Why was the Priest in the water? Conclusion of the Mystery …

Continued from previous post …conclusion of the Mystery …Why was the Priest by the river and what’s the 2000 year old connection to Abraham meeting a King?

Before tying all the threads together, brief reference to the origin and descendants of the Aaronic Priesthood because…

In Luke 1: 8-23, we see that God chose to speak to Zechariah through His angel Gabriel; while Zechariah is ministering before the Most High God in the Temple, burning incense at the Altar of Incense.

Does this reveal additional clues to our mystery?

Vs. 8 reminds us that he is ministering before God, which again is inferring, that Zechariah belongs to the seed of Zadok. Is this possible? Maybe…because for God’s angel to speak to Zechariah means positively that he had to be a son of Zadok, for God will not violate His own Holy Word. Ex. 30:7 tells us that the Altar of Incense was the position of the high priest Aaron, and of Aaron’s future sons who would serve before God as high priest.

So for angel Gabriel to also speak to Zechariah while he is ministering
 at the Altar of Incense, may mean that God was secretly telling us that Zechariah was the mystery high priest of the family of Zadok. 

Different priests had served at this position daily, twice a day, for 160 years, all done in direct violation of the Word of God, bringing corruption of the Temple priesthood.

King David had two high priests, one was Zadok who was descended from Eleazar, the son of Aaron.

(meaning Righteous, Justified).

King Solomon continued keeping Zadok on as his only high priest. That was around 1000 B.C. and from 1000 B.C. to 160 B.C., the Zadok’s were God’s high priests of the Aaronic priesthood and of the Temple in Jerusalem, when not in exile.

Around 160 B.C., in direct violation of the Word of God, the Macabees removed the Zadok’s from being the high priests of the Jerusalem Temple.

From 160 B.C. to the opening scene of the New Covenant, the Aaronic priesthood was corrupted.

How would God restore the Aaronic priesthood for the Messiah to be able to come to earth through the Zadok Priesthood?

(Some possibilities:)

God had foretold us in Jeremiah 33:17-19, that the Messiah would be coming from two families, that David would never lack a Man who would reign as King over the House of Israel, and also that Aaron would never lack a Man who would represent the Aaronic priesthood, making a Sacrifice 
that would be “for all days”, an Eternal Sacrifice. Jer. 33:18

Another of the last of the Old Covenant prophesies was that the Messiah would come from the family of the high priest. Yeshua of Zadok of Aaron; (not only from king David). See Zechariah 3:1-10 and 6:11-13

This righteous elderly Aaronic priest couple, (Zechariah and Elisheva/Elizabeth); who were well advanced in years and walked in all the ordinances
 of the LORD, (blameless) … (and who we now also know are possibly the mystery Zadok high priest family;) and with Zechariah’s wife Elisheva now 6 months pregnant; suddenly they invite an unwed pregnant young Miriam/Mary in, to stay/live with them, for the next 3 months!

This is really telling us a lot! What is their relationship to young Mary/Miriam? The only possible answer is they had to be Miriam’s closest blood-kin family! Miriam/Mary is not only from Judah but she is also from this family, she and Elizabeth are cousins!

When Miriam of Judah is told by the angel Gabriel that she will give birth to a Son who will be Great and who will be called the Son of the Highest, and that the LORD God will give Him the Throne of His father David (Luke 1:32), she is then told next by the angel Gabriel about her ‘karov’, (Hebrew), her close relative Elisheva, of the family of Aaron.

The virgin Miriam (Isaiah 7:14) had a father & a mother. Both Miriam and her mother had to come from this same family as Elisheva of Aaron. What was this relationship? Why has it been kept a secret? Many Scripture prophesies clearly reveal the Messiah would be coming from the family of Aaron [Zadok], besides coming from the family of David!

This great high priest family secret seems to be the key to understand this whole story, and the great mystery of our LORD, Jesus/Yeshua being the very fulfillment of the Aaronic priesthood.

If Zechariah was the mystery Zadok high priest, and as priesthood was passed by God from father to son, it would follow that Yochanan was to be the next mystery Zadok high priest.

But why did God specifically say that their child had to be called Yochanan?

Because God would keep His Word that He had made to Israel and given to the Zadok priests; (found in five places in Ezekiel, from chapter 40 to 48!)

What does all that mean?

Remember that around 160 B.C., the Zadok priest’s were removed as high priests of the Jerusalem Temple by the Macabees, and because of this, the Aaronic priesthood was then corrupted
 for the next 160 years, until the opening scene in the book of Luke in the New Covenant and why there is precise geneology recorded, as there had to be proof they were eligible for the position. Every ‘begat’ is significant! Proof of Bloodline was required.

 The answer to that mystery is that, the name of the last Zadok high priest of the Jerusalem Temple, just before the Macabees removed the Zadok priests, was Yochanan/John!

God was making sure that this son who would be born to Elisheva and to Zadok high priest Zechariah, would be called Yochanan; the name of the last Zadok high priest, around 160 B.C. [Art Scroll Publications, Yoma Edition, Volume 9, Section: ‘Kohanim Gedolim in 1st and 2nd Temples!]A closer look at the name Melchi-zedek

Malki-tsedeq: From melek and tsedeq;

“my king is right,” an early king of Salem Palestine/Israel

מַלְכִּיצֶֿ֫דֶק  proper name, masculine; king of Salem שָׁלֵם 

Strong’s Hebrew 4442

Original Word: מַלְכִּי־צֶ֫דֶק

Transliteration: Malki-tsedeq

Phonetic Spelling: (mal-kee-tseh’-dek)

Short Definition: Melchi-zedek

 מַלְכִּי   Malki

־צֶ֫דֶק     tsedeq

מלך The noun מלך (melek) is usually translated as king  (מלכי, meaning kings of)              

The verb מלך (malak), to be or become king.

In the Greek New Testament the name Melchi-zedek is spelled Μελχισεδεκ (Melchi-sedek).

The use of a hyphen in a name is quite unusual, and although Melchi-zedek seems a personal name, it looks more like a title. It consists of two elements, the first one taken from the noun מלך (melek), meaning king:

Note that theTorah includes rules and restrictions specifically for the king, which in itself is highly unusual if not wholly without precedent in the old world. A king had to be chosen by Adonai and not by the people. (Deuteronomy 17:15).

The one and only thing the King of Israel was supposed to do was to create a copy of the Law/Torah, with his own hands, and meditate on his copy all the days of his life. (17:18-19).

צדק The verb צדק (sadeq) means to be just or righteous. HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament confidently assures that: “this root basically connotes conformity to an ethical or moral standard,” also connotes synchronicity with the natural laws by which creation operates and by which mankind functions most fully and most satisfactorily for all parties involved (humans, animals, plants and the Creator.

The individual paleo hebrew letters have meanings:

Melchizedek, the King of Salem and Priest of El Elyon  (Genesis 14:18). He has a small but far stretching role in the War of Four against Five Kings. (In the aftermath of which Abraham’s nephew Lot is abducted by the survivors of that war and subsequently freed by Abraham and his coalition.)

So our Messiah as a priest/king in the Order of Melchizedek has dual offices or authority.

David had written that the Messiah would be both a king and a priest just like Melchizedek had been.

From Genesis 14:18 we learn that Melchi-zedek, whose name means King of Righteousness, was both a priest of the Most High God and the King of Salem, (from Shalom = Peace), a Jebusite city that later became known as Jerusalem.  When David conquered the Jebusites he made Jerusalem the capital of Israel, and purchased the land on nearby Mount Moriah where Abraham had sacrificed Isaac several hundred years earlier for the Temple location.

Click links for more on Mount Moriah

https://www.minimannamoments.com/what-lies-beneath-ancient-urusalima/ 

https://www.minimannamoments.com/i-will-put-my-name-here/

Never since the founding of Israel had one man been both a king and a priest.

It was forbidden.

Kings came from the tribe of Judah, while priests were descended from Levi. 

Some prophets were also priests, (e.g. Ezekiel and Zechariah), and David was a king and a prophet; 

 however, no one was ever both a king and a priest in Israel.

Furthermore, prophecies in Ezekiel 21:25-27 and  Zechariah 6:9-13 tell us the two offices will eventually be united when Messiah comes and that He will be both a king and a priest.   And of course in the Book of Hebrews Jesus is called our King (Heb. 1:8) and Our High Priest (Heb. 4:14).  This is possible because Jesus is not a priest in the Levitical sense but in the higher order of Melchizedek.  All of Hebrews 7 is devoted to this.

