“. . . every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old.” Matthew 13:52

My beloved is like a gazelle (Song of Songs 2:9). Rabbi Isaac said, “The community of Israel said before the Holy one, blessed be He: ‘Sovereign of the Universe, you say to us, My love, my love—You give us the greeting of love first. Just as a gazelle leaps from mountain to mountain and valley to valley, from tree to tree and fence to fence, so the Holy One, blessed by He, leapt from Egypt to the Red Sea and from the Red Sea to Sinai, and from Sinai he leaps to future redemption.” (Song of Songs Rabbah 2.9.1)

On its face, the Song of Songs is just a love song. There is no mention of God or worship. But the sages of Israel saw it as an expression of the mutual love between God and Israel. So, according to the sages, how does the Song function as a part of Scripture?

One answer comes in a beautiful collection of thoughts about the Song assembled in the seventh century C.E. This collection is called the Song of Songs Rabbah. For centuries, numerous stories and biblical interpretations based on the Song of Songs had been passed down. But Song of Songs Rabbah was the first to bring a large number of them together in one collection This anthology is arranged as a verse-by-verse commentary on the Song.

For as many as are the promises of God, they all ind their “Yes” in him. For this reason we also utter “Amen” to God . . . (2 Corinthians 1:20).

Jews all over the world eat the Passover meal during this season to commemorate our deliverance from slavery in Egypt long ago. As we enjoy this meal together, the very food on our plates reminds us of the past. We read from the Passover Haggadah, a little book that tells the story of Passover and also gives us the order of the night’s events, including the blessings and prayers.

As Jews eat the unleavened bread and portions of bitter herbs, parsley and such, we are reminded of the sufferings we experienced in Egypt as a people, and of God’s deliverance. At a certain point in the evening, we read the words of the Haggadah thanking God for delivering us, as a people, from that slavery: “Blessed are You, Adonai our God, ruler of the world, who redeemed us and redeemed our ancestors from Egypt, and brought us to this night.” As with all Jewish holidays, we do not only remember the past, we also anticipate the final redemption that has been promised to us.  

For Messianic Jews, Passover has a special meaning. These promises, along with all the promises of God, ind their “Yes” in Yeshua. Yeshua does not only say “Yes” to the promises of God, but that “Yes” is embodied in him. Everything about Yeshua answers “Yes” to God and to God’s promises. Yeshua is “the Lamb of God” (John 1:29) whose “Yes” to God involved giving himself completely into God’s hands.

“. . . every scribe who has become a disciple of the kingdom of heaven is like a head of a household, who brings out of his treasure things new and old.” Matthew 13:52

As January turns to February, many of us will be gathering in Los Angeles for the annual Hashivenu Forum. The Forum is a venue where Messianic Jewish professional and lay leaders gather to ponder the deeper meaning of our Messianic Judaism. This year, the focus of the Forum is “Encountering the God of Israel in the Messiah of Israel.” Our goal is to go beyond generalities to specifics.

It will be my privilege to present a paper at this year’s Forum. To readers of Verge, it will be no surprise that my thoughts will be drawn primarily from the wisdom of the Jewish sages. I do not draw from the sages simply because I think that they have nice or worthwhile things to say. The stakes in hearing their voices are far greater: They are the ones who, within the Jewish people, preserved and passed on God’s covenant love for Israel and the vital place of Torah in Jewish life. God, Israel, and Torah: These issues go to the heart of the Jewishness of Messianic Judaism.