What Is Holiness – Kedushah?

Holy Unto The Lord

קֹ֖דֶשׁ לַֽיהוָֽה

Holy to Yahweh

qodesh Yhvh

kedushah/kadushah – Holy Unto The Lord!

Kodesh l’Adonai:

Lord in Hebrew is יהוה, YHWH,

6944 qodesh: apartness, sacredness

Original Word: קֹדֶשׁ
Transliteration: qodesh
Phonetic Spelling: ko’-desh

Holiness Unto The Lord 

written in Hebrew 

‘Kodesh L’ADONAI’

HOLINESS (holy) UNTO THE LORD;

 Sanctum Domino (Vulgate);

Ἅγιον τῷ Κυρίῳ παντοκράτορι (Septuagint).

This was the inscription upon

the golden plate on the mitre of the high priest. 

Mitre in Hebrew: mitsnepheth,

something rolled round the head;

the turban or head-dress of the high priest

Exodus 28:4 Exodus 28:37

Exodus 28:39; 29:6.

Exodus 39:30 And they made the plate of the holy crown of pure gold, and wrote upon it a writing, like to the engravings of a signet, HOLINESS TO THE LORD.

Leviticus 8:9

Leviticus 19:1-2

The Israelites were commanded to be

Holy

on account of their relationship with

The Holy One of Israel

K’dosh Yisrael or Qedosh Yisra’el

הקדוש של עם ישראל

The term Holy One of Israel

is used more than 30 times in the Bible.

Bible references: 2 Kings 19:22; Ps. 71:22; 78:41; 89:18; Isa. 1:4; 17:7; 30:11; 41:14; 43:3, 14; 45:11; 47:4; 48:17; 54:5; Jer. 50:29; 51:5 and a total of about forty five times.

Against the Holy One of Israel!  2 Kings 19:22.

The English translation of the word, does not very clearly convey the acurate meaning, as seen in Hebrew. In the English language, the words

one and of

are added to the translation

הקדוש של ישראל,

meaning: the Holy One of Israel.

In Hebrew, it is written as:

Holy Israel –  קדוש ישראל,

and the difference is significant.

The English language conveys:

a belonging to,

but also

a distinctly separate association.

The Hebrew, however, communicates

oneness.

Indicating the Shema.

The Lord is One.

In other words, Holy Israel is another name given to Adonai.

He is Holy, and He is also Israel/Yisrael.

The implication is that Yeshua/Jesus,

Who is the Word of God revealed in the flesh,

is called Holy Israel,

and therefore it could be said,

He and Israel are inseparably one.

The Holy One –

The One set apart

as completely perfect and unique,

transcending the realm of the finite, the fallen,

and the imperfect.

Only God is worthy of worship, for He alone is Holy. 

Strong’s Hebrew: 6918. קָדוֹשׁ (qadosh) — sacred, holy

holy One, saint.

Or

qadosh {kaw-doshe’}; from qadash; sacred (ceremonially or morally); (as noun) God (by eminence), an angel, a saint, a sanctuary — holy (One), saint. HEBREW qadash.

1Peter 1:13-16; 1Cor. 6:9-20.

The Torah defines a

Holiness Code

that contains more commandments for His children concerning practical ethics beginning with Lev. 19 1-2.

His Spirit is the Ruach Ha Kodesh

the Holy Spirit 

Hebrew: רוח הקודש ‎,

ruach ha-kodesh

Literally: spirit of Holiness Who will always guide us into the Truth and into the Fathers presence by WAY of  Messiah Yeshua HaMashiach.

But just what is holiness?

In Hebrew the word: kedushah

means: sanctity or set apartness.

It comes from the root word k d sh

Root: קֹ֫דֶשׁ 

qof, dalet, shin

sounds like k’desh/k’dosh

and other words that use this same root include:

kadosh – holy קדוש

Holy: kadosh, kodesh (Strong’s 69186944)

The root word kodesh actually means:

to consecrate.

So the word Holy means:

consecrated, dedicated, set apart…

קָדוֹשׁ. qadosh.

is frequently translated as holy, which is an abstract word.

When we use the word holy, as in a holy person, we usually associate this with a righteous or pious person.

If we use this concept when interpreting the word holy in the Hebrew Bible, then we are misreading the text, as this is not the meaning of the Hebrew word qadosh!

Qadosh literally means:

to be set apart for a special purpose.

A related word, qedesh,

is one who is also set apart for a special purpose

but not in the same way we think of holy. Deut 23:17.

Israel was qadosh

because they were separated from the other nations as:

servants of Elohiym.

The furnishings in the tabernacle were also qadosh, as they were not to be used for anything except for the work in the tabernacle. While we may not think of ourselves as holy, we are in fact

set apart from the world to be Elohiym’s servants

and His representatives/ambassadors. 

Holiness could be described as a:

state of consecration produced by ethical separation from profane culture when viewed in practical terms relating to human beings and their relationship to the Father.

Kadosh

encompasses the whole sphere of the sacred and

set apart things that are totally separate

from anything that is profane and sinful.

According to

Isaiah 57:15/Is 40:25

this means:

elevated and lofty and

beyond all comparison

and utterly unique, entirely righteous

Is 57:15 glorious and awesome

Ps 99:3 full of light and power

Is 10:7 and is chosen and favored as Gods own

Ezek 22:26.

Holiness is a name for the Lord Himself:

Ha kadosh barukh hu – the Holy One blessed is He.

Isa. 40:25

The idea of holy therefore suggests: separation..

meaning:

the realm of the holy

is entirely set apart from

the common, the habitual, or the profane.

The holy is singular, awe inspiring, even terrible or dreadful.

Neh 1:5 Ps 68:35

As the Holy One, God is

utterly unique, distinct, sacred and set apart as

the only One of His kind.

Only God is worthy of worship, for He alone is Holy – Kadosh.

As the Holy One ( ha’kadosh ),

the Lord of Hosts ( Adonai Tzeva’ot)

He alone is worthy of true worship and adoration, since He alone is peerless, without rival and stands in relation to the world as Creator and Lord.

Only the Lord is infinitely and eternally

known to Himself as Anochi.

Ezek. 3:15

I am that I am.

Holiness then implies more than an abstract separation as is often suggested but rather means:

separation from that which is common, mundane or evil,

(evil meaning: out of harmony with God).

In other words

holiness implies: absolute moral goodness and perfection.

God is not just Holy…

He is 

Holy, Holy, Holy!

 

Isaiah 6:1-3

In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.

And one called out to another and said, 

Holy, Holy, Holy, is YHWH of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.”

“Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh, YHWH Tsabaoth, melo kal ha’aretz ke-vodoh”

In Scripture, finding the same three words in a row is rare. Two other instances are in Jeremiah and Ezekiel.

This use of this grammatical emphasis, is most often with double words and occurs frequently in the Hebrew scriptures. It is a way of emphasizing the point and by repeating the same word; it was like putting an exclamation mark today. Seeing the same three words one after the other, was like shouting.

In the B’rit Chadashah/New Testament, John/Yocahannes used this word repetition too, and he experienced a vision similar to Isaiah’s:

Revelation 4:8

And each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around and within. Day and night they never stop saying: “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come!”

Kadosh – Holy, holy, holy As the Holy One ( ha’kadosh ), the Lord of Hosts ( Adonai Tzeva’ot) 

Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh, YHWH Tsabaoth, melo kal ha’aretz  

We are to be a reflection of Our Heavenly Father God’s Holiness!

