Tag: Repentance
Who Is Searching For Who?
Doing a search is a popular statement these days.
We are able to search the internet using digital ‘search engines’ to find out details on whatever subject we want..
Many times all we ever hear is
“I looked it up using a search engine on our web browser..”
…and there are several well known names we use.
These AI (artificial intelligences) answers to our search, are so immediate that we have come to prefer this instant answer, instead of asking the Lord and waiting patiently for His Holy Spirit to tell us; or by taking the time to research for ourselves in the Bible and Dictionaries or Thesaurus. We need to be aware of not allowing a popular search engine and the internet to be our source of supply instead of or in preference to our Heavenly Father.
We are to Search/Zarah
or Seek
the Lord with all our hearts
….and He will direct our paths.
Prov.3:5,6 & Deut.4:29
We are to Seek for Him while He may be found.
6 Seek the LORD while He may be found;
call on Him while He is near Is 55:6
However there is a Psalm where David states that
the Lord
searches
out our path.
Psalm 139:3 You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.
Below are various translations where some say search, others say discern, comprehend, know and compassest.
ESV: You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Psalm 139:3,
Psalm 139 :3, NIV: You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Psalm 139:3,
KJV: Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
Berean Standard Bible You search out my path and my lying down; You are aware of all my ways.
American Standard Version Thou searchest out my path and my lying down, And art acquainted with all my ways.
Aramaic Bible in Plain English You know my way and my steps and you have investigated all my ways.
English Revised Version Thou searchest out my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
King James Bible Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
A Hebrew word for SEARCH is ZARAH 2219
verb
זָרָה
zaw-raw
scrutinize, spread, scatter, winnow
Almost every modern English translation of the Bible will have a different rendering for the word search – zarah.
Some others are:
Living Bible: sees me
Aramaic Bible: know my ways
Holman Bible: observes me
International standard version: scrutinize my life.
King James version: compassest me
ESV: search me
Douay Reams Bible: understood me
New English translation: observes me
And NIV: discerns me
In all these different renderings, not one is wrong or better than another, and it could be that our Heavenly Father is showing us the rich meaning and depth of His Word. Through these words His Spirit reveals to us a greater understanding of the message He wants to impart to us. So in this case there is not a translation that is incorrect.
The Hebrew word comes from a primitive root: zuwr; to toss about; by implication, to diffuse, winnow — cast away, compass, disperse, fan, scatter (away), spread, strew, winnow.
Recall that every letter of a Hebrew word has its’ own meaning and pictograph. Each letter is a word and here the word zarah is spelled:
zayin resh hei.
זָרָה
The zayin זָ represents and looks like a sword which cut something open to expose the inner layers.
The resh רָ is bent over to the left some of the ancient Hebrew sages tell us that it is a sign of humility or shame.
The letter hei/hey ה is the third letter which represents the presence of God.
When God cuts through us and reveals what is inside of us it brings us to shame and humility in His presence…..However He does not leave us there…it’s a process.
Here the meanings: scrutinize, spread, scatter, winnow, carefully investigate; remind us of Messiahs words that were describing the divide and sift that was to come for His disciples in order to test their faith.
Just as Messiah Jesus/Yeshua said to Simon in Luke.
Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Luke 22:31-32 (NASB)
The Greek word which is translated as
demanded actually has the idea of a request.
satan has desired to sift you ALL…
WHY is this necessary?…
it is for us to see what is in us.
Messiah/Jesus said
the devil comes and finds nothing in me.
The key word in the phrase he has nothing in Me is nothing. The English word nothing is the correct translation of the Greek which is ou oudeis.
The word ou means not
and oudeis means no one, none or nothing.
When the Greek word ou is combined with oudeis,
nothing becomes emphatic.
The Greek phrase is a Hebrew idiom which has the legal sense of no claim.
Therefore, Messiah was simply saying that Satan had
no legal claim on Him.
In what sense does Satan have no legal claim on Messiah?
The answer is that Satan has no authority, claim or control over Messiah Jesus/Yeshua in any way, but he does have control over the world systems, kingdoms and non-believers.
There are two important points to help us understand what Satan controls.
The first point is that during the temptation of Messiah by the devil, he reveals that he has authority over the kingdoms of the world Luke 4:5-6. Notice that the devil states all of the kingdoms of the world were handed over to me.
And he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.” Luke 4:5-6 (NASB)
These verses help us understand that the devil not only owns the kingdoms of the world, but he controls them as well. Luke 4:5-6.
The second point is that in John 8:43-44 we read that non-Christians, (those who do not accept and believe that Jesus/Yeshua was and is the only begotten Son of the Living God and died in our place;) are under the control of the devil and have the same desires as the devil.
Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. John 8:43-44 (NASB)
The Greek word translated as of in the phrase
of your father the devil is the Greek word ekin.
It means out.
This means the Pharisees were like the devil, out of, being of that seed.
1 John 3:10 also reveals that we belong to either Christ or the devil.
By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother. 1 John 3:10 (NASB)
The verse tells us every man and woman either belongs to God or belongs to the devil. Those who practice sin belong to the devil. The verses before and after verse 10 make this clear, non-Christians belong to Satan and he has control of them because they are not Christians. Scripture states that the devil is the god of this age, the ruler of this world, and the prince of the power of the air.
We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. 1 John 5:19 (NASB)
In contrast 1 John 5:18 tells us that Christians cannot be touched or controlled by Satan.
We know that no one who is born of God sins; but He who was born of God keeps him, and the evil one does not touch him. 1 John 5:18 (NASB)
Therefore, since Messiah/Christ was God and sinless, Satan could not control Him.
Satan had no legal claim on Him.
This is why Messiah said, . . . he has nothing in Me… and when satan tempted Him in the wilderness, he was not successful: Matthew 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13. Messiah/Christ was without sin Hebrews 4:15.
Can we say the same…
What will be exposed
when we are sifted and scrutinized
by His Spirit of Holiness?
Who will withstand the time of shaking?
What will the light expose in us?
Once our Heavenly Father has opened us up and revealed all the shameful things in our lives; He does not leave us in that state, He cleans up our lives so they are worthy to carry His indwelling presence. He is going to pursue us until we are willing to let Him open us and cleanse us, so that He can abide/live inside of us and we can become what He created us to be in the first place.
He will zarah/search us in our lying down.
The word for lying down is rava’ . רָבַע
raba: to lie stretched out, lie down
(recall the letters b and v are interchangeable.)
