Mark Call – Parsha “Pinchas” teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa

Parsha Pinchas (Numbers 25:10 – 30:1) is in fact “the rest of the story,” and more, from last week, and the end of ‘Balak,’ where the daughters of Midian began to seduce the men of the mixed multitude into pagan practices. And, again, no question, it is one of the most “problematic,” and no doubt confusing to some, in all of Scripture. How can a man who appears to commit a violent act, some might even say murder, be given a ‘Covenant of Peace,’ and Eternal Priesthood, by Yahuah? And, yet, the parallels in the cycle today should — at the very least — outright shock us. First, the story itself, in the Erev Shabbat overview and reading: https://hebrewnationonline.com..../wp-content/uploads/ We pick up the story of Pinchas with a reminder of how people who were so specifically blessed by Yahuah were able to be seduced into cursing THEMSELVES..and continue a look at what made Pinchas’ actions so…praiseworthy…to the point where he was singled out for being “zealous” (Hebrew root ‘qanah’) for YHVH and given His Covenant of Peace for violence…that stopped a plague. We’re reminded how the “watchman on the wall” of Ezekiel is charged with blowing the shofar, and how “do not keep silent” has been commanded. But Pinchas goes beyond that. Pinchas: He did NOT fail to ‘Object in a Timely Fashion! https://hebrewnationonline.com..../wp-content/uploads/ The combined full two-part teaching is here: