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©2011-2025, David E. Robinson: At the Gates of Yerushalayim Ministries
Lessons
from the Wilderness, Volume 69
…What We Know… Part Nine
“You Worship What
You Do Not Know”[i] [ii]
[iii]
…A Biblical Examination of the Jewish Context of
our Blessed Hope in Messiah…
22 yYou worship what you
do not know;
zwe worship what we know, for zsalvation is afrom the Jews.
3 But bthe hour is coming, and is now here, when the true
worshipers will worship the Father cin spirit and dtruth, for the Father eis seeking such people
to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in
spirit and truth.”[iv]
We now come to the end of this matter, the end of our series. The last few parts have been veering toward the Technical for a reason. That reason is as simple as it is profound:
Bible reading
is not bible study.
There
is a cognitive connection to reading and studying. We have to think about what
we are reading. We just simply cannot accept rote learning as a way to get to
know YHVH in the manner He wants us to know Him – a deep abiding knowledge that
comes with asking questions, with searching for the answers, with what the Holy
and inspired words of God and man have laid down to create a living document
that changes lives, changes destinies. We have to know Him within
the framework and context in which he chose to introduce Himself and
ultimately, His Messiah Yeshua.
Our worldview has to be the same as
those who wrote the words, their cultures, their mistakes, their successes, the
way they understood the world to be. The Bible, in both its forms, is not a
science book. It is not a book on astrology, it is not a philosophical treatise:
it was not written to scholars, pastors, professors, or even laymen and women
of the “church”. It was not written to Americans, Russians, Englanders, or any “religion”,
be it Christian (in all its denominational flavors), Islam, Buddhism, Secular
Humanism, Hinduism, or the “isms” of any nation save one.
It is a Jewish Book,
both iterations (Tanakh and Messianic), through and through.
It was written
exclusively TO them, the ancient Israelites,
But also, it was
written FOR us, those that followed, so that we too, as strangers
and sojourners, could find the only True ʾelōhiym and be saved.
Study is the highest form of worship there is:
embrace it and learn of Him.
Let us recap the lessons from the last two parts:
In a Jewish theological frame,
knowledge of God (daʿat
ʾelōhiym)
is not merely a intellectual assent but relational fidelity (i.e. a
relationship based on loyalty) within covenant. To “know” God means to walk
in His ways (Deut 10:12–13), to live inside the pattern of relationship He
defines. We are to walk in Covenantal participation which therefore
means that one’s knowledge of God is enacted—you participate
in His revealed will rather than merely affirming it. It is a shared life, not
an abstract belief.
In a Jewish biblical sense, epistemic
accountability is the religious obligation to seek,
acquire, and use knowledge (specifically the knowledge of God and His
commandments) to inform one's actions and then live an ethical, covenantal
life. It links the intellectual pursuit of "knowing" with the
moral requirement of "doing," making one responsible to God
and the community for the knowledge one gains and how it is applied.
When consider together then – what
becomes the next logical step in knowing God? This is the final piece of the
puzzle we have all been searching for.
Knowing God as
Covenant Fidelity: A Scriptural Trajectory
Deuteronomy 6 lays the foundation.
6 “Now this is zthe commandment—the
statutes and the rules1—that
the Lord your God commanded me to
teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to
possess it, 2 that ayou may fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your
son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command
you, all the days of your life, and bthat
your days may be long. 3 Hear
therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you,
and that you may multiply greatly, cas
the Lord, the God of your fathers,
has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.
4 “Hear, O Israel: dThe Lord our God, the Lord is one.2 5 You eshall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And fthese words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 gYou shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 hYou shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 iYou shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. ([vi]) ([vii])
Knowledge is thus the seed of loving obedience. In this context, believing loyalty becomes the heart of covenant knowing faith is expressed not through abstract belief but through embodied allegiance to Yahweh’s covenant. Jeremiah extends this trajectory by linking knowledge of God with ethical imitation. Speaking of King Josiah, Jeremiah declares, “He defended the cause of the poor and needy… Is not this to know Me?” (Jer 22:16).
