Shabbat Shuvah – God’s Call to Return
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The Shabbat that falls between Rosh Hashanah (New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) is known as Shabbat Shuvah, the Sabbath of Return. It falls within the Ten Days of Awe or Repentance, which begin at Rosh Hashanah and lead up till Yom Kippur, which is a time when Jewish people reflect on their lives and think about putting things right. It is a thought that we find in Isaiah 55:6,
"Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near.”
So Shabbat Shuvah or Return is really a play on words because the Hebrew word for repentance is ‘teshuvah’ and comes from the verb ‘shuv’ which means ‘turning’ ... so ‘teshuvah’, literally, means ‘returning to God’. It carries the idea of turning to and, therefore, implies a turning away from something. Teshuvah describes the process of repentance in Judaism; when we turn away from sin or wrongdoing and turn towards God. It involves a change of direction in our lives and a return to our source – God Himself.
This Shabbat, we read Ha’azinu, the poem found in Deuteronomy 32; it is often seen as a poem of judgment where Moses recounts the faithful character of God and compares it to the unfaithful nation of Israel (4-18). Moses goes on to declare God’s judgment on Israel (19-33) and, finally, God’s compassion for His people (34-42). It’s a song that brings home to our hearts eternal truth and the heavens are called to 'ha-azinu'- give ear, as God speaks and the earth is called upon to 'tishma'- hear the words of God’s mouth. They are called to stand witness to the covenant that God has made with His people; a sharp reminder that we are a covenant people who have committed ourselves to a God who knows and sees all that we do.
Shabbat Shuvah has two special Haftorah readings, one speaks to the need for sincere heartfelt repentance (Hosea 14:2-10) and the other praises God's mercy (Micah 7:18-20). In Hosea we are asked to return to God and ask His forgiveness - we hear the words of God’s love for us. We are encouraged to come to Him because of the tender love that He feels for us. These words are meant to draw us to Him not as a Judge who will punish, but as a Father who will forgive and, just in case the theme of God’s Kingship and His place as Judge have scared us, we are told in Micah 7:18-20,
Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. You will show faithfulness to Jacob and steadfast love to Abraham, as you have sworn to our fathers from the days of old.
Jewish people seek to atone for their sins at this time because for them there is a sense that during this period God is especially close. Teshuvah has three fundamental stages which can also speak to those of us who are followers of the Messiah: Regret, Recognition and Resolve - to forsake the wrongdoing and, added to these are confession as part of recognition and, finally, making amends.
I was struck by the following statement: “One's admission of wrongdoing is extremely difficult, as it forces him to recognise his own faults and fallibility.” Perhaps this is why the idea of confession in the Brit Hadashah (NT) is found in key passages on salvation and forgiveness. Shaul teaches us that when we confess with our mouths that Yeshua (Jesus) is Lord and believe in our hearts that He rose from the dead we will be saved (Romans 10:9); and Yochanan teaches us that to receive forgiveness for our sins we must not only acknowledge them, but confess them.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9
Confession brings into focus not just the sin itself but the way we feel about it and, as we articulate our admission of sin, it brings us into the place where we meet God and we become conscious of the way He sees sin. It is in this process that we become more conscious of His holiness and our need of it.
For Jewish people, making amends where possible is a key part of the preparation during the Ten Days of Awe for Yom Kippur. This may involve restoring broken relationships, paying debts and fulfilling obligations. Restitution or making amends is an idea rooted in the Torah. The Lord shows us that while we need to confess our sin to Him in order to be forgiven, we still have a responsibility to put right the relationships that we have damaged through our sinful actions. It would be naive to think that it’s enough just to ask God’s forgiveness because when we sin someone always gets hurt in some way or other. The impact of our sin is felt within our families and sometimes our communities.
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the people of Israel, when a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the LORD, and that person realizes his guilt, he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. Numbers 5:5-7
Sin or breaking God’s commands not only damages human relationships but fractures our relationship with God.
... but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear. Isaiah 59:2
When we look at the timeline of events surrounding the exodus from Egypt we can see the way the Festivals fit together. We also see that the journey that the Children of Israel made both physically and spiritually reflects our own spiritual journey. The children of Israel left the slavery Egypt at Passover on the 15th Nissan and walk till they arrive at Mount Sinai in the 3rd month (Exodus 19:1), which is Sivan. It is traditionally believed that it was on Shavuot (Pentecost) – 6th Sivan that Moses received the Law. We are told that he was on the mountain for 40 days (Exodus 24:18) when the Lord told him that the people had made themselves an idol and were worshipping it. Moses after dealing with the people fasts for 40 days (Deuteronomy 9:18) interceding on their behalf. Then after 40 days the Lord invites Moses to again come up the mountain and bring with him two stone tablets to replace the ones that he had broken in anger and grief at the sin of the people. He is on the mountain for another 40 days (Deuteronomy 10:10). This totals around 120 days which takes us from Shavuot to Yom Kippur the time when it is believed that the 2nd set of tablets were given to Moses.
What we see is that at Shavuot the descendants of Jacob became the nation of Israel. In fact, the rabbis say that the nation was born on that day; however, it’s not long before their faith and commitment crumble and we have the incident of the Golden Calf. They have sinned against the Lord who is so angry that He is ready to destroy them but Moses intercedes for them and God restores their relationship. God seals this by giving the second set of stone tablets to Moses on Yom Kippur which is all about forgiveness and the restoration of fellowship. It was on this day that the sins of the people were laid upon the scapegoat who was led out in to the desert and the people were cleansed from their sins.
Jewish people, as they celebrate these festivals, rejoice at Shavuot for the giving of the Torah (Law) and reaffirm their commitment to God and to His Word. At Rosh Hashanah we remember God as King over all creation and accept His divine rule in our lives. We face Him as Judge and ask Him to renew us. It is this realisation that prompts us to seek His forgiveness during the Ten Days of Awe, to consider our lives and make Teshuvah (repent); we reflect deeply on where we are with God acknowledging our sin and asking for forgiveness, making amends to those we have hurt. And then comes Yom Kippur and we know that we are forgiven.
As followers of Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) we know that all this is only truly possible through Yeshua who is our Yom Kippur sacrifice.
And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Messiah had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10:11-14
The value of these Festivals today is that they still speak to us of who God is and how He wants us to live, they encourage us to set aside time to consider these things, and they help us keep our spiritual walk on track. Jewish people believe that these festivals lead them to Sukkot (Tabernacles) where we spend time in the Sukka: a booth that we have built in our garden to commemorate the tents in which our people lived in the wilderness. During this time we are celebrating our relationship with God and we are particularly conscious of His love.
May this Sabbath of Return remind us that repentance is a way of life. Shaul said: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation” (2 Corinthians 7:10). He isn’t talking about mere regret, he is talking about change, about transformation, a spiritual lifestyle of drawing close to God and understanding God’s hatred of sin. He is talking about holiness.
May this year challenge us to walk in holiness before our God.
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