Transcript
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Hello everyone. We have reached the
haurra of Mat Masay. Our haft Torah from
the words of the prophet Yermyahu is a
powerful call of rebuke. But it is
spoken from a deep connection between
God and the people of Israel. Yermyahu
turns to the entire Jewish nation asking
them to hear the word of God. This is
not just a scolding but an invitation to
stop, reflect, and remember where we
came from and where we belong. God asks
Israel a painful question. What wrong
did your fathers find in me that they
have gone far from me? In other words,
was something missing in God's guidance?
Was there a real reason to leave the
source of life? After all, it was God
who brought the Jews up from the land of
Egypt.
He who led them through a harsh and
frightening desert, in a land of drought
and deep darkness, in a place where no
one passed and no man dwelt. Throughout
this entire journey, the Jewish people
were not alone. God accompanied them,
protected them, and led them.
The prophet mentions that God brought
the Jewish people to a good land, a land
of fruit and abundance, so they could
eat of its goodness. But instead of
preserving the holiness of the land,
they defiled it and turned God's
inheritance into a place of abomination.
The problem was not only with the common
people. Even the priests did not seek
God. The holy sages did not know him.
The leaders rebelled against him and the
prophets followed Bal and things that
are of no benefit.
The prophet continues and says that this
is a wondrous and terrifying thing. Go
to distant islands. Check with other
nations whether a people changes its
gods. And even though they are not real
gods, they remain attached to them. But
the Jewish people exchanged their glory
for something that is of no benefit. At
this, the heavens themselves are, as it
were, shocked and appalled.
And then comes one of the most powerful
metaphors. My people have committed two
evils. They have forsaken the fountain
of living waters and dug out for
themselves broken wells that can hold no
water. The creator of the universe is
likened to a source of living water,
true abundance, pure and flowing. But
Israel turns to other places, to sources
where there is no life, like a cracked
well that cannot even hold what is put
inside it.
Later, Yahu describes the result.
Israel, who was supposed to be free and
respected, has become an object of
contempt. Enemies roar against him. His
land is turned into a wasteland. His
cities are burned and left without
inhabitants. Egypt and other places also
become a source of disappointment and
harm. The prophet says clearly, "This
thing happened because you forsook the
Lord your God while he was leading you
on the way."
And then comes the sharp question, what
are you doing on the road to Egypt? And
what are you doing on the road to
Assyria?
Why seek help and strength in foreign
places instead of leaning on God?
Your own wickedness will correct you,
says the prophet. Your regression will
show you how bad and bitter it is to
forsake God. God reminds the people, I
have broken your yoke and burst your
bonds.
meaning I brought you out of bondage and
gave you freedom.
But instead of serving God, the people
followed idolatry upon every high hill
and under every green tree. The prophet
likens Israel to a beautiful vine of
truth and asks, "How have you turned
into a rotten plant?"
Even if they try to wash and cleanse
from the outside, the iniquity is still
marked before God.
One cannot say, "I am not defiled." When
the path itself testifies otherwise, the
prophet describes following the ball and
strangers as a confused path, running
after things of no substance until the
people say, as it were, there is no
hope. I have loved strangers and after
them I will go. The shame is described
as the shame of a thief who is caught.
Kings, princes, priests, and prophets
are all involved in this situation. They
turn to wood and stone as if their lives
came from there. But in a time of
trouble, they turn to God and say,
"Arise and save us." To this comes the
question, "Where are those gods you made
for yourself? Let them arise and save
you in your time of trouble."
The prophet continues and shows that the
problem is not just the sin, but also
the refusal to accept correction. The
Lord struck, warned, and sent prophets,
but the people did not receive
correction. Instead of listening to the
prophets, they were harmed by the people
like a destroying lion. God asks, "Have
I been a wilderness to Israel? Have I
been a land of darkness?" Why did my
people say, "We will come no more to
you?"
And the next description is very
painful. Can a virgin forget her
jewelry? Can a bride forget her attire?
Things that a person loves and are
important to them, they do not forget.
But the Jewish people have forgotten the
Lord for days without number.
In the end, it turns out that even
political alliances will not help. Egypt
will also shame you just as Assyria
disappointed you. Whoever replaces trust
in the Lord with foreign trust will not
succeed with them. The entire prophecy
calls for the Jews to return to the
simple truth. Not to forsake the
fountain of living waters, not to chase
after vanity, but to return to the word
of the Lord, who is the guide, the
redeemer, the savior, and the true
source of life.