Knowledge
becomes visible in justice and righteousness—actions that mirror God’s own
character. Heiser again notes that this seamless union of faith and justice is
essential: “To image God is to imitate God’s character in the world; loyalty to
Yahweh is displayed through righteous action.” [ix]
Josiah’s faithfulness is not doctrinal precision alone, but allegiance expressed through just governance. This is believing loyalty in ethical form. Hosea reveals what happens when this covenantal knowledge and believing loyalty collapse. In Hosea 4, the absence of the “knowledge of God” leads to societal decay—not because the people lack information, but because they refuse to live the truth they possess.
4 kHear the word of the Lord, O children of Israel, for lthe Lord has a
controversy with the inhabitants of the land.
2 nthere is swearing,
lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery; they break all bounds, and obloodshed follows
bloodshed.
and
the birds of the heavens, rand
even the fish of the sea are taken away.
4 sYet let no one contend, and
let none accuse, for with you is tmy
contention, O priest.1
5 You
shall stumble by day; the prophet also shall stumble with you by night; and I
will destroy uyour mother.
6 My people are destroyed vfor lack of knowledge; wbecause you have rejected knowledge,
I reject you xfrom
being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God,
yI also will
forget your children. [x]
Thus
Hosea calls them to return: “Let us know; let us press on to know the LORD”
(Hos 6:3). True knowledge is the believing loyalty that
continually re-aligns the heart toward God.
In
Conclusion
John
Chapter 4 brings this biblical trajectory to its Messianic/Christological culmination.
Jesus tells the Samaritan woman, “You worship what you do not know,”
identifying a worship disconnected from covenantal revelation. True knowledge
of God is tied to receiving God’s self-disclosure—now revealed in Messiah.
Heiser
emphasizes that allegiance to Jesus as Messiah is the New Covenant form of
believing loyalty: “The gospel is a call to believe and remain loyal to Jesus
as God’s chosen king.”[xii]
The woman’s transformation illustrates this dynamic—revelation received, truth
embraced, and loyalty expressed through testimony and worship realigned.
Taken
together, these texts and themes form a coherent biblical vision. To know God
is to receive His revelation, allow it to reshape the heart, imitate His
character, walk in covenant fidelity, return to Him continually, and persevere
in the believing loyalty that fuses faith and obedience. Knowledge without
obedience, justice, chesed, or allegiance is not biblical knowing. True
knowledge of God is enacted, embodied, loyal, and renewed daily. To know Him,
we must study. When we know Him, then we revere Him. Daʿat ʾelōhiym. Da ‘at Yeshua. I pray this study has drawn you nearer to
Him. Shalom.
There are a few more things we need to discuss. I have made much of our own obligations to study the Word of God; how though, did we receive this Word? The following is but a taste of our next series: “The Supernatural Transmission of the Word of God: Why it Matters.”
I
pray you will join me. You will see this again…
APPENDIX
“THE DIVINE–HUMAN SYNERGY OF SCRIPTURE”
A Supplement to the Supernatural
Transmission Series
INTRODUCTION
In this study, we have shown that
Scripture did not descend mechanically from heaven, nor is it merely a human
archive of religious memory. The biblical text portrays itself as the result of
a divine–human synergy: God speaking through His people, and His
people faithfully speaking for God. This harmonious cooperation is
neither accidental nor peripheral—it is the very means by which God chose to
reveal His Word.
This appendix summarizes that synergy in biblical,
theological, and historical terms, and provides foundational readings for
deeper study.
SECTION 1 — THE BIBLICAL PATTERN OF
SYNERGY
1.1 “Men Spoke from God”: The
Pattern in 2 Peter 1:20–21
Peter gives one of the most concise statements on
inspiration:
“Men spoke from God as they were carried along by the
Holy Spirit.” (2 Pet 1:21)
Here we see two active subjects:
- Humans
— “men spoke”
- God
— “carried along by the Spirit”
The apostles do not erase human agency, style, vocabulary,
or historical context. Nor do they present the prophets as independent
religious geniuses. Instead, Scripture shows God’s breath and human voice
working together in a single act of revelation. ¹
1.2 God Speaks Through Human
Mouths
The New Testament repeatedly attributes biblical speech to
both God and human authors:
- “You
spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David.”
