when all Israelites who were able, would make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem, as commanded by the Torah.
This season is a very important time in personal preparation, because it is one of introspection, of self searching and examining our lives, and the motives of our hearts.
The disciples were told by Messiah to wait in Jerusalem during this period of time.Acts 1:12-26
They would have been counting from the Omer according to the instructions given in scripture.
During that time leading up to Shavuot/Pentecost, the disciples would have been praying reading Torah/ Old Testament and preparing themselves spiritually for the promise Messiah Jesus/Yeshua had given them.
Right on time, perfectly fulfilling the promise from the Father and Jesus/Yeshua, His Spirit of Holiness descended on these obedient, patient, faithful disciples.
These prepared vessels were not disappointed. Old Testament prophecies, (Joel), were fulfilled and the disciples who were ready, were totally submitted and committed to Him and they received the fullness of the equipping they would need, to do the will of the Father; and with it came the promise that He would be with them always. The spiritual seed they had planted and the obedient preparation time they had set aside was fully rewarded.
Messiah often used agricultural and farming references when teaching spiritual principles and in Hosea 10:12, 13, there is a similar agricultural reference.
Hosea 10:12 says, “Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you.” KJV
Amplified Bible
Sow with a view to righteousness [that righteousness, like seed, may germinate]; Reap in accordance with mercy and lovingkindness. Break up youruncultivated ground, For it is time to seek and search diligently for the LORD [and to long for His blessing] Until He comes to rain righteousness and His gift of salvation on you.
In the days before sowing any seed, there is a very critical work to be done. When Messiah spoke of the types of ground in Mark 4, He said some of the seedfell on rocks, well worn paths and hard ground.
So what kind of Farmer plants in hard, untilled ground? or asHoseasays fallow ground. Is this farmer evil and wicked, is he sinful and corrupt in his ways? It is this why he sows in untilled soil, in fallow ground? Is he just lazy or not a very well educated farmer?
Or maybe a combination of the above?
Hoseatells us that a farmer who has failed to break up the fallow ground has in fact lost His way.
Fallow is not a word often used today, however it’s familiar to a farmer. It is land that is not doing what God designed land to do. Fallow land is just sitting there, doing nothing but produce weeds. Although it may have potential, until the farmer does something with the land, it is simply fallow; hard, dry, unused ground, useless and not helping anyone.
At this time of year many folks are out in the garden, imagining the beautiful harvest from the tender seedlings they are planting. We should remember that untilled/ fallow ground can be soft and moist at the surface and look like it is ready to receive the plants. Even though it may look good and seeds may be sown at a healthy depth from the surface; not too shallow, and not too deep, for a while it may look that the planting is successful. However the future of the crop becomes clear and proves devastating when, in the hard and unbroken ground below, the seedlings do not have anywhere to let their roots grow down.
The tender crop is then also in danger of being overrun by weeds that have been lying in wait to take advantage of them.
To make a parallel with our spiritual walk, when we leave our fields fallow and untilled, they quickly become overtaken by unwanted weeds that proliferate in the shallow soil. These weeds soon silently slither like serpents across the surface and choke the life out of our crops.
Without good healthy roots, these seedlings will burn up and be destroyed as they have no means to take in the cool life-giving moisture hidden deep in the soil. Hosea says in such ground we can only plow wickedness and will reap only perversity.
Why?
Because we did not break up the fallow ground,
till the soil
and remove the weeds.
Instead we trusted in our own way, in the abundance of our might and understanding, trusting in self.
Self-sufficiency, self righteousness and our own opinions; it is the carnal natural thinking of the life lived in the flesh. We think we are right and know how to do everything in our own strength and abilities; and doing everything without God, walking as if we don’t need him, this is pride.
For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: these are the things which defile a man… Matthew 15:18-20.
In Matthew 13:3-8,the Word of God is referred to as seeds for sowing, and our hearts are as the soil in various conditions.
Some hearts are stony, hard to breach and have no root, others are thorny, with many barbs entwined with the lusts desires of this world. However some hearts are soft and good, having fertile soil, they have been cleansed of weeds, refuse and trash and are prepared to receive the Word of God.
InMatthew 13:24-30,Messiahteaches that it’s not only our Heavenly Father who sows His Word into our hearts – the adversary is always trying to sow evil seeds into our hearts when we’re not paying attention. These seeds can be in the form of doubt and un-forgiveness in relationships, they can be seeds of coveting, lustful, unclean thoughts, or seeds of hate, cruelty and spite.
In Matthew 12:34-35; 15:18-20. Messiah said that everything we do and say is rooted in our hearts.
Our hearts are vulnerable too if we do not guard them.
Proverbs 4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence with the utmost care; for out of it are the issues of life. Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
We tend to pray, or even go into fasting, with a deep desire for our Heavenly Father’s intervention in our lives and situations, yet we often overlook this important aspect of our lives, and it is one that can either help or hinder our answered prayers, it can enhance or diminish our good works before our Father, and this is always before Him.
We do well in the areas of offering our praise, worship, time, tithes, and our sacrifices, however it’s time that we make certain we offer up our whole heart to the Lord. It doesn’t matter if we are newly born again, or are mature discipled believers, we cannot play with our salvation, nor can we afford to be near to God with our lips yet having our hearts far from Him.
