By Roy B. Blizzard
I want to continue our comparison of the sayings of Jesus and the sayings of other rabbis of his day recorded for us in the Mishnah. Order Nezikin, Tractate Avoth, commonly known as the Chapters of the Fathers.
Let us begin this study with Chapter 3. Mishnah 3.
Rabbi Simon said. "If three have eaten at one table and have not spoken of the words of the law, it is as if they have eaten of sacrifices of the dead, as it is said, ‘For all their tables are full of vomit and filthiness and the Omnipresent is not in their thoughts.’ (Isaiah 28:8)" "But if three have eaten at one table and have spoken over the matters concerning the law, it is as though they had eaten from the table of the Omnipresent, blessed be He, as it is said, and he says unto me, ‘This is the table of the eternal.’ (Ezekiel 4122)"
The table in this Mishnah refers to the altar of God in the Holy of Holies. Once we take a step back and look very carefully at this Mishnah we can see the importance that is placed upon study and learning, rather than upon jesting, or even good manners, when one comes around the table to receive from God’s abundance. I remember what I used to do and how I used to be, so it is easy for me to overlook immaturity. Frankly, however, I find it rather humorous when Christians come around the table and feel they just cannot eat until they pray and bless the food. In Judaism, you do not bless the food, you bless God. God is the one who has provided the sustenance, and so it is God that we are to bless for his provision. Actually, I have seen some food that I thought needed to be blessed!
However, God is the one who has provided, so, when his people come around the table, prayer and seriousness sanctify the dining table as though it were the altar of God. It is the appropriate time and the appropriate place to be discussing the things of God – and the appropriate time and appropriate place to bless Him and to thank Him for his provision.
In Mishnah 5. Rabbi Nechunia ben Hakanah said, "Whosoever accepts the yoke of the law, from him shall be removed the yoke of the kingdom and the yoke of mundane caro. But he that casts off from him the yoke of the law. upon him shall be laid the yoke of the kingdom and the yoke of worldly care." Unfortunately, most Christians have in their minds the mistaken idea that the law is a burden, or the keeping of the law is some kind of a yoke, a burden to be borne.
It is obvious from what we know of rabbinic literature that there were certain of the Pharisees who did believe that the weight of the law was like a yoke. They went around bowed over as though they were carrying a heavy burden. It seems apparent that it is to these individuals Jesus is referring when he says, "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest."
However. the greater number of the Jews did not see the law as a burden at all, but something to be borne proudly and joyfully. with happiness. The keeping of the law was an occasion for joy and festivity. I believe Jesus was alluding to that in Matthew 11:28-31 when he says "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly at heart."
Here we have again the word meek, and lowly, or humble. Remember from Psalm 37 that meek means uncompromisingly righteous. How were the uncompromisingly righteous characterized in Psalm 37? That they dealt kindly and gave. Here, again, we see this recurring theme of tsedakah, the central theme of Jesus’ teaching. His burden, yoke, is easy. His burden light because it is the burden of a good heart, of tsedakah. The burden of generosity. The burden of being consistently and uncompromisingly righteous is easy. The burden of stinginess, of miserliness, of the evil eye, that is a heavy burden.
Do you know something interesting? It is harder to be bad than it is to be good. It even has more of a physiological effect. Whereas, if you are basically a good person, generous, loving, one who loves God and his fellow man, there is no strife, or anger, or frustration, none of the characteristics or qualities that engender within the individual a physiological response that is a detriment to the physical body.
There is a real lesson here, both in this Mishnah and in the words of Jesus. The yoke of a good eye and a good heart, the yoke of righteousness, leads to rest for the soul.
In Mishnah 15, Chapter 3, it says, "All is foreseen by God, yet freedom of choice is granted; and by grace is the universe changed, yet all is according to the amount of the work." This statement is attributed to Rabbi Akiva. Although it is a very short Mishnah, it is pregnant with meaning. Much has been said in Christian circles about predestination. Whole denominations have been established on the theological foundation of predestination – God has predestined certain individuals for salvation and others to be lost. Although this Mishnah is succinct, it nonetheless, in one brief sentence, serves to clarify this point and reflect something to us concerning the nature of God.
