Grafted Into the Hebrew Root

All Scripture quotations are from the King James Version unless stated otherwise.

When I first began my journey into becoming Torah pursuant, I had never heard the term, Hebrew Roots, or the growing movement that uses that name (and as a point of clarification, I do not identify or associate with the Hebrew Roots movement). However, as I’ve plodded along The Way in seeking the will of Adonai regarding this change of focus, I learned the term carries with it a host of mixed ideas and connotations, and they range widely from odd but sincere to weird and harmful. Interestingly enough, so do the mainstream Christian denominations and sects. I should know, as I’ve grown up amongst them for the past 30 years. But this is not about them, per se, so I digress.

I do not identify or associate with the Hebrew Roots movement

I have heard from many Christians who boast (although they would argue against that term) that we are not bound by the Torah or Covenants because those were Jewish things and Jesus did away with those because of their unbelief. Furthermore, “I ain’t Jewish; I’m [insert anything except Jewish] so I’m free to do and eat whatever I want!” These people are severely lacking in one key factor: all believers have Hebrew roots.

The purpose of this study is not to delve in the Hebrew Roots Movement, but into the doctrine of Hebrew roots (lowercase “r”). For this purpose, we will be chiefly in Romans 11. The key verse that triggered this discussion between the Holy Spirit and I was verse seventeen.

And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
Hebrews 11:17

The process of grafting is quite fascinating. There are many methods, but for those unfamiliar, a person can cut off a branch of a tree, let’s say, an orange. At the severed end, a notch is cut in the wound. Then one takes a branch from another tree of a different variety and sharpens the end of the branch into a wedge. This end is then inserted into the notch of the first branch. The two joined branches are then bound tightly, usually with plastic wrap or some other tight seal and then left alone. Over time, nourished by the healthy root, the wound begins to heal and eventually the grafted-in branch becomes part of the main tree. If you chose a lemon branch, it will one day produce lemons although it’s host and nutrient supply is an orange tree. In reality, the lemon branch is just as much part of the orange tree as the orange branches. If the root dies, the branch dies with it. If it flourishes, so do the fruits. This is one of the ways man has learned to manipulate nature that is quite captivating to me. This interesting video shows this technique.

In Romans 11, Paul is using the method of grafting to describe what is taking place in his current time as well as in ours. He is writing to believers in Rome (c. 1, v. 7) and giving instruction and doctrine. Although some were Jews who believed (such as he was), many were Gentile believers. In fact, he explicitly states who he is writing to in our current chapter.

For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:
Romans 11:13

To recap where we are; Romans is written to mostly Gentile believers living in Rome. This letter to them describes how they are considered to be grafted in as a wild olive branch into a cultivated olive tree. In short, Hebrews are pictured as the native, or cultivated olives and Gentiles (all non-Hebrews) are the wild, non-domesticated olives.

Going back to our opening verse, Adonai cut off the branches of the olive tree, but why? Why did he sever the limbs of the chosen domestic tree and graft in the wild ones?

Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.

V. 21-22

The branches – the Hebrew people – were broken off because of their unbelief. Their sin was not unbelief in Adonai, for they followed His Torah and knew who He is. Nay, their unbelief was in the Messiah. So in their place Adonai grafted in the wild olive, the wayward and feral nations who had before then never known the power and person of Yahweh.

Consider this: the only thing that separated the Hebrews from the Gentiles was the Torah. Torah (the law, the word of Elohim) existed before Moses, but was codified on Mt. Sinai and with it was a covenant promise. His promise and calling is without end (v. 29).

But the counsel of Adonai stands forever, his heart’s plans are for all generations.
Psalm 33:11, Complete Jewish Bible

We’ve already drawn the conclusion that every nation is pictured as an olive branch. The differentiation is between natural or wild. So we’re all olives. Ok. If Gentiles are wild, then the root of the wild tree could be deduced to non-adherence to Torah, since Torah is what set the Hebrews apart. Therefore, if the Hebrews are the branches of the natural olive tree, what is the root? You guessed it; Torah!