We are in the end times and now more than ever, we cannot afford to lose our place in eternity because of hard, stony hearts. AsHosea 10:12 says, “break up your fallow ground, for it’s time to seek the Lord…”
Sometimes we can mistake our relationship with our Heavenly Father and the work we do for His kingdom as the same thing, when really, they are separate.
Taking our relationships with people as an example, we may be doing things for them without actually knowing, or wanting to know them on a deeper level. Sometimes we may not be doing these things from our hearts, but only as a means to get something in return or to further our own interests. On the other hand, when we have a close friendship/relationship with an individual, it goes beyond what you do for each other; a level of intimacy is established with that person, and we find we want to spend quality time with them. This is the same with our Heavenly Father, He wants us to know Him beyond us doing works and seeking/receiving the blessings, through Messiah. The key for us in developing a stronger relationship with our Heavenly Father is only gained through a heart that has been regenerated by His Spirit and by the Truth of His Word.John 4:24.
This is why the scripture says to obey is better than sacrifice. 1 Samuel 15:22!
It’s about our hearts.
Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26. tells us that the regeneration of the heart is a precise moment when the Holy Spirit of the Living God touches us, takes away our stony heart, and gives us a heart of flesh.This heart He gives us is tender, willing to hear and obey His voice, and is a productive ground for His Word to grow. Only when we have a heart of flesh can we truly forgive and forget.
Ezekiel 11:19shows that the heart is the seat of our relationship with our Father and it links the body, soul, and spirit together and it’s only through a regenerated heart that we can worship Him in spirit and in truth, and fulfill His commandmentsRomans 2:28-29. This clearly shows us why God is so interested in our hearts.
Again, this is why Proverbs 4:23 tells us to “keep our hearts with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”
It takes a heart that is mature, to not forget Him along the way, as we handle the abundant blessings that our Father has prepared for us. Deuteronomy 8:16-18.
Concerning the area of spiritual warfare in prayer, the need for our hearts to be right before the Lord, cannot be stressed enough. We need to ask for His mercy every day, and for Him to cleanse our hearts from every emotional burden before we begin to intercede. This is because according to2 Timothy 2:3-4,we are not to intercede in prayer based on our emotions, anger, hatred, anxiety or fear. All negative emotions are based in the natural carnal part of us, but the fight we are fighting is not a natural carnal one, it is spiritual in nature.2Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians 6:12. In the same way that soldiers fighting in the natural become exhausted mentally and emotionally and are prone to make mistakes, when we fight based on our emotions, it can leave us exposed to demonic attacks.
When we are not breaking up the fallow, hard areas of our hearts by spending time with God, reading His Word and in prayer, it becomes dry, cold, hard, and unproductive. When we are aware of these dry, cold, hard, unproductive places, we are to make some changes. If we don’t, and we leave those fallow parts of our lives untouched, they become hard to our Heavenly Father, His Word and hard towards other people.
It would be easier if God said,
“Let me break up the fallow ground of your life”
but he didn’t. He told us to do it.
So if we care at all about personal growth, being of value to His Kingdom, and making a difference both in the world and in eternity it means we have to start digging!
We have to get out the plow by applying His Word to our lives, we must look for and identify those hard, dry places in our lives and then break up that soil with His Word and by spending time with our Heavenly Father in prayer. We have to break up that dry ground, and by seeding His Word in those places we find then digging out the spiritual weeds that have no doubt grown up while we were ignoring those areas.
If we ask Him to reveal the state and content of our hearts searching deep within ourselves, we will maybe have a shock when we see what is in there. Our Heavenly Father desires that we “rend our hearts, and not our garments, and turn unto the Lord our God” Joel 2:12-13.
This is the time more now than ever, for us to be sincere, open and honest with our Father. It doesn’t matter if we are mature or babes in the Lord, we still need to ask Him for an ongoing heart transformation.
Matthew 5:8, assures us that with a pure heart will we eventually see God and with a heart that is clean we may according to
1 John 3:20-21; 4:17.
have confidence before the judgment seat of Christ.
We always have a choice because our Heavenly Father has given us free will to choose. He sayschoose this day and choose life.
Deuteronomy 30:11 – 20 19 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!We can make this choice by loving the Lord our God, obeying Him, and committing ourselves firmly to Him.
Therefore, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life [which is] in Christ Jesus [the law of our new being] has freed me from the law of sin and of death.
3 For God has done what the Law could not do, [its power] being weakened by the flesh [[a]the entire nature of man without the Holy Spirit]. Sending His own Son in the guise of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, [God] condemned sin in the flesh [[b]subdued, overcame, [c]deprived it of its power over all who accept that sacrifice],
4 So that the righteous and just requirement of the Law might be fully met in us who live and move not in the ways of the flesh but in the ways of the Spirit [our lives governed not by the standards and according to the dictates of the flesh, but controlled by the Holy Spirit].
5 For those who are according to the flesh and are controlled by its unholy desires set their minds on and [d]pursue those things which gratify the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit and are controlled by the desires of the Spirit set their minds on and [e]seek those things which gratify the [Holy] Spirit.
6 Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death [death that [f]comprises all the miseries arising from sin, both here and hereafter]. But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever].
7 [That is] because the mind of the flesh [with its carnal thoughts and purposes] is hostile to God, for it does not submit itself to God’s Law; indeed it cannot.
8 So then those who are living the life of the flesh [catering to the appetites and impulses of their carnal nature] cannot please or satisfy God, or be acceptable to Him.
