{"id":65952,"date":"2018-07-09T17:45:18","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:45:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-361\/"},"modified":"2023-06-25T08:25:32","modified_gmt":"2023-06-25T05:25:32","slug":"wall-361","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-361\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-Isaiah-27"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"361","date":"20270117","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","books_group":"Prophets","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"66032","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"JPS Audio Bible - Isaiah Chapter 27 ","post_title":"JPS Audio Bible - Isaiah Chapter 27","slug":"jps-audio-bible-isaiah-chapter-27","old_id":"66032","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Isaiah Chapter 27","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"Hear the daily chapter","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-753876298\/jps_audio_bible_isaiah_chapter_27","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"116347","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Great Shofar ","post_title":"The Great Shofar","slug":"the-great-shofar","old_id":"116347","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":62571,"post_title":"Yaakov Bieler","slug":"yaakov-bieler","old_id":"62571","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Bieler ","description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University in 1974. He has lectured and written extensively on Modern Orthodoxy, and blogs daily at https:\/\/yaakovbieler.wordpress.com ","short_description":"Rabbi Yaakov Bieler has been involved in Jewish education and the synagogue Rabbinate in New York, NY and Silver Spring, MD since being ordained by Yeshiva University. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":62572,"alt":"","title":"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","width":141,"height":180,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler-141x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":141,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium-width":141,"medium-height":180,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","medium_large-width":141,"medium_large-height":180,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","large-width":141,"large-height":180,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","1536x1536-width":141,"1536x1536-height":180,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","2048x2048-width":141,"2048x2048-height":180,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","post_full_size-width":141,"post_full_size-height":180,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/yaakov-bieler.jpg","home_baner-width":141,"home_baner-height":180}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Just how great was it?\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

The final verse in Isaiah 27 has become a well-known part of Jewish liturgy on Rosh Hashanah. The section of the Musaf<\/em>, additional, prayer,<\/span> \u00a0known as \u201cShofarot<\/em>\u201d (connected to the shofar, usually a ram\u2019s horn), lists eleven verses from throughout the Tanach, assembled to illustrate the importance of the shofar in past, present, and future Jewish history. The eighth overall verse, and the second derived from the prophets describes the ingathering of the exiles during the Messianic period:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

And in that day, a great ram\u2019s horn shall be sounded; and the strayed, who are in the land of Assyria, and the expelled who are in the land of Egypt, shall come and worship the LORD on the holy mount, in Jerusalem (13).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Why should the shofar to be used on that day be described as \u201cgreat\u201d? Does he mean particularly large?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The simple answer would be that if God is the One \u201csounding\u201d the shofar, it must be large to be able to accommodate Him. A similar conclusion would have to be drawn regarding the theophany at Sinai in Exodus 19:16, 19. But while the sounds of Sinai clearly were meant to intimidate the Israelites as they received God\u2019s Torah, what purpose is served by the sounding of the \u201cgreat\u201d shofar mentioned in Isaiah?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Although the 12th C. commentator R. Eliezer MiBelgantzi contends that the blasts of the \u201cgreat\u201d Shofar served as a literal guide for the lost Jews to find their way to Jerusalem, others, such as Abravanel and Radak, understood that the prophet was presenting a parable. That is, the signal for the ingathering would be \u201cheard\u201d throughout the world, and the people would stream forth as if they had been summoned by God blowing the Shofar.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Commentators understand the association of God and shofar as a reflection of the Divine\u2019s wartime proclivity that is evident in the context of the verse in Exodus: \u201cThe LORD, the Warrior\u2014 LORD is His name!\u201d However, Abrabanel\u2019s interesting punctuation of Exodus 15:3, should be kept in mind:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\u2026 The verse should be understood as a question, as if it was said: \u201cIs the LORD truly a man of war?\u201d He is not a man who makes war with another, but just the opposite, because \u201cLORD is His name!\u201d He is good and does good and is full of mercy and not a man of war. All of the evil that occurred to the Egyptians when they drowned in the sea, they themselves caused, and did to themselves!...<\/span><\/p>\r\n

At the very least, it could be said that God wears multiple hats, taking on the characteristics\u2014a warrior, a teacher, a granter of forgiveness, a law giver, etc., that are appropriate for particular times and places.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":48588,"alt":"","title":"num29-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","width":776,"height":635,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-300x245.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":245,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-768x628.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":628,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","large-width":776,"large-height":635,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":776,"1536x1536-height":635,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":776,"2048x2048-height":635,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":776,"post_full_size-height":635,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-513x420.jpg","home_baner-width":513,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Great Shofar","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Just how great was it?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":48588,"alt":"","title":"num29-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","width":776,"height":635,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-300x245.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":245,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-768x628.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":628,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","large-width":776,"large-height":635,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":776,"1536x1536-height":635,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":776,"2048x2048-height":635,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":776,"post_full_size-height":635,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-513x420.jpg","home_baner-width":513,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"403","name":"Redemption","old_id":"803"},{"term_id":"434","name":"War","old_id":"834"},{"term_id":"650","name":"Shofar","old_id":"1050"}]},{"order":3,"id":"116349","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Greater Shofar ","post_title":"The Greater Shofar","slug":"the-greater-shofar","old_id":"116349","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. 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","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The one blown for freedom and the ultimate redemption\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Blow a large shofar for our freedom, raise the banner to gather the exiles, and gather us together from the four corners of the earth. Blessed are you God who gathers the dispersed exiles.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

