Ha'azinu – Once Upon a Week

Read the transcript below, or watch a video of the teaching by Yehuda Bachana.

Moses sings his last song in Parashat Haazinu.

Music plays an important role in life, and it is central in our prayers.The Jewish liturgy, also known as ‘Pesukei dezimra’, as well as the praise and worship at the beginning of every Messianic fellowship, use singing in order to prepare the hearts and souls of the people, as we stand together, as a congregation, before God.

The familiar melodies also help us to remember the words of the prayers, and to internalize their meaning. Songs help us to feel the message of a prayer.At the time of the Temple, when pilgrims would go up to the Temple mount, they were accompanied by the songs and instruments of the Levites, the music was used to build up the excitement.

The main part of this Torah portion is a poem, that Moses recites to the People of Israel on his dying day. He does so to influence the people, and to instill the poem’s timeless and important message in the hearts of the people. This poem describes the history of the People of Israel, as well as its future.

The Haazinu-poem is organized with a certain structure, and opens with the words:

These words invite us to look at the heavens and the earth, and to see how the heavenly powers do the will of God, in a diligent and faithful way. This is how the Midrash describes it:

This Midrash gives an additional meaning to Moses’ words. As if Moses says that God Who created the heavenly powers, is the very same God Who created the People of Israel. We are encouraged to look at those heavenly powers, that carry out their task obediently.

The Midrash adds, that these powers are:

Personally, I don’t think that such a comparison is correct. Yes, God created the forces of nature, and He created us all. And yes, He also created and redeemed Israel.

Yet, the forces of nature were created by God without giving them freedom of choice. If the sun would be off God’s planned course, or if a planet would delay its course, it could cause a major catastrophe, and even result in the destruction of the world.

However, maybe this is not what the author meant?

Maybe Moses wanted to remind us that, every time we look at the sky and see the sun and the moon, we would remember that it was God Who created and placed these forces, and that it was He Who set certain rules in place for these creations.

Perhaps Moses wanted to remind us that this very same God made us, and set certain rules for us, too. When we look at God’s marvelous creation, we should remember His greatness and give Him the glory.

After the beginning, the poem continues with God choosing Israel, and His care and supervision for His people. The poem continues and addresses the moral decay of the People of Israel, especially in times of prosperity, when we have what we need and life is comfortable. Moses rebukes Israel, and then even threatens to wipe out the very memory of Israel:

These verses express the greatness of God’s disappointed with Israel, even up to the point where Israel loses its right to exist.

God gave Israel His supervision and blessing, gave us success and His redemption. Our job is to exalt and promote the Torah, to spread the knowledge of God and of His wonderous deeds throughout the world.

However, we have failed. Not only did we fail to glorify God and promote His Word around the world; as a matter of fact, as a nation we turned away from God, and betrayed Him by running after worldly idols. We tried to disconnect from God’s favor of Israel, as we wanted to be like all the other nations of the earth Instead of exalting the Name of God, His Name got humiliated. As a result, the word ‘Jew’ became a negative word, rather than an honorable title for a member of God’s People.

Later on, Moses explains the main reason why God did not wipe Israel out from the face of the earth. That reason is connected to God’s honor and glory:

This verse explains that, the very fact that the People of Israel still exists, is God’s answer to those that hate Israel. Truly, it is not the result of our own righteousness, but rather points out the level of evil of Israel’s opponents who crow and say:

Our enemies would see their own triumph and their own success in destroying Israel as proof that the Word of God would is not true, or is no longer valid. And God would not let that happen.

A similar story already happened, or nearly happened, in the days of Moses while he was receiving the Torah - that was handwritten by God Himself – at Mount Sinai.Now, at that very moment, the Children of Israel sinned and made the golden calf.

This rebellion disrupts the giving of the Torah, and God sends Moses back, down to the foot of the mountain, because the people allowed their hearts to get corrupted and sin.