Holy is not a word that we should flippantly and disrespectfully throw around, like the terms of exclamation like: “holy cow” or “holy guacamole”.

Holy is rich in meaning and it is one of the main descriptors of Our Heavenly Father/God.  To those who have a relationship with Him, it is a descriptor of us too. WHY? Because He calls us to be Holy and because we are to be a representation of His glory on earth. That’s a great responsibility which we should not take lightly!

Leviticus 19:2-4

“Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I YHWH your God am holy.

Every one of you shall reverence his mother and his father, and you shall keep My sabbaths; I am YHWH your God. Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods; I am YHWH your God.”

Leviticus 20:26

‘Thus you are to be holy to Me, for I YHWH Am Holy; and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.’

The Call to Holiness

Various practical commandments are given in the Torah through which His people were sanctified or set apart, to be kadosh/holy; and therefore prepared to enter a relationship with God.

God is not unreachable because He encompasses all of creation but those who are called into presence must be holy themselves.

Practical holiness results in sanctification which is gained through obedience to His commandments. These commandments include both those directing us to do something and those telling us to stop from doing something. In addition decrees are given that further separate the Israelites from the customs and profanity of the nations surrounding them.

The call to holiness is given

3 times in Leviticus 19:2; 20:7; 20:26.

Because the Lord is Holy, the Israelites could not be in relationship with Him if they had been involved in idolatrous or profane practices.

They were

called to be separate

from all that was unholy

Lev. 22:44-45.

The call to holiness was based on the fact that they were Gods possession because He had separated them from the Nations.

Lev. 20:26

Yes, we are to be Holy, but how do we live up to that?

Are we worthy enough to be His reflection on earth?

Messiah Yeshua/Jesus was.

He was, and is, the perfect reflection of God.

Throughout the B’rit Chadashah /New Testament, Yeshua /Jesus is referred to as the

Holy One of God,

from the very announcement of His birth:

Luke 1:28-35

“How can this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.

We are called to holiness through the letters of Shaul/Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20a

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price.

and reminded of holiness once again in Revelation, where those around the throne cry

קָדוֹשׁ. Qadosh holy.

and from the prophets statements…

“In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses, HOLINESS UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD’S house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts.” Zechariah 14:20-21

קֹ֖דֶשׁ HOLY qō-ḏeš

לַֽיהוָ֑ה Yah-weh; TO YAHWEH

The word holy in the Hebrew means to set-apart or separateness. While godly behavior is the result of being made holy unto the Lord, IT IS NOT a requirement to receive salvation, we come as we are.

When we become born again by His Holy Spirit, Yeshua HaMasiach/ Jesus Christ’s righteousness and holiness is IMPUTED to us.(meaning it is accredited to our account.) 

We are set apart unto the Lord as vessels for His use, in the same way as God set apart pots and vessels under the old testament/Tanakh, to be used in his service.

The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of holiness, because He is the sanctifier of all our Father’s vessels and makes them acceptable for His use by the washing of the word and regeneration of His Spirit of Holiness.

When the scriptures say:

Without holiness, no man shall see God. Heb. 12:14.

This means being born of His Holy Spirit into new life in Yeshua/Jesus. Without being born again of the Spirit of holiness one cannot be made Holy and therefore we would have no inheritance in the kingdom of God. 

God’s indwelling Spirit empowers His children to live lives that please Him. The scriptures tell us that all who seek to be justified by the law are not holy but defiled, defiled by the sinful nature whose works are as filthy rags in God’s sight

Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God IMPUTETH righteousness without works. Romans 4:6

IMPUTED: attributed/given on behalf of another. 

Yeshua/Jesus places His righteousness on our record,

when we trust upon Him for salvation

and this is what makes us holy

and not our behavior, whether we are good or bad. 

Holy is the Greek is hagios

which means:

to be in awe, venerate, regenerated.

When we are regenerated and set free from sin, we become holy vessels unto the Lord.

Faith in Yeshua/Jesus is our righteousness

and our fruit is then holy. 

Lev. 20:26 you shall be holy to me for I the lord am holy and have separated you from the peoples that you should be mine.

Western Christianity has sadly earned the title of being a cheap religion. For onlookers, many so called christian lifestyles do not look any different from the non believers in the world.

This world revolves around and caters to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. These things may please the flesh in the short term, but they work death. The Bible says that the pleasures of sin are only for a season. They are short lived. They do not satisfy. They do not give peace. They end in death. They fool us. Satan is the ruler of this world. The world that we are living in is his kingdom.

Keeping the 10 sayings is not impossible as the scriptures tell us the rich young ruler had kept them from his youth, and Elizabeth and Mary among others had also kept them.

Yet today so many say that we aren’t able to keep them and we are under grace not law!

We are to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect and it is possible through Jesus/Yeshua,

if we will choose to follow Him.

Though many say, no one is perfect, it’s really a way out, and to condone sin and compromise away from the standard Messiah sets for all who would be His talmidim/disciples. And in His words, how are we to do greater works than these, if we are not walking as He walked? We have His spirit within us now, since Pentecost; before then all generations who kept Torah did it without His indwelling spirit… so we have little to no excuse today. Not a welcome statement for those who still choose to live their own life on their own terms and still believe they are saved in their own understanding of salvation based on their own terms.

It is impossible that the Holy One could tolerate sin since this would invalidate the distinction between the sacred and profane and thereby weaken the nature of Holiness itself. That which is Holy, is in total opposition of the profane and therefore the Lord God has to hate and oppose that which violates the sacred and holy.

Where there is no fundamental change and no sacrificial putting away of ungodly habits and behavior, there can be no holiness. Many claim salvation and holiness by grace alone; neither understanding, nor appreciating, the cost involved and the seriousness of our precarious position before a Holy God; before Whom no sin can be present. It is only through Jesus/Yeshuas’ sacrifice that we can even dare to think that we can approach the Holy Creator and King of the universe. This was only possible by way of all the statutes and ordinances in the Torah until He died and shed His blood in our place.

We take this relationship so lightly and often without the reverential respect which we should willingly show from a humble, repentant and grateful position.

We are called to holiness, just as the priest wore upon his head the band with that word inscribed upon it; we are grafted in by His mercy and grace, into the family of His chosen children. This is a Hebrew Book and He is the Hebrew Messiah. Salvation is of the Jews, it was given to them first and we are privileged to be among those gentile nations offered the gift of eternal life and restoration relationship with a Holy God.

Now as the scripture says, we are priests unto the Lord, called to minister to and for Him while we remain here on the earth.

Are we truly making ourselves able to wear the band upon our foreheads, saying, Holiness unto the Lord?

Are we doing all that we are required to do? We are not to throw out the commandments He gave, but to apply them to our lives and to walk a set apart sanctified life before Him. Don’t let’s be of those accused of following a cheap religion with no cost to ourselves. We are to lay down our life, to lose it for Him and for the gospel; and in so doing find it through a life of being

kedushah – Holy Unto The Lord!

Strong’s Hebrew: 6944. קֹ֫דֶשׁ (qodesh) — apartness, sacredness

From qara’; something called out,

מִקְרָא miqrei callings

miqra

קודש לאל

קָדוֹשׁ. Qadosh holy

kaw-doshe’

אַתָּה ʼattâh, at-taw’; 

you are holy ata kadosh

קָדוֹשׁ. Qadosh holy

Strong’s Hebrew: 5844. עָטָה (atah) — self

atah: self. Original Word: עָטָה.

Part of Speech: Verb. 

