450: arba meoht wa-kha’mishim אַרְבַּ֧ע מֵאֹ֣ות וַחֲמִשִּׁ֗ים
Follow Me: akha’rai אַחֲרָֽי from root adverb akhar (Strong’s 310) meaning after, behind or following
Today is the 450th published post, here at Hebrew Word Lessons. That’s 450 Sundays in a row! Thank you for all who have supported this project! It is a labour of love, fueled by so many of you sending in kind and encouraging words! I am very grateful to all of you who have taken the time to read Hebrew Word Lessons!
The number 450 [arba meoht wa-kha’mishim in Hebrew] shows up three times in the Bible. In Acts 13:20 we read that it took 450 years to clear out Canaan. In 2 Chronicles 8:18 we read that 450 talents of gold were given to Solomon by king Huram of Tyre to help fund the building of the Temple.
The other 450 show up in 1 Kings 18 where we read about 450 Baal worshippers and 400 Asherah worshippers. That’s 850 pagans who stood in opposition to Elijah:
1 Kings 18:17-22
When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, O troubler of Israel?”
“I have not troubled Israel,” Elijah replied, “but you and your father’s house have, for you have forsaken the commandments of YHWH and have followed the Baals. Now summon all Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel, along with the four hundred and fifty [arba meoht wa-ha-mishim אַרְבַּ֧ע מֵאֹ֣ות וַחֲמִשִּׁ֗ים] prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
So Ahab summoned all the Israelites and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. Then Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If YHWH is God, follow Him [l’ku akha’raw לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֔יו]. But if Baal is God, follow him [l’ku akha’raw לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֑יו].”
You must decide who or what is your God.
You’re either all in, or you’re not in at all. You can’t partially follow YHWH. If you don’t follow YHWH then you’re on a different path. It’s not possible to go in two different directions at once.
Centuries before Elijah faced the prophets on Mount Carmel, the humble tribe of YHWH followers were wandering in the desert, waiting for their time to enter the land that God had promised them. When the people got a sneak peek of this long awaited “Promised Land”, they returned with fear in their eyes. The place was filled with formidable and dangerous opponents. Only Caleb and Joshua saw the good in the land and trusted YHWH enough that they were fully willing to follow their God into the territory that was promised to them.
The majority of the people did not want to risk entering the place that seemed to be overrun with powerful tribes of pagan people, and that disappointed YHWH greatly. So He made an announcement:
Numbers 32:11-12
[YHWH:] “‘None of the men who came up from Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; for they did not fully follow Me [akha’rai אַחֲרָֽי], except Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua the son of Nun; for they have fully followed [akha’rei אַחֲרֵ֥י] YHWH.’”
It’s simple. You follow YHWH fully, or you don’t follow YHWH at all.
The Hebrew people, over and over again, turned to pagan gods and tried to follow them and YHWH together.
Zephaniah 1:4-6
[YHWH:] “So I will stretch out My hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
And I will eliminate the remnant of Baal from this place, and the names of the idolatrous priests along with the other priests.
And those who bow down on the housetops to the heavenly lights, and those who bow down and swear to YHWH, but also swear by Milcom, and those who have turned back from following [mey-akha’rei מֵאַחֲרֵ֣י] YHWH, and those who have not sought YHWH nor inquired of Him.”
You can’t swear allegiance to both Milcom and YHWH. You can’t be a follower of YHWH and a follower of Baal. There were many pagan gods, and many of the nations felt comfortable following numerous gods at once, but followers of YHWH were to follow YHWH alone. All other paths were headed in the wrong direction. They led to destruction and death.
Deuteronomy 13:1-4
“If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes true, of which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let’s follow [akha’rei אַחֲרֵ֨י] other gods (whom you have not known) and let’s serve them,’ you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer of dreams; for YHWH your God is testing you to find out whether you love YHWH your God with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall follow [akha’rei אַחֲרֵ֨י] YHWH your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him.”
It’s not about following YHWH blindly, it’s about pursuing Him. Seeking, staying on the path, and following so closely that you’re, essentially, clinging to His footsteps.
Yeshua was always sending out an invitation to follow Him.
To Matthew/Levi, He said, “Follow Me” [Greek: Akolouthei Moi] (Matt 9:9, Mark 2:14, Luke 5:27).
To Philip He said, “Follow Me” (John 1:43).
To the fishermen, Peter and Andrew, He said, “Come, follow Me and I will make you fishers of people” (Matt 4:19, Mark 1:17, Luke 5:10).
Seek. Follow. Cling. Grab hold of God and don’t let go. Don’t get turned around and find yourself clinging onto the wrong god. The doorway that leads to the path to death and destruction is wide open and it’s easy to stumble across it.
Matthew 7:13-14
[Jesus:] “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
When Yeshua says, Follow Me, He’s saying, “get on the path of LIFE”. It’s a narrow path, but there’s room for one foot in front of the other. You can take one step at a time towards life eternal. It’s a beautiful deliberate path that leads to God’s everlasting Kingdom, and I hope that you’re on it!
Next week: refuge
ps. I would certainly never be so presumptuous to tell people to “follow me”. Yeshua is the one you should follow! However, if you want to follow along with this blog, scroll to the bottom of any HWL posting and you can click on the blue “follow” button to subscribe and get weekly updates! Shalom!
