Who is my Neighbour?

 Exo 20:17  “You do not covet your neighbour's/reya.” house, you do not covet your neighbour's/reya. wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, or whatever belongs to your neighbour/reya.”

The Abary word for neighbour is reya

It has the root word ‘rah’ which means ‘companion/friend/lover/brother/husband/ shepherd/neighbour

Psa 23:1  יהוה is my shepherd/rah H7462; I do not lack

There was a learned in Torah who wanted to declare himself righteous for obeying Torah and asked Yahusha ''And who is my neighbour?"

Luk 10:25  And see, a certain one learned in the Torah stood up, trying Him, and saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit everlasting life?” 

Luk 10:26  And He said to him, “What has been written in the Torah? How do you read it?” 

Luk 10:27  And he answering, said, “ ‘You shall love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your being, and with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ Deu_6:5 and ‘your neighbour as yourself.’ ” Lev_19:18. 

Luk 10:28  And He said to him, “You have answered rightly. Do this and you shall live.”

Luk 10:29  But he, wishing to declare himself righteous, said to יהושע, “And who is my neighbour?”

Luk 10:30  And replying, יהושע said, “A certain man was going down from Yerushalayim to Yeriḥo, and fell among robbers, who, both stripping and beating him, went away, leaving him half dead. 

Luk 10:31  “And by a coincidence a certain priest was going down that way. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 

Luk 10:32  “And likewise a Lěwite also, when he came to the place, and seeing, passed by on the other side. 

Luk 10:33 “But a certain Shomeroni, journeying, came upon him. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him, Footnote: See Luk_17:18 

Luk 10:34 and he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. And having placed him on his own beast, he brought him to an inn, and looked after him. 

Luk 10:35  “And going out on the next day, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Look after him, and whatever more you spend I shall repay you when I return.’ 

Luk 10:36  “Who, then, of these three, do you think, was neighbour to him who fell among the robbers?” 

Luk 10:37  And he said, “He who showed compassion on him.” Then יהושע said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

The 2 greatest commandments quoted by the learned man were : 1st To love Yahuah with all your heart, being, strength and mind and the 2nd command " You shall love your neighbour/reyah as yourself" and these are the 2 commands Yahusha Himself taught us in summarizing the ten commandments.

In reply to who is my neighbour/reyah Yahusha quoted a parable. In the parable Yahusha spoke of a certain man going down from Yerushalayim to Yericho. We must understand the etymology of Yericho before understanding the parable and its spiritual contents.

Yahuah told Abraham that in the fourth generation his seed would return back to the land for the sins of the Amorite is not yet complete. 

Gen 15:13 And He said to Aḇram, “Know for certain that your seed are to be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years.

Gen 15:14  “But the nation whom they serve I am going to judge, and afterward let them come out with great possessions.

Gen 15:14  “But the nation whom they serve I am going to judge, and afterward let them come out with great possessions.

Gen 15:15  “Now as for you, you are to go to your fathers in peace, you are to be buried at a good old age.

Gen 15:16  “Then, in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the crookedness of the Amorites is not yet complete.”

While the reference of the sins/crookedness was for the Kenanites dwelling in the land, Yericho was part of Kenan. We need to look closely at certain judgments Yahuah brought on cities/nations where He asked Yasharal to kill the women, children, infants, pregnant women and even the animals. While Yahuah in His judgment may seem to be harsh, yet He is righteous in meting out His judgment. Consider these passages.

Lev 18:21  ‘And do not give any of your offspring to pass through to Moleḵ. And do not profane the Name of your Elohim. I am יהוה.

Lev 18:22  ‘And do not lie with a male as with a woman, it is an abomination. 

Lev 18:23  ‘And do not have intercourse with any beast, to defile yourself with it. And a woman does not stand before a beast to mate with it, it is a perversion. 

Lev 18:24  ‘Do not defile yourselves with all these, for by all these the nations are defiled, which I am driving out before you. 

Lev 18:25  ‘Thus the land became defiled, therefore I punished it for its crookedness, and the land vomited out its inhabitants.

The land had become defiled by men lying with men, men and women having sex with animals etc which is why Yahuah wouldn’t spare even the animals of the land

In Yericho only Rahab the innkeeper(note our translations say whore), her household and her goods, silver, gold and bronze were to be spared 

Rahab because she hid the Yasharalite spies and sent them the other way and silver, gold and bronze were to be brought into the treasury of Yahuah. Rest men, women and beasts were to be utterly destroyed

Jos 6:21  And they put under the ban all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox and sheep and donkey, with the edge of the sword. 