This is the tenth blessing in the <\/span>amidah<\/span><\/em> prayer, the prayer of 18, <\/span>shmoneh esreh<\/span><\/em> (actually 19) blessings said three times every week day. It is the first of the middle section that shifts prayer from the personal to collective requests. It is a mix of Isaiah 11:12 -<\/span><\/p>\r\n

[God] will hold up a signal to the nations and assemble the banished of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth<\/span><\/p>\r\n

and Isaiah 27:13 -\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

And in that day, a great ram\u2019s horn shall be sounded; and the strayed who are in the land of Assyria and the expelled who are in the land of Egypt shall come and worship GOD on the holy mount, in Jerusalem.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Verse 13 does not reference all four corners of the earth, but it brings in themes from Isaiah 19 about gathering exiles from Assyria (the North) and Egypt (the South) to Jerusalem on a grand highway.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

What is the large shofar? Rabbi Isaiah Wohlgemuth, in his book <\/span>Beurei Hatefilah<\/span><\/em>, quotes the midrash that explains that this shofar is not a large one, but is the famous ram\u2019s horn from <\/span>Akeidat Yitzchak<\/span><\/em>, the binding of Isaac. Each ram has two horns, and supposedly the left one is slightly smaller than the larger right one. At Mt. Sinai, God blew the left horn of that ram. The giving of the Torah was only the beginning of the redemption of the Israelites.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Isaiah refers to the second, right horn, that is the larger one. This second horn will signify the greater redemption that will happen at the time of the final redemption. Metzudat David provides a more straightforward answer that this shofar is described as a great shofar because it needs to be large enough so that the sound can be heard across the entire world. This is the signal to all the exiles to return. A similar idea is not that the shofar needs to be large to be loud, but that it needs to be grand because its purpose is grand. The final redemption is quite a big deal, and such a big deal necessitates a grand shofar.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":48588,"alt":"","title":"num29-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","width":776,"height":635,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-300x245.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":245,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-768x628.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":628,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","large-width":776,"large-height":635,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":776,"1536x1536-height":635,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":776,"2048x2048-height":635,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":776,"post_full_size-height":635,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-513x420.jpg","home_baner-width":513,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Greater Shofar","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The one blown for freedom and the ultimate redemption","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":48588,"alt":"","title":"num29-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","width":776,"height":635,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-300x245.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":245,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-768x628.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":628,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","large-width":776,"large-height":635,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":776,"1536x1536-height":635,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":776,"2048x2048-height":635,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":776,"post_full_size-height":635,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/num29-shofarot-513x420.jpg","home_baner-width":513,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_link_for_pay":"0","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"403","name":"Redemption","old_id":"803"},{"term_id":"413","name":"Freedom","old_id":"813"},{"term_id":"432","name":"Exile","old_id":"832"},{"term_id":"650","name":"Shofar","old_id":"1050"}]},{"order":4,"id":"66334","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"2","name":"Leaving Retribution Up To God ","post_title":"Leaving Retribution Up To God","slug":"leaving-retribution-up-to-god","old_id":"66334","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":66049,"post_title":"Liora Alban","slug":"liora-alban","old_id":"66049","first_name":"Liora ","last_name":"Alban ","description":"Liora Alban is a fifth-year rabbinical student at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles. 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","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":66050,"alt":"","title":"liora alban","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","width":450,"height":640,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban-211x300.jpg","medium-width":211,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","medium_large-width":450,"medium_large-height":640,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","large-width":450,"large-height":640,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","1536x1536-width":450,"1536x1536-height":640,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","2048x2048-width":450,"2048x2048-height":640,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban.jpg","post_full_size-width":450,"post_full_size-height":640,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/liora-alban-295x420.jpg","home_baner-width":295,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Isaiah\u2019s prophecies here lack oracles of vengeance against Judah\u2019s enemies","post_main_content_content":"

