -- and leave them alone. That is the simple surface meaning of the prayer. But Professor Jonathan Sarna and Dr. Barry Schwartz have demonstrated quite convincingly that this prayer is not at all simple. It is a striking example of spiritual resistance. At the same time that the prayer appears to be expressing an unequivocal concern for the welfare of the rulers of the land, underneath the surface it is demonstrating that it really views those leaders with suspicion, hostility and contempt. Let’s take a look at several of the Biblical verses quoted in the prayer, and see what the contexts of those verses can teach us. For example, consider the very first line of the prayer: “May the One who gives victory to kings,” [... protect them and save them from every trouble, woe and injury, etc.” This seems to be a straightforward plea to God to be gracious to kings, to whom he is gracious enough to grant victory. However, in the Book of Psalms, that verse is followed by a plaintive plea that evidences a different attitude toward those kings: “Rescue me, save me from the hand of foreign mouths speak lies, and whose oaths are false (emphasis added).” ers, whose So which is it? Are we praying that those who rule us will be “protect[ed] ... from every trouble”? Or that those lying, devious rulers will get their just deserts? On the one hand, “The uniquely plaintive quality of many of these [passages], beseeching God to incline the heart of the sovereign to treat Jews benevolently, bespeaks the distinctive political realities of diaspora Jewish life.” On the other hand, accor ding to Professor Sarna, the biblical verses quoted in the prayer “conceal hints of spiritual resistance, a cultural strategy well known among those determined to maintain their self (Sarna) “To the textuallyrespect in the face of religious persecution.” literate penitent, the seemingly innocuous verses taken from various passages in the Bible would key up their context, which often hinted at less than pacifist views.” “Simultaneously, then, Jews whom thei prayed aloud r security depended, and for the welfare of the sovereign on read between the lines a more subversive message, a call for rescue, redemption, and revenge. Based on past diaspora experience, both messages were fully appropriate” (emphasis added). The best way to prove the truth of Professor Sarna’s assertion is to look at the following text, which was printed in Vilna in 1914: 5“May the One who grants salvation to kings and dominion to rulers, Whose kingdom is a kingd om spanning all eternity, Who releases David, his servant, from the evil sword, Who places a road in the sea and a path in the mighty waters May He bless, protect, guard, assist, elevate, exalt, and lift upwards Our master CZAR NIKOLAI ALEXANDROVICH,With his wife, the honorable CZARINA ALEXANDRA FEODOROVNA Their son, the crown prince ALEXI NIKOLAIOVICH And his mother, the honorable CZARINA MARIA FEODORAVNA and the entire household of our king, may their glory be exalted. May the King of kings in His mercy give him life, and protect him, And save him from every trouble, woe and injury. May nations submit under his feet, and may his enemies fall before him, And may he succeed in whatever he endeavors. May the King of kings, in His mercy, grant compassi on in his heart and the heart of all his advisors, to do favors for us and for all Israel, our brethren. In his days and in ours, may Judah be saved, and may Israel dwell securely, And may the Redeemer come to Zion. So may it be His will and let us say: Amen.” This is, indeed, a blessing for the Czar! And not just any Czar. This is a prayer to be recited on behalf of Czar Nicholas II, one of the most antiSemitic of Czars. He was so bloodthirsty that he was referred to as “Nicholas the Bloody.” He wa s known for one of the worst pogroms against the Jews. And yet, with the words of this prayer, Jews would pray for his welfare, that of the Czarina, Alexandra Feodorovna, and that of the rest of the royal family. 6Nonetheless, and obviously between the l something very different to themselves. So, ines, (literate) Jews would also be saying that is where things stood, in the societies in which Jews lived, until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries of the Common Era, when political revolutions dramatica lly changed the nature of those societies and the status of Jews within them. Let’s look at what happened in America, after the American Revolution. Change occurred almost overnight. Consider the following: In a prayer book published in America in app 1760, as one would expect, the prayer “HaNotein Teshua” roximately appears. It includes the name of King George, as the ruler on whose behalf the prayer is offered. But soon after the Revolution, a prayer book was published that said something very di fferent. Let’s take a look at an American prayer book from the period: 7How does this differ from the previous version? Well, instead of praying for King George, it offers a prayer for “the President and Vicepresident of the Union,” “the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assemble d,” the Governor and Lieutenant Governor and the people of the state, and the magistrates of the city. Note: one is praying specifically for those who have been elected to serve the nation, yet no names appear!!! There is no mention even of the name of the President or the VicePresident! (Actually, in a version of this prayer that appeared in a prayer book published immediately after the Revolution, George Washington’s name does appear. Incidentally, in that prayer book there was a title for President Washington that was recommended for him: “His High Mightiness”! Washington rejected that title -although, as Professor Sarna points out, some of his