As a result of this sin, God says He wishes to destroy Israel, destroy the entire people, and to start over with Moses. However, Moses stands before God and says:

“Lord, you took this people out of Egypt with a mighty hand, an outstretched arm and in glory, so that everyone would see that there is one God under the heavens: the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. If you would destroy this people in the wilderness, what would the Egyptians say?

What would the nations think?

That you took the People of Israel out of bondage, just to destroy them in the wilderness? Because we did not manage to bring them to the Promised Land?

Moses continues by saying: “Even if not for the sake of this people, then do it for the sake of our fathers, for the sake of your promises to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Finally, Moses succeeds:

Likewise, the ‘Haazinu’-poem clarifies that, even if not for our sake, but rather for the sake of God, for His promises and His choice; our enemies would not be allowed to defeat, nor to destroy us.

The poem continues and ends with God redeeming His land and His people.

As Messianic believers, we see Yeshua as God’s answer for the need to glorify His Name throughout the world. We also see Yeshua as God’s provision for the redemption of His land and of His people.

Thanks to Yeshua, God’s entire Word (including the Torah), was translated to most languages, and is known by the vast majority of people groups on earth. Even those, living in the Amazon rainforests, have access to the Word of God, and many are familiar with the Bible stories. Many have access to God, which is made possible through the salvation of Yeshua the Messiah. All those nations have the knowledge of God - they can come to Him, pray to Him and worship His name - through and because of Yeshua – the Messiah of Israel.

The very existence of Israel is a miracle and a testimony of God’s work. In a similar way, the spreading of God’s Word throughout the world, by translating the entire Bible (meaning, including the Torah, the prophets, the Writings and the New Testament) was made possible thanks to, and in the Name of, Yeshua. That, in and by itself, is a great miracle.

As we read the Haazinu-poem, we witness a justification of God’s judgement:

Here, Moses speaks about God’s justice, which is a very difficult issue, as so many people ask, or actually, cry out to God, saying: “Where is justice?” We desperately miss God’s revelation, to the point where we bluntly ask: “Where is God?”

Midrash Tehillim 92 tells us about Moses and Adam, the first man.First it asks Moses, and then, Adam too, concerning their death:

In this Midrash, Moses is asked who prevented him from entering the Land. Who was to blame?Wasn’t it God Who stopped you from entering the Promised Land? However, Moses answers:“No! Whose fault is it? Mine. It was my fault, and no one else’s. God is righteous. All His works are without blemish and righteous.”

And then Adam answers the question of what caused his death, saying:

And what do we pray and declare every Yom Kippur, every Day of Atonement?

We confess our sins, and then continue to beg God for His mercy; after which, we declare:

All that happens to us is just, and we are the only ones to be blamed for it.

And who will rescue us form this situation? At the end of the Haazinu-poem, God promises us that He will redeem us. Of course, here we point to Yeshua the Messiah as our Redeemer.

As believers, we see the numerous prophesies about light, salvation and leadership as pointing to Yeshua. In Isaiah chapter 9, the People of Israel is described as a lost one, walking in darkness; then, suddenly we see light:

There we read, that this light in fact symbolizes a leader, in Whom all the nations will rejoice. This leader will be a light and a blessing to everyone, for the entire world.

Then, this prophecy continues and speaks about the birth of this leader:

This prophesy by Isaiah is very interesting and talks about an outstanding leader, who carries an important responsibility on his shoulders. The task of this leader, is to prepare the kingdom, and to uphold it with justice and righteousness ‘from that time on and forever', meaning: eternally. And so, this leader (Who is Messiah Himself), must prepare the kingdom (which stands for the Kingdom of God), eternally.

The Kingdom of the Messiah of Israel, of Yeshua, spreads to the ends of the earth, as is described in Psalm 82: 8-9:

And then in verse 11:

It is clear that these verses cannot be applied to any of the known Kings of Israel. None of them were in the position described as

Even King David, with all his victories and conquests, does not fit this description.

The only Jewish King Whom all the nations serve, even today, and to Whom all kings bow down, is Yeshua.