Original Word: רָבַע
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: raba
Phonetic Spelling: raw-bah’
Definition: to lie stretched out, lie down
Strong’s Hebrew: 7250. רָבַע (raba) —
to lie stretched out, lie down
This word comes from old Akkadian word RV,
which has the idea of lying down to reproduce.
raba: to lie stretched out, lie down
In all modern ways of understanding today, our Heavenly Father is watching us even in our most private moments. He is there looking for anything that may hinder the fullness of His presence in our lives. When He finds it, He pursues us until we confess only pure motives and honest intentions of our hearts towards Him. He searches for anything that could prevent Him from being all He longs to be in our lives. He observes the fruit of our lives, our actions and what is reproduced, then He prunes us so that we will bear even more fruit.
Is He really that intrusive /interested in our lives, watching and observing our paths and even our most Intimate moments?
He is obviously acquainted with all our ways.
Here that word acquaint in Hebrew is
katan which is used in a hiphal form.
spelled with a letter c or k. Strongs 5532
cakan — to be of use or service, benefit
cakan: benefit
Original Word: סָכַן
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: cakan
Phonetic Spelling: saw-kan’
… acquaint self, be advantage, ever, be, unprofitable, treasurer.
A primitive root; to be familiar with; by implication, to minister to, be serviceable to, be customary — acquaint (self), be advantage, X ever, (be, (un-))profit(-able), treasurer, be wont.
Hiph`il Perfect1singular הִסְכַּ֫נְתִּי Numbers 22:20; 2masculine singular הִסְבַּ֑נְתָּה Psalm 139:3;
Imperative הַסְכֶּןנָֿא Job 22:21;
Infinitive abs. הַסְכֵּן Numbers 22:30; — be used, wont, strictly exhibit use, or habit,
הַהַסְכֵּן הִסְכַּנְתִּי לַעֲשת לְךָ כֹּה Numbers 22:30 (J)
have I ever shewn the habit of doing thus to thee? hence shew harmony with (עִם) one Job 22:21, be familiar with, know intimately (subject ׳י) Psalm 139:3 (with accusative דְּרָכַי).
The word katan seems to have its origins in an ancient Phoenician word developed from: examining a wound to determine how to care for it.
It is a diagnostic search or a familiarizing. When used in a hiphal form it gives the picture of: God is not observing all our ways to make notes and assign grades for our performance; but to determine and understand the best way to correct and heal whatever wounds have been left as He fills us with His presence.
Like David there are no doubt many things in our lives we are ashamed of. Even though God has forgiven us we still have scars that remind us of our past sins and even some open wounds still remain that must be healed.
Maybe David is saying here that our Heavenly Father searches us out, even in our most intimate moments, to clean us up and forgive every single sin, no matter how secret and hidden we think it is. This is so He can enter our lives and fill us with His presence, His Spirit of Holiness.
There is another Hebrew word for
search – chaqar
resh quph chet
which also means:
to investigate,
examine thoroughly in order to expose a weakness.
Weaknesses can be in the form of old unhealed wounds and spiritual scars.
It is not only that He will search us, but He will also closely examine all of our wounds to determine the best treatment to heal them; so we can rest totally in His presence without the hindrance of guilt and shame. When we are running from God, resisting His searching gaze, it is often because we really don’t want to be cleaned up. We like our secret sins and we are comfortable with our wounds, preferring to live and walk as a casualty, with a victim mentality.
However, because our Father loves us and does not want to lose us, He will keep chasing after us until we allow Him to catch up with us and until we surrender; then He can clean us up and heal all our wounds. There are those rooms in our ‘house’ that need a deep, spiritual spring-cleaning. Attics, basements, cupboards and closets full of memories and hurts; those corners of our hearts and minds that we have closed off for too long.
It is only when we truly surrender and stop running, that we will discover the freedom giving joy of His presence. A relationship that is unhindered by sin, guilt and shame is one that allows true loving intimacy, the spiritual connection with our Creator Father, that of katan with Him.
Today…it’s time to stop running and hiding from Him, we often stay too busy to take the time we need to be in His presence.
We need Him, and we must seek His face/presence and only then we will find Him. If we truly want to walk with Him, it is critical to lay down self. Nothing less than total submission, a repentant heart and allowing Him to search us, will bring true humility and openness spiritually; which precedes the personal revival, restoration, maturity and Holiness of His called-apart-ecclesia.
Today it’s is time to answer the question for our own life….
Who is Searching For Who?
Shalom shalom mishpachah/family
and cheverim/friends!
You are loved, appreciated and prayed for
… and…
it’s all about Life and Relationship,
NOT Religion.
You are 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
Five Chosen In A Line Unbroken – Part 5
Toldot of the Melech
Generations of the King
Tol’dot, Toldos, or Tol’doth – Generations
תּוֹלְדֹת
Melech – King
מֶלֶךְ.
The book of the generation of Jesus Christ,
the son of David, the son of Abraham.
2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob;
and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren;
3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara
of
THAMAR
and Phares begat Esrom;
and Esrom begat Aram;
4 And Aram begat Aminadab;
and Aminadab begat Naasson;
and Naasson begat Salmon;
5 And Salmon begat Booz
of
RACHAB;
and Booz begat Obed of
RUTH;
and Obed begat Jesse;
6 And Jesse begat David the king;
and David the king begat Solomon of
her that had been
THE WIFE OF URIAS;
7 And Solomon begat Roboam; and Roboam begat Abia;
and Abia begat Asa;
8 And Asa begat Josaphat; and Josaphat begat Joram;
and Joram begat Ozias;
9 And Ozias begat Joatham; and Joatham begat Achaz;
and Achaz begat Ezekias;
10 And Ezekias begat Manasses; and Manasses begat Amon;
and Amon begat Josias;
11 And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren,
about the time they were carried away to Babylon:
12 And after they were brought to Babylon,
Jechonias begat Salathiel;
and Salathiel begat Zorobabel;
13 And Zorobabel begat Abiud; and Abiud begat Eliakim;
and Eliakim begat Azor;
14 And Azor begat Sadoc; and Sadoc begat Achim;
and Achim begat Eliud;
15 And Eliud begat Eleazar; and Eleazar begat Matthan;
and Matthan begat Jacob;
16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband
of
MARY,
of whom was born
JESUS,
who is called Christ.
Here is the last one of the five
written in the geneology of Messiah.
The identity of her that had been
the wife of Urias;
is
Bathsheba
בת שבע
Strong’s Hebrew: 1339.
בַּת־שֶׁ֫בַע (Bath-sheba)
Bath-sheba:
(perhaps) daughter of oath,
the mother of Solomon
Original Word: בַּת־שֶׁבַע
Transliteration: Bath-sheba
Phonetic Spelling: bath-sheh’-bah
from bath and perhaps shaba, sheba
בת ( bath ): Ahban, Baalis, Baana (h), Bath-shua, Ben, Ben-abinadab, Ben-ammi, Ben-deker, Bene-berak, Bene-jaakan,… • Via שבע ( sheba’ ): Barsabbas, Beersheba, Beth-ashbea, Elisheba, Elizabeth, Jehosheba, Sheba
Bathsheba, also spelled Bethsabee, in the Hebrew Bible.