In Exodus 19:6 Israel is called a kingdom of priests but in 1 Peter 2:9 we read, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

He was speaking to the Church, calling us a royal priesthood.   Only kings are considered royalty.

And in Revelation 1:5-6 it’s even clearer. And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, and hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. (KJV)

Some of the modern translations prefer the word kingdom over kings in the passage above, and it’s true, the Greek word there can be translated either way. They try to compare the Revelation passage with Exodus 19:6 to bolster their replacement theology bias, making the Church look like Israel. But to most conservative scholars it’s clear that both the context and the grammatical structure of the passage require that the Greek word be translated kings. (The same is true in Revelation 5:10 where the same phrase is repeated.)

Kings Of What?

The Bible doesn’t have a specific answer for this, but in Ephesians 2:6-7 Paul wrote,  “And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” 

The “coming ages” alludes to the time of the Millennium and beyond where we’ll serve as living examples of the incomparable riches of God’s grace, seated with our King and High Priest on His throne.

First, ‘Lord’, is a title one uses in addressing a superior, and only two were superior to the King. One was God the Father, represented by LORD and the other was God the Son, called Lord.  In effect Jesus reminded the Pharisees that David would have referred to a merely human descendant as his son, not as his Lord.

And second, in Hebrew the “word” translated LORD is YHWH, the four initials of the unpronounceable name of God, and used only of Him, while the one translated Lord is a different word, Adonai.

Melchizadek from king and zedek meaning righteousness or the right use of consciousness!

He was born in Salem, in Canaan, which later became Jerusalem. In an era of paganism and idolatry, Melchizedek clung to God Most High and served him faithfully.

Melchizedek worshiped God Most High, the one true God.

Understanding Jesus’ status as our high priest is a key point in Hebrews.

Just as Melchizedek was not born into the Levitical priesthood but was appointed by God, so Jesus was named our eternal high priest, interceding with God the Father on our behalf.

Hebrews 5:8-10 says: “Son though he was, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.”

He was the great high priest who lived at the time of Abraham.

His name means king of righteousness.

Lived 2000 years before Jesus.

He was a man of faith and magnified his holy office.

As a child he stopped the mouths of lions and quenched the violence of fire.

He ordained a high priest after the order of the covenant which God made with Enoch. Gen. 14:28.

He was placed in charge of the Lord’s kingdom as the keeper of the storehouse of God and who God had appointed to receive tithes for the poor.

Abraham gave tithes to him and he gave Abraham the Melchizadek priesthood.

The Melchizadek priesthood was named after him.

Melchizedek gives Abraham bread and wine and blesses him, and Abraham gives Melchizedek a tenth of the goods that he retrieved from the looters.

This action gave rise to the law of tithing (via Genesis 28:22, via Leviticus 27:30 to Deuteronomy 14:22-29; also see Hebrews 7:1-10).

The Order of Melchizedek Is Seen in David and His Seed. 

Beginning with 2 Samuel 8:17 until Ezek. 48:11, we see 52 references in the Old Testament (TaNaKh)_ (to the Zadok (Tzadowq) priesthood. As Strong’s Concordance explains they were:

#6659 Tsadowq tsaw-doke’ from 6663; just; Tsadok, the name of eight or nine Israelites:–Zadok.

The Brown’s Driver-Brigg’s Lexicon gives a brief history of the Zadok (Tzadowq) priesthood: #H6659 Zadok = “righteous.”

The high priest, son of Ahitub of the house of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, and 11th in descent from Aaron; joined David after Saul’s death and supported him against Absalom and Adonijah; anointed Solomon as king a priest, son of Meraioth, father of Meshullam of the house of Ahitub; apparently a nephew of father of Jerusha, the wife of king Uzziah and mother of king Jotham of Judah son of Baana and repairer of the wall of Jerusalem in the time of Nehemiah son of Immer and repairer of the wall of Jerusalem in the time of Nehemiah. A leader of the people in the time of Nehemiah; a scribe appointed by Nehemiah as one of the treasurers over the storehouse; a valiant warrior of the tribe of Benjamin who joined David at Hebron. 

 

The Zadok /Tzadowq priesthood were a “type and shadow,” a precursor to the final resurrected ones who will be part of the priesthood of Messiah in his Millennial Reign. (Rev. 1:6; 5:10). 

So why does YaHuWaH say to David in Psalm 110:4 “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek?”

King David was from the Tribe of Judah, and the Messiah was prophesied to come through his “seed.”

Miryam, the earthly mother of Jesus/Yeshua was from the Tribe of Yahuwdah (Judah) and so was His earthly father, Yahuwceph (Joseph).

Even though Jesus/Yeshua was conceived by the Holy Spirit/Ruwach ha’Qodesh, His physical body was human, of the seed (lineage) of King David.

Israel/Yisra’el has not had an earthly king since the Roman Siege in 70 C.E., Messiah is the one who will carry on the throne of David as prophesied:

1 Kings/ Melakiym 8:25 Therefore now, YHWH Elohiym of Yisra’el, keep with your servant Dawiyd (David) my father that you promised him, saying, There shall not fail you a man in my sight to sit on the throne of Yisra’el; so that your children take heed to their way, that they walk before me as you have walked before me.

1 Kings/ Melakiym 9:5 Then I will establish the throne of your kingdom upon Yisra’el forever, as I promised to David (Dawiyd) your father, saying, There shall not fail you a man upon the throne of Yisra’el.

If there would not fail to be a man on the throne of King David’s lineage, then why is there not an earthly king today in Jerusalem? Where is the throne of King David today? 

Matthew/Mattithyahuw 26:64 Jesus/Yeshua said unto him, You have said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

Mark/Marqos14:62 And Jesus/Yeshua said, I AM: and you shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.

Hebrews/ Ibriym 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:

1Peter/Keefa 3:22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of Elohiym; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.

Revelation/Chazown 5:5 And one of the elders said unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Yahuwdah (Judah), the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

6 And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of Elohiym sent forth into all the earth.

It is important now to note the difference between the high priest “Melchizedek,” who is referred to as an individual, and those priests who are “after the order of Melchizedek.”

Hebrews/Ibriym 7:7 For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high Elohiym, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;

2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;

3 Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of Elohiym; abides a priest continually.

4 Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils

We can see from the above verses, that Melchizedek is one single individual, but he does have an “order” of priests who will follow in his foot-steps.

Who are they who belong to this order of priests?

The next few verses were addressed to those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes (Rev. 14:4) who also have the name of the Father, (Emet/Truth), written in their foreheads.

When those who are a part of the remnant of the “seed of the woman” (mother from above Jerusalem), are caught up to meet YaHuWaH in the air (1Thess. 4:17), they will be changed into incorruption or immortality (1 Cor. 15:42-53). This it seems is when they will serve in the priesthood of Melchizedek during the Millennial Reign of Messiah here on earth (Rev. 20:4):

1st Keefa (Peter) 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should shew forth the praises of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;

Chazown (Revelation) 1:6 And has made us kings and priests unto Elohiym and his Father; to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 

Chazown (Revelation) 5:10 ‘And has made us unto our Elohiym kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.’

This has everything to do with us because it is written. ‘you are a chosen people a royal priesthood a holy nation a people for his own possession.’

So if we belong to God, we are a priest, we are one of His cohanim and every priest and holy vessel must be separated from everything else, set apart to God.

Under the renewed covenant, He separates His priests by other means, by what ever it takes to separate them from everything else and bring them to Himself. He will use everything to bring you to Himself, to separate you from the rest of this world, the rejection of man, disappointment, heartbreak, crisis, hurt, sorrow, disillusionment, lack of fulfillment, discontentment, trouble, abandonment and failure. Whatever it takes to separate His priest from the world and bring them to Himself.

That which is separated to God is Holy.

Ex.28:1–2; Ez.44:16; 2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Peter 2:9

The key people involved in delivering Messiah to His death where the Sanhedrin.Led by the high priest including the chief priests of the temple, the sons of Aaron the same ones ordained by God to offer up the sacrifices.

Why were they so obsessed with Messiah?

They were the priests and He was the lamb.The sacrifice.

So, (by the Law), they where the ones to initiate His death.

That was their ministry and calling.

Only they could deliver the Lamb of God to His death.

That’s why they conspired and arrested Him and handed Him over to the Romans to be crucified. It was their ministry to offer up the sacrifice. So they killed Him because they were the priests and He was the sacrifice. Although they did not know it! However they were the ones ordained by the Lord to fulfill His Plan. 

The  Cohanim’s Confession

When the priest performed the Semikah, which was the placing of the sins of the people on to the sacrifice, they also had to confess their own sins over it. Leviticus 16:21.