(Acts 4:25)
- “As
the Holy Spirit says…” (Heb 3:7)
- God
speaks “through David” (Heb 4:7)
This dual attribution reveals a consistent pattern: one
word, two authors—God as the primary author, the human as the genuine,
willing instrument. ²
1.3 Human Processes in Inspired
Scripture
The Bible does not hide its human elements:
- Luke’s
research (Luke 1:1–4)
- Scribal
copying in Proverbs (Prov 25:1)
- Jeremiah’s
scroll rewritten and expanded (Jer 36)
These passages show that inspiration is not divine override;
it is divine superintendence, working through the natural processes of
writing, editing, preserving, and proclaiming. ³
SECTION 2 — REJECTING THE FALSE
ALTERNATIVES
2.1 The Dictation Model
Some imagine that if Scripture is God’s Word, the authors
must have exercised no freedom: no choice of words, no shaping of narrative, no
poetic expression, no cultural idioms. But such a view:
- contradicts
Luke’s own description of his work,
- ignores
the individuality of the biblical authors, and
- collapses
inspiration into mechanical control.⁴
2.2 The Purely Human Model
Others view Scripture as only a human construction. But this
neglects:
- God’s
repeated self-claims of speaking,
- the
prophetic office as divinely initiated,
- and
the apostolic witness as Spirit-driven and authoritative.
This view preserves human expression but at the cost of
God’s voice.
2.3 Scripture’s Own Middle Way
The Bible presents neither extreme, but a cooperative
model:
- Humans
truly speak.
- God
truly speaks.
- The
Spirit “carries along,” guides, and empowers without erasing humanity.
This is exactly the pattern we would expect from the God who
formed Adam from dust, sent prophets and apostles, and ultimately became flesh
in Messiah Yeshua.
SECTION 3 — SYNERGY AS GOD’S
ORDINARY MODE OF ACTION
Scripture gives many examples of divine–human cooperation:
- Sanctification:
“Work out your salvation… for it is God who works in you.” (Phil 2:12–13) - Apostolic
labor:
“I worked harder… yet not I, but the grace of God within me.” (1 Cor 15:10)
In neither example does Paul reduce himself to a passive
instrument. God’s activity empowers, rather than replaces, human activity.
The formation of Scripture is no different: human authors,
scribes, collectors, and communities work, while God works through them.
SECTION 4 — CANON AS THE
SPIRIT-GUIDED END OF THE PROCESS
If Scripture emerges from divine–human cooperation, then the
formation of the canon is the Spirit-shaped culmination of that
cooperation.
- God
guided Israel’s preservation of Torah, Prophets, and Writings.
- God
guided the apostles and their companions in producing the New Testament.
- God
guided the early communities who recognized, circulated, and protected the
inspired writings. ⁵
The canon is not arbitrary. It is the result of long-term
providence—God superintending the community of faith to preserve exactly what
He intended to give His people.
SECTION 5 — SUMMARY DOCTRINAL
STATEMENT
We affirm that Holy Scripture is the
fully divine and fully human Word of God. The biblical authors wrote freely and
creatively within their historical contexts, yet they were carried along by the
Holy Spirit so that their words are the very speech of God. God superintended
not only the initial moments of composition but the long processes of
transmission, editing, collection, and canon formation. Therefore Scripture
stands as the sovereignly guided and faithfully preserved witness of God to His
people.
ANNOTATED READING LIST
Heiser, Michael S.
- The
Unseen Realm — foundational for
understanding the supernatural worldview that frames biblical revelation.
- Supernatural
— accessible summary of divine communication in ancient contexts.
Walton, John H., and Brent Sandy.
- The
Lost World of Scripture — premier treatment of
inspiration as divine–human communication embedded in ANE literary
culture.
Wright, N. T.
- The
Last Word — Scripture as the Spirit-led
story, culminating in the canon.
Childs, Brevard S.
- Introduction
to the Old Testament as Scripture — canonical shaping and the
theological role of the final form of the text.
Longman, Tremper III.
- How
to Read the Bible for All Its Worth — the
genres, voices, and literary forms through which God speaks.
FOOTNOTES
- For a classic treatment of
“dual authorship,” see John Calvin, Commentaries on the Catholic
Epistles, on 2 Peter 1:21.
