How Deuteronomy 33:20-21 Proves Shiloh (Messiah) Already Came
Executive Summary:
This article shows a logical proof that Shiloh (Messiah) already came once. This is inescapable because while the tribe of Judah was originally the lawgiver, Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:20-21 tells us that the portion of the lawgiver would be taken from Judah and “hidden” in the tribe of Gad at Shiloh’s (Mashiach’s) arrival. The obvious conclusion is that this took place with Mashiach Nagid’s (Yeshua ben Yosef’s) arrival in the first century.
Lesson Plan:
To show how the militant tribe of Gad now holds the portion of the lawgiver (meaning ecclesiastical leadership), we will look at:
1. The twelve tribes and the two houses of Israel.
2. The scepter and the portion of the lawgiver.
3. The portion of the lawgiver hidden in Gad.
4. Why the Talmudic explanation in Sotah 13b does not work.
5. The portion of the lawgiver hidden in Gad at Mashiach Nagid’s coming.
6. Maimonides and Mashiach Nagid
7. Summary and logical conclusion.
The Twelve Tribes and the Two Houses of Israel
Scripture tells us many times that Yaakov (Israel) fathered 12 sons, and that each of these sons fathered a tribe of Israel. One clear example of many is B’reisheet (Genesis) 49:28.
B’reisheet (Genesis) 49:28
28 All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, and this is what their father spoke to them. And he blessed them; he blessed each one according to his own blessing.
However, the reality is that there are 13 tribes, because Israel took Joseph’s sons Ephraim and Manasseh both as tribes.
B’reisheet (Genesis) 48:5
5 “And now your two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before I came to you in Egypt, are mine; as Reuven and Shimon, they shall be mine.”
So, the 12 tribes can also be called the 13 tribes depending on how one counts (because Levi is not numbered among the tribes that go out to war).
As we show in Nazarene Israel and in other places, the twelve tribes of Israel later became divided into two houses of Israel. The southern house was called the house of Judah, and it was led by the kingship tribe of Judah. When the United Monarchy split after the death of King Solomon, the house of Judah consisted primarily of three tribes (Judah, Benjamin, and Levi), although remnants of the ten northern tribes were added to it over time.
The northern house was called mainly by three names: the house of Israel, the house of Joseph, and the house of Ephraim (as Joseph’s son Ephraim was the lead tribe). After the United Monarchy split, the house of Ephraim originally consisted of the 10 northern tribes, including the tribe of Gad. We will come back to this fact later.
The Scepter and the Portion of the Lawgiver:
Temporal Law Versus Spiritual Law
Each of the twelve tribes were given tribal-specific prophecies by Israel in Genesis 48-49, and by Moshe (Moses) in Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33. Judah was given the scepter (symbolizing temporal leadership and kingship power). He also initially received the portion of the lawgiver. This refers to ecclesiastical power, or the spiritual authority to set the halachah (i.e., the spiritual “way you should walk”, or to establish the correct doctrine).
| B’reisheet (Genesis) 49:10 10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people. |
Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT) בְּרֵאשִׁית מט:י (10) לֹא יָסוּר שֵׁבֶט מִיהוּדָה וּמְחֹקֵק מִבֵּין רַגְלָיו| עַד כִּי יָבֹא שׁילה [שִׁילוֹ קרי] וְלוֹ יִקְּהַת עַמִּים: |
According to the prophecy, Judah originally had both the scepter (or the right to establish the temporal [or worldly] law), and the portion of the lawgiver (which is the right to establish the spiritual law, halachah, or doctrine).
Yet while Judah would always have the scepter (the kingship), he would only have the portion of the lawgiver until Shiloh (King Mashiach) came, because then it would begin to be transferred to the military tribe of Gad (which was already in the Dispersion).
The Hebrew for “portion of the lawgiver” is m’khokek (מְחֹקֵק). The Strong’s Concordance definition tells us that it has to do with hacking or engraving a right ruling (as if chiseling it into stone). Strong’s Hebrew Concordance gives the root of this word as Strong’s Hebrew 2710, חָקַק ḥâqaq, a primitive root meaning, “to hack” or “to engrave” a (hopefully right) ruling.
