Faithful Writers

Today we begin our study of Genesis Chapter 9. For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here . For the King James Version, click here. This chapter starts off with God’s first post-flood speech to Noah in the Bible. This is also the first time Scripture has God addressing someone in narrative form using the phrase “ And God said…. ” Immediately, we are introduced to a major change that has occurred. The vegetarian man of the Garden of Eden is now allowed a carnivores’ diet… And as a result, the animal kingdom that once had a harmonious relationship with man will now live in fear of him. Why do you think it was so easy for Noah to get the animals to cooperate with him prior to the flood? The answer is because before the flood man had a different relationship with the animal kingdom. “Every moving thing that lives will be food for you; just as I gave you green plants before, so now I give you everything — only flesh with its life, which is its blood, you are not to eat.” -Genesis 9:3–4 Based on the above verse, at this stage, it seems like no living creature was off-limits for food. However, there was a very strict rule placed on the eating of meat, and it was that man was NOT allowed to eat the blood from an animal. The reason is because blood carries the life essence in it. We will see that moving forward blood is only to be used for sacrifices. Blood is way too holy for man to partake of! We see the importance of blood also being applied to human beings. The taking of human blood ( in other words murder ) is strictly prohibited and if it happens, the person guilty as charged will have his or her life taken from her. He or she will be subjected to the death penalty. “Whoever sheds human blood, by a human being will his own blood be shed; for God made human beings in his image. ” -Genesis 9:6 Notice in verse 6 that God assigns the responsibility of meting out justice for murder over to man now. Up until now, God had dealt with it Himself. What’s interesting is that when God dealt with Cain, the punishment meted out was banishment from His presence. The mere separation from God’s presence was sufficient punishment. However, in the post-flood age, when man murders man, he will incur the death penalty. Honestly, if I was a murderer and had to choose between the death penalty and eternal separation from God’s presence, I would choose the death penalty any day. (I mean, we’re going to die anyway right.) Concerning this portion of the Scripture, the ancient Jewish sages have pointed out that here God is establishing the principle of earthly government. Actually, this is the beginning of what would eventually come to be called the 7 Noachide Laws. The 7 Noachide Laws are the most fundamental principles of justice that God gave to Noah and from these basic laws will come all the other civil laws that will eventually comprise the Torah. The seven laws are as follows: 1) No idol worship. 2) No taking God’s name in vain. 3) No murder. 4) No incest. 5) No robbing and stealing. 6) No eating blood nor meat of strangled animals. 7) Man must submit to government authority. Thousands of years later after Yeshua’s ascension, these Noachide Laws were brought up by the Jerusalem Council of 49 AD as the minimum behavioral requirements for Gentiles who wanted to fellowship with Jewish believers in Messiah. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT Instead, we should write them a letter telling them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from fornication, from what is strangled and from blood . For from the earliest times, Moshe has had in every city those who proclaim him, with his words being read in the synagogues every Shabbat .”-Acts 15:20–21 © Richoka

Today, we begin Genesis Chapter 16. For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here . For the King James version, click here . In this chapter, we are introduced to a series of events leading to the birth of the forefather of the Arab race. A good long 10 years has passed since Abram departed from his hometown in Mesopotamia. Much has happened since then. Abram had been through famine as well as war, and although the Lord had protected Abram and kept him strong and healthy throughout the years, God’s promises seemed increasingly distant and unlikely to happen. So one day, no longer able to bear the shame and tension of failing to produce a son for her husband, Sarai decides to take matters into her own hands. Sarai summons Abram and suggests that he impregnate her slavegirl Hagar so that she can have a son through her. “Slavegirl” is the word translated from the Hebrew SHIFAH . Now I understand that most English versions will use the term “ maid ” or “ handmaiden ,” but frankly, this just imposes a misleading sense of European gentility on the sociology of the story that just