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 27th, 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.
In this class Ross presents the second of a two part series covering five themes of the Passover season. This week Ross focuses on the last two themes – (1) The defeat of the enemies of God and the enemies of His people, and (2) A Coming Second Exodus. Whereas the first three provide us with keys to prepare, the last two illustrate what the future deliverance will look like. Ross researched the earliest records of ancient sermons preached in the old synagogues to find and share prophetic passages associated with the final days of Passover. He covers the theme of a Greater Exodus that is to come. This prophesied return of Israel from all nations is the MAJOR theme of all the prophets, mentioned in over 40 separate sections throughout the Hebrew Bible. This coming exodus will overshadow the former exodus. Ross works through some of the key passages dealing with the in-gathering of the exiles.
The photo is of Jewish immigrants returning to the land of their fathers and was taken in 1930. What will be so miraculous as to overshadow the Exodus from Egypt? The return of Israel from all the nations into which they were driven! You will not want to miss this teaching!
Click here to listen to the class.
Thirty-two years ago today, on “Maundy Thursday,” before Passover/Easter an ear-piercing dynamite blast shattered the morning’s peace, ripping through the rugged hills of Armon HaNatziv (i.e., the “place of the High Comissioner”) just south of the Old City of Jerusalem–today known as East Talpiot. Exposed on that day was the striking facade of what has now become known by many as “the Talpiot Jesus tomb.”
In the year 30 CE, also on this Thursday before Passover/Easter, the Galilean messianic claimant known as “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” was crucified by the Romans just outside the Old City and put in a hastily chosen temporary rock hewn tomb that just happened to be near the place of crucifixion just as the time for the evening Passover Seder drew near.
Mt of Olives, Passover, 30 CE painted by Balage Balogh in 2005
Read more here:
http://jamestabor.com/2012/04/04/today-in-history-thursday-before-passover-a-double-anniversary/
Chag Sameach, early Shabbat Shalom from Jerusalem
A holiday on the Hebrew calendar is a holy day because it interrupts the daily flow of our unexamined lives with messages and reminders that we need to make life worth living. A map is a guide for people traveling in space (as in cars and planes); holidays are the signposts for people traveling through time (events). Judaism has long recognized the special nature of time and it teaches us to be attached to holiness in time, to be attached to sacred events, to learn how to consecrate sanctuaries that emerge from the magnificent stream of each year.
“To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven: A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.”(Ecclesiastes 3:1-ff) These words declare an important truth that many of us forget: it is profoundly important to feel and express a full spectrum of emotions in order to be truly human. Judaism has a tradition that insists that real strength comes from feeling a wide range of emotions- even the negative which many of us try to avoid by distracting ourselves with “happy activities” or frivolous pursuits. We are instructed to embrace joy and incorporate enjoyment in our daily lives. The Talmud states that “in the future world every person will have to give an accounting for all the good things created on earth that he or she denied him or herself from enjoying.” ‘Ever see the Grand Canyon, the Great Barrier reef, the Alps, or any of the scenic wonders of the world? G-d decorated His house so magnificantly and Judaism believes He takes it personally if you don’t share His excitement and joy in everything He has put on earth.
The real distinction between the holidays that are recognized by a Torah based faith is the difference between biblical and rabbinic festivals. Of the days that are commanded to be observed in the first five books of Moses (Torah) – the two personal holy days of introspection and repentance, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, as well as the three commemorations of national historic moments, Passover (Pesach),Shavuot, and Sukkot – are clearly the most meaningful. G-d Himself ordained them. These will be highlighted in bold print. But there are more than these five festivals and each of them teaches something so significant that it is imperative to reflect on these lessons annually on the anniversary of their occurrance.
Following are the Hebrew months and corresponding Gregorian months:
Tishrei September and October Cheshvan October and November Kislev November and December Tevet December and January Shvat January and February Adar February and March Adar Sheni (second Adar) (the leap month 7 years out of 19) Nissan March and April Iyar April and May Sivan May and June Tammuz June and July Av July and August Elul August and September
Every month has its own special day(s) with the exception of Cheshvan – October and November. Some holidays are happy, some sad. Time forces us to remember, to commemorate, and to feast or fast, to rejoice or weep. We will explain the significance of each of these. Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 16 list the holidays and ordinances or holy convocations (the appointed seasons given to Moses along with the Ten Principles or Ten Commandments) which we will post and encourage each of us to celebrate with guidelines and options for observing each Holy Day.