Transliteration: atah.

Phonetic Spelling: (aw-taw’)

Definition: to wrap oneself, enwrap, envelop oneself.

the word 

ata 

in the Hebrew language is

אתא

H859 – ‘atâ – Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (kjv)

אַתָּה ʼattâh, at-taw’; or (shortened);

אַתָּ ʼattâ at-taw’; or אַתֵּנָה 

Strong’s Concordance. atah: self.

Original Word: עָטָה. 

Phonetic Spelling: (aw-taw’)

Definition: to wrap oneself, enwrap, envelop oneself.

In the passage from 1Peter, the call to holiness is established on the hope that will be brought to us at the revelation of Messiah in the end of days and in 1Cor., Paul outlines the same moral restrictions that determine

a called out people of God.

Believers in the Jewish Mashiach/Messiah are to be free from sin that pervades surrounding culture and in particular from sexual immorality, which is idolatry. The follower of the Mashiach Yeshua/Jesus, is not exempt from

the call to personal holiness

since Messiah and His Father are the

same yesterday today and forever.

Our carnal nature always will lean to a meaning and understanding that ‘let’s us off the hook’ so to speak; one that makes it easier for us to live a compromised lifestyle and still think we can get all the blessings and benefits here and now and also eternal life in heaven.

We need to wake up toreality and count the true cost of Who and what we truly believe and follow.

As the days grow darker and the morals of the world become increasingly in complete opposition to all that our Heavenly Father requires for His family; there is a call for sobriety and being genuine, we must make the effort to be authentic in our lives and to walk in the fullness of the calling upon us.

That call is to

Shalom aleikhem

chaverim and mishpachah!

Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week,

you are greatly loved and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation

Not sure ..you can be…

Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer,

Savior, Lord, and soon returning King

and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.

You are very precious in His sight.

SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.

Olam hazeh and Olam haba

Olam Hazeh  עולם הזה

and

Olam Haba  הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא

are both referenced in

Matthew 24:3 Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives and His disciples came to Him and asked, “Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?”

And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the Disciples came unto him privately, saying,

Tell us, when shall these things be? (regarding the destruction of the Temple)

And what shall be the sign of thy coming  (His return)

and of

the end of the age. (His Reign following all things being completed.)

The second two questions are the same ones believers ask today!

What shall be the sign of thy coming?

and

when is the close/end of the age?

The olam hazeh  עולם הזה is this world age

Pronounced: oh-LAHM hah-ZAY.

olam haba הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא   is The World to Come

The spiritual afterlife is referred to in Hebrew as

Olam Ha-Ba

Pronounced: oh-LAHM hah-BAH.

There are other references to this age and the age to come: 

Matthew 12 :32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in

this age – olam hazeh  עולם הזה ;

or in

the age to come – olam haba הָעוֹלָם הַבָּא

He was speaking of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit/His spirit of Holiness/Ruach haKodesh.

The original words in Greek,

ουτε εν τουτω τω αιωνιουτε εν τω μελλοντι,

may be rendered,

neither in this age, or dispensation,

nor in the age, or dispensation, to come,

(οὐ μὴ ἀφεθῇ). 

Neither in this world (age, aioni), neither in the world to come. 

The age to come (העולם הבא) olam haba.

Luke 18:30 Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God 30 will fail to receive many times more in this age and in the age to come, eternal life.” 

Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time/olam hazeh, and in the world to come/olam haba, life everlasting. Kjv.

1John 5:10-13. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life/chayai olam, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

Hebrews 6:5. 4. It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age/olam haba, 6and then have fallen away—to be restored to repentance, because they themselves are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to open shame.…

Olam Hazeh –

This World – עוֹלָם הַזֶה

is the world in which we live, where each of us is given the opportunity to honor the Name of the Lord by performing

Mitzvot 

מצוות

Mitzvot is the plural of mitzvah, 

and means: commandment.

People in Israel often use mitzvot as a kind of shorthand for being observant of traditional Jewish laws and traditions.

This means being a doer of the things/teachings/commandments. James 1:22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

DO what it says.

Luke 11:28 He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”

Luke 8:21 But He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear the word of God and carry it out.”

John 13:17 If you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.

John 6:27 Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.

The single most important mitzvah of all of Scripture is

to trust in Yeshua/Jesus as our LORD and Savior.

Everything else centers on this.

The two great commandments are the Ve’ahavta

Love the LORD with all your heart

and the obligation to love others as yourself

For the Hebrew the

heart or lev 

is

the centre of being where all parts of our soul existence converge.

The lev/levav /heart, is not the seat of emotion.

The heart is

the point of convergence for all aspects of the human existence,

while it manifests emotion

it is NOT the sole domain of emotion.

Therefore, we understand heart to mean core being.

Thus when the Scripture says 

The heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9)

it does not mean

The emotion of man (alone) is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked,

rather it means:

Humanity now has a fallen nature that is manifested within the core of its existence.

In terms of rabbinical definition this sin affected aspect of our nature is called:

Yetzer ha-ra – inclination of the evil.

The lev/levav /heart…..

…the convergence of our entire being.

We now know His Glory,

and even though our EYES fail us,

our hearts, the convergence of our entire being,

SEEs beyond the power of death to the Olam Haba/world to come.

This is ahava/love, because this is what remains and while we live in this fallen world we have faith, hope and love however, in the world to come/olam haba, only love will remain. Why? because faith is belief against fear and doubt, in the Olam Haba there will be neither. Hope is the assurance of things unseen, in the Olam Haba ALL will be revealed.

(Matt. 22:36-40). 36 “Rabbi, which of the mitzvot in the Torah is the most important?” 37 He told him, “‘You are to love Adonai your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.’[a] 38 This is the greatest and most important mitzvah. 39 And a second is similar to it, ‘You are to love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 All of the Torah and the Prophets are dependent on these two mitzvot.”

Basically the meaning is that, if you do the above

you will not lie to, covet, or steal

what belongs to your neighbor;

you will not murder him,

nor commit adultery with them.

It includes ALL that is incorporated in the 10 sayings.

He did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it

and the greatest commandment is love not sacrifice.

 

Matthew 5:17. Do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. 18 For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

This He completed perfectly.

The greatest act of love is to lay down one’s life for a friend. He called us His friends and laid down His life and it should follow that if He is our friend then we are to be willing to do the same for Him.

This is what we are told to be doing with our life by Messiah, our Lord and Savior Yeshua HaMashiach/Jesus the Christ.

Why do we keep questioning and discussing who is called and who is not?

We are all called ….it is simply up to the individual whether we hear; and when we do, do we accept and answer the call, or continue with our own life?

People continually ask what is the will of God for me? It is so clear in Messiahs own words… It’s just that most choose to ignore it saying and thinking it’s for someone else to do.

This is what we are to be doing in Olam Hazeh

it will determine our future in Olam Haba.

Those things that Yeshua/Jesus told us to occupy our time with are all listed in…

Matthew 25:35-40 and Matthew 28:19. Amp. Bible.
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations [help the people to learn of Me, believe in Me, and obey My words], baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

And we are to be occupied with learning and teaching His Word, according to his or her gifts, and behaving in an honest and decent manner with our fellow human beings.

1 Timothy 3:16.

Remembering that how we treat others and what we do to them; or what we do for or against them, we are in fact doing it to Yeshua/Jesus in both word and deed. Matt.25:40.

In Judaism and classical Jewish theology

Olam ha-zeh – עולם הזה – this world,

is a concept of: the real world.

