Parashat Mattot-Messei 2025

Parashat Mattot-Massei: Histapkut- The Art of Contentment.

Torah: Num 30:1-36:13

Haftarah: Jer 2:4-28, Jer 3:4

Brit Chadashah: Matt 5:33-37, James 4:1-12

Main Sections:

When men and women make vows.

Decree of vengeance on Midian.

The tribes of Reuben and Gad ask to settle in Gilead.

Moses' summary of their journey.

The Lord decrees for Israel to drive out the inhabitants of Canaan.

God decrees the boundaries for the land.

Levitical cities and cities of refuge are established.

The petition of the daughters of Zelophehad

From the time that God gave the promise to Abraham to the Exodus was around 500 years. It spanned the lives of the patriarchs, the generations of the Egyptian captivity, up to the introduction of Moses. Then there was the year at Sinai and the wandering in the wilderness. The promise was simply given to Abraham, but there is no question that they had to work for it, wait for it, and maintain their faith in God. Now they were on the borders of Canaan. Israel had undergone another judgment for their idolatry with the Midianite women and subsequently launched an attack and was victorious over Balaam and the five Midianite kings.

In Moses’ last address in the book of Numbers, he laid out the divisions of the land, the allotment of cities to the Levites, and the cities of refuge. Now on the borders of Caanan, the promise God gave to Abraham was in view. Many times, we are eager to get everything now. When God gives us his promise, we can forget that promise needs prep time, prayer time, and time for the purpose to work out. God has a time and place for all that he has decreed. That time and place fits into the rest of the work he is doing so that his perfect will can be done. If we are to take a lesson from the children of Israel and learn from their struggles and victories, one important take-away would be to grasp how we can be content and faithful while maintaining a passion for God and his work, so that we can ultimately walk in all of his promises.

In Psalms (Tellihim) 1:1-2 it is written, Happy is the one who has not walked in the advice of the wicked…but his delight is in the Torah of the LORD (TLV). The word for happy is sometimes recorded by translators as blessed, but Hebrew already has a word for blessed (baruch). The word for happy is the word “ashrei” and the sages link this word, not to a happiness that is linked to our Western view of self-sufficiency or simple positivity, but to the joy that comes when we pursue God and align ourselves with his word (Matt 6:19-25, 33). The Hebrew word “histapkut” means contentment, simplicity, or moderation. When our “histapkut” comes from God’s word, we have a powerful source of strength. What God gives, the world cannot take away. We can be “histapkut bamu’at”, content with less or better. This means we are content with less of the world and more of God. For this reason, the sages do not view the pursuit of happiness as the main goal in life. It is viewed as an outgrowth of our relationship with God (see Ps 131).

The American Bill of Rights lists three inalienable rights that we have been endowed with by our Creator. These are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. While it is true that only God can grant life it is also true that it can end untimely and without notice. Scripture acknowledges that life is fleeting and as brief as a vapor. Liberty must be protected as it is not a guarantee that we can take for granted. Any nation can end up in tyranny if only one generation remains silent or refuses to embrace the privilege of being a free people. The pursuit of happiness from a secular view is just that. It is a never-ending pursuit that may sometimes yield a temporary return or leave us empty. While these are great values and goals for governments to strive for, our lives are more difficult, and the contentment we long for can remain elusive if our focus is not in the right place. If we are to find “menucha”, serenity, we must find it in God. It cannot be given by a government, the flawed people in it, or the imperfect circumstances that dominate our lives. If our histapkut comes from our relationship with God, then our pursuit of holiness is our core concern.

We find joy in God’s will and word. Our pursuit of God does not always bring us to happiness in terms of our circumstances. The godly will face trials, adversity, and conflict due to our relationship with God. Sometimes our circumstances do not offer us peace. At those times we need to find peace in the godly purpose we have. As people of faith, we can fall into the trap of thinking that happiness is a divine right and that anyone who does not have it is absent of faith. This is not true. Our sense of contentment and happiness will be challenged in this world and often we have to contend to maintain both it and our faith. Sometimes the most profound places of faith we walk in are those birthed out of desperation, hopelessness, and weakness. Happiness and contentment are not so much in our circumstances, as it is being able to see the purpose of God in it. It is not so much what the circumstances are, but it is in what we do with them that can change how we interact with our world and perceive its value.

The word for contentment (histapkut) is sometimes translated as sufficiency in the Brit Chadashah. We need sufficiency for God’s provision and grace to meet our needs, direct our paths, open our doors in his time, and give strength for our trials (Hab 3:17-19). The sages define histapkut in very simple terms of “enoughness.” Paul’s view of enoughness can be seen in his Epistle to the Philippians.

