If a great number of people believe something, does that make it true? 1 Kings 18:21 — 22, “Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him. But if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people did not answer a word. Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only remaining prophet of the LORD, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.” As we know God defeated the prophets of Baal through Elijah even though there were many more of them. So the answer to my question is apparently no, just because a lot of people believe something, that doesn’t make it true.

BIBLE STUDY --- THE GOOD SHEPHERD

TURNING TO YESHUA

THE TOUCH OF HEALING

From Mark 5:21 -43

When Yeshua returned to Capernaum, a large crowd met Him at the shore. Jairus, a leader in the synagogue at Capernaum, was there, too. When he saw Yeshua, he knelt down at His feet and begged Him for help. [My little daughter is dying,] said Jairus. [Please come and touch her so that she will get well.] Yeshua went with Jairus toward his home. The people all followed, too, crowding one another to be near Yeshua. In the crowd that day was a woman who had been afflicted with a bleeding problem for twelve years. She had gone from one doctor to another, suffering greatly, and spending all that she had to get well. But instead of getting better, she had become worse. The woman had heard about Yeshua’ miracles and had come here to touch Him. Now she was right behind Him! [If only I can touch His clothing, I will get well,] she thought. With that, she reached out and touched His cloak. Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she knew that she was well. But Yeshua knew that power had gone out from Him. Turning to the crowd, He asked, [Who touched Me?] The disciples were surprised to hear Yeshua ask that. [Look at this crowd pushing toward You on every side,] they said. [Why do You ask if someone touched You?] But Yeshua kept on looking about to see who had done it. The woman who had been healed was trembling with fear, but she realized what had happened, so she came to Yeshua and fell down before Him and told Him the truth. [Daughter, your faith healed you,] said Yeshua. [Go in peace, for you are free from your sickness.] While Yeshua was talking with the woman, some messengers came running from Jairus’ home. [Your daughter is dead,] they told Jairus. [Why bother Yeshua anymore?] But Yeshua paid no attention to the messengers. [Don’t be afraid,] He told Jairus. [Trust Me!] Then Yeshua left immediately for Jairus’ home. He would not let anyone go with Him except Peter, James, John, and Jairus. When He reached the house, He found it in a great commotion, with mourners crying and wailing loudly. [Why are you making such a commotion?] Yeshua asked these people. [The little girl isn’t dead. She is merely sleeping.] The people started making fun of Yeshua so He sent them out of the house. Then He went with Jairus and his wife and His three disciples to the room where the girl was lying. Yeshua took the little girl’s hand in His and spoke to her. [Get up, little girl!] He said. At once, this twelve-year-old girl got up and began walking and jumping about the room. Her parents were so absolutely amazed that they could hardly control themselves. Yeshua gave them strict orders not to tell people what had happened. Then He told the parents to give the girl something to eat.

COMMENTARY

JAIRUS’ FAMILY

Jairus was a ruler, or elder, of the synagogue at Capernaum, Yeshua’ hometown at this time, so he and his family were closely associated with its work. To understand Jairus and his family, it is necessary to understand the synagogue and its work. Some say the synagogue began under Moses. However, it was not popular until the time of the exile. Away from their homeland, the Jews longed for some place to worship. The temple in Jerusalem was destroyed and its ruins were far away. The synagogue served as a place to hear the Word of YHVH read, listen to devout men speak, and to pray together. By the time of Yeshua, there was a synagogue in almost every large town in Israel. Some towns had more than one. Synagogues had now become houses of instruction, where the Law was taught to all people. Yeshua attended the synagogue at Nazareth and preached there while Nazareth was His home. Later, when He moved to Capernaum, He attended its synagogue and preached there as well.

JAIRUS

Most of the things known about Jairus are known about his work as synagogue ruler. Almost nothing is known about the man himself. As a synagogue ruler, he was an important man in Capernaum. He was in charge of the building and made sure that it was kept clean and in good repair. Jairus chose people for the synagogue service, inviting them to preach, read from the Scriptures, or lead the prayers. Because of the importance of his job, Jairus sat with other elders in a special seat reserved for them.

JAIRUS’ WIFE

As a wife of an elder and synagogue ruler, Jairus’ wife was prominent in Capernaum, both socially and spiritually. She was well-to-do, for she had servants. Since Capernaum was Yeshua’ hometown at this time, Jairus and his wife knew Yeshua well. Yeshua had preached in the synagogue there, so Jairus would have been the person to invite Him.

JAIRUS’ DAUGHTER

At this time, Jairus’ daughter was twelve, old enough to be married, according to Jewish Law. At twelve years and one day, she was considered an adult. Having grown up in the home of a synagogue ruler, she had been instructed in the home. Although she had not gone to classes with the boys who studied in the synagogue school, she had learned the Law from her parents. Every Shabbat she sat with her mother in the women’s section of the synagogue. In addition to her religious instruction, Jairus’ daughter had been trained to be a wife and mother. Since earliest childhood, she had learned from her mother how to grind grain, spin thread, and weave it into cloth.

BIBLE STUDY --- THE GOOD SHEPHERD

TAMER OF THE SEAS

From Mark 4:35-41

That evening Yeshua said to His disciples, [Let’s go over to the other shore.] When the crowds had been sent home, the disciples took Yeshua into their boat and, with some other boats, set sail for the opposite side of the Sea of Galilee. But a storm with violent winds blowing came over the sea. The waves rose high, splashing over the sides of the boat until it was in danger of sinking. While this happened, Yeshua was asleep in the back of the boat, resting His head on a cushion. The disciples quickly woke Yeshua, shouting above the noise of the wind, [Adonai, don’t You care that we’re about to sink?] Yeshua stood up and gave orders to the wind and the sea. [Be still!] He said. At once the wind quieted and the waves calmed until all was at peace. [Why are you so afraid?] Yeshua asked His disciples. [Do you have no faith?] But they were even more frightened, now when they saw what He had done. [Who is He?] they began to whisper. [Even the wind and the waves obey Him.]