isn’t there. The point is that Hagar belonged to Sarai as property. So Sarai could pretty much do with Hagar as she pleased. The existence of this type of surrogate maternity institution was well attested to in ancient Near Eastern legal documents. As a result of this action, the legal status of both Sarai and Hagar did not change. Hagar did not acquire extra rights, nor did she legally achieve equality with the barren Sarai. However, socially, something did change. When one examines the Law Codes of Ur-Nammu, dating to 2100 BC, or the Law of Hammurabi from about 1800 BC, it is made clear that when a barren wife took the serious step of making her slavegirl a concubine for her husband, her social status decreased in the eyes of those around her. To put it plainly, she was looked down upon. I think this backdrop explains quite well why Sarai dealt with Hagar so roughly following the birth of a child through her. Ironically, she used Hagar, her own property, as a means to ward off humility, but ended up inviting more humility because of her. © Richoka

The incredible trauma of the flood would’ve undoubtedly left Noah quite battered. Think about it. Besides him and his family, every human being on earth had been destroyed. Once the waters burst forth from both the heavens and the ground, Noah would have heard the screams of his neighbors, men, women, and children, as they cried out for help. Many of them would have been banging on the ark doors and walls, their fingernails piercing into the gopher wood as they futilely attempted to gain entrance to the only means of salvation that God had provided to mankind. I am sure there was much sorrow in his heart because he knew there was nothing he could do at that point. It was too late. Noah wanted to reach out and save those who were perishing but could not. However, we still have that chance that Noah didn’t. We still have a chance to lead others to salvation by sharing the good news of Yeshua. Remember, Yeshua said his second return would be just as it was in the days of Noah. NOW is the chance to reach out to that cynical neighbor or that elderly relative of yours whom you so dearly love and tell them about Yeshua. Given that the flood was the most terrifying experience that Noah had ever been through… He probably needed extra reassurance that the world would never again be subjected to another flood of such cataclysmic proportions. God not only verbally reassures Noah… But he announces that he will place a rainbow in the sky as a physical sign and reminder to Noah and his descendants that never again will He ever destroy the world by flood. This is the FIRST COVENANT that God made between Himself and man. Actually, this particular covenant was made between God and ALL living creatures (both man and beasts). One important point you should recognize. This covenant with Noah was unilateral. In other words, this covenant did NOT depend on man’s response nor man’s behavior……it was all on God. Later, we will see that with other covenants, there will be mutual requirements that both God and man must fulfill for the covenants to remain valid. © Richoka

ChatGPT I  was mentally preparing myself upcoming doctor’s appointment for my daughter in the shower. ( Some people sing in the shower; well, I think in the shower.) For reference, our hospital system took a nosedive here a while back, and it’s been a nerve-wracking experience since, especially for anyone who has chronic conditions. Anyway, so there I am in the shower, thinking through the appointment, and I mentally threw two previous doctors under the bus. I thought some really not-so-nice things in my head. I was feeling this subtle, pressurized bitterness and anger inside me that wanted to keep building, so I fed it. I felt justification for the anger that started to seethe inside of me and those not-so-nice thoughts because there had been some horrific instances. Then, in a moment of bitterness and anger, I just became weary of it all. I made a conscious choice and whispered the words “take captive my thoughts.” A millisecond couldn’t have even slipped by before I heard, “Pray for the doctors who failed your daughter; they need it the most.”  My heart lurched, and everything went still for a moment. I felt a deep conviction that pulled me down, and I sat there on the shower floor crying. Without words, I sought His forgiveness for what I had done, then and in the past.  