Olam hazeh means: the everyday world that we live in.

Life in this world – olam ha’zeh; is also called:

Chayei Sha’ah – חיי שׁעה – Fleeting life.

So called, because it is absorbed in the physical and social structures of this worlds’ systems: working, eating, pursuing pleasures, etc., etc.

The ideas about Olam Hazeh and Olam Habah are to be understood rather as cosmic and metaphysical.

Why?

Because they relate to the universe outside of ourselves and they are in terms of the all encompassing goal, pattern and plan, that our Heavenly Father has put in place for His creation.

From the point of view of the human soul, these are experienced as

Chayei Sha’a – fleeting life and

חיי שׁעה

Chayei Olam – eternal life, respectively.

John 17:3 In the New Covenant/Testament/brit Chadashah,

eternal life/chayei olam,

is identified as:

the knowledge of the one true living God. The One Who sent His Son Yeshua into the world /Olam as the Messiah.

Eternal life/chayei olam, is having and maintaining a conscious relationship with the Father/God, through His Messiah, Jesus/Yeshua. Because our Father abides in eternity this means we are to live in the here and now by faith and have the understanding, the reality, that the eternal elements of the unseen realm of the spirit exists all around us.

We could say that our faith SEEs the Olam Haba/the world to come, and is preparing us to enter into its reality even while we are still in the Olam Hazeh/This world.

Heaven in Judaism – Shamayim שָׁמַיִם‎ šāmayīm, the Hebrew word for heavens, (literally heavens, im for the plural), identifies one element of the three-part biblical cosmology.

Which comprises:

Heavens, Earth, and the underworld.

The Hebrew Bible depicted a three-part world, with the

heavens – shamayim above,

Earth – eres in the middle,

and the

underworld – sheol below.

After the 4th century BCE this was gradually replaced by a Greek scientific cosmology of a spherical earth surrounded by multiple concentric heavens.

Revelation 5:13  And every creature which

is in heaven,

and on the earth,

and under the earth,

and such as are in the sea,

and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. King James Version (KJV

John is recording his vision in the book of Revelation when he writes, And no man

in heaven,

nor in earth,

neither under the earth,

was able to open the book. Rev. 5:3

Philippians 2:10 in the New King James Version says, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,

of those in heaven, and

of those on earth, and

of those under the earth.

The Hebrew word for heaven is

שמים shamayim.

Strong’s Hebrew: 2319. חָדָשׁ chadash – new

Strong’s Hebrew: 776. אָ֫רֶץ  erets  – earth, land

ארץ  חדש

in Jewish theology,

olam ha-ba/the world to come,

is either

the world after death

or

the new creation

or

restoration of the world that is to follow

the messianic millennium.

Because this latter interpretation came from the teachings and exhortations of the prophets, it was especially popular during the period of the Second Temple in Jerusalem (516 BC–AD 70). Whatever the interpretation of ʿolam ha-ba, for Jews it meant the end of uncertainty, miseries, and strife.

In Jewish literature olam ha-ba and olam ha-zeh/this world, are in contrast to one another. They believe that olam ha-zeh/this world, is a time to prove oneself worthy of participating in the world to come. Their understanding of the resurrection of the dead is that it will occur in the messianic age, a time referred to in Hebrew as the Olam Ha-Ba, the World to Come, but that term is also used to refer to the spiritual afterlife. For them, when the Messiah comes to initiate the perfect world of peace and prosperity, the righteous dead will be brought back to life and given the opportunity to experience the perfected world that their righteousness helped to create. The wicked dead will not be resurrected.

We understand that Messiah has already come and are awaiting His soon return.

Following the millennium, it describes a time after the world is perfected under the rulership of Messiah.

This term also refers to the afterlife where the soul passes after the death of the body.

It can be contrasted with olam hazeh, this world.

Ephesians 1:21

Yochanan/John Chapter 3:3 speaks of

SEEing the kingdom of God

 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot

SEE the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of heaven [of God]

resembles a concept in rabbinic Judaism called

tikkun ha-olam,

which literally means:

mending the world.

Tikun Olam – Repairing/mending the World.

When one enters (or joins) the kingdom of heaven, one becomes a partner with God in spreading redemption throughout a hurting world. That person goes out and feeds the hungry; clothes the naked; visits those who are in hospital and prison; prays for the sick and defends the rights of the orphan and widow. A person who has entered the kingdom of heaven gets involved in people’s lives. He or she pursues a lifestyle characterized by

tikkun ha-olam

or mending our world:

where there is hatred, he or she bestows love;

where there is injury, pardon;

where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;

where there is darkness, light;

and where there is sadness, joy.

In John 3 we see Yeshua/Jesus discussing aspects of this with Nicodemus:

“If one is not fathered, born from above, he cannot have power, permission, ability to see the kingdom, dominion, rule, royal power, kingship of the God.”

There are many points to this teaching; in essence Yeshua/Jesus is saying that the Kingdom of God/Malkut Shamayim, cannot be gained through Torah observance alone. He is also saying that being born physically into the sin affected world is a death sentence, unless… one is born anew from above by His Spirit.

He is also indicating to the power/Spirit/ruach of God being essential in order to walk continually in righteousness and to enter into the Olam Haba/World to come.

The sight, He is referring to is, spiritual sight that can only be received from Our Heavenly Father by His Spirit and through His Son the King, Messiah Yeshua/Jesus.

All of this teaching is directly opposed to the teaching that says that repentance, Torah observance, mitzvot, and prayer alone can earn one entry into the Olam Haba.
 
Therefore, unlike the rabbis of the Talmud, 

Yeshua/Jesus does NOT teach that conversion to Judaism will birth a person anew, instead, that:

ONLY repentance and salvation through the redemptive work of God through His Messiah, will bring newness of life to the individual.
 
Kingdom of the God –

Malkut Shamayim – Kingdom of the Heavens

Dan. 4:3; 1 Chr. 29:10-12,

This points to our Heavenly Father’s divine reign over the present world made new; rid of all sin and evil etc.; and it’s a more correct understanding than the traditional and extra Biblical, Christian concept, of a heaven somewhere in the clouds.

Instead, by the tikun olam/repairing of the world,

it indicates that the present world will be

cleansed, restored, and renewed

by

God

through the atoning Blood

of His Son Yeshua/Jesus,

and He will transition it into the

Olam Haba/world to come.

Interestingly this is supported by both the Old Tesament/Tanakh and the New Testament/Brit Ha-Chadashah.
 
Messiah simply points to the physical birth first and says that both it and a spiritual birth are needed. He doesn’t tell Nicodemus that he is incorrect and continues to explain that everyone is born through the mothers waters breaking, but something more is needed if we are to enter God’s Kingdom/Malkut Shamayim.

We must be born of God’s Spirit,

born anew,

from above.

The words water and Spirit can be found in both

the

tevilot/immersions/baptisms of

 Yochanan/John the Immerser /Baptist

and Messiah/Yeshua/Jesus.

Water represents the tevilah/baptism of repentance

and

The Spirit the tevilah/baptism of Spirit and Fire from above.

Without Messiah Yeshua/Jesus’

tevilah/baptism of death and His resurrection

we are unable to receive His Spirit.

In Him alone we have access to what is needed for our Salvation, His very own Spirit, and the Spirit of His Father in us.

His Spirit births in us the desire to repent/teshuvah/turn around, to turn back to God. Then only through Messiah are we able to receive the fullness of the gift of His Holy Spirit/Ruach haKodesh/Spirit of Holiness

Who births us anew from above

into a life reconciled to God.