9 But you are not living the life of the flesh, you are living the life of the Spirit, if the [Holy] Spirit of God [really] dwells within you [directs and controls you]. But if anyone does not possess the [Holy] Spirit of Christ, he is none of His [he does not belong to Christ, is not truly a child of God].
10 But if Christ lives in you, [then although] your [natural] body is dead by reason of sin and guilt, the spirit is alive because of [the] righteousness [that He imputes to you].
11 And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also restore to life your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you.
12 So then, brethren, we are debtors, but not to the flesh [we are not obligated to our carnal nature], to live [a life ruled by the standards set up by the dictates] of the flesh.
A farmer takes a plow to that ground, turns it over, breaks it up and plants his seed. Then a month or so later he returns to see what has grown.
If we choose to not allow our hearts to remain cold, hard, dry and fallow then even hard hearts and fallow ground can become places of great blessing.
Two passages of Scripture challenge us to grow, mature and change and both are from prophets in the Old Testament warning the people of Israel, because in their service of the Lord they had become lazy and disobedient.
“Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, circumcise your hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem..
Jeremiah 4:3-4a
Jeremiah 4:3 HEB: יְהוּדָה֙ וְלִיר֣וּשָׁלִַ֔ם נִ֥ירוּ לָכֶ֖ם נִ֑יר NAS: and to Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground, KJV: and Jerusalem, Break up your fallow ground,
“Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the Lord, until he comes and showers righteousness on you.” (Hosea 10:12)
Hosea 10:12 HEB: נִ֥ירוּ לָכֶ֖ם נִ֑יר וְעֵת֙ לִדְר֣וֹשׁ NAS: Break up your fallow ground, For it is time KJV: break up your fallow ground: for [it is] time INT: kindness Break your fallow is time to seek
Just what does it mean for me and you to do that?
The phrase unplowed ground or fallow ground
is the Hebrew noun:
nîr,
the tillable, untilled, or fallow ground.
Strongs 5213b nir: to break up, freshly till
Original Word: נִיר
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: nir
Phonetic Spelling: (neer)
Definition: to break up, freshly till
Strong’s Concordance 5215
niyr: ground
Original Word: נִיר
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: niyr
Phonetic Spelling: (neer)
Definition: a lamp
נִיר noun [masculine] the tillable, untilled or fallow ground;
Hosea 10:12; Jeremiah 4:3 till you the untilled ground (figurative of unaccustomed moral action)
It’s land that could be productive, but has not been broken up, tilled, plowed, and prepared for planting. The prophets speaking from the Lord are commanding the people to break up that land and (spiritually) to plow the land that they have.
The two things the prophets spoke about fallow ground were:
one, the Fallow ground is unusable, and two, Fallow ground is unused.
A crop cannot grow in unplowed ground because it’s rock hard, and it prevents seeds from pushing into the earth, germinating, putting down roots and growing to maturity. Every gardener knows that when it’s time to put in the plants the soil must be broken up to enable the seeds to grow into it and let their roots go down deep where moisture can be found.
They were sowing seed, but because they didn’t bother to prepare the soil and pull out the thorns and weeds, the seeds planted did not produce.
By applying this farming comparison to spiritual things, the question is: What must be done so the soil is ready to receive the seed of God’s word?
For us, as we stand before the planting fields of our lives, there is a choice we have to make. Are we going to plant in the hard, unbroken, unyielding, fallow soil with a pointless and ineffective future without any promise of a harvest? Or are we now prepared and ready to break up that fallow ground in our hearts and lives? Are we ready to dig it, to lift it up, turn it over and do it again, and do it deep, really deep?
We need to ask ourselves,
What type of heart do I really have?
What has been growing in my heart up to today?
Hatred, bitterness, lust, greed, worldliness? These must be removed by their roots so a new crop can be planted. Grain crops do not flourish under the shade of trees. They must be removed so the new crop can grow in the light.
Hardness must be broken up. A plow does the hard work of opening up the ground. It is true we can dig it one shovelful at a time, but that is too slow a process. Farmers can harness some cattle or horses or use other equipment, however there are farmers without animals who have harnessed themselves and pulled their own plow while his wife or son guided the plow. It takes energy to pull the plow and guide the plow, keeping the furrows straight so the field can be plowed to it best advantage.
Is there hardness in our hearts?
Is there unbelief that is hiding in our souls?
Those who have been hurt in relationships or by a parent or guardian, they may have sealed off an area of their lives because it’s just too painful to return to it. We need to let our loving Heavenly Father break up those old simmering resentments and heal all those past hurts. He will take the strain and pull the plow, but we must point it toward those hard places in our hearts that we know we must deal with.
Sometimes our hearts have been hardened by unbelief which must be faced head on and broken up, then our Father can plant something new and fruitful in there. One way of plowing deep is by confession and heartfelt repentance.
How many of us remember the last time we were broken and humbly knelt before the Lord?
Larger rocks must be dislodged and completely removed and sometimes during the plowing process we find large, immovable rocks. If we are serious about making this field produce a harvest, it will require extensive digging along with power to lift them and move them from the field.
These can be rocks of un-forgiveness, stones of stubbornness, deep twisted roots of bitterness and jealousy that need to be severed and pulled out. Rotting remnants and dormant seeds of rejection, pride and rebellion from previous years that wait, patiently, for the perfect climate and the environment to sprout and rear their ugly heads when favorable conditions, circumstances and situations present themselves. The list is endless, yet these are the hidden things that prevent our spiritual growth into maturity and stunt the harvest that would otherwise be seen in a fruitful life.
