The concept of בָּחַ֣ר (being “chosen,” bachàr) is the idea that for the god-King YHWH to exist, YHWH god must have human subjects/vassals to do his bidding! This is a matching microcosm of the earlier macrocosm of: In order for the creator god Elohim to exist, this Elohim high-god had to create light and, then, turn his watery abyss of a body into livable land and skies – filled with sentient life! Read the Torah correctly, folks! Through ANE (B.C.E.) henotheistic eyes, not Medieval period monotheistic eyes.
“For you are עַ֤ם קָדוֹשׁ֙ (a set-apart people/nation, àm kadòsh) to YHWH your god, and YHWH has chosen you [the Jewish people] to be his עַ֣ם סְגֻלָּ֔ה (personal-property people/nation, àm segulàh) from all the nations that are on the face of the earth.” – D’varim 14.2
“And I [the god-King of this portion of land, YHWH] will establish בְּרִיתִ֜י (my covenant, britì) between me and you [the Jewish people of Judea-Israel] and your descendants after you in their generations, לִבְרִ֣ית עוֹלָ֑ם (for an everlasting covenant, l’brìt olàm), to be לֵֽאלֹהִ֔ים (a god, l’elohìm) to you and your descendants after you.” – Bereishit 17.7″
The Jewish concept of being a “chosen” people has been warped way out of context, thanks to the rise of modern monotheistic religions since the Medieval period – all three (Rabbinic Judaism, white Christianity, and Arabian Islam) perpetuated the monotheistic idea of ‘only one god exists, and all religious names in all religions reference this one god’ within this period of history. This concept of being a “chosen people” has been used by non-Jews to hate upon Jews and to target Jews for discrimination and violence, all for being “God’s” special people among the people. Among post-Medieval Jews, the concept has taken on a meaning of Jews being somehow a different people in heart/soul from other peoples (gentiles are the “other”) through being bound to an everlasting covenant.
Both of these views are just plain wrong, according to the written Torah itself! But, the out of context views have driven many liberal Jews – like Reform Judaism, Reconstructing Judaism, and Secular Humanistic Judaism – to seek to redefine the concept of “chosen people” into a “distinct people,” or outright abandon the idea of chosenness altogether. This is understandable, but this too is the wrong approach!
The best approach towards the concept of being “chosen” in this modern science-enlightened age is to *teach* the Torah correctly – especially to *Jews* and, as well, to gentiles. In other words, teach this concept in context of ANE worldview and in Torah’s own words. Educate the masses, and we change the antisemitic narratives among gentiles!
The concept of a “chosen” people in ANE Jewish Torah thought is directly connected to the “brit” – the covenant between the national god-King and “his” vassals/”chosen”-subjects-of-the-land. You know, the ones who are obligated *as a People* to keep the Covenant alive, in exchange for a continued ethno-religious future upon the planet (the land)!
It’s not that somehow you’re better or more special than other human beings, but that you are obligated by the national god to keep the Jewish ways-of-life and Jewish beliefs alive! This means, everyone of us “Jew”s is connected to every other Jew on this planet – no matter how much we *disagree* with other Jews’ beliefs and practices! This is our “chosen” brit (“covenanted”) state as a people/nation!
The Torah is very clear that our Elohim (high-)god created the land and skies out of an already existing formless earth, and then created all the peoples/nations of the earth – except for one people/nation. It was YHWH god, the god-King of his portion of the land, who then created the Jews and Arabs of the Levant, and established a brit with the Jews on his portion of the land that Elohim god had created.
Hence, the other nations had their own national gods, so says Torah on its *own* terms, when read in the peshat in entirety. But, Torah also equates YHWH the national god-King with Elohim the high-god, who created all that we physically know out of his premordial unformed body. And, other peoples/nations equated their national god-King to the Creator high-god, too, according to other ANE national myths.