They had to do both, for if they did not, the sacrifice could not die for those sins. When Messiah was taken by the priests from the garden of Gethsemane the night before His death, the priests laid hands on Him and there is a record of them striking Him and hitting Him on the face and head, (Matt 26:67; Mk. 10:34; Lk. 22:63 Jn. 18:22), however there was no confession of sin. Mark 14:63–64 ‘at that Caiaphas tore his clothes and said, ‘he has spoken blasphemy,’ to which those in the council agreed that he was guilty and deserving of death.’

They condemned Him to death on FALSE charges.

The priest confessed the sins upon the sacrifice in the Semikah but the fact is that the sacrifice was not guilty of those sins.

This sacrifice could only die for those sins if it wasn’t guilty of them.

It had to be innocent and sinless without blemish spot or wrinkle. For the Semikah to be performed on the sacrifice of Messiah, the High Priest had to speak over Him sins that He was not guilty of.

Caiphas had accused Him of the sin of blasphemy speaking it over Him.

However the sin that is spoken upon the sacrifice is not the actual sin of the sacrifice but it is the sin of those who speak it.

The blasphemy He was accused of was not Messiah’s sin, it was the sin of the high priest and the priesthood.

They had in fact judged God of blasphemy against himself, God; and to judge God of blasphemy, is itself a blasphemy!

So in fact the priests were confessing their own sin! However, it wasn’t just their sin, because the priest represented Israel; and Israel in turn represented the rest of the world.

In the Semikah of the sacrifice for humanity going back to the very first sin; and the genesis of all sins, were the words that came straight from the devils mouth, ‘you shall be as God!’ which was blasphemy. Genesis 3:5

To follow the logical progression, the sin was confessed over the sacrifice by the High Priest, and the priests touched His head with their hands and by this the Semikah for the sins of man was performed.

Furthermore they confessed our sins upon Him also, for the Scriptures tell us 2 Corinthians 5:21, ‘He made Him who knew no sin to become sin for us.. That we might become the righteousness of God.

Beyond the Sanhedrin it was the high priest who alone was ordained to offer up the most holy sacrifice, the atonement by which the nation sins were forgiven. The one who that presided over the Sanhedrin and was more than anyone else responsible for delivering Messiah to His death, was none other than the high priest. 

His intention was murder yet he was the one appointed in the Law to offer up the sacrifice. Messiah was the sacrifice, so it was the high priest who had to offer Him up. Even though their actions and motives were corrupt, God used it to fulfill His purposes through it came salvation for every man who will accept Jesus’s sacrifice.

As He died He found life.

As He surrendered all, He has prevailed over all and overcome the world, so too if we walk in the footsteps of the Lamb we will prevail and overcome the world.

But now we have a renewed covenant, which obviously means there is a new priesthood. So as the covenant changes the priesthood has changed. Was there any passing of the torch so to speak between the old and the new? Was there a recognition or transference; was there a blessing from the priesthood of Aaron to the priesthood of Messiah?

And if so how could it have happened?

Caiaphas The high priest at the time and most of the priesthood was corrupt and plotting Messiahs death. There were some exceptions for example Nicodemus.However what if there was someone more of a high priest than Caiaphas? What if there was someone who represented the priesthood more than any other individual at the time?

Yeshua as the perfect sacrifice, is also from Aaron from the virgin Mary/Miriam. Miriam carried genetically the perfect fulfillment of two family lines, Aaron and David, which God had chosen, specifically stated in Jeremiah 33:24.

But we also find other prophesies revealing that the Messiah would be coming from the high priest family of Yeshua of the family of Zadok.

For the Old Testament prophesies about the Messiah indicated that He, the Branch, would not only come from the family of Aaron (Jeremiah 33: 18, 21, 24), but even more precisely from the high priest family of Yeshua of the seed of Zadok of Aaron. Zech 3:8 and 6:11-13.

 Yeshua is also from Aaron: for the virgin Miriam and Elisheva/Elizabeth of Aaron family; of king David family; of high priest Zechariah and same family as Elisheva of high priest Zadok’s family; and from high priest Zadok, family of high priest Aaron.

The relationship between Miriam (Mary), Yeshua’s mother, and her close relative (karov, in Hebrew), Elisheva (Elizabeth) of Aaron, as described in Luke 1:5, 36-56 shows how these two women were related.

God created our Messiah Yeshua, with absolute perfection, from Heaven from His Father, Almighty God. Also Yeshua is the perfect fulfillment of the two family lines which God had chosen (Jeremiah 33:24); both coming together in a virgin, Yeshua’s mother Miriam. This was prophesied in a few places in the Old Covenant Scriptures. We know that the Messiah was to come from the family of king David, of the tribe of Judah. But what was also prophesied in the Old Covenant Scriptures was that the Messiah would also be coming from the family of Aaron, of the tribe of Levi. Jeremiah 33:17, 18. Isaiah 7:14 However, God had also announced to His Zadok high priest Joshua (Yeshua, in Hebrew) something even more specific about the coming Messiah, through His prophet in the book of Zechariah.

That the Messiah (the Branch) would be coming from this Zadok high priest family of Joshua (Yeshua), of high priest Aaron of the Aaronic priesthood.  Messiah Yeshua is the perfect fulfillment of these two families, the high priest family of Yeshua of Zadok, of high priest Aaron, of the Aaronic priesthood, and also the family of king David; all from the Seed of Genesis 3:15, the Seed of Eve. God, the Holy Spirit overshadowed this Seed at the time of the conception of Yeshua in Miriam’s womb. Also, according to the Word of God in Ezekiel 43:18 & Ezekiel 44:15, 16 (& 40:46), God had said that He would only honor the blood sacrifice coming from a priest who was a son of Zadok.

Yeshua is a Son of Zadok through His mother Miriam. However, Yeshua was never, and could never have been an Aaronic priest, simple because Yeshua had no earthly father. For the Aaronic priesthood was only passed from earthly father to son. Yeshua’s Blood Sacrifice would never have been accepted by God, except for the fact that Yeshua is also a Son of Zadok through His mother Miriam.

And Yeshua is also a Priest from His Father, Almighty God. He is Priest of God Most High! Yeshua is KING and Great High Priest of Heaven! He also fulfilled the earthly line of both Aaronic high priests of Aaron and the line of kings from king David! This great Mystery is now revealed and is part of the precious and sinless Blood of our Lord Yeshua! Lord Yeshua is Heaven’s Priest coming from high priest Zadok of Aaron! Melchi Zedek: Genesis 14:18; Psalm 110:1, 4; Hebrews 7:11.

Yeshua’s cousin Yochanan (John) was also the last mystery Zadok high priest of Aaron, as was his father Zechariah (Zacharias). Luke 1:1-80 God used the Opening Scene of the New Covenant to reveal to us this Zadok high priesthood secret mystery.

The highest Ministry of the high priest was to cleanse people of their sins by performing the sacrifices on their behalf. Especially on Yom Kippur each year the day of atonement.

And this is exactly what John was doing in the Jordan River.   

He was cleansing them of their sins by encouraging them to immerse themselves in the waters as symbolic of the cleansing of their sins following true repentance.

So in reality it was John who was the highest priest of Israel, the true representative of the Aaronic priesthood.

Here we see that Messiahs ministry, His priesthood must begin with John. The two priests were standing in the waters of the Jordan River, the place of endings and beginnings, the two priesthoods. John/ Yochanan representing the priesthood of the old covenant and Messiah representing the priesthood of the renewed covenant.

There is where the transference of the priesthood was completed in plain and public view.

As the two high priests stood face-to-face, (Hebrew: al pene); the old priesthood bore witness of the new.

That all righteousness be fulfilled!!

It was here in the Jordan River that John/ Yochanan bore witness of Messiahs ministry and declared it to be greater than his own. Saying ‘I must decrease He must increase’. Here the blessing was spoken and the authority and Ministry was transferred and with the audible and visible affirmation by Adonai as Holy Spirit descended upon Him.

We better understand what He meant by His words, ‘this is My beloved Son in Him I am well pleased,’ because it was heavens confirmation that the old has gone and the new has come. That the priesthood had been given to Messiah and it was all part of God’s will and plan and purpose; and to those who are His, we are called to be priests. ‘Royal priesthood, a holy nation’, as all Israelites were called to be in the first place at Sinai. Then in fear, they changed their minds asking Moses to communicate to the Lord God for them. It is our calling today to be His priest and minister to His will and purposes on the earth.

