Archive for the ‘Biblical Festivals’ Category
Even though the Israeli celebration of Independence Day, based on the Hebrew calendar (Iyyar 5) was celebrated this year on April 19th, there is something profound about May 14 on the Gregorian Calendar that really acts as a marker of great events of the last century.
Just to think, on this very date, in 1948 these great and momentous things happened. One very interesting fact is that if you follow an “observed” Jewish calendar for 1948 and don’t add the 13th month that year, it moves everything one month back–that is “Adar II becomes Nisan, Nisan becomes Iyyar, and Iyyar becomes SIVAN–which makes the establishment of the State of Israel fall on Sivan the 5th, the evening of Shavuot or Pentecost. That would mean the establishment of the State of Israel in some way echoes the Standing At Sinai in the days of Moses, and the giving of the Torah, also celebrated in Jewish tradition as falling at Sivan 5/6th. It is certainly uncanny that both the former and latter “national” founding of Israel would correspond to this festival of “Weeks.”
One can not help but think of Isaiah’s ancient query:
Is. 66:8 Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? shall a nation be brought forth at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.
There is a nice set of articles on the Aish HaTorah Web site dealing with the history of Israel and Zionism more generally:
http://www.aish.com/holidays/Israel_Independence_Day/holiday_page.asp
In this day and time when “Zionism” is used by so many as some kind of ugly word, it is refreshing to capture some of the Spirit that the true “returnees to Zion” really had 60 years ago. The founder of United Israel World Union, David Horowitz, was one of those “pioneers,” who moved to what was then called “old Palestine,” in July, 1924. You can read more about his experiences and life with photos of those times in a previous Blog post here: Remembering David Horowitz.
An very nicely done illustrated “Timeline” can be found here:
http://www.zionism-israel.com/his/Israel_war_independence_1948_timeline.htm
For those a bit “rusty” on the history, here is a crash course Crash_Course_in_Jewish_History:
Crash Course in Jewish History Part 65 – The State of Israel
by Rabbi Ken Spiro
After the British brutally turned away Holocaust survivors from Israel, the UN voted to partition the land.
The British broke promise after promise to the Jews while they created new Arab countries out of the land of the former Ottoman Empire. In addition, because of Arab revolts and pressure, the British even barred entry to the land of Israel to Jews fleeing the Holocaust. (See Part 64.)
Even when the full scope of the Holocaust was known, and thousands of Holocaust survivors were stranded in refugee camps (DP camps), the British refused to relent.
One of the most egregious of the British actions involved the refugee ship, Exodus, which the Royal Navy intercepted in 1947 in the Mediterranean Sea with 4,500 Jews aboard. The ship was brought into Haifa port under British escort; there the Holocaust survivors were forcibly transferred to another ship and returned back to Germany via France.
Abba Eban, who was then the Jewish liason to a special UN committee — called Special Commmitte On Palestine or UNSCOP — persuaded four UN representatives to go to Haifa to witness the brutality of the British against the Jews.
Historian Martin Gilbert includes Eban’s account of what happened there in Israel: A History (p. 145):
“[In Haifa] the four members watched a ‘gruesome operation.’ The Jewish refugees had decided ‘not to accept banishment with docility. If anyone had wanted to know what Churchill meant by a “squalid war,” he would have found out by watching British soldier using rifle butts, hose pipes and tear gas against the survivors of the death camps. Men, women and children were forcibly taken off to prison ships, locked in cages below decks and set out of Palestine waters.’
“When the four members of UNSCOP came back to Jerusalem, Eban recalled, ‘they were pale with shock. I could see that they were pre-occupied with one point alone: if this was the only way that the British Mandate could continue, it would be better not to continue it at all.’”
UN PARTITION OF PALESTINE
The British also wanted out of the problem. They had 100,000 soldiers/police trying to maintain control with a total population of about 600,000 Jews and 1.2 million Arabs. (Interestingly, they had the same size force controlling India with a population of over 350 million!)
And so it came to pass that the British turned the matter over to the UN which decided to end the British Mandate over what was left of “Palestine” (after the creation of the country of Jordan) and to divide the remaining land among the Arabs and Jews. The proposal called for the Jews to get:
a narrow strip of land along the Mediterranean coast, including Tel Aviv and Haifa
a piece of land surrounding the Kineret (Sea of Galilee), including the Golan Heights
a large piece in the south, which was the uninhabitable Negev Desert
The Arabs were to get:
the Gaza Strip
a chunk of the north, including the city of Tzfat (Safed) and western Galilee
the entire West Bank of the River Jordan and the hills of Judea and Samaria
Jerusalem was to be under international control.
On November 29, 1947, the United Nations voted for this partition plan. Of those voting, 33 nations voted yes, including USA and USSR; 13 mostly-Arab nations voted no; 11 nations abstained.
Hard-hearted to the end, the British did not vote yes; they abstained.
As disappointed as the Jews were with the portion allotted for the Jewish state, they felt that something was better than nothing after all the waiting and the pain.
However, the Arabs, always maximalist in their demands, rejected the UN resolution. The next day Arab rioting began, and two weeks later soldiers from surrounding Arab countries began arriving into Palestine.
The British, happy to be out of the situation, were packing up to go and turned their backs on what was going on. Writes David Ben Gurion in his Israel: A Personal History (p. 65):
“The British did not lift a finger to stop this military invasion. They also refused to cooperate with the UN committee charged with supervising implementation of the General Assembly resolution. At the same time, the Arabs living in the district destined to become part of the Jewish state began evacuating their homes and moving to the Arab states neighboring Palestine at the orders of the Arab High Committee.”
In the midst of confusion, the rioting continued with almost 1,000 Jews murdered by Arabs in the ensuing four months.
One of the worst incidents occurred on April 13, 1948. A convoy of 70 doctors and nurses making their way to Hadassah Hospital on Mount Scopus was ambushed by Arabs. This happened 200 yards of a British police station. After a seven-hour shoot-out, during which the British did nothing, all the doctors and nurses were killed. Afterwards, the Arabs mutilated their bodies.
JERUSALEM UNDER SIEGE
In all of this, the British encouraged the King of Jordan, Abdullah, to invade and annex the Arab sections to his kingdom. To Abdullah this was not enough. He wanted Jerusalem too.
As a result Jerusalem came under siege.
