G12. Having Faith in God & Trusting Him for All Things. [Make a Comment]
We are to have faith in God & trust Him for all things - for our protection, for those we love, for our worldly needs, and for our very lives.
This precept is derived from His Word (blessed be He):
Key Scriptures
TRUSTING GOD IN THE SABBATICAL YEAR
Exodus 23:10-11
(Maimonides RP134; Meir ML20; Chinuch C84)
For six years, you are to sow your land with seed and gather in its harvest.
But the seventh year, you are to let it rest and lie fallow, so that the
poor among your people can eat; and what they leave, the wild animals in the
countryside can eat. Do the same with your vineyard and olive grove.
Exodus 34:21
(Maimonides RP135)
Six days you will work, but on the seventh day you are to rest - even in
plowing time and harvest season you are to rest.
Leviticus 25:1-2
(Maimonides RP135; Meir ML21; Chinuch C112)
ADONAI spoke to Moshe on Mount Sinai; he said, "Tell the people of
Isra'el, 'When you enter the land I am giving you, the land itself
is to observe a Shabbat rest for ADONAI.'"
Leviticus 25:3-4
(Maimonides RN220-221; Meir ML22-23; Chinuch C326-327)
Six years you will sow your field; six years you will prune your grapevines
and gather their produce. But in the seventh year is to be a Shabbat of
complete rest for the land, a Shabbat for ADONAI; you will neither sow your
field nor prune your grapevines.
Leviticus 25:5-7
(Maimonides RP134, RN222-223; Meir ML24-25; Chinuch
C84, C328-329)
You are not to harvest what grows by itself from the seeds left by your
previous harvest, and you are not to gather the grapes of your untended
vine; it is to be a year of complete rest for the land. But what the land
produces during the year of Shabbat will be food for all of you - you, your
servant, your maid, your employee, anyone living near you, your livestock
and the wild animals on your land; everything the land produces may be used
for food.
Leviticus 25:20-22
If you ask, "If we aren't allowed to sow seed or harvest what our land
produces, what are we going to eat the seventh year?" then I will order my
blessing on you during the sixth year, so that the land brings forth enough
produce for all three years. The eighth year you will sow seed but eat the
old, stored produce until the ninth year; that is, until the produce of the
eighth year comes in, you will eat the old, stored food.
Deuteronomy 15:1
At the end of every seven years you are to have a sh'mittah.
Deuteronomy 15:2
(Maimonides RN230; Meir MN57, MP64; Chinuch C475)
Here is how the sh'mittah is to be done: every creditor is to give up
what he has loaned to his fellow member of the community - he is not to
force his neighbor or relative to repay it, because ADONAI's time of
remission has been proclaimed.
Deuteronomy 15:3
(Maimonides RP141-142; Chinuch C476-477)
You may demand that a foreigner repay his debt, but you are to release your
claim on whatever your brother owes you.
Deuteronomy 15:4-6
In spite of this [releasing debts owed to you] there will be no one needy
among you; because ADONAI will certainly bless you in the land which ADONAI
your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess - if only you will
listen carefully to what ADONAI your God says and take care to obey all
these mitzvot I am giving you today. Yes, ADONAI your God will bless you,
as he promised you - you will lend money to many nations without having to
borrow, and you will rule over many nations without their ruling over you.
Deuteronomy 15:7-11
(Maimonides RN231; Meir MN56; Chinuch C480)
If someone among you is needy, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in
your land which ADONAI your God is giving you, you are not to harden your
heart or shut your hand from giving to your needy brother. No, you must
open your hand to him and lend him enough to meet his need and enable him to
obtain what he wants. Guard yourself against allowing your heart to
entertain the mean-spirited thought that because the seventh year, the year
of shmittah is at hand
(you would be stingy toward your needy brother and
not give him anything; for then he may cry out to ADONAI against you)
TRUSTING GOD IN THE JUBILEE YEAR
Exodus 13:12
(Maimonides RP140)
you are to set apart for ADONAI everything that is first from the womb.
Every firstborn male animal will belong to ADONAI.
Exodus 34:19
(Maimonides RP140)
Everything that is first from the womb is mine. Of all your livestock, you
are to set aside for me the males, the firstborn of cattle and flock.
Leviticus 25:4-5
(Chinuch C334)
But in the seventh year is to be a Shabbat of complete rest for the land, a
Shabbat for ADONAI; you will neither sow your field nor prune your
grapevines. You are not to harvest what grows by itself from the seeds left
by your previous harvest, and you are not to gather the grapes of your
untended vine; it is to be a year of complete rest for the land.
Leviticus 25:8
(Maimonides RP140; Chinuch C330)
You are to count seven Shabbats of years, seven times seven years, that is,
forty-nine years.
Leviticus 25:9
(Maimonides RP137; Chinuch C331)
Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month, on Yom-Kippur, you are to sound
a blast on the shofar; you are to sound the shofar all through your land
Leviticus 25:10
(Maimonides RP136-137; Chinuch C331-332)
and you are to consecrate the fiftieth year, proclaiming freedom throughout
the land to all its inhabitants. It will be a yovel for you; you will
return everyone to the land he owns, and everyone is to return to his
family.
Leviticus 25:11
(Maimonides RN224-226; Chinuch C333, C335)
That fiftieth year will be a yovel for you; in that year you are not to sow,
harvest what grows by itself or gather the grapes of untended vines
Leviticus 25:12
(Maimonides RP136)
because it is a yovel. It will be holy for you; whatever the fields produce
will be food for all of you.