To refer to Isaiah as a single book is misleading, since the book of Isaiah is actually composed of three distinct literary units. Isaiah 1-39 generally contains prophecies of the Prophet Isaiah about the historical events of the second half of the 8th century BCE. During this period, the Assyrian Empire grew more powerful and threatened small kingdoms such as Israel and Judah. Sometimes these small kingdoms would accept Assyrian power, and sometimes they would revolt. These events led the Prophet Isaiah to a crucial question: To what extent could the Judeans rely on God\u2019s protection against the Assyrians and to what extent did they need to get involved themselves by employing militaristic or diplomatic means?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In Isaiah 27, Isaiah demonstrates confidence that God will punish scornful enemies at an apocalyptic end of days. He refers to a Leviathan serpent that God will destroy. Isaiah 27:1 reads: \u201cIn that day Adonai will punish, with Adonai\u2019s great, cruel, mighty sword Leviathan the Elusive Serpent\u2014 Leviathan the Twisting Serpent; Adonai will slay the Dragon of the sea.\u201d According to the JPS commentary, the Leviathan physically embodies the chaos that stands for forces of evil in the world. Similarly, Ibn Ezra explains that some are of the opinion that the Leviathan figuratively represents oppressive kings, princes, and nobles.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From ancient times to today, people have tried desperately to find answers to confusing and terrifying situations. Fearing political destruction, Isaiah places his concerns onto the Leviathan. While Isaiah is clearly anxious, his prophecies are unique in that they lack oracles of vengeance against Judah\u2019s enemies. Isaiah operates on the assumption that God has a divine plan that will dole out justice for Israel and Judah. Furthermore, this divine plan is more likely to be realized than anything humans can devise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In First Isaiah, Isaiah essentially leaves retribution up to God, and the people are not held responsible for destroying Assyria themselves. In trusting God to take action, Isaiah sets an example of how people can have faith in God even when things make no sense. We cannot control everything, no matter what unrealistic explanations we develop. We cannot always take action to make things better. Instead, we can have faith and be our best selves. Perhaps God has a plan that will make sense in time.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: by Ben Schachter<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66335,"alt":"","title":"IsaiahProphet","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","width":885,"height":1120,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-237x300.jpg","medium-width":237,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-768x972.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":972,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-809x1024.jpg","large-width":809,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","1536x1536-width":885,"1536x1536-height":1120,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","2048x2048-width":885,"2048x2048-height":1120,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","post_full_size-width":885,"post_full_size-height":1120,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-332x420.jpg","home_baner-width":332,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Leaving Retribution Up To God","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Isaiah\u2019s prophecies here lack oracles of vengeance against Judah\u2019s enemies","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66335,"alt":"","title":"IsaiahProphet","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","width":885,"height":1120,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-237x300.jpg","medium-width":237,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-768x972.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":972,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-809x1024.jpg","large-width":809,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","1536x1536-width":885,"1536x1536-height":1120,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","2048x2048-width":885,"2048x2048-height":1120,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet.jpg","post_full_size-width":885,"post_full_size-height":1120,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/IsaiahProphet-332x420.jpg","home_baner-width":332,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"375","name":"Faith","old_id":"775"},{"term_id":"940","name":"Isaiah","old_id":"1340"},{"term_id":"953","name":"Assyria","old_id":"1353"},{"term_id":"982","name":"Leviathan","old_id":"1382"}]},{"order":5,"id":"66310","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"There Be Dragons ","post_title":"There Be Dragons","slug":"there-be-dragons","old_id":"66310","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34243,"post_title":"Moshe Sokolow","slug":"moshe-sokolow","old_id":"34243","first_name":"Moshe","last_name":"Sokolow","description":"Dr. Moshe Sokolow is Associate Dean of the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration, Yeshiva University, and teaches a weekly class in parashat hashavu`a at Lincoln Square Synagogue. 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Our chapter begins with: <\/span><\/p>\r\n

In that day the LORD will punish, with His great, cruel, mighty sword, Leviathan the elusive serpent\u2014 Leviathan the twisting serpent; He will slay the Dragon of the sea.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In ancient Near Eastern mythology, serpents and dragons were employed by the goddess of the sea, Tihamat (Hebrew: <\/span>tehom<\/span><\/em>, cf. Genesis 1: 2), in her losing primordial battle against Marduk, god of the sky. The Hebrew Bible transformed them from mythological characters into symbols of evil that would be overcome by the forces of good in the messianic age.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Malbim,* in his typical fashion, assigned different significances to each creature and, correspondingly, to each of the three dimensions of God\u2019s sword: its greatness, cruelty, and might.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Great denotes the quality of the iron that withstands any attempt to break it. Cruel denotes the quantity, its extended length. Mighty denotes the strength, thickness, and weight\u2026 The great sword will punish the Leviathan straight serpent, a great fish that resembles a bolt in mid-sea that prevents boats from passing by. This great sword will overcome it. The cruel sword will punish the Leviathan crooked serpent, a serpentine fish so long that it encircles the whole world by winding itself about the globe. This sword will exceed its length. The mighty sword in weight and strength will overcome the dragon in the ocean (the whale\u2014\u05d5\u05d5\u05d0\u05dc\u05e4\u05d9\u05e9) who cannot be slain by the sword. It will be overcome by virtue of [the sword\u2019s] weight and strength.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In other words, there are nations whose power derives from the strength of their country, whose inhabitants dwell in lofty mountains or fortresses\u2014resembling the straight serpent who blockades passersby. Others are powerful on account of the length and breadth of their territories and the size of their populations, resembling the crooked serpent. And there are those who are powerful on account of the bravery of their heroes and the giants who dwell therein, resembling the Leviathan (whale) in the ocean.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Just as our knowledge of classical mythology helps us understand why a weak-point is called an Achilles heel, say or a drunken orgy is a bacchanalia, an appreciation of ancient Near Eastern mythology clarifies biblical figures of speech. There are no dragons in the ocean, but there are people and nations who act out the role of dragons throughout the course of history.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