Strong’s Hebrew Concordance H271
חָקַק chaqaq, hack
A primitive root; properly, to hack, i.e. Engrave (Judges 5:14, to be a scribe simply); by implication, to enact (laws being cut in stone or metal tablets in primitive times) or (gen.) Prescribe — appoint, decree, governor, grave, lawgiver, note, pourtray, print, set.
Moshe: a biblical lawgiver
Moshe (Moses), Shemuel, and others are examples of biblical lawgivers. The idea is that someone who hears Yahweh’s voice (such as a prophet, an anointed judge, or an apostle) listens carefully for Yahweh’s voice, and then “hacks (or chisels) what he hears into stone.” (Alternately he can write it on a scroll—but the idea is that he records what Yahweh said, and transmits that to the people.)
The idea here is that the right-ruling does not come from him, but from Yahweh (and the lawgiver is just the medium, or the vessel, or the instrument of transmitting Yahweh’s words).
A perfect example of this is found in Shemote (or Exodus) 18:19-20, where Moshe’s father-in-law Yitro (Jethro) told Moshe that he should stand before Elohim on behalf of the people, and bring the difficulties to Elohim, to hear His right-rulings.
Shemote (Exodus) 18:19-20
19 Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel, and Elohim will be with you: Stand before Elohim for the people, so that you may bring the difficulties to Elohim.
20 And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws [that Yahweh sets], and show them the way in which they must walk and the work they must do.
This may be difficult for Orthodox Jews to understand, but the idea here is not for Moshe to make up his own rulings, or to establish doctrine by voting—but rather for a prophet to listen to Yahweh in the Spirit, to record Yahweh’s right rulings, and then to transmit Yahweh’s right rulings to the people. How interesting, then, that while this portion was originally given to Judah, after Shiloh came, it would be hidden in the tribe of Gad. But why?
In Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:20-21, Moshe is prophesying over the tribes, and the Portion of the Lawgiver shows up again. However, this time, the Portion of the Lawgiver has been hidden in the military tribe of Gad.
| Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:20-21 20 And of Gad [Moshe] said: “Blessed is he who enlarges Gad; He dwells as a lion, [And] He shall tear off the arm, and also the crown. 21 He provided the best part for himself, Because the lawgiver’s portion was hidden there. He came with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of Yahweh, And His judgments with Israel.”. |
Hebrew Masoretic Text (MT) דְּבָרִים לג:כ-כא (20) וּלְגָד אָמַר בָּרוּךְ מַרְחִיב גָּד| כְּלָבִיא שָׁכֵן וְטָרַף זְרוֹעַ אַף קָדְקֹד: (21) וַיַּרְא רֵאשִׁית לוֹ כִּי שָׁם חֶלְקַת מְחֹקֵק סָפוּן| וַיֵּתֵא רָאשֵׁי עָם צִדְקַת יְהוָה עָשָׂה וּמִשְׁפָּטָיו עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל: |
Different translations read differently, but the key phrase is, “He provided the best part for himself, because the lawgiver’s portion was hidden (or reserved) there.” Let us notice carefully that Gad is given the same lawgiver’s portion (מְחֹקֵ֖ק) that was given to Judah in B’reisheet (Genesis) 49:10. This means that the right to establish halachah (doctrine) was taken from Judah and “hidden” in the tribe of Gad when Shiloh (Messiah) came in 3786 (26 CE), as we saw in the last chapter.
The portion of the lawgiver was “hidden” because as we saw in Nazarene Israel, Gad was already in the Dispersion at that time, and therefore he did not realize that he had an Israelite identity. Because of this, he could not realize that the authority to establish Israelite halachah was his—and neither did Judah recognize this fact. Rather, Judah would (mistakenly) continue to believe that he had the portion of the lawgiver, in addition to the scepter.
Why the Talmudic Explanation in Sotah 13b Does Not Work
Before we look at what it means that the portion of the lawgiver was hidden in Gad, and why it was hidden in Gad, first let’s look at the rabbinic interpretation in the Talmud, and see why it does not work.