successors may wish that he had retained it!) There is another curious difference in this prayer: it u ses different language when Congress is in recess. It is as if to say: When Congress is Congressmen are your representatives. When they’re in sitting recess , the , they’re ordinary people -in which case, we don’t pray for them. We only pray for them wh en they’re working on our behalf. (One might wonder whether, if we took that qualification seriously, how many days a year we would be praying for our Senators and Representatives!) This isn’t the case with the President, the Vice President and various other officials, who are deemed, apparently, always to be representing the people. By the middle of the 19th century, we begin to see an entirely vocabulary different for praying for our government, one that recognizes that ours is a true representative democracy. Our rulers are not “rulers” in the same way that our ancestors’ rulers were; they are the elected representatives of the people, in whom authority ultimately resides. This represents a subtle but significant shift: In a representative democrac y, if we are praying for the welfare of the we’re actually praying for the welfare of the nation government as a whole, and all of its inhabitants. , 819th century Look at the following prayer by Rabbi Max Lilienthal, a mid Orthodox rabbi. This prayer is forgotten today, but it behooves us to take a close look at it. Notice that it begins by praying for the land whereon we dwell. the rulers, but the land. The first paragraph is filled with a Messianic, eschatological vision of the promise of our na tion. Notice that it is a prayer inviting “blessing” on the land. Not victory , as in “ Hanotein Teshua Not ,” but “peace, goodness and blessing.” It begins as follows A 19th Century American Prayer by Rabbi Max Lilienthal, English Translation by Dr. Jonatha n Sarna: Master of the Universe, Lord of all Works. Who extends peace like a river, and like a rapid stream the glory of nations (Isaiah 66:12). Look down from Your holy dwelling (Deuteronomy 26:15) and bless this land, the United States of America, where on we dwell. Let not violence be heard in their land, wasting and destruction within their boundaries, but You shall call its walls "Salvation" and its gates "Praise" (Isaiah 60:18). Grant … inhabitants of the land, peace, goodness and a blessing on all the that they may lie down with none to make them afraid (Leviticus 26:6). And among the nations shall their seed be known, and their offspring in the midst of the people: all that see them sha ll acknowledge them, for You hath blessed them (Isaiah 61:9). Amen. Let’s take a look at the second paragraph. Here, we focus on the leading elected officials of our country. We pray that they be taught the “good way wherein they should walk.” We pray that they should judge the entire people “justly.” We pray, in essence, that they should do their jobs properly, for the benefit of all: Pour down the bounty of Your goodness upon the President, and the Vice President of the United States, … Great shall be their honor; through Your help and in your strength they will greatly exult (Psalm 21:2,6). Amen …. Teach them the good way wherein they should walk (1 Kings 8:36) so as to judge the entire people rightly, the entire nation justly (Psalm 72:2), a nd all will see it and delight themselves from the abundance of peace (Psalm 37:11). Amen. And then finally -it seems almost like an afterthought care of the Jews, too: … Our good Father,-we ask that God take also answer us Your people the house of Israel at a 9favorable time, and be of assistance each and every day. Guide us continually in your great goodness and satisfy our soul in times of famine. And we shall be like a well watered garden, like a spring whose waters do not fail (Isaiah 58:11), an go from strength to strength (Psalm 84:7) (emphasis added). d The prayer has become much more universal. It is now a prayer on behalf of the land, and the people who inhabit it. It’s also a prayer on behalf of the Jews, of course, but we’ve moved to the periphery. The prayer continues to evolve after this. One major milestone was Rabbi Louis Ginzberg’s version, probably written in 1926 (the 150th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence), the basis of the pray own prayer book (Siddur Sim Shalom). er which appears in our Rabbi Ginzberg’s prayer affirms the following principles: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. As faithful Jews, we are, each of us, loyal Americans. We have the best interests of America at heart. We call on our government off legitimate authority. icials to be just and right in their exercise of We encourage our leaders to draw on the wisdom of the Torah. We seek God’s blessings on all Americans, regardless of creed. As this prayer has evolved into the version we recite today, it focuses on what our hopes and dreams are for the nation as a whole. It includes the expression of hope (if not expectation) that our representatives will act with honesty and integrity. Note the three major themes of this prayer, communicated in its three paragraphs: 1. 2. We pray for the nation and its government, its leaders and officers and all those who serve the country faithfully . (Note that qualification. That didn’t appear in the versions of the prayer we recited when we prayed for a king.) We offer a blessing on the inhabitants of our country, that they should banish hatred and bigotry and safeguard not only the institutions but the ideals of the country. 