Leviticus 25:13-17
In this year of yovel, every one of you is to return to the land he owns. If
you sell anything to your neighbor or buy anything from him, neither of you
is to exploit the other. Rather, you are to take into account the number of
years after the yovel when you buy land from your neighbor, and he is to
sell to you according to the number of years crops will be raised. If the
number of years remaining is large, you will raise the price; if few years
remain, you will lower it; because what he is really selling you is the
number of crops to be produced. Thus you are not to take advantage of each
other, but you are to fear your God; for I am ADONAI your God.
Leviticus 25:23
(Maimonides RN227; Chinuch C339)
The land is not to be sold in perpetuity, because the land belongs to me -
you are only foreigners and temporary residents with me.
Leviticus 25:24-28
(Maimonides RP138; Chinuch C340)
Therefore, when you sell your property, you must include the right of
redemption. That is, if one of you becomes poor and sells some of his
property, his next-of-kin can come and buy back what his relative sold. If
the seller has no one to redeem it but becomes rich enough to redeem it
himself, he will calculate the number of years the land was sold for, refund
the excess to its buyer, and return to his property. If he hasn't
sufficient means to get it back himself, then what he sold will remain in
the hands of the buyer until the year of yovel; in the yovel the buyer will
vacate it and the seller return to his property.
Leviticus 25:29-31
(Maimonides RP139; Chinuch C341)
If someone sells a dwelling in a walled city, he has one year after the date
of sale in which to redeem it. For a full year he will have the right of
redemption; but if he has not redeemed the dwelling in the walled city
within the year, then title in perpetuity passes to the buyer through all
his generations; it will not revert in the yovel. However, houses in
villages not surrounded by walls are to be dealt with like the fields in the
countryside - they may be redeemed [before the yovel], and they revert in
the yovel.
TRUSTING GOD BY RESTING ON THE WEEKLY & ANNUAL SABBATHS
Exodus 12:16
(Maimonides RP159; Meir MP25; Chunuch C297)
On the first and seventh days, you are to have an assembly set aside for
God. On these days no work is to be done, except what each must do to
prepare his food; you may do only that.
Exodus 20:8-11
(Maimonides RP155; Meir MP19; Chinuch C31)
Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God. You have six days to
labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Shabbat for ADONAI
your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work - not you, your son or
your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not
the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property. For in
six days, ADONAI made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but
on the seventh day he rested. This is why ADONAI blessed the day, Shabbat,
and separated it for himself.
Exodus 23:12
(Meir MP20; Chinuch C85)
For six days, you are to work. But on the seventh day, you are to rest, so
that your ox and donkey can rest, and your slave-girl's son and the
foreigner be renewed.
Exodus 34:21
(Maimonides RP154)
Six days you will work, but on the seventh day you are to rest - even in
plowing time and harvest season you are to rest.
Leviticus 16:29-31
(Maimonides RP165)
It is to be a permanent regulation for you that on the tenth day of the
seventh month you are to deny yourselves and not do any kind of work, both
the citizen and the foreigner living with you. For on this day, atonement
will be made for you to purify you; you will be clean before ADONAI from all
your sins. It is a Shabbat of complete rest for you, and you are to deny
yourselves. "This is a permanent regulation."
Leviticus 23:3
(Maimonides RP154)
Work is to be done on six days; but the seventh day is a Shabbat of complete
rest, a holy convocation; you are not to do any kind of work; it is a
Shabbat for ADONAI, even in your homes.
Leviticus 23:7
(Maimonides RP159; Meir MP25; Chinuch C297)
On the fifteenth day of the same month is the festival of matzah; for seven
days you are to eat matzah. On the first day you are to have a holy
convocation; dont do any kind of ordinary work.'
Leviticus 23:8
(Maimonides RP160; Meir MP27; Chinuch C300)
On the seventh day [of Matzah] is a holy convocation; do not do any kind of
ordinary work.
Leviticus 23:21
(Maimonides RP162; Meir MP28; Chinuch C308)
On the same day [Shavu'ot], you are to call a holy convocation; do not
do any kind of ordinary work; this is a permanent regulation through all
your generations, no matter where you live.
Leviticus 23:24-25
(Maimonides RP163; Meir MP29; Chinuch C310)
Tell the people of Isra'el, 'In the seventh month, the first of
the month is to be for you a day of complete rest for remembering, a holy
convocation announced with blasts on the shofar. Do not do any kind of
ordinary work, and bring an offering made by fire to ADONAI.'
Leviticus 23:27-32
(Meir MP31; Chinuch C317)
The tenth day of this seventh month is Yom-Kippur; you are to have a holy
convocation, you are to deny yourselves, and you are to bring an offering
made by fire to ADONAI. You are not to do any kind of work on that day,
because it is Yom-Kippur, to make atonement for you before ADONAI your God.
Anyone who does not deny himself on that day is to be cut off from his
people; and anyone who does any kind of work on that day, I will destroy
from among his people. You are not to do any kind of work; it is a
permanent regulation through all your generations, no matter where you live.
It will be for you a Shabbat of complete rest, and you are to deny
yourselves; you are to rest on your Shabbat from evening the ninth day of
the month until the following evening.
