Tag: Herod

Endings Are Simply New Beginnings

The final, 8th day, of this feast is known as

Shemini Atzaret,

(Rejoicing in the Torah scriptures)

and brings us to the end of the 7 Appointed Times of the Lord for this annual cycle.

However it is also the beginning of a new calendar cycle and comprises the time in between the last feast and the next, first feast, which is not until the Spring. 

As we come to close of the 7 Annual Appointed Times of the Lord, a few last thoughts remain including an ‘8th day’ mystery, a ‘roof revelation’ and a couple of intriguing points to ponder.

As believers it is important to see the relevance to us.  The instructions and ultimate plan of God as laid out in the old covenant/testament.

Then with the understanding and insights we gain, what we read in the renewed covenant/testament scriptures, begins to make more sense, as we see that everything in God’s Word is connected.

(Prov. 4:7 encourages us, ‘get wisdom, get understanding’.)

Every Hebrew year has two cycles or groups of holy days\ appointed times set in by our Heavenly Father. (As discussed in previous posts.) He has not changed them nor has He told us not to follow the pattern. This is because they all point prophetically to Jesus. Who Himself attended the Feasts, as well as His being their literal fulfillment. They are connected not only in their purpose and themes but also in their timing.

“You shall dwell in sukkot (huts) for seven days . . . so that you will know, for all generations, that I had the Children of Israel dwell in sukkot, when I took them out of the Land of Egypt; I am God, your God” (Lev. 23:42 -43)

 For 40 years, as the Israelites traversed the Sinai Desert prior to their entry into the Holy Land, miraculous clouds of glory surrounded and hovered over them, shielding them from the dangers and discomforts of the desert.

Ever since, God’s kindness is remembered at Sukkot/feast of Tabernacles and trust in His providence is reaffirmed by dwelling in a sukkah, a hut of temporary construction. Also called the feast of Booths which is the meaning of Hebrew word Sukkot,it celebrates the fall harvest with the third first fruits of the growing season. During Sukkot, and each family built a Sukkah, (which is the singular of Sukkot;) or booth, outside the home. This is an activity still practiced today. Lev. 23:39  

It is a flimsy structure of palm branches that provide little else but shade. Heavy rain would penetrate the walls and roof. The family eats all meals inside, it’s a room where visitors and strangers can come.

Sukkot Guests – Ushpizin – אושפיזין

The final, 8th day, of this feast is known as Yom haSh’miyniy’Atzaret, the 8th day assembly.  Sukkot is a holiday of immense joy, where complete trust in God is expressed, and confidence from Yom Kippur is celebrated in having received a ‘good judgment’, for the coming year. God is our ultimate protection – just as He protected the Israelites in the desert with the Clouds of Glory He will protect those who obey His Word. (Exodus 13:21).During this week Ex. 33:12–34:26; Ezek.38:18–39:16; Rev. 21:1–22:21 are read because according to teachings, this war will be waged during the month of Tishri, same month in which the holiday of Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles) falls.

Interestingly enough, the war that is described in Ezekiel is similar to the war described in (Zech. 14:16–17). In Zechariah we learn that the Gentiles who survive the war against Israel, will be required to keep Sukkot annually, by coming up to the Holy City of Jerusalem to worship the Lord.Sukkot in Jerusalem  at the Western (Wailing) Wall.

Gog and Magog – Challenge to the Restoration of Israel

“This is what will happen in that day: When Gog attacks the land of Israel, My hot anger will be aroused.”  (Ezekiel 38:18)

Gog is a chief prince living in the land of Magog (Ezekiel 38:2).  Many scholars believe Magog refers to Russia.  The invading land of Gomer is often believed to be Germany.
Several lands in the coalition army are easily identifiable: Iran (Persia), Northern Sudan (ancient Ethiopia or Cush), Libya (Put), and Turkey (Togarmah).

The nations mentioned in Ezekiel 38 will unite and come upon Israel “like a cloud that covers the land” for the purpose of looting the wealth that she has amassed in what was a desolate land only seventy years ago.

The war that is described in Ezekiel is similar to the war described in the 14th chapter of Zechariah, where we learn that the Gentiles who survive the war against Israel will be required to keep Sukkot annually by coming up to the Holy City of Jerusalem to worship the Lord.

“Then the survivors from all the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go up year after year to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, and to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles [Sukkot].  If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain.”  (Zechariah 14:16–17)

Psalm 27 presents a clear connection between Sukkot and God’s protection of Israel and those who trust in Him:

“For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle [sukkah]; In the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock.”  (Psalm 27:5)

The word translated here as tabernacle is the Hebrew word sukkah (סכה).  When evil threatens God’s people, He will hide them in His sukkah, inaccessible from the enemy on the rock of His presence.

Now that is a promise we can trust in during these last days!
Gog and Magog are also mentioned in the Brit Chadashah (New Testament) Rev. 16, in connection with Armageddon and the final battle between the forces of good and evil.

This war with Gog and Magog is not the same war described in Ezekiel 38 but a final end-time battle after the thousand-year reign of Yeshua HaMashiach (Jesus the Messiah).The Son of David, Jesus/Yeshua, will come again — this time as our conquering Messiah to defeat the invading forces forever.  All who have believed in their Savior, Yeshua, will inherit eternity in the New Jerusalem — a revived Garden of Eden complete with trees of life and pure living water that will be good to eat and drink forever.

A Roof Revelation.

An inner connection between Sukkot are the names Gog and Magog.

The Hebrew word Gog means roof and there is a huge difference between a real roof and the roof of the Sukkah which would not withstand wind and rain.

By building sturdy walls people have power to make themselves safe and secure against earthly elements and people and so are deluded and self deceived into thinking they can make themselves secure against the things from God and his power to direct matters.

They take their fate in their own hands and protect with their own strength with no need to depend on God.The war of Gog and Magog is also a battle of Gog the roof, against Sukkah, it’s a fight of the illusion of the roof which is manifest as human greatness, a pride which never allows rest. Its fight against the Sukkah truth of the joyful confidence and carefree Shalom which comes only from placing complete trust in God’s protection and faith focused on his provision alone. The word Gog when prefixed with an M is then Mgog or Magog; it expresses the concept of projecting something and represents earthly wisdom and the human philosophical notion, that man can both isolate and insulate himself against God’s heavenly power.

It has origins back in the land of Shinar when Nimrod stirred the people to build a tower that would survive another flood and so avoid God’s judgment while they lived as they pleased.

Another very interesting connection to this season is.. 

the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles) is called “the season of our joy” and “the feast of the nations.” With this in mind, in Luke 2:10 it is written, “And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings [basar in Hebrew; otherwise known as the gospel] of great joy  which shall be to all people. So, we can see from this that the terminology the angel used to announce the birth of Jesus/Yeshua, were themes and messages associated with the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles).