The focus of the struggle during April and May 1948 was the road to Jerusalem which passes through the mountains. The vehicles on that road are completely exposed to gunmen up above. It was on this road that all supplies to the Jews of the city had to come. But they could not get through.
Hunger reigned. The residents of the Jewish Quarter of the Old City were completely cut off.
And then an amazing incident happened. A young Yemenite Jew, who was not known for his shooting skills, almost accidentally killed three Arab men in the hills. One of these men was the Arab leader, Abdul Khader el Husseini. Demoralized, the Arab forces abandoned their positions to attend his funeral.
As a result a huge convoy of 250 trucks of food was able to re-supply the city. Writes Berel Wein in Triumph of Survival (p. 397):
“[On Shabbat, April 17, 1948] Jews left their synagogues and, with their prayer shawls still draping their shoulders, helped unload the convoy. The siege of Jerusalem was broken for the moment. The Arabs, however, mounted a strong counter-attack, and by the end of April once again cut the Jerusalem road… for the next seven weeks Jewish Jerusalem was isolated.”
A NEW STATE IS BORN
The official date given by the United Nations in their partition vote for the creation of the two new entities was May 15th, 1948.
Thus, May 14th was to be the last day of the British Mandate. At 4 p.m., the British lowered their flag and immediately the Jews raised their own.
It was a flag designed in 1897 by the First Zionist Congress. It was white (the color of newness and purity), and it had two blue stripes (the color of heaven) like the stripes of a tallit, the prayer shawl, which symbolized the transmission of Jewish tradition. In its center was the Star of David.
Thus on May 14, 1948 at 4:00 p.m., Hay Iyar, the 5th of Iyar, Israel declared itself a state.
After 2,000 years, the land of Israel was once more in the hands of the Jews.
David Ben Gurion read the Declaration of Independence over the radio:
“The Land of Israel was the birthplace of the Jewish people. Here the spiritual, religious and national identity was formed. Here they achieved independence and created a culture of national and universal significance. Here they wrote and gave the Bible to the world…
“Exiled from Palestine, the Jewish people remained faithful to it in all the countries of the dispersion, never ceasing to pray and hope for their return and restoration of their national freedom.
“Accordingly we, the members of the National Council met together in solemn assembly today and by virtue of the natural and historic right of the Jewish people and with the support of the resolution of the General of the United Nations, hereby proclaim the establishment of the Jewish state in Palestine to be called Israel…
“We offer peace and amity to all neighboring states and their peoples and invite them to cooperate with the independent Jewish nation for the common good of all…
“With trust in the Rock of Israel, we set our hands to this declaration at this session of the Provisional State Council in the city of Tel Aviv on Sabbath Eve, 5th Iyar 5708, 14th day of May 1948.”
(Note that the Declaration of Independence of Israel — unlike the American Declaration of Independence — does not mention God. This is because the hard-line secularists that dominated the Jewish Agency opposed any such thing. “Rock of Israel” became a compromise.)
Everyone was dancing in the streets. But not for long.
Almost immediately five Arab countries declared war and Egypt bombed Tel Aviv.
Was the Last Supper a Jewish Passover Seder? Millions of Christians who are happily and profitably discovering their “Hebraic roots” by studying, participating in, and even reenacting “Passover” services have equated it with the final evening meal Jesus had with his disciples. Indeed, many so-called “messianic” groups have developed an extensive interpretation of the traditional Jewish Passover Seder that finds all sorts of Christological meanings reflected in the ceremonies, including the death and resurrection of Jesus for the sins of humankind.
All four of our gospels report that Jesus ate a last meal privately with the Twelve, on the “night he was betrayed,” as Paul puts it. However, the Synoptics (Mark, Matthew, Luke) and John report things differently in so far as whether this meal took place on the night of Passover, or the night before. Although many have attempted harmonization, the differences in the two reports remain stark and and can not be ignored. Scholars have exhaustively argued out every possibility pro and con.
I argue in The Jesus Dynasty (chapter 12 “Last Days in Jerusalem”) that the final meal was not a Passover Seder and offer a revised chronology in which Jesus dies on a Thursday, rather than a Friday, with the Passover Seder falling at the beginning of the 15th of Nisan, after sundown, Thursday night with that Friday, in the year AD/CE 30 being a “high day” sabbath, followed by the weekly Sabbath.
In a thoroughly comprehensive general article just published in the latest issue of Biblical Archaeology Review (March/April, 2010) titled “Was Jesus’ Last Supper a Seder,” Boston University professor Jonathan Klawans explores the issue in a clear and compelling way, concluding that the last meal of Jesus was most likely not a Passover Seder. I am pleased to say you can read it on-line here, but hope you will consider subscribing to BAR magazine as it continues to bring us quality articles of this type.
N I have chosen as a “Last Supper” illustration the etching by the incomparably great Albrecht Dürer in which the “beloved disciple” is sleeping as a small child, next to Jesus.
One of the so-called “minor” festival days within Jewish tradition falls today, January 30th, which also happens to be a Sabbath day this year of 2010. It is called in Hebrew Tu b’Shevat which literally means “15th of Shebat,” referring to the 11th month/moon on the Jewish/biblical calendar (called Shevat, see Zech 1:7). We are not certain of the origins of all the names of the Jewish months, since in the Hebrew Bible months are normally just numbered, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and so forth. However, the Hebrew word shevat does mean a staff or rod, and thus by extension a “tribe.” One of the more interesting references to the 11th month is Deuteronomy 1:3 where Moses gives his final message to the assemblies of Israel east of the Jordan on the 1st of Shevat, which would have been the New Moon.
In Hebrew numbers are expressed by letters, Alef=1, Bet=2, Gimmel=3 and so forth. By such a system the number fifteen would be “ten & five” which is Yod Heh–however, since Yod Heh is an abbreviation for YHVH, the Divine and Holy Name of God, a substitute combination of Tet (nine) and Vav (six) are used–Thus the designation TU. The 15th of any lunar month is also the Full Moon and since Shevat, or the 11th month, often falls in late January/early February, it is the biggest and brightest moon of the year, sometimes called the “Wolf Moon,” see National Geographic story “Biggest Full Moon.”