Omniscience is foreknowledge, foreknowing. In spite of the fact that God knows all, he has given freedom of choice to man. Man has the capacity to do good or to do evil. In Judaism, it is known as the yetzer hatov and the yetzer hara, and without the ability to choose, freedom of choice, man would be nothing more than a mere automaton.
By grace, and grace alone, is the universe changed. There is nothing that man could do. Nothing that man could ever say. No price that man could ever pay that would be sufficient to repay God for redemption. That was done by grace. God’s unmerited favor, in which he did something for us that we could not do for ourselves. He did it because he loved us, and he did it for all mankind.
However, because man has freedom of choice, and because some men choose the right and some choose the wrong, there is one day going to come a time of judgment. In Judaism, there is the concept of varying degrees of rewards. A man is going to be repaid according to the works that are done in the flesh. Rabbi Akiva’s statement echoes the words of Paul in I Corinthians 3:11-15, "For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire, and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. If any man’s work abide which he has built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss, but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire."
Notice how fire is used figuratively for judgment, "…fire shall try everyman’s work…" Paul’s statement refers to the righteous only. The righteous do not come under condemnation, but there will be that time when their works will be tried by fire and rewards will be disbursed based upon the works that remain.
Where did this whole idea of predestination arise? In Romans 8:29-30, Paul states. "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom he did predestinate, them he also called, and whom he called. them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified."
What did God predestinate? Simply that those who, according to their free will, chose Him…those he predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son. "He that has seen me has seen the Father." There is nothing in either the Old Testament or the New Testament that supports the theology of election, that God elected certain people to be saved and elected certain people to be lost and that there is nothing one can do about it, that it all hinges on the caprice of God. That is fatalism. Although fatalism is a fundamental principle of Islam, it has absolutely no foundation in biblical fact.
In Mishnah 4, Chapter 4, Rabbi Levitas of Yavne said, "Be exceedingly humble of spirit since the hope of man is but the worm." Rabbi Yochanan ben Baroka said, "Whoever profanes the name of heaven in secret will suffer the penalty therefor in public, and it is all one whether the profanation of the name is committed unwittingly or in wilfulness."
I hope you remember from our previous studies that Yavne was the city where Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai started his academy before the destruction of the Temple and where the Sanhedrin was moved after the destruction of the Temple. Rabbi Levitas said. "Be exceedingly humble in spirit." And do you remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 5, in the Sermon on the Mount, and how he begins? "Blessed are the poor in spirit…" These statements are exact parallels. But. what is more important is how they reflect the thinking of the rabbis from generation to generation.
How important it is that we study rabbinical literature, the sayings of the rabbis. The way in which they teach, the word pictures they paint, the images upon which they draw, because it gives us an understanding of the words of Jesus, the ideas, the concepts upon which he is drawing. In many instances, without a knowledge of this background, because of the images, the idioms, the metaphors, etc., so widely use by the sages and rabbis, we are unable to understand the depth, the meaning, of the words of Jesus.
"…Poor in spirit…" is parallel to humble in spirit, broken in spirit, which means one who is sorrowful for his sins, who has repented of his sins, who has turned to God, who loves His word and who keeps His commandments. That is what it means to be poor in spirit, or humble in spirit. Rabbi Levitas said, "Be exceedingly humble in spirit since the hope of man is but the worm." That is, that the final end of this world is going to be death. Therefore, one needs to make preparation in this world for the world to come. Rabbi ben Boraka emphasizes the fact that one day all will be brought forth and exposed, whether for the good or for the bad.
In Matthew 1:16,17,18, Jesus makes the statement that is echoed in the words of ben Baroka, "Moreover, when you fast be not as the hypocrites of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto men that they fast. Verily, I say unto you that they have their reward but you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face that you appear not unto men to fast but unto your Father which is in secret, and your Father which sees in secret shall reward you openly."