1011 3. Finally, we ask that our nation be an influence for good throughout the world. This prayer has endured. It is now over ninety years old, and it is in our prayer book as well as the Reconstructionist prayer book. And what ever happened to Ha-Notein Teshua? It has remained in the Orthodox prayer book. And yet, … the changes of these past few centuries, that we have seen expressed so explicitly in the versions of the prayer for our nation in prayer books published in this country, have not gone unnoticed, even within the Orthodox world. Fast forward to the last three weeks: Remarkably, within the last month, there has been a great deal of tumult regarding this prayer. And let us not imagine that this tumult has an exclusively partisan quality to it. It doesn’t. First, in December (recall: a different person was then President of the United States), an American Orthodox rabbi publicly offered a revision of Ha-Notein Teshua. Why? He felt he could no longer pray on behalf of the then-President of the United States. He was upset at a position that the President had taken in instructing the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. to abstain in a vote involving Israel in the Security Council. A few weeks later, a different Orthodox rabbinic colleague of mine, living in Arizona, stated that as of yesterday, January 20th, 2017, he would no longer recite the Ha-Notein Teshua prayer as written. Why? Because he was staunchly opposed to the incoming President! Independently, a third Orthodox congregation, in Nashville, TN, came to the conclusion that they too could no longer recite Ha-Notein Teshua -- not specifically for partisan reasons but because, as we’ve seen and noted, its language expressed subservience to the rulers of the country -- that was simply no longer appropriate. The text that the Nashville congr egation came up with is here: A Prayer for the Government, 2017 Congregation Sherith Israel, Nashville, TN (Text and Commentary courtesy of Dr. Shaul Kelner) Ribon kol haolamim, Sovereign of all worlds, Who delivers David from the evil sword and makes a way in the sea and a path through the mighty waters, Who has commanded all humanity to create courts of justice: Preserve and protect America’s democracy and bless us, the people of the United States, who have ordained and established the Constitution and laws of this great land. Shed Your spirit on all its inhabitants. Plant love, fellowship, peace and friendship among us, and uproot all hate, envy, and strife from our hearts. May You, Who grants each person understanding, give us the wisdom faithfully to place in all our gates leaders who revere truth and despise corruption. Enable us and our chosen representatives to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with You, our God. Grant that we proclaim liberty throughout the land, to all the inhabitants thereof. Let abundance flow from the work of our hands and wisdom grow among all the people of this land. Strengthen the hands of those who guard America’s freedoms and fil l them with Your spirit, so that our country may ever be a light unto nations. May Judah be saved and Israel dwell securely, and may the Redeemer come to Zion, speedily in our days. May this be God’s will, and let us say: Amen. Notice how this prayer be begins with gins: It doesn’t begin Ribono kol haHaNotein Teshua la olamim, Sovereign of All Worlds, Melachim. [the One] who has commanded all humanity to create courts of justice. It 1213 This language goes back to one of the so-called, “sheva mitzvot bnei noach,” the “seven commandments of the children of Noah,” -- the rabbinic category defining the responsibilities of all human societies. All nations of the world are called upon to create just societies. All nations are called upon to promote “liberty and justice for all.” Left, far behind, is the language and tone of Ha-Notein Teshua.2 If you happen to find yourself in Nashville, TN, and you step into the Orthodox congregation there, don’t be surprised if you hear the congregation read this. (Of course, none of us knows what will happen in another two weeks.) * * * * * And so, where are we? What should we do? Should we continue to pray for the government of the United States? Why or why not? If so, what words should we use? Should those words change from time to time, or should they remain constant? I think that these are worthwhile questions. This is a long-term inquiry for us., and I think it would be interesting for us to discuss these questions over time. We will learn and grow from reflecting on those questions. In the meantime, let me share with you my opinion on this: I believe that there is as much a need for us to pray for our nation as there ever has been. It’s good for us, and it’s good for our nation. I think it helps us clarify what our hopes and dreams are for our nation. 2 For further analysis of the text of this prayer, provided by the congregation in Nashville, see the notes below. Hence, in the meantime, I believe that we should continue to do as we have done. We should pray for our nation. And what version of the prayer should we recite? In my view, we should do as we have done. We should continue to recite the revised version of Rabbi Louis Ginzberg’s 1926 prayer for our government. -(Incidentally, we should continue to follow that prayer with the Prayer for the State of Israel about which I’ll have more to say on another occasion.) I believe that the version of the prayer for our country that is in our siddurim (prayer books) reflects a tacit communal consensus regarding our hopes and dreams for our nation. n What began as an effort at expressing our anxiety about our safety and security has evolved into a important expressi on of what we hope for, not only for ourselves, but for all those living in our nation and our world. And it behooves us to voice that expression, out loud and in public, not only to remind others of what we believe, but to remind ourselves as well. Shab bat shalom. 14

Of course a name represents the reputation of one who is being named, and it is vital that a name should be treated with the same respect as the reputation of the one it is spoken about. For this reason, Elohim’s Name, in all of their forms, must be treated with enormous respect and reverence by all Yisrael - Israel, and those who have come into the faith. However, I really have come to a point, where I must clarify something, for sadly it is generally not understood that a certain word that we as Jews tend to use for our loving Creator is actually right, and I have to rectify this, by providing you with the fact, as well as providing you with proofs from the Tanakh!

What does the word “Elohim” really Mean?

1… Q - The Ivrit - Hebrew word “Elohim,” is it a Name? For example the Name of our beloved Creator, blessed be He?

. A – No it is not, for Elohim is and never has been a name!

2… Then what does the blessed word Elohim mean?

The truth is that the Ivrit - Hebrew word “Elohim” clearly tells us who and what our beloved Creator is, thus it is a word and it certainly is not a name. The truth is that the word “Elohim” is an “Attribute” of Our Blessed Creator!

3… Thus “Elohim” is this the correct word to use as the Attribute, for the Almighty? And certainly not that pagan word ‘god’.

For those who know the Tanakh well, will know that there were countless pagan gods around in ancient times, including that one who was known as “Gad” also pronounced as “Gaad,” “Gawd” and “God.” We can read about this pagan god in Yeshayahu - Isaiah chapter 65, where Elohim warns His people Israel as follows;

The first verse comes from the ‘New Kings James Version’ (NKJV):

“But you are those who forsake the LORD, who forget My holy mountain, Who prepare a table for - Gad (the Syrio-Babylonian god of fortune), and who furnish a drink offering for Meni (the god of destiny)” Yeshayahu - Isaiah 65:11.

Now I will use the ‘Jewish Publication Society’ (JPS) version of the Tanakh. Strangely the (JPS) version translates it more simply.

“But ye that forsake , that forget My holy mountain, that prepare a table for Fortune (in Ivrit - Hebrew Fortune is written as: - Gad), and that offer mingled wine in full measure unto Destiny (again in Ivrit it is written as Meni)” Yeshayahu - Isaiah 65:11 (JPS Tanakh version).