When Jesus/Yeshua came to John/Yahuwchanon to be baptized: think of the scene, and their knowledge and understanding of the events unfolding before them in real time. It was the custom then that immersion of an individual, required that person to put themselves under the water, completely submerging their whole body.

These two cousins were 6 months apart.

At 30 years old, (legal age for a priest), Yochanan began his ministry by the Jordan river,
 around Passover time, in fulfillment of the prophesies related to Eliyahu in Mal. 4.

His cousin Yeshua began His ministry 6 months later, which would have been during the fall feasts. Now look at the words of Yochanan, but from a whole new angle; that of priest, understanding what he spoke to his disciples when he saw Yeshua walking …”Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the whole world.”

When did he say this? During the fall feasts!

As the (mystery Zadok high priest and) prophet, what would have been on Yochanan’s mind? Was he thinking of what he would have been doing during this special high holiday season? That he would have been serving in his rightful position as high priest in the Temple, if the priesthood had not been corrupted?

[Herod’s had two imposter high priests in the Jerusalem Temple]. 

He would have been doing the Yom Kippur atonement offering in 
the Temple, which would have been done for himself, for all the other priests, and for the people of Israel.

Now look again at the words he speaks and just see what God had done through him…”Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the whole world.

As the true Zadok high priest of Israel, God was now using him to make a brand new declaration about the Atonement of this Yom Kippur Lamb, that this was not just for himself, and for the other priests, and for the people of Israel, but now that this Atonement of the Lamb of God would be for all peoples of the world.

John was the true High Priest (a Levite) that was to offer the “sacrificial goat” that year while Caiaphas, the High Priest was an impostor who was an Edomite appointed by Rome. 

John immediately recognized that Adonai had selected the sacrificial goat that year for Yom (pronounced Yowm) Kippur:

Yahuwchanon (John) knew that Jesus/Yeshua was about to become the “sacrificial goat” and that he would be “sent” into the wilderness also as the “scapegoat” to “take away” the sins of the world into the wilderness!

John probably placed his hand on Jesus/Yeshua’s head just as the High Priest did to the scapegoat.

The scriptures tell us that the second goat is to be offered to “Azazel,” which is a Hebrew word that literally means the following in the Hebrew Strong’s Concordance: #5799 ‘aza’zel az-aw-zale from 5795 and 235; goat of departure; the scapegoat:–scapegoat.

In Ezekiel 43:19, 20 and 44:15, 16, we are told that God will only accept the Blood offering coming from a priest who is a son of Zadok!

Yeshua’s Blood Sacrifice had to meet these specific requirements from the Word of God, or His Blood offering for sin would not qualify!

Exactly how did this divine Son of Judah qualify?

  Because … (final recap)…

Yeshua is a Priest through His Father,
 but He is also a Son of Zadok through His mother Miriam!

God spoke to Miriam through His angel Gabriel in Luke 1:32, telling Miriam that she would give birth to a Son who would be called the Son of the Highest, and who would Reign over the throne of His earthly father (and ancestor) king David. Since there was no human male involved in this conception process of Yeshua (Luke 1:35; Matthew 1:18,20),

God was also recognizing that this Seed of Genesis 3:15, this Seed of woman that was carried by Miriam would be the Seed that God would use to produce this divine Child who would Reign on the throne of His father David as our King, forever.

The writer of Hebrews 7, verses 11-18, clearly states that the Priesthood of Yeshua is from His Father’s side, for the writer specifically refers to the Melchi- Zedek Priesthood of Heaven; and he also says that this divine Son is from the tribe of Judah (but only through Miriam [not through Joseph]), of which tribe Moses spoke nothing of priesthood. However, what was not mentioned, perhaps not even known at the time, was that Miriam was also
 of this same high priest family of Aaron as her close relative, Elisheva.

Miriam carried genetically the perfect fulfillment of two family lines, Aaron and David, which God had chosen, specifically stated in Jeremiah 33:24. But we also find other prophesies revealing that the Messiah would be coming from the high priest family of Yeshua of the family of Zadok.

For the Old Testament prophesies about the Messiah indicated that He, the Branch, would not only come from the family of Aaron (Jeremiah 33: 18, 21, 24), but even more precisely from the high priest family of Yeshua of the seed of Zadok of Aaron. Zechariah 3:8 and Zechariah 6:11-13.

John the Baptist standing on the bank or in the waters of the river Jordan was the true High Priest.

Caiaphas was the imposter.

John recognized and witnessed the Messiah being immersed and prepared to become the scapegoat for all mankind. The Lamb of God, knowing the history and discerning the future! John by his declaration knew Jesus was the Messiah and would become the King of Kings and the eternal great High Priest after the order of Melchizadek.Gods promise fulfilled.

Jeremiah 31:31 – 33; Matthew 3:13 – 16; Hebrews 7:11 – 17

What tribe were the four sons of Aaron from?” Most people would answer, Levi! But when we look deeper into this question, and ask, “Whom did Aaron (the brother of Moses, and sister of Miriam) take for his wife?” We discover his wife is Elisheva.

But who was Elisheva, and what tribe was she from?

Elisheva was the sister of Nahshon, the daughter of Ammnadab.

And who were they?

They were the leaders of the tribe of Judah. (Exodus 6:23, Numbers 1:7 and Matthew 1:4)

What does all that mean?

It means that all the four sons of Aaron and his wife Elisheva were really from two tribes, Levi and Judah. However, history records the Aaronic Priesthood as being just from the tribe of Levi. Why? Because the Aaronic Priesthood was named only after the father’s lineage. [Notice the names Miriam and Elisheva appear twice, the first time in the formation of both the Aaronic priesthood, and then in the divine mystery concerning Yeshua and His Aaronic priest family of the New Covenant!]

Perhaps in a similar way, Yeshua’s Priesthood is through His Father (the Melchi Zedek Priesthood). But God relates Yeshua’s earthly Kingship and His Throne from His father king David through His mother Miriam.

So this most important revelation that Yeshua is also from the high priest family of Aaron, of Zadok, through His mother Miriam was perhaps never revealed, since priesthood was named from father’s side. However, even more importantly, this mystery was not to be revealed and could not be revealed especially in those days, and was deliberately kept top secret.

Why?

Because Herod, if he had known the real identities of the Zadok priests and high priest family, would have killed this whole family.

There would have been no Miriam and no Yeshua!

For Herod had already killed many people, and he had placed his two phony high priests in the Temple.

Yeshua, in the flesh, is the physical fulfillment of both the family line of king David and also high priest Yeshua of Zadok
of high priest Aaron, through the Seed carried by His mother Miriam.

For Yeshua’s Blood Sacrifice on the Cross provided a Perfect Atonement of both the line of kings and also of the line of Aaronic Zadok high priests. Completing the mystery connection of the threads: why the Priest (John) was in the water, to Abraham meeting a King, (Melchi-zedek), to Messiah and God fulfilling His Promises!

Shalom!

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…Don’t put it off one more moment…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus 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 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 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. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’ name. Amen.

You are now Born Again by the Holy Spirit of the Living God and you are part of the ever growing family of believers. You will never be the same again!

 

 

 

 

 

 

A MIRACLE in TIME

IT ALL BEGAN

with

A MIRACLE IN TIME and WINE.

Here are some extremely interesting aspects of a well known incident in John 2:6.

Some we may not have fully understood or appreciated.It is without doubt a fact that God’s ways are not our ways, or His thoughts ours. So it would follow that His actions may also hold mysteries that we do not see clearly at first glance.

For a description of the levels of revealing in His Word click link

https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-rules-of-pardes/

What was Jesus really trying to show us and tell us at the wedding at Cana? Cana today. Surely it was not the freedom to drink alcohol to a point of intoxication and giving His consent and agreement for drunken behavior.

Those who live in the modern western world do not catch the full significance of Jesus’ promise. This is due to the fact that in His promise Jesus was drawing an analogy from Jewish marriage customs in biblical times and those marriage customs help us to grasp the full significance of the promise.

Payment of the purchase price. –

Set apart (sanctified)

Bridegroom departs to Father’s House. –

Prepares room addition. –

Bride prepares for imminent return.

They were companions of the bridegroom, who went with him to bring the bride from her home to his home.

Marriage feasts lasted 7 days, but the woman was considered a bride for 30 days.

Unlike Western weddings, which are paid for by the bride’s family, in Eastern weddings, the groom was responsible for the expenses of the celebration.

In western weddings, the bridegroom comes in first, then the bride, the prominent one, enters. However in Eastern weddings it is the bridegroom who is the prominent one. We see no mention of the bride in John’s account of the wedding at Cana because the body of believers, the Ekklesia, the called out ones, also called the bride of Messiah, was not yet in the picture. In Jewish life, the wedding marked the culmination of the betrothal period. During that period, which often lasted for several months, up to one year. Again the western tradition of a 1- year engagement.