In Jewish tradition this festival of the Full Moon of Shevat is also called the “festival of the Trees” and it marks a “new year” in terms of trees and their fruit, based on the Torah command in Leviticus 19:23-24: “When you come into the land and plant any kind of tree for food, then you shall regard its fruit as “uncircumcised” (i.e., forbidden). Three years it shall be forbidden to you; it must not be eaten. And in the fourth year all its fruit shall be holy, an offering of praise to the Yehovah. But in the fifth year you may eat of its fruit, to increase its yield for you: I am the Yehovah your God.” This passage is viewed as having great significance, both practically and mystically, and it falls within the Holiness Code of the Torah (Lev 19), one of the more inspiring and universal collections of mitzvot or teachings.
In Israel and throughout the world it is a day of the planting of trees. It is also said that on the 15th of the 11th month the sap in the trees begins to rise signaling the end of winter, and the almond trees blossom by this day. I heard from a friend in Israel just this week that indeed the almond trees are out in full all over the Land. Since trees as so often used in the Hebrew Bible to represent human beings, their lifespan, and their potential to “bear fruit,” both the planting of a tree and its eventual growth and gifts are understood to represent symbolic meaning as well (see Psalm 1:3; 92:13; Eccl 12:1-7).
This day is also connected to the ma’aseror “tithe” of produce, as related to trees, fruit, and other produce.
In terms of the Torah text itself just as a tree is planted with future hope of fruit, but without any immediate result until at least three years of growth, plus a 4th year of dedication to YHVH, and then only in the 5th year the fruit is eaten–humans have similar experiences of new beginnings or “plantings” that do not yield immediate results but one must “wait” for the results to appear. Fruit trees continue to represent to most of us a picture of pardes or Paradise, as well as the original diet of human beings (Genesis 1:29; 2:9). Such a diet (called in Hebrew zeor’im or “seeds”) was seen as ideal and conducive to spiritual development. Daniel and his three companions in Babylon separate themselves from the food and wine of the king and for three years of “testing” eat “from the seeds,” experiencing health and spiritual insights and power far beyond their peers (Daniel 1:14-15).
Last night marked the beginning of the strangest festival in the biblical calendar. It is called the “festival of shelters,” literally and it last for seven days. The word is Sukkoth in Hebrew, which literally means “huts” or some other kind of temporary dwelling. Its meaning is very close to our English “homeless shelter” today. Though it is often translated “tents” or “booths” the idea is some kind of arbor or lean-to under which one can get a tiny bit of needed shelter, but still very much exposed to the elements and the sky. This was one of the three ancient pilgrim feasts of Israel. We are not told too much about it, but the meaning seems simple, Israel, settled in permanent dwellings and cities in the land, is never to forget its “wilderness” origins, so that once a year, in the Fall, they are to actually “go back to nature” and camp out or live in huts, tents, or temporary dwellings, for a week, so as to remember that YHVH made our ancestors live in this nomadic, temporary way in the time of Moses. This festival then vividly reminds us of that, of the CAMP of Israel, of the time when the Column of Cloud/Fire was visible, when there were no sacrifices or Temple, just the simple “tent of meeting,” when everyone was fed morning and evening with the mysterious “manna,” and when YHVH spoke face to face with Moses.
You can find the descriptions in the Torah, particularly in Leviticus 23: 39-43. But what is really interesting about Sukkoth is that it not only looks back, but also forward. Notice these words of the Prophet Hosea:
I have been YHVH your God since your days in Egypt, and I will make you DWELL IN SUKKOTH again, as in the days of MEETING.
I will speak through prophets, I will give vision after vision and through the ministry of prophets will speak in similies” (12:9-10)
This is really an incredible verse, as it pictures a time of Israel’s restoration, when Prophecy returns, no more “hiding of the Face,” and the days of “meeting” could well refer to that “Tent of Meeting,” from those wilderness times. Here we have that same motif that we find elsewhere in the Prophets, the idea of an Exodus II that parallels Exodus I of the time of Moses. Thus Micah the Prophet declares: “Once again YHVH will show marvelous things as in the days when you came out of Egypt (Micah 7:14-15)
Zech 14 also tells of a time when the whole world will come up to Jerusalem and dwell in Sukkoth/tents/shelters during this week….
Some other relevant readings for this time are Hosea 12, Micah 7, Psalm 80-81, Isaiah 24-35…
Some folk camp out in tents, others gather at campgrounds or even hotels, some just stay out on their porches or balconies and many build shelters on their property, as is the custom within Judaism. The more one can actually “live” in the Sukkoth, the better in terms of getting the meaning of the festival. The moon during Sukkoth is full. On a clear night everything is bright and lovely, almost magical. The experience can remind us of a more simple and primitive time, getting away from all the “modern conveniences,” more or less what we mean when we talk of “camping out.”
We at United Israel wish all of you, our thousands of readers worldwide, a meaningful festival. Sukkoth is truly an extended Biblical “Thanksgiving.” In our troubled and complex world it pulls us outside, away from it all, to sit/dwell in our “huts” for the next seven days…
Blow the shofar at the new moon,
at the covered moon, on our feast day.
For it is a statute for Israel,
a rule of the God of Jacob.
He made it a decree in Joseph
when He went out over the land of Egypt (Psalm 81:3-5)
My Last Night in Goshen
by Ross Nichols
Pesach 2009 / 5769
The moon is huge and bright outside. All around me I see the silhouettes of people scurrying about and preparing for our much anticipated 
departure. People can be seen packing all of their possessions in the flickering light of the oil lamps burning within the homes of all of my neighbors. I am standing outside of my home, my belt is fastened, sandals are tied tightly on my feet and my staff is in my hand. I am burning what was left from my family meal, as I was instructed, upon a pile of coals.
Four days ago I selected a lamb for my house and then today at the specified time “between the evenings” I killed it and roasted it over a fire. My family ate the flesh with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. I took some of the blood and applied it to the top and sides of the doorway to my home. I am told that this will serve as a sign to keep my family safe. It is whispered that tonight at midnight a destroyer will pass through the land and enter any and every home that does not have the sign to kill the firstborn.
We have prayed for deliverance from the hard labor of this place. My people have been sojourners for 430 years! It is said that our God has finally heard our cries. Two sons of the tribe of Levi revealed this to our elders who then informed us of all that would lead to our freedom. Their names are Moses and Aaron, both sons of Amram and Jochebed of the family of Kohath. I am told that these two sons of Levi performed many miracles in the sight of our elders which confirmed to them that our God has indeed visited us and witnessed our afflictions. When I first heard this news I bowed my head and worshipped!