He knows what we’ve been through; He was there right beside us through it all. He acknowledged that yes, she was wronged, and He understood my hesitation and fear of doctors, but I  still need you  to pray for them. In that moment, I learned so many things. It’s easy for us to take something that happened and hold onto those past hurts without contemplating the situation. We then move on, believing we are fine, when in fact we are not. We need to acknowledge when we are hurt. None of what I’m saying means we aren’t allowed to do this or that we don’t experience emotions from whatever may have happened to us. But it is important to take time, think about it, and take it to God. Big or little, just take it to Him. Don’t be like me. Don’t let it all build up like that, after each crappy incident I would go home, be mad and vent but I didn’t really reached out to God about it. I never asked Him to help me with how I was feeling or what I should do with it. That’s why I became weary.  It all finally caught up with me at that moment, and I was so tired of trying to hold onto it all. God hugged me, and I felt that deep within my heart; I also didn’t feel He was angry at me, He just gently chided me and told me it was time that I switch my thinking and pray for them. It was a fresh start to a new way of thinking; a weight was lifted off my shoulders that I never realized was there. Since that day in the shower, I had my own experience where I left my doctor’s office hurt, and it was a justifiable situation with what happened. With this new awareness, though, I was able to be able to vent and talk about what happened, stay positive, thoughtful, and calmer, and actively take it to God. And yes, I prayed for this provider; in fact, I still do when I think about her. It’s been a couple of months now. I feel a calm, a gentleness now in me, and it’s been growing to the point that my fear and hesitation with anything involving a hospital and clinic are starting to get better. My thought of the day: Maybe if we all said a prayer every time we are hurt or we think of an old hurt and choose to start the process of forgiveness, we could change the world a little at a time. "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ, God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32 © Jane Isley First Published in Frontier Writers (Anya Praise) Thank you for taking the time to read, and please consider  supporting my work . Your gift helps keep this work going, blesses others, and means the world to me. You can visit me at Faithful Writers  on Medium, where other Christian writers have joined me in sharing the word of God. You can also find me on   Tumblr  and   Facebook.

Starting from Genesis 9:18, Noah and his three sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth emerge from the ark marking the beginning of a new era in human history. Unfortunately, in short order, we will soon see that man remains just as susceptible to falling into trouble and committing evil as he was before the flood. We’re told that Noah planted a vineyard, made some wine, and then drunk himself into a serious stupor. He then made his way back to his tent where he fell asleep sprawled out completely naked. Next, the Scriptures tell us that “ Ham the father of Canaan saw Noah’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside ." In response, the two brothers took a cloak, walked backward into the tent so that they wouldn’t see their father’s nakedness, and then covered him up. When Noah awoke, he realized what Ham had done to him and pronounced the following curse: “Cursed be Canaan, the lowliest slave shall he be to his brothers!” The first question that arises is what in the world did Ham do to his father Noah? Well, I can do know better than to quote the great Jewish Bible scholar Robert Alter . Here is his take on the matter: “No one has ever figured out what exactly what it is that Ham does to Noah.” There you go. Nobody knows. Nevertheless, theories abound. Some suggest that Ham possibly castrated Noah. Others suggest that he “penetrated” him sexually and so on. I think it’s important to remind ourselves that the Bible is a record of God’s interactions with a certain portion and culture of the human race at a particular point of time in history. When we superimpose our modern day thoughts onto the Scriptures which took place in a culture completely foreign to our own, it’s inevitable that misinterpretations are going to arise. In this case, we’re dealing with an ancient Middle Eastern culture. In such a culture, it’s entirely possible that the mere viewing of a father’s nakedness was a horrific taboo. Ham’s failure to turn his eyes away from his father’s nakedness in and of itself could have earned him the curse that was pronounced upon him. First, why didn’t Ham cover up his father’s nakedness himself? Why did he go “tattle on him?" I wonder what exactly he said to his brothers? Maybe something like this: “ Hey guys! You won’t believe what I saw! Pop is drunk out of his mind, sprawled out butt naked in his tent. ” Talking about your father’s nakedness to others is just downright disrespectful. Ham seems to have been guilty of two sins. One, he did not honor his father. Two, he committed what in Hebrew is know as