Leviticus 23:34-35
(Maimonides RP166; Meir MP34; Chinuch C318)
Tell the people of Isra'el, 'On the fifteenth day of this seventh
month is the feast of Sukkot for seven days to ADONAI. On the first day
there is to be a holy convocation; do not do any kind of ordinary
work.'
Leviticus 23:36
(Maimonides RP167; Meir MP37; Chinuch C321)
For seven days you are to bring an offering made by fire to ADONAI; on the
eighth day you are to have a holy convocation and bring an offering made by
fire to ADONAI; it is a day of public assembly; do not do any kind of
ordinary work.
Luke 4:16-19
Now when he [Yeshua] went to Natzeret, where he had been brought up, on
Shabbat he went to the synagogue as usual. He stood up to read, and he was
given the scroll of the prophet Yesha'yahu. Unrolling the scroll, he
found the place where it was written, "The Spirit of ADONAI is upon me;
therefore he has anointed me to announce Good News to the poor; he has sent
me to proclaim freedom for the imprisoned and renewed sight for the blind,
to release those who have been crushed, to proclaim a year of the favor of
ADONAI."
HAVING FAITH IN GOD & TRUSTING HIM AT ALL OTHER TIMES
Genesis 15:6
He [Avram] believed in ADONAI, and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Deuteronomy 7:6-15
For you are a people set apart as holy for ADONAI your God. ADONAI your God
has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his own
unique treasure. ADONAI didn't set his heart on you or choose you
because you numbered more than any other people - on the contrary, you were
the fewest of all peoples. Rather, it was because ADONAI loved you, and
because he wanted to keep the oath which he had sworn to your ancestors,
that ADONAI brought you out with a strong hand and redeemed you from a life
of slavery under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. From this you can know
that ADONAI your God is indeed God, the faithful God, who keeps his covenant
and extends grace to those who love him and observe his mitzvot, to a
thousand generations. But he repays those who hate him to their face and
destroys them. He will not be slow to deal with someone who hates him; he
will repay him to his face. Therefore, you are to keep the mitzvot, laws
and rulings which I am giving you today, and obey them. Because you are
listening to these rulings, keeping and obeying them, ADONAI your God will
keep with you the covenant and mercy that he swore to your ancestors. He
will love you, bless you and increase your numbers; he will also bless the
fruit of your body and the fruit of your ground - your grain, wine, olive
oil and the young of your cattle and sheep - in the land he swore to your
ancestors that he would give you. You will be blessed more than all other
peoples; there will not be a sterile male or female among you, and the same
with your livestock. ADONAI will remove all illness from you- he will not
afflict you with any of Egypt's dreadful diseases, which you have
known; instead, he will lay them on those who hate you.
Deuteronomy 28:1-14
If you listen closely to what ADONAI your God says, observing and obeying
all his mitzvot which I am giving you today, ADONAI your God will raise you
high above all the nations on earth; and all the following blessings will be
yours in abundance - if you will do what ADONAI your God says: A blessing on
you in the city, and a blessing on you in the countryside. A blessing on
the fruit of your body, the fruit of your land and the fruit of your
livestock - the young of your cattle and flocks. A blessing on your
grain-basket and kneading-bowl. A blessing on you when you go out, and a
blessing on you when you come in. ADONAI will cause your enemies attacking
you to be defeated before you; they will advance on you one way and flee
before you seven ways. ADONAI will order a blessing to be with you in your
barns and in everything you undertake; he will bless you in the land ADONAI
your God is giving you. ADONAI will establish you as a people separated out
for himself, as he has sworn to you - if you will observe the mitzvot of
ADONAI your God and follow his ways. Then all the peoples on earth will see
that ADONAI's name, his presence, is with you; so that they will be
afraid of you. ADONAI will give you great abundance of good things - of the
fruit of your body, the fruit of your livestock and the fruit of your land
in the land ADONAI swore to your ancestors to give you. ADONAI will open
for you his good treasure, the sky, to give your land its rain at the right
seasons and to bless everything you undertake. You will lend to many nations
and not borrow; ADONAI will make you the head and not the tail; and you will
be only above, never below - if you will listen to, observe and obey the
mitzvot of ADONAI your God and not turn away from any of the words I am
ordering you today, neither to the right nor to the left, to follow after
other gods and serve them.
Psalm 62:7-9(6-8)
He alone is my rock and salvation, my stronghold; I wont be moved. My
safety and honor rest on God. My strong rock and refuge are in God. Trust
in him
(people)
Psalm 118:6-9
With ADONAI on my side, I fear nothing - what can human beings do to me?
With ADONAI on my side as my help, I will look with triumph at those who
hate me. It is better to take refuge in ADONAI than to trust in human
beings; better to take refuge in ADONAI than to put one's trust in
princes.
Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in ADONAI with all your heart; do not rely on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him; then he will level your paths.
Proverbs 16:20
He who has skill in a matter will succeed; he who trusts in ADONAI will be
happy.
Proverbs 29:25
Fearing human beings is a snare; but he who trusts in ADONAI will be raised
high [above danger].
Matthew 6:26-34
Look at the birds flying about! They neither plant nor harvest, nor do they
gather food into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you
worth more than they are? Can any of you by worrying add a single hour to
his life? And why be anxious about clothing? Think about the fields of wild
irises, and how they grow. They neither work nor spin thread, yet I tell you
that not even Shlomo in all his glory was clothed as beautifully as one of
these. If this is how God clothes grass in the field - which is here today
and gone tomorrow, thrown in an oven - won't he much more clothe you?