Born out of water refers to the breaking of a mother’s waters at physical birth and it speaks of being born into this world/God’s creation affected by sin.
 
And of the Spirit refers to being born anew, fathered by God through His Spirit. In the same way that physical birth breaks water and through blood brings new life into the present world, so too spiritual birth breaks the living waters of MessiahYeshua/Jesus and through His blood atonement, it births anew the soul of a human being into the Olam Haba/world to come.

This means that an individuals entry into the Olam Haba/world to come, starts at the moment of being born anew by His Spirit through Messiah Yeshua/Jesus and continues all the way through physical death and into everlasting living.

This is why Messiah said:
 
I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he dies, yet shall he live: And whosoever lives and believes in me shall never die.

John/Yochanan 11:15-16
 
In the previous verses the earthly things are explained and show the progression from physical birth, through spiritual renewal and into the Olam Haba. It seems that Messiah is not making a separation between the physical and the spiritual as some might think, instead, the earthly things include spiritual things and are the explanation of a merging between the physical birth and the spiritual birth from above.
 
Here is appears Yeshua/Jesus’s teaching shows the final shape of tikun olam/repairing of the world. The Bible clearly teaches a renewed heavens and earth and New Jerusalem descending from heaven at the end of the age.

Through Yeshua/Jesus, as His children, we are empowered to begin the work that will be completed by Messiahs return and the Father dwelling with His own/ finally fulfilled in Tabernacles/Sukkot.

 This we must understand will be under a renewed heavens and not in some Greco-Roman, gnostic inspired, heavenly kingdom in the sky.

Those who accept God’s redemptive offer have already begun to live eternally v.16.

Those who refuse God’s redemptive offer are already dying eternally v.18.

All creation is offered an opportunity to receive Our Heavenly Father’s offer of redemption and to be born anew from above.

11. Do this, knowing that at the present time/olam hazeh, it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; 

Verse 11 begins a repetition of metaphors which contrast evil and good: sleep/death and salvation, night and day, darkness and light.

When a person with a hebraic mindset reads, Present time, he understands it to refer to the olam hazeh/present world, our current existence within time and space. Here Paul/Shaul, compares the present state of the world to death, using sleep which was a metaphor common to the rabbis teaching, and was also used by Yeshua/Jesus Himself as a reference for death/temporal death while awaiting final judgment.

Paul/Shaul told them to:

Stop living as though you are still dead like those living under wrath, you’re not, you’re a new creation, act like those who are awake/already alive eternally in Messiah. For now salvation/Yeshua/Jesus, is nearer to us than when we first believed. 12 The night/olam hazeh/the present world subject to wrath is almost gone, and the day/olam haba/the world to come is near.

This salvation is the final resurrection and the

olam haba/world to come,

the physical return of

Salvation/Yeshua/Jesus/Himself.

The night, a symbol for this present age/olam hazeh

and the dark acts of humanity, is almost finished.

The day, a symbol for the world to come/olam haba,

is very close in terms of our Heavenly Father’s plan for the reconciliation of creation.

Sometimes it may seem so far off, however, we are cautioned that we should understand our position from His perspective. This present darkness is only temporary, and just like any night, it will end and if, as Paul/Shaul tells us, it is near, then we are now quickly approaching the dawn.

Here we are informed that there are clearly two worlds:

the olam hazeh,

literally translated as: world this one,

and olam haba

world the coming or the world to come,

meaning: eternity.

In Messiah Yeshua/Jesus, we need not fear what comes next because what comes next is:

the Olam Haba/world to come

which is, through Him.

In Messiah Yeshua/Jesus,

we are assured of everlasting life,

not because we won’t die physically

but because having died to self, we will live in Him.

No longer do we need to surrender to the power of death which is the fear of the unknown because the promise of Our Heavenly Father is that we are known in Him and that through His Son we will exist in right relationship with Him for all eternity and in Him there is no unknown.

Any religion that teaches we can repair the world by our own efforts is a religion of anti-Christ.

The true tikun olam is impossible without

the redeeming work of the King Messiah Yeshua/Jesus

at His first coming;

and

the renewing work of the King Messiah Yeshua/Jesus

upon His return.

Maybe if we understood the Hebrew mindset and language better, the incomplete verbal action which is associated with the

olam ha’ba; we would recognize that it is 

already but not yet,

in exactly the same way that we talk about the role of Messiah Yeshua/Jesus being completely finished….

already but not yet!

  It becomes evident that this idea of the olam ha’ba

helps greatly to redirect our motivation and energy on the mission here in the olam hazeh

because the two are not totally separated from each other and Hazeh will become Ha’ba in our Heavenly Father’s perfect timing. 

If the olam ha’ba is coming,

then the really serious issue in our chaim/lifes

is whether or not we will be ready for His and its arrival?

שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם‎,

Shalom aleikhem

chaverim and mishpachah!

Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week,

you are greatly loved and prayed for daily.

Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation in the 

olam ha’ba/world to com…

Not sure ..you can be…

Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer,

Savior, Lord, and soon returning King

and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.

You are very precious in His sight.

SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.

Where Is Madaba – What Was Found There And Why Is It Important?

Where is Madaba/מֵֽידְבָא֙ ?

Madaba is a town located in the country of

Jordan/Yarden

bordering Israel/Yisrael.

Madaba is mentioned in the Bible:

Recorded as Medeba in the translation; spelled with the vowel e in place of a Recall no vowels in the original text it would have been m d b

מ  ד ב 

But we have cast them down, Heshbon is ruined as far as Dibon, Then we have laid waste even to Nophah, Which reaches to Medeba.

Numbers 21:30

from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, with the city which is in the middle of the valley, and all the plain of Medeba, as far as Dibon;

Joshua 13:9

Their territory was from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, with the city which is in the middle of the valley and all the plain by Medeba;

Joshua 13:16

So they hired for themselves 32,000 chariots, and the king of Maacah and his people, who came and camped before Medeba. And the sons of Ammon gathered together from their cities and came to battle.

1 Chronicles 19:7

They have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, even to the high places to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba; Everyone’s head is bald and every beard is cut off.

Isaiah 15:2

The

Madaba מֵידְבָ֖א

 Map,

also known as the 

Madaba Mosaic Map,

is part of a floor mosaic 

in the early Byzantine church of Saint George

a

19th-century basilica,

in

מֵידְבָ֖א/Madaba,

Jordan

Yarden/The Descender.

 

This intricate floor mosaic of the Holy Land is believed to have been created in the 6th-century A.D.; being made between 542 and 570 as the floor of the church.

The mosaic was rediscovered in 1884, when the local community in Madaba, Jordan, made an incredible discovery, which has proved to be the oldest Holy Land map in the world.

It was unearthed during the construction of a new Greek Orthodox church on the site of its ancient predecessor.

This floor is the single most important piece of Byzantine Christian mosaic art in the East. 

In 614, Madaba was conquered by the Sasanian Empire. During the eighth century, the ruling Muslim Umayyad Caliphate had some figural motifs removed from the mosaic. In 746, Madaba was largely destroyed by an earthquake and subsequently abandoned.

Because the mosaic map of Madaba is the oldest known geographic floor mosaic in art history, it is used significantly for confirming the position and location of biblical sites. E.g. In 1967, excavations in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem revealed the Nea Church and the Cardo Maximus in the very locations suggested by the Madaba Map.