Jos 6:22  And to the two men who had spied out the land Yehoshua said, “Go into the house of the woman, the innkeeper , and from there bring out the woman and all that she has, as you swore to her.”

Jos 6:23  And the young men, the spies, went in and brought out Raḥaḇ, and her father, and her mother, and her brothers, and all that she had. So they brought out all her relatives and set them outside the camp of Yisra’ěl.

Jos 6:24  And they burned the city and all that was in it with fire. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and of iron, they put into the treasury of the House of יהוה.

The word here is zunah (female inn keeper) and not zanah (a harlot), the hey at the end makes the word feminine. The translators got it wrong. Moreover, its clear with the word shakab which means to lodge/take rest/lie down. She hid the spies on her roof top with the stalks of flax , what were stalks of flax doing on her roof top if not to feed those in her hotel/inn? 

Jos 2:1  And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went, and came into an innkeeper's house, named Rahab, and lodged /shakab H7901 there. 

Jos 2:6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid out on the roof. 

When she was saved on the day of Yericho's fall, she was saved along with her father, mother and her brothers and all that she had, which harlot does harlotry with her father, mother and brothers being in the house.

Yahuah had made a vow that He would blot out Amalek and will be at war with them from generation to generation. In the instructions given to king Shaul through Shemuel, Shaul was asked to blot out men, women, infants and beasts of Amalek

1Sa 15:2  “Thus said יהוה of hosts, ‘I shall punish Amalěq for what he did to Yisra’ěl, how he set himself against him on the way when he came up from Mitsrayim.

1Sa 15:3  Now go, and you shall strike Amalěq and put under the ban all that he has, and you shall not spare them, and put to death from man to woman, from infant to nursing child, from ox to sheep, from camel to donkey.’ ”

Exo 17:15  And Mosheh built a slaughter-place and called its name, יהוה Nissi,

Exo 17:16  for he said, “Because a hand is on the throne of Yah, יהוה is to fight against Amalěq, from generation to generation.”

Deu 25:19  “Therefore it shall be, when יהוה your Elohim has given you rest from your enemies all around, in the land which יהוה your Elohim is giving you to possess as an inheritance, that you blot out the remembrance of Amalěq from under the heavens. Do not forget!

King Shaul disobeyed Yahuah. While his intention seemed right in man’s eyes yet it was a grave sin in Yahuah’s eyes.

1Sa 15:8  And he caught Aḡaḡ sovereign of the Amalěqites alive, and put under the ban all the people with the edge of the sword.

1Sa 15:9  But Sha’ul and the people spared Aḡaḡ and the best of the sheep, and the cattle, and the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not put them under the ban. But all goods despised and worthless, that they put under the ban.

Shaul spared Agag the king of Amalek and the best of the sheep and cattle which he later tells Shemuel that he kept them to slaughter to Yahuah

1Sa 15:14  But Shemu’ěl said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the cattle which I hear?”

1Sa 15:15  And Sha’ul said, “They have brought them from Amalěq, because the people spared the best of the sheep and the cattle, to slaughter to יהוה your Elohim. And the rest we have put under the ban.”

The sheep, cattle were to be killed with all the people because we read in Leviticus 18:21-25 that these nations defiled their animals by having sexual intercourse with even the animals. Here was king Shaul with his intention to slaughter these sexually abused animals to Yahuah as slaughter offerings.That’s how grave his sin was.

So whenever a command came to not spare men, women, infants, animals it was because of these grave sins the nations had committed. Yericho was one of these. 

Yericho comes from two root words:

1. yareach: moon

2. ruach: breathe/spirit/smell

While the word Yericho means fragrant these two root words ruach which apart from spirit also means ‘ to breathe or smell’ it also has the word ‘rach’ in which means travel/path

The picture is of the traveller travelling the path (rach) of the full moon (yareach) to smell/breathe (ruach) the fragrance. It’s a deceptive fragrance and that’s why Yahushua/Joshua cursed Yericho.

What was the curse he put on it?

Jos 6:26  And Yehoshua warned them at that time, saying, “Cursed is the man before יהוה who rises up and builds this city Yeriḥo – he lays its foundation with his first-born, and with his youngest he sets up its gates.”