What little trust you have! So don't be anxious, asking, 'What
will we eat?', 'What will we drink?' or 'How will we be
clothed?' For it is the pagans who set their hearts on all these
things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. But seek first his
Kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as
well. Don't worry about tomorrow- tomorrow will worry about itself!
Today has enough tsuris already!
John 5:24
Yes, indeed! I tell you that whoever hears what I am saying and trusts the
One who sent me has eternal life - that is, he will not come up for judgment
but has already crossed over from death to life!
John 14:1
Don't let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me.
Romans 5:1-2
So, since we have come to be considered righteous by God because of our
trust, let us continue to have shalom with God through our Lord, Yeshua the
Messiah. Also through him and on the ground of our trust, we have gained
access to this grace in which we stand; so let us boast about the hope of
experiencing Gods glory.'
Supportive Scriptures - Trusting God in the Sabbatical Year
Proverbs 11:24-25
Some give freely and still get richer, while others are stingy but grow
still poorer. The person who blesses others will prosper; he who satisfies
others will be satisfied himself.
Matthew 6:25-34
Therefore, I tell you, don't worry about your life - what you will eat
or drink; or about your body - what you will wear. Isn't life more than
food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds flying about! They
neither plant nor harvest, nor do they gather food into barns; yet your
heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you worth more than they are? Can
any of you by worrying add a single hour to his life? And why be anxious
about clothing? Think about the fields of wild irises, and how they grow.
They neither work nor spin thread, yet I tell you that not even Shlomo in
all his glory was clothed as beautifully as one of these. If this is how
God clothes grass in the field - which is here today and gone tomorrow,
thrown in an oven - won't he much more clothe you? What little trust
you have! So don't be anxious, asking, 'What will we eat?,'
'What will we drink?' or 'How will we be clothed?' For
it is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly
Father knows you need them all. But seek first his Kingdom and his
righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Don't worry about tomorrow - tomorrow will worry about itself! Today
has enough tsuris already!
Luke 12:22-32
To his talmidim Yeshua said, "Because of this I tell you, don't worry
about your life - what you will eat or drink; or about your body - what you
will wear. For life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.
Think about the ravens! They neither plant nor harvest, they have neither
storerooms nor barns, yet God feeds them. You are worth much more than the
birds! Can any of you by worrying add an hour to his life? If you
can't do a little thing like that, why worry about the rest? Think
about the wild irises, and how they grow. They neither work nor spin thread;
yet, I tell you, not even Shlomo in all his glory was clothed as beautifully
as one of these. If this is how God clothes grass, which is alive in the
field today and thrown in the oven tomorrow, how much more will he clothe
you! What little trust you have! In other words, don't strive after
what you will eat and what you will drink - don't be anxious. For all
the pagan nations in the world set their hearts on these things. Your Father
knows that you need them too. Rather, seek his Kingdom; and these things
will be given to you as well. Have no fear, little flock, for your Father
has resolved to give you the Kingdom!
2 Corinthians 9:10-12
He who provides both seed for the planter and bread for food will supply and
multiply your seed and increase the harvest of your tzedakah. You will be
enriched in every way, so that you can be generous in everything. And
through us your generosity will cause people to thank God, because rendering
this holy service not only provides for the needs of God's people, but
it also overflows in the many thanks people will be giving to God.
Supportive Scriptures - Trusting God in the Jubilee Year
Isaiah 61:1-2
The Spirit of Adonai ELOHIM is upon me, because ADONAI has anointed me to
announce good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted; to
proclaim freedom to the captives, to let out into light those bound in the
dark; to proclaim the year of the favor of ADONAI and the day of vengeance
of our God; to comfort all who mourn
Proverbs 11:24-25
See previous section
Matthew 6:25-34
See previous section.
Luke 12:22-32
See previous section.
Supportive Scriptures - Trusting God by Resting on the Weekly & Annual Sabbaths
Mark 2:27
Then he said to them, "Shabbat was made for mankind, not mankind for
Shabbat"
Hebrews 4:9
So there remains a Shabbat-keeping for God's people.
Supportive Scriptures - Having Faith in God & Trusting Him at All Other Times
2 Samuel 22:31-33
As for God, his way is perfect, the word of ADONAI has been tested by fire;
he shields all who take refuge in him. For who is God but ADONAI, and who
is a Rock but our God? God is my strength and protection; he makes my way
go straight.
Isaiah 12:2
See! God is my salvation. I am confident and unafraid; for Yah ADONAI is my
strength and my song, and he has become my salvation!
Isaiah 26:3-4
A person whose desire rests on you you preserve in perfect peace, because he
trusts in you. Trust in ADONAI forever, because in Yah ADONAI, is a Rock of
Ages.
Isaiah 43:2
When you pass through water, I will be with you; when you pass through
rivers, they will not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire, you will
not be scorched - the flame will not burn you.
Jeremiah 17:7-8
Blessed is the man who trusts in ADONAI; ADONAI will be his security. He
will be like a tree planted near water; it spreads out its roots by the
river; it does not notice when heat comes; and its foliage is luxuriant; it
is not anxious in a year of drought but keeps on yielding fruit.
Nahum 1:7
ADONAI is good, a stronghold in time of trouble; he takes care of those who
take refuge in him.
Psalm 4:6(5)
Offer sacrifices rightly, and put your trust in ADONAI.