2 Samuel 11, 12; 1 Kings 1, 2,
Bathsheba:
Bat ‘daughter of’,
sheba ‘abundance’.
The Book of Chronicles changed her name to Bathshua.
Her story can be found in 1Kings chapters 1 and 2
As this womans’ dramatic life unfolded, it also secured her place in the geneology of the future Messiah of Israel. Her role is looked at as rather a questionable one because it is not really certain who seduced who?
Bathsheba is portrayed by the midrash as a modest woman who carefully observed the laws of family purity, but who found herself, without any conscious action on her part, in an adulterous affair with the king.
Taking a look at the situation from another angle let the reader research/be a good Berean and decide.
Things are not always what they first appear to be!
Usually the first thing we associate with King David is his adulterous affair with Bathsheba as both were married at the time however, before we condemn them both out of hand we must recall that Jesus/Yeshua said in Matt 5:
27 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
The scriptures also refer to adultery as being with other gods and idols
…when… backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also… through the lightness of her whoredoms, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and stocks (sticks/idols).” Jeremiah 3:8-9
so it covers a multitude of sins and its a lifelong battle over faith in Jesus/Yeshua vs. faith in Idols of the Heart. Idolatry is of paramount importance as it violates the first and greatest of what we refer to as the 10 commandments.
“You shall have no other gods before Me” Ex 20:3 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart . . .” Mt. 22:36.
And who among us can say we have not sinned in some way…
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.
Rom. 3:10-18
As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are altogether become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
John 8:7.
“So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her.”
Of course it goes without saying that it takes two and there is no indication of forcing her against her will…
So with that in mind and before we condemn anyone…..
lets see how the story unfolds…
First who was she?
Bathsheba was the daughter of Eliam
who was one of David’s elite mighty men.
2 Samuel 11:3; 23:34 – 39
Bathsheba the daughter of Eliam; but of Ammiel
according to I Chron 3:5,
Her father is identified by some scholars with Eliam,
mentioned in 2 Sam. 23:34 as
the son of Ahithophel.
She was married to one of Eliams comrades in arms called
Urias,
more commonly known as
Uriah the Hittite.
אוּרִיָּה הַחִתִּי – ʾŪriyyāh haḥittī
Yahweh is my light’.
So Bathsheba was the beautiful grand-daughter of Ahithophel, a shrewd military and political counselor of David.
Her father and husband were stationed at Jerusalem, directly under the control of the King. They were David’s personal bodyguards, his champions, renowned for their bravery.
So being as she was a member of an elite warrior family, as her husband Uriah was a high-ranking professional soldier. Since her grandfather, father and husband were close allies of David’s, it is safe to assume that she and David had already met before the famous scene where David sees her bathing.
Uriah being a mighty man in David’s elite army, may have been bonded to David, becoming a proselyte; i.e. believing in the God of Israel.
Uriah was also among the specially regarded Thirty of David’s army, implying he was one of the best soldiers in the military. We assume that all who were counted among David’s mighty men were men David deemed to be trustworthy.
Uriah was listed as one of David’s heroes in 2 Samuel 23:39. The most important of these was Uriah the Hittite.
What is Uriah’s family connection?
To understand the genealogy of Uriah, we must start at the beginning with Noah’s son Ham. Most researchers will readily admit that Ham is considered to be the father of the African nations. If this is true, then it would mean that Ham’s descendants are Africans. It can be found in Genesis 10, where Uriah’s family connection is identified as belonging to Ham.
The name of Ham’s sons are: Cush, Mizraim, Phut and Canaan.
The Hitittes are descendants of Canaan.
The canaanites are in the land of Canaan and their descendant families are: Hivites, Jebusites, Arvadites, Girgashites, Amorites, Arkites, Sinites, Hittites-Heth.
דוד DAVID
David means: beloved
Original Word: דָּוִד.
Phonetic Spelling: daw-veed’
a son of Jesse.
David – דָּוִד is described in the Hebrew Bible as:
King of the United Monarchy of Israel and Judah.
In the Books of Samuel, David is a young shepherd who gains fame first as a musician
and later by killing the enemy champion Goliath.
He becomes a favorite of King Saul and
a close friend of Saul’s son Jonathan.
The first reference to Bathsheba in this scripture describes her as very beautiful.
It is also where we read about David walking in the early evening on his palace rooftop and he looks down on his city where he saw her bathing in the privacy of her courtyard.
This scripture in 2 Sam 11:2-4 tells us several things; first
It was late one afternoon, Bathsheba was most probably on the house’s flat roof, a tented area in a warm climate was often used by the women of the family for a variety of tasks.
The Jewish tradition of purification applied to women every month and they were considered to be unclean and the bathing ended the 7 days separation by the ritual cleansing.
This points to 2 things:
it shows she was not carrying Uriah’s child, and it was a normal practice to be purified, and therefore not necessarily a planned provocative act.
The scriptures do not mention any other children between Bathsheba and Uriah.
The terrace may or may not have been screened by latticework
in Judges 5:28 the mother of Sisera watched the road through a lattice.
The text does not tell us whether Bathsheba knew she was being watched.
David may have been screened from sight by a lattice, so that she was unaware of his presence. Or she may have been quite aware she was being watched.
Did she go willingly? Or was she a victim taken to the palace against her will?
The text gives a clue that she went willingly.
The sentence reads
‘…David sent messengers to get her, and she went‘,
suggesting that, though young, she was ambitious and strong-willed enough to seize her chance.
The proximity of her dwelling was close enough for David to see because her husband was one of his mighty men he would have been close at hand if needed.
Jerusalem at the time of King David.
The small area in the lower right of the map is Jebus, the fortress captured by David. The walled area above is a large flat rock on which the city of Jerusalem grew. The house of Uriah and the palace of David may have been in the upper area.
Second, David should have been at war out on the battlefield but he was not, he was at home.
Wrong place, wrong time and he saw something he wasn’t supposed to see?
His physical senses were activated and he desired /lusted after what his eyes beheld. A covetous desire entered in through his eye gates….
So he sent someone to find out who she was.
Sadly even after he found out whose wife she was 11: 4 he sent messengers to bring her to him. The fact that she was married to Uriah did not deter him from his decision.
The eternal question is… did she know that David could see her or did she think he was away fighting which was usually the case?
Then, could she have resisted his moves; or did she have no other choice due to the fact that the ancient societies were dominated by men and after all he was the King?
It is interesting that the scripture condemns David however, it does not put the blame on Bathsheba. Further reading shows us that not only did David suffer for the rest of his life as a consequence of his lustful choice; both their family and the entire nation of Israel paid the price.