Over-focusing on the Burial Place of Moshe
Because Orthodox Jews mistakenly believe they still hold the portion of the lawgiver, they have to give an interpretation of Devarim 33:20-21 which retains the right to set halachah within the tribe of Judah. The way they do this is by over-focusing on the burial place of Moshe (Moses).
Talmud Tractate Sotah 13b (the back side of page 13) tells us that the reason Devarim 33:20-21 specifies that the portion of the lawgiver would be “hidden in Gad” when Shiloh comes is that Moshe had already been told he would die on Mount Nebo (which is in the territory of Reuven)—but that somehow Moshe knew that his body would be transported supernaturally to the territory assigned to the tribe of Gad for his burial. This is not logical, but it is nonetheless found in baraitot (entries) 20 and 22-23.
First, baraita (entry) 20 tells us that Moshe died in the portion of land assigned to Reuven. (This is true, according to Torah.)
And it is taught in a baraita that Rabbi Yehuda said: If not for an explicitly written verse, one could not say what is written with regard to the death and burial of Moses. Where did Moses die? In the portion of Reuben, as it is written: “And Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo” (Deuteronomy 34:1), and it is known from elsewhere that Nebo is situated in the portion of Reuben, as it is written: “And the children of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kiriathaim, and Nebo” (Numbers 32:37–38).
[Talmud Tractate Sotah 13b:20, Sefaria]
However, then in baraitot 22 and 23, the Talmud tries to resolve the contradiction between the fact that Moshe died in the land assigned to Reuven, and the Jewish idea that Devarim 33:20-21 means that Moshe’s body was supernaturally transported to the territory of Gad for burial. Rabbi Yehuda goes so far as to say that because there is a contradiction, we should believe that Moshe’s body was supernaturally transported to the land of Gad by Elohim Himself (which makes no sense).
[22] Rabbi Yehuda continues: And where is Moses buried? In the portion of Gad, as it is written in the blessing of Moses to the tribe of Gad: “And he chose a first part for himself, for there a portion of a ruler was reserved” (Deuteronomy 33:21), indicating that Moses, the ruler, is buried in the portion of Gad. And how much is the distance from the portion of Reuben to the portion of Gad? Four mil. Rabbi Yehuda asks: For those four mil from Mount Nebo in the portion of Reuben to the burial place of Moses in the portion of Gad, who transported him?
[23] He answers: The contradiction between the two verses teaches that Moses was lying in the wings of the Divine Presence, as Moses was carried out by God Himself, and the ministering angels were saying: “He executed the righteousness of the Lord, and His ordinances with Israel” (Deuteronomy 33:21). And the Holy One, Blessed be He, was saying: “Who will rise up for Me against the evildoers? Who will stand up for Me against the workers of iniquity?” (Psalms 94:16).
In other words, God asked: Who will now defend the Jewish people against its accusers? The idea that God Himself transported Moses to his burial could not have been said if not for the proof from the resolution between the contradictory verses.
[Talmud Tractate Sotah 13b:22-23, Sefaria]
Levi is Not Judah in Torah Times
While it is certainly hypothetically possible that Elohim may have supernaturally transported Moshe’s body to the tribal allotment of Gad for burial, there is no evidence in the TNK to suggest that it happened that way—and this explanation has many other problems. For example, Moshe was not from the tribe of Judah, but from the tribe of Levi, as it says in Shemote (or Exodus) chapter 2.
Shemote (Exodus) 2:1
1 And a man of the house of Levi went and took as wife a daughter of Levi.
If you have read the Nazarene Israel study (or understand Two House Theory), then you know that the majority of the tribe of Levi was absorbed into the southern house of Judah after the United Monarchy split in the days of King Solomon’s son Rehavam (1 Kings 11). That is why the Levites are often called Jews today, is that they were absorbed into the southern house of Judah after the split.
However, that does not mean we can equate the Levites with the Jews in Torah times, when the prophecies in Genesis and Deuteronomy were given. That is because the tribes were still treated as separate entities when the prophecies were given. (Further, the tribes did not begin to be lumped together as houses until the days of Joshua and Judges—and even then, Levi was scattered among all of the tribes until the United Monarchy split).