Psalm 7:2(1)
ADONAI my God, in you I take refuge. Save me from all my pursuers, and
rescue me
Psalm 9:9-11(8-10)
He will judge the world in righteousness; he will judge the peoples fairly.
ADONAI is a stronghold for the oppressed, a tower of strength in times of
trouble. Those who know your name put their trust in you, for you have not
abandoned those who seek you, ADONAI.
Psalm 18:30(29)
With you I can run through a whole troop of men, with my God I can leap a
wall.
Psalm 20:8(7)
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we praise the name of ADONAI
our God.
Psalm 27:5
For he will conceal me in his shelter on the day of trouble, he will hide me
in the folds of his tent, he will set me high on a rock.
Psalm 32:10
Many are the torments of the wicked, but grace surrounds those who trust in
ADONAI.
Psalm 37:3-6
Trust in ADONAI, and do good; settle in the land, and feed on faithfulness.
Then you will delight yourself in ADONAI, and he will give you your
heart's desire. Commit your way to ADONAI; trust in him, and he will
act. He will make your vindication shine forth like light, the justice of
your cause like the noonday sun.
Psalm 40:2-18(1-17)
I waited patiently for ADONAI, till he turned toward me and heard my cry.
He brought me up from the roaring pit, up from the muddy ooze, and set my
feet on a rock, making my footing firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a
song of praise to our God. Many will look on in awe and put their trust in
ADONAI. How blessed the man who trusts in ADONAI and does not look to the
arrogant or to those who rely on things that are false. How much you have
done, ADONAI my God! Your wonders and your thoughts toward us - none can
compare with you! I would proclaim them, I would speak about them; but
there's too much to tell! Sacrifices and grain offerings you
don't want; burnt offerings and sin offerings you don't demand.
Instead, you have given me open ears; so then I said, "Here I am! I'm
coming!" In the scroll of a book it is written about me. Doing your will,
my God, is my joy; your Torah is in my inmost being. I have proclaimed what
is right in the great assembly; I did not restrain my lips, ADONAI, as you
know. I did not hide your righteousness in my heart but declared your
faithfulness and salvation; I did not conceal your grace and truth from the
great assembly. ADONAI, don't withhold your mercy from me. Let your
grace and truth preserve me always. For numberless evils surround me; my
iniquities engulf me - I can't even see; there are more of them than
hairs on my head, so that my courage fails me. Be pleased, ADONAI, to
rescue me! ADONAI, hurry and help me! May those who seek to sweep me away
be disgraced and humiliated together. May those who take pleasure in doing
me harm be turned back and put to confusion. May those who jeer at me,
"Aha! Aha!" be aghast because of their shame. But may all those who seek
you be glad and take joy in you. May those who love your salvation say
always, "ADONAI is great and glorious!" But I am poor and needy; may Adonai
think of me. You are my helper and rescuer; my God, don't delay!
Psalm 46:2(1)
God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
Psalm 56:3-12(2-11)
Those who are lying in wait for me would trample on me all day. For those
fighting against me are many. Most High, when I am afraid, I put my trust in
you. In God - I praise his word - in God I trust; I have no fear; what can
human power do to me? All day long they twist my words; their only thought
is to harm me. They gather together and hide themselves, spying on my
movements, hoping to kill me. Because of their crime, they cannot escape;
in anger, God, strike down the peoples. You have kept count of my
wanderings; store my tears in your water-skin - arent they already recorded
in your book? Then my enemies will turn back on the day when I call; this I
know: that God is for me. In God - I praise his word - in ADONAI - I praise
his word - in God I trust; I have no fear; what can mere humans do to me?'
Psalm 71:5-6
For you are my hope, Adonai ELOHIM, in whom I have trusted since I was
young. From birth I have relied on you; it was you who took me from my
mother's womb.
Psalm 91:1-7
You who live in the shelter of 'Elyon, who spend your nights in the
shadow of Shaddai, who say to ADONAI, "My refuge! My fortress! My God, in
whom I trust!" - he will rescue you from the trap of the hunter and from the
plague of calamities; he will cover you with his pinions, and under his
wings you will find refuge; his truth is a shield and protection. You will
not fear the terrors of night or the arrow that flies by day, or the plague
that roams in the dark, or the scourge that wreaks havoc at noon. A
thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand; but it
won't come near you.
Psalm 112:7
He will not be frightened by bad news; he remains steady, trusting in
ADONAI.
Psalm 121:2-8
My help comes from ADONAI, the maker of heaven and earth. He will not let
your foot slip - your guardian is not asleep. No, the guardian of
Isra'el never slumbers or sleeps. ADONAI is your guardian; at your
right hand ADONAI provides you with shade - the sun can't strike you
during the day or even the moon at night. ADONAI will guard you against all
harm; he will guard your life. ADONAI will guard your coming and going from
now on and forever.
Psalm 143:8-9
Make me hear of your love in the morning, because I rely on you. Make me
know the way I should walk, because I entrust myself to you. ADONAI,
rescue me from my enemies; I have hidden myself with you.
Psalm 145:18-20
ADONAI is close to all who call on him, to all who sincerely call on him.
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves
them. ADONAI protects all who love him, but all the wicked he destroys.
Proverbs 30:5
Every word of Gods is pure; he shields those taking refuge in him.'