If we have been plowing our heart, have we found some big rocks that need to be removed, but we are not able to move them by ourselves? Maybe it’s time to talk with our pastors about the rocks and stones? They will have had some experience moving rocks out of their own life because every field has rocks and stones in them.
When a field goes unplanted for several years it often become covered with thorns or other weeds the thorns must be gathered up and burned; let the purifying fire of His Holy Spirit cleanse away all that is not of the Father.
As this is also a season when we are planting for a future harvest, we are reminded again of Messiah Jesus’s parables of the sower and his seed.
In the parable of the sower, Messiah uses thorns in a field to describe obstacles in the human heart; but what kinds of thorns make the fields of our hearts unproductive?
“The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.” Matthew 13:22
“The worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.” Mark 4:19
“The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.” Luke 8:14
Depending on the type of land, the thorns may represent temptations and lust toward other people, self-indulgence, pride, anger, selfishness, a love of entertainment and recreation, addictions, greed, and many other thorns. It is important to know that any and each of these thorns can choke the Word of God; and each one has a devastating effect on the crop and subsequent harvest that God wants to produce in His children, so we must show them no mercy just get them out!
Fallow ground, unplowed, unprepared soil is unusable for any serious crop, we must “break up” our fallow ground so that it is usable.
We may have much of our lives surrendered to the Lord and they may be being nurtured and refined to produce a crop of righteousness and the fruit of His Spirit, which is great! But just maybe there’s a piece of ground, an area of our life that we’ve never quite got around to dealing with, no digging, no planting, and no harvesting, there, but it is going to waste. Just maybe we’ve put off plowing this area of ground because it’s too painful or difficult to deal with.
If we’ll break up the additional fallow ground in our lives, He will extend and enlarge our fruitfulness.
For it is the time [destined] for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not respect or believe or obey the gospel of God? 1 Peter 4:17
The axe is laid to the root of the trees
Luke 3:9 and
Matt 3:10And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
Deliverance, freedom from oppressing evil spirits is not as popular a message as prosperity teaching. Yet true biblical prosperity is of the spiritual life and it cannot be lived in fullness without being set free from the bondage of sin, death and the consequences of a life lived without God.
Prov. 5:22 His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, And he is caught in the cords of his sin.
These cords are the same as the rocks and stones and if we have been at the same place in our walk with the Lord for some years and are not moving forward, or desiring to go higher and dig deeper with Him, there maybe some rocks,roots and cords holding us back. These prevent our growth to maturity and it’s time to allow His spirit to not only identify them but remove them once and for all and do it deep. Only then will we become a field ready to receive the implantation of His righteousness and yield an abundance of the fruits of His grace through/by delivering freedom and healing.
While there is still time today, which is the day of salvation, let us break up the fallow ground for ourselves by yielding to Him and seeking His face. Don’t hold back any longer but let’s submit our lives completely to His Will, plan and purpose for us.
As a true disciple, willing and obedient, we must lay down our lives becauseit’s time to seek the Lord until he comes and rains righteousness upon you.
and He promises that
Is 1:19 If you are willing and obedient,
You shall eat the good of the land;
NOW
is the time
to break up
these unplowed fields in our lives
and
yield them to Him and allow His growth in us.
Let our Heavenly Father expose every evil seed that the enemy may have planted in our hearts, then He can touch, cleanse, and regenerate them.
Why?
So that we may truly know Him and the power of His resurrection, obey Him and worship Him in spirit and in truth.
Clean, stable, properly prepared vessels, are those which the Father can fill with His power.
Thank you Father for your loving kindness and goodness today; show me the fallow ground in my life. Teach me by your spirit how to break up the fallow ground of my stubborn and prideful ways and to continually seek you until you come on rain your righteousness on me. Take the seed of your words of truth and plant Your ways deep inside me so that the fruit I bear is worthy of your Name.
Break up the dry lumps in my life Father, lift me up, turn me over and then do it again and do it deep, pulling out all those hidden roots by Your Spirit of Holy Fire and cleanse me from the inside out; burn away all that is not of You. I know Your Word says that judgment begins in the house of the Lord, therefore let the shaking and sifting begin with me so that the Bride you are returning for is without spot and wrinkle; and we will be accounted and found worthy to stand before you, cleansed by your blood, separated from everything that would keep us from your presence.
שָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם,
Shalom aleikhem
chaverim and mishpachah!
Peace to friends and family.
Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week.
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.
Not sure ..you can be…
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.
Isaiah 45:8 Drip down, O heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open up that salvation may sprout and righteousness spring up with it; I, the LORD, have created it.
Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
2 Corinthians 9:10 Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your store of seed and will increase the harvest of your righteousness.
Proverbs 11:18 The wicked man earns an empty wage, but he who sows righteousness reaps a true reward.
Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and currents on the dry ground. I will pour out My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring.
Proverbs 11:18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.
Galatians 6:7,8 Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked. Whatever a man sows, he will reap in return. The one who sows to please his flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; but the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
In the recent Post: Swords, Mountains and Gardens, the garden of Solomon was referred to… because
A shofar is a rams horn/trumpet.
winds blow, trumpets blow, Gods’ Spirit blows and there is a connection between Edens Garden
where Gods life was blown into Adam that is the same spirit of the bridegroom blowing upon the garden in song of Solomon
Awake, O north wind, and come, O south, Cause my garden to breathe forth, its’ spices let flow…
Blow on my garden, that its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and taste his precious fruits.