These Torah-based holidays are available to all humankind whether literally or symbolically observed. The Hebrew calendar is lunar with each month beginning on the new moon and is tied to the moons cycles rather than the suns. Hebrew holidays start the evening (at sundown) before the day on your secular calendar. There is an extensive list of holidays observed and celebrated by the Jewish people from around the world but we will confine our seasonal listings to those which are more common to our American culture. We intend to explain the practices and purposes for each holiday and its connection to the New Testament writings. There will be instructions for observing the holidays and the degree to which you wish to practice the observance will be up to you. Observing and practicing the holy days is an excellent teaching tool and a way to involve your family, neighbors, and communities in a learning experience that is entertaining as well. Recipes for each holiday will be included. As a matter of record, the observation of and participation in these holidays in no way implies that anyone is Jewish. Only Jews are able to observe and practice the holidays as Jews but those of us who seek Truth and are willing to learn ongoing will profit from these opportinities. The following list incorporates both the holiday and the dates observed for the secular year September, 2011 through August, 2012.
*Shabbat (Sabbath/Saturday) shabbat (Hebrew for Sabbath) is celebrated every week from sundown on Friday night until sundown on Saturday and is considered to be holier than any of the yearly holidays. The festive Friday night meal usually includes a beautifully set table with candles, a wine (or grape juice) goblet and bread. Candles are lit during prayers (usually by women) before the meal. Prayers may be recited for the wine/grape juice and the bread (the fruit of the vine and the grain of the field) in thanks for the bounty provided by G-d. Blessings are recited at the end of the meal (usually by men).
* Tishah B’av (A fast commemorating the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem 7/29/2012
* Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) 9/17-18/2012
* Yom Kippur (Jewish day of atonement) 9/26/2012
* Sukkot (festival of booths) 10/13-19/2011
* Simcha Torah (celebration of the completion of the annual cycle of Bible reading 10/21/2011
* Chanukkah (festival of lights) 12/21-28/2011
* Tu B’Shevat (Jewish Arbor Day) 2/8/2012
* Purim (fast of Esther) 3/8/2012
* Pesach (Passover) 4/7-14/2012
* Lag B’Omer (counting of the omer – sheaves of wheat) 5/10/2012
* Shavuot (commemorates the receiving of the Torah at Mt. Sinai) 5/27-28/2012
* Tisha B’av (a fast commemorating the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem 7/29/2012
Four to six weeks prior to each holiday, information will be posted relating to that particular celebration including the purpose and its connections between Torah and the New Testament writings, customs, practical instructions for observing the event as well as recipes with significance to the holiday. This time frame will allow us to include our family members, our neighbors, and even our communities to join with us in our recognition of these ancient, holy days. It is our sincere hope that you will find this information useful and that it will open dialogue and pique interest in those who are seeking Truth. Please feel free to advise us on how we can expand or enhance these instructions for observance of the Hebrew calendar.
Prepared by Rebecca A. Buntyn
Acknowledgements: Phrases, idioms, and partial quotations were extracted from the Chabad website, Rabbi Benjamin Blech, Rabbi Allen Schwartz, David Blatner’s texts, and the website of Judaism 101.
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!
On October 22nd, 2011, the Roots of Faith Congregation will begin again in Genesis on their annual trek through the Torah of Moses. This is an excellent opportunity to join up with us for a year of Scriptural study that will change your life!
Every Saturday morning, people from literally around the world join with us for a unique religious service that is aimed at inspiring people to live a more biblically authentic lifestyle. Services are broadcast live over the internet at www.shma.tv. Class begins at 10:30 AM CST. Viewers can log in and participate in a live chat session before and during the class.
Our services begin with a stimulating, engaging and educational class on the reading from the Law of Moses (the Torah) for that particular week. This part of the service lasts about an hour. These teachings are available for download through iTunes or directly from our site each week and are enjoyed and shared by hundreds.
After the conclusion of the class, the local congregation reads the designated reading from the Law of Moses (Genesis though Deuteronomy). These weekly readings are identical with those read in most synagogues around the world and thus participants find themselves in sync with the Jewish people. It typically takes about 30 minutes to read the weekly portion of Scripture.
After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the local congregation assembles on camera at a table where we discuss elements of the weekly reading. The internet audience participates in the discussion through an interactive chat feature.
In addition to the weekly services, Roots of Faith also celebrates the Biblical Festivals and broadcasts these services over the internet.
If you are looking for spiritual nourishment and an environment where you can learn and share your views with others, then perhaps Roots of Faith is for you. We are making efforts to fully utilize technology to convey an ancient and relevant message to the modern world.
Non-Jews as well as Jews are welcomed and encouraged to participate as we seek to learn to live a more Biblically authentic lifestyle! Anyone who believes in the One God of Israel and seeks to live according to the principles of His words will find this outreach quite refreshing.