Job 13:15
Even if He kills me, I will hope in Him. I will still defend my ways before
Him. (CJB)
Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. Even so, I will defend my own ways
before Him. (NKJ)
Daniel 3:16-18
Shadrakh, Meishakh and 'Aved-N'go answered the king, "Your
question doesn't require an answer from us. Your majesty, if our God,
whom we serve, is able to save us, he will save us from the blazing hot
furnace and from your power. But even if he doesn't, we want you to
know, your majesty, that we will neither serve your gods nor worship the
gold statue which you have set up."
2 Chronicles 20:20
The next morning, they rose early and went out into the T'koa Desert.
As they left, Y'hoshafat stood and said, "Listen to me, Y'hudah
and you inhabitants of Yerushalayim! Trust in ADONAI your God, and you will
be safe. Trust in his prophets, and you will succeed."
Matthew 8:23-26
He boarded the boat, and his talmidim followed. Then, without warning, a
furious storm arose on the lake, so that waves were sweeping over the boat.
But Yeshua was sleeping. So they came and roused him, saying, "Sir! Help!
We're about to die!" He said to them, "Why are you afraid? So little
trust you have!" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and
there was a dead calm.
Mark 10:46-52
They came to Yericho; and as Yeshua was leaving Yericho with his talmidim
and a great crowd, a blind beggar, Bar-Timai (son of Timai), was sitting by
the side of the road. When he heard that it was Yeshua from Natzeret, he
started shouting, "Yeshua! Son of David! Have pity on me!" Many people
scolded him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the louder, "Son of
David! Have pity on me!" Yeshua stopped and said, "Call him over!" They
called to the blind man, "Courage! Get up! He's calling for you!"
Throwing down his blanket, he jumped up and came over to Yeshua. "What do
you want me to do for you?" asked Yeshua. The blind man said to him, "Rabbi,
let me be able to see again." Yeshua said to him, "Go! Your trust has
healed you." Instantly he received his sight and followed him on the road.
Mark 11:20-22
In the morning, as the talmidim passed by, they saw the fig tree withered
all the way to its roots. Kefa remembered and said to Yeshua, "Rabbi! Look!
The fig tree that you cursed has dried up!" He responded, "Have the kind of
trust that comes from God!"
Mark 16:16
Whoever trusts and is immersed will be saved; whoever does not trust will be
condemned.
Luke 12:4-7
My friends, I tell you: don't fear those who kill the body but then
have nothing more they can do. I will show you whom to fear: fear him who
after killing you has authority to throw you into Gei-Hinnom! Yes, I tell
you, this is the one to fear! Aren't sparrows sold for next to
nothing, five for two assarions? And not one of them has been forgotten by
God. Why, every hair on your head has been counted! Don't be afraid,
you are worth more than many sparrows.
John 3:16-18
For God so loved the world that he gave his only and unique Son, so that
everyone who trusts in him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly
destroyed. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world,
but rather so that through him, the world might be saved. Those who trust
in him are not judged; those who do not trust have been judged already, in
that they have not trusted in the one who is God's only and unique
Son.
John 6:35
Yeshua answered, "I am the bread which is life! Whoever comes to me will
never go hungry, and whoever trusts in me will never be thirsty."
John 6:47
Yes, indeed! I tell you, whoever trusts has eternal life
John 11:25-26
Yeshua said to her [Marta], "I AM the Resurrection and the Life! Whoever
puts his trust in me will live, even if he dies; and everyone living and
trusting in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
John 11:40
Yeshua said to her [Marta], "Didn't I tell you that if you keep
trusting, you will see the glory of God?"
Romans 3:28-30
Therefore, we hold the view that a person comes to be considered righteous
by God on the ground of trusting, which has nothing to do with legalistic
observance of Torah commands. Or is God the God of the Jews only?
Isn't he also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, he is indeed the God of the
Gentiles; because, as you will admit, God is one. Therefore, he will
consider righteous the circumcised on the ground of trusting and the
uncircumcised through that same trusting.
Romans 4:4-5
Now the account of someone who is working is credited not on the ground of
grace but on the ground of what is owed him. However, in the case of one
who is not working but rather is trusting in him who makes ungodly people
righteous, his trust is credited to him as righteousness.
Romans 10:8-13
What, then, does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your
heart." - that is, the word about trust which we proclaim, namely, that if
you acknowledge publicly with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord and trust in
your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be delivered. For
with the heart one goes on trusting and thus continues toward righteousness,
while with the mouth one keeps on making public acknowledgement and thus
continues toward deliverance. For the passage quoted says that everyone who
rests his trust on him will not be humiliated. That means that there is no
difference between Jew and Gentile - ADONAI is the same for everyone, rich
toward everyone who calls on him, since everyone who calls on the name of
ADONAI will be delivered.
Romans 15:13
May God, the source of hope, fill you completely with joy and shalom as you
continue trusting, so that by the power of the Ruach HaKodesh you may
overflow with hope.
2 Corinthians 5:5-7
Moreover, it is God who has prepared us for this very thing, and as a pledge
he has given us his Spirit. So we are always confident - we know that so
long as we are at home in the body, we are away from our home with the Lord;
for we live by trust, not by what we see.
Galatians 2:15-16
We are Jews by birth, not so-called 'Goyishe sinners'; even so, we
have come to realize that a person is not declared righteous by God on the
ground of his legalistic observance of Torah commands, but through the
Messiah Yeshua's trusting faithfulness. Therefore, we too have put our
trust in Messiah Yeshua and become faithful to him, in order that we might
be declared righteous on the ground of the Messiah's trusting
faithfulness and not on the ground of our legalistic observance of Torah
commands. For on the ground of legalistic observance of Torah commands, no
one will be declared righteous.