AMPC [You have called me a garden, she said] Oh, I pray that the [cold] north wind and the [soft] south wind may blow upon my garden, that its spices may flow out [in abundance for you in whom my soul delights].
she calls the garden both hers and his, because of that oneness which is between them, Song of Solomon 2:16 & 4:16, whereby they have a common interest one in another’s person and concerns. This is of course symbolic of our relationship with the Lord, (the Bridegroom Yeshua/Jesus and the ecclesia/called out, ‘church’); as it is of Israel to her God.
That the spices thereof may flow out; that my graces may be exercised to thy glory, the edification of others, and my own comfort.
Aliyah and the Plough.
עֲלִיָּה – Aliyah
There are several meanings to Aliyah in Judaism. Aliyah has the meaning for immigration of Jews from the diaspora to the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael in Hebrew).
Also defined as “the act of going up”—that is, towards Jerusalem—”making Aliyah” by moving to the Land of Israel is one of the most basic tenets of being an Israelite.
Another is the honor of reciting the blessings over the Torah and standing at the bimah while it is read; this is also called an aliyah (plural, aliyot), which means “going up.” This refers both to the physical ascent of the person to the bimah where the Torah is read and to the spiritual uplifting associated with participation in this event.
The third is connected to the Three Pilgrimage Festivals which are:
Sukkot/ סוכות /Feast of Tabernacles /Festival of Booths which commemorates the wanderings of the Israelites in the desert after the exodus when they resided in booths. It is also the harvest festival – the gathering of the fruits and grain from the field before the rains.
Passover/Pesach: the celebration of the exodus from Egypt is also the Spring Festival and the barley harvest and,
Pentecost/Shavuot: is a celebration of the giving of the Torah, the grain harvest, and the festival of the first fruits.
“Three times each year, all your males shall thus present themselves before God the Master, Lord of Israel.” (Exodus 34:23)
During the times of the Temple, three times a year the Israelites were called to pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
One in Passover/Pesach springtime, the second in early summer, Pentecost /Shavuot and the third for Sukkot in the autumn/fall; also called the Feast of Tabernacles/Booths. Of course there are 4 other feasts Unleavened Bread is connected to Passover; Yom Teruah/Trumpets and Yom Kippur are immediately prior to tabernacles.
The journey they all made is called the ALIYAH or the going up.
shloshet haregalim
הרגלים שלושת
Simply because where ever you come from your journey was going to be an upward one in elevation due to Jerusalem’s location on seven hills.
According to the tradition, the pilgrims used to stay with local Jerusalem families and despite the high number of visitors there was always room for all of them.
The pilgrims would bring the priests of the temple gifts from their fruits, harvest, cattle and flocks.
The main objective of the pilgrimage was to visit the Temple. Since the destruction of the Temple, the pilgrimage isn’t observed anymore.
As they traveled they sang and recited the Psalms of Ascent. The word ascent means a step, or an upwards climb. The Songs of Ascent is the ancient title of a collection of 15 Psalms, (or sacred songs).
These Psalms are so called because of the Aliyah and comprise Psalms 120 -134. They are also sometimes called Pilgrim Songs.
Israel Jerusalem old city; typical street sign in Hebrew/Arabic/ English. Note the word Ascent bottom right of the street signs because this was part of the road along which they walked.
Glazed ceramic street sign in English/Hebrew and Arabic of as saraya/ascent in the muslim quarter old city east Jerusalem Israel.
In Hebrew, the word Ascent is מעלה (ma’alah) which is used to describe upward movement, such as going up a hill or climbing stairs.
This was by way of preparation for the upcoming Yom Kippur/Day of Atonement, and the week of Tabernacles/Sukkot that followed.
It gave time for the Israelites to get their hearts right. This was an annual ‘making things right with God time’, prior to the first coming of Messiah.
Teshuvah
תְּשׁוּבָה, “turning to God”
In Modern Hebrew teshuvah means an “answer” to a shelah, or a question.
Here, God’s love for us is the question, and our teshuvah – our turning of the heart toward Him – is the answer.
Teshuvah is the Hebrew word for repentance and literally means to return to our Heavenly Father… and obey Him.
Deuteronomy 4:30 30 When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days you will return to YHVH your Elohim and listen to His voice.
Teshuvah is one of the great gifts God gives each of us – the ability to turn back to Him and seek healing for our brokenness.
There is a period of tendays between
Rosh HaShanah/Head of the Year/The Feast of Trumpets
and
Yom Kippur / יום כיפור/ The Day of Atonement, which are called the
“Days of Awe/Yamin Nora’im/עשרת ימי תשובה,”
They are also called Aseret Yemei Teshuvah – the “TenDays of Repentance.”
Then the blood of the Yom Kippur sacrifice was placed in the Holy of Holies, on the Kapporet/mercy seat, as the High Priest entered before the ark at this one time of the year.
These sacrifices are no longer necessary for the lamb of God has fulfilled all righteousness, however, as believers in Messiah Yeshua/Jesus Christ we can participate with personal prayer.
Another point of the Aliyah relevant to believers is that we are all called to continually, go up, on our journey through life; choosing the higher path every day, not just three times a year.