     In Luke 2:12, the baby (Yeshua) was wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger. The swaddling cloths were also used as wicks to light the vats of oil within the court of the women during the festival of Sukkot, another association with the festival of Sukkot.
In Luke 2:12 The word manger is Greek word phatn’e. It is the same word translated as stall in Luke 13:15. By seeing how the word is used in Luke 13:15, we can see that the Greek word phatn’e means a place for hitching cattle.

The Hebrew word for stall is marbek, which can be found in Amos 6:4 and Malachi 4:2. In Genesis 33:17 it is written that Jacob journeyed to Sukkoth and made booths (the word booth in this passage is the Hebrew word sukkah; the plural is sukkot) for his cattle.
Due to cultural traditions we have little idea in the west, what a manger is. In Israel a manger is a hollow space cut out of a large rock and not the wooden structure in the previous picture.

The area is filled with food usually for sheep and goats.

(This reminds us also of another place of protection  ‘I will put thee in the cleft of the rock’. Ex. 32:22)So we can see from these passages how the word booth (sukkah or sukkot) was used by Jacob for his cattle in Genesis 33:17, and how the Greek word for manger or stall, phatn’e, was also used to refer to hitching cattle in Luke 13:15. Phatn’e is the same word translated as manger in Luke 2:12, where Yeshua was laid at the time of His birth.During the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles), God required that all male Jews come to Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Deut. 16:16). For this reason, as well as the census being conducted, the city would have been overcrowded with people and could explain why Mary (Miryam) and Joseph (Yosef) were unable to find lodging in and around Jerusalem (Yerushalayim) (Lk. 2:7). Bethlehem, the place where Jesus/Yeshua was born, is only about four miles from Jerusalem.Some Bible scholars believe that this holiday is a more accurate birth date of Jesus. God is said to have dwelled (tabernacled) with the Jews as they wandered for 40 years in the desert. How appropriate it would be if our Messiah was born during this feast. This would bring insightful meaning to the Messianic name Emanuel, which means God is with us, prophesied by Isaiah (Isa.7:14)

We know our Messiah was made manifest into a temporary body when He came to earth. Is it possible He also was put into a temporary dwelling? The fields would have been dotted with Sukkot during this harvest time to provide temporary shelter animals. The Hebrew word ‘stable’ is also called a Sukkoth (Gen. 33:17). Later when the scriptures record Mary and Joseph were in a house, the time for the sukkah would have been past.Further interesting facts concerning the birth of Jesus/Yeshua occurring during Sukkot, is in Matt. 2:1. Scripture says that wise men come from the East to visit Him. The land of the East is Babylon, where the largest Jewish population was at the time of the birth of Jesus/Yeshua.

These Jews were descendants from the captivity when King Nebuchadnezzar defeated Israel and took the Jews to Babylon to serve him. Babylon is referred to as the land of the East in Gen. 29:1 and Jud. 6:3.The wise men in Matt. 2:1 were possibly teachers/rabbis. The rabbis, also called sages, are known in Hebrew as chakamim, which means wise men. The word in Matthew 2:1 in Greek is magos, which is translated into English as Magi. Magos in Greek is the Hebrew word ravmag. Ravmag comes from the Hebrew word rav, which means rabbi. It should also be noted that the Greek word magos can also mean scientist, counselor, scholar, or teacher. The rabbis were scholars or teachers of the Jewish law. Jesus/Yeshua was referred to as Rabbi, or Teacher in John 1:38,47,49; 3:2. So, it’s a possibility that the wise men were Jewish rabbis coming from Babylon to witness the birth of Jesus/Yeshua. 

“What made the rabbis make the journey from Babylon to Bethlehem to witness the birth of Yeshua?” The answer is given in Matt. 2:2, as it is written, “…we have seen His star in the east….”As we have read, one of the requirements during the time of Sukkot was to build an outside temporary shelter and live in it during this festival season. It had to be built with an opening in the roof so the people could see the stars in heaven. This is another reason why the rabbis would be looking for, and thus seeing, the star in the sky when it appeared.

In addition, there was a prophecy in Numbers as it is written, “…a star shall come forth from Jacob…” (Num. 24:17 NAS). King Herod inquired about where the Messiah would be born in Matt.2:4. (He was told in Bethlehem vs 6, based upon the prophecy in Micah 5:2.) In Matt. 2:10 it is written, “When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy.” Once again, remember that Sukkot is called “the season of our joy.” In Matt. 2:2, the rabbis saw the star from the East. Salvation was seen by the Jewish people as coming from the East. Jesus/Yeshua descended from the tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5). The tribe of Judah was positioned on the east side of the tabernacle of Moses in the wilderness.

Finally, in Luke 2:32, Jesus/Yeshua is called a light to the Gentiles. Once again, Sukkot is called “the festival of lights” and “the festival of all nations.”

Therefore, by studying and understanding the festival of Sukkot and the themes and messages that God desired to be conveyed during this festival, it enables us to read the Bible in a new light; and to ponder the possibility that Jesus/Yeshua may have been born during the season of Sukkot and that He is the Star we are all called to see with our (spiritual) eyes!


Sukkot (Tabernacles) is called the Feast of Ingathering. Jesus/Yeshua told us that the harvest represents the end of the age (Olam Hazeh). This is found in (Matt. 13:39; Rev. 14:15; Joel 3:13). The harvest refers more specifically to people who choose to accept the Messiah Jesus/Yeshua into their hearts and lives. (Matt. 9:35-38; Lk 10:1-2; Jn 4:35-38; Rev 14:14-18). God is gathering both Jews and non-Jews together to accept the Messiah Jesus/Yeshua into their lives. Most of the people on earth have not accepted Jesus into their lives and are in the valley of decision (Joel 3:13-14). Jeremiah sorrowed for a people who were not a part of the harvest in Jer. 8:18-22. vs. 20 “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” To those who do accept the Messiah, they will experience the real Sukkot (Tabernacles) during the Messianic age, the Millennium. Both Jew and non-Jew will live in the Messianic Kingdom. No doubt there will also be immortal people such as Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, and David. There will be mortal people as well who will live with them, who are the people who lived through the seven-year tribulation period, the birthpangs of the Messiah, or the Chevlai shel Mashiach, and who accepted Jesus/Yeshua into their hearts and lives. What a joy it will be living with the Messiah during the Messianic era!