Time and again they went before Pharaoh and requested that our people be allowed to leave but the king of Egypt refused every time. Because of the strength of Pharaoh’s heart and his arrogance towards God’s messengers our God has caused great calamities to fall upon the people who have enslaved us. During all of this time my people have been protected in our place of Goshen. The water of the Nile was turned to blood. The fish died and the smell from the water was horrid! Even after this sign, Pharaoh would not let us go. The land was invaded by frogs. We hear that the frogs were inside of the homes of the Egyptians…on their beds and even in their kneading bowls! I had hoped that this would cause Pharaoh to let us leave but as soon as the plague was removed and the frogs burned in the fires, Pharaoh returned to his stubbornness! Gnats came next. The gnats covered all living creatures – both man and beast, but Pharaoh was still not willing to let us leave. Flies came next to such a degree that the land of Egypt was ruined by the swarms. I thought that this plague would have been enough, but Pharaoh still stood strong against us. Then I witnessed the livestock of the Egyptians dead in the fields and yet even with this, Pharaoh refused to let us go. Even when the Egyptians were stricken with painful sores on their flesh they did not give in to release us. We heard from our elders that Moses instructed all of us to take our livestock to safety to keep them protected during the next plague. We were told that God would send a storm of hail. Some of the Egyptians took heed to this warning but most did not. We were safe in Goshen, but the storm was fierce! Hail and fire came down from heaven such as had never been seen or heard! All the plants were destroyed as well. Once again the sons of Levi, as they had done after each of the preceding plagues went before Pharaoh. As soon as the storm was stayed by the hand of Moses, Pharaoh grew arrogant once again and reneged on his word. Locusts were sent to eat what was left from the hail, but as soon as they were blown away by God, Pharaoh went back on his word. Then a darkness came upon the land – a darkness so thick that one could feel it! This seemed only to anger Pharaoh more and he threatened Moses and Aaron with death if they appeared before him again.
We then followed the directions of Moses and Aaron and asked our Egyptian neighbors for silver and gold which they gave to us. We were told to prepare as I mentioned previously for our departure. So as the glow from the coals slowly fades into the dark of night I close the door of my home. The children are sleeping quietly on the floor. Our dog and other animals all curled up in a ball with them. My wife and I are too anxious to sleep.
What was that? I hear high pitched screams as the wind blows hard outside of our home. I watch as clouds pass in front of the moon and I know that tonight is the night that God has chosen to save His people. I am told that we will eat this meal every year at this time when we reach our destination. When my sons ask me why we eat this meal I will tell them, “It is YHWH’s Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when He struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.”
Tell the story in your own way during this season. Shalom and chag sameach!
Ross Nichols
Today brings the New Moon or a new month, but not just any new moon. According to the Torah, “This month (literally “new”) shall be to you head of the months…Exodus 12.
Today is the beginning of Nisan or Aviv, the biblical name of this new moon/month.
Even though the focus on the 1st day of the 7th month is dominant among many, and has been picked up even in our culture as “Rosh HaShanah,” the Jewish “New Year,” the power of YHVH’s word here to Moshe can not be gainsaid. This is indeed the beginning of the “Sacred” year, not the civil year, and the return of the cycle of Sabbaths, New Moons, and Festivals…
If you do a bit of study for the terms “first day” of the “first month” in the Tanakh you might be surprised at how often this “New Year” signals a new beginning, renewal, and new life, including here in the time of Moshe at the Exodus. It is also called the turning of the year, and has to do with the sprouting of the barely, and with what we call “spring,” but on a deeper level it is more than that. For all of us may it be a time of “turning,” and yes, “Here comes the sun!”
Here is a detailed study of what the Bible calls “The Times and the Seasons”:
Blessed be the Name of God
From everlasting even to everlasting!
For wisdom and might are His;
And He changes the times and seasons.
–Daniel 2:20–
One of the most fascinating areas of Biblical study is that of chronology. YHVH is a God of history, of times and seasons. He alone is the One who was, and is, and is to come. He alone determines the outcome of things, knowing the end from the beginning (see Isaiah 46:10). The Torah is full of fascinating indications of how, and particularly when He acts in bringing forth His Divine Plan of the ages. In other words, the Torah gives us insight into what we might call the Divine Counsel or “Strategy.” Much of this chronological material in the Torah is written in coded form and has to be “dug out” with some care. However, the effort is well rewarded as we gain insight into some of the “wondrous things” hidden therein. Remember the prayer of David:
Open my eyes that I might see,
Wondrous things out of Your Torah! (Psa 119:18)
One of the most intriguing examples of God’s strategic chronological Plan in history are the events surrounding the Call of Abram and the birth of Isaac. To follow this study you will need a good literal translation of the Torah in English, a Hebrew text if you have it, and materials for notes.
As you know, Isaac was a wondrous child of promise, born when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90 (Gen 17:17). A year earlier, when Abraham was 99, we have an important set of references to what was ahead. YHVH and the two heavenly messengers appeared to Abraham at Mamre and revealed to Abraham and Sarah that they would have a son. Note the precise language:
I will certainly return to you when the season comes around, and lo, Sarah your wife shall have a son (Gen 18:10).
Is anything too hard for YHVH? At the set time I will return to you, when the season comes around, and Sarah shall have a son (Gen 18:14).
Two precise Hebrew expressions are used here, lending strong emphasis to the precise timing of the birth of Isaac. There is great meaning in all this. The first phrase, “when the season comes around,” (ca`et chayah) is literally, “at the time (or season) of life.” It is a reference to the new year in the Spring, in the month of Abib or Nisan (see Exodus 12:2). It is significant to note that precisely the same phrase is used in the Haftorah reading for this very section of Torah (Vayerah). There we read of another extraordinary birth, that of the son of the Shunammite woman during the time of Elisha (2 Kings 4:16). Truly this month of Nisan is a month of miracles and “new birth” as we shall see. The second phrase, “at the set time,” (lamo`ed) stresses the exactitude of the timing of this important event. It will come at a precise time or season. These are not merely superfluous passing references. Three chapters later we read:
And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him (Gen 21:2).
What we learn here is that Isaac was born in the Spring of the year, likely in the month of Nisan, at a “set time” of great importance to the plan of YHVH.