Galatians 3:5-14
What about God, who supplies you with the Spirit and works miracles among
you - does he do it because of your legalistic observance of Torah commands
or because you trust in what you heard and are faithful to it? It was the
same with Avraham: "He trusted in God and was faithful to him, and that was
credited to his account as righteousness." Be assured, then, that it is
those who live by trusting and being faithful who are really children of
Avraham. Also the Tanakh, foreseeing that God would consider the Gentiles
righteous when they live by trusting and being faithful, told the Good News
to Avraham in advance by saying, "In connection with you, all the Goyim will
be blessed." So then, those who rely on trusting and being faithful are
blessed along with Avraham, who trusted and was faithful. For everyone who
depends on legalistic observance of Torah commands lives under a curse,
since it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing
everything written in the Scroll of the Torah." Now it is evident that no
one comes to be declared righteous by God through legalism, since "The
person who is righteous will attain life by trusting and being faithful."
Furthermore, legalism is not based on trusting and being faithful, but on [a
misuse of] the text that says, "Anyone who does these things will attain
life through them." The Messiah redeemed us from the curse pronounced in
the Torah by becoming cursed on our behalf; for the Tanakh says, "Everyone
who hangs from a stake comes under a curse." Yeshua the Messiah did this so
that in union with him the Gentiles might receive the blessing announced to
Avraham, so that through trusting and being faithful, we might receive what
was promised, namely, the Spirit.
Galatians 3:21-26
Does this mean that the legal part of the Torah stands in opposition to
God's promises? Heaven forbid! For if the legal part of the Torah which
God gave had had in itself the power to give life, then righteousness really
would have come by legalistically following such a Torah. But instead, the
Tanakh shuts up everything under sin; so that what had been promised might
be given, on the basis of Yeshua the Messiah's trusting faithfulness,
to those who continue to be trustingly faithful. Now before the time for
this trusting faithfulness came, we were imprisoned in subjection to the
system which results from perverting the Torah into legalism, kept under
guard until this yet-to-come trusting faithfulness would be revealed.
Accordingly, the Torah functioned as a custodian until the Messiah came, so
that we might be declared righteous on the ground of trusting and being
faithful. But now that the time for this trusting faithfulness has come, we
are no longer under a custodian. For in union with the Messiah, you are all
children of God through this trusting faithfulness
Ephesians 2:8
For you have been delivered by grace through trusting, and even this is not
your accomplishment but Gods gift.'
Philippians 3:8-9
Not only that, but I consider everything a disadvantage in comparison with
the supreme value of knowing the Messiah Yeshua as my Lord. It was because
of him that I gave up everything and regard it all as garbage, in order to
gain the Messiah and be found in union with him, not having any
righteousness of my own based on legalism, but having that righteousness
which comes through the Messiah's faithfulness, the righteousness from
God based on trust.
1 Timothy 4:9-10
Here is a statement you can trust, one that fully deserves to be accepted
(indeed, it is for this that we toil and strive): we have our hope set on a
living God who is the deliverer of all humanity, especially of those who
trust.
Hebrews 11:1-34
Trusting is being confident of what we hope for, convinced about things we
do not see. It was for this that Scripture attested the merit of the people
of old. By trusting, we understand that the universe was created through a
spoken word of God, so that what is seen did not come into being out of
existing phenomena. By trusting, Hevel offered a greater sacrifice than
Kayin; because of this, he was attested as righteous, with God giving him
this testimony on the ground of his gifts. Through having trusted, he still
continues to speak, even though he is dead. By trusting, Hanokh was taken
away from this life without seeing death- He was not to be found, because
God took him away"- for he has been attested as having been, prior to being
taken away, well pleasing to God. And without trusting, it is impossible to
be well pleasing to God, because whoever approaches him must trust that he
does exist and that he becomes a Rewarder to those who seek him out. By
trusting, Noach, after receiving divine warning about things as yet unseen,
was filled with holy fear and built an ark to save his household. Through
this trusting, he put the world under condemnation and received the
righteousness that comes from trusting. By trusting, Avraham obeyed, after
being called to go out to a place which God would give him as a possession;
indeed, he went out without knowing where he was going. By trusting, he
lived as a temporary resident in the Land of the promise, as if it were not
his, staying in tents with Yitz'chak and Ya'akov, who were to
receive what was promised along with him. For he was looking forward to the
city with permanent foundations, of which the architect and builder is God.
By trusting, he received potency to father a child, even when he was past
the age for it, as was Sarah herself; because he regarded the One who had
made the promise as trustworthy. Therefore this one man, who was virtually
dead, fathered descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky, and as
countless as the grains of the sand on the seashore. All these people kept
on trusting until they died, without receiving what had been promised. They
had only seen it and welcomed it from a distance, while acknowledging that
they were aliens and temporary residents on the earth. For people who speak
this way make it clear that they are looking for a fatherland. Now if they
were to keep recalling the one they left, they would have an opportunity to
return; but as it is, they aspire to a better fatherland, a heavenly one.