*For the significance of Malbim\u2019s commentary to the Book of Isaiah,<\/span> see our introduction to chapter 1.<\/span><\/a><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66315,"alt":"","title":"is27-dragon","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","width":686,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-161x300.png","medium-width":161,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-549x1024.png","medium_large-width":549,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-549x1024.png","large-width":549,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","1536x1536-width":686,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","2048x2048-width":686,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-643x1200.png","post_full_size-width":643,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-225x420.png","home_baner-width":225,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"There Be Dragons","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"And in the role of the dragon: Leviathan","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66315,"alt":"","title":"is27-dragon","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","width":686,"height":1280,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-161x300.png","medium-width":161,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-549x1024.png","medium_large-width":549,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-549x1024.png","large-width":549,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","1536x1536-width":686,"1536x1536-height":1280,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon.png","2048x2048-width":686,"2048x2048-height":1280,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-643x1200.png","post_full_size-width":643,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/11\/is27-dragon-225x420.png","home_baner-width":225,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"404","name":"Myth","old_id":"804"},{"term_id":"982","name":"Leviathan","old_id":"1382"}]},{"order":6,"id":"66325","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Quoting Ugaritic Myth ","post_title":"Quoting Ugaritic Myth","slug":"quoting-ugaritic-myth","old_id":"66325","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":36147,"post_title":"Aaron Koller","slug":"aaron-koller","old_id":"36147","first_name":"Aaron","last_name":"Koller","description":"Aaron Koller is professor of Near Eastern studies at Yeshiva University, where he is chair of the Beren Department of Jewish Studies. His last book was Esther in Ancient Jewish Thought (Cambridge University Press), and his next is Unbinding Isaac: The Akedah in Jewish Thought (forthcoming from JPS\/University of Nebraska Press in 2020); he is also the author of numerous studies in Semitic philology. Aaron has served as a visiting professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and held research fellowships at the Albright Institute for Archaeological Research and the Hartman Institute. He lives in Queens, NY with his wife, Shira Hecht-Koller, and their children.","short_description":"Aaron Koller is professor of Near Eastern studies at Yeshiva University, and chair of the Department of Jewish Studies there.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":36148,"alt":"","title":"AJ Koller headshot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot.jpg","width":5184,"height":3456,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1024,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1365,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-1200x800.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":800,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/AJ-Koller-headshot-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"And in the role of the dragon: Lotan","post_main_content_content":"

Our chapter opens with another mythological reference: <\/span><\/p>\r\n

In that day the Lord will punish, With His great, cruel, mighty sword Leviathan the Elusive Serpent \u2013 Leviathan the Twisting Serpent; He will slay the Dragon of the sea.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In this case, the language is not just vaguely mythological, but actually a quote from a myth known to us. It comes from the myth of Ba\u2018al known from the city of Ugarit, whose literature comes from about the 14<\/span>th<\/span> century BCE. There we read:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

If you [Ba\u2018al] smite Lotan, the serpent, destroy the twisting serpent, the close-coiled one of the seven heads.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The similarities between the Ugaritic line and the line from Isaiah are so great that there is no doubt that the one lies behind the other. This raises other questions, though. How, for example, did knowledge of the Ugaritic myth, get to Jerusalem of almost a millennium later?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The purpose of this borrowing is clear. Isaiah makes the claim that the God of Israel, rather than the Canaanite Ba\u2018al, is the most powerful deity, the one who destroys the sea monsters and brings peace and stability to the world.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: John and Caitlin Matthews, The Element Encyclopaedia of Magical Creatures, 2013, Lotan, p 299 \/ thestrangemythworld.com<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66326,"alt":"","title":"is27-lotan","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","width":500,"height":302,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan-300x181.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":181,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","medium_large-width":500,"medium_large-height":302,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","large-width":500,"large-height":302,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","1536x1536-width":500,"1536x1536-height":302,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","2048x2048-width":500,"2048x2048-height":302,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","post_full_size-width":500,"post_full_size-height":302,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","home_baner-width":500,"home_baner-height":302}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Quoting Ugaritic Myth","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"And in the role of the dragon: Lotan","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66326,"alt":"","title":"is27-lotan","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","width":500,"height":302,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan-300x181.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":181,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","medium_large-width":500,"medium_large-height":302,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","large-width":500,"large-height":302,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","1536x1536-width":500,"1536x1536-height":302,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","2048x2048-width":500,"2048x2048-height":302,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","post_full_size-width":500,"post_full_size-height":302,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-lotan.jpg","home_baner-width":500,"home_baner-height":302}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"404","name":"Myth","old_id":"804"},{"term_id":"429","name":"Idolatry","old_id":"829"}]},{"order":7,"id":"66328","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Lost And Distant Shall Return ","post_title":"The Lost And Distant Shall Return","slug":"the-lost-and-distant-shall-return","old_id":"66328","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":58418,"post_title":"Naomi (Jaffe) Eini","slug":"naomi-jaffe-eini","old_id":"58418","first_name":"Naomi (Jaffe)","last_name":"Eini","description":"Naomi (Jaffe) Eini is an educational psychologist, lecturer and workshop facilitator, and author of the book, \"Journey To The Real World\" (Hebrew). She is a graduate of Mandel School For Educational Leadership, works at Midreshet Lindenbaum, and is writing a doctorate in psychology at Bar Ilan University.","short_description":"Naomi (Jaffe) Eini is an educational psychologist, lecturer and workshop facilitator, and doctoral candidate in psychology.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":58420,"alt":"","title":"naomi eini","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini.jpg","width":960,"height":1135,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini-254x300.jpg","medium-width":254,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini-768x908.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":908,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini-866x1024.jpg","large-width":866,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini.jpg","1536x1536-width":960,"1536x1536-height":1135,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini.jpg","2048x2048-width":960,"2048x2048-height":1135,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini.jpg","post_full_size-width":960,"post_full_size-height":1135,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/naomi-eini-355x420.jpg","home_baner-width":355,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"But when and where will we find a \"shofar\" to wake us up to our reality?","post_main_content_content":"