This time of reflection prior to the start of the fall feasts which begin this year with Rosh Hashanah at sundown on 29 September and ends at sundown 1st October. It is also the new year on the Hebrew Calendar and it will be the year 5780. (Hebrew: ראש השנה), (literally “head of the year”).
The trumpets will sound, the shofar – שופר – will be blown worldwide to call the children of Israel to the start of the 10 Days of Awe. The shofar blast is the annual signal that the spiritual year is coming to a close.
Yamin Nora’im/עשרת ימי תשובה.
A time of repentance, of getting right with God, before the Yom Kippur/Day of Atonement and subsequent Tabernacles celebration, which foreshadows that Messiah is coming one day to dwell with us; to permanently tabernacle with man.
This time of preparation is accompanied by a spiritual house cleaning and can often include a time of crisis, confusion, problems, dislocation and chaos.
After every harvest the fields are turned over and plowed ready for the next planting.
This is a picture of our life it is not something we like or even look forward to or see the flesh ever willingly initiate, nevertheless it is we that have to do it, God does not do this for us!
However Hosea 10:12, plowing up the follow ground is part of life.
12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. King James Version (KJV)
If we plant the good seeds of righteousness, our reaping will be a harvest of love.
If soil is never touched it gets hard because it settles down and it will never produce a great harvest, maybe just a few weeds.
Soil produces abundant fruit after the plow has gone through it, some people just use weedeaters/ Strimmers/ weedwhacker’s/ edge trimmers, etc. It’s really a lazy way of making a good show on the exterior because if we don’t pull up the roots, the weeds grow back. The plow turns everything over moving the earth completely upside down and it makes a big mess.
Only by doing this can the soil become loose and the rocks and stones be brought to the surface. It seems like chaos but it allows the oxygen, (breath of the Spirit) into the soil, then it is ready to become fruitful and bear life.
So when this process begins in our lives and it will… when we encounter crises, problems, turmoil, challenges and shaking, it is all the plowing of the Spirit.
He is allowing our lives to be turned over, not because we have done anything wrong, or that He doesn’t have a good purpose. It is because He does have a great plan and He wants our lives to bear much more fruit.
It is not something to fear or try to avoid but rather embrace, with a trusting submission to His faithfulness.
Our trust could be interpreted in the pictograph as: Look it is revealed that He is placing a fence around us, supporting and protecting us in the situation.
Just as the farmer prepares the fields, or the gardener the ground, it’s as natural as every process of growth.
1Cor. 4:17
6 Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.
17 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,
18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
It is part of the pattern of life’s pilgrimage, they’re a necessity.
So be greatly encouraged for He has considered you worthy of such careful and precise attention and treatment, that in the end, will yield untold blessings beyond all comparison.
We are His
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” 2 Corinthians 4:7
It seems foolish to place a treasure inside a jar of clay. Neither does it make much sense to hide something of value inside something that is not worth very much; however as the believer undergoes these harsh attacks the jar of clay is broken down, but then, the Life of God within, which can never be destroyed, can be both seen and shared more easily to others who need this treasure.
Paul says in vs.12 that the breaking process at work in his life resulted in new life in Messiah for the Corinthians.
The reason that God put His treasures into jars of clay, is so the jars of clay would be constantly reminded that they have no power and that they are as fragile as a clay pot, only He has all-surpassing power.
If there is turmoil in our lives right now recognize it as the Spirit of God plowing up our fallow ground and preparing it to receive the new seed, we are to look joyfully for the harvest that will come.
This is one natural season of the plough, another is the spring, after the winter months have hardened the earth.
So whenever your plowing season arrives and it will…
For it comes to every believer and those who choose to make Aliyah in that season, as the wind of His spirit/Ruach blows on my/His garden of our lives, that its spices may flow out we will be a sweet smelling fragrance..
2Cor. 2:15 For we are like a sweet-smelling incense offered by Christ to God, which spreads among those who are being saved and those who are being lost. For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
Song of Solomon: The fig-tree hath ripened her green figs, And the sweet-smelling vines have given forth fragrance, Rise, come, my friend, my fair one, yea, come away.
..And will be released to those being saved
For we are a sweet fragrance to God in The Messiah among those who have life and among those who perish;
To God we are the aroma of Christ among those who are saved and among those who are dying.
Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. Ephesians 5:1-2
The Sweet Smelling Fragrance of our Worship. In Hebrews 1:9 we see that Messiah, the King of all Kings, was
“anointed of God, with the oil of gladness (joy), above all of His fellows.”
As a result of our worship of Him, of being in the Presence of our God and King Who was anointed above all… we will begin to exude the fragrance of His royalty.
Jam 5:7, Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8, Be ye also patient;…
The more abundant the yield, the more pleased is the husbandman, for His work is not in vain. Jesus’s parable not only informs us that God will do the cultivating, but it also tells us something about the manner in which that work will be carried out:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.”John 15:1
yielding to that husbandmans work makes it easier.
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit” (John 15:1-2).
The soul that expects to be fruitful must be prepared to submit to pruning, and that means sorrow, heartbreak, heartache, and all that goes along with pruning.
The branch does not perform the care, the vine provides it all; the branch only has to yield itself and receive. It is seeing this truth that leads to the blessed rest of faith and the true secret of growth and strength:
“I can do all things through Christ which strengthened me.”
Our lives would change dramatically if we only acted as the branches!