Olam habah = the world to come.  …tabernacle of God is with men…” (Rev 21:1-3)

Sukkot (Tabernacles) is known as the festival of ingathering and the fruit harvest. In Rev.7:9-17, we can see those who have come through the great tribulation period and who became believers in the Messiah during that time (Rev. 7:14). In Rev. 7:15, they “dwell” with them.

Tishrei is the 7th month, the number of completion.   (Lev. 23:23–44)

The book of Revelation is filled with number 7 and has similarities to the events in this month. Tishrei begins with Yom Teruah, the Day of Trumpets. (Rev. 8:2; 14:7; 19:16; 20:4; 21:3; 22:5)There are 7 angels with 7 trumpets.

Tishrei also has Yom Kippur, the Day of Judgment. In Revelation, judgment comes as man stands before God face to face, on Yom Kippur so too. God is proclaimed King in Tishrei and also in Revelation.  If we believe we are grafted into the Olive tree of spiritual Israel, then we are also included in the 7 Appointed Times and their fulfillment.There is reason to believe that during the time when the Temple stood, a total of 70 sacrifices were offered during the seven days of Sukkot which are celebrated in the Land of Israel.

Maybe the 70 bullocks sacrificed represented the 70 nations of the world as they were divided into by God after the confusion of languages at the destruction of the tower at Babel with Nimrod on the plains of Shinar.
Would this mean that Israel was interceding for nations of the world, not just herself?
These offerings were then considered an offering for world peace.

Tishrei closes with another day of mystery.

The final, 8th day, of this feast is known as Shemini Atzaret, Yom haSh’miyniy’Atzaret, The 8th day assembly. In Israel, the 8th day is a day that speaks of eternity and the Bible ends in Revelation with that same day, the day of eternity where we will reign forever with Him. The plans and purposes of God have only perfect ends.

The gathering of the 8th day;

The last day of the spiritual year;

The day after the end – is the day that represents the beginning of all eternity.
All Scripture is written on kosher scrolls not in books. So to understand the reference in Revelation, consider that the Torah scroll (the first five books of the Bible) has been continually unrolled throughout the year for each weeks reading. At the end of the year there is a rolling back of all that has been unrolled over the course of the year!

In Revelation it states that the heaven shall be rolled up like a scroll, this is an image written in the prophecies of revelation concerning the end of the ages. (Rev. 6:14; 20:11, 22)The sky is rolled up at the end of the present age and earth and heaven have fled away before eternity is ushered in. The old has gone, the scroll finished, for the story is completed and the day after the end, Shemini Atzeret is the 8th day and is the day forever starts, it’s the beginning of eternity.

Olam habah the world to come.Before the scroll is rolled up, the last words written are from the final reading in Deuteronomy. They are concerning the end of a particular journey.When Moses climbed the mountain to view the land of promise just before his life on Earth is complete and he goes to be with God. he was looking towards the place where the Temple would one day stand. The exact same location that Abraham had to be willing to sacrifice his only son and where Jesus would also be our sacrificial lamb.

The End Is Also The Beginning.

The journey through the wilderness is over and the Israelites are about to cross Jordan to enter the promised land with Joshua leading them.
(Joshua is a type of Jesus) and so Shemini Atzeret reminds us of the future day when our journey through the wilderness and our existence on earth will be complete and this old world will pass away to reveal the new and Jesus will lead us into our promised land.

Its clear the old must be left behind before we can enter into the new, our life here is only the journey on the way to the destination. As the scroll is rolled up, be ready to catch the first glimpse of the unfathomable glory that awaits us.

The 8th day is about resurrection and leaving the old life, a day of transcending, of breaking out of the limitations of the finite and into the realm of the infinite. Of transcending the old, overcoming the ultimate limitation, death, and thus every limitation.

The day after the end of the old life, the old existence and the power to live beyond it.

So the day of the resurrection and the day of the beginning of eternity are in inexorably joined together.The Hebrew Holy Day of Resurrection was First Fruits and the Resurrection is the First Fruits of the Age to Come. The first manifestation of the 8th day – Heaven.One last fascinating point as food for thought to ponder upon.

Several Bible scholars believe its possible that the first Thanksgiving in America was based in part on Sukkot. The Pilgrims were familiar with the Bible and the Feast of Tabernacles. They were also thankful for God’s protection in the new land. The first Thanksgiving holiday is reported to have been in October, (Sukkot is usually in this month), and lasted for three days.
The harvest of the earth is ripe …” (Rev 14:14-16) “

Messiah fulfilled an intermediate fulfillment of all three Fall Feasts at His first coming:

1.) Announcement: Yom Teruw’ah, ushering in the King.

2.) Circumcision: Yom Kippur, removal of the veil (foreskin) called “face-to-face.”

3.) Dwelling with us: Sukkot; dwelt with us in a corruptible body.Messiah will fulfill all three Fall Feasts completely at His second coming: 

1.) Husband Ushering in the Bride: Yom Teruw’ah.

2.) Husband removes veil from the bride’s face: Yom Kippur.

3.) Husband consummates the marriage with the 4th cup: Sukkot; Dwells with bride for 1,000 years of Sabbath rest. 

Peace – Shalom to all who love His Word at this season of rejoicing.

It’s time to fellowship with the King!

MYSTERY OF THE HEKEL

THE MYSTERY OF THE HEKEL The TEMPLE DOORS 

Hekal: a palace, temple; strongs 1965

Hebrew:  יכַלה

Transliteration: hekal

Phonetic Spelling: (hay-kal’)

The Temple was large, the figures in the picture below give some perspective.

Deleth –

‘door, page (of a book) that which hangs’, pathway to enter.

Something hanging

The word deleth (Strong’s 1817) means ‘the leaf’ of a door, i.e., that which hangs or swings (on hinges or a post) and can be opened or shut. It derives from the root verb, dâlâh (Strong’s #1802) which means ‘to hang down’ and includes the idea of letting down to draw out, as with water from a well.

In the centuries following the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem (70 C.E.),the Jewish people began writing two versions of Jewish thought, religious history and commentary. One was written in Palestine and became known as the Jerusalem Talmud.

The other was written in Babylon and was known as the Babylonian Talmud.

Jesus died in 30 A.D. or 30 C.E. (Common Era)

In the following 40 years after his death and prior to the destruction of the temple, something very strange happened in Jerusalem. It is found recorded in both the documents referred to above.
In the Jerusalem Talmud:

“Forty years before the destruction of the Temple,…. they would close the gates of the Temple by night and get up in the morning and find them wide open” (Jacob Neusner, The Yerushalmi, p.156-157). [the Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E.] 

A similar passage in the Babylonian Talmud states:

“Our rabbis taught: During the last forty years before the destruction of the Temple …. the doors of the Hekel [Temple] would open by themselves” (Soncino version, Yoma 39b). 