And it shall come to pass in that day, that a great horn shall be blown; and they shall come that were lost in the land of Assyria, and they that were dispersed in the land of Egypt; and they shall worship the LORD in the holy mountain at Jerusalem (Isaiah 27:13).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The familiar verse (it is a song in Hebrew) expresses the excitement of returning to Jerusalem. However, the verse does not only talk about our return, it also contains a secret of loss, and a \"shofar\".<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Lost and distant - who are they and what can we learn from this prophecy?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

According to the contextual reading of the verse, the people mentioned are our people who have moved geographically from their country and live in exile. These people will in the future be ingathered to\u00a0 the Land of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

A psychological view suggests seeing the lost and distant people as those who experience confusion and loss (ideological, religious, occupational, personal, spousal, etc) or those\u00a0 who feel distant and socially rejected.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\"I'm lost\" a parent or adolescent tells me. I will gently suggest that they make a change in how they view their situation \u2013 from being lost to getting lost.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\"If you came here, that's a sign that you still have strength and you are looking for a change\"<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another group of lost people are the casualties of Facebook and modernity. They are surrounded by \"friends\" but are lonely and do not know what joy is.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There are also people unknowingly lost among us, whose loss does not involve mental distress, but whose lives are worn and lacking in vitality and meaning.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

When and where will we find a \"shofar\" to wake us up to our reality?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\"And it shall come to pass in <\/span>that day<\/b>\" the scripture says. The date of waking up is not a chronological one. We may be awake to refine our ambitions and values\u200b\u200b, following great joy or, God forbid, out of pain and loss. It may also happen to us without any obvious reason. In my understanding, any day can turn out to be<\/span> \u201cthat day\" - <\/b>the meaningful day<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\r\n

Every day, the Almighty sends us a \"wake-up call\", a\u00a0 potential for introspection and correction.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Prophet states, \"And the lost ones <\/span>came<\/b>.\" The change will occur. It is a fact that will be realized, not a wish.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image:\u00a0 Shofarot at the Old City Market, Dror Avi \/ wikipedia<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66329,"alt":"","title":"is27-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","width":448,"height":599,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-224x300.jpg","medium-width":224,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","medium_large-width":448,"medium_large-height":599,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","large-width":448,"large-height":599,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":448,"1536x1536-height":599,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":448,"2048x2048-height":599,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":448,"post_full_size-height":599,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-314x420.jpg","home_baner-width":314,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Lost And Distant Shall Return","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"But when and where will we find a \"shofar\" to wake us up to our reality?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66329,"alt":"","title":"is27-shofarot","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","width":448,"height":599,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-224x300.jpg","medium-width":224,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","medium_large-width":448,"medium_large-height":599,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","large-width":448,"large-height":599,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","1536x1536-width":448,"1536x1536-height":599,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","2048x2048-width":448,"2048x2048-height":599,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot.jpg","post_full_size-width":448,"post_full_size-height":599,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-shofarot-314x420.jpg","home_baner-width":314,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"386","name":"Psychology","old_id":"786"},{"term_id":"647","name":"Return","old_id":"1047"},{"term_id":"650","name":"Shofar","old_id":"1050"}]},{"order":8,"id":"116378","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Tanakh Podcast-Isaiah27","post_title":"The Tanakh Podcast-Isaiah27","slug":"the-tanakh-podcast-isaiah27","old_id":"116378","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33692,"post_title":"Alex Israel","slug":"33692-2","old_id":"33692","first_name":"Alex","last_name":"Israel","description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem. His first book \"I Kings - Torn in Two\" was published in 2013. See his website www.alexisrael.org, and his podcasts at https:\/\/elmad.pardes.org\/ and https:\/\/tanachstudy.com\/ \r\n","credit":"","image_url":"","short_description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem.","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":33693,"alt":"","title":"alex israel","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","width":1657,"height":2500,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-199x300.jpg","medium-width":199,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-679x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":679,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-679x1024.jpg","large-width":679,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","1536x1536-width":1018,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel.jpg","2048x2048-width":1357,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-795x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":795,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/alex-israel-278x420.jpg","home_baner-width":278,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"4","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"The Tanakh Podcast","tile_main_caption":"Isaiah 27: The Leviathan","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Chapter 27 envisions God slaughtering the Leviathan - the sea monsters. 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At the end of the Sukkot holiday, there is a custom to \"say goodbye to the sukkah\" with food and prayer. On the last day of Sukkot, one enters the sukkah, eats a snack, and recites the following prayer:\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\r\n

May it be Your will, LORD, our God and the God of our forefathers, that just as I have fulfilled the mitzvah and dwelled in this Sukkah, so may I merit to dwell in the Sukkah of the skin of the Leviathan.\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/p>\r\n