The floor mosaic is located in the apse of the church of Saint George at Madaba.

An apse is a semicircular recess,

often covered with a hemispherical vault.

It is not oriented northward, as modern maps are, but faces east toward the altar in such a fashion that the position of places on the map coincides with the compass directions.

Originally, it measured 21 by 7 m and

contained more than two million individual tiles

The mosaic map depicts an area from 

Lebanon in the north to the Nile Delta in the south,

and from the Mediterranean Sea 

in the west to the Eastern Desert.

Among other features,

it depicts the Dead Sea 

with two fishing boats,

a variety of bridges linking

the banks of the Yarden/Jordan,

fish swimming in the river

and receding from the Dead Sea;

 Made almost unrecognizable by the insertion of random tiles/tesserae during a period of during a period of opposition to and destruction of, religious images known as Iconoclasm;

is a lion hunting a gazelle in the Moab desert, (top left of picture);

palm-ringed Jericho (at the bottom and below),

Bethlehem, and other biblical sites.

Below, place where

John the Baptist was at Yeshua/Jesus’ immersion

at the mouth of the Yarden/Jordan,

Bethabara

and the (nearly-obliterated) lion hunting a gazelle.

The map may have served to help pilgrims’ orientate themselves in the Holy Land.

All the landscape areas are labeled with explanations in Greek and depict approx. 150 towns and villages.

Ancient church buildings were positioned 180 degrees from the Temple in Yerushalayim/Jerusalem. The Holy of Holies was entered from the East with the ark of the covenant in the west.

Byzantine church buildings were entered from the west with the “altar” in the east. Because of this, the Madaba map is oriented so that those sitting in the pews can look ahead to see the map, then look beyond the map and see the pulpit or “Altar”.

The map is read from the west.

While modern maps are labeled as if one is standing on the south pole and looking north, the Madaba map is labeled from the north looking south. This means that the lettering of the map is upside down to how we would orient the map on paper. It’s like looking at a map of a country at 180 degrees/upside down.

The Madaba map is not to scale.

Yerushalayim/Jerusalem is greatly enlarged and distances are greatly distorted in comparison to what we would expect from an accurate map; because the map was for devotional purposes, not science and geography as we would like it to have been from a modern perspective.

When they built the map, one 1/2 inch cube of stone mosaic at a time, they surely never thought they were working on what would be the most important ancient map in existence!

The largest and most detailed element of the topographic depiction is Jerusalem (Greek: ΙΕΡΟΥΣΑ[ΛΉΜ]), at the centre of the map. The mosaic clearly shows a number of significant structures in the Old City of Jerusalem: the Damascus Gate, the Lions’ Gate, the Golden Gate, the Zion Gate, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the New Church of the Theotokos, the Tower of David.

This post on

Madaba

and its amazing mosaic map has an important place

in verifying the location of Yeshua/Jesus’ immersion

from our previous 2 posts. 

Passing through the waters may have a much deeper meaning than we first thought on reading the Bible the

Jordan/Yarden River

has a major part in many of the prophetic scriptures.

From as far back as Abraham…

Abraham entered the Promised Land through the gateway of the Jordan River Valley when he first journeyed from Ur of the Chaldeans (Gen. 12:1–9).

 The Book of Genesis refers to the

patriarch Abram as:

ha-ivri  הָעִבְרִי

or

the Hebrew. Gen. 14:13.

…to those which were fulfilled in John/Yocananan and Jesus/Yeshua’s day.

Recall an earlier post concerning the meaning of the word

Hebrew – ivri

עברי

ivri means: to cross over.

pronounced: eevriy

The actual definition of the word is:

one who has crossed over, passed over or beyond

ivri or ivrim

depending on whether you’re speaking

of an individual or a group. 

From the root word ivr   עבר

to cross over, or pass through.

An IVRI one who crosses over into both a promised land and a life of divinely determined service. One who crosses over (ovr) boundaries and obstacles, and in particular the obstacle of meaninglessness and despair.

He was the first Hebrew (Ivrit)

or

one who crossed over.

Crossing over means going from

being a worldly Babylonian

to

becoming the Israel of Elohim.

Gal 6:16; Eph 2:1.

Abraham crossed over

from false gods to the one and only true God.

He crossed over

physically by leaving his homeland

He forsook Babylon and

crossed over

the Euphrates and

Yarden/Jordan Rivers 

in his journey westward en route

to the Promised Land as he followed YHVH’s leading.

The Israelites were delivered from the Egyptians as they

crossed over

through the Red/Reed Sea, and then they

crossed over

through the Jordan River into the Promised Land.

All these acts are pictures of deliverance and salvation.

We also

crossed over

from death to life through Messiah.

Origin of the word Hebrew:

 From the time of the Abraham until the time of Jesus Christ, the world knew the Israelites as עברי (Erverh)

The Israelites wrote their name in their language with the letters עברי. The letters I V R I represent עברי in English.

The name ‘Hebrew,’ is the English translation of the name pronounced Erverh from Latin. The name “Hebrew,” is the result of translating the Latin “Hebraicus,” into English.

Thus, the name, “Hebrew” is the result of a double translation of the original name עברי, (Erverh). Had the translation been from the original texts with the name, עברי, we’d never have heard the name Hebrew.

The proper pronunciation in the native language of the ancient Israelites’ designation, commonly known, as “Hebrew” in English is “IVRI” pronounced Erh-Verh. Because most modern Bibles are direct translations or carbon copies of the Latin translation, the result is all modern Bibles carry the name Hebrew. Derived from the Latin name Hebraicus. Without the Latin name “Hebraicus,” a direct translation from the original Dead Sea scrolls would read “Erverh,” instead of Hebrew.

The name “Hebrew,” is the English translation from the original ancient texts of the name עברי (IVRI) pronounced Erh-Verh. (Ever or eber.)

One final thought as to the name

Jorden – Yarden – Descender:

In modern Hebrew letters reads:

ירדן

nun-dalet-resh-yod

(Recall, Hebrew-  ivri, reads from right to left and there are no vowels like our alphabet: i.e. no aeiou).

And in Paleo Hebrew Pictographs

Yod = Y = A hand closed or closing upon, to work, a deed done, a finished work.

Reysh = R = A head, a person, what is the highest, the most important, chief.

Daleth = D = A door, a path, a way of life, movement into or out of.

Nun = N = A fish, to sprout, to spread, offspring, descendant, action, life, heir to the throne, faithfulness.

The meaning of

Jordan/Yarden

could be said to be:

A visible tangible representation of His Hand opening and closing the waters and as the most important and highest Authority giving His instructions which when applied declares He is the door. The only WAY in is by recognizing the authority which results in our exemption and freedom, release from past sins. As heir to the throne, He is our deliverance He is our life.

Isa 43:2  When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

Our Descender Yeshua/Jesus

will never leave us nor forsake us…ever!

He is our LIFES/CHAIM

Hallelujah!! He is with us always!

שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם‎,

Shalom aleikhem

chaverim and mishpachah!

Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week, you are greatly loved and prayed for daily. Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation or without our Heavenly Fathers’ shalom ENVELOPING you and the deep inner knowing that you are sealed to the day of redemption by the Blood of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua.

Not sure ..you can be…

Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.

You are very precious in His sight.

SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.

What Is The Connection Between The Descender, A Spring, An Eye, A Dove And A Miracle?? Part 2

Last post we looked at some of the connections

between the

ירדן

Descender/Yarden/Jordan

and

John the Baptizer
יוחנן המטביל

And we visited two locations that are mentioned

in the scriptures for immersion;

and we saw that the meaning of

Aenon/Aeiynon/Ain-Yon

עֵינָן.  = spring, eye of a dove.