Was she also a clever and unscrupulous woman?
The next we hear is that Bathsheba was going to have his child. On receiving this news David called Uriah back from the battlefield, encouraging him to go home and spend intimate time with his wife in an effort to cover up his actions.
Uriah refused at first; it almost seems that he had to have known what was going on, and why he was summoned. There were plenty of people to tell him – maybe outraged family members who had seen Bathsheba go to the palace? Or soldier-friends who had watched her pass through the guard-house at the entrance of the palace?
Above:The reconstruction of the gates at Gezer shows the sort of gates Bathsheba would have passed through to get to the palace. Note the compartments at the side of each gate.
These provided shelter for guards on duty, and she and David’s messenger could not have passed through without the soldiers seeing them.
The events of that night would probably have been known to many people.
But there is no record saying that Uriah confronted David with what he knew. Instead, he took the line of passive resistance. He told David he would not break the rules of soldiers on active service since he was still technically on duty.
Ancient people believed that marital relations robbed a man of some of his physical strength, so during active service soldiers were required to abstain from them.
Next, David tried again by plying him with intoxicating liquor. but despite every inducement, Uriah stuck to his stance of faithful behavior to his position in Davids military.
When that did not work either, David plotted a cold-blooded murder in order to cover up his sin.
He sent Uriah back onto the battlefield with a sealed letter to the army’s captain, Joab, who was Uriahs commander; with the very clear and ominous instructions in 2 Samuel 11:15 to arrange Uriahs’ death.
We are told that the plans succeeded and in verse 26
Soon after Uriah had returned to the army and delivered the letter, he was sent into battle to storm the walls of a city. Following David’s instructions, the soldiers around Uriah pulled back and left him alone, so that he was surrounded by the enemy and cut down.
The sin began with covetous lust for what belonged to another, then it selfishly took what it wanted to satiate that desire and the scripture fulfilled itself in this case literally. The progress included lies, deception, then murder, leading to the death of an innocent.
Then the lust, when it has conceived, bears sin; and the sin, when it is full grown, brings forth death. James 1:15
‘When the wife of Uriah heard that her husband was dead, she made lamentation for him.’
Bathsheba suddenly became a widow and went into mourning.
Did Bathsheba know that David had arranged to have her husband killed?
Did she mourn for the death of a good man?
Or was her mourning just pretense?
The story of Bathsheba’s seduction as we have it in the Bible was probably edited by court story-tellers during the reign of her son Solomon, and doubtless influenced by Bathsheba and her son.
This is why it is so hard to tell what really happened.
We only know two things:
what Bathsheba wanted us to know, and
what she was forced to acknowledge because it was already public knowledge.
Following the time of mourning, David married her and she gave birth to a son.
However vs.27 tells us the Lord was displeased with Davids’ actions.
This treachery in breaking the trusting relationship between him and his friend, gives us the insight that even the Godliest people are sinners.
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God…
It seems to be very conflicting when in 1Samuel 13 :14 we are told very surprisingly that:
David/he was a man after God’s own heart.
which seems strange after this course of events.
However this is in reference to the fact that
he was repentant.
And as God looks on the heart this quantifies the statement.
Even though God forgives the truly repentant person – the consequences of that sin can linger on long after the initial event and the time of repentance. This is why people think they have got away with things and often don’t relate events that occur even years later with previous actions.
Repentance – Teshuvah
RETURN to the Lord and His ways.
It was nine months later when David repented following the confrontation from Nathan the prophet finally David confessed in verse 12:13
I have sinned against the Lord.
The prophet Nathan’s words recorded in the spine chilling verses 13&14
and even though David fasted and prayed for seven days the words of the prophet came true. Sin brought forth death and what David had sown he reaped – death.
Surely Bathsheba’s heart was broken for there are very few things worse than losing a child.
However, overtime David comforted her and later she gave birth to another son whom David called Solomon.
Shlomo/Solomon in Hebrew shelomoh,
שלמה
has a meaning of
his replacement,
perhaps referring to Bathsheba’s first baby who died soon after birth.
Scripture says that the Lord sent Nathan with another word calling him
Jedidiah which means:
beloved of the Lord. Vs 24/25
Even though there were consequences from their actions and there was punishment for them God did not withhold his love from David, Bathsheba, or their child; but instead poured out His mercy and Grace on them.
Furthermore, He did not change His mind concerning his promise to establish David’s line for ever; and would choose their son, Solomon to establish that Royal line and so keep the Davidic covenant.
7:12 – 13.
Years passed, and Bathsheba and King David grew older. We hear nothing about Bathsheba’s life during these long years and probably the rest of her life was spent in the palace.
She lived in the royal harem and gave birth to three more sons; however Solomon was the one chosen by the Lord.
David’s life was one of adversity 12:10-11, of ups and downs and an out-working of the punishment that, the sword would never depart from his house; for what he had done.
The events in their lives shaped history with some of the most painful examples of rebellion by Absalom.
Bathshebas emotions must have been in shreds especially when Ahithophel, her own grandfather join forces with Absalom to fight against David. 15:31 11:3; 23:24.
It’s very possible there is some truth to the speculation that Ahithophel turned on David’s as an act of revenge for seducing his granddaughter and murdering her husband.
Bathshebas influence became stronger in the royal court as David came to the end of his life.
In his old age, David lost his ability to father any more children and in consequence, his political power.
Eventually, concerns arose about the king’s continuing decline – in ancient Middle Eastern societies, the ability to produce children by the king, was closely linked with the state of the nation. If the king was no longer able, it was a bad omen for the well-being of the country.
So they searched for a beautiful girl throughout all the territory of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. The girl was very beautiful. 1 Kings 1:1-37
When, despite her beauty, the king could not show he was able to have relations with Abishag, it was considered time for a co-regency. This meant that someone would rule alongside David, to help him.
Most people took it for granted that this co-regent would be the next king.
David’s oldest surviving son was Adonijah, a young man impatient for power.
Not waiting for David to die, he proclaimed himself king and was accepted as such by many people.
The text implies this was done without David’s knowledge. It was a palace coup in which Bathsheba and her adviser Nathan maneuvered to secure the throne for Solomon.
1Kings 1-2, Nathan came to her to warn her that Adonaijah was planning to make himself king, Nathan encouraged her to go and tell David immediately 1:13. On hearing the prophet, she went and told David what he had said. Because he respected her, David was able to order Solomons coronation immediately and this stopped Adonaijah rebellious attempt from becoming king.
Bathsheba begs the dying David to name Solomon his heir,
from a painting by Goodall
Solomon took the throne, honored his mother, and was advised by her. She took part in court intrigues, occupying the most prestigious position a woman could hold, and accepted the title of Queen Mother; which was the most powerful position a woman could hold and the first woman in the history of Israel to hold this title.