What is the meaning of this unusual custom and prayer? The answer is that they are a commentary to our chapter in Isaiah.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chapter 27 of Isaiah begins with the verse of God killing the mighty sea creatures: \"In that day the LORD will punish, With His great, cruel, mighty sword Leviathan the Elusive Serpent\u2014 Leviathan the Twisting Serpent; He will slay the Dragon [<\/span>tanin<\/span><\/em>, <\/span><\/i>also crocodile] of the sea\"<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Read in a vacuum, this verse can be understood in many ways. The midrash discusses two actual leviathans dating back to the six days of creation. Other commentaries take a more symbolic approach while interpreting our verse. However, the prayer we recite upon leaving the sukkah connect this verse with the beginning of Isaiah's speech in this unit of chapter 23-27, showing that each of these sea creatures represents another kingdom. In chapter 23, Isaiah discusses the punishment that will occur to Tyre and Sidon. These were the two shipbuilding people of ancient times. Their ships ruled the sea to such an extent that the \"Mediterranean Sea\" was dubbed by many as the \"Tyrian Sea\". These are the Leviathans of chapter 27. Their ships assisted Egypt, a third country mentioned in chapter 23, to sell its wheat all throughout the ancient world. This is the crocodile mentioned in our verse.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

According to chapter 23, these three countries will be punished for their self-interested actions, divorced of any morals or ethics. But after a period of destruction, and with the help of God, the countries will rehabilitate themselves and return to being successful people. \u00a0 They will then be God-oriented, using their skills to help the poor and needy. Isaiah says concerning Tyre \"Her merchandise and her hire shall be holiness to the LORD: it shall not be stored away and not be hoarded; for her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before the LORD, to EAT sufficiently, and for durable COVERING\" (23:18). Thus the messianic \u201csukkah\u201d made of the Tyrian \u201cLeviathan.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

After spending a week \"dwelling before the LORD\" in the sukkah, we eat and pray that the evil-doers of today will be able to change their ways, and learn to dedicate their talents and skills to ethics and goodness.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Leviathan Sukkah \/ sukkahcity.com<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66332,"alt":"","title":"is27-sukkah","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","width":1493,"height":565,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-300x114.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":114,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-768x291.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":291,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1024x388.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":388,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","1536x1536-width":1493,"1536x1536-height":565,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","2048x2048-width":1493,"2048x2048-height":565,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1200x454.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":454,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1110x420.jpg","home_baner-width":1110,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"A Sukkah Of Leviathan Skin","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"An ancient vision of the transformation of evil into good","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66332,"alt":"","title":"is27-sukkah","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","width":1493,"height":565,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-300x114.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":114,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-768x291.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":291,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1024x388.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":388,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","1536x1536-width":1493,"1536x1536-height":565,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah.jpg","2048x2048-width":1493,"2048x2048-height":565,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1200x454.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":454,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-sukkah-1110x420.jpg","home_baner-width":1110,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"444","name":"History","old_id":"844"},{"term_id":"575","name":"Interpretation","old_id":"975"},{"term_id":"663","name":"Sukkah","old_id":"1063"},{"term_id":"982","name":"Leviathan","old_id":"1382"}]},{"order":10,"id":"66337","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Assyria And Egypt: Two Kinds Of Diasporas ","post_title":"Assyria And Egypt: Two Kinds Of Diasporas","slug":"assyria-and-egypt-two-kinds-of-diasporas","old_id":"66337","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":42746,"post_title":"Michal Kohane","slug":"michal-kohane","old_id":"42746","first_name":"Michal ","last_name":"Kohane ","description":"Currently based in Israel, Rabbanit Michal Kohane is a graduate of Yeshivat Maharat, a writer, community leader and teacher of Talmud & Torah. 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","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":42747,"alt":"","title":"michal kohane","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","width":214,"height":226,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","medium-width":214,"medium-height":226,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","medium_large-width":214,"medium_large-height":226,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","large-width":214,"large-height":226,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","1536x1536-width":214,"1536x1536-height":226,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","2048x2048-width":214,"2048x2048-height":226,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","post_full_size-width":214,"post_full_size-height":226,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/michal-kohane-e1540448078529.jpg","home_baner-width":214,"home_baner-height":226}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"All shall reunite - The day of redemption is not just a day to save the poor, but a time to bring everybody together, even those who seem to have everything: they too need to join in a place of peace","post_main_content_content":"

And in that day, a great shofar shall be sounded; and the strayed who are in the land of Assyria and the expelled who are in the land of Egypt shall come and worship the Lord on the holy mount, in Jerusalem (27:13).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Most researchers agree that the historic Isaiah ben Amotz lived from the mid- to late- 8th-century BCE at a time when Assyria was expanding from its origins in modern-day northern Iraq, westward, towards the Land of Israel, conquering first Aram (today\u2019s Syria), then the Kingdom of Israel (722 BCE) and finally controlling Judea (701, before the later destruction in 586 BCE). It is therefore no wonder that a prophecy of redemption will include a hope for those in Assyria, but why call them \u201cstrayed\u201d or \u201clost,\u201d and why differentiate them from those in Egypt, calling the latter \u201cexpelled\u201d or impoverished\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Based on a commentary by the Ba\u2019al Shem Tov, we can see here a reference to two kinds of diasporas. One is those who physically suffer. They are destitute, forlorn, forgotten; they feel \u201csquashed\u201d; their country is Egypt - <\/span>Mitzrayim<\/span><\/i>, the \u201cnarrow place\u201d where they are held tightly.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