LASHON HARA which means to speak evil or gossip about someone. The second question that confronts us is why Ham’s son Canaan was cursed instead of Ham himself. Again, I think we are dealing with an ancient middle eastern mindset whereby not just that person but also his ancestors are viewed as a collective whole. Biblically speaking, having a curse placed on just one individual would not be particularly efficacious as it would end at the death of that person. The Bible says that a curse was placed on all of Ham’s descendants. However, the reason that Canaan was targeted is because more than any other descendant of Ham, it will be Canaan who will be most directly involved with Israel. So Noah’s two other sons did the proper thing in averting their eyes from their father’s nakedness. They treated Noah with the proper respect and as a result earned his blessings, the contents of which we will examine carefully in a future post. © Richoka

So we are continuing on the heels of the last post. Sarai, who is barren, summons her slave girl Hagar to sleep with Abram. And just as planned, Hagar gives birth to a child. However, Sarai is just downright insecure about the whole situation. She feels like Hagar is parading a sense of superiority around her and that compounded by her insecurities has made the situation unbearable. She begins to harass Hagar. We are not told specifically what type of abuse was leveled at Hagar but it must have been pretty bad because it caused Hagar to run away. It is at this point in the Torah that we are introduced for the the first time to an entity that many English Bibles translate as the “Angel of the Lord." ( The Complete Jewish Bible says the “Angel of Adonai” ) As a result of allegory, hyperbole, fantasy, and all kinds of unkosher hog-wild mistaken interpretations, the actual meaning of this term has been misunderstood, especially by Christians, for so long. So the best way to solve the problem is to just go to the original Hebrew. The original Hebrew is MALACH YAHWEH. So obviously YAHWEH is referring to God. However, let’s focus on the term MALACH. Although many English Bibles translate this sole word as “angel," that is NOT what it means. MALACH just means “messenger." Nothing supernatural, MALACH means just means a deliverer of a message. And, in the Bible, that is how it is often used. However, whenever the term “ MALACH YAHWEH ” appears, we are dealing with something different. By attaching YHVH to the word messenger ( MALACH ), this is when the meaning transforms from just a plain messenger to to a divine manifestation of God Himself. So based on the original Hebrew, here is the basic rule you can follow: If the word MALACH is used alone… It can be either a regular man delivering a message… Or an angel depending on the context. Depending on the context, if you add the word YHVH to it, it becomes a manifestation of God the Father Himself. Most Bible translators have mistakenly taken every instance of MALACH to be an angel… © Richoka

One thing you need to know about names in the Bible is that they are much more than simple labels of identification. In Bible times, one’s name reflected a person’s reputation, nature, and character. Let’s take a look at the actual meanings of the names of Noah’s sons and in general who each one’s respective ancestors turned out to be. Shem : Glory, Name (in the sense of making a name for oneself, becoming a respected person of authority). The descendants of Shem are the Hebrews, the Arabs, and most of the Asian races. The Messiah and Savior of the world will come from this line. Ham: Hot, warm, burning heat. The descendants are primarily the dark-skinned races that came to populate Africa. Egypt and the Philistines also stem from this line. Japheth: to enlarge, to become fruitful. The descendants are the Romans, the Greeks, and most of the European nations. Now all we have to do is take an objective look at how history has unfolded since ancient times and we realize that the blessings and curses that Noah proclaimed was nothing less than a powerful prophetic pronouncement. Israel, from the line of Shem, introduced not only monotheism to the world but also brought the messiah into the world. Indeed history itself is measured by the birth and death of Yeshua (BC and AD) . In this spiritual sense, Israel has conquered the world. Now the Japhetic nations of Europe and her distant cousin the United States have indeed been fruitful (wealthy) and expanded their influence over the whole globe but have always been subservient to the spiritual authority of Shem. A fact that rankles white supremacists to no end. It is the spiritual authority of Shem represented by the Jewish people that Adolph Hitler attempted to defy. But he failed. He should have known that no man can subvert God’s established prophecy. Finally, when we look at the history of the Hamitic nations of Africa, in general we can see that these nations have for the most part been plagued by poverty, slavery and a child-like dependency on the other nations of the world for their survival. To me, this is as powerful evidence as any that God’s Word is true and cannot be broken. © Richoka