But whatever things were gain to me, these I have considered as loss for the sake of the Messiah. More than that, I consider all things to be loss in comparison to the surpassing value of the knowledge of Messiah Yeshua my Lord.  Because of Him I have suffered the loss of all things; and I consider them garbage in order that I might gain Messiah…” (Phil 3:7-8, TLV).

Paul was not looking for a legalistic holiness bound purely by the requirements of the Law, but a holiness that would be grown out of his trust, love, and faith in Yeshua. When we serve God in spirit and truth, we not only have biblical truth, but we must also have the right motive. In Ps 17:15, King David prayed a vivid prayer, “I in righteousness will behold your face! When I awake, I will be satisfied with your likeness.” (TLV)

We need a biblically based sense of contentment for many reasons.

1. We need contentment in keeping and appreciating our place in the body of Messiah. (1 Cor 7:17)

2. We need contentment in terms of accepting God’s sovereignty and will, especially in our trials. (2 Cor 12:9-10, Phil 4:12)

3. We need contentment with our material possessions as it keeps us away from covetousness, envy, and comparisons so that we do not fall in love with the things of the world. (Luke 12:15, 2 Cor 9:8, Phil 4:19)

Contentment (histapkut) balances out ambition and competition and keeps us in check. It should not stifle or stagnate our growth, but channel it to a godly direction that is focused on his will (1 Sam 2:7-8). It is a hedge against some of Satan’s chief attacks which are disappointments, discouragement, and hopelessness. Why can we persevere through trials and persecution? Godly contentment is the answer. We can find that God is present in many things that we would otherwise miss. Though our circumstances may be adverse, we can still see God moving and that understanding can strengthen us. Contentment also helps us abide in prayer and be a participant in a promise that is being worked out. Contentment forces us to focus on what is important, observe limits, and simplify our wants and how we achieve our goals. It helps us decide what to give up and what to embrace so that we are not carrying too much at one time. Contentment keeps us away from the extremes of perfectionism and the stress and/or fear of not having enough, being enough, or getting everything right. It helps us to not be so dependent on our “should list” or ideal circumstances that we cleave to. Sometimes we just need to see ourselves through the love of God and acknowledge that “I am enough. I am loved and I am valued as a person before God and others. My views and contributions are important, and God can use my presence and words to help others where they need it.” Contentment helps us to take the focus off of us and place it on another so that the love of God can reach hurting hearts through our efforts. We can be in stress mode when we are overly concerned about our needs and wants being fulfilled. With a little histapkut, we can serve and benefit others and not feel slighted, left out, or minimized.

Godly contentment is a fruit of maturity and can help us serve God, seek to be used by him where God wants, when God wants, and how God wants. It is the fruit of maturity that helps us put aside enough of our humanity to be singularly devoted to God’s interests. Adam and Eve had a contentment problem. They, specifically Eve, sought to be complete with things that were outside of God’s provision, proclamation, and purpose for them. The lie of the enemy is that they had a reason to distrust, and discontentment was born.

“Who is rich? Those who are happy with their portion.”

(Ben Zoma, BT Shabbat 32a and Pirkei Avot 4:1)

Contentment, in a godly sense, means that our emotional, mental, and spiritual happiness is primarily connected with our relationship with God and is not ruled by our flawed circumstances or people. It is also not predicated by our sense of self-sufficiency, ability, or perfectionism. We can collect, buy, and get all of the accoutrements of wealth, status, and fame. If we base our self-esteem and worth on these, they end up owning us and, in the end, we can still be left feeling worthless.

Our contentment can remain elusive if it is based on a set of conditions that need to be met before we can be happy. We are living in an unregenerate, ungodly world that can be disappointing. If our faith does not come into play to bring us to a transcendence of self, we will not be able to endure things past the point of personal gratification and self-serving desires.

Jewish thought is not adverse to wealth or things. Yeshua taught that money is the root of all evil (see Eccl 5:10, Heb 13:5) because dependency on it can easily enslave us and bring us grief (1 Tim 6:6-10). He did not say that money is evil (see 1 Tim 6:17-19, Paul teaches about the proper perspective on money). His point was that we should not be servants of greed, pride, envy, or covetousness (Mark 10:23). When we become dependent on the things of the world to build our sense of worth, we can easily begin finding our value in things outside of God. If we can maintain our perspective that God gave us all that we have, our money and things will draw us closer to God, not alienate us from him.