But over the centuries, we have seen another kind of diaspora, that of Assyria, Ashur. The root for Ashur, a.sh.r. is the same one used for happiness. Theirs is not a diaspora of anguish and misery, but of joy, richness and deliriousness; of \u201cnothing is wrong and everything is great\u201d. They are therefore \u201clost\u201d. Instead of being an \u2018<\/span>Oved Hashem<\/span><\/i>, a worshipper of God, where the word \u2018<\/span>oved <\/span><\/i>is written with the letter \u2018<\/span>ayin<\/span><\/i>- \u05e2\u05d5\u05d1\u05d3 they are an <\/span>oved<\/span><\/i>, with an <\/span>alef <\/span><\/i>\u05d0\u05d5\u05d1\u05d3, meaning \u201clost.\u201d What was supposed to be grounding was replaced with a rootless giddy feeling. Turns out that it\u2019s possible to be \u201ctoo happy\u201d and that this might be just as bad and dangerous as being too sad.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The day of redemption Isaiah tells us about here, is not just a day to save the poor, but a time to bring everybody together, even those who seem to have everything. They too need to join in a place of peace.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Assyria And Egypt: Two Kinds Of Diasporas","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"All shall reunite - The day of redemption is not just a day to save the poor, but a time to bring everybody together, even those who seem to have everything: they too need to join in a place of peace","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"422","name":"Diaspora","old_id":"822"},{"term_id":"444","name":"History","old_id":"844"},{"term_id":"469","name":"Egypt","old_id":"869"},{"term_id":"940","name":"Isaiah","old_id":"1340"},{"term_id":"953","name":"Assyria","old_id":"1353"}]},{"order":11,"id":"66322","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"God The One And Only ","post_title":"God The One And Only","slug":"god-the-one-and-only","old_id":"66322","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":64700,"post_title":"Yaakov Jaffe","slug":"yaakov-jaffe","old_id":"64700","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Jaffe ","description":"Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Jaffe is Dean of Judaic Studies at the Maimonides School in Brookline, and is the Rabbi of the Maimonides Kehillah there. He is the author of Isaiah and his Contemporaries, now available from Kodesh Press at: https:\/\/kodeshpress.com\/product\/isaiah-and-his-contemporaries","short_description":"Rabbi Dr. Yaakov Jaffe is Dean of Judaic Studies at the Maimonides School in Brookline, and is the Rabbi of the Maimonides Kehillah there. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":64701,"alt":"","title":"yaakov-jaffe","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/yaakov-jaffe.png","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"So who is he always doing battle with?","post_main_content_content":"

The opening of this chapter speaks about a future moment when God does battle (\u201cwith His Great Strong and Powerful Sword\u201d) against the sea-reptile, Leviathan \u2013 which would seem to suggest the heretical view that there is another power which can battle the Almighty.\u00a0 Some commentaries understand that this battle must be a metaphor for God choosing to subdue enemy nations, and not of an actual battle against a different, rival mythical force (see Targum, Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Radak).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Talmud (in Bava Batra 74b) follows the simple reading of the text and argues that this does, indeed, speak of God\u2019s destruction of a great sea creature, but still the Leviathan is just another creation of God, and not an independent rival to Him. Later, in 51:9-10, there is talk about God\u2019s battle with the serpent or \u201cTanin\u201d and with \u201cYam\u201d and \u201cRahav.\u201d Many commentaries take these all to refer to the nation Egypt, the splitting of the sea, and the Exodus, and not as another primordial power of sea or chaos overcome by the Creator (Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Radak). The Talmud also takes 27:4 to mean that God had a duel and overcame the force \u201cCheimah,\u201d \u201cAnger,\u201d although the verse is simply understood as merely saying that God has no anger.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Similarly, \u201cDeath\u201d or \u201cMavet\u201d is not an independent power in Jewish thought, as the prophet demonstrates again and again that control over Life and Death belongs to God Himself, and not any rival power. 28:15-18 talks about people who have made a covenant with Mavet, although this text can be understood not as imbuing Mavet with independent power but a covenant with God about death. (It is also possible that the people\u2019s words are not meant to be taken literally). Jeremiah 9:20 uses a vivid image of \u201cdeath entering our windows\u201d but that text can also be taken metaphorically or as personification, and not as granting \u201cDeath\u201d independent corporeal form. Lastly, 38:18 goes even further in personification and even granting independent will to death \u201cFor She\u2019ol will not thank you, Mavet will not praise you.\u201d\u00a0 Most commentaries argue this verse is talking about those that live in She\u2019ol or death being unable to praise God (see Targum, Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Radak) and not that Death, \u201chimself,\u201d would praise God.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The belief in an all-powerful God generally involves rejecting the belief in forces that rival God, and so these verses are taken as poetic flourishes, or as a description of God's interactions with His own creations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Image: Destruction of Leviathan, 1865 engraving by Gustave Dor\u00e9 \/ wikimedia<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":66323,"alt":"","title":"is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","width":482,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-241x300.png","medium-width":241,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","medium_large-width":482,"medium_large-height":600,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","large-width":482,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","1536x1536-width":482,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","2048x2048-width":482,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","post_full_size-width":482,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-337x420.png","home_baner-width":337,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"God The One And Only","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"So who is he always doing battle with?","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":66323,"alt":"","title":"is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","width":482,"height":600,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-241x300.png","medium-width":241,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","medium_large-width":482,"medium_large-height":600,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","large-width":482,"large-height":600,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","1536x1536-width":482,"1536x1536-height":600,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","2048x2048-width":482,"2048x2048-height":600,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan.png","post_full_size-width":482,"post_full_size-height":600,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/is27-Destruction_of_Leviathan-337x420.png","home_baner-width":337,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"383","name":"Death","old_id":"783"},{"term_id":"384","name":"God","old_id":"784"},{"term_id":"404","name":"Myth","old_id":"804"},{"term_id":"982","name":"Leviathan","old_id":"1382"}]},{"order":12,"id":"66290","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Slaying Leviathan ","post_title":"Slaying Leviathan","slug":"slaying-leviathan","old_id":"66290","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":54356,"post_title":"Robert Alter","slug":"robert-alter","old_id":"54356","first_name":"Robert ","last_name":"Alter","description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He has written over twenty books, focusing on such topics as the European novel from the 18th century to the present, contemporary American fiction, and modern Hebrew literature. He has also written extensively on the literary aspects of the Bible. His most recent work is his monumental three volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019 - from which the selections in 929 are taken. ","short_description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, and author of the three-volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":54357,"alt":"","title":"robert alter","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","width":184,"height":275,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium-width":184,"medium-height":275,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium_large-width":184,"medium_large-height":275,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","large-width":184,"large-height":275,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","1536x1536-width":184,"1536x1536-height":275,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","2048x2048-width":184,"2048x2048-height":275,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","post_full_size-width":184,"post_full_size-height":275,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","home_baner-width":184,"home_baner-height":275}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Echoes of mythic primordial sea monsters","post_main_content_content":"

