
Depart From Me, All You Workers of Torahlessness!
By
James Scott Trimm
We read in Matthew:
13 Enter you in by the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and wide the way, that leads to destruction, and many there be that go there.
14 How narrow is the gate, and narrow the Way, which leads to Life: and few there be that find it.
15 Be warned of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s garments: but beneath their garment they are <as full of deceit> as ravening wolves.
16 But by their fruits you will recognize them. Are grape clusters gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
17 Even so every good tree yields good fruit, but every bad tree yields bad fruit.
18 A good tree cannot yield bad fruit; neither can a bad tree yield good fruit.
19 But indeed, every tree that yields not good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.
20 And you, by their fruit, you will know them.
21 Not everyone that says to Me, Adonai, Adonai, will enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. But he that does the will of My Father, which is in heaven–the same will enter with Me, into the Kingdom of Heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, Adonai, Adonai! Did we not eat and drink in your Name: and have we not prophesied in your Name, and in your Name have cast out shadim: and in your Name done many powerful works?
23 And then will I profess to them, that I know them not Depart from Me, all you workers of Torah-less-ness.
(Matt. 7:13-23 HRV)
Some Greek manuscripts contain a marginal note to Mt. 7:21-23 which reads “The Judaikon [Jewish version] has here:
If you are in my bosom and do not the will of my Father which is in heaven,
out of my bosom will I cast you away.
The “Church Father” Clement (early 2nd cent.) seems to support such a reading. He writes:
The Lord has said “Though you should be joined to me, even in my very bosom andkeep not my commandments, I would cast you off, and say to you, ‘Depart from me; I know not who you are, you workers of iniquity.”
(2Clement 4:5 (2:15 some editions))
So here we read that the true path is a narrow one that few people find (obviously not Christianity, which is the world’s largest religion). We read of false prophets who pretend to be sheep, but are actually wolves. We are told that true believers will be known by their actual fruits. Finally we are told that there are a group of believers who will be on the earth at the time of Messiah’s return and the last day’s judgment who believe that follow Him, but whom he does not know!
The Greek word which I translated “Torah-less-ness” (Mt. 5:23) is ANOMOS. NOMOS is made up of the Greek prefix A- (there is not/without) with the Greek word NOMOS (Torah). ANOMOS means “without Torah” or “Torah-lessness.”
We are told that these people call upon the “Lord” (Adonai), they eat and drink [the bread and the wine] in His Name. They even prophecy, cast out demons and perform miracles in His name, and yet on the last day He says “I know them not Depart from Me, all you workers of Torah-less-ness” and even “out of my bosom will I cast you away.”
You have Turned Aside from My Ordinances
The prophet Malachi speaks of the return of the Messiah to judge the earth as follows:
1 Behold, I send My messenger, and he shall clear the way before Me: and the Adon whom you seek, will suddenly come to His Temple. And the messenger of the covenant, whom you delight in: behold, he comes says YHWH Tzva’ot.
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? And who shall stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap.
3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver. And there shall be they, that shall offer unto YHWH, offerings in righteousness.
4 Then shall the offering of Y’hudah and Yerushalayim be pleasant unto YHWH: as in the days of old, and as in ancient years.
5 And I will come near to you to judgment: and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages; the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, says YHWH Tzva’ot.
6 For I YHWH change not! And you, O sons of Ya’akov, are not consumed.
(Malachi 3:1-6 HRV)
The Prophet Malachi tells us about a very interesting group among the “workers of Torah-less-ness” which Yeshua finds upon his return:
7 From the days of your fathers, you have turned aside from My ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, says YHWH Tzva’ot. But you say, Wherein shall we return?
(Malachi 3:7 HRV)
Here we have a group among these “workers of Torah-less-ness” who believed they were Torah Observant even though they are not! They are surprised to be counted among the “workers of Torahlessness” because they thought they were Torah observant, yet they are among the “workers of Torahlessness” to whom Messiah says “If you are in my bosom and do not the will of my Father which is in heaven, out of my bosom will I cast you away.” So they ask Messiah “Wherin shall we return?”, they are confused and want to know in what way they have rejected the Torah. And Messiah answers them saying:
8 Will a man rob Elohim? Yet you rob Me. But you say, Wherein have we robbed You? In tithes and heave-offerings.
(Malachi 3:8 HRV)
Wherin Have We Robbed You?
So here we are told that when Messiah returns in the last days, he will not only encounter a groups of “workers of Torahlessness” that openly taught that the Torah is not for today and rejected the Torah as bondage, but He will also find believers who believed they were Torah observant but were robbing YHWH by stealing His Tithe. The Tithe is not a gift, the tithe already belongs to YHWH (Lev. 27:30). No one in the Scriptures ever GIVES the tithe, they always PAY the tithe.