Yahushua’s curse came to fulfilment 

1Ki 16:34  In his days Ḥi’ěl of Běyth Ěl built Yeriḥo. He laid its foundation at the cost of Aḇiram his first-born, and at the cost of his youngest son Seḡuḇ he set up its gates, according to the word of יהוה, which He had spoken through Yehoshua son of Nun.

Coming back to the parable of Who is my reyah/ neighbour?

The certain man was going astray from the place where Yahuah is worshipped i.e. Yerushalayim to Yericho i.e. a place of curse. And on the way was met by a band of robbers. The band of robbers stripped him, wounded him and left him half dead. Through the parable Yahusha was indicating the chastisement meted out to the Yahudite going astray from Him. The band of robbers are the accusers inflicting the wrath from Torah commands being broken. Remember Yahusha taught that the two greatest commandments are loving Yahuah with all your mind, soul, and strength and love your neighbour as yourself and on these hang the Torah and the Prophets. The man unnamed (certain man) was in a lost identity. 

Luk 10:31  “And by a coincidence a certain priest was going down that way. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.

Luk 10:32  “And likewise a Lěwite also, when he came to the place, and seeing, passed by on the other side.

Yahusha doesn’t miss to tell us twice that a priest and a Lewite we’re going down that way. The priest’s were always Levite’s but not all Levites were priests (for there were Lewites who were gatekeepers, transporters of vessels of the house of Yahuah, bakers, singers etc and it’s an eye opener to see that they both were on the path from Yerushalayim to Yericho.

Luk 10:31  “And by a coincidence a certain priest was going down that way

Luk 10:33  “But a certain Shomeroni, journeying/halak , came upon him. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

The Hebrew text of Luke 10:33 w’hinneh Shom’roni hole’k badere’k

It’s translation “wa/ And hinneh/ behold Shomeroni/a Shomereon journeyed/holek ba/in derek/the way

Put together: And behold a Shomeroni journeyed in the way

The Greek word used here is hodeuo from G3598 hodos which means to travel or journey

The word hodos means to make a progress on a route figuratively. This shows this Shomeroni was going up to Yerushalayim to worship, he was on a progressive route 

And that’s why he is capable of pouring oil and wine in his wounds and bandage them and further keeps the wounded man with the innkeeper and asks him to take care of him and will pay him when he returns. Shomeron was considered as a worst place and looked down upon because of its grave idolatry

Luk 10:33 “But a certain Shomeroni,c journeying, came upon him. And when he saw him, he had compassion on him, Footnote: See Luk 17:18

Luk 10:34 and he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. And having placed him on his own beast, he brought him to an inn, and looked after him. 

Luk 10:35  “And going out on the next day, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Look after him, and whatever more you spend I shall repay you when I return.’

Isa 10:10  As my hand has found the reigns of the idols, whose carved images excelled those of Yerushalayim and Shomeron, 

Isa 10:11  as I have done to Shomeron and her idols, do I not do also to Yerushalayim and her idols?’

Ephrayim was the tribe which dwelt at Shomeron

Isa 7:8  “For the head of Aram is Dammeseq, and the head of Dammeseq is Retsin. And within sixty-five years Ephrayim is to be broken as a people. 

Isa 7:9  “And the head of Ephrayim is Shomeron, and the head of Shomeron is the son of Remalyahu. If you do not believe, you are not steadfast.” 

They were deep into idolatry and Yahuah caused the king of Ashshur to come and carry them away captive. But here was Mashiyach who visited Shomeron and people of Shomeron believed in Him.

Joh 4:4  And He had to pass through Shomeron. 

Joh 4:5  So He came to a city of Shomeron, called Sheḵem, near the piece of land Ya‛aqoḇ gave to his son Yosěph.

Joh 4:40  Therefore when the Shomeronim came to Him, they were asking Him to stay with them, and He stayed there two days. 

Joh 4:41  And many more believed because of His word. 

Joh 4:42  And they said to the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard, and we know that this is truly the Messiah, the Saviour of the world.”

Hence, the usage of Shomeroni in the parable is unique, to show that whilst Yasharal in their Torah bound priesthood and Lewites were going from Yerushalayim to Yericho whilst the Shomeroni was in a journey back to Yerushalayim

Luk 10:36  “Who, then, of these three, do you think, was neighbour to him who fell among the robbers?” 