What are these passages talking about?

Since both Talmuds’ recount the same information, this indicates that the knowledge of these events was accepted by the widespread Jewish community.

Something else concerning this historical mystery beginning in in 30 A.D. was recorded in the Talmud:

“Said Rabban Yohanan Ben Zakkai to the Temple, ‘O Temple, why do you frighten us? We know that you will end up destroyed. For it has been said, ‘Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars’ ” (Zechariah 11:1)’ (Sota 6:3).

The door in front (dark brown) is the Nicanor Gate, the Gold doors behind lead into the Holy Place.

The doors of the heikhal (the Holy Place of the Temple) opened of their own accord, until Rabbi Yochanon ben Zakkai rebuked them.

He said to it [the Temple]:

‘O heikhal, heikhal, why do you alarm yourself? I know full well that you are destined to be destroyed, for Zechariah ben Iddo has already prophesied concerning you ‘Open thy doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may devour the cedars’ (Zech. 11:1).’ 

-Talmud Bavli, Yoma 39b

 

There would seem to be only one possible explanation for this unusual phenomena:

Because Jesus the Messiah/Yeshua ha’Mashiyach was the perfect sin sacrifice who died in 30 A.D!

The very massive doors of the Temple opened on their own accord and normally it took the strength of many men to open and close them.

Since the Talmudic reference is 40 years before the destruction of the Second Temple. The Second Temple was destroyed in 70 C.E. The date of this amazing event was 30 C.E. which is the exact year that Yeshua (Jesus of Nazareth) was sacrificed in Jerusalem.

There is also a secular Jewish source that indicates the doors also opened on their own accord. 

Flavius Josephus was employed to write an historical account of the Jews for the Romans who ruled at the time.

With respect to Herod’s temple, Faber van der Meulen rightly notes that Josephus mentions but a single veil (katapevtasma; J.W. 5.5.5 §219) before a set of doors which serve as the “gate opening into the building” and entrance to the holy of holies:

. . . it had golden doors fifty-five cubits high and sixteen broad. Before these hung a veil (katapevtasma) of equal length, of Babylonian tapestry (Babul∫nioÍ poikilto;Í), with embroidery of blue and fine linen, of scarlet also and purple, wrought with marvelous skill. Nor was this mixture of materials without its mystic meaning: it typified the universe. For the scarlet seemed emblematical of fire, the fine linen of the earth, the blue of the air, and the purple of the sea; the comparison in two cases being suggested by their colour, and in that of the fine linen and purple by their origin, as the one is produced by the earth and the other by the sea. On this tapestry was portrayed a panorama of the heavens,8 the signs of the Zodiac excepted. . . . The innermost recess measured twenty cubits, and was screened in like manner from the outer portion by a veil (kata- petavsmati). In this stood nothing whatever: unapproachable, inviolable, invisible to all, it was called the Holy of Holies. (J.W. 5.5.4 §211–5.5 §219 LCL)9

“At the same festival (Passover)… the Eastern gate of the inner court of the Temple, which was of brass, and vastly heavy, and had been with difficulty shut by twenty men,and rested upon a base armered with iron, and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor, which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to be opened of it’s own accord about the sixth hour of the night.”

-Josephus; The Wars of the Jews 6.5.3

With each door being 55 cubits in height and 16 in width (J.W. 5.5.4 §211), the veil was of equal size. Some have presumed Josephus’s doors here are the same as those in J.W. 5.5.4 §202. These, he says, were 30 by 15 cubits, though elsewhere they were 60 high by 20 broad and required 200 men to close them every day (Ap. 2.1.9 §119). Josephus also speaks of doors “covered with variegated veils” (ejmpetavsmata; Ant. 15.11.3 §394; cf. Ant. 12.5.4 §250),10 though it does not seem entirely clear that in the latter reference he is speaking of the holy of holies.

 ~

Why did this happen? What is the significance?

The purpose and heart of the Law

The Tabernacle of Ancient Israel was a sanctuary which was given in a vision to Moses as a pattern and constructed by the children of Israel. God’s promise was that He would dwell within the Holy of Holies above the Mercy Seat of the Ark of the Covenant. After they reached the promised land and built the permanent Temples in Jerusalem His Glory was present in both.  

At least 50 chapters (13-Ex, 18-Lev, 13-Num, 2-Deut, 4 -Heb) in Scripture speak in figurative language concerning the tabernacle. Sadly, in many Bible studies this subject is overlooked and considered insignificant.

God Himself thought so much of the importance of the type, as shown by the tearing of the veil:

Matt 27:50-51 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split,

If we don’t understand the meaning in Scripture of holy of holies and the veil we miss out on extremely significant information concerning exactly what Christ’s death meant to sinful mankind.

See https://www.minimannamoments.com/mysteries-and-miracles/

for more detail on the tearing of the veil.

The Tabernacle is a Type of Messiah Jesus:

As, “all Scripture is given by inspiration (God-breathed) of God…” The Bible doesn’t just contain the Word of God, or merely point to religious experience, this is the Word of God.

No wonder that each and every detail and Word about the tabernacle has spiritual significance, there is great symbolism and typology found in the structure of the mishkan/tabernacle and temple.

Everything was a finger pointing to the Messiah.

The tabernacle/temple, as a type, designed specifically and in detail by God, would point to the character and aspects of the ministry of Jesus The Messiah.

The more we become familiar with the tabernacle/temple, so we will become more familiar with Jesus/Yeshua and all that He means to us.

Heb 10:20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh,

Col 2:17 which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.

Jn 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

 It is a Representation of the True Tabernacle in Heaven:

The Lord wants us to be aware that things are really happening in the heavenly dimension. There is a real tabernacle in the heavenlies and Messiah really appeared before the throne of heaven as the Lamb of God (Rev 5).

Heb 9:11 But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.

The Presence Within the Holy of Holies Dwells Within the Believer in Jesus:

Jesus said I am the sanctuary/temple (Mishkan) of God. When the glory (Heb. Sh’chinah) would come down like a tornado or funnel right through the roof of the Holy of Holies and the Presence would manifest on the mercy seat between the cherubim after the blood was sprinkled, that was the mishkan.

That Presence was what Jesus said dwelt within Him and Paul said, “Know ye not that you are the sanctuary/temple (Mishkan) of God?”

We, as the body of Messiah, have the same Presence dwelling within us.

God doesn’t dwell in buildings now but within His people.

1 Cor 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is the sanctuary /temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?

‘The Entrance Gate’

When a Israelite approached the tabernacle the found that a wall of white linen around the entire tabernacle area formed a barrier against him all the way around for 300 cubits (450 feet) except one stretch of 20 cubits (30 feet) that was different.