In this context, notice that Moshe prophesied different things over the tribe of Judah in Devarim 33:7 than he prophesied over his own tribe of Levi in Devarim 33:8!
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:7-8
7 And this he said of Judah:
“Hear, Yahweh, the voice of Judah,
And bring him to his people;
Let his hands be sufficient for him,
And may You be a help against his enemies.”
8 And of Levi he said:
“Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your set-apart one,
Whom You tested at Massah,
And with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah…
In other words, it is incorrect to identify Moshe as a Jew in Torah times (because he was a Levite). Therefore, to say that the Jewish scepter and the Jewish portion of the lawgiver was held by Moshe is incorrect, because the prophecies over Judah do not pertain to Moshe the Levite.
Levi is Never Gad
Let us also note that both of those prophecies (over Judah and Levi) are different than the prophecy Moshe gave over the tribe of Gad in verses 20-21.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:20-21
20 And of Gad [Moshe] said:
“Blessed is he who enlarges Gad;
He dwells as a lion,
[And] He shall tear off the arm, and also the crown.
21 He provided the best part for himself,
Because the lawgiver’s portion was hidden there.
He came with the heads of the people;
He administered the justice of Yahweh,
And His judgments with Israel.”
Respectfully and in love, we find the Orthodox interpretation to be illogical. If all that happened was that Moshe the Levite knew he would be buried in Gad’s land, then why does he tell us that Gad would “administer the justice of Yahweh, and His judgments with Israel”? And how could Gad possibly administer the justice of Yahweh and His judgments with Israel if Judah (not Levi or Gad) allegedly retained the portion of the lawgiver from Torah times until today?
Further, what does Moshe’s burial have to do with the arrival of Shiloh (King Mashiach), since Judah would have this portion of the lawgiver until Shiloh came? (It makes no sense.)
Logical Dilemmas
If Judah hypothetically still has the portion of the lawgiver, and will give it to the Jewish Shiloh (Messiah) when he allegedly comes for the first time (in the future), then Judah will hand the portion of the lawgiver to himself—and thus the portion of the lawgiver never leaves Judah. However, if that is the case, then when will the portion of the lawgiver ever be hidden in Gad? (It makes nonsense of Torah verses.)
The Portion of the Lawgiver Hidden in Gad at Mashiach Nagid’s Coming.
The full historical proof is outside the scope of this limited article (as it would take many volumes). However, we hope to impart the general idea of how the portion of the lawgiver was hidden in Gad.
In Nazarene Israel and in other places we show that the ten northern tribes of the house of Ephraim were taken into the Assyrian Diaspora (along with many from the southern house of Judah). Researchers into the migrations of the tribes (such as Yair Davidiy and Steven Collins) believe that while the lost tribesmen were scattered in all directions, as prophetic bodies, the tribes moved slowly north and west as empires rose and fell.
As the empires rose, they captured and assimilated the lost tribesmen, who had been scattered out into the nations. Then as empires fell, those with more Israelite traits had migrated to the north and west, closer to what later became Protestant Northwestern Europe. (For more details, see Davidiy, Collins, et al.).
Davidiy, Collins, and others also tell us that the militant Gadites settled into what later became the Viking areas of Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. The idea to grasp here is that it was the militant Gadite spirit that drove the Viking conquests, and led to the expansion of the Viking empire.
In Nazarene Israel we explore some parallel themes. When Judah sold Joseph into slavery in Egypt, Joseph became the number #2 power in the most powerful military on earth, and he was able to use his position to help all of Israel.
Likewise, when Judah pushed the Nazarenes out of the synagogues with the Birkhat HaMinim death curse, it was as if the believers in Yeshua were “sent into Egypt” again—except that at this point the faith in Yeshua ended up tied to the Roman Empire, which was the most powerful military on earth at that time. It would then be the Roman Empire that would take a leavened militant variation of the faith in Yeshua outward.