Some will argue that God, and not His law, is the root. That’s fine if one wants to argue that position. I insist that God and the Word of God are One. Isaiah made it clear that Messiah is the Branch, and John made it abundantly clear that Messiah is the Word.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
John 1:1, 14

But a branch will emerge from the trunk of Yishai (Jesse), a shoot will grow from his roots. On that day the root of Yishai, which stands as a banner for the peoples – the Goyim (Gentiles) will seek him out, and the place where he rests will be glorious.
Isaiah 11:1, 10, CJB

The majority of Isaiah chapter eleven is a prophesy pertaining to the millennial reign of Jesus, but it’s very clear in the two passages above that it is a Messianic prophesy. Yeshua (Jesus) is the Word (John 1:1) and the Shoot (Branch) (Isaiah 11:1).

The Branch in Isaiah came out of the stem of Jesse. The stem came from the root. It is a picture of a lineal ancestry. We know that Jesus was a direct descendant of Jesse through his son, David. Jesse, like most Hebrews, was a descendant of Abraham. The Abrahamic Covenant, along with the Adamic, Noahic, and Mosaic Covenants, is part of the root of the natural olive. These were the foundations of the Hebrew people’s culture, identity, and religion. When Adonai gave Moses the Torah (instructions) on Mt. Sinai, He was giving the branches the instructions on how to fulfill the Will of the Root.

Furthermore, Jesus Himself said He was the true vine.

I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
John 15:1-2

Bringing it all back home to Romans 11, I remind the reader that the branches that were broken off were the Hebrews who did not believe that Yeshua was the Branch from Jesse. These are the ones who did not bear fruit because while they were rooted in Torah and the words of Adonai, they did not believe them from the roots up. The Jews did not recognize the true Vine, the one who bridged the gap between root and branch. So they rejected the vine.

The husbandman, The Father, did not pluck up the Hebrew root.

Any arborist, horticulturalist, and gardener knows if a branch of a plant is diseased or not producing, they must remove it in order to make room for the productive and healthy branches that will produce fruit. In the example of the olive trees in Romans 11, the branches that were dead or unproductive were removed to make room for a new strain of olive. The wild olive was cut away from its root and grafted into the natural olive’s root. It’s identity, sustenance, and growth now comes from drawing from its new, adopted root. The natural olive didn’t change at all, except to accept the grafted-in wild olive. Furthermore, the other olive branches have no say in the matter, for it is the husbandman, or gardener, who makes the cuts and modifications.

I don’t know if there could be any clearer picture of the adoption of Gentile into the Hebrew. The main root – the Covenants and Torah – has not changed. The husbandman, The Father, did not pluck up the Hebrew root. Nay, He simply pruned away the unfruitful, unbelieving Jews and left a remnant of those who believed. He then grafted, and continues to today, the Gentiles, who were the wild olives; sincere but pagan. These believing Gentiles then receive all the blessings of the Covenants, including salvation. Is their salvation in the root? No, not per se, for their salvation is in believing in the Vine, Jesus the Messiah. We Gentiles may not have a direct ancestry to Jesse (or Abraham), but we enjoy the blessings of the Vine because we are grafted into the Covenants through the grace of the Gardener.

How can we accept the Vine but reject the Root? Is that even possible? Paul has a warning for us Gentile branches that we would do well to pay attention to.

Boast not against the branches. But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wilt say then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well; because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee.
Romans 11:18-21

We should not let pride cause us to boast against the ethnic Jews, for we are just as susceptible to being pruned away. We were plucked from our pagan, unbelieving cultures (albeit several thousand years removed, for some) and grafted into the cultivated Hebrew root, not because of our own merits or superiority, but because the Father, Adonai, will not let His Word return void (Isaiah 55:11). His root is eternal, and He desires that we enjoy the fruits of it alongside, and equal to, the original branches that also believe. Shalom!

For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
Romans 10:12

Are You Worshipping A Golden Calf?