(For a modern reference 20 cubits = 30 feet/10yards or 9.144 meters.)

That section was known as The Entrance Gate.

It clearly marked out the ONE WAY by which a sinner could gain access to the court of God’s house.

 Once an Israelite entered the gate into the outer court with his sacrifice he was standing on “holy ground”. There was a curtain or screen made of richly woven material:

Ex 27:16 “For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen, made by a weaver. It shall have four pillars and four sockets.

This was the ONE AND ONLY WAY by which men and women could draw near to God. The single entrance to the entire tabernacle.

There was no other way in.

Whether he is a priest going to carry out his duties or a repentant sinner seeking forgiveness, a man had to enter by that one way.

Any Israelite approaching the Tabernacle leading his sacrifice and desiring atonement knew that there was no way to reach the bronze altar but through the gate that faced east.

Num. 2:3 ‘On the east side, toward the rising of the sun, those of the standard of the forces with Judah shall camp according to their armies;’

The Gate was always open, never barred, with no one to forbid a person who wanted to worship God.

However one must make a personal decision to enter if he is to receive.

There is an amazing passage in Zechariah 12:10 which continues to speak about the pierced Messiah:

Zechariah 13:7 reads, “Awake , O sword against my shepherd…”

In other words, the whole section is about the death of the Messiah, and at the same time, it is all linked to the opening of the doors to the Temple–thirty pieces of silver, the Shepherd who is pierced and the sword that comes against Him.

  The rabbis believed that if the doors of the Temple would open by themselves, as by God, this whole prophecy would be fulfilled. Meaning, there is a whole new covenant to be fulfilled–one whose inauguration is linked to the opening of the Temple Doors in this way would mean Messiah has come!

~

A Type of Christ

Jesus/Yeshua revealed Himself as the only entrance to God.

The eastern gate pointed to Him.

Every other possible way has been barred by the righteousness of God

but because of the blood of Jesus the Messiah we have a way of approach.

The book of Revelation says, in effect:

‘I  have opened the doors. Nobody can shut it.’

Jesus/Yeshua Has opened the Gate for us to enter in.

Those gates that miraculously would not stay shut after His death and resurrection, indicate clearly that He Has Made A Way.

A Way that is to remain open for whosoever will!

For ‘More Manna’ – ‘A Deeper Revelation Of The Hekel Mystery’ will be posted soon at

https://minimannamoments.wordpress.com/

Mysteries and Miracles

One mystery miracle that is sometimes overlooked is:

The Rending or Tearing of the Temple Veil.

Recorded in three places in the gospels of Matt 27:51,

“And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He gave up His Spirit.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

The earth shook and the rocks split.

The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life” (Matt.27:50-52 NIV). 

Luke 23:45 and Mark 15:38 – “Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.  So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!”

In the Temple, The Holy of Holies is also called the Most Holy Place, inner sanctuary, oracle, and inner house and represented the dwelling place of God here on Earth, or the Throne of God.

It was only to be entered once a year, on the Day of Atonement, and only by the High Priest.

In Solomon’s Temple, the Holy of Holies was 20 cubits long, 20 cubits wide, and 20 cubits high.

(Note: A cubit is approx. 18 inches, so the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s Temple would have been about 30 feet by 30 feet by 30 feet in today’s unit of measurement.) The height of a 6ft man = 4 cubits.

The temple complex was huge and to understand the scale of it, makes the torn veil of greater significance. To get a better idea compare the size of the people.

Entrance into the Holy of Holies.

To enter into the Holy of Holies in Solomon’s Temple, the High Priest had to pass through a curtain, or veil (2 Chr. 3:14), gold chains (1 Kgs. 6:21), and two doors (1 Kgs. 6:31).

The veil separated the Holy Place or Temple, where the High Priest made the sacrifice and the Holy of Holies or Most Holy Place.

The sacred veil or curtain, called the peroketh, represented an inter-dimensional veil that shielded the Unseen, Unfathomable Lord of hosts, from the rest of His creation. 

The curtain in Solomon’s Temple is in 2 Chronicles 3:14: it was described as a “veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work and worked cherubim on it” which separated the Holy of Holies, the Kodesh Hakadashim, from the rest of the Temple.

This is very similar to the description of the veil leading into the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle in the Wilderness.

Exodus 26:31 “And thou shalt make a vail [of] blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work: with cherubims shall it be made:”

The veil was then hung on four pillars like the

 Throne of God which rested on the four cherubim in heaven.

The Curtain of Separation

History seems to indicate that there were two curtains in Herod’s Temple: One at the huge gated entry into the Temple and the other separating the Holy of Holies and the main sanctuary.

God Himself thought so much of the importance of the type, as shown by the tearing of the veil:

Matt 27:50-51 “And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split.”

If we don’t understand the meaning in Scripture of the Holy of Holies and the veil, we miss out on extremely significant information concerning exactly what Messiah’s death meant to sinful mankind.

To comprehend why it was a miracle we need to understand that the curtain separated the Holy Place from everyone but the High Priest.

The Holy Place was where the presence of God dwelled on the mercy seat.

The curtain was a constant reminder to the Israelites that their access to God depended on another physical human, and that this access was only granted through the physical works of the sacrificial system. 

Exodus 26:31 – “You shall make a veil woven of blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen.  It shall be woven with an artistic design of cherubim.

You shall hang it upon the four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold.  Their hooks shall be gold, upon four sockets of silver.  And you shall hang the veil from the clasps.” 

At the Moses tabernacle replica the high priest worships just outside of the Holy of Holies.

“Then you shall bring the ark of the Testimony in there, behind the veil.  The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place the Most Holy.  You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the Testimony in the Most Holy.”

According to Israelite Hebrew teachers /rabbinic sources, the Sacred Veil that was made for the Temple of Solomon was actually made by layering multiple sheets of colored linen together.  The curtains overall thickness was said to be over three feet.  The highest and most Holy of days in the life of a Israelite/Hebrew, is the Day of Atonement, on this day, the Lord of hosts left His throne of justice and moved to the seat of mercy to meet with the Tzaddik of Israel, the High Priest as he entered the Most Holy Place.

One can only imagine the High Priest blindly navigating through the maze of thirty layers of linen sheets, together with the censor smoking incense in one hand and the blood of the ram in the bowl in the other hand.

As his world became darker and darker, he soon found himself standing in the presence of the Lord in complete darkness.

Without any sensory sight to help him, standing in the presence of the Lord would have been very disorientating.  He had to lean on faith and trust explicitly on the Lord to shield and protect him, for to touch the ark of the Lord would mean instant death. Then as the Lord promised the High Priest, “I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat”.