The bride never knew when the groom would come because after the marriage covenant had been established, called the ketubah (becoming betrothed, the equivalent of western engagement).

The groom would leave the home of the bride and return to his father’s house.

There he would remain separate for the whole year.

The young man goes to prepare a chador (chamber) in his father’s house, sometimes called a “chuppah” (place for the honeymoon).

Just as Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us in His Fathers House and then He will come and take His bride to Himself. (Eph. 5:22-23).

Some translations have talked about the many mansions in God’s house and our western culture has us all pictured on our own grassy hill in a Mansion. That would have been foreign to that society. The word actually just refers to a dwelling. Based on culture, if Jesus is giving us a literal picture of what eternity is like then we’re all living together in one attached house. It’s a picture of being brought into the family.

The couple was considered legally man and wife and only a divorce could terminate the betrothal. (This may shed some light on Mary and Josephs situation). They did not, however, live together or consummate the marriage during that period.

The father of the groom had to approve the prepared room and when he was satisfied then he would tell his son to go and get his bride. She had to be ready for he could come anytime even in the middle of the night and take her away to her new home. 1Thess.5:2Just as we are always to be ready for Jesus to come for us. Matthew 24:36 and only the Father knows that time.

As a result the groom’s arrival would be preceded by a shout. In the same way that the Jewish groom’s arrival was preceded by a shout and the blowing of a shofar, so Christ’s arrival to take the Church will be preceded by a shout (1 Thess. 4:16).

This shout and shofar sounding would forewarn the bride to be prepared for the coming of the groom. After the groom received his bride together with her female attendants, (parable of the 10 virgins).

The enlarged wedding party would return from the bride’s home to the groom’s father’s house. Which is the grooms hometown, (heaven).

Just as the taking of the Jewish bride was accomplished by a procession of the groom and male escorts from the groom’s father’s house to the home of the bride, so the taking of the Church will be accomplished by a procession of Christ and an angelic escort from Messiah’s Father’s house in heaven to the home of the Church (1 Thess. 4:16).

Upon arrival there the wedding party would find that the wedding guests had assembled already.  In the same manner as the Jewish wedding party found wedding guests assembled in the groom’s father’s house when they arrived, so Christ and the Church will find the souls of Old Testament saints assembled in heaven when they arrive. These souls will serve as the wedding guests.On the night of the ceremony, (usually the 4th day, Yom R’vi’i, a Wednesday);

the groom and his friends would go to the bride’s house. They would then escort the bride and her attendants to the groom’s house, where the ceremony and banquet would be held.The whole celebration, which could last up to a week followed the short marriage ceremony, and then the Bride and Groom retired to the place he had prepared (Huppa/Wedding Chamber), and the friend of the groom, the best man, stood by the door. Prior to entering the chamber the bride remained veiled so that no one could see her face. Reading the Ketuba.

When the marriage had been consummated, the Groom would shout in his joy and the friend of the groom would relay the good news to the guests.This was the beginning of a week-long celebration and the first week of the couple being alone together in the bridal chamber. This is where we get the western week long honeymoon. This also sheds light on another reference in John 3:29-30.“The one who has the bride is the bridegroom: and the friend of the bridegroom is the one who stands by, then when he hears his joy he rejoices because of the voice of the bridegroom. Therefore this joy has been fulfilled in me. It is necessary for that One to increase, and for me to decrease.”The wedding ceremony takes place under the chuppah (canopy), a symbol of the home that the new couple will build together. It is open on all sides, just as Abraham and Sarah had their tent open all sides to welcome people in unconditional hospitality.

The bride traditionally gifts the groom a new prayer shawl (tallit). In some communities he wears it under the chuppah, and sometimes it is draped over both him and the bride.

Western weddings exchange vows and the couple sign the registry.

It is easy to see where many of our western traditions have their origins!

And how everything is connected.

So Yeshua and the Church will experience spiritual union after their arrival at His Father’s house in heaven, thereby consummating their relationship that had been covenanted earlier.During the seven days of the wedding festivities, which were sometimes called “the seven days of the chuppah,” the bride remained hidden in the bridal chamber. Many scholars believe that this period of seven days corresponds to the Church remaining hidden for a period of seven years after arrival at the Father’s house in heaven. While the seven year Tribulation Period is taking place on the earth, the Church will be in heaven totally hidden from the sight of those living on the earth. At the conclusion of these seven days the groom would bring his bride out of the bridal chamber, now with her veil removed, so that all could see who his bride was. So Christ will bring His ‘church’, the ecclesia, the congregation of called out ones, out of heaven in His Second Coming at the conclusion of the seven year Tribulation Period in full view of all who are alive, so that all can see who the true church is (Col. 3:4). John 2:2-3 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. 3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.The mother of Jesus was at this particular wedding. That both she and Jesus attended suggests the wedding involved relatives or friends of the family (Jesus’ brother?). That would explain why Mary seems to have been more than just a guest, but apparently had some responsibility for helping with the celebration. For example, she was aware of the situation regarding the lack of wine, and took the initiative to solve the serious problem.

A major crisis loomed at the wedding celebration when the wine ran out because the supply was insufficient for whatever reason. Such an embarrassing faux pas could have stigmatized the couple and their families for the rest of their lives for failing to meet their responsibilities. Thus Jesus’ turning the water into wine was not just a sensational miracle.All of His miracles met specific needs, such as opening blind eyes or deaf ears, delivering those oppressed by demons, feeding hungry people, or calming a storm. This miracle also met the genuine need of the family and their guests, who otherwise faced a social catastrophe. This first miracle Jehovah-Jireh – the LORD will provide. The LORD sees what we need ahead of time and has the provision ready.

Mary informed Jesus of the situation and had high expectations for Him to help. Maybe she was remembering what Gabriel had told her before she conceived.

Jesus’ reply, ‘what have I to do with thee?’ (lit., What to Me and to you?) is an idiomatic expression which asks rhetorically what the two parties in question have in common, and has the effect of distancing them. It was the Hebrew way of saying, ‘You don’t understand’.The statement, coupled with Jesus’ addressing Mary as ‘Woman’ instead of ‘Mother,’ politely but firmly informed her that what they had in common in their relationship was no longer to be what it had been while He was growing up in Nazareth. His public ministry had begun, and earthly relationships would not determine His actions.

Mary was to relate to Him no longer as her son, but as her Messiah, the Son of God, and her Savior (Matt 12:47-50; Mark 3:31- 35; Luke 11:27-28).Jesus did not say,‘No’ to her. He was telling her that what she was asking would not accomplish what she was hoping for.

Mary was asking for literal wine for the people of the marriage supper, but Jesus was talking about the wine, which was His shed blood, for the marriage of the Lamb.Jesus made it clear that He would act according to God’s timetable, decreed before the foundation of the world, not hers or any mans. (John 7:2-8). It was not the appointed time for Jesus’ full messianic glory to be revealed; yet the miracle He would perform would make His divine power unmistakable, and preview His glory to come.

The dark hour of the cross would precede the full revelation in His glorious messianic kingdom where wine, emblematic of joy and gladness, will never run out. Undeterred by the mild rebuke (Matt 15:22-28), and aware that He was not saying no to the request, Mary said to the servants, ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.’The most significant point of this miracle is TIME and any vineyard owner will tell you that for grapes to be made into wine is a process that often takes years to produce a great vintage.

There are specific stages from planting the seed to bottling.The list sounds familiar to the scriptural descriptions of disciples and the kingdom of Heaven.

Wine cannot age without TIME.

So for the wine Jesus produced at Cana to be the best that was served, how could it age in an instant?TIME maybe an important point He was trying to make, as a precursor to what He was here to accomplish; what His life was meant to show; and what He was about to do in revealing who He really was.

Wine is only wine if it’s aged, but this wine had no time in which to age. It did not have any time in which to complete the long process.

THIS WINE HAD NO PAST

it only had a future.

 So in this sense it had to be given a new past. Can this be possible?

For us on earth, time moves forward, not backwards and neither does it stand still. However the Lord who created the heavens and the earth brought time into existence for the purpose of our earthly experience. And probably also as a means to keep constraints around the devil and a boundary for his cohorts; as they are now contained within Earth time and subject to its limitations.

Rev.12:12 the devil knows he has but a little time. How so, if he is an eternal spirit?