Let’s talk a little bit about Ishmael, the name of the child born to Hagar. First, Ishmael means “God pays attention," or “God has given heed." God tells Hagar that she will have a male child who will eventually become the father of a large number of descendants. While Ishmael is the patriarch of several races, he is primarily remembered for being the ancestor of the Arabs. Let us not forget Abram is the true father of both the Arabs and the Israelites. The two are literally blood brothers. Both the Arabs and Israelites are from the line of Shem. The simple truth is that the people the evening TV news typically labels as Arabs usually aren’t. They are usually Egyptians, Persians, and other races that come from the line of Ham. Interestingly, we are told that Ishmael is going to be “a wild donkey of a man, with his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, living his life at odds with all his kinsmen.” Finally, we have these verses in the last paragraph of this chapter. “And she called the name of the Lord who addresses her El Roi, for she said, ‘Did I not go on seeing here after He saw me?.' Therefore, is the well called Beer-Lahai-Roi which is between Kadesh and Bered.” What a cryptic set of verses?! To explain, the best I can do is share the general scholarly interpretation. The general belief system at that time held that one could not see God and live. So apparently Hagar was expressing gratitude for being given the privilege of interacting with the Angel of the Lord (obviously a supernatural being) and not dying. © Richoka

Image by Claudio Henrique Claudio from Pixabay Let’s just start here: A whole lot of what we think is in the Bible…isn’t. We’ve been quoting things in church for so long that we just assume they came straight from the mouth of Jesus. If it’s been printed on enough coffee mugs or said with enough emotion from the pulpit, it must be gospel truth, right? Wrong. We’ve misquoted Jesus. We’ve misused Scripture. And one of the most common phrases we toss around like a spiritual Band-Aid is this one: “God will never give you more than you can handle.” You’ve probably heard that more times than you can count. It’s spoken like a promise when someone’s facing a job loss, divorce, depression, or devastating grief. It sounds comforting… until life actually does give you more than you can handle. And you’re left wondering, “What’s wrong with me?” But here’s the thing: Jesus never said that. Not once. Wait — So Where Did That Phrase Come From? Most folks assume it came from Jesus because, well, it sounds biblical. But it’s actually a twisted paraphrase of something Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:13 : “God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.” Key word? Tempted. This verse is about resisting sin, not surviving suffering. It’s about not being overwhelmed by temptation — not about carrying the crushing weight of grief, pain, or trauma. Big difference. But somewhere along the way, we mashed those ideas together and made them into a fortune cookie version of the gospel. A gospel where strength is self-powered and God is more like a cheerleader than a Savior. Here’s What Jesus Actually Said Jesus was brutally honest about suffering. He never sugarcoated it. “In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”— John 16:33 That right there? That’s Jesus telling the truth. He didn’t say, “You’re strong enough to handle this.” He said, “ I’m strong enough.” He didn’t promise an easy path. He promised his presence in the mess. Why This Misquote Is Dangerous When we tell hurting people, “God won’t give you more than you can handle,” we load them up with guilt. Because guess what? Sometimes life does give you more than you can handle. Depression that won’t lift. A child you can’t save. A betrayal that guts you. A diagnosis that upends everything. If we believe the lie that we’re supposed to be strong enough on our own, we end up crushed under the weight of spiritual performance anxiety. We think we’ve failed God. We wonder if we’re weak or broken or just not faithful enough. But the gospel was never about what we can handle. It was always about what He can handle (and has handled) for us, with us, in us. Let’s Talk About Some Other Things Jesus Never Said While we’re clearing the air, here are a few more well-loved misquotes people slap Jesus’ name on: “God helps those who help themselves.” That’s not in the Bible. At all. Benjamin Franklin said that, not Jesus. Scripture actually teaches the opposite: God