The ultimate goal of a true vine is to produce the right fruit of the desired quality by the husbandman and after all the tender care given to the branches, if it is not yielding fruit – the very purpose of that branch becomes defiled.
James 5:7, KJV: “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
My father is the gardener and He knows the plans He has for us…
Jer. 29:11 For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
For a tikvah/hope and a future for blessing and for a good outcome a future for blessing, we must let the ploughing and pruning prepare us for the plan He has for our lives.
As we remember Messiah at this season of fall feasts, we should also be mindful that one day the last trumpet will sound, the last shofar will be blown…. one year He will return …are we ready?
are we that sweet aroma?
He will make us like a garden of fountains whose streams are fed by the mountain springs from the same mountain of spices.
Look beyond,
look up,
for redemption draws nigh
Pruning seems to be destroying the vine and looks as if it’s all being cut away; but the gardener, the husbandman, makes his cut with a sharp knife because he sees the future and knows the final outcome will bring greater harvest. There are blessings we can never have unless we are ready to pay the price of pain. There’s no way to reach them save through suffering. This is the bitter sweet WAY and is not the gospel most want to hear or experience…but it is His Truth and the Way to Life.
Will He find faith (faithfulness of His Bride) when He comes…
Could this be the temptation that Jesus/Yeshua prayed we would not be led into; recorded in Matthew 6:13 – It is the faithlessness of unbelief, and of trying to change our viewpoint from that of our Heavenly Fathers, to one less hard in our eyes?
Jesus/Yeshua only said and did what He heard and saw the father do – nothing more nothing less – and was obedient to death. This is our path also, to take up our cross and follow Him. This is not an easy road and we are not to pray for an easy one but for the strength to follow Him on the one He took and the one He calls us to take after Him.
When He blows upon our garden let’s answer with all our spiritual senses and prepare ourselves for the return of the gardener, the husbandman and our bridegroom. Let’s be alert for the sweet fragrance of His presence as He calls us to Himself and be ready to say, ani lo.
Listen for His call as the shofar trumpets sound this month… one day He will catch us away to be with Him to tabernacle/Sukkot with Himself forever. Is this the year?
Plough up that fallow ground, repent and get right with God, make aliyah, ascend the mountain of spices whereof the streams make glad.
In Ps. 46:4 David tells us prophetically
4There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. 5God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.
Yeshua/Jesus is the river of life..
“And then they will see The Son of Man when he comes in the clouds with great power and with glory.” Mark 13:26
for He comes in the clouds with great glory to receive His bride unto Himself
Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him–even those who pierced Him.
The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s. אשִׁ֥יר הַשִּׁירִ֖ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר לִשְׁלֹמֹֽה:
It is a timeless allegory of the relationship between God and the People of Israel, in terms of the love between a man and a woman.
A rose of the valleys: This is prettier than the rose of the mountains because it is always moist.
“As a rose among the thorns”
Lily of the Valley has the meaning of:
humility, chastity, sweetness, purity.
Also means the return of happiness, which is the reason why it’s often used in weddings.
After Lily of the Valley finishes blooming, the red berries appear on the stem.
The Latin name Convallaria means “valley” and Majalis means “blooming in May” (from Greek). This woodland plant is native throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere in Asia and Europe. In different countries Lilies of the Valley are associated with sorrow, love, purity, innocence, tenderness and faith.
Spices in the Song of Songs permeate Solomons sweet story, Shir Hashirim, is the equally pleasant presence of the fragrance of spices.
From previous post to refresh our memories:
Without the spices mentioned in this book of love between the Messiah and his Bride Israel, it would be harder to imagine the prophesied marriage, or the communion of believers with their God. Spices seem to be referring to the ascent/aliyah to the heights of Israel, (Jerusalem) and pointing to spiritual heights experienced by being in the presence of our Lord and Savior.
Conspicuously, the spices are found in the presence of both Bride and Bridegroom, and in the ‘garden enclosed’—a virtual garden of each delicate and holy spice. Most of the spices mentioned are the spices of the Tabernacle, the use and purpose of each spice commanded by God to Moses and Israel, and pointing to the pleasant, beautiful realm of Heaven and the throne of God.
A deeper look at each of the spices, shows not only the symbolic value of each substance, but the nature of the spices which point to Messiah and His suffering. (not included in that post but are in this one.)
We can say something like this to our Heavenly Bridegroom….Breathe upon me with your Spirit wind, stir up the sweet spice of Your life within me and spare nothing as you make me your fruitful garden. Hold nothing back until I release your fragrance. Please come and walk with me as you walked with Adam in your Eden paradise garden. Come and taste the fruits of Your life in me.
When Solomon talked of his beloved feeding the garden and gathering lilies: The Lord keeps on feeding and strengthening those who are maturing spiritually and gathering those who are away from His word and still need to know Him.
So man placed God in a garden of death and laid on Him spices, which also came from a garden.
In the Song of Solomon reference is made to the bride (us).
Let my beloved come into His garden.
Our lives are His garden too and we are also collectively His bride.
Song of Solomon 4:14. with nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes, with all the finest spices.
Song of Solomon 8:14. Come away, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.
The title in the Hebrew text is Shir Hashirim Solomon’s Song of Songs, meaning a song by, for, or about Solomon.
The phrase “Song of Songs” means the greatest of songs (cf. Dt 10:17,
“God of gods and Lord of lords”; 1Ti 6:15, “King of kings”).
The Shir Hashirim is our tikvah and our place of grace which is Messiah Himself.