God is Spirit and exists outside of our dimensions and is not bound by the time He created. He is the same yesterday today and forever. So for Him to change a past, or remove it and replace it, is indeed possible. Every miracle of Jesus is a short circuit of a natural process. When God’s power enters the picture, it is not just simply any king; it’s the Creator of the Universe entering, the King of nature and all its processes.

Jesus transformed a non- living, inorganic compound (water) into a living, organic compound (wine) and it is a picture of His resurrection and of ours to come.

This first miracle teaches us that salvation is through the Word of God.

It is the key to understanding all miracles. Matter is pliable and subject to change within His presence. For the power of His glory has the ability to alter change and transform matter at the molecular level, of which everything is constructed. If we could really grasp this reality, seeing people get healed would be more commonplace.

He is the Lord of creation, the king of the universe and the author of Time. He is the Alef and Tav; the Alpha and Omega; the Beginning and End; the Start and the Finish.

He is YHVH, God, Adonai of TIME.We cannot change the past nor give something a past that does not have one… but He can and the water to wine was a demonstration of such a plan.

He gave the wine a past, where there was no past.

This is the promise of a future for all mankind, for the one who can give a past where there was none, can also remove a past that is no longer wanted or relevant. This is His salvation. It is not simply that everything is the same and we’re forgiven in spite of our sin but it’s as if we never sinned in the first place.The scripture promises that one day God will wipe away sin and wash away guilt.

This cannot be achieved without changing the past and without undoing what was done. However it is not simply justified, (just as if we never sinned) because in His redemptive sacrificial death the impossible becomes the possible; and the reality is the guilty become innocent.

The rejected become accepted and the scarlet sin becomes white as snow. A person’s wedding day is comparable to his or her personal Yom Kippur, on which all sins are forgiven. For the chatan, (Hebrew for groom), and kallah, (bride), on this day all their past mistakes are forgiven, as their lives merge together, becoming one….under His wings.We cannot make scarlet sins turn white. Sin is already committed and they are part of the past and the past is gone. The only way to change that sin would be to change the past in which it occurred.

This is the true miracle of salvation, He has removed all past as far as the east is from the west. If God can give a past where there was no past, if He can do that for wine in Cana, then He can certainly remove a past where there was one.

Isaiah 1:18; Luke 7:37, 47; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 John 1:8–9.

He has taken the scarlet cord of your life’s sinful past and has made it white.Your life is like the stone jar of water, now changed, transformed. We are the new wine within and cannot be contained in the old wine skins of our past lives. We need to be changed from glory to glory to become a stable container (so we don’t burst or explode). Then out of us, His power can flow forth.The old is gone, the new is come. We are new creations, the old has passed away and we are to walk in newness of life.

The Cana miracle of transformation was a most prophetic picture, indicative of what was to come for those who would believe; both in this life and in the ultimate future of eternity in His presence.

With a new incorruptible body.

This is the first miracle that Jesus performed. Moses’ first miracle was turning water into blood. Moses was a type and shadow of Yeshua. Delivering Israel out of bondage.Compared with the ministry of Moses who turned water into blood as a sign of God’s judgment (Ex.7:14–24), Jesus is a bringer of joy and celebration by the Spirit because He delivers us from the moment.

He is the God of time by turning water into wine immediately, bypassing agricultural and fermentation processes.

Moreover, this was no ordinary wine, for as the host remarked, “You have saved the best till now” (v 10).But neither was it ordinary water.

Since its purpose was “for ceremonial washing” (v 6), the miraculous transmutation suggests the old order passing away, law metamorphosing to gospel. He is the new wine of the kingdom.The jars were for purification and He turned all 6 of them red like the blood that would purify all believers removing all our sins and sorrows foreverThe ceremony was held in a synagogue and they were there for a week.In Israel, the streets are stone,

the walls are stone, the houses are stone, In the first century even the furniture, the baths, and many cooking pots, jugs, bowls, and disheswere all made of stone. (obviously the modern drill image is for reference) Stoneware cores, cup bored plugs showing iron spinning hole saw rings lines drilled raw and unfinished. Ritual Purity First Century.

Equivalent of a large metal plastic or wooden barrels today compared to Stoneware Vessels used for Ritual-Purity in 1st-Century.  This was no small container they would each hold twenty to thirty gallons,such jars would need to be about three feet tall and be cut from a single block of stone weighing at least half a ton. Quite aside from the miracle itself, the sheer quantity of new wine created is astounding—equivalent to about a 1,000 bottles! We know this because so many ancient stone vessels have been found in Israel, many of them roughly fashioned, but the best ones turned on a lathe and smoothed, polished, and decorated.

The practical reason for all this stoneware stems from the Jewish laws of ritual purity. Stone vessels could easily be cleaned with water, whereas if an earthenware pot became ritually unclean it had to be broken. Hence the high incidence of stone vessels is peculiar to ancient Israelite culture, as non-Jews normally didn’t bother with this costly and cumbersome material when ceramics were much more convenient. The Jews used stone waterpots to hold the water used for ritual purification because they believed that, unlike earthenware pots (Lev 11:33), they did not become unclean.This seemingly insignificant detail, that the water was up to the very top, shows that nothing was added to the water, and that what followed was indeed a transformation miracle.

By ordering the jars to be completely filled before He transformed the water in them into wine, Jesus also displayed His generous grace. Six signifies work and wine signifies blood. The stone waterpots represent Christ’ body. Without the shedding of blood, there is no cleansing (purifying).Exodus 17:6 “Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the Rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the Rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink…”

In The Old Testament was is Concealed, is Revealed in the New Testament !

Proverbs 25:2 “It is the Glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of Kings is to search out a matter.” He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.

1st Corinthians 10:4 “And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.”Jesus the Messiah is the true Rock that the water of salvation comes from, and the Rock in Horeb merely was a shadow, casting a spiritual picture of it.

And that is why these waterpots in John chapter 2 from where wine would come, are purposely pointed out as being of stone.True purification is from Jesus/Yeshua the Messiah. Six Stone water pots signifying that it is by the work of Christ’s blood that the people will have this purification. The blood is the true wine of which Christ spoke, which was not yet ready for the Woman (the Church). It was not yet Christ’s hour to go to the cross. If the number six represents the days of creation, then Jesus’ miracle constituted a wonderful blessing of fertility on this marriage— not only on the couple but on their family for generations to come, a tribe of perhaps hundreds, thousands, even millions of people. More than a show of power, this was a blessing conferred upon a relationship—indeed upon the central relationship of all, the one that best represents the covenant between the Lord and His people.  Following the ceremonial proceedings of the Huppa, is the marriage banquet, also sometimes called the wedding feast or marriage festival.This was the joyful celebration of the union of the couple with all their family and friends. For us as believers, after the Catching away,the blessed hope,

we have one very important banquet to look forward to with our Lord and King. All the called out ones, the bride of Messiah, will join the Lord at the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.The Lord will take the long awaited cup of wine and we will all share it together with Him and enjoy the heavenly festivities He has planned. Rev. 19:7-9

The mundane and the ordinary can become infused by the power and the glory of God –

if we are prepared to respond in faith to the same challenge of Mary to the servants and to

“DO WHATEVER HE TELLS YOU”.

Messiah Yeshua began His ministry on this earth at a wedding.

The wedding was the first act and as He came to marry the believers to Himself in a covenant by His own body to fulfill the marriage covenant that was first entered into by Moses and Israel at Sinai. He ratified this renewed covenant in His own blood.

He will conclude it, as far as the body of believers are concerned, with a wedding also the consummation of a covenant between the Lamb and His bride, the elkklesia.

 The last chapters of John convey some of the final words of Jesus to His disciples. He is leaving them, but only for a season. He is reassuring them of His return – as a groom eagerly returns for his bride.

This first miracle was so prophetic and was indeed right on and in TIME.

We have that same reassurance. In giving a reNEWed covenant, Jesus used the most intimate language available. God loves us and is creating a place in the family for us to live forever.

Shalom!

Please don’t leave this site without knowing you are saved and assured that you belong to Him; with a deep conviction that you know where you will go, when your body can no longer sustain you in this realm. 

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

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

Its all about Life and Relationship not Religion.

NOT SURE?

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

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

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus 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 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. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’ name. Amen. You are now assured of heaven..rejoice and give Him glory for this is THE most important miracle.

more at https://www.minimannamoments.com/welcome-come-taste-some-bread-of-life-bread-from-heaven/life-changing-information-guaranteed/

A Lamb’s Tale And A Mysterious Tower

This post begins with some ???s

How are Rachel, Jacob, swaddling clothes, shepherds, a manger and a lamb connected to Ephraph and the mysterious Edar tower prophesied by Micah 700 years BC?