Exodus 32 gives us an account that should be chilling to the Christian. Moses has gone up to Mt. Sinai (chapter 24-31) to receive the Torah from Adonai. He remained on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights. While on the mountain, Moses charged Aaron and Hur with handling the affairs and questions of the people.

In Moses’ absence, the people began to grow impatient. They began to murmur. Likely, they believed he had died on the mountain. But they knew he had been in the presence of Adonai, for at the beginning of the ascent, the mountain had been veiled in smoke for 7 days, out of which Adonai spoke to Moses. This was not dissimilar to Exodus 19 when Moses had earlier ascended the same mountain, was enveloped in smoke, and received the Torah, including the 10 Commandments (Chapter 20). But at some point, in this second occurrence, they lost faith that he would return.

And when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him.
Exodus 32:1, KJV

Now, some would say forty days is a long time, and anyone would eventually have to give up on his returning and leave him for dead. This may be true in many instances, but a closer look at the text indicates they lost hope much earlier than that. Skipping down to verse 4, we see that Aaron melted down the jewelry of the Hebrews and fashioned it with a graving tool into a sculpture of a calf and the people (presumably the elders) said, “these be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.” I do not know how long it would have taken Aaron to carve a sculpture of gold, but I take the assumption that he was not a skilled sculptor. Perhaps carving sculptures was his job as a slave in Egypt, but notwithstanding, there is nothing that points to this fact in Scripture. Nevertheless, he would not have been likely to carve out a golden calf overnight. This task would likely have taken several days or weeks, depending on the size of the idol. The significance of this is that the people lost faith in Moses, and Adonai, very early in his mission. It is probable, according to this timeline, that the golden calf incident occurred during Moses’ first week on the mountain.

Failures of the Elders

The second significant part of this incident is the failure of the elders. As we see in chapter 24:14, Moses left the elders at the base of the mountain. They were to lead the people in his absence, and the elders would in turn go to Aaron and Hur for weightier matters. When the people began to grow restless, the scripture does not record the elders standing in the gap. Instead, it says “the people,” which we can assume included the elders, went to Aaron and demanded a graven idol. So quickly the Hebrews went from Chapter 24:3 where they declared “all the words which Adonai hath said will we do!” to “up, make us gods!” And the elders did nothing. In fact, they caved to the pressure of the congregation. I am reminded that the Hebrews were only mere weeks outside of leaving a pagan culture where they had been for 430 years. There was a lot of superstition, tradition, and false notions about deities, be they false or the one true God, Adonai. But the elders were their leaders; men of high esteem and pious character who were their judges, patriarchs, and one could say, pastors. But they, too, were steeped in false beliefs that crept in during this time of trial, and rather than stay strong, they buckled, as did Aaron. The one who Adonai was declaring to Moses at that very time to be the first high priest failed in pointing the crowd to the Almighty and instead had the people turn in their jewelry (vanity, pride, originating with the heathen Egyptians) and used it to fashion a graven image in the form of a calf. What’s worse is they then declared (verse 4), “these be thy gods!” In one fell swoop, the Hebrews, led by the newly minted high priest, violated the first 3 commandments. Let’s recap what those are:

I am Adonai your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery. ב “You are to have no other gods before me. You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline. You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I, Adonai your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot. ג“You are not to use lightly the name of Adonai your God, because Adonai will not leave unpunished someone who uses his name lightly.
Exodus 20:2-7, Complete Jewish Bible

Notice the preface to the Commandments is, “I am Adonai your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt,” yet the Hebrews immediately declare the same of the golden calf. They are violating the commandment to not create a graven image, but in so doing they are calling the same image Adonai, the one who delivered them. This is a violation of the commandment to not use His name in vain (lightly). This is reiterated in verses 5-6,

On seeing this, Aharon built an altar in front of it and proclaimed, “Tomorrow is to be a feast for Adonai.” Early the next morning they got up and offered burnt offerings and presented peace offerings. Afterwards, the people sat down to eat and drink; then they got up to indulge in revelry.
Exodus 32:5-6, CJB

So Aaron then built an altar, declared the next day to be a feast to Adonai, and then the people brought offerings (as commanded previously in Torah) to Him. In essence, they violated Torah, called the violation an iteration of Adonai, then sacrificed to the violation and worshipped it, all while calling it the image of Adonai. How discombobulated can you be?