27:1 \u201cOn that day the Lord shall punish with His fierce and great and mighty sword Leviathan the slippery serpent, Leviathan, the twisting serpent, and shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The Hebrew epithet<\/span> baria\u1e25<\/em> <\/span>is not certain in meaning. It could derive from the verbal stem that means \u201cto flee,\u201d hence \u201cslippery.\u201d It is also the ordinary word for the bolt of a gate and so could conceivably refer to the serpent held under lock and key. The entire line invokes the Canaanite cosmogonic myth of Leviathan as the primordial sea monster that the weather god Baal must subdue in order for dry land, safe from the raging sea, to come into being.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

From: Robert Alter, <\/span>The Hebrew Bible, <\/span><\/i>vol. 2: Prophets, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019, ad loc. By permission of the author<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"From Robert Alter's Bible Translation and Commentary","tile_main_caption":"Slaying Leviathan","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Echoes of mythic primordial sea monsters","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"tile_link_for_pay":"0","send_noty":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":[{"term_id":"404","name":"Myth","old_id":"804"},{"term_id":"621","name":"Snake","old_id":"1021"},{"term_id":"982","name":"Leviathan","old_id":"1382"}]},{"order":13,"id":"66340","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Haftorah 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\u201cLeviathan Enemy of God\u201d<\/a> by Moshe Isaacson: Explore texts about this giant fish.<\/p>\r\n

\u201cTo Hear the Sounds of the Shofar\u201d<\/a> by Gabi Barzilai: What is the meaning of sound of the ram\u2019s horn in Biblical texts?<\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Source Sheets - Isaiah 27","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Isaiah","chapter":"27","chapter_main_number":"361","date":"20270117","wall_id":"361"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":15,"id":"66288","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Points to Ponder - Isaiah 27 ","post_title":"Points to Ponder - Isaiah 27","slug":"points-to-ponder-isaiah-27","old_id":"66288","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":38102,"post_title":"929-English","slug":"929-english","old_id":"38102","first_name":"","last_name":"929-English","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":38333,"alt":"","title":"\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","width":1513,"height":860,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-300x171.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":171,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-768x437.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":437,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1024x582.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":582,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","1536x1536-width":1513,"1536x1536-height":860,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","2048x2048-width":1513,"2048x2048-height":860,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1200x682.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":682,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-739x420.png","home_baner-width":739,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"361","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"

    \r\n\t
  1. Warning! Mythical creatures ahead.<\/em> The elusive and twisting serpents Leviathan, and the dragon (crocodile) come to the world of images of prophecy from Mesopotamian mythology. There, in the creation myths, they play a central role. They were the supernatural army of the sea that rebelled, and by whose defeat, the world was created. In the Tanakh, in Genesis 1, the world was created, as is well known, without a struggle, and there is no divine power but God. But myths became images in the Tanakh, too. And the ultimate defeat of evil is likened to a decisive battle with those metaphysical forces that have forever been destroying the tranquility of the world.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. Back to the vineyard.<\/em> It\u2019s worth comparing the first Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-4), to the second one, here at verses 2-5. Look at the nature of the watering, the thorns, and the general maintenance. And most importantly: what is the same and different in the emotional tenor of each parable.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. What do the people need to do in exchange for redemption?<\/em> The answer is in verse 9.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  4. A global harvest<\/em>. Verse 12 tells how God will \u201cbeat out\u201d (thresh) the entire Fertile Crescent, from \u201cthe channel of the Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt [the Nile];\u201d but this thrashing is not (only) to punish, but to liberate. Like grain, or like the olive harvest, that is done by striking and shaking the branches of the tree, and then collecting the fruit, the empires will absorb the blows given, and then \u201cyou shall be picked up one by one, O children of Israel!\u201d<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  5. The strayed and the expelled<\/em>. In Isaiah\u2019s time, the destruction of Samaria occurred, including the exile of residents of the Israelite kingdom to various regions in the Assyrian empire (the exile of the Ten Tribes, 721 BCE). 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