Anyone who is a talmid(ah) Torah, a student of Torah, will immediately think of the miraculous birth of yet another child, which also took place in the Spring of the year, in this very month of Nisan. I am speaking of the birth of the nation of Israel, brought out of Egypt at the first Passover. Regarding that pivotal event YHVH Himself declares:
Israel is My son, My first-born,
and I have said unto you: Let My son go (Exodus 4:22).
When Israel was a child I loved him,
And out of Egypt I called My son (Hosea 11:1).
We all know that this coming out of Egypt, this birth of a nation happened at a precise time, even a precise day according to the Plan of YHVH. Exodus 12:40-41 makes a fantastic claim of great significance. Note it carefully:
Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who dwelt in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass, at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the very day [i.e., Passover], it came to pass that all the host of YHVH went out from the land of Egypt.
Note that the language is exact and absolute. The reference to the very day is to the 15th of Nisan, the evening of the Passover Seder. But what about this intriguing reference to 430 years? Scholars have disputed over the meaning of this chronological note. It should be noted that the verse, when properly translated, does not say that Israel was in the land of Egypt for 430 years, but rather the that the time of their “sojourning” was 430 years (see KJV for a correct rendering). What event happened, 430 years earlier, to the day, from Israel’s Exodus from Egypt?
Many would begin this 430 year period of “sojourn” with the Call of Abraham in Genesis 12. Others have counted the 430 years from the circumcision covenant with Abraham, when he was 99 years old (Gen 17). Still others have begun the 430 years with the birth of Isaac in Genesis 21. The Rabbinic source Seder Olam preserves what I think is the best solution to this problem.
In Genesis 23:4 Abraham tells the children of Heth, from whom he purchases the burial cave of Machpelah in Kiriatharba or Hebron, “I am a stranger and a sojourner” with you. Have you ever noticed this? Abraham calls himself a ger (stranger) and a toshav (sojourner), even though this very Land had been promised to him! Abraham never received the Land of Promise; he remained a “sojourner” until the day of his death. The same is true for Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and the 70 who went down to Egypt. The question is, precisely when did this “sojourning” of the people of Israel begin? According to Seder Olam it begins not in Genesis 12, with the Call of Abram to leave his father Terah’s house in Haran, but five years earlier, when he left Ur of the Chaldees (Babylon)! Note carefully, when Abram leaves Haran he is 75 years old (Gen 12:4). But according to Genesis 11:31 “they went forth . . . from Ur of the Chaldees” some years earlier. This is the actual beginning of their wandering or sojourning. There is a strikingly significant reference in this regard in Genesis 15:7:
And He said to him: “I am YHVH that brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”
Did you catch it? We might have expected, on the basis of Genesis 12:1-3 (Lech Lacha), for YHVH to say “who brought you out of your father’s house,” i.e., from Haran. But here we learn a crucial point, supported also in Rabbinic tradition, that the ultimate “Call” of Abram was out of Ur in Babylon, not from Haran. In other words, the wandering, or “sojourning” of Abram begins before his call from Haran at age 75. Also, the Hebrew word here is crucial. The phrase here translated “brought you out” is from the verb yatz’ah. Perhaps you remember the same crucial phrase in Exodus 20:2 when YHVH thunders from Sinai:
I am YHVH your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.
This is the dramatic introduction to the giving of the Ten Words (Commandments). The verb “brought you out” is identical in both passages: Genesis 15:7 and Exodus 20:2. This is crucially important. It strongly indicates that the call of Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees was 430 years to the day from the Exodus of Israel from Egypt! Think about that for a moment. That would mean that Abram left Ur, which was his own personal “Exodus” from idolatry and paganism, on the very same night, Nisan 15th, which later becomes the Passover! This timing is certainly no accident. In both symbol and actuality the deep significance of this point is obvious.
The exact chronology of the Hebrew text confirms this. Note carefully the following references and numbers (the years are given as AM, “after Man (i.e., Adam),”which correspond to the standard Jewish years since Creation):
Abram leaves Ur Abram 70 Year 2018 AM (Gen 11:31)
Abram leaves Haran Abram 75 Year 2023 AM (Gen 12:4)
Birth of Isaac Abram 100 Year 2048 AM (Gen 17:17)
Birth of Jacob Isaac 60 Year 2108 AM (Gen 25:20)
Israel to Egypt Jacob 130 Year 2238 AM (Gen 47:9)
Exodus 210 yrs later Year 2448 AM (Ex 12:40)
The total years from Abram leaving Haran at age 75 (2023 AM) until Jacob going down to Egypt (2238 AM) are 215. To this we add the 210 years of Egyptian slavery for a total of 425 years: from Abram leaving Haran, until the Exodus in the year 2448 AM. But, what about the all important reference to 430 years of “sojourning” in Exodus 12:40-41? Here we have only 425 rather than 430. The five additional years are obviously the time Abram spent in Haran. Accordingly, he must have left Ur at age 70. Thus, the total years of “sojourning of the children of Israel,” is precisely 430 years, from the Abram’s “going out from Ur” at age 70 (2018 AM), until Israel’s “going out of Egypt” in the year 2448 AM. The harmony and significance of this parallel can hardly be overstressed.
One important additional note here. Why would Exodus 12:40 speak of the sojourn of the “children of Israel” as 430 years when this period begins with Abram? The answer is that Abram stands for the whole people. The term “Israel” is both a name and a title which includes Abraham and his entire line through Isaac and Jacob. The Covenant with the Jewish people begins with Abraham. It is worth noting that the name ISRAEL in Hebrew is spelled Yod, Shin, Resh, Alef, Lamed. These five Hebrews letters are the first letters of the names of the Patriarchs and their wives. Note: Yod=Yitzak (Isaac) and Yaakov (Jacob); Shin=Sarah; Resh=Rebecca and Rachel; Lamed=Leah! Surely this is no accident! Accordingly, when we speak of the “children of Israel,” we begin with, and certainly include, Abraham.