Luk 10:37  And he said, “He who showed compassion on him.” Then יהושע said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Yahusha came for the lost sheep of the house of Yasharal, hence, the certain man (nameless, no tribe also mentioned) fell among robbers to be brought back to the true form of worship by one who himself was back in a journey

Hos 6:1  ‘Come, and let us turn back to יהוה. For He has torn but He does heal us, He has stricken but He binds us up. 

Hos 6:2  After two days He shall revive us, on the third day He shall raise us up, so that we live before Him.

He became our reyah/brother or husband or lover in pouring oil and wine in our wounds who went astray from the true form of worship through a gentile.

H7453

רֵיעַ    רֵעַ

rêa‛    rêya‛

ray'-ah, ray'-ah

From H7462; an associate (more or less close): - brother, companion, fellow, friend, husband, lover, neighbour, X (an-) other.

The neighbour/reya and brother/ahk is interchangeably used in Torah. 

Deu 15:1  “At the end of every seven years you make a release of debts. 

Deu 15:2  “And this is the word of the release: Every creditor is to release what he has loaned to his neighbour/reya H7453, he does not require it of his neighbour/reya H7453 or his brother/ahk H251, because it is called the release of יהוה. 

Deu 15:3  “Of a foreigner you could require it, but your hand is to release whatever is owed by your brother/ahk H251.

The end of every 7 years (Shemitah) was a release and Torah came with compassion for the neighbour who is one within the boundary of brotherhood to be released from all debts, all poimting to Yahusha ha Mashiyach who would walk the path as fulfilling the Royal Law of 'Love your neighbour as yourself'. . And that's why Yahusha quoted it as the 2nd most important commandment "Love your neighbour as yourself"

The Torah says 'Of a foreigner you could require it' which shows the foreigner is the one not in covenant. Torah also had laws of compassion of leaving the corners of the fields for the poor neighbours of the land.

Deu 23:24  “When you come into your neighbour’s /reya H7453 vineyard, you shall eat to the satisfaction of your desire, but do not put any in a receptacle of yours. 

Deu 23:25  “When you come into your neighbour’s/reya H7453 standing grain, you shall pluck the heads with your hand, but do not use a sickle on your neighbour’s /reya H7453 standing grain.

While they could eat to their hearts content by plucking from their hand, they couldn't gather into a vessel

1Th 4:3  For this is the desire of Elohim: your set-apartness! – that you should abstain from whoring, 

1Th 4:4  that each one of you should know how to possess his own vessel in set-apartness and respect, 

1Th 4:5  not in passion of lust, like the nations who do not know Elohim, 

1Th 4:6  not to overstep and take advantage of his brother in this matter, because the Master is the revenger of all such, as we indeed said to you before and earnestly warned.

In the new covenant the emissary Shaul re-iterated not to take advantage of his brother because the Adon is the revenger of such.

Deu 15:7  If among you, one of your brothers should become poor, in any of your towns within your land that Yahuah Aluahym is giving you, you shall not harden your heart or shut your hand against your poor brother

Deu 15:8  for you shall certainly open your hand to him and certainly lend him enough for his need, whatever he needs. 

Deu 15:9  “Be on guard lest there be a thought of Beliya‛al in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release, is near,’ and your eye is evil against your poor brother and you give him naught. And he shall cry out to יהוה against you, and it shall be a sin in you.

Going ahead in Torah instructions on year of release where the neighbour or brother (used interchangeably), Yahuah instructs if your brother becomes poor, you shall not harden your heart and neither shall shut your hand and lend him his need, whatever he needs. Moreover when you lend if you have a thought of Beliyal in your heart that I will give my poor brother less as he wont be able to repay me as the 7th year is round the corner and if he cries out to Yahuah, it shall be a sin in you.

Deu 15:10 You shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing Yahuah your Alahym shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto.

Remember, when Yahuah carried Yahudah into Babylonian captivity, he left the poor of the land, in the land and the land rested its Sabbath years for 70 years. They ate what grew of itself. Such, were the laws of compassion in Torah. In today's day I see many claiming to know Yahusha, blessing foreigners i.e. those not in the covenant like Old age homes, ashrams, orphanages while poor brothers and sisters in Yahuah are left in their poverty without any help. It is sad that the compassion laws defined by Torah are not observed.