In the temple of Herod, (in Jesus’ day), the massive temple veil(s) were 60 feet long, 30 feet wide with multiple woven layers the thickness of a man’s hand (approx. 4”).

(See account of Historian Josephus at the end.)**

These curtains/veils were not the flimsy material we have as window dressings today.  

It was woven in 72 squares and was so heavy that over 300 priests were needed to move or change the squares.

The curtain itself was hung in the Temple on a huge stone lintel. It was over thirty feet long and estimated to weigh about thirty tons (60,000 pounds).

In a Letter to Hedibia, the early church father, Jerome, wrote that the during the rending of the temple Veil, the lintel that held the Veil was splintered, broke up and fell to the ground.

The lintel was an enormous stone, being at least 30 feet long and weighing some 30 tons!

Though this event was in the midst of a great earthquake, the portents to the High Priest and the Sanhedrin occurring at the moment of the death of Jesus/Yeshua were ominous.  Even with the collapse of the lintel, the huge curtain would have fallen to the ground, but the historical testimony states that “the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom”. (Matthew 27:51)

The unseen Hand of the Almighty One sent a message to Caiphas, Ananias and all the other temple rulers.

The curtain being torn from top to bottom was a foreboding omen, indicating that God’s hand had torn it in two and that His presence was leaving that Holy place.

The judgments of God, as portrayed over the preceding three hours as Jesus hung on the cross, would be visited upon His own temple, His own people, and upon the evil followers of the temple rulers.

The rending of the veil is recorded in the gospels as if it were observed from the site of the execution of Jesus.  It seems the only place in the vicinity of the Temple of Herod, that had a visual view of the Eastern Gate looking down upon the temple, with a view of the veil in front of the Holy of Holiest, was on the western slopes of the Mount of Olives near the Miphkad Altar, where the ashes of the red heifer were burnt.

Consistent with the Gospel accounts of the death of Jesus and the independent testimonies of the Hebrew Talmud, Josephus, Tactitus, and early ante-Nicean fathers of the Christian Church, the final moments of the life of Jesus were surrounded with cataclysmic events and fateful portents.  These portents shadowed the esteemed high priest’s family, the House of Ananias and the temple hierarchy all the way to the final destruction of that glorious temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE. 

It is also significant how the natural world was rent and torn, while the agony of the Suffering Servant was demonstrated on that cross before the Jewish people.  We must understand again, that the death of Jesus was not a human event but a cosmic event.  The Book of Job gives us a heavenly scene where in the Council of heaven the ‘sons of God’ met and deliberate.  It was here in this council that Satan went to represent this earth.  How?  There in the Garden, when Adam chose to disobey God, Satan wrestled away from ‘this’ son of God his dominion as ruler of this planet and his role to sit in that cosmic council in heaven.  There Satan known as ‘HaSatan’, which translated means ‘the Accuser’, has been representing this planet before the throne of God.

It was not just the followers of Jesus, the rulers of the temple and the Roman soldiers that watched the unfolding of this great “Drama of the Ages”. The other dimensional hosts in the universe; the sons of God and the angelic hosts all watched with bated breath and horror as the Son of God gave up His life. This was evident in the darkness of those hours.

Here, was THE moment of time, when Jesus/Yeshua cried out again with a loud voice, “It is Finished and bowing His head, He gave up His spirit” (John 19: 30) or as Luke testified, “Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.” (Luke 23:46) and “yielded up His spirit”.  (Luke 27:50)

“It records the rending of the Temple-Veil in two from the top downward to the bottom; as the second, the quaking of the earth, the rending of the rocks and the opening of the graves . . . while the rending of the Veil is recorded first, as being the most significant token to Israel, it may have been connected with the earthquake, although this alone might scarcely account for the tearing of so heavy a Veil from the top to the bottom.” 

The only place where a Passover (Pesach) lamb could be killed was in 
Jerusalem (Yerushalayim).

Mount Moriah, the exact same place where Abraham and Isaac had been willing to offer his life.

On the fourteenth of Nisan, at the third hour of the day (9:00
a.m.), the high priest (Cohen
 HaGadol) took the lamb and ascended the altar so he could tie the lamb 
in place on the altar. Exactly the same time on that day, Yeshua was tied
 to the tree on Mount Moriah (Mark 15:25).

The time of the evening 
sacrifice was (3:00 p.m.) for Passover (Exodus [Shemot] 12:6), the high 
priest (Cohen HaGadol) ascended the altar, cut the throat of the lamb
 with a knife, and said the words, “It is finished.”

(These are the
 exact words said after giving a peace offering to G-d.)

At this same 
time, Jesus/Yeshua died, saying these exact words as recorded in John (Yochanan) 19:30.
 Yeshua died at exactly 3:00 p.m. (Matthew [Mattityahu] 27:45-46,50). 

 

Roman time was calculated on 6 a.m. as the first hour of the day, as day breaks. Jesus/Yeshua died at the ninth hour, which is 3 p.m.

Between the evenings (Plural) is when the Passover lamb was killed.

This is a Jewish term. There are two evenings in the Jewish day. The first is the beginning of the suns waning, which is Noon. The second is the beginning of the darkness as the new day begins, avg. 6p.m. (Don’t think this strange, for in most of the western world the day begins at midnight, in the middle of the darkness.) Between the evenings as given in Exodus means 3 PM.


Picture Jesus’ loud and painful cry “it is finished” (Jn.19:30), as the Roman solder plunges a spear deep into His side and His life Blood drains to the ground.

At the same instant, the Temple veil tears apart as a powerful earthquake shakes Jerusalem.

Furthermore, picture the high priest who, having just condemned Jesus to death the night before, was splashing the blood of Passover lambs against the altar of God.

When Jesus cried out “it is finished” and the curtain tore, the relationship between God and humanity was altered forever. The tearing of the curtain of separation from top to bottom, forever opens the way for all humanity to eventually fellowship directly with God the Father. 

The significance that Jesus/Yeshua dies at the same moment that the lamb in the temple was killed cannot be over emphasized. It was God’s perfect timing, because it was at this point the earth quaked and the veil tore right where the High Priest was standing.

Their shock and astonishment was understandable.

   None of these events ‘just happened’, it was all part of God’s plan and His plan is still in motion.

The colors of the veil are very significant and are the same colors that are used in the garments of the High Priest.

Blue: We have learned about the significance of the color blue representing the Law of God.

Red: The color red represents the blood of Jesus Christ as our Passover sacrifice. It also represented the red ribbon of Rahab, which pointed to the inclusion of the Gentiles in salvation.