But there is much more. Remember, Isaac is born at a “set time,” when the “season of life” comes around. We have already seen that this is a reference to the beginning of Spring, or the month of Nisan. It seems likely that Isaac, as a miraculous child of promise, was actually born on Nisan 15th or Passover! The festivals and holy days of Israel, fully set forth in the Torah in Leviticus 23, were known and significant in various ways in much earlier times (Gen 1:14; 8:13). For example, there is a fascinating reference to Lot preparing “unleavened bread” or matzos, for the heavenly guests prior to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:3)! Why matzos? In the previous chapter Abraham has been told that Isaac will be born “at this season next year” (18:14). So, we know we are in the time of Nisan, when Abram is 99, a year before Isaac’s birth. Is it possible that God rescued and removed Lot and his family from Sodom around, or even on, the very night of Passover? This would certainly make sense. The text contains several Passover motifs. The angels keep urging Lot and his family to leave, to hurry, and not to delay. In a similar way the Israelites make haste to leave Egypt, not even allowing their bread to rise.
Putting all this together we learn some interesting and fascinating things about how YHVH acts in history. Abram left Ur with its idolatry and paganism, on the very night of Passover, and Israel left Egypt on the same day, 430 years later. Isaac is born this same time of year, at a “set time,”(probably Passover), while Lot leaves Sodom just one year earlier at the same “set time,” or season of the year. Each of these events is closely connected in both time and theme. The Passover season is a time of birth and new beginnings, a time for leaving behind the old and beginning the new, a time of rescue and mighty deliverance, a time of miracles and dramatic demonstration of the power and greatness of YHVH!
Everyone familiar with either Jewish tradition or biblical history knows of the “Fast of the 5th,” namely the practice of fasting and mourning on the 9th of Av (the 5th month on the Jewish calendar), in memory of the destruction of both Jewish Temples (586 BCE and 70 CE) during that time. This practice goes back over 2500 years and is mentioned in the book of the Prophet Zechariah (8:18-19), around 515 BCE.
However, Zechariah mentions another fast day–”the Fast of the 10th month,” referring to today, January 6th, which is the 10th of Tevet (the 10th month on the Jewish calendar). This second fast day, also referenced by Zechariah, is connected to the initial siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, on the 10th day of the 10th month, in the winter of 587 BCE, seven months before its destruction in August, 586 BCE (9th of Av).
Here is a fascinating article, based on Rabbinic traditions regarding the chronology of these days, by Daniel Pinner, from israelnationalnews.com, that offers some provocative reflections on this date in history:
The Fast of the TenthTevet 10, 5769, 06 January 09 12:04by by Daniel Pinner
(IsraelNN.com) “And it happened in the ninth year of [Zedekiah's] reign, in the tenth month [i.e., Tevet], on the tenth of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came – he and all his army – against Jerusalem, besieged it and built a siege tower around it.” (II Kings 25:1, Jeremiah 52:4)Zedekiah was the very last king of Judah, who had ascended the throne in a turbulent period of Jewish history. One hundred and twenty-two years earlier, Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel; he took King Hoshea captive and sent the ten tribes into exile, scattered throughout the Assyrian Empire, where they were lost to the Jewish national body. The southern kingdom of Judea would survive for another 133 years, under constant threat of invasion and occasional incursions from Egypt and Babylon, before finally being invaded and conquered by Nebuchadnezzar.
Zedekiah’s father, Josiah, had reigned for thirty-one years. He had ascended the throne when he was just eight years old, and tried desperately to repair the spiritual ravages that his predecessors had caused to the nation: he renovated the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, which had not been maintained properly since King Jehoash, eight kings and over 200 years previously; he restored the Torah to Judah; he destroyed the idols, including the Asherah tree from the Holy Temple, and burned them all; he dismissed the priests of idolatry and destroyed the rooms that they had maintained within the Holy Temple; he destroyed all the idolatrous altars throughout the Land; and he restored the Pesach sacrifice, which had been neglected for centuries.
His reign came to an abrupt end when Pharaoh Neco wanted to traverse through Judea on his way to fight Assyria. King Josiah would not tolerate a foreign army on Judean soil, so he confronted the pharaoh in Megiddo. In the ensuing battle, Pharaoh Neco killed King Josiah, whereupon the masses anointed Josiah’s son Jehoahaz as king.
Jehoahaz, however, was an evil king; and after reigning for just three months, the pharaoh captured him, exiled him, reduced Judea to a vassal state, and put Jehoaz’s brother Eliakim on the throne, changing his name to Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim, also an evil king, reigned for eleven years, first as a vassal of Egypt, then of Babylon. Eventually, a Babylonian-Moabite-Ammonite alliance attacked Judea, inflicting terrible damage. Jehoiakim died, and his eighteen-year-old son Jehoiachin became king. Jehoiachin was just as evil as his father and, after he reigned for just three months, Babylon besieged Jerusalem, pillaged the treasures of the Holy Temple, exiled tens of thousands of Jews, and took King Jehoiachin into captivity in Babylon.
The king of Babylon then crowned Jehoiachin’s uncle, Mattaniah, as vassal-king of Judea, changing his name to Zedekiah. And then, after nine years of autonomy in the Babylonian Empire, on the tenth of Tevet, the Babylonian army began its siege on Jerusalem, the last stage before the final obliteration of Jewish independence. Just seven months later, on the 7th of Av, Nebuzaradan, the chief executioner of Babylon, would arrive in Jerusalem to burn the Holy Temple two days later – on the 9th of Av.
The 9th of Av had been ordained as a day of destruction and mourning ever since the spies whom Moshe had sent to spy out the Land of Israel had returned, given their evil report, and the nation spurned the Land of Israel and cried in their lack of faith. The Talmud (Ta’anit 29a) calculates the Torah’s chronology: on the 20th of Iyar we left Mount Sinai (Numbers 10:11); this was followed by a three-day journey (v.33) concluding on the 23rd of Iyar; a 30-day sojourn in Kibroth-Hata’avah (ibid. 11:20, 34) concluding on the 22nd of Sivan; and finally seven days in Hazeroth (11:35, 12:15-16) before reaching the Paran Desert (ibid. 12:16) on the 29th of Sivan.
Hence, Moshe sent out the twelve spies on the 29th of Sivan (compare Targum Yonatan to Numbers 13:20). They returned forty days later on the 8th of Av and gave their evil report of the Land; and when night fell and the nation cried, it was the evening of the 9th of Av. Instead of the 9th of Av being the day that we entered the Land of Israel and brought the redemption, it became a day of tragedy.
But what event foreshadowed the siege of Jerusalem beginning on the 10th of Tevet?