Let’s tackle one more point on which to finish this article: שבע מצוות בני נח, Sheva Mitzvot B’nei Noach
According to Torah, YHWH god didn’t create all the peoples of the earth, only the Jews and Arabs of the Levant. And, Elohim god didn’t create the Jewish and Arab people of the Levant, only all the other peoples/nations upon the other parts (the rest) of the land. Through Cain’s expulsion from the Levant (YHWH’s land) for murdering his brother, Levantines intermingled and add-mixed with non-Levantine peoples. How all people of the planet are the same people from Adam and Chava (Eve) is through the Flood story, and the repopulation of the planet through specifically Noah’s clan/family – at least, according to the Torah’s accounting of “history.” But, the “brit,” the covenant of obedience to the national god of Israel, still is between *Jews* and YHWH, as it has always been. Gentiles do not need to be envious of this “brit,” because they are *not* obligated to wrestle with the halacha (the mitzvot) of this “brit.” For *gentiles*, the covenant Elohim god made with Noah is fully and sufficiently enough!
וַאֲנִ֕י הִֽנְנִ֥י מֵקִ֛ים אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֖י אִתְּכֶ֑ם וְאֶת־זַרְעֲכֶ֖ם אַֽחֲרֵיכֶֽם:
וַֽהֲקִֽמֹתִ֤י אֶת־בְּרִיתִי֙ אִתְּכֶ֔ם וְלֹֽא־יִכָּרֵ֧ת כָּל־בָּשָׂ֛ר ע֖וֹד מִמֵּ֣י הַמַּבּ֑וּל וְלֹא־יִֽהְיֶ֥ה ע֛וֹד מַבּ֖וּל לְשַׁחֵ֥ת הָאָֽרֶץ:
“And אֱלֹהִים֙ (Elohim god) said to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: “And I, behold I am setting up בְּרִיתִ֖י (my covenant, britì) with you and with your descendants after you. And I will establish בְּרִיתִי֙ (my covenant, britì) with you, and never again will all planetary-life be killed off by the flood waters, and there will never again be a flood to destroy the earth.”” – Bereishit 9.8-9,11
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For more study on “bachar” and “segulah,” theTorah dot com has an excellent article on this subject:
https://www.thetorah.com/article/israel-gods-chosen-people
Israel God’s Chosen People
1 Comment
החכם יוסף Chacham Yosef · June 11, 2021 at 5:33 pm
The Torah teaches us Jews that the 1st Temple priests found nothing religiously wrong with believing in a male YHWH god and his Asherah goddess wife. Hence, Asherah trees (like Aaron’s staff), by their presence before the Temple, were a source of blessing for the people of YHWH.
It was the 2nd Temple priests that decided to obscure the presence of Asherah in the Torah texts. Thus, giving rise to a male dominated cultic BCE henotheistic religion, which CE Medieval Jews would turn it into a monotheistic and exclusively male religion.
We are only just now returning to our theistic roots as an ethno-religious Jewish people. As soon as most Jews stop placing importance on the monotheistic view of our ANE literatures, the re-blossoming of Asherah with YHWH will occur. (Hint, it’s already begun, with women Rabbis!) We are henotheists historically, as a Jewish people, not monotheists.
The original version of Korah’s rebellion:
וַיִּקַּח קֹרַח וַאֲנָשִׁים מִבְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל חֲמִשִּׁים וּמָאתָיִם
נְשִׂיאֵי עֵדָה קְרִאֵי מוֹעֵד אַנְשֵׁי שֵׁם
וַיִּקָּהֲלוּ עַל מֹשֶׁה וְעַל אַהֲרֹן וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֲלֵהֶם
רַב לָכֶם כִּי כָל הָעֵדָה כֻּלָּם קְדֹשִׁים וּבְתוֹכָם יְהוָה
וּמַדּוּעַ תִּתְנַשְּׂאוּ עַל קְהַל יְהוָה
16:1a And now did take Korah, and the Israelite men, 2aβ two hundred and fifty of them — leaders of the community, those chosen from the assembly, men of repute— 3 and they assembled against Moses and Aaron, and they said to them, “You have gone too far! All of the community — all of them — are holy, and YHWH is in their midst. Why then do you exalt yourself above YHWH’s assembly?”
וַיִּשְׁמַע מֹשֶׁה וַיְדַבֵּר אֶל קֹרַח וְאֶל כָּל עֲדָתוֹ לֵאמֹר
בֹּקֶר וְיֹדַע יְהוָה אֶת אֲשֶׁר לוֹ וְאֶת הַקָּדוֹשׁ וְהִקְרִיב אֵלָיו וְאֵת אֲשֶׁר יִבְחַר בּוֹ יַקְרִיב אֵלָיו
4 Moses heard 5 and he spoke to Korah and to his community, saying, “By morning, YHWH will make known who is his; the one who is holy may approach him; the one whom he chooses, he may approach him.
וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל קֹרַח
שִׁמְעוּ נָא בְּנֵי לֵוִי הַמְעַט מִכֶּם כִּי הִבְדִּיל אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶתְכֶם מֵעֲדַת יִשְׂרָאֵל לְהַקְרִיב אֶתְכֶם אֵלָיו לַעֲבֹד אֶת עֲבֹדַת מִשְׁכַּן יְהוָה וְלַעֲמֹד לִפְנֵי הָעֵדָה לְשָׁרְתָם
8 Then Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, Levites! 9 Is it not enough for you that has separated, the God of Israel, you from the community of Israel, [to allow you] to approach him, to perform the service of YHWH’s tabernacle, and to stand before the community and serve them?
לָכֵן אַתָּה וְכָל עֲדָתְךָ הַנֹּעָדִים עַל יְהוָה וְאַהֲרֹן מַה הוּא כִּי תִלּוֹנוּ עָלָיו
וַיִּחַר לְמֹשֶׁה מְאֹד וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל יְהוָה
לֹא חֲמוֹר אֶחָד מֵהֶם נָשָׂאתִי וְלֹא הֲרֵעֹתִי אֶת אַחַד מֵהֶם
11 Indeed, you and all your company have banded together against YHWH. And Aaron—what is he that you rail against him?”
15 Moses was very angry, and he said to YHWH, “Not one donkey have I taken from them, and I have not harmed any one of them.”
וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל קֹרַח
אַתָּה וְכָל עֲדָתְךָ הֱיוּ לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אַתָּה וָהֵם וְאַהֲרֹן מָחָר
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר
דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְקַח מֵאִתָּם מַטֶּה מַטֶּה לְבֵית אָב מֵאֵת כָּל נְשִׂיאֵהֶם לְבֵית אֲבֹתָם שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר
מַטּוֹת אִישׁ אֶת שְׁמוֹ תִּכְתֹּב עַל מַטֵּהוּ וְאֵת שֵׁם אַהֲרֹן תִּכְתֹּב עַל מַטֵּה לֵוִי כִּי מַטֶּה אֶחָד לְרֹאשׁ בֵּית אֲבוֹתָם
וְהִנַּחְתָּם בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד לִפְנֵי הָעֵדוּת אֲשֶׁר אִוָּעֵד לָכֶם שָׁמָּה
16 Moses said to Korah, “You and all your company, be present before YHWH — you and they and Aaron — tomorrow. 16 YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, 17 “Say to the Israelites: Take from them a staff, a staff from the ancestral house of all of their leaders, from their ancestral houses, twelve staffs. Write each man’s name on his staff, 18 and write Aaron’s name on the staff of Levi, indeed, one staff for each head of their ancestral houses. 19 Place them in the tent of meeting before the covenant, the place where I meet with you.
וַהֲשִׁכֹּתִי מֵעָלַי אֶת תְּלֻנּוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר הֵם מַלִּינִם עֲלֵיכֶם
וַיְהִי מִמָּחֳרָת וַיָּבֹא מֹשֶׁה אֶל אֹהֶל הָעֵדוּת
וְהִנֵּה פָּרַח מַטֵּה אַהֲרֹן לְבֵית לֵוִי וַיֹּצֵא פֶרַח וַיָּצֵץ צִיץ וַיִּגְמֹל שְׁקֵדִים
20 Thus I will rid from myself the grumblings of the Israelites, which they continually grumble against you. 23 On the morrow, Moses went into the tent of the covenant. Indeed, Aaron’s staff for the house of Levi had sprouted; it had sprouted a flower, produced blossoms, and borne ripe almonds!