Aenon = “springs”

the name of a place “near to Salim”.  John 1:37

Ainon- pronounced: ahee-nohn’ of Hebrew origin

(a derivative of 5869, place of springs).

In Greek: Αἰνών Ainṓn, ahee-nohn’; of Hebrew origin,

place of springs; Ænon.

According to the scriptures, here is the location that is more accurately describing the place where Yeshua/Jesus immersion occurred.

The place is called

Bethabara – בֵּית בָּרָה

John 1:28
These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.

And in other versions…

This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

This encounter took place in Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River, where John was baptizing.

 

This is clearly Not the same as the 2 previously mentioned places in verse 22. Bethany an AREA which was EAST of the Yarden/Jordan/Descender.

Bethabara beyond Jordan

the other side of the Jordan and

Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River.

Bethabara –  בֵּית בָּרָה

means: house of the ford or crossing.

 בֵּית בָּרָה Bêyth Bârâh,

Pronounced: bayth baw-raw’;

 beth-ba’-ra (beth barah; Baithera):

Perhaps Beth-`abharu,

of Hebrew origin from H1004and H5679;

H1012 – bêṯ bārâ – Strong’s Hebrew Lexicon (kjv)

Strong’s Greek: 962 Βηθαβαρά

 – Bethabara

In Jordan this place is called

Qasr al-Yahud –

Baptismal Site of Yeshua/Jesus:

Located across the river from Jericho, this is the believed to be the place where Yeshua/Jesus was immersed/baptized.

It’s also a popular place where many people go to be immersed/baptized today.

Bethabara is located about 2 miles (3.2 km.) east of Hwy. 90, across from Jericho. It re-opened in 2011 but the Jordan River there is muddy brown, the infrastructure isn’t as developed, and Qasr al-Yahud doesn’t have the marketing power of Yardenit, which sadly separates money from Christians with impressive business acumen.

It’s also known as:

Qaser al-Yahud/Kasser al-Yahud.

Close by there is also a

Cave of John the Baptist/John the Baptizer
יוחנן המטביל

Why the change of location?

Until the Six-Day War of 1967, Qasr al-Yahud, located a few miles north of where the Jordan River empties into the Dead Sea, was considered the location of

Yeshua/Jesus’ baptism.

After the Six-Day War, the southern stretch of Jordan River became the mined, militarized border between Israel and the country of Jordan, making Qasr al-Yahud inaccessible.

To provide an alternative site that could be safely visited, in 1981 Israeli Ministry of Tourism funded Kibbutz Kinneret, a Jewish farming cooperative on a picturesque part of the Jordan River, there they built Yardenit.

However as we can see from the scriptures in

Verse 26. He that was with thee beyond the Jordan.

 

Amplified Bible
These things occurred in Bethany across the Jordan [at the Jordan River crossing], where John was baptizing.

So John’s disciples came to him and said, “Look, Rabbi, the One who was with you beyond the Jordan, the One you testified about–He is baptizing, and everyone is going to Him.”

John 10:40
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had first been baptizing, and He stayed there.

John10:40  And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.

Now some Pharisees who had been sent questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?” “I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

JOHN 1:25-28

In verse 28, John identifies the location where John the Baptist was baptizing as 

Bethany beyond the Jordan.

(the NJKV follows an inferior textual variant, Bethabara distinguishing it from the Bethany that was near Jerusalem.

This verse also confirms the

other side of the Jordan:

Above Immersion areas at Qaser al-Yahud/Kasser al-Yahud/Bethabara. Jordan side on right in top left and both bottom pictures and Israel side on the left except top right which is Israel side/site.

The Syriac and Persic versions call it:

Ain, or In you,

the fountain of the dove;

and the Arabic version reads ,

the fountain of Nun:

and whether it was a town, or river,

it seems to have its name from a fountain near it,

or that itself was one, where there was

as the text shows

an abundance of water.

Above early excavations at Bethany beyond the Jordan site:

Qaser al-Yahud/Kasser al-Yahud/Bethabara.

 

Judaism had understood up to this point that the Ruach HaKodesh/Holy Spirit was only ever given in a measure: Usually only a Prophet, Priest or King.

The sent Word speaks the Word of the God; and John directs things to Messiah 1:26, I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. Then he waited until the next day to draw the contrast between his

baptizing/immersion in water and

Yeshua/Jesus’

baptizing/immersion in the Ruach Hakodesh/Holy Spirit

John 1:29, 31-33

It is the Word, Jesus/Yeshua, Who is given authority by the Father to pour out His Spirit without measure, something that had never happened before in Israel.

This is prophetic of the outpouring of His Spirit at

Shavuot (Pentecost)

50 days after the Resurrection of Yeshua/Jesus.

Isa.44:3; Joel 2:28; Acts 2.

John 3:35  

The Father

Greek: Ho-pater, Hebrew:Ha-Av

loves = ohev in Hebrew

His Son = et-beno in Hebrew,

and the all, everything,

every individual – pas in Greek, ve’et-kol in Hebrew

has been given – didomi in Greek, natan in Hebrew

into His hand – be’yado in Hebrew.
 
Having revealed the promised outpouring of the Fathers’ Spirit of Holiness, Yochanan/John, spoke of the Father having given all creation into the hands of the Son. Here the 3-fold conceptual image is revealed in unity as all three are recorded as being manifested in one place at the same moment. Yeshua/Jesus has been given authority because it is through Him, (a man, Who is also God/YHVH/YaHoVeH), that humanity and creation are to be redeemed. Yeshua/Jesus in turn will submit both Himself and all of the renewed creation to the Father.

There’s a deeper spiritual meaning to the word Jordan/Yarden.

In the same way we must descend to access the Jordan/Yarden Rivers’ waters physically,

we must descend and humble ourselves

before we can ascend spiritually. 

This concept is seen in many of the miracles that happened in and around its shores.

Descending as in

Jordan/Yarden

the Descender.

The place of the descending as a dove was here.

The Jordan/Yarden, is also frequently mentioned in connection with the ministry of John the Baptist,

John the Baptizer.
יוחנן המטביל

JOHN 1:28, 10:40.

Although The Jordan/Yarden is rather shallow and relatively easy to cross, at certain times of the year, the river was in flood stage and could be a formidable natural barrier for advancing armies.

Adam – This is the place where the waters of the Yarden/Jordan river backed up to when the Israelites crossed the river which was about 20 miles, 32/33 km. above the crossing place.

Bethabara –  בֵּית בָּרָה

means: house of the ford or crossing.

No coincidence that the waters were in a heap at a place called Adam!!!!

Recall the scriptures tell us that the Israelites crossed the Jordan/Yarden River on dry ground as the waters were miraculously parted. 
Joshua 3:14–17: So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), 16 the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam [20 miles, 32 km. north], the city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. 17 Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.

Over the years, several earthquakes, where the African and Arabian tectonic plates collide, have altered the course of the river and it now runs further away from the site shown in the maps and photos.

This means that the place Messiah was immersed is now dry ground and interestingly, no one can be immersed on exactly same spot.

We have answered most of the question posed but

What about the miracle??? 

The miracle was MUCH MUCH bigger

than we may have realized because

we have not understood the geography of the area,

that this was a river valley and as

the river was at flood stage,

it was overflowing its banks yet…

when the priests feet touched the river..

the water stopped flowing!