While the Roman Empire never conquered Scandinavia, the Vikings gradually converted to Catholicism between the 9th and 12th centuries as they came into contact with Catholic cultures. Since Catholicism is a militant mutation of the faith in Yeshua, the Vikings and their descendants were able to continue their warfare, conquering and spreading their militant mutation of the faith in Mashiach Nagid wherever they went.
Now as militant Mystery Babylonian Gad enlarged his territory, and provided the first part of the spoils of war for himself, he brought a Mystery Babylonian version of the Christian faith, and Christian law and order with him. If we have eyes to see, this matches the general overall arc of the prophecy (and there are no other viable candidates).
The Vikings are said to have vanished, assimilating into the cultures they conquered—but did they assimilate, or did the spirit of Gad quietly take the leadership role of the lost house of Ephraim? For example, Norman Vikings conquered England under William the Conqueror, seizing the crown of England. Norman England then colonized many nations until the sun never set on the British Empire—and while their primary goal was spoils of war, they also spread their Babylonian version of the faith (and Christian morality) wherever they went.
The United States later broke off from the British Empire, and as we explain in Nazarene Israel, the United States represents the prophetic tribe of Ephraim, which is the lead tribe in the house of Ephraim. While the United States fulfills many prophetic roles all at the same time (e.g., the Land of Esav, the Land of Mystery Babylon, and the homeland of the Tribe of Ephraim, etc.) it is clearly a militaristic nation, and we would argue that the leadership is of a militaristic Gadite spirit, tearing off the arm and the crown of other nations, while simultaneously spreading Christian morality worldwide.
Devarim (Deuteronomy) 33:20-21
20 And of Gad [Moshe] said:
“Blessed is he who enlarges Gad;
He dwells as a lion,
[And] He shall tear off the arm, and also the crown.
21 He provided the best part for himself,
Because the lawgiver’s portion was hidden there.
He came with the heads of the people;
He administered the justice of Yahweh,
And His judgments with Israel.”
(Just to comment, President Trump is clearly a Masonic agent under Chabad control, but he is also a perfect example of this.)
Maimonides and Mashiach Nagid
If you are Jewish, consider that Maimonides (or the Rambam) tells us that the various forms of Christianity (and even Islam) are “stepping stones” toward the Jewish Millennial Reign. (We make the same argument in Nazarene Israel.) For example, in Mishneh Torah, in the censored passage of “Kings and Wars” around 11:7, Maimonides said that “ultimately, all the deeds of Jesus of Nazareth (and that Ishmaelite who arose after him) will only serve to prepare the way for Mashiach’s coming and the improvement of the entire world.”
Nevertheless, the intent of the Creator of the world is not within the power of man to comprehend, for His ways are not our ways, nor are His thoughts, our thoughts. Ultimately, all the deeds of Jesus of Nazareth and that Ishmaelite who arose after him will only serve to prepare the way for Mashiach’s coming and the improvement of the entire world, motivating the nations to serve God together as Tzephaniah 3:9 states: ‘I will transform the peoples to a purer language that they all will call upon the name of God and serve Him with one purpose.’
[Mishneh Torah, Kings and Wars 11:7, Censored]
We say much the same thing in Nazarene Israel study and in Revelation and the End Times, and we explain the mechanics of the “Three Measures of Meal”, and how they represent the three forms of Mystery Babylonian faith (Orthodox Judaism, Roman Christianity, and Islam). All of these are militaristic, and are leading to transform the world for Mashiach.
Summary and Logical Conclusion
What we have seen so far is that while Orthodox Judah (in the form of the house of Rothschild) still holds the scepter (or the kingship), the portion of the lawgiver was taken from Judah and hidden in the tribe of Gad (or the most violent elements of the Roman Christian empire) after Mashiach Nagid came in 3786 (26 CE).
In Revelation and the End Times we explain how the Joseph-Judah Complex is the Military-Industrial Complex. Whoever is the leading Christian (read: Ephraimite) military power of the day (e.g., Rome, England, USA) is used as a battle-axe and weapons of war to expand a Mystery Babylonian variation of the faith in Mashiach Nagid, while bringing Christian morality, law, and order to the world, thus fulfilling Devarim 33:20-21.
Shalom!
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