Lev 25:35  ‘And when your brother becomes poor, and his hand has failed with you, then you shall strengthen him, and he shall live with you, like a stranger or a sojourner. 

Lev 25:36  ‘Take no interest from him, or profit, but you shall fear your Elohim, and your brother shall live with you. 

Lev 25:37  ‘Do not lend him your silver on interest, and do not lend him your food for profit. 

Lev 25:38  ‘I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, to give you the land of Kena‛an, to be yo

Lev 25:39  ‘And when your brother who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, do not make him serve as a slave. 

Lev 25:40  ‘But as a hired servant, as a settler he is with you, and serves you until the Year of Yoḇel. 

Lev 25:41  ‘And then he shall leave you, he and his children with him, and shall return to his own clan, even return to the possession of his fathers. 

Lev 25:42  ‘For they are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Mitsrayim, they are not sold as slaves. 

Lev 25:43  ‘Do not rule over him with harshness, but you shall fear your Elohim. 

Lev 25:44  ‘And your male and female slaves whom you have from the nations that are around you, from them you buy male and female slaves, 

Lev 25:45  and also from the sons of the strangers sojourning among you, from them you buy, and from their clans who are with you, which they shall bring forth in your land, and they shall be your property. 

Lev 25:46  ‘And you shall take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession, they are your slaves for all time. But over your brothers, the children of Yisra’ěl, you do not rule with harshness, one over another.

 The compassion law was further extended to the enemies in the new covenant. Here enemies are those under Torah of sin and death identified as tax collectors.

Mat 5:43 “You heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.’ (Footnote: Hate your enemy was “said,” not “written.”)

Mat 5:44  “But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those cursing you, do good to those hating you, and pray for those insulting you and persecuting you, 

Mat 5:45  so that you become sons of your Father in the heavens. Because He makes His sun rise on the wicked and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.

Mat 5:46  “For if you love those loving you, what reward have you? Are the tax collectors not doing the same too? 

Mat 5:47  “And if you greet your brothers only, what do you do more than others? Are the tax collectors not doing so too? 

Mat 5:48  “Therefore, be perfect, as your Father in the heavens is perfect

Dawid was a perfect example, Shimei was cursing him when Dawid was fleeing his son, while Dawid's men asked to strike him to be killed, he refrained them from doing so and didn't kill him even when he was re-established as king.

2Sa 16:5  And when Sovereign Dawiḏ came to Baḥurim he saw a man from the clan of the house of Sha’ul, whose name was Shim‛i son of Gěra, coming from there. He came out, cursing as he came. 

2Sa 16:6  And he pelted, with stones, Dawiḏ, and all the servants of Sovereign Dawiḏ. And all the people and all the mighty men were on his right and on his left. 

2Sa 16:7  And this is what Shim‛i said as he cursed, “Get out! Get out! O man of blood, and man of Beliya‛al! 

2Sa 16:8  “יהוה has brought upon you all the blood of the house of Sha’ul, in whose place you have reigned. And יהוה has given the reign into the hand of Aḇshalom your son. And see, you are in your own evil, for you are a man of blood!” 

2Sa 16:9  And Aḇishai son of Tseruyah said to the sovereign, “Why should this dead dog curse my master the sovereign? Please, let me pass over and take off his head!” 

2Sa 16:10  And the sovereign said, “What have I to do with you, you sons of Tseruyah? For let him curse, even because יהוה has said to him, ‘Curse Dawiḏ.’ And who should say, ‘Why did you do that?’ ” 

2Sa 16:11  And Dawiḏ said to Aḇishai and all his servants, “See how my son who came from my own body seeks my life, and how much more now this Binyamite? Leave him alone, and let him curse, for יהוה has spoken to him. 

2Sa 16:12  “If so be, יהוה does look on my affliction, and יהוה shall return good to me for his cursing today.” 

2Sa 16:13  And as Dawiḏ and his men went in the way, Shim‛i walked alongside him on the hillside, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him and kicked up dust. 

2Sa 16:14  And the sovereign and all the people who were with him became weary, and they refreshed themselves there.

Finally the word 'reya' has the pictographs of the resh/head of a man and ayin/the eye

The head turns around to see/watch over the brother ...just as Yahusha the shepherd watches over His sheep

Shalum!