THE TAMING OF A DEMON-POSSESSED MAN

From Mark 5:1-20

When Yeshua and His friends arrived on the other shore, in the land of the Gerasene, a man filled with demons rushed out from the tombs to meet Him. The man was so strong that he always broke the shackles and chains that people tried to put upon him. Night and day he wandered among the tombs and hills, screaming and cutting himself with sharp stones. When the man had seen Yeshua in the distance, he ran and threw himself before Him. When Yeshua Commanded the demons to come out, they let out a piercing scream. [What will You do with us, Yeshua, Son of the Most-High YHVH?] the demons cried out. [We beg you, by the Name of YHVH, not to torment us.] Then Yeshua asked the demons, [What is your name?] [Legion,] the demons answered, [for there are many of us here in this man.] Again, the demons begged Yeshua not to send them to some faraway place. Nearby a large herd of pigs grazed by the mountains. The demons begged Yeshua to send them into the pigs, so He let them do it. At once the entire herd, about two thousand pigs, rushed down the side of the steep hill into the water and were drowned. The man who had been taking care of the pigs ran into town to tell what had happened. Hearing of this event the people of the town came out to see what was going on. There was the man who had been filled with demons, sitting before Yeshua, clothed and normal. When the people saw this and heard an account of what had happened, they were afraid and begged Yeshua to go away. While Yeshua was getting into the boat to leave, the man who had been healed pleaded with Yeshua to let him go, too. [You must go back to your own home instead,] Yeshua told him. [Tell your family and friends what Adonai has done for you and what mercy He has shown you.] The man did go home and went from city to city in all of the Decapolis, telling what Yeshua had done for him. Throughout these ten cities, people were filled with wonder when they heard his message.

COMMENTARY

MANY MOODS OF THE SEA OF GALILEE

The Sea of Galilee sits like a giant bowl of water among the hills of Galilee. The water is about one hundred fifty feet deep. But the surface is about six hundred eighty feet below sea level. Thus, this is no ordinary lake, but an inland sea capable of many moods. At times violent windstorms sweep down from the hills and stir the water into giant waves. Some waves as high as twenty feet have been reported in recent years. These storms may come without a cloud in the sky, a drop of rain, or a bolt of lightning. Within a short time, the sea may be as peaceful as a mirror. Spring wildflowers growing on the shores add another dimension to the changing personality of the sea, accenting it with a rainbow of colours. Barren hills with scrub brush, rich fertile valleys, stately trees, short palms, and golden fields of grain add to the variety of life surrounding the moody bowl of water. The Sea of Galilee constantly changes its moods. At one time violent, another time calm; at one time a mirror of silver, another a ripple of deep blue; at one time a rainbow of colour; another a bleak grey of early morning fog. This changing scene must have been a constant delight to the people who lived there.

i was explaining something the other day,
that eating kosher, that what is clean, is good for one's physical health, but that understanding the implication of what eating clean food means and applying that is good for one's spiritual health.
knowledge being food for thought, as it were, sticking to the clean food of the scriptures is desired, but watching mindless stuff, reading about worldly knowledge etc and then bringing that into your thoughts is eating unclean.

and that brought me to think of manna.
see, the israelites were fed with manna provided to them during the entire process of traversing the wilderness.
and there ends the Torah.

what do i mean by stopping abruptly like that?
when the scriptures continue, as the israelites cross over into the promised land of israel, the manna also abruptly stops, and the israelites are now to eat of that what the land produces.
the manna that is the Torah had been given, and they'd fed on it (oy vey, with enough complaining as they went along) to GET them to the promised land.
now, it was up to them to gather and produce their own food.

allow me to phrase it like this -
mindlessly following what the Torah says is still eating of manna, with the implication one is still wandering in the wilderness, not yet having entered the promised land.
it is now expected that one starts contemplating things, gathering and producing wisdom and understanding, and eating the fruits thereof.
now one has crossed into the promised land.

it is not just to follow Torah, it is to then work on understanding it.

this is very similar to what paul described as milk, for not being ready yet for solid food.
as the Torah was manna for the israelites, the entire scripture, mindlessly read, taken at face value, is milk.
contemplating the implications of what one has read is the solid food.
the work one does with what one's read produces the solid food of understanding we're all looking for.
(the Spirit leads one in this, we're not left alone)

i hope i've managed to give just that slight further encouragement, but, point is, don't listen to me, don't necessarily listen to others either (who too often just repetetively give manna and milk), go eat the food yourself, read scriptures. and NOW work on it.

Shabbat Shalom My Torah Family.
YHVH Richly Bless You and Your Family and Household and Work of Your Hands.

Boost your brand with Qexi Technology’s powerful LinkedIn advertising service 🚀📈 Drive targeted leads, elevate visibility, and grow smarter today! 💼✨
Visit Now: https://qdexitechnology.com/linkedin-advertising

Stridex Clothing boys’ winter jackets bring comfort, durability, and cool street vibes for every chilly adventure. 💙🔥
Shop Now: stridexclothing.com/collections/boys-kids-jackets

Thought for Today: Shabbat November 22

YHVH is the only Source of true happiness, because He offers those intangibles that we mistakenly believe can be found on earth; contentment, security, peace, and hope for the future. None of these can be found in a job, a human relationship, money, power, or position. They are YHVH’s alone to give… Our Adonai Yeshua, in His Sermon on the Mount, told where ultimate happiness lies: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled” {Matthew 5:6}. This is YHVH’s Promise – and it is true. Riches… or righteousness? Which one is your goal?