Bathsheba out witted Adonijah in his attempted coup d’etat and she secured the throne for her own son.
According to the Bible, Adonijah approached Bathsheba with an odd request: to help him get Abishag as his wife.
Adonijah begs for Bathsheba’s help.
On the surface, this seems a harmless thing to ask, but Abishag was considered one of David’s wives, and marriage to a widow of the previous king was a way of making a claim on the throne!
It is hard to believe Adonijah would have made such a request, to Bathsheba of all people. She knew only too well that Adonijah was very dangerous and could never marry Abishag.
The whole episode seems to have been contrived to execute Adonijah. Solomon may have been reluctant to do this and so it took a public accusation of treason, made by Bathsheba, to give him good reason for killing his half-brother.
In 2:19-24 we read that Solomon didn’t always grant Bathshebas requests however, he respected her, bowed to her and even put a throne for her right next to his; and she remained a respected influence within the court.
This is the last we hear of Bathsheba, maybe because her son was secure on the throne and her own position was safe.
Bathsheba would have no doubt been aware of Gods’ plan to include Solomon in the Royal line of King David; which the Scriptures said would somehow continue forever.
She would not have known how far the story would eventually lead in that, she would become integral to the genealogy line of the future Messiah of Israel.
The scriptures show Bathsheba as capable, ambitious, and gifted. She gave David a son, Solomon, who was noted for his wisdom and intellectual brilliance. Her son presided over a court famous for its literature, culture, wealth, architectural achievements, and consolidation of Judah-Israel as a nation-state.
Bathsheba is clearly listed in Matthew chapter 1 even though her Name is not mentioned per se, stating only:
her who had been the wife of Uriah!
The whole promise of the Redeemer is in
Genesis 3:15
which declares the seed of a woman
through many wombs/rechem,
grace and mercy…
More on the connection between Womb and Mercy at:
https://www.minimannamoments.com/mystery-of-rechem-the-secret-of-living-like-royalty/
https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-season-of-our-hiding/
will bring that about
and will crush satan and the sin that he caused.
The promise of the coming Messiah
echoes all throughout the Old Testament/Tenach and
the Brit Chadashah/New Testament
declares
He is here
and His Name is Yeshua/Jesus.
Matt 1:1.
The most amazing thing about this first chapter is that it goes against the Jewish protocol because it includes five individuals in the line of Messiahs genealogy, these 5 were women, usually only men were named.
However, God has a very good reason for including them because it emphasizes the whole truth of the gospel and the reason why Jesus/Yeshua came.
It is in His Name –
Salvation
for He shall save His people from their sins v.21
Ephesians 1:11 – 12 tells us that He is in control, and every time He shows His grace and mercy and His undeserved kindness to those who have sinned and deserve punishment …all glory goes to Him.
Even though Solomon became the wisest man that lived and according to Scripture in Ecclesiastes 7:20
Even he was very aware that there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.
God’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting and His mercies are new every morning…
Great is His faithfulness
and all these stories are written for us to shows these truths.
Bathsheba is four of the five in the line unbroken,
whose lives give hope to the lost,
encouragement to the disappointed,
acceptance to the rejected,
a raising up to those who have fallen;
and forgiveness for the repentance sinner.
Humble hearts touched by the unconditional love of a father who loves His children so much that He
corrects,
chastises and restores us;
in the process of teaching, training
and growing us up;
to become all that has destined us to be.
When we truly understand the reason
for His adjustments in our lives, we will start to welcome them,
instead of trying to side step them.
If we are being attended to, then we are greatly loved by Him.
For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, And scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. –
and you have forgotten the exhortation which reasons with you as with sons, “My son, don’t take lightly the chastening of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by him; For whom the Lord loves, he chastens, And scourges every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you endure. God deals with you as with sons, for what son is there whom his father doesn’t discipline? But if you are without discipline, whereof all have been made partakers, then are you illegitimate, and not sons. Furthermore, we had the fathers of our flesh to chasten us, and we paid them respect. Shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live? For they indeed, for a few days, punished us as seemed good to them; but he for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holiness. All chastening seems for the present to be not joyous but grievous; yet afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been exercised thereby. -Hebrews 12:5-11
His Story is HiStory – God is the author of it all.
Everything is purposed Eph 1:11 and Romans 8
Knowing this is often a mute point, however, we need to carefully consider as we look at the reality of the fact –
it is all
HIS STORY
from The Genesis to the Revealing
the only true and correct history IS GODS’ not mans’.
Humans who are influenced by the spirits in this world, Eph. 6; that are not promoting His Story; change parts, times and in many cases, huge chunks of information. Facts have been altered and in some cases not just hidden but are outright lies.
What we are taught we simply believe, trusting those who filled our innocent minds as children. If we have not got a solid foundation from the Word of God, we will not have His truth and we will see and experience this life with a skewed view point and confused understanding.
Many call it providence yet in reality it is what someone said is,
the hand of God in the glove of history.
As we move from tragedy to triumph for the glory of God, we often wonder how our individual lives fit into Gods plan; yet we trust Him that all things are purposed.
We are predestined to become… Romans 8:30.
It is not until after things unfold that we see with 2020 vision..
which is hindsight.
This is called the walk of faith – for if we knew what was to happen then we would not need faith to believe –
we would know!
Their descendent was and is
our Savior, Lord and
soon returning king.
Bathsheba
was indeed
one of five,
another notable woman
sealed into
the line unbroken
another story connected to the
House of Bread
Beth-Lechem
and of Him, who when we eat of,
we will never hunger again for
He is the Bread of Life!
Don’t leave this page until you are certain you are grafted in to this family, this royal hose of David that this geneology is true for your life too….that
You are His offspring,
a child of THE KING of KINGS
Shalom, shalom, mishpachah!
You are loved and appreciated and prayed for daily.
Please don’t leave this page without the knowing in your heart you are totally His.
You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.
Its all about Life and Relationship, not Religion.
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.
What Is The Connection Between Aliyah, Aloe, Spikenard, Gardens, Trumpets and a Plough?
In the recent Post: Swords, Mountains and Gardens, the garden of Solomon was referred to… because
A shofar is a rams horn/trumpet.
winds blow, trumpets blow, Gods’ Spirit blows and there is a connection between Edens Garden
where Gods life was blown into Adam that is the same spirit of the bridegroom blowing upon the garden in song of Solomon
Awake, O north wind, and come, O south, Cause my garden to breathe forth, its’ spices let flow…
Blow on my garden, that its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and taste his precious fruits.
