1 Timothy 4:1-5
Is this referring to Torah Keepers?
Paul gives Timothy some things to expect.
Apostasy – a falling away.
1 Timothy 4:1-5
- Now the Spirit spoke expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils.
- Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.
- Forbidding to marry and commanding to abstain from meats, which Yahuah hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.
- For every creature of Yahuah is good and nothing to be refused, it it be received with thanksgiving.
- For it is sanctified by the word of Yahuah and prayer
How can teaching Torah be a doctrine of demons?
Is the Torah of Yahuah a doctrine of demons? If you are saying yes, then you are saying that Yahuah is a demon since He is the one who gave the Torah.
Do demons want us to obey the Torah? No. They want us to disobey and break the Torah of Yahuah.
Paul continues to warn Timothy to watch for others that speak lies in hypocrisy. Is it hypocrisy to teach and obey the Torah? Hypocrisy means that you teach one thing and do something else. One example of hypocrisy is when Christians teach that we need to keep the 10 Commandments, but they do not keep the Sabbath. It is also hypocrisy to say that homosexuality is an abomination, if you claim that it is ok to eat pig and crab, because the Bible says both of those things are an abomination.
Paul also warns about others following demons who trick people into believing lies that cause hypocrisy and their conscience is seared so they are not convicted about their own sins.
Forbidding to marry.
The only sect in the church today that I am aware of that forbids marriage is the Catholic Church. Which has pushed celibacy on the clergy since its foundation. Was Paul talking about the Catholic doctrine? Its hard to say for sure, but it does fit the description.
Paul also makes some interesting statements about food, saying that they are “commanding to abstain from foods which Yahuah created to be received with thanksgiving”. Which foods did Yahuah create to be received with thanksgiving? I can assure you that Paul is not talking about pork and crab. In Leviticus 11, Yahuah gave us instructions about which animals were given for food and which ones are not for food. Paul is referring to the foods that Yahuah created to be received with thanksgiving. This means he is referring to the clean animals that Yahuah said are food. Paul is not talking about rat, dog, pig, or vulture, he is talking about the animals that Yahuah designed to be food.
Verses 4-5 can be confusing if you do not pay careful attention to what Paul is saying. “For every creature of Yahuah is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of Yahuah and prayer.” What animals are sanctified by the word of Yahuah”? This is another reference to the clean animals that Yahuah set apart to be food. Sanctified means that it is set apart. If all animals are food, then none of them are set apart. The fact that he mentions that they are sanctified by the word of Yahuah, means that he is acknowledging and referencing the animals that the Bible says are clean to eat. Is pork sanctified by the word of Yahuah? No. Is rat sanctified by the word of Yahuah? No. Are crab and shrimp sanctified by the word of Yahuah? No. These creatures were not created to be food. They are scavengers and garbage collectors. Their bodies are full of toxins and parasites. Pig and rat are very similar in their diet and lifestyle. They both eat rotting garbage, sewage, dead things, and even their own young. Likewise, crab, shrimp, and cockroaches are also very similar in their diet and lifestyle. They are all bottom feeders, they scavenge, eat scum and rotting things. Shrimp are basically the cockroaches of the ocean. Yahuah did not intend these creatures to be eaten by humans. They are wonderful creatures and serve a great purpose in keeping the earth clean, but they are not sanctified by the word of Yahuah to be food. Therefore, Paul is not telling us to violate the commandments in the Torah. He is telling us to eat the things that Yahuah created for food and receive them with thanksgiving, because they have been sanctified by the word of Yahuah. So, why would some people refuse to eat certain things? Paul is addressing a situation where people are rejecting food that Yahuah says is clean. We know that in other places, Paul addresses the issue of eating meat sacrificed to idols. We also know that Jews refused to eat food that was prepared by Gentiles. Is it possible that Paul might have been speaking to one of those issues? Maybe. It is unclear exactly what issue Paul is addressing here, but the things that he says make it very clear that is not telling us to eat unclean things.
Summary
- Is the Torah of Yahuah a doctrine of demons? No! And if you say it is, then you are accusing Yahuah of being a demon. It is actually a doctrine of demons to teach that the Torah is abolished, because demons don’t want us to obey the Torah.
- Are the commandment of Yahuah lies and hypocrisy? No! It only becomes hypocrisy when you tell people to obey some of them but not all of them. Satan is called the “father of lies”, and he does not want us to obey Yahuah commandments. He will tell all sorts of lies to get people to commit hypocrisy. 1 John 2:4 says, “He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” If we claim to know Yahuah, but do not keep His commandments, then we are liars and hypocrites.
- Are all animals sanctified by the word of Yahuah to be food? No! To be sanctified means to be set apart. If all animals are food, then none of them are set apart.
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