Also do we even have a marginal mental grasp of who Jesus, son of Joseph, (Yeshua ben Joseph) was; what His culture was like, and who His family was?  The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had a specific time, place and purpose for His Chosen Son. 

Does our religious imagery reflect the life He really lived? Maybe we need to take another look at some details surrounding the birth of Jesus, our Messiah.

It’s in the Gospel of Luke chapter two and is known virtually the world over. It has been told countless times in one form or another, in a wide variety of depictions and performances and is one of the most iconic of all narratives.

Sometimes we become too familiar with what we think we know and miss some amazing details.Even non-believers are familiar with the story.

As we read its words once again,

take special note of its

historical, geographical, political

and prophetic aspects;

for without this story,

we would not be preparing for annual

Christmas Day celebrations every 25th December.

“1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. 18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. (Lk. 2:1-18).

Here is the story of all stories, involving a young Jewish couple. The setting was at a time of socio-economic unrest following the mandates of a census being taken by the leaders of the Roman Empire. It involved two cities of Nazareth and Bethlehem.

(The distance of 96 miles or 155 kilometers, that was a long way to travel!)Nazareth is a village in northern Israel, and serves to remind us of the close family relationship and seclusion that Jesus experienced as He grew to manhood.

Bethlehem is the site at the center of this story and also the focus of numerous prophetic events, being inextricably connected with the “Royal house and lineage of King David.”

Leaving Luke’s famous narrative of Messiah’s birth, we need to go back in time to Micah where the most famous prophecy of His coming birth came forth through that prophet. It was written at least seven hundred years before Messiah Jesus was born.

“2 But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (Mic. 5:2).

In this verse, Ephratah, (Ephrath) was an ancient city originally located on the outskirts of Bethlehem, it was associated with the death of Rachel and the amazing prophecy that accompanied her burial. To this day, her tomb is still known and honored in this region.The Momentous Death of Rachel an important incident.. ..everything is connected!

In Genesis 35, God instructed Jacob to rise up and take his entire family to Bethel. Arriving there, he purified himself and erected an altar to God. After this, God appeared to him and pronounced that his name would be changed from Jacob to Israel:

“10 And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel. 11 And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins; 12 And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land” (Gen. 35:10-12).

Shortly after this, they travelled southward to the place that has been known ever since as Bethlehem, the Hebrew word that translates as “House of Bread.” This was the place where Christ was to be born about eighteen centuries later:

16 And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. 17 And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also. 18 And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin. 19 And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. 20 And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day. 21 And Israel journeyed, and spread his tent beyond the tower of Edar. (Gen. 35:16-21).Rachels Tomb

Migdal Eder—the “tower of the flock”—was first mentioned here in Genesis 35:19-21.

 “So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem). And Jacob set up a pillar over her grave; that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave to this day. Then Israel journeyed on and pitched his tent beyond the tower of Eder” 

In the context the “tower of Eder”

or “tower of the flock”

was located near Bethlehem.About 1,000 years after Rachel’s death, the prophet Micah spoke about the still-future birth of Israel’s Messiah.

Everyone is familiar with the prediction that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem (Micah. 5:2), but few look at the larger context.

Micah also predicted the reappearance of God’s kingdom

at Migdal Eder—

the tower of the flock.

“And as for you, tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you it will come—even the former dominion will come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem” (Mic. 4:8) Beginning In Micah 4:1 and connecting the verse above with some verses right before it, the prophet was speaking in the same context, Micah lays out the distant future in a prophecy of the coming Kingdom. Here he refers to that time period as “the last days.” Then, he goes on to say the following:

“6 In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth, and I will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted; 7 And I will make her that halted a remnant, and her that was cast far off a strong nation: and the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever. 8 And thou, O tower of the flock, the strong hold of the daughter of Zion, unto thee shall it come, even the first dominion; the kingdom shall come to the daughter of Jerusalem. (Mic. 4:6-8).

The location mentioned here was marked out for the amazing future fulfillment of prophecy. In Hebrew, the term “tower of Edar” is migdal eder. Its literal meaning of this title is “tower of the flock.” It would seem that this is the place where Christ was born, as described by Luke’s Christmas story.Here, we have a prophecy that describes the mysterious location, the strange edifice was a watchtower – and here it is presented as the key to understanding the birth of the Messiah. these words were written by Micah in the 8th century, B.C., long before Israel’s Babaylonian captivity, which Micah describes in the following verses:

“9 Now why dost thou cry out aloud? is there no king in thee? is thy counsellor perished? for pangs have taken thee as a woman in travail. 10 Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail: for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and thou shalt dwell in the field, and thou shalt go even to Babylon; there shalt thou be delivered; there the LORD shall redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies. 11 Now also many nations are gathered against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye look upon Zion. 12 But they know not the thoughts of the LORD, neither understand they his counsel: for he shall gather them as the sheaves into the floor. 13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion: for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass: and thou shalt beat in pieces many people: and I will consecrate their gain unto the LORD, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth. (Mic. 4:9-13).

Micah’s prophecy notably goes well beyond the Babylonian captivity and into the distant future.

He describes Israel as being regathered and fully established as a people and as being invincible against all the people who are gathered against her.

Migdal Eder – Tower of the Flock.Amazingly the strange watchtower over the flock

is the centerpiece of an ancient drama

which tells the story of the Kingdom of Israel

of its downfall and of its rising once again. Jacob was the father of the twelve tribes,

his name being changed by God to that of Israel;

from his day to the present,

God’s will has unfolded an immense plan

which is centered upon the most important person in all history.

Jesus, Messiah,

Yeshua, Son Of God,

Lamb of God, Savior..Here is where it gets interesting

and we remember everything is connected

and is not without significance in God’s plan.

Luke 2:11-12 NKJV 11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

Scholars interpret Micah 4:8 as a prophesy indicating that the Messiah would be revealed from the

“tower of the flock” (Migdal Eder)

which is connected with the town of Bethlehem, southeast of Jerusalem.

Micah 4:8 NLKV 8 And you, O Migdal Eder (tower of the flock), the stronghold of the daughter of Zion, to you shall it come, even the former dominion shall come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.

Mishnaic sources (Jewish sacred writings) indicate that animals “found” (meaning, ‘that were kept’) in the fields were within 5 miles of the Temple.

This Migdal Eder was NOT the watchtower for the ordinary flocks which pastured on the barren sheep ground beyond Bethlehem, but lay close to the town, on the road to Jerusalem.

 The shepherds keeping watch over these sheep all year round knew the purpose for the lambs under their care. And their job was to keep the animals under them from becoming injured or blemished.Only in warm weather do the Shepherds keep their flocks outdoors at night in Bethlehem so it could not have been winter because when it was cold they sheltered in nearby caves. Could it be that the birth was closer to the date in  Israel’s calendar celebrating the Feast of Succoth?It was to those watching over animals destined for temple sacrifice that the angels announced Jesus’ birth.

“For today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11).

It may not be so far fetched to see that

the arrival of the ultimate Lamb of God

was revealed to those responsible

for watching over the sacrificial lambs

that had always pointed toward Him.

Another passage in the Mishnah leads to the conclusion that the flocks which pastured there, were destined for Temple-sacrifices, and, accordingly, that the shepherds who watched over them were not ordinary shepherds.

The latter were under the ban of Rabbinism, on account of their necessary isolation from the religious ordinances, and their manner of life, which rendered strict legal observance unlikely, if not absolutely impossible …” The same Mishnaic passage also leads us to infer that these flocks lay out all the year round, since they are spoken of as in the fields thirty days before the Passover—that is, in the month of February, when in Palestine the average rainfall is nearly greatest. Thus Jewish tradition in some dim manner apprehended the first revelation of the Messiah from that Migdal Eder, where shepherds watched the Temple flocks all the year round. Of the deep symbolic significance of such a coincidence, it is needless to speak (The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, 186–87).

Mary and Joseph may well have passed those same fields on their way to Bethlehem.The male sheep (Jesus) was a ‘burnt’ (sin) offering and the female was for a ‘peace’ offering and at birth they were wrapped in swaddling cloths to keep the new lambs without spot or blemish, then they would be laid in a manger until they had calmed down.

Their swaddling cloths no doubt stained with blood!

Newborn lambs.