As previously mentioned, the body of water that would have gathered would have been approx. 20 miles (32/33 km.) long, 2 miles (3.2 km.) wide, and around 120 ft. (37 m.) high.

This was a massive body and a high wall of water that the 3 million or more Israelites would have witnessed as they walked alongside it for about 2 miles (3.2 km.)!

The miracle was similar to the crossing of the Reed/Red Sea after the Israelite’s Exodus from Egypt. God repeated this miracle to reveal His glory and faithfulness. 

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob

opened the waters to provide the exit from bondage and then opened the waters to provide an entrance into the freedom of the promised land/Israel.

In the same WAY in our lives we can trust our Heavenly Father that as we leave a situation behind us, He opens the WAY before us. How we leave a place or set of circumstances is how we will enter the next.

Crossing into the Promised Land is also a picture of living in victory.

Our Heavenly Father shows us His WAYS in scripture by His patterns, entering and leaving is one of those and just as we will reap what we sow in life; consequences of our actions or lack of them, will determine the pattern we set for ourselves.

It is surely possible that the people in Jericho saw what happened as the flood waters parted, and this no doubt is what made them fear the Israelites.

There are so many things that occurred at this very strategic location when we recall scripture references and see that we have missed their importance since this place was re placed by the Yardenit Baptismal Site near Galilee.

Quick recap and some wonderful scriptural connections:

The meaning of the place across from where John was baptizing/Immersion…

Spring – eye – dove.

Dove = Jonah

The name Jonah,

in Hebrew, Yonah – יונה,

means: dove.

 It is the name of a biblical prophet whose story is read on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement!

Yeshua/Jesus said in Matthew 12:39 An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.

This was a reference to the mixed Goyim/Gentile nation at Nineveh being included in the Fathers plan of redemption if they repented. Also Messiah was indicating that He was about to initiate the same offer to the nations of the world; extending it outwards from just Abrahams seed and the children of Israel. Did it also refer prophetically by default, to the DOVE/Ruach HaKodesh Who was soon to come?

In speaking of the end of the age Yeshua/Jesus also said in

Matthew 24:37

But just as the days of Noah, so will the coming of The Son of Man be. When the Son of Man appears, things will be just as they were when Noah lived. 

The Dove returned to Noah after he released it to see if the water level had dropped and if, again, all the species that he had saved could live on dry land; the dove quickly returned as there was nowhere for it to rest. Genesis 8:11.

Noah – נח – is believed to come from the Hebrew “Noach,” meaning “rest.”

Also possibly “long-lived”, “comforter”, or “wanderer. pronounced NOH-ach with a ch like Bach

We enter into the rest of Messiah by His Ruach/Spirit.

Noah waited 7 more days and sent out the dove again, the dove returned with an olive branch. 

Noah waited 7 more days and sent out the dove again, who did NOT return. Interestingly the dove returned symbolically upon Messiah as He raised up out of the waters of immersion/baptism/cleansing to the new life/start that Noah also experienced and we do too.

The living waters of cleansing and renewal.

Elijah parted the waters of the Yarden/Jordan/Descender here…

2 Kings 2:6–8: Then Elijah said to him, “Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. 7 Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. 8 Then Elijah took his cloak and rolled it up and struck the water, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground….

And he ascended to heaven here…

The area in the picture below is also associated with the ascension of the Prophet Elijah into heaven,

which is commemorated at a hill called

Tell Mar Elias

or

Jabal Mar-Elias (Elijah’s Hill).

John the Baptizer came in the spirit of Elijah.

And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.

Matthew 11:14

Elisha took Elijahs prayer shawl/mantle and parted the waters here twice in 2 Kings 2:8 and 2:14. 

Naaman, the Leper,

was healed in the Jordan River

by the Prophet Elisha.
2 Kings 5:10–14: : 

And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.”

The place of the

crossing of the Jordan River

by the Israelites is located close-by to the

Immersion/Baptismal Site of Yeshua/Jesus.

Recall that prophetically Joshua/Yehoshua

is a type and shadow of Jesus/Yeshua.

Joshua’s name is יְהוֹשׁוּעַ or,

transliterated into English,

Yehoshua, a form of Yeshua.

This is where we get the English name Joshua. But, when the Hebrew name is translated into Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament, it becomes Ἰησοῦς, which transliterates into Iēsous. This is where we get the English name Jesus. Thus, Yeshua and, correspondingly, Joshua and Jesus all mean “Yahweh Saves” or “The Lord Is Salvation.”

Jesus and Joshua are really the same name, although in different languages. The Greek form (in English) is Jesus. The Hebrew form (in English) is Joshua. The Greek form of the name “Joshua” (“Yahweh saves” or “Yahweh is salvation”) is “Jesus.” As Joshua led Israel to victory over her enemies and into possession of the Promised Land, and as he interceded for the nation after it had sinned and been defeated, so does Jesus/Yeshua. 

Before entering the Promised Land, the Israelites camped on the east side of the Yarden/Jordan River, opposite Jericho.
Joshua 3:1: Then Joshua rose early in the morning, and they set out from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.

The splitting of the Yarden/Jordan, the waters of the descender, is comparable to that of the Sea of Reeds, which was through the staff of Moses (Exodus 14:16) and ultimately to the second creation day, when the primordial waters were divided. (Genesis 1:6). 

For them to make this crossing, the Lord held back the water of the Jordan by means of the Ark of the Covenant (Joshua 3:16)

The waters parted at Jordan and the priests

went first with the ark YHVH/Gods presence in the earth

when their feet stepped into the water they parted.

Jesus/Yeshua descended into the

waters/immersion/baptism and as our

High Priest

and the presence of the Lord in the earth

went through the waters

to make the Way for us

to enter into our promised land

the kingdom of God/the heavens.

Yeshua/Jesus leading the WAY through the waters of immersion/baptism for repentance and into the new life He gives into the new land, the kingdom of the heavens.

The Jordan River represented life and vitality to the Israelites. They were desert people, and water was their life. Messiah used this concept to teach them that in the same way water was vital for their physical lives, He was vital for their spiritual lives as well.

As the start of Israel’s conquest of the Promised Land, God ordered Joshua to set up a memorial after crossing the Jordan and they placed 12 stones in the middle of the river.

Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day. Joshua 4:9.

In order to facilitate this crossing, the Lord held back the water of the Jordan by means of the Ark of the Covenant (Joshua 3:16)

Naaman, the Leper, was healed

in the Jordan River

by the Prophet Elisha.
2 Kings 5:10–14: : And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

All these miracles happened in the Jordan/Yarden River

Who was the ultimate (Yarden/Jorden) descender?

Yeshua, Messiah Jesus, He said Himself

No one has ascended into heaven except the One who

descended

from heaven–the Son of Man. John 3:13

Yeshua/Jesus THE descender from heaven

and when He ascended at Shavuot/Pentecost,

His Spirit of Holiness/RuachHaKodesh,

Who came before as a DOVE/Jonah was the DESCENDER as tongues/flames of fire on the waiting Talmidim/Disciples.

Joh 14:17  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

Hallelujah!! He is with us always!

 

שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם‎,

Shalom aleikhem

chaverim and mishpachah!

Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week, you are greatly loved and prayed for daily. Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation or without our Heavenly Fathers’ shalom ENVELOPING you and the deep inner knowing that you are sealed to the day of redemption by the Blood of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua.

Not sure ..you can be…

Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.

You are very precious in His sight.

SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.