It seems to me that the Torah gives us a hint of what the background was. 1,291 years before the First Temple was destroyed, three angels appeared to Abraham and Sarah, heralding the birth of their son Isaac the following year (Genesis 18:1-14). The Talmud and the midrashim are consistent about the chronology: the angel promised Sarah that she would bear her son Isaac exactly one year hence (18:10); the 400 years of Abraham’s seed living as “strangers in a land not their own” (15:13) began with the birth of Isaac and finished with the Exodus from Egypt. Since the Exodus occurred on the 15th of Nisan, Isaac was born 400 years to the day earlier; i.e., also on the 15th of Nisan. And since the angelic prophecy to Sarah was one year to the day before Isaac was born, this episode also happened on the 15th of Nisan.
This was also the day before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, sparing only Lot and his two daughters, who fled into the hills (Genesis 19:1-25). The night following the destruction, Lot’s daughters, fearing that they were the only three people remaining in the world, plied their father with drink and impregnated themselves by him. They gave birth to sons – the elder bore Moab and the younger bore the ancestor of Ammon (19:30-38).
Nine months after the 16th of Nisan brings us to the 10th of Tevet. Hence, Moab and Ammon, the two nations who, in alliance with Babylon, would attack Judea and thus initiate the process that would culminate in Judea being captured and the Holy Temple destroyed, were born on the 10th of Tevet – the day that Babylon began the siege on Jerusalem.
Thus, Jewish independence would be extinguished in the Land of Israel and, for the next 70 years, the Land was to lie desolate under Babylonian occupation. At the end of that time, the Persian King Cyrus (Koresh) defeated Babylon, inherited the Babylonian Empire – including Israel – and proclaimed the right of any Jew who wanted to return to Israel and to rebuild the Holy Temple.
In the days of the Second Temple, we did not fast on the fast days of mourning (the 17th of Tammuz, the 9th of Av, Tzom Gedaliyah on the 3rd of Tishrei, and the 10th of Tevet): one does not mourn over the destruction on the Temple while the Temple is standing. The Rambam, however, states that the Jews did fast on the 9th of Av in the Second Temple period (commentary to the Mishnah, Rosh HaShanah 1:3; “Laws of Fasts” 5:5).
It seems puzzling that we should fast in mourning for the Temple when the Temple is standing. The Maggid Mishneh (commentary on the Mishneh Torah by Rabbi Vidal of Tolosa, 14th-century Spain) explains: “According to our rabbi [the Rambam], the custom [whether or not to fast] depends upon the circumstances, as the Talmud [Rosh HaShanah 18b] makes clear. In a time of peace – which means when the Holy Temple is built – the fast days are days of rejoicing and gladness; in times of persecution, they are fast days; and in times when there is neither peace nor persecution, every Jew who desires to fast can fast. However, fasting is not obligatory, with the exception of the fast of the 9th of Av, because there were so many disasters on this day. But now, everyone fasts on all these days and all are obligatory upon every Jew until the Holy Temple will be rebuilt.” (Maggid Mishneh on “Laws of Fasts” 5:5)
Evidently, the Second Temple, being only temporary, could annul three of the four fasts of mourning. But the 9th of Av is such a disastrous day that a temporary Temple cannot override it.
But the third and final Holy Temple will convert even the 9th of Av into the day of joy and festivity that it was originally intended to be, a day of redemption: “Thus said HaShem, Lord of Legions: The fast of the fourth [month, i.e., Tammuz] and the fast of the fifth [month, i.e., Av] and the fast of the seventh [month, i.e., Tishrei], and the fast of the tenth [month, i.e., Tevet] will turn into rejoicing and gladness and festivities for the House of Judah. So love truth and peace.” (Zechariah 8:19)
www.IsraelNationalNews.com
© Copyright IsraelNationalNews.com
Just some thoughts on this holy evening…
Two male goats are selected for Yom Kippur, one is “for YHVH” and the other “for Azazel.” Both are said to be “for a sin offering” (v. 5).
One is slain and the other is sent away into the wilderness. What has been confusing to me and many others who have discussed this passage is that BOTH goats are spoken of as somehow providing “atonement,” or better translated “covering.” So why the difference?
Many have favored the interpretations that make the two goats positive and negative, and it is the case that Azazel in ancient Jewish texts (1 Enoch, and various rabbinic traditions, etc.) is the name for an “angel” who opposes YHVH. But if one is negative and one positive, how can both provide “covering”?
What is easy to miss here is that the first goat, the one that is “for YHVH,” that is slain, makes “covering for the Holy Place because of the uncleanness of the people and because of their transgressions, all their sins” (v. 16). In other word, the blood off that goat is to cleanse the Tabernacle that has become unclean because of the sins of the people, NOT to removed the sins of the people per se.
In contrast, the sins of the people themselves are PUT ON the head of the live goat. That goat is not killed, yet that goat too is spoken as a “sin offering” (v.5), ,making atonement/covering (v. 10), and that goat “bears all their iniquities” into a remote area.
This distinction seems to be an important one. There seems to be no evidence in this text that the slain goat is for the forgiveness of the people’s sins as such, yet this is how the many have read this (see Hebrew 9), as applying it to “Christ.” The other goat is not even spoken of in the N.T. texts and yet it seems THAT goat is the “sin bearer.”
A lot of the reason this mystery of the two hairy goats is difficult to grasp, and engenders many opinions, is that we come to the text with presuppositions from our backgrounds, assumptions, and the history of interpretation. It is hard to actually read the text with “new eyes” and allow it to say what it appears to say.
It might well be that the “two hairy goats” represent two related pictures of the “Covering” or redemption from sins that come each year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Covering…One is related to YHVH dwelling in the Tent of Meeting, the other to Azazel…It is the latter that has gotten people confused, because many have transferred the meaning of the latter to the former, and read about the blood of the slain goat as if it brings redemption from moral sins.
According to Leviticus 16 both goats are spoken of as “sin-offerings,” and both “atone,” but one by dying and the other by being driven into the wilderness. They seem to be closely related, rather than one “good” and the other “evil.” This creates a real problem for the view that these two hairy goats represent a good/evil contrast.
An important key might be to look at Lev 16:15-20. The goat that is KILLED and the blood that is shed is specifically said to be for the “covering” (atoning) for the sins of the people, but as related to the “uncleaness” of the HOLY PLACE. In other words, Aaron going in, with blood from the bull for himself and household, and blood from the goat for the people, is related to making the TENT or Tabernacle holy where YHVH dwells–among an unclean people–see v. 16. This seems very clear. This is what we would call “ritual” cleansing. It is specifically related to the Tent/Tabernacle.