We are no better than the Hebrews

Lest you grow unjustly critical of the Hebrews, let me point out that modern Christians are guilty of the exact same sins.

If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard someone say, “my God would never…” or “Jesus would never…” I would be significantly better off financially. Or on the other hand, many people attribute doctrine or happenstance to the will or word of Adonai. “God told me,” or, “I believe,” are no substitute for what His actual Word says. What about when we take the Word to justify our sin or false belief? Just as the Hebrews took the word of Adonai and applied it to the idol, so are we often guilty of taking the Word and using it to fuel our heart’s depiction of Him.

Believer, you have been chosen by God and called out of your Egypt. You have been saved from the sins of the heathen, but do not use this as an opportunity to bring those sins with you and call them holy! Your traditions and previous beliefs are a weight you need to shed. They should have been cast off in the sea when you passed through unto a new life, but we all bring something with us. The time to cast them away is now. This is not to say that everything from the past is unfit for a follower of Adonai. The Hebrews had been commanded by Adonai to receive jewelry, riches, and clothing from their Egyptian neighbors when they left their captivity. He meant to use the riches of the heathen for a new purpose: to fashion the basins, ark, candlesticks, and other furniture in the tabernacle that was to come. The talents, passions, and faith that we bring from our old life can be used for His glory, but that is for Him to do a work within us and not for us to use to define who He is in our own deceitful hearts.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Jeremiah 17:9, KJV

Elders beware!

Preachers, we must be careful that we also do not bring our own traditions and past experiences into our exposition of the Word and Will of God! We are part of “the people” even though we are called to lead and teach them. We are no less susceptible to following our own designs when seeking to worship and follow the Almighty. The danger comes when we break the law of God and encourage others to follow us in so doing. Matthew 5:19 gives us a grave warning:

Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 5:19, KJV

If using the Lord’s name in vain (as in swearing) is terrible, how much more so is attributing His name to something He never did? Did God really declare righteous what you say is righteous, or are you attributing His name to your opinion or prejudice? Is something you call evil what He would call evil, or are you applying your own experiences or societal norms to a practice or activity? In doing this, is this considered one of the “least commandments,” or is using His name in vain a great commandment?

Furthermore, we must resist the temptation to not speak the truth for fear of the mob. Sometimes it is easy to “take the high road,” and live in silence on a matter to keep the peace or avoid division, but what did Christ do? Along with His declaration that He did not come to abolish the Torah, He also stated that He came to divide.

Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:
Luke 12:51, KJV

He obviously did not mean that He was cause for strife and division within the body of believers, but that He would be a cause for division among those who held to the world and those who embraced Him. He also reminded us that we cannot serve two masters (Matthew 6:24, Luke 16:13). Traditions alone are not wrong, but when they dictate how we worship Him, they become a master and we are slaves to our past. In this case, we must cast off Egypt and worship Adonai, free from the bondage of our traditions. And we cannot allow the opinions and traditions of others to cause us to disregard this requirement. We will not stand guiltless if we teach people to disregard any portion of God’s word because it is outdated, not applicable, or if we conflate His word with our tradition. How sobering is this reminder!

I come in love, not condemnation

As usual, I do not bring this word as a condemnation, but a plea. Many in our churches are in bondage, not to gross wickedness or unrighteousness, but in adherence to false attributions to God. If God says it, do it! If He says not to, don’t do it! Sola scriptura is not only for the reformers; indeed, all Christians should lean not on their (or a teacher’s) own understanding, but on the Scriptures alone. How many have fallen away from the Truth because they were taught a truth that was false? How many have worshipped a graven image that they were told was Adonai? How many times have we been instructed, or instructed others, to follow such and such a belief that was contrary to the true Word of God?

Christian, whether you are “the people” or “the elders,” please remember this account of the golden calf and ask in prayer, “am I following a golden calf of my own design or the Adonai of the mountain?”