This is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared
for them a city. By trusting, Avraham, when he was put to the test, offered
up Yitz'chak as a sacrifice. Yes, he offered up his only son, he who
had received the promises, to whom it had been said, "What is called your
'seed' will be in Yitz'chak." For he had concluded that God
could even raise people from the dead! And, figuratively speaking, he did so
receive him. By trusting, Yitz'chak in his blessings over Ya'akov
and Esav made reference to events yet to come. By trusting, Ya'akov,
when he was dying, blessed each of Yosef's sons, leaning on his
walking-stick as he bowed in prayer. By trusting, Yosef, near the end of
his life, remembered about the Exodus of the people of Isra'el and gave
instructions about what to do with his bones. By trusting, the parents of
Moshe hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw that he
was a beautiful child, and they weren't afraid of the king's
decree. By trusting, Moshe, after he had grown up, refused to be called the
son of Pharaoh's daughter. He chose being mistreated along with
God's people rather than enjoying the passing pleasures of sin. He had
come to regard abuse suffered on behalf of the Messiah as greater riches
than the treasures of Egypt, for he kept his eyes fixed on the reward. By
trusting, he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger; he persevered as
one who sees the unseen. By trusting, he obeyed the requirements for the
Pesach, including the smearing of the blood, so that the Destroyer of the
firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Isra'el. By trusting, they
walked through the Red Sea as through dry land; when the Egyptians tried to
do it, the sea swallowed them up. By trusting, the walls of Yericho fell
down- after the people had marched around them for seven days. By trusting,
Rachav the prostitute welcomed the spies and therefore did not die along
with those who were disobedient. What more should I say? There isn't
time to tell about Gid'on, Barak, Shimshon, Yiftach, David,
Sh'mu'el and the prophets; who, through trusting, conquered
kingdoms, worked righteousness, received what was promised, shut the mouths
of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, had
their weakness turned to strength, grew mighty in battle and routed foreign
armies.
James 1:2-8
Regard it all as joy, my brothers, when you face various kinds of
temptations; for you know that the testing of your trust produces
perseverance. But let perseverance do its complete work; so that you may be
complete and whole, lacking in nothing. Now if any of you lacks wisdom, let
him ask God, who gives to all generously and without reproach; and it will
be given to him. But let him ask in trust, doubting nothing; for the
doubter is like a wave in the sea being tossed and driven by the wind.
Indeed that person should not think that he will receive anything from the
Lord, because he is double-minded, unstable in all his ways.
1 Peter 1:8-9
Without having seen him, you love him. Without seeing him now, but trusting
in him, you continue to be full of joy that is glorious beyond words. And
you are receiving what your trust is aiming at, namely, your deliverance.
1 John 3:21-23
Dear friends, if our hearts know nothing against us, we have confidence in
approaching God; then, whatever we ask for, we receive from him; because we
are obeying his commands and doing the things that please him. This is his
command: that we are to trust in the person and power of his Son Yeshua the
Messiah and to keep loving one another, just as he commanded us.
1 John 4:16
Also we have come to know and trust the love that God has for us. God is
love; and those who remain in this love remain united with God, and God
remains united with them.
1 John 5:3-5
For loving God means obeying his commands. Moreover, his commands are not
burdensome, because everything which has God as its Father overcomes the
world. And this is what victoriously overcomes the world: our trust. Who
does overcome the world if not the person who believes that Yeshua is the
Son of God?
1 John 5:13-14
I have written you these things so that you may know that you have eternal
life - you who keep trusting in the person and power of the Son of God. This
is the confidence we have in his presence: if we ask anything that accords
with his will, he hears us.
Commentary
This Mitzvah commands us to have faith in God and trust Him for all things. Faith and trust are at the very heart of our relationship with God, so it is no wonder that there are so many Scriptures in the Bible that speak to it. Many Scriptures address it directly, and it is also built into the Jewish life experience through the Sh'mitah, the Year of Jubilee, and the various Sabbaths that require that we rest ourselves and/or our land, cancel debts, and return our land to its original owners every fifty years. All of these require that we put ourselves in God's hands and trust Him to provide for us and protect us.
Scripturally, there is no difference between faith and trust as we may see from the following two translations of Hebrews 11:1:
CJB: Trusting is being confident of what we hope for, convinced about
things we do not see.
NKJ: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen.
This connection of trust and faith to our not seeing is vitally important. When we exercise faith, it is not only that we do not see God; that is always the case. It is that we do not see or understand the circumstance or the issue for which we trust Him, and we must therefore make ourselves vulnerable to Him and rely solely on Him. The extent to which we do that betrays how discipled we are. If we are new in the Lord, we likely give ourselves over to Him periodically and on a case by case basis. The ideal, however, is that our walk with God is one of continuous reliance and continuous trust as it appears was the case with Enoch in Genesis 5:24:
Hanokh [Enoch] walked with God, and then he wasn't there, because God took him.
Classical Commentators
Despite the plethora of Scriptures on trust and faith, Maimonides, Meir and HaChinuch did not construct any mitzvot specifically on the subject. Nevertheless, Maimonides separately wrote his famous "Thirteen Basic Principles of Faith" that list what we are to believe about God apart from our having natural evidence:
1. God exists.
2. God is one.
3. God is incorporeal
4. God is eternal
5. Only God may be worshipped
6. Prophets exist who hear God's voice
7. Moses was the chief of the prophets
8. The entire Torah was given to Moses from heaven
9. The Torah is perfect and we must therefore not add nor subtract
from it
10. God is omniscient
11. God rewards and punishes
12. The Messiah will come, and we should not try to predict when
13. There is a resurrection from the dead
NCLA: JMm JFm KMm KFm GMm GFm