AMPC [You have called me a garden, she said] Oh, I pray that the [cold] north wind and the [soft] south wind may blow upon my garden, that its spices may flow out [in abundance for you in whom my soul delights].
she calls the garden both hers and his, because of that oneness which is between them, Song of Solomon 2:16 & 4:16, whereby they have a common interest one in another’s person and concerns. This is of course symbolic of our relationship with the Lord, (the Bridegroom Yeshua/Jesus and the ecclesia/called out, ‘church’); as it is of Israel to her God.
That the spices thereof may flow out; that my graces may be exercised to thy glory, the edification of others, and my own comfort.
Aliyah and the Plough.
עֲלִיָּה – Aliyah
There are several meanings to Aliyah in Judaism. Aliyah has the meaning for immigration of Jews from the diaspora to the Land of Israel (Eretz Yisrael in Hebrew).
Also defined as “the act of going up”—that is, towards Jerusalem—”making Aliyah” by moving to the Land of Israel is one of the most basic tenets of being an Israelite.
Another is the honor of reciting the blessings over the Torah and standing at the bimah while it is read; this is also called an aliyah (plural, aliyot), which means “going up.” This refers both to the physical ascent of the person to the bimah where the Torah is read and to the spiritual uplifting associated with participation in this event.
The third is connected to the Three Pilgrimage Festivals which are:
Sukkot/ סוכות /Feast of Tabernacles /Festival of Booths which commemorates the wanderings of the Israelites in the desert after the exodus when they resided in booths. It is also the harvest festival – the gathering of the fruits and grain from the field before the rains.
Passover/Pesach: the celebration of the exodus from Egypt is also the Spring Festival and the barley harvest and,
Pentecost/Shavuot: is a celebration of the giving of the Torah, the grain harvest, and the festival of the first fruits.
“Three times each year, all your males shall thus present themselves before God the Master, Lord of Israel.” (Exodus 34:23)
During the times of the Temple, three times a year the Israelites were called to pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
One in Passover/Pesach springtime, the second in early summer, Pentecost /Shavuot and the third for Sukkot in the autumn/fall; also called the Feast of Tabernacles/Booths. Of course there are 4 other feasts Unleavened Bread is connected to Passover; Yom Teruah/Trumpets and Yom Kippur are immediately prior to tabernacles.
The journey they all made is called the ALIYAH or the going up.
shloshet haregalim
הרגלים שלושת
Simply because where ever you come from your journey was going to be an upward one in elevation due to Jerusalem’s location on seven hills.
According to the tradition, the pilgrims used to stay with local Jerusalem families and despite the high number of visitors there was always room for all of them.
The pilgrims would bring the priests of the temple gifts from their fruits, harvest, cattle and flocks.
The main objective of the pilgrimage was to visit the Temple. Since the destruction of the Temple, the pilgrimage isn’t observed anymore.
As they traveled they sang and recited the Psalms of Ascent. The word ascent means a step, or an upwards climb. The Songs of Ascent is the ancient title of a collection of 15 Psalms, (or sacred songs).
These Psalms are so called because of the Aliyah and comprise Psalms 120 -134. They are also sometimes called Pilgrim Songs.
Israel Jerusalem old city; typical street sign in Hebrew/Arabic/ English. Note the word Ascent bottom right of the street signs because this was part of the road along which they walked.
Glazed ceramic street sign in English/Hebrew and Arabic of as saraya/ascent in the muslim quarter old city east Jerusalem Israel.
In Hebrew, the word Ascent is מעלה (ma’alah) which is used to describe upward movement, such as going up a hill or climbing stairs.
This was by way of preparation for the upcoming Yom Kippur/Day of Atonement, and the week of Tabernacles/Sukkot that followed.
It gave time for the Israelites to get their hearts right. This was an annual ‘making things right with God time’, prior to the first coming of Messiah.
Teshuvah
תְּשׁוּבָה, “turning to God”
In Modern Hebrew teshuvah means an “answer” to a shelah, or a question.
Here, God’s love for us is the question, and our teshuvah – our turning of the heart toward Him – is the answer.
Teshuvah is the Hebrew word for repentance and literally means to return to our Heavenly Father… and obey Him.
Deuteronomy 4:30 30 When you are in distress and all these things have come upon you, in the latter days you will return to YHVH your Elohim and listen to His voice.
Teshuvah is one of the great gifts God gives each of us – the ability to turn back to Him and seek healing for our brokenness.
There is a period of ten days between
Rosh HaShanah/Head of the Year/The Feast of Trumpets
and
Yom Kippur / יום כיפור/ The Day of Atonement, which are called the
“Days of Awe/Yamin Nora’im/עשרת ימי תשובה,”
They are also called Aseret Yemei Teshuvah – the “Ten Days of Repentance.”
Then the blood of the Yom Kippur sacrifice was placed in the Holy of Holies, on the Kapporet/mercy seat, as the High Priest entered before the ark at this one time of the year.
These sacrifices are no longer necessary for the lamb of God has fulfilled all righteousness, however, as believers in Messiah Yeshua/Jesus Christ we can participate with personal prayer.
Another point of the Aliyah relevant to believers is that we are all called to continually, go up, on our journey through life; choosing the higher path every day, not just three times a year.
This time of reflection prior to the start of the fall feasts which begin this year with Rosh Hashanah at sundown on 29 September and ends at sundown 1st October. It is also the new year on the Hebrew Calendar and it will be the year 5780. (Hebrew: ראש השנה), (literally “head of the year”).
The trumpets will sound, the shofar – שופר – will be blown worldwide to call the children of Israel to the start of the 10 Days of Awe. The shofar blast is the annual signal that the spiritual year is coming to a close.
Yamin Nora’im/עשרת ימי תשובה.
A time of repentance, of getting right with God, before the Yom Kippur/Day of Atonement and subsequent Tabernacles celebration, which foreshadows that Messiah is coming one day to dwell with us; to permanently tabernacle with man.
This time of preparation is accompanied by a spiritual house cleaning and can often include a time of crisis, confusion, problems, dislocation and chaos.
After every harvest the fields are turned over and plowed ready for the next planting.
This is a picture of our life it is not something we like or even look forward to or see the flesh ever willingly initiate, nevertheless it is we that have to do it, God does not do this for us!
However Hosea 10:12, plowing up the follow ground is part of life.
12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you. King James Version (KJV)
If we plant the good seeds of righteousness, our reaping will be a harvest of love.
If soil is never touched it gets hard because it settles down and it will never produce a great harvest, maybe just a few weeds.
Soil produces abundant fruit after the plow has gone through it, some people just use weedeaters/ Strimmers/ weedwhacker’s/ edge trimmers, etc. It’s really a lazy way of making a good show on the exterior because if we don’t pull up the roots, the weeds grow back. The plow turns everything over moving the earth completely upside down and it makes a big mess.