However, it is very strange that in the JPS version the name of “Gad” or “Fortune” is suddenly spelled with a capital ‘F’ and “Meni” or “Destiny” with a capital ‘D’.

The words of the prophet Yeshayahu - Isaiah demonstrate the widespread worship of this false deity whose name was “Gad,” which Judah had apparently embraced along with that other false deity named “Meni.” Yet, you may have also noted that Elohim’s “holy mountain” received no capitals at all, which I found very strange indeed. Ask yourselves the question, why suddenly give these two pagan names/words Capitals, yet Elohim’s Holy Mountain seems to be downgraded to the lowercase? Very strange!

The evil name of “Baal-gad” is also mentioned in Yahushua - Joshua 11:17 as well as in other Sefer’s. This Syrian idol Gad was considered to be a very powerful deity who was supposed to control the planet Jupiter, which was a part of ancient Semitic worship and it was later embraced by many successive nations, including Greece, as well as in Rome, for in Roman mythology, Jupiter is the ruler of all the gods, the son of the god Saturn, whom he overthrew. Thus in Rome this “Gad” or “God” was a powerful god indeed and the word we know is in reality the name of this pagan so-called deity.

“Christendom” in Europe, through various scripture translators inadvertently expanded the phonetic vocalization of “Gad, to Gawd” and eventually Gad became “God” and it was they who substituted, “God,” instead of using “El” or “Elohim” throughout the “Tanakh”, as well as using the words “the LORD” in capitals, instead of using the four letter “Memorial Name” in Ivrit (Y-H-V-H) the Tetragrammaton. The Ivrit (Hebrew) word “Elohim” literally means, “Mightiest of the Mighty”.

The question arises, why do we Jews as well as christians for that matter use this hideous pagan word “god”, for it is the name of a pagan god? In the Tanakh, the attribute of our Heavenly Father, blessed be He, is mostly “Elohim” or “El”, thus, we should ONLY use this word, being the attribute that distinguishes our Elohim, the Creator of the Heaven and the Earth from all those pagan gawd’s and gods of the world!

However, for some strange reason priests and rabbis of later times had sadly had lost the plot, just like in the days of Yirmyahu – Jeremiah, and they decided that “Gad” would be a name and indeed it was, but it was just not the name of our Elohim, the Almighty, and because of their error all of Judaism is using a pagan name along with every other faith, and that is evil. These evil ones feel that we should be showing respect for our Elohim, and thus they revere this pagan god thus they even forced most of us write it as G-d, but I am sorry it still remains the name of an evil pagan god!

Below are several Powerful Messages from the Torah!

You Change My Torah and be Damned!

It is vital that we remember what we are told in Devarim - Deuteronomy chapter 4, verse 2 as well as chapter 5, verses 28-29.

“Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of your Elohim which I command you” Devarim - Deuteronomy 4:2 (JPS).

“Ye shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. Ye shall walk in all the ways which your Elohim hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you” Devarim - Deuteronomy 5:28-29 (JPS).

What will happen to those who disobey Elohim and add and change His Torah, it will be the opposite of what He said here – “that ye may live, and that it may be well with you”. Remember what happened to all those that worshipped the Golden Calf at Sinai? And why our beloved Moshe Rabbeinu was not permitted to enter the Promised Land?

Tragically Elohim knew that man would interfere with what He had given and thus on various occasions clearly stated “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it” yet they still dared to alter and change, and add so much to the blessed Torah Elohim, blessed be His Sanctified Name, had so lovingly had given us!

Hebraic Studies is online for just a single purpose; to see us Hebrews return to our one and ONLY Torah, and uphold the Mitzvah’s to the best of our ability, keep the Shabbat and the Yom Tovim.

For those who have not been to Shul for a long time, yet you have a yearning to learn more about the Torah and grow in being a good and faithful Jew, why not read the other studies online as well as the guides on top of the Main Index.

And remember our motto seen on the logo at the top of this page: “The More Torah, the More Life”, for Elohim, blessed be His Sanctified Name, is the one who gave us Life!”

Rabbi Reuven Ben-Avraham.

Also Read: Ushpizin & Other Customs & Crooked Eyesight

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