helps those who know they need help. “Money is the root of all evil.” Nope. What Paul actually wrote was: “ The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” (1 Timothy 6:10) See the difference? It’s not money — it’s misplaced love. 3. “Hate the sin, love the sinner.” Jesus didn’t say that either. While it reflects a principle of compassion, it’s not a direct quote. And frankly, it often becomes an excuse to judge people while pretending we’re being holy. So How Did We Get So Off-Track? The Bible wasn’t written in English. It came to us through Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. And somewhere between ancient manuscripts, medieval Latin, modern translations, and Sunday school summaries, things got messy. Add in human error, church traditions, sermon shortcuts, and pop theology — and you end up with a handful of phrases Jesus never said… but a whole lot of people believe he did. It’s not always intentional. Sometimes it’s just easier to quote what we heard than dig into what was actually said. But when we misquote Jesus, we risk misrepresenting his heart. So What’s the Better Truth? The truth is: God will allow things you can’t handle. Not because He wants you to break — but because He wants you to stop pretending you’re your own Savior. We were never meant to live independent of Him. The weight of the world isn’t yours to carry solo. Jesus didn’t die and rise again just to cheer you on from the sidelines. He came to be your strength. Paul said it like this in 2 Corinthians 1:8–9 : “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure… But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God.” That’s the gospel. Not “You’ve got this.” But “He’s got you.” One Final Thought If you’re hanging by a thread, barely making it through the day, and someone tells you, “God won’t give you more than you can handle,” you have permission to say, “That’s not true.” Because it’s not about how much you can handle. It’s about how much He already did. Takeaway Truth: Jesus never said life would be manageable. He said He would be with us in the unmanageable. That’s a much better promise. And it’s actually true. Faith = Trusting the process not promise (in the way you think they should mean). © Gary L Ellis

Have you ever felt down in the dumps because the predominant gene pool of you and your family stems from the line of Ham in the Bible? Maybe you feel inferior to other races or people groups. Or when something bad happens to you, maybe you feel like it’s because you’re cursed or something. Well, none of that is true. Read this and feel better. First , given all of the race mixing (I am half-Japanese and half-French) and intermarriage that has occurred over the centuries… The simple truth of the matter is that if it were possible to conduct a DNA test that would be able to tell us down to the very molecule what races of blood are flowing through our veins back to Biblical times… I think the results would show that all of us are most likely a mixture of all of Noah’s three sons. Second , 10 of the tribes of Israel were actually dispersed throughout all the Gentile nations. So regardless of what color your skin is, it is possible that you could have some Israelite blood in you. Third, the Scriptures make it clear that regardless of what line you were born into physically… You can make a spiritual choice to be grafted into God’s holy line! And of course, the opposite is also true. Many Arabs have forsaken their Godly Shem heritage for the cursed line of Ham by choosing to identify with the ancient Philistines ( for those who weren’t aware,” Palestine” is just the Greek word for “Philistine.” ) And many Jews, people originally chosen by God, have chosen to switch their allegiance from the God of Israel to a God their ancestors did not know. The below video is a sad example that this sometimes happens. The gentleman being profiled is a Jewish person whose original name was Joseph Cohen but for whatever reason decided to convert to Islam. On a more positive note, the following is a video of an Arab Christian who is serving in the Israeli Defense Forces (sorry, this video is Hebrew only). The most important decision you will ever make and the ultimate determinant of your identity is NOT your earthly bloodlines… But which God you decide to entrust your life to! Choose wisely because you will have to live with this decision for all eternity. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor freeman, neither male nor female; for in union with the Messiah Yeshua, you are all one. -Galatians 3:28 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands) — remember that at that time you were separate from Messiah, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Messiah Yeshua you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Messiah . -Ephesians 2:11–14 © Richoka