Purple: The color purple, which combines both blue and red, points us to the Royal Priesthood, which combines both the salvation given to us through the sacrifice of Jesus and our love of God shown through our obedience to the Law.

White: on the High Priest’s garments represents our clean garments as we prepare ourselves as the Bride of Christ and also the perfection of Jesus Christ.

Gold: To these four colors was added gold. In the Tabernacle in the Wilderness we see that the Ark of the Covenant located in the Holy of Holies was also made of gold. God’s presence was in the Ark and it was also the receptacle of the Holy Spirit. As the High Priest symbolizes the living Holy Holies/ Sanctuary, that we are today, the gold represents the indwelling of God’s Holy Spirit in us. Just as the gold was interwoven amongst all the other strands of material, so too Holy Spirit ties all the members of the Body of Messiah together.

Therefore, by passing through the four-colored veil, it was looking forward to our perfect High Priest, Jesus, Yeshua the Messiah.

The symbolism of the veil was, that it was there to exclude all mankind, UNTIL the sacrifice of Jesus as High Priest. Jesus the Messiah could enter once and for all with His own blood to provide access for us, so that Holy Spirit, as the tangible power of God, could dwell among men.)

When Jesus died and the veil in the Temple was torn in two it ensures that we all may boldly approach the Throne of God in prayer, through our High Priest, Jesus the Messiah (Heb. 4:14-16).

Consider the enormous significance of this monumental and historical event in the following references:

This is the moment in time that Jesus spoke of to the woman of Samaria when he foretold that the existing worship system would be abolished, and that those who wanted to worship God would no longer need to travel to a specific location to worship:

“The woman said to him, Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you say that in Jerusalem is the place where it is necessary to worship. Jesus said to her, Woman believe me that an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem . . .. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth” (Jn.4:19-23 Para.).

No longer would a physical man be required to offer animal sacrifices for sins. Any who truly worship the Father can now stand before him and present their own cause to him, knowing that he will hear and consider their prayer because of the sacrifice of Jesus the Christ.

With the tearing of the curtain, all who worship God, whether Jew or Gentile, have access to the throne of mercy by the one and final sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.

See Heb.4:15-16; 6:18-19; 9:1-15; 10:19-22.

“For through him we both have access by one spirit to the Father. Now therefore you are fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God” (Eph.2:18-19 KJV).

 

Historical References of interest:

** “Josephus reported that the veil was 4 inches thick, was renewed every year, and that horses tied to each side could not pull it apart.  It barred all but the High Priest from the presence of God, but when it was torn in two at the death of Jesus of Nazareth (see Mark 15:38), access to God was made available to all who come through him.”  (Even at face value, this is an enigmatic note, in that Exodus 26 describes the Tabernacle, and the veil that was torn in two was part of Herod’s Temple.  Ryrie’s representation of “the veil” certainly implies that the veil that Exodus describes is the veil that Josephus describes, which is to be identified with the veil that was torn in two.) before these doors there was a veil of equal largeness with the doors. It was a Babylonian curtain, embroidered with blue, and fine linen, and scarlet, and purple, and of a contexture that was truly wonderful. Nor was this mixture of colors without its mystical interpretation, but was a kind of image of the universe; for by the scarlet there seemed to be enigmatically signified fire, by the fine flax the earth, by the blue the air, and by the purple the sea; two of them having their colors the foundation of this resemblance; but the fine flax and the purple have their own origin for that foundation, the earth producing the one, and the sea the other. This curtain had also embroidered upon it all that was mystical in the heavens, excepting that of the [twelve] signs, representing living creatures. (Historian Josephus Wars of the Jews: Wars 5.5.4)

Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah.

The Veils before the Most Holy Place were 40 cubits (60 feet) long, and 20 (30 feet) wide, of the thickness of the palm of the hand, and wrought in 72 squares, which were joined together; and these Veils were so heavy, that, in the exaggerated language of the time, it needed 300 priests to manipulate each.  If the Veil was at all such as is described in the Talmud, it could not have been rent in twain by a mere earthquake or the fall of the lintel, although its composition in squares fastened together might explain, how the rent might be as described in the Gospel.

Maurice Henry Harris, Hebraic Literature (M. Walter Dunne, 1901).

Three hundred priests were told off [sic; the idea is that they were designated] to draw the veil (of the Temple) aside; for it is taught that Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel declared in the name of Rabbi Shimon the Sagan (or high priest’s substitute), that the thickness of the veil was a handbreadth. It was woven of seventy-two cords, and each cord consisted of twenty-four strands. It was forty cubits long and twenty wide. Eighty-two myriads of damsels worked at it, and two such veils were made every year. When it became soiled, it took three hundred priests to immerse and cleanse it.     Chullin (Harris, pp. 195-96)

The veil was one handbreadth thick and was woven on [a loom having] seventy-two rods, and over each rod were twenty-four threads.  Its length was forty cubits and its breadth twenty cubits; it was made by eighty-two young girls, and they used to make two in every year; and three hundred priests immersed it.

 

Even More Can Happen In And Around The Same Week

We know that..but before He was, here are some more pictures concluding the events surrounding that week…

John 18:10 Peter’s sword severed Malchus’ right ear, he was servant of a high priest.Jesus heals his ear.  vs. 56 The disciples all fled

vs.57 Then arrested and bound Jesus was taken to Annas, the father in law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. He was the one who said, it was profitable for one to die. 

John 11:49–51 All the high priests, scribes and elders were assembled and ready. This was all done at night.

59-68 They accused Him of blasphemy, spit in His face and hit Him.

69-75 Peter denies Him three times

chp. 27:1 Jesus was kept overnight in an underground dungeon

vs.2 They bound Him lead Him away to the Govenor Pontius Pilate .

vs.3 Judas repented and took 30 pieces of silver back to the chief priests and the elders

5 then he hanged himself.

6-10 They used the 30 pieces of silver to buy the Potters Field in which to bury strangers. Fulfilling Zechariah vs.11:13

v11. Jesus before the governor- v18 who tells them to choose between Jesus and Barabbas

19 – Pilate’s wife has a dream and tells her husband to have nothing to do with condemning Jesus.

The realm of darkness was watching while Pilate sent him to Herod and Herod sent Him back to Pilate.

John 18:28 From Caiaphas to the Praetorium, the governor’s headquarters.v. 29 back again to Pilate who would not condemn him and offers v.30 customary release of one prisoner on Passover and gives them the choice. V.40 they choose Barabbas.

19:1 Pilate instructs the scourging to take place. This was a Roman scourging of many strokes not limited to the Jewish restriction of 39 strokes. Which is why Isaiah prophesied that He was marred and disfigured, He was unrecognizable.‘Behold the man’

19:7 The reasoning for crucifixion according to the Jews was that in the Torah, Leviticus 24:16 says the person who blasphemed the name of the Lord is to be put to death.