Let me say just a word about fasting. Unfortunately. there has been a lot of misinformation communicated in Christian circles on the subject of fasting. Dozens of books have beeen written on the subject and, to be honest, I have never read one yet by a Christian author who knew very much about the biblical concept of fasting. Fasting was for one reason. Not to get something from God. Not to get direction from God. Not to get a leading from God. It is for repentance. Fasting is a time for reflection and introspection that leads to repentance. Repentance leads to devotion and dedication. We, therefore, can see the purpose in Jesus’ fasting in the wilderness after his baptism. No doubt he was tempted to find another way other than the one that had been placed before him, the way of the cross. It was a time for reflection, for introspection, that culminated in his devotion and dedication to the task that had been placed before him.
In Judaism, there are certain set times for fasting. One fasts from morning until evening, and after the sun goes down, it is permissible to eat. Fasting was not a long, extended period of time of going without food or water. Such may, in fact, be quite dangerous. I had a close, personal friend who believed God had called him to a 14-day fast. He was honest and sincere in his belief, but before the end of the fourteen days, he had a serious heart attack. But, you might think, it seems so spiritual, so religious, and that is what it is – religious. but unfortunately not scriptural.
You have to be really careful and know that what you hear or read has biblical substance to it and not just something someone wrote based on his own interpretation and assumptions.
In Mishnah 5 of Chapter 4, Rabbi Ishmael, the son of Rabbi Baroka, said, "He who learns in order to teach will be granted by heaven the means both to learn and to teach; but he that learns in order to practice, heaven will grant him the opportunity to learn and to teach, to observe and to perform." Study was not just to be studying for the sake of accumulating knowledge, that is, knowledge for knowledge’s sake, but that the knowledge one acquires might lead to proper action.
Notice again in our study the emphasis that is placed by the rabbis upon doing. Jesus said, "Not everyone that says unto me ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom, but he that does the will of my father which is in heaven." In Jesus’ day there was somewhat of a conflict between the sages as to which was the most important, study or doing. Frankly. Jesus never made all that much of a to-do over study. His emphasis was upon doing. It was not until 12l C.E. that the sages finally concluded that study was more important because it was only through study that one could learn what to do. That is, study led to doing.
This whole idea again is echoed in the words of James in his epistle, Chapter 1:22-24, "But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass. For he beholds himself and goes his way and straightway forgets what manner of man he was."
In Mishnah 15. Rabbi Yannai said. "It is not in our participation to either explain the prosperity of the wicked nor the tribulation of the righteous." Rabbi Mania ben Cheresh said. "Be first in the salutation of peace to all men and be rather a tail to the lions than a head to the foxes." How frequently we have heard that God does not allow anything bad to happen to the righteous. If anything bad happens. "The devil did it!" Sometimes I almost feel sorry for the devil. The devil gets blamed for almost everything, things he did not have one single thing to do with. However, we have to have a scapegoat.
I am skipping over to Chapter 5, Mishnah 23, to one little sentence, quoting Rabbi ben Hai Hai. He said. "According to the suffering is the reward." Hai Hai was a contemporary of Rabbi ben Bag Bag. We know very little about these men, just the one sentence quoted in Mishnah 22 and 23. They were probably contemporaries with Hillel, because in the Avot de Rabbi Natan these sayings are ascribed to Hillel.
Ben Hai Hai said, "According to the suffering is the reward." That is just the opposite of what many have been told. Actually, this does not really mean what it might appear to on the surface. Ben Hai Hai was not trying to correct twentieth century theology. What he said is pregnant with meaning. The more one labors in acquiring knowledge and the knowledge of God, the more one labors in practicing the commandments of law, the greater one’s reward is going to be. Accumulation, or the acquiring of knowledge does not come without suffering. It is not easy. It is difficult. and it only comes at a great cost – and you have to be willing to pay it. The greater price you pay, the more you will be able to do, Thus, the greater your reward will be. Notice again the emphasis upon doing.
In Mishnah 22 of Chapter 4, Rabbi Elazar ha-Kapar used to say, "They that are born are destined to die, and the dead are destined to be brought to life again, and the living are destined after death to be judged, to know, to make known, and to understand that He is God. He is the Maker. He is the Creator. He is the discerner. He is the judge. He is the witness. He is the plaintiff, and he it is that shall judge the future. Blessed be he with whom there is no unrighteousness, nor forgetfulness, nor respecter of persons …and in the hereafter, you will have to give account and reckoning before the king of kings, the holy one, blessed be He."