Agur, son of Jakeh wrote in Prov 30:7-9, “Two things I ask of You- do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me. Give me neither poverty nor riches, but feed me with my allotted bread, lest I become satisfied and deny You and say, “Who is ADONAI?” Or lest I become poor, and steal and profane the Name of my God.” (TLV)

Contentment in a Spiritual Community

Contentment is a settledness that is antithetical to the excitement-driven culture we live in. Even in spiritual circles, we can get so tied up chasing the next spiritual phenomenon that contentment seems dull or unspiritual. The contentment we desire comes when we practice balancing our needs and wants, our ideal self vs our actual self, or the expectations of others.

We hear conflicting messages in our congregations that can hinder our sense of contentment, and this is especially true of dynamic congregations. We hear messages like “press in, do exploits, and advance the kingdom.” Then we hear other messages like “grow where you are planned, invest in your Rabbi’s vision, and be faithful in small things.” Some people have a calling to participate solely in their congregation. They experience a lot of fulfillment and are content. Some, however, have a calling for things in and outside of the congregation. These people tend to struggle because many congregations feel that any activity outside of the congregation is taboo. With others, God has placed a “holy discontentment” in their hearts so that they can know when a change is coming. God uses this type of leading to bring people from one place to another. Many criticize this as simple ambition but when God guides us, he can remove our sense of fulfillment in one place to get us to move to another. When Israel left Egypt, they had to follow the anointing. Where it went, they followed until they reached the Promised Land.

We can demonize contentment as stagnation, then condemn ambition as pride and selfishness, resulting in people getting discouraged. If contentment is to be godly, it must be focused on fulfilling the will and purpose of God. Misplaced contentment can result in laziness and apathy. There are some things that we do not need to be okay with. We cannot be apathetic in the face of injustice, poverty, or mistreatment. When we pursue the work of God we need to be concerned with excellence and not allow our ministry to degrade into chaos because we are disorganized or unprepared. We also cannot be content with sin in the culture and disconnect as our communities are dying and lost.

Sometimes contentment is found by necessity because of our limitations. We look for it because we need to find a way to cope with things that are adverse. Sometimes it is revelatory due to our spiritual growth and seeking God. Other times it is an intentional pursuit where our sanctification draws us into places where we want to carry as little as possible, so that we can focus more exclusively on our relationship with God. When we do this, we are practicing another middot called perishut (separation, self-control, or physical/spiritual/emotional/mental discipline. See Rom 14:17). One good place to practice contentment and separation is in how we celebrate Shabbat. 

The Key to Contentment

The key to contentment is to renew our mind, our spiritual values, and faith (Rom 12:2, Is 26:3). We need to focus on two things. First, we need to know that the sovereignty and grace of God is both corporate and personal. We need to understand that God sees us and hears our prayers. The second thing we need to focus on is that all the things we need ultimately come from God. God will give us everything we need to accomplish his will.  We can fall into the trap of being convinced that we need more than we do in order for us to be happy or do God's purpose.

Rabbi Shlomo ben Yehudah ibn Gabirol stated that, “Who seeks more than he needs, hinders himself from enjoying what he has. Seek what you need and give up what you do not need. For in giving up what you do not need, you will learn what you really do need.”

Contentment comes when we focus on God, seek his face, and align ourselves with him. Ultimately when we align ourselves with him, we also find our peace and sufficiency. It normally does not come because our situation changes, it comes because who we are in him comes into focus and we stop striving to create something only God can give. Our perceptions can change our present. When we decide to see things through different eyes (a good eye) and recognize that all good things come from God, that he ordained our way, and is carrying out his plan in our lives, our challenges and trials can transform into spiritual opportunities to see the power of God work in a greater way.

Questions: 

In what places do we compare too much?

In what ways is this positive or negative?

In what places do we look back too much?

In what ways is this positive or negative?

What does it mean to have our treasure in heaven?

How can our perceptions of trials and challenges change so that we can see God working?

What is simplicity of heart and mind? How does that help us to mentally and emotionally declutter?

Have you ever had a blessing in disguise? How did you initially receive it and how did it turn out to be a blessing?

Shalom,

Rav Calev

Next Feasts

Rosh Hashanah begins at sunset, Sept 22^nd and ends at sunset on Sept 24^th.

Yom Kippur begins at sunset, Oct 1^st and ends at sunset on Oct 2^nd.

Sukkot begins at sunset, Oct 6^th and ends at sunset on Oct 13^th.

Hebrew words to know:

Baruch- Blessed

Broch- (Yiddish) a misfortune, curse.

A bisel- (Yiddish) a little.

A biseleh- (Yiddish) a very little.