Pilate wanted to release Him.  Vs. 13

Pilate moved Jesus outside and sat upon a judicial bench in a place called Lithostrato and in Hebrew is called Gab’ta and it was the sixth hour.

He was given over to the Roman soldiers to be crucified 19:16 and taken to Golgotha the place of the skull called in Hebrew ‘gulgolet’ 19:17

20-23 They choose Barabbas Angkor and to have Jesus crucified.

Vs. 24 Pilate washes his hands before the people saying that he is innocent of the blood of this just person..

Vs. 25 The people curse themselves by saying His blood be on us and on our children.

Matthew 27:28 the scarlet cloak was from the Roman soldiers, this was not His prayer shawl. They had removed that to scourge him.

Mark 15:17 says it was a purple cloak signifying royalty. They also placed a crown of thorns that they had purposely woven and a reed in his right hand.

26  Jesus was scourged and delivered to be crucified

27-31 With the crown of thorns on His head and a reed in His hand and mocked him spit on Him and hit Him on the head.

verse 30 They spit on Him (which even in today’s society spitting is considered an act of mocking and disrespect  towards the person or thing) as a sign of underlying rebellion, prideful and haughty, it showed a disdainful attitude and reflected poorly on those who did it.

In verse 31 and in Mark 15:20 the red cloak was removed and they dressed Him with His own garments giving Him back His prayer shawl.

The other gospels give further details on events.

Luke 23:26 Simon of Cyrene was compelled to help carry His cross. Mark 15:21 tells us he was the father of Alexander and Rufus.

they went to Golgotha the place of the skull

34 and offered Him vinegar to drink to take away the pain but He would not drink it.

35 They cast lots for His garments fulfilling Psalm 22:18 This was not the Scarlet Robe of Matthew 27:28, this tunic that was seamless woven from top throughout vs23 the tunic was possibly His prayer shawl, which in those days was a large poncho like garment. With a hole for the head and fringes on the corners as prophesied in Psalm 22:19

37 A sign was placed over His head on the cross the inscription read: Jesus of Nazareth the King of the Jewish people. It was written in Hebrew, Roman and Greek. Roman (the language later became known as Latin now we know it as Italian.) 19:19–22 Jesus gives His mother to John as his own vs 26

38-44 Two thieves with Him, tells one of them, ‘today you will be with Me in Paradise.’

23:32-43 Two evildoers verse 33 one on the right hand is a symbol of God’s salvation from Psalm 20:6 the left hand is a symbol of calamity and judgement … one for each. 

vs. 45 from the 6-9th hour there was darkness all over the land.

Mark 15:34 tells us that after three hours of darkness He cried out in Hebrew, azavtani is the correct spelling of the Hebrew word used in Psalm 22. The Greek text uses the Greek spelling of the Hebrew word which in English is s’bakhthani

Matthew 27:46 eli eli l’mah azavtani   eli eli l’mah sh’vaktani

My God my God why have you utterly forsaken me? He was quoting Psalm 27:2 and some thought He was calling for Elijah.

His side is pierced by a spear of a Roman soldier. 

50 Jesus yields up His spirit. He was suspended between Heaven and earth – symbolically the bridge – restoring the Way back to the Father. 

51 The veil in the middle of the Temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom and the earth did quake and the rocks split open.

The veil was torn which was impossible without some divine intervention. It could not have been done with human hands as it was so thick. It was significant because the Veil/curtain was placed between all the people and the presence of God. When Jesus died and became the high priest once for all, the relationship was restored between God and humanity the wall between us was broken down as symbolized by the curtain being torn. God’s presence was no longer contained and limited to the Ark of the covenant now once again His spirit and presence was able to go everywhere.

52 -53 and the graves were opened and many bodies of the saints which slept arose and then came out of the graves after His resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared unto many.  

57 Joseph of Arimathea goes to Pilate and asks for Jesus body

59-60 and John 19:39, Nicodemus comes to help and they wrap Him in a clean linen cloth, he brings 100lbs weight of myrrh and aloes which was only usually reserved for royalty

and place Him in the new tomb. Then roll the great stone over the door and left.

62 – 66 Chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate and asked them to put soldiers by the sepulcher to make sure the disciples didn’t steal away Jesus body and try to deceive the people that He was resurrected.

At some point before the women returned, the Power of the Father raised Him from the dead and quickened His mortal body.

28:1-8 when they return to the sepulcher and there was another great earthquake

the angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it.

The angel tells them He is not there He is risen as He said He would.

Vs 9. As they were going to tell the disciples, they meet Jesus and He tells them to go to galilee where He will be waiting for them.

He appeared to Mary Magdalene, in His resurrected human form, just after His resurrection and shortly after the two Marys entered the sepulcher (John 20:14-17).‘sir do you know where they have taken Him?’

At 9:00 a.m. At the exact time of the Morning Sacrifice in the Temple the Messiah  “waved” the omer before His Father in the Jerusalem Temple for the acceptance of the FIRST FRUITS.

 John 20:24–31 Thomas examines the nail prints in Jesus hands. 

Mark 16:12 Luke 24:13-35  He appeared to two of them as they walked to Emmaus.

Vs.14  & Luke 24:36 He appeared to the 11 as they sat eating.

Later that day (the First Day of the Week) He appeared to the eleven disciples while they were gathered together and “breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit'” (John 20:19, 22). (This was before Pentecost!)

15 says to Peter 3 times to ‘feed My sheep’.

He also told them to “go into ALL the world [of Israel] and preach the gospel to the whole creation” giving them the great commission (Mark 16:15). Going to the gentiles came later.

Jesus eats with them in John 21:1–13 and we are told of the miracle catch of 153 fish.

Jesus is on the seashore with a fire vs.9 cooking breakfast for them vs. 12 ‘come and dine’

Vs. 19 and Luke 24:50 He was received up into heaven.

Acts 1:2-11 He was seen by the apostles for over 40 days and told them to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the father.

 vs. 4  While waiting, they were counting the Omer until Pentecost/Shavuot 50 days after Passover/Pesach.

Next post will include some mysteries and miracles we don’t always hear about, which, without this post the next one would not make sense.

We are on a journey and everything is connected and has deeper meaning than just the surface events.

If this is your first time on MMM simply refer to earlier posts for the whole story https://www.minimannamoments.com/palm-sunday-nisan-the-appointed-time-of-the-lamb/ and please don’t leave this site without the certainty that you are forgiven.

You are greatly loved!

Remember…