Not only is this Mishnah very Pharasaic, it is also very Pauline which, of course, is very be expected in view of the fact that Paul refers to himself as "a Pharisee of the Pharisees." In 1 Corinthians 15, what is the theme? The resurrection from the dead. "We are not all going to die. but some will be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the sound of the last trump, and we will be changed and this mortal will put on immortality, and we will all be caught up to be with the Lord in the air." This is the Jewish and very Pharisaic idea of life after death and of the reward of the righteous.
Here is an interesting Mishnah and, frankly, I do not know that there is a lot of commentary that is needed to accompany it. We will let the reading of it serve as its own commentary. "There are seven characteristics of an uncultured person and seven of a wise man. A wise man does not speak before one who is superior to him in wisdom; he does not break in upon the words of his fellow; he is not hasty to answer; he questions in accordance with the subject matter, and makes answer to the point; he speaks upon the first thing first, and upon the last thing last; and regarding what he has not heard, he says, ‘I do not understand it’; and he admits the truth. And the reverse of all these is characteristic of an uncultured man."
In Mishnah 16 of Chapter 5, "If love depended on some material cause and the material cause passes away, so shall it pass: but if it does not depend upon some material cause, it will never pass away." Remember again the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 12. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and angels and have not love, I am become as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal."
I want to emphasize again that the ideas reflected here in the Chapters of the Fathers can be found in the teachings of all of the New Testament writers which, again, is just what we should expect. Why? Because they are all Jews. They all came from the same background, the same religious and spiritual heritage.
Mishnah 19. "Whoever has these three characteristics is of the disciples of Abraham our father, but he in whom there are three other attributes is of Balaam the wicked. A good eye, a lowly mind, and a humble soul are the traits of the disciples of Abraham our father. An evil eye, a haughty mind and a proud soul are the characteristics of the disciples of Balaam the wicked. And what is the difference between the disciples of our father Abraham and the disciples of the wicked Balaam? The disciples of our father Abraham enjoy this world, and inherit the world to come. But the disciples of the wicked Balaam inherit Gehenna and descend to the pit of destruction."
Notice that the first characteristic of the disciple of Abraham is the good eye, generosity, tsedakah, an ever-recurring theme, the central or foundational theme of biblical faith. The next is the humble spirit, the broken or the wounded, or poor in spirit, the humble soul. Here we see a principal characteristic of Hebrew prose and poetry parallelisms, two statements that are parallel one to the other, that are structured in almost the same way as Jesus presents them in the Beatitudes. "Blessed are the poor in spirit …Blessed are the meek…Blessed are they that mourn." Who are they? They are all the same. To be poor in spirit is to be uncompromisingly righteous. To be uncompromisingly righteous is to yearn after God and the things of God.
Notice the structure is almost identical to that of the Beatitudes. What are the three sayings? A good eye, or generosity, one who is lowly of spirit, and one who is humble of soul. And the opposite of these are the characteristics of the disciples of Balaam who, this Mishnah tells us, will inherit Gehennom. But the disciples of Abraham, what of them? Notice they are to enjoy this world, The things of this world and, ultimately, inherit the world to come. Where do we hear something like that? "Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth. (Matthew 5 and Psalm 37)."
Mishnah 20. Judah ben Tema said. "Be strong as the leopard and light as the eagle and fleet as the hart and mighty as the lion to do the will of thy father who is in heaven." Again, the emphasis is upon doing. Biblical faith is not a creed or belief in a certain statement of faith. Biblical faith has very little to do with what one says but, rather, what one does. Biblical faith is not so much man always directing his attention upward toward God but, rather, through acts of tsedakah. reaching out to others meeting them at the point of their need and assisting in making them whole. This is the foundation of biblical faith, of what it means to be in the kingdom, a part of the kingdom, what it means to be kingdom. It is not withdrawing from the world and forming some kind of bless me club or praise-the-Lord society, but it is being busy in doing for others, acts of tsedakah, of gemilut hasidim, principles with which we began our study. Principles of biblical faith are not directed upward. It is not something one does for God. It is directed outward toward one’s fellow man, but in so doing, at one and the same time, one performs the will of the Father.
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