So the shepherds near Bethlehem are quite special. The location where they are tending and keeping watch over the lambs destined for Temple sacrifice is quite near the place where Messiah was born. It also marks the site of the ancient prophecy. As lambs destined for Temple sacrifice were born in these special flocks, they were inspected to make sure that they were perfect, not having any defect, so that they were suitable for sacrifice by the priests at the Temple. The Apostle Peter refers to Christ in precisely this way:

“18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (I Pet. 1:18-20).

Some sources have declared that the “swaddling clothes” mentioned in Luke 2:7 “And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.” were the pieces of woven material that the Temple shepherds used to wipe off the newborn lambs prior to their inspection. So here we have some interesting things to ponder on, the ‘Christmas’ prophecy of a very unique flock, and a very special watchtower.

With the Lord, nothing happens by accident or chance and there is no word in Hebrew to be translated for coincidence!! He plans everything perfectly!Only Luke talks about Jesus being wrapped in swaddling clothes.

Had it not been for this passage in Luke, most of us would never have heard of the practice of wrapping a baby in swaddling clothes.

This practice ceased around the sixteenth century as it was considered either too barbaric or that it really served no practical purpose at all. It was just a tradition that continued for no other reason than the fact it was tradition. It is even believed by many medical specialists to be harmful to the child.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

It’s an expression that was never used at any time except when we hear the Christmas story and no one ever really explains what the swaddling clothes are. A usual answer to such a question was that it was just a Bible term for blankets or cloths for sanitary purposes.

Swaddling clothes in the Aramaic is ‘azrura’, which really means ‘a bandage’. The word that is used is ‘esparganosen’ which is the Greek word for ‘a bandage’.

We have the word ‘swaddling’, used in Ezekiel 16:3. The Hebrew word used here is ‘chatal’, which is the Hebrew word for a ‘bandage’. It seems that this was more than just a bandage or blanket.

The practice of swaddling is very ancient practice and is believed to have been devised around the Paleolithic times about 4500 years ago during the Bronze Age around 2600 BC. Interestingly, archaeologists have uncovered small models of babies wrapped in swaddling clothes which dated back to this period.

After an infant was born the umbilical cord was cut and tied; as in this case, there was no midwife and either Mary or Joseph would have had to perform this. They would then sprinkle the baby with a powder made of dried myrtle leaves. Then they would gently rub the baby’s skin with a very small amount of salt that has been finely grounded into a sort of paste, which it was believed would make his or her flesh firm. For young Jewish parents this represented a testimony that that the parents would raise the child to be truthful and faithful.The swaddling cloth was a square yard of cloth which had a narrow band attached at one corner. The mother would wrap the child in this swaddle with its arms close to its body and its legs stretched out. She would then wind the narrow band around the body from the shoulders to the ankles until the baby resembled an Egyptian mummy. This ritual was performed as often as we would ‘change’ the baby and would be done until it was no longer required by the growing child.

The practical understanding was, that it helped the childs body grow strong and firm. It’s interesting to note that today medical science has learned it’s best to just leave them alone, that babies will develop naturally without artificial help. It took four thousand years for man to realize that God did a perfectly fine job creating us without artificial intervention.

However to the Jewish parent, this practice carried a symbolic meaning, and as we are learning every practice in Judaism carries some significant symbolism. This was a sign to the parents that they would teach the child to become honest, straightforward, and freed from crookedness.
This brings up the question as to why Luke felt it was important to mention this, not once, but two times, again is verse 12 where the angel tells the shepherds that the child will be found wrapped in swaddling clothes. Why was that necessary, if every baby is wrapped in swaddling clothes, how were the shepherds able to use that fact to distinguish Jesus from any other baby?These priestly shepherds knew the ‘swaddling’ procedure and, when told it would be a sign, they recalled Micah 4:8 and, with haste (Luke 2:16) ran to see the newborn Jesus, the Son of God.

There was no need for the angel to give these shepherds directions to the birth place because they already knew.
They, who raised the sacrificial lambs for the Temple, knew exactly where to go, as Luke 2 indicates, for the sign of a manger could only mean a manger at the tower of the flock in their fields.

Remember when the father of a household presented a lamb to the priest to be examined, he had tied the family name around the head of the potential sacrificial lamb so that the meat could be returned to him to be used during their Passover meal.

Luke 2:11 -12 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

Scholars interpret Micah 4:8 as a prophecy indicating that the Messiah would be revealed from the tower of the flock Migdal Eder which is connected with the town of Bethlehem southeast of Jerusalem.

Micah 4:8 And you, O tower of the flock,
The stronghold of the daughter of Zion,
To you shall it come, 
Even the former dominion shall come,
The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.”Shepherds watching over their Flocks by NightThis was the last few weeks before the harsh winters would set in, and the shepherds spent a lot of time allowing the sheep to fatten up before winter.  The dreaded heat of summer was over, and the evenings were cool, crisp and pleasant. 

Did the Shepherds visit the baby Jesus/Yeshua

in an animal succoth?An infant, now wrapped in swaddling clothes for protection in the cool breezes of evening and the curious stares of the domestic animals is a scene familiar to all.  Nearby, shepherds on a grassy sloped hillside suddenly found themselves serenaded by a chorus of supernatural choristers, saying,

Luke 2:8-10 – “Glory to God in the Highest and on earth, Peace, Good Will towards all men on whom his favor rests…”

When that inter-dimensional gateway into the world of the Divine opened and again there

“stood before them an angel of the Lord, and the splendor of the Lord shone round them. They were terror-stricken…” (Luke 2:8-10)  Others had also been visited by angelic messengers.

First there was Zacharias, then Miriam, afterwards Joseph, and now the shepherds. What was the message of the angelic messenger?  “Fear not!”

Luke 2:10-12 – “I have good news for you: there is great joy coming to the whole people. Today in the city of David a deliverer has been born to you – the Messiah, the Lord.  And this is your sign: you will find a baby lying wrapped in his swaddling clothes, in a manger.

Quickly, they headed to town, were they searching and winding in and out among the multitude of Sukkoths, asking, have you seen a newborn child?

When they found Joseph and Miryam, “they recounted what they had been told about this child; and all who heard were astonished at what the shepherds said.”  (Luke 2:17-18)Why had Joseph and Mary come all this way from their hometown when she was in the late stages of pregnancy? Because their registration was decreed by the bureaucrats of the Roman Empire. Their genealogies were both out of the line of Judah. Joseph’s ancestry – the royal genealogy of Jesus in Matthew – came through King David, himself.

Bethlehem, the city of David, was the place where Roman magistrates had located themselves to receive those who were of the tribe of Judah. Sukkot is also one of the 3 Moedim that EVERY Israelite was commanded to be present in Jerusalem.Was this the reason everywhere was full?

In Ezekiel 16, the prophet is speaking out against the citizens of Jerusalem who were unfaithful to God and His commandments and uses the symbolic reference of washing, salting and swaddling. The failure to perform this tradition was symbolic of disloyalty and unfaithfulness to God.       

The term swaddling clothes to the Semitic mind was expressing the idea of loyalty and faithfulness to God. So with this narrative, Luke wanted to make sure that we realized that this child that was born, was not only the Son of God, but a Son who would be loyal and faithful to Heavenly Father. Nothing could have been more accurate; Jesus was so loyal and faithful, that He would be faithful and loyal even unto the death on the cross.

Later, as Jesus began His public ministry, He came to John the Baptist who rightly discerned His historical role and destiny:

“And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith,

Behold the Lamb of God!” John. 1:36.

How amazing that in John’s Gospel, He also referred to Himself as the “bread of life” (Jn. 6:48).

At a precise moment in the timeline of human history,

in the City of David,

the Lamb of God

came to the House of Bread – Beth Lechem

at Migdal Eder – the Tower of the Flock!

As final food for thought……..  

With the proximity of the Tower so close to where we are told Messiah was born, is there a possibility that Mary and Joseph sought refuge in that very tower, the one where the new born lambs were protected at birth and raised for sacrificial purposes? Did they use the

swaddling clothes on Messiah

that had been readied to wrap those new born lambs?

The pieces of cloth that had once been part of the High Priests garments that were regularly replaced but not thrown away as they were considered Holy; they were reused for the newborns after they had been soiled with blood from the sacrificial lambs and animals!

Was the manger in which He was placed located in

the Tower of the Flock/Migdal Eder

and was it the first resting place of the Chief Shepherd?

The Spotless Lamb of God?So now we know how Rachel, Jacob, swaddling clothes, shepherds, a manger and a lamb are connected to Ephraph and the mysterious Edar tower prophesied by Micah 700 years BC!

Shalom, shalom mishpachah/family

and cheverim/friends!

It’s all about Life and Relationship,

NOT Religion.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

NOT SURE?

YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART 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.