Please join us and tell others about us. Thanks for your continued interest in Roots of Faith!
Shalom,
Ross
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…
In today’s class Ross “covers” the subject of the Day of Atonement. What does Atonement mean and what is required of us on this most holy day? There are many traditional elements of this day, but what is the central message that we are supposed to take away from the Torah concerning what is called Yom Kippur? Ross takes his listeners through the two key texts that detail the “Day of Atonement”. You will not want to miss this teaching. Listen to it and then share with others.
Click here to listen to this teaching.
http://rootsoffaith.org/2011/10/08/the-day-of-coverings.htm
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.
“On the tenth day of the seventh month is Yom Kippur – a Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:26).” According to the Bible, this tenth day of the seventh month, which begins on the evening of the ninth and lasts until the evening of tenth, shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest on which we should “afflict” ourselves (Leviticus 23:32). This day is considered the most holy day on the ancient Hebrew calendar – a Holy of Holies! But what should we do on this day to set it apart? What does it mean when it says to afflict our souls?
The primary texts that concern this holy day are found in the Torah (Leviticus 16 and Leviticus 23:26-32). Leviticus 16 contains an ancient ceremony performed by Israel’s High Priest. The central theme of the ceremony and of the day is “atonement”. “For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the YHVH from all your sins. It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever (Leviticus 16:30-31).”
The word “atonement” is a translation of a Hebrew word that comes from a root composed of the letters (Kaph, Peh, Resh). The word “atonement” occurs 14 times in Leviticus 16 alone. The basic meaning of this word is “to cover”. So this is literally a day of covering. What is it that is being covered on this day? The covering associated with Yom Kippur refers to the sins of the people. The ceremonies that brought about this “covering” involved two identical goats; one that was killed and one that was led away into the wilderness l’azazel (often translated as the “scapegoat”).
The detailed rituals and sacrifices described in the Torah for Yom Kippur were principally carried out by Aaron, but there remains a point that was then and is now to be performed by all – citizens as well as the alien residing with you (Leviticus 16:29 and Leviticus 23:30) – to “afflict” the soul. The Hebrew here is anah (aleph, nun, heh – ana’) and means, “to be bowed down, afflicted” according to Brown Driver Briggs Hebrew Lexicon.
Some translations render this as “deny yourself”. The word occurs twice in Leviticus 16 and three times in Leviticus 23 (Leviticus 16:29, 31; 23:27, 29, 32). This means that this word occurs five times in the two passages that deal with Yom Kippur.
Given this information, a key theme that emerges at this time is “self-denial”. In the Bible, this word is associated with what we would call “fasting”. Examples are found in Ezra 8:21-23 and Psalm 35:11-14.
During this time of year we should be focused on returning to God through repentance. If we are to effect a change in our walk, we must turn to God and His ways with all of our heart and soul. This repentance can include fasting and mourning as we read in several passages, but it is not merely the participation in a fast or in the refraining of certain activities that will put one in right standing with God. The heart has to be right! I would encourage you all to read Isaiah 57:14 – 58:14. A careful reading of this passage indicates that a true fast involves a focus on the needs of others as well as a denial of self. When we learn to place the needs of others above our own needs, we will begin to walk in the ways of righteousness.
ESV Isaiah 57:14 And it shall be said, “Build up, build up, prepare the way, remove every obstruction from my people’s way.” 15 For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite. 16 For I will not contend forever, nor will I always be angry; for the spirit would grow faint before me, and the breath of life that I made. 17 Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry, I struck him; I hid my face and was angry, but he went on backsliding in the way of his own heart. 18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore comfort to him and his mourners, 19 creating the fruit of the lips. Peace, peace, to the far and to the near,” says the LORD, “and I will heal him. 20 But the wicked are like the tossing sea; for it cannot be quiet, and its waters toss up mire and dirt. 21 There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.” 58:1 “Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. 2 Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God. 3 ‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’ Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. 4 Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. 5 Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? 6 “Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? 8 Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. 9 Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’ If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, 10 if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. 11 And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. 12 And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in. 13 “If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; 14 then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
Beginning at sundown this evening, millions of Jews around the world begin their fast for Yom Kippur, joined by hundreds of thousands of non-Jews who also seek to observe the holy days of the Torah. The ceremonial aspects of the day are not currently practiced, but the heart of the matter is still required and the true meaning of anah seems to be the key to understanding the meaning of this holy day. Remember that this is an eternal statute! We can still perform the weightier portion of this day. Deny yourself! Afflict your soul! If we return to HaShem, He will return to us. May your sins be forgiven! May they be cast into the depths of the sea! “For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins. It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever (Leviticus 16:30-31).”