- Cf. F. F. Bruce, The Canon
of Scripture, who highlights the NT’s dual attribution of Psalms to
both David and the Spirit.
- John H. Walton and Brent Sandy,
The Lost World of Scripture, esp. Propositions 1–6.
- B. B. Warfield, The
Inspiration and Authority of the Bible, provides the strongest
traditional defense of verbal inspiration; however, his model often
minimizes human literary freedom.
- On the Spirit-guided
recognition of canon, see N. T. Wright, The Last Word, and Brevard
Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture.
End of Appendix.
Amein
[i]NOTICE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
RIGHTS: Unless
otherwise cited, all material found on this blogsite (original text, opinions,
conclusions, and other material not related to cited sources remains the
collected intellectual property of the author of this site, David E. Robinson,
Elder, teacher, and minister, and are owned and controlled by myself and are
protected by copyright and trademark laws and various other intellectual
property rights and unfair competition laws of the United States, foreign
jurisdictions, and international conventions. Any errors found within, rest
solely upon me; please do not blame the Father for my mistakes. I am teachable
and correctable, not infallible. 😊 What I aim to do in this
blog is trying to help you study your Bible better, by providing you with notes
and explanations that you, my dear reader, may not have the resources available
to you.
[ii] FAIR USE DISCLAIMER: This
blog site may contain content that is not authorized for use by its owner. All
such material will be cited back to its original source. According to Section
107 of the Copyright Act: “…the fair use of a copyrighted work […] for purposes
such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies
for classroom use), scholarship, or research, is not an infringement of
copyright…” I have made and will continue to make every effort to stay within
all ethical and moral guidelines in the use of material presented here, and the
use of these materials is solely intended for educational purposes only, and
all efforts to obtain or sustain fair use of non-owned material will be made.
That being said, this site is for education only and is not affiliated with any
institution, organization, or religious group. It is the sole production of its
editor/author. Use of information from Jewish-themed websites (or any other
source material) should not be construed as these sites endorsing or confirming
any thesis introduced by the author of this epistle. I present the information
from their respective sites for instructional purposes only and/or to aid in
the readers understanding of the subjects discussed.
[iii] Author’s note:
Throughout these studies, I will be using the NET Bible® and the NET Notes®:
within the notes you will see symbols like this: ( B Ψ 892* 2427 sys) [see explanation
below…]. These are abbreviations used by the NET Bible® for identifying the
principal manuscript evidence that they (authors and translators of the NET
Bible®) used in translating the Old and New Testament. Please go to https://bible.org/netbible/
and see their section labeled “NET Bible Principals of Translation” for
a more complete explanation on these symbols and other items pertinent to the
way the NET Bible uses them. Net® foot/end notes will be separated as follows:
(start
of): NET Bible® Notes: {the numbered notations are unique to the NET® Bible
and will be separated by this notation.}
(end
of): {End Net® Notes}
This
is not to say that the NET® Bible will be our only source of God’s word but
will be used as seen fit. To help you
understand, the symbols listed here mean the following:
Breakdown
of the symbols
·
B:
This refers to Codex Vaticanus, one of the oldest and most important
Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. Dating to the 4th century CE, it is a
key witness to the Alexandrian text-type.
·
Ψ
(Psi): This is a standard abbreviation for the book of Psalms, from the
Greek word psalmoi. In New Testament textual notes, it can also refer to
the important 8th-century Greek manuscript Codex Athous Lavrensis.
·
892*:
This is a number assigned to a specific ancient biblical manuscript. The
asterisk (*raised to the * power*) indicates that the reading came from the
original, uncorrected version of the manuscript. The manuscript itself is a
9th-century Greek minuscule manuscript containing the Gospels and Acts.
·
2427:
This refers to another Greek minuscule manuscript, dating to the 14th century,
containing the Gospels.
·
sys:
This is an abbreviation for the Syriac manuscript tradition, which was a
very important early translation of the New Testament into Syriac, a dialect of
Aramaic.