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה
הָשֵׁב אֶת מַטֵּה אַהֲרֹן לִפְנֵי הָעֵדוּת לְמִשְׁמֶרֶת לְאוֹת לִבְנֵי מֶרִי וּתְכַל תְּלוּנֹּתָם מֵעָלַי
וַיֹּאמְרוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵאמֹר
הֵן גָּוַעְנוּ אָבַדְנוּ כֻּלָּנוּ אָבָדְנוּ
כֹּל הַקָּרֵב הַקָּרֵב אֶל מִשְׁכַּן יְהוָה יָמוּת הַאִם תַּמְנוּ לִגְוֹע
25 And YHWH said to Moses, “Return Aaron’s staff before the covenant, to be guarded as a sign to rebels, to put an end to their grumbling against me. 27 The Israelites spoke to Moses, saying, “We are perishing, we are lost; all of us are lost! 28 Everyone who approaches YHWH’s tabernacle will die. Will our perishing ever end?”
That flowering staff, by the way, is the Asherah tree – the cultic religious symbol of YHWH’s goddess wife.
Learn more here: Korah’s Poetic Rebellion and God’s Flowery Response
https://www.thetorah.com/article/korahs-poetic-rebellion-and-gods-flowery-response
A new analysis of compositional layers suggests that God responds to Korah’s rebellion with patience and beauty — until someone changed the ending.
By Dr.Jason Gaines
“The ending of Poetic-P is confusing, as nothing God has done in the poetic text should cause the Israelites to fear approaching the Tabernacle. In Poetic-P, this confusion is part of the point of the story. The Israelites are like tired, irritable children who grumble and groan even when their complaints make little sense. (Similarly, no amount of food or water that God provides stops the Israelites from whining about their hunger and thirst.) The authors of Prosaic-P found this incongruous ending intolerable, and so they changed it.”
במדבר ו:כב וַיְדַבֵּר יְ־הוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר.ו:כג דַּבֵּר אֶל אַהֲרֹן וְאֶל בָּנָיו לֵאמֹר כֹּה תְבָרְכוּ אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אָמוֹר לָהֶם. ו:כדיְבָרֶכְךָ יְ־הוָה וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ. ו:כה יָאֵר יְ־הוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וִיחֻנֶּךָּ. ו:כו יִשָּׂא יְ־הוָה פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלוֹם. ו:כז וְשָׂמוּ אֶת שְׁמִי עַל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַאֲנִי אֲבָרֲכֵם.
“Num 6:22 YHWH spoke to Moses: 6:23 Speak to Aaron and his sons: Thus shall you bless the people of Israel….”
“All three clear occurrences of the word asherah in inscriptions are situated within blessing formulae:
Khirbet el-Qom inscription 1 reads, his asherah.[22]
ברכ אריהו ליהוה <ו>לאשרתה
Blessed is Uriahu by Yhwh
Kuntillet ‘Ajrud inscription 3.1 reads,
ברכת. אתכמ. ליהוה. שמרנ. ולאשרתה.
I bless you [pl.] by Yhwh of Samaria and his asherah.
And Kuntillet ‘Ajrud inscription 3.6 reads,
ברכתכ. ליהוה תמנ ולאשרתה. יברכ וישמרכ.
I bless you by Yhwh of Teman and his asherah; may he bless you and watch over you.
The formula in the last example is identical to the formula referenced in Numbers as the proper Aaronide blessing.”
https://www.thetorah.com/article/aarons-flowering-staff-a-priestly-asherah
“Unlike Deuteronomy, the priestly literature—both P and H—expresses no hostility to asherim. Priestly literature has its own conception of what constitutes heterodox worship and condemns it. For example, it prohibits the use of idols and cast metal gods (Lev 19:4), and of idols (again), sculptures, standing stones, and stone reliefs (Lev 26:1). It condemns high places and “incense stands” (חַמָּנִים) (Lev 26:30). And it mandates the destruction of the Canaanites’ reliefs, cast metal images, and high places (Num 33:52). Nevertheless, it never mentions asherim.
The Deuteronomic and Deuteronomistic authors, and, presumably the authors of the cited passages in Isaiah, Micah, and Jeremiah, viewed the asherah as illegitimate. Unlike them, the priestly author(s), and presumably Ezekiel, thought that the asherah could serve as a legitimate symbol of the Aaronide priesthood.”
Aaron’s Flowering Staff: A Priestly Asherah?
By Dr.Raanan Eichler