Only by doing this can the soil become loose and the rocks and stones be brought to the surface. It seems like chaos but it allows the oxygen, (breath of the Spirit) into the soil, then it is ready to become fruitful and bear life.
So when this process begins in our lives and it will… when we encounter crises, problems, turmoil, challenges and shaking, it is all the plowing of the Spirit.
He is allowing our lives to be turned over, not because we have done anything wrong, or that He doesn’t have a good purpose. It is because He does have a great plan and He wants our lives to bear much more fruit.
It is not something to fear or try to avoid but rather embrace, with a trusting submission to His faithfulness.
Our trust could be interpreted in the pictograph as: Look it is revealed that He is placing a fence around us, supporting and protecting us in the situation.
Just as the farmer prepares the fields, or the gardener the ground, it’s as natural as every process of growth.
1Cor. 4:17
6 Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.
17 For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,
18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
It is part of the pattern of life’s pilgrimage, they’re a necessity.
So be greatly encouraged for He has considered you worthy of such careful and precise attention and treatment, that in the end, will yield untold blessings beyond all comparison.
We are His
But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” 2 Corinthians 4:7
It seems foolish to place a treasure inside a jar of clay. Neither does it make much sense to hide something of value inside something that is not worth very much; however as the believer undergoes these harsh attacks the jar of clay is broken down, but then, the Life of God within, which can never be destroyed, can be both seen and shared more easily to others who need this treasure.
Paul says in vs.12 that the breaking process at work in his life resulted in new life in Messiah for the Corinthians.
The reason that God put His treasures into jars of clay, is so the jars of clay would be constantly reminded that they have no power and that they are as fragile as a clay pot, only He has all-surpassing power.
If there is turmoil in our lives right now recognize it as the Spirit of God plowing up our fallow ground and preparing it to receive the new seed, we are to look joyfully for the harvest that will come.
This is one natural season of the plough, another is the spring, after the winter months have hardened the earth.
So whenever your plowing season arrives and it will…
For it comes to every believer and those who choose to make Aliyah in that season, as the wind of His spirit/Ruach blows on my/His garden of our lives, that its spices may flow out we will be a sweet smelling fragrance..
2Cor. 2:15 For we are like a sweet-smelling incense offered by Christ to God, which spreads among those who are being saved and those who are being lost. For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
Song of Solomon: The fig-tree hath ripened her green figs, And the sweet-smelling vines have given forth fragrance, Rise, come, my friend, my fair one, yea, come away.
..And will be released to those being saved
For we are a sweet fragrance to God in The Messiah among those who have life and among those who perish;
To God we are the aroma of Christ among those who are saved and among those who are dying.
Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. Ephesians 5:1-2
The Sweet Smelling Fragrance of our Worship. In Hebrews 1:9 we see that Messiah, the King of all Kings, was
“anointed of God, with the oil of gladness (joy), above all of His fellows.”
As a result of our worship of Him, of being in the Presence of our God and King Who was anointed above all… we will begin to exude the fragrance of His royalty.
Jam 5:7, Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 8, Be ye also patient;…
The more abundant the yield, the more pleased is the husbandman, for His work is not in vain. Jesus’s parable not only informs us that God will do the cultivating, but it also tells us something about the manner in which that work will be carried out:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.”John 15:1
yielding to that husbandmans work makes it easier.
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the husbandman. Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit He taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, He purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit” (John 15:1-2).
The soul that expects to be fruitful must be prepared to submit to pruning, and that means sorrow, heartbreak, heartache, and all that goes along with pruning.
The branch does not perform the care, the vine provides it all; the branch only has to yield itself and receive. It is seeing this truth that leads to the blessed rest of faith and the true secret of growth and strength:
“I can do all things through Christ which strengthened me.”
Our lives would change dramatically if we only acted as the branches!
The ultimate goal of a true vine is to produce the right fruit of the desired quality by the husbandman and after all the tender care given to the branches, if it is not yielding fruit – the very purpose of that branch becomes defiled.
James 5:7, KJV: “Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
My father is the gardener and He knows the plans He has for us…
Jer. 29:11 For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
For a tikvah/hope and a future for blessing and for a good outcome a future for blessing, we must let the ploughing and pruning prepare us for the plan He has for our lives.
As we remember Messiah at this season of fall feasts, we should also be mindful that one day the last trumpet will sound, the last shofar will be blown…. one year He will return …are we ready?
are we that sweet aroma?
He will make us like a garden of fountains whose streams are fed by the mountain springs from the same mountain of spices.
Look beyond,
look up,
for redemption draws nigh
Pruning seems to be destroying the vine and looks as if it’s all being cut away; but the gardener, the husbandman, makes his cut with a sharp knife because he sees the future and knows the final outcome will bring greater harvest. There are blessings we can never have unless we are ready to pay the price of pain. There’s no way to reach them save through suffering. This is the bitter sweet WAY and is not the gospel most want to hear or experience…but it is His Truth and the Way to Life.
Will He find faith (faithfulness of His Bride) when He comes…
Could this be the temptation that Jesus/Yeshua prayed we would not be led into; recorded in Matthew 6:13 – It is the faithlessness of unbelief, and of trying to change our viewpoint from that of our Heavenly Fathers, to one less hard in our eyes?
Jesus/Yeshua only said and did what He heard and saw the father do – nothing more nothing less – and was obedient to death. This is our path also, to take up our cross and follow Him. This is not an easy road and we are not to pray for an easy one but for the strength to follow Him on the one He took and the one He calls us to take after Him.
When He blows upon our garden let’s answer with all our spiritual senses and prepare ourselves for the return of the gardener, the husbandman and our bridegroom. Let’s be alert for the sweet fragrance of His presence as He calls us to Himself and be ready to say, ani lo.
Listen for His call as the shofar trumpets sound this month… one day He will catch us away to be with Him to tabernacle/Sukkot with Himself forever. Is this the year?
Plough up that fallow ground, repent and get right with God, make aliyah, ascend the mountain of spices whereof the streams make glad.
In Ps. 46:4 David tells us prophetically
4There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. 5God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.
Yeshua/Jesus is the river of life..
“And then they will see The Son of Man when he comes in the clouds with great power and with glory.” Mark 13:26
for He comes in the clouds with great glory to receive His bride unto Himself
Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him–even those who pierced Him.
The Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s. אשִׁ֥יר הַשִּׁירִ֖ים אֲשֶׁ֥ר לִשְׁלֹמֹֽה:
It is a timeless allegory of the relationship between God and the People of Israel, in terms of the love between a man and a woman.
A rose of the valleys: This is prettier than the rose of the mountains because it is always moist.
“As a rose among the thorns”
Lily of the Valley has the meaning of:
humility, chastity, sweetness, purity.
Also means the return of happiness, which is the reason why it’s often used in weddings.
After Lily of the Valley finishes blooming, the red berries appear on the stem.
