Congregation Beth Ha'Mashiach
(House of the Messiah) - Worshipping ADONAI
& His Messiah, Yeshua Ha'Mashiach
Living & teaching as our
Messiah taught us to Live
Messianic
Congregation serving Northeast Atlanta Georgia (Gwinnett, Barrow,
Dekalb, Rockdale, Walton)
Proud Member of the Messianic Alliance
of Metro Atlanta Phone 678-639-3377
- email:
information@CBHM.org
Va’era – וארא : “And I appeared” Torah : Exodus 6:2–9:35 Haftarah : Ezekiel 28:25–29:21 Gospel : Mark 3
The Robber and the Strong Man
Thought for the Week:
“It might be the devil, or it might be the Lord, but you’re gonna have to
serve somebody.” (Robert Zimmerman) “But thanks be to God that though you were
slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to
which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of
righteousness.” (Romans 6:17–18)
Commentary:
In the Midrash HaGadol, a collection of Yemenite Jewish commentary
on Torah, the Jews are fearful of inciting Pharaoh further, so they protest to
Moses, “Can a slave serve two masters? We are enslaved to Pharaoh and are afraid
to transgress his laws.” Yeshua says, “No one can serve two masters; for either
he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and
despise the other” (Matthew 6:24). Israel could not serve both Pharaoh and God.
Neither can we serve two masters.
As the Yeshua walked among us, demonstrating miracles, signs and wonders,
driving out demons and delivering God’s people from oppression, He was like
Moses in the midst of Egypt. Armed with signs and wonders, Moses did battle with
Pharaoh, his magicians and the gods of Egypt. But his ultimate goal was the
redemption of Israel. In one passage, the magicians of Egypt concede defeat and
declare, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19). Yeshua refers to the same
passage to explain how He drives out demons and heals the infirm. He tells the
Pharisees, “If I cast out demons by the finger of God, then the kingdom of God
has come upon you” (Luke 11:20). He goes on to tell them a parable:
When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are
undisturbed. But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers
him, he takes away from him all his armor on which he had relied and
distributes his plunder. (Luke 11:21–22)
Yeshua tells the parable of the Strong Man and the Robber to illustrate the
conflict between the Kingdom of Heaven and the kingdom of darkness. The strong
man who owns the house is Satan. This present world is his house. Satan’s
possessions are people. Yeshua likens Himself to the robber. Just as a robber
ties up the strong man and carries off his possessions, Yeshua bound the
adversary and carried off His people. By freeing the demon possessed from the
spirits that afflicted them, Yeshua was robbing the strong man’s house.
This parable applies well to Moses in Egypt. Pharaoh can be likened to the
strong man. Egypt is his house. The children of Israel are his possessions.
Moses is the robber. By the power of God, Moses binds up Pharaoh, his magicians
and his gods and walks off with his possessions.
When the Master returns, He will come again as thief in the night to plunder
the tyrant’s house.
Shadows of the Messiah "things into which angels long to look." (1 Peter 1:12)
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First Fruits of Zion, PO Box 620099, Littleton, CO
80162-0099 USA
Telephone 303 933 2119, Toll-free 800 775 4807, Fax 303 933 0997