The book took its title from the first two words, shiyr hashiyrim, usually translated as “the song of songs.” This remained the title in Greek and Latin Bible translations in later centuries. The repetition of the word song indicates that the writer considered this “the greatest of all songs.”
A deeper look at each spice, shows not only the symbolic value of each substance, but the nature of the spices which point to the life of Messiah and His suffering.
The spices in the Song of Songs are mostly found also in many other places in the Word of God: occasionally they are used as parts of the Salvation message, sometimes they are only mentioned as rich and elegant elements for Kings and the very wealthy.
The spices of Myrrh, Aloes, Frankincense, Saffron, Calamus, Cinnamon and others like a tapestry, weave and waft through the Scriptures, telling the history of God’s Way with mankind in a thread as amazing as the history that is recounted.
It is somewhat hidden from view in the mystery of the Tabernacle, the light and presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant, and the ministry behind the veil/vail entered into only by the High Priest until such time that the veil/vail is torn and the High priest forever was revealed. (Matthew 27:51)
Spices are present in 2 significant journeys into Egypt of those loved whom God loves dearly. They are present as Joseph is carried captive into Egypt by the Midianites for the later deliverance of Israel; and spices were part of the early years of Jesus/Yeshua, who like Joseph son of Jacob, was also on his way down into ‘Mizraim’.
Scripture also mentions spices that were part of the clothing of the Levites, and they were present with each covenanted sacrifice. in Song of songs, the betrothed are adorned with spices but in Proverbs, they are used in a mocking way concerning the harlots enticements.
(Proverbs 7:17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon)
First and last mentioned in the Scriptures.
We read of spices early in Genesis, and 3,000 years later find them in the burial and the resurrection of the Lord,
Luke 24:1 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
later noting that in Heaven, they are expressed as the sweet scent of the prayers of the saints.
Luke 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
To ignore the quality of glory the scripture assigns to the spices, deprives believers of the deeper understanding of the love and grace/ of God, and the intricate fashioning of prophecies and similarities pointing to the finished work on the Cross.
The term ‘spice’ or spices is first mentioned in Genesis 43:11, although Genesis 37 mentions ‘myrrh’ as one of the spices borne by the captors of Joseph on his way down into Egypt. Spices play an important role and symbol throughout the scriptures, so that while they do not appear called by name earlier, they do appear in the first book of the Torah/Pentateuch, marking one of the first fore-shadowings of a Hebrew/Israelite son, who was rejected by his brethren, and sold into captivity with brutal treatment, the history of which will twist and turn its way into their salvation. The first mention of the general term ‘spices’ in Genesis 43:11 is found among the gifts that Jacob sends to Pharaoh:
And their father Israels aid unto them, If [it must be] so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
we note that in the Garden of Eden, there are distinctions made regarding edible plants— those that are seed bearing vs. those that are not, and we can be pretty sure that the Garden was permeated by the fragrance of spices.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which [is] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which [is] the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. Gen 1:29
The term used for ‘spice’ or ‘spices’ is :
נְכֹאת or ‘nekot’
referring to a fragrant powder.
Gesenius.
Following that, the term next used most frequently for ‘spice’ is
בֶּשֶׂם or ‘besem’
which can refer particularly to balsam wood or to any sweet smelling fragrance or spice.
The first mention of ‘spice’ is in Exodus in which it is referred to as a substance in the Tabernacle of God:
Exodus 35:52 And spice 1314, and oil for the light, and for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense.
…although it is mentioned twice before in Ex 25:6 and 30:23 where it is translated as the plural,‘spices’. Beside the gift to Pharaoh from Jacob during the famine, and the mention of spices accompanying Joseph, a type of Christ into Egypt, spices are mentioned early in the Bible as the visual component of worship and the Tabernacle: its sacrifices, incense, scent of the priests’ robes and furnishings, but most centrally, the special spices commanded of God to attend the Shekinah glory of God behind the vail of the Holy of Holies.
Last Mention
The Bible mentions the general words ‘spice’ (besem) 29 times in 25 verses, and ‘spices’ (nekot), 29 times in 31 verses though that is not an entirely accurate picture since the same words are at times translated both as singular and plural. ‘Besem’, ‘Basam’ and nekot are all used, and the number is big if all the variations of the individually named spices such as spikenard, calamus and myrrh are included. The last mention in the Bible of the word ‘spices’ is in the gospel of John at the burial and resurrection of Messiah:
Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.
The greek word,
ἄρωμα or ‘aroma’ is used.
The aroma of spices then is seen on the wind of Eden, as Adam and Eve are cast out into the world where nothing grows, and immediately following the rejection of Joseph by his brothers; Joseph as the one who would save Israel is taken to Egypt, attended by myrrh and spices.
Within 400 years of that departure, those spices and others will adorn the Tabernacle and the presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant. What a beautiful picture of the fragrances of paradise, weaving on the wind and the Word, and attending the worship of Israel for her God.
Spices coming in PART 2
Shalom to all!
Don’t leave this page without assurance in your heart that the fragrance of His Ruach HaKodesh is filling your garden today….please
make sure Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer, Savior, Lord and soon returning King and that you have a personal relationship with Him.
NOT CERTAIN?
YOU CAN BE..
Its all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.
You are greatly loved and very precious in His sight.
He longs to give you the Shalom He paid the ultimate price for..
Simply and honestly 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. Amen.
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