·
For those who wish to take their studies to the next
level, a list of symbols used in textural criticism can be found here: https://www.cob-net.org/compare/docs/reference-charts-ciampa.pdf
Also,
in these studies, I have used the notes that come along with the passages cited
from the sources notated: these need a bit of a disclaimer though. As in all
things, not everything that is footnoted is something that may I necessarily
agree with [nor specifically disagree with]; the only instances will be where I
may find it not compatible with what I believe pertains to any matters of the
Torah or the commandments of God. I give you the notes as they are written by
the authors of the material I cite from, so that you can see the information
contained within them. It truly is not my place to edit or ignore them; if they
state anything that is in opposition to what I teach, then so be it. I will
address these issues if requested. That is not to say I should not challenge
something I believe, in my humble opinion, might contradict the truth of God’s
word; that I will do in the main body of my epistles for that is where my
gentle dissent belongs. Most (but not
all) of the differences will come when a QUOTED source displays a
decidedly Western/Greek mindset, as opposed to one of the Hebraic Perspectives.
I must be intellectually honest – I am biased toward the God of Avraham,
Issachar, and Yakob, and his son, Yeshua, the Messiah. I pray we all can find
common ground as we study the Scriptures. Also, some may be put off by the
length or depth of the notes; not everyone has access to the references I do,
so therefore, I try to include the notes that come with the material I use, so
each can see for themselves the information the originator has pointedly
gleaned. I hope you avail yourselves to these inclusions – they help us to
understand how the material in scripture is laid out and the thought process of
the original writers of Scripture.
q
Luke 7:16, 39; See Matt. 21:11
r
Gen. 12:6, 7; 33:18, 20; Deut. 11:29; 27:12; Josh. 8:33
s
Judg. 9:7
t
See Deut. 12:5
u
[ch. 11:48]
v
ch. 2:4
w
ver. 23; ch. 5:25, 28; 16:2, 25, 32
x
Zeph. 2:11; Mal. 1:11; 1 Tim. 2:8
y
[2 Kgs. 17:28–34; Acts 17:23]
z
Ps. 147:19, 20; Isa. 2:3; Rom. 3:1, 2; 9:4, 5
z
Ps. 147:19, 20; Isa. 2:3; Rom. 3:1, 2; 9:4, 5
a
Matt. 2:4, 5; Acts 13:23; Rom. 11:26
b
ver. 21
c
[Rom. 8:15; Eph. 2:18; 6:18; Phil. 3:3]
d
Ps. 145:18; [ch. 1:17]
e
[ch. 6:44]
[iv]
The Holy Bible: English Standard
Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Jn
4:19–24.
1
Or just decrees; also verse 20
a
ch. 5:29; 10:12, 20; 13:4; Ps. 128:1; Eccles. 12:13
b
See ch. 4:40
c
Gen. 15:5; 22:17; 26:4; 28:14; Ex. 32:13
d
Cited Mark 12:29; [Isa. 42:8; Zech. 14:9; John 17:3; 1 Cor. 8:4, 6]
2
Or The Lord
our God is one Lord; or The Lord
is our God, the Lord is one;
or The Lord
is our God, the Lord alone
e
Cited Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27; [2 Kgs. 23:25]
f
ch. 11:18; 32:46; Ps. 37:31; Isa. 51:7; Jer. 31:33
g
See ch. 4:9
h
ch. 11:18; Prov. 3:3; 6:21; 7:3; See Ex. 13:9
i
ch. 11:20; [Isa. 57:8]
[vi]
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version
(Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Dt 6:1–9.
l
Isa. 3:13, 14; Jer. 25:31; Mic. 6:2
m
[ver. 6, 14; Jer. 4:22; 5:4]
n
[ch. 7:1]
o
[ch. 6:9; 12:14; Mic. 3:10; 7:2]
p
Isa. 24:4; Jer. 4:28; Joel 1:10
q
[Joel 1:18; Zeph. 1:3]
r
[Ezek. 38:20]
s
[ver. 17]
t
[Deut. 17:12]
1
Or for your people are like those who
contend with the priest
u
ch. 2:2
v
[ver. 1; Isa. 5:13]
w
[Prov. 1:29]
x
[Ex. 19:6]
y
[Jer. 23:39]
[x]
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version
(Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ho 4:1–6.
[xii]
Michael S. Heiser, *The Unseen Realm*, ch. 42.