Accordingly, the way the slain goat on YK is interpreted by the Christians, as in Hebrews 9, as a picture of the atoning for sins in general, especially for “moral” failures, through the shedding of blood, is incorrect. The statement “without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins” is often quoted, but seems to be without basis in the Torah. Notice, with the live goat there is no shedding of blood mentioned, and yet there is “atonement” or “covering” by its removal.
The goat that really “bears the sins” is the one sent away, into the desert. Notice v. 22. All the sins and iniquities and transgressions are put on the head of this LIVE goat and he is send away TO Azazel! This seems to be what really brings the thorough REMOVAL of the sins of the people, the ultimate “covering” that comes on Yom Kippur–not the blood of that first goat that was for the cleansing of the Tent of Meeting. It is as if to say–to hell with your sins! They are cast FAR AWAY, to the desert places, where Azazel and the demons dwell.
In 2nd Temple times there is the tradition of casting this second goat off a cliff and killing it. And this might be appropriate. But if one sticks with the text itself, there is an emphasis on the LIVE goat–not a dead one. It is the SENDING forth, to the desert, to Azazel, that seems to be the point. No SHED BLOOD is mentioned or involved.
This insight seems to provide a kind of “breakthrough” in thinking about Yom Kippur in the Biblical texts. What it means is that the MAIN image of ATONEMENT, the one GREAT atonement, on the DAY of atonement/ covering, is the REMOVAL of sins borne by a LIVE animal–NOT the via the shedding of blood. This has implications in taking one beyond the sacrificial system of ritual cleansing that was set up in connection with the Mishkan, upon which so many have put their focus.
This line of understanding makes the Haphtarah readings for Yom Kippur all the more powerful. The story of Jonah is read. And then the passage in Micah 7:18-20–where sins are CAST AWAY…into the depths of the sea. The whole emphasis is on TURNING, and then sins being carried away–on “mercy not sacrifice” as the Prophets put it.
Ross Nichols, leader of “Roots of Faith” in St Francisville, LA, offers his perspective on the Jewish Holiday known more commonly as Rosh HaShanah, and called in the Bible “Yom Teru’ah,” or literally “day of the blast,” as he explains here:
I wanted to take the time to send out a special note to my entire mailing list as we draw near to the beginning of the 7th month on the Biblical Calendar. This 7th month, is referred to by Josephus as the “Sacred Month”.
This is my favorite time of the year. The Bible refers to this season as the “turn of the year – Exodus 34:22″, and I always feel that this time leads us into a holy time – a time to reflect on our deeds and a time to “turn to our God” in repentance.
One thing that I constantly stress in my teachings is that people would do well to incorporate the “times and seasons” of the Bible into their personal faith. There is something incredible about being in sync with God’s appointed times (moedim). A careful study of Leviticus 23 is a good place to start. In the very first verse we learn that these are the “festivals of YHWH”.
Jews have kept these festivals since they were given and have developed their own rich traditions around each of these. Christians are beginning to see the great value in studying them and incorporating them into their walk often as a way to be more like Jesus (Yeshua). These moedim clearly have meaning for anyone that seeks to adopt the ways of the Creator.
Beginning tomorrow, according to the Jewish calendar, we enter this 7th month. This first day of the 7th month is known biblically as Yom Teruah, (a day of blasting, shouting), more commonly known as the Feast of Trumpets and traditionally as Rosh HaShana (or New Year’s day). Anciently, the new month was determined based upon the sighting of the new moon (a thin crescent), while the modern Jewish calendar is determined by calculation. The subject of the Hebrew Calendar is a very interesting and hotly debated subject – but one that is quite rewarding. So whether you follow the Jewish calendar or prefer to spot the thin crescent moon in the sky with your own eyes, the day is fast approaching!
An Ancient Sermon delivered on Yom Teruah
The 8th chapter of Nehemiah contains a sermon that was preached on this very day nearly 2,467 years ago! It is there referred to as “a day Holy to YHWH”. The Torah has two main references to this Festival (Leviticus 23:23-25 and Numbers 29:1-6). The key word for this particular holy day is the Hebrew word Teruah. It is from the root “rua’” which means to “raise a shout” and is often associated with a battle cry. It can be associated with “making a loud noise” and one musical instrument that is commonly found making such noise is the ram’s horn “trumpet”, or shofar.
The shofar blast (the cry) is considered a warning and a call to repentance. A few passages that illustrate the use of the verb “rua’” are as follows: Psalm 47, Psalm 66:1; Psalm 81:2; Psalm 100:1, and Joshua 6:5.
This coming Sabbath is called Shabbat Shuvah – the Sabbath of Repentance. From the 1st day of the 7th month, we enter a 10-day countdown towards Yom Kippur – the Day of Atonement. I would encourage all of you to examine yourself and seek to make mends. The gates of repentance are always open.
Sin is the transgression of the commandments. Yeshua said that all who do and teach the commandments will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 5:17-20). To begin to turn to the Creator and to His ways as laid forth in the Law and the Prophets is the beginning step on the path towards true repentance.
I pray that each of you will meditate on these things as we enter this Holy 7th month.
A Sunday Shul Lesson for Yom Teruah
This past Sunday in my weekly Sunday Shul class, I taught on this very subject of Yom Teruah. Beginning with a sermon that dates to approximately 458 B.C.E., I seek to illustrate the Biblical significance of the 1st day of the 7th month.
Weaving the upcoming Torah and Prophet reading for Sabbath Shuvah (The Sabbath of Repentance) with the ancient sermon, I attempt to point out a path for repentance found within the Torah.
This timely message should be “heard” and proclaimed as we enter into what Josephus calls the “Sacred Month”.
Go here to listen to my message on Yom Teruah.
Look for the new moon and realize that once it is spotted, we are in the “Day of the Awakening Blast.”
So as we enter this season – I pray that God will begin to open our eyes, ears and hearts to those incredible teachings that are to be lovingly inscribed upon the hearts of all who are part of what the prophet Jeremiah called the “New Covenant” – Jeremiah 31:31-34
Shalom as we anxiously await Yom Teruah – the Day of Shouting!
Ross Nichols