Here the Scriptures give us an amazing prophecy that in the last days, in the Torah Observant movement, there would be an attack on the Torah from within, from those who seek to subtract the Tithe from the Torah and replace the true Torah of YHWH with their own modified Torah. Of course the Torah tells us that we must not subtract form it:
2 You shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall you diminish from it, that you may keep the commandments of YHWH your Elohim which I command you.
(Deut. 4:2 HRV)
1 (12:32) All this word which I command you, that shall you observe to do; you shall not add thereto nor diminish from it.
(Deut. 12:32 (13:1) HRV)
We are told that those who subtract commandments from the Torah are to be rejected as false prophets (Deut. 13:1-8).
This is why Yeshua warned in Matthew 7:15 that these Torah-less-ones are misled by “false prophets” who present themselves as sheep, but are actually wolves.
15 Be warned of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s garments: but beneath their garment they are <as full of deceit> as ravening wolves.
(Matt. 7:15 HRV)
Specifically Malachi 3 is telling us that in the last days there would be workers of Torahlessness who profess Torah observance, but have subtracted the commandment of the Tithe of YHWH from the Torah, and have instead professed their own modified Torah in place of YHWH’s Torah.
This is an amazing prophecy that some in the last days would seem to teach that the Torah is for today, but would also teach that the tithe, for one reason or another, no longer needs to be paid.
To these Messiah says:
9 You are cursed with the curse: yet you rob Me, even this whole nation.
These are counted among the Workers of Torahlessness of whom He says “I know them not. Depart from Me, all you workers of Torah-less-ness.” (Matt. 7:20 HRV)
And in the Judaikon (Jewish version):
If you are in my bosom and do not the will of my Father which is in heaven,
out of my bosom will I cast you away.
Yet in his mercy YHWH has given us this prophecy as a warning, and thus the text goes on to say:
10 Bring you the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now herewith, says YHWH Tzva’ot: if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall be more than sufficiency.
11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your good, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your land: neither shall your vine cast its fruit before the time in the field, says YHWH Tzva’ot.
(Malachi 3:10-11 HRV)
Just as in the Wisdom of Ben Sira (in the Apocrypha) we read:
In a generous spirit pay homage to YHWH,
Spare not freewill gifts.
With each contribution show a cheerful countenance,
and pay your tithes in a spirit of joy.
Give to Elyon as he has given you,
generously, according to your means.
For YHWH always repays,
and he will give back to you sevenfold.
(Sira 35:8-10 HRV)
YHWH has blessings for those who pay the tithe, but there are curses for those who so not pay the tithe. You may have heard that for some reason or another we do not need to pay the tithe today. That teaching is absolutely false. If you have any questions about the Tithe and whether or not we should pay the tithe today, see our article The Tithe of YHWH.
The tithe is the one commandment about which YHWH actually challenges us to test him and see if he will not bless us.
HaSatan HATES the tithe, he wants to steal the blessings that YHWH has in store for us, and he wants to destroy the work of YHWH. He is terrified at the thought of Nazarenes all over the world tithing. If we wish to stand against HaSatan we must start by getting serious about the Tithe. Go ahead… test YHWH and see if he does not repay you seven fold in His blessings!
HaSatan wishes “to steal and to kill and to destroy” (Jn. 10:10) and he knows the time is short and has stepped up his war with those who proclaim both Torah Observance and Faith in Messiah (the two pillars of Nazarene Judaism) (Rev. 12:12, 17; 13:7). But no weapon forged against us will prosper (Is. 54:17).
If you do not feel this ministry is worthy of your tithe, then find one that is and tithe there instead!
Is this work worthy of your support? What other ministry provides this kind of teaching?
This is no time to bask serenely in an attitude of apathy, but we need to stir up the fires of enthusiasm for teaching the truth to the world. I am convinced that Elohim will bless us abundantly if we do. Elohim will soon be opening the doors of opportunity as never before, I hope that each of us (and all of us together) will advance through those doors with all of the energy and confidence YHWH can give His people. This is the time to act.

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Now is time to step up to the plate!
Sadly, there are those who talk the talk, but won’t walk the walk.
Which Clement are you referring to when you speak of “Clement (early 2nd century)”?
Clement of Rome died at the end of the 1st century,
Clement of Alexandria was born from mid 2nd century (150 AD),
and the book “Clement 2” is believed to be written by an anonymous author other than Clement of Rome.