The Latin name Convallaria means “valley” and Majalis means “blooming in May” (from Greek). This woodland plant is native throughout the cool temperate Northern Hemisphere in Asia and Europe. In different countries Lilies of the Valley are associated with sorrow, love, purity, innocence, tenderness and faith.
Spices in the Song of Songs permeate Solomons sweet story, Shir Hashirim, is the equally pleasant presence of the fragrance of spices.
From previous post to refresh our memories:
Without the spices mentioned in this book of love between the Messiah and his Bride Israel, it would be harder to imagine the prophesied marriage, or the communion of believers with their God. Spices seem to be referring to the ascent/aliyah to the heights of Israel, (Jerusalem) and pointing to spiritual heights experienced by being in the presence of our Lord and Savior.
Conspicuously, the spices are found in the presence of both Bride and Bridegroom, and in the ‘garden enclosed’—a virtual garden of each delicate and holy spice. Most of the spices mentioned are the spices of the Tabernacle, the use and purpose of each spice commanded by God to Moses and Israel, and pointing to the pleasant, beautiful realm of Heaven and the throne of God.
A deeper look at each of the spices, shows not only the symbolic value of each substance, but the nature of the spices which point to Messiah and His suffering. (not included in that post but are in this one.)
We can say something like this to our Heavenly Bridegroom….Breathe upon me with your Spirit wind, stir up the sweet spice of Your life within me and spare nothing as you make me your fruitful garden. Hold nothing back until I release your fragrance. Please come and walk with me as you walked with Adam in your Eden paradise garden. Come and taste the fruits of Your life in me.
When Solomon talked of his beloved feeding the garden and gathering lilies: The Lord keeps on feeding and strengthening those who are maturing spiritually and gathering those who are away from His word and still need to know Him.
So man placed God in a garden of death and laid on Him spices, which also came from a garden.
In the Song of Solomon reference is made to the bride (us).
Let my beloved come into His garden.
Our lives are His garden too and we are also collectively His bride.
Song of Solomon 4:14. with nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree, with myrrh and aloes, with all the finest spices.
Song of Solomon 8:14. Come away, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices.
The title in the Hebrew text is Shir Hashirim Solomon’s Song of Songs, meaning a song by, for, or about Solomon.
The phrase “Song of Songs” means the greatest of songs (cf. Dt 10:17,
“God of gods and Lord of lords”; 1Ti 6:15, “King of kings”).
The Shir Hashirim is our tikvah and our place of grace which is Messiah Himself.
The book took its title from the first two words, shiyr hashiyrim, usually translated as “the song of songs.” This remained the title in Greek and Latin Bible translations in later centuries. The repetition of the word song indicates that the writer considered this “the greatest of all songs.”
A deeper look at each spice, shows not only the symbolic value of each substance, but the nature of the spices which point to the life of Messiah and His suffering.
The spices in the Song of Songs are mostly found also in many other places in the Word of God: occasionally they are used as parts of the Salvation message, sometimes they are only mentioned as rich and elegant elements for Kings and the very wealthy.
The spices of Myrrh, Aloes, Frankincense, Saffron, Calamus, Cinnamon and others like a tapestry, weave and waft through the Scriptures, telling the history of God’s Way with mankind in a thread as amazing as the history that is recounted.
It is somewhat hidden from view in the mystery of the Tabernacle, the light and presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant, and the ministry behind the veil/vail entered into only by the High Priest until such time that the veil/vail is torn and the High priest forever was revealed. (Matthew 27:51)
Spices are present in 2 significant journeys into Egypt of those loved whom God loves dearly. They are present as Joseph is carried captive into Egypt by the Midianites for the later deliverance of Israel; and spices were part of the early years of Jesus/Yeshua, who like Joseph son of Jacob, was also on his way down into ‘Mizraim’.
Scripture also mentions spices that were part of the clothing of the Levites, and they were present with each covenanted sacrifice. in Song of songs, the betrothed are adorned with spices but in Proverbs, they are used in a mocking way concerning the harlots enticements.
(Proverbs 7:17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon)
First and last mentioned in the Scriptures.
We read of spices early in Genesis, and 3,000 years later find them in the burial and the resurrection of the Lord,
Luke 24:1 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
later noting that in Heaven, they are expressed as the sweet scent of the prayers of the saints.
Luke 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
To ignore the quality of glory the scripture assigns to the spices, deprives believers of the deeper understanding of the love and grace/ of God, and the intricate fashioning of prophecies and similarities pointing to the finished work on the Cross.
The term ‘spice’ or spices is first mentioned in Genesis 43:11, although Genesis 37 mentions ‘myrrh’ as one of the spices borne by the captors of Joseph on his way down into Egypt. Spices play an important role and symbol throughout the scriptures, so that while they do not appear called by name earlier, they do appear in the first book of the Torah/Pentateuch, marking one of the first fore-shadowings of a Hebrew/Israelite son, who was rejected by his brethren, and sold into captivity with brutal treatment, the history of which will twist and turn its way into their salvation. The first mention of the general term ‘spices’ in Genesis 43:11 is found among the gifts that Jacob sends to Pharaoh:
And their father Israels aid unto them, If [it must be] so now, do this; take of the best fruits in the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little balm, and a little honey, spices, and myrrh, nuts, and almonds:
we note that in the Garden of Eden, there are distinctions made regarding edible plants— those that are seed bearing vs. those that are not, and we can be pretty sure that the Garden was permeated by the fragrance of spices.
And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which [is] upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which [is] the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat. Gen 1:29
The term used for ‘spice’ or ‘spices’ is :
נְכֹאת or ‘nekot’
referring to a fragrant powder.
Gesenius.
Following that, the term next used most frequently for ‘spice’ is
בֶּשֶׂם or ‘besem’
which can refer particularly to balsam wood or to any sweet smelling fragrance or spice.
The first mention of ‘spice’ is in Exodus in which it is referred to as a substance in the Tabernacle of God:
Exodus 35:52 And spice 1314, and oil for the light, and for the anointing oil, and for the sweet incense.
…although it is mentioned twice before in Ex 25:6 and 30:23 where it is translated as the plural,‘spices’. Beside the gift to Pharaoh from Jacob during the famine, and the mention of spices accompanying Joseph, a type of Christ into Egypt, spices are mentioned early in the Bible as the visual component of worship and the Tabernacle: its sacrifices, incense, scent of the priests’ robes and furnishings, but most centrally, the special spices commanded of God to attend the Shekinah glory of God behind the vail of the Holy of Holies.
Last Mention
The Bible mentions the general words ‘spice’ (besem) 29 times in 25 verses, and ‘spices’ (nekot), 29 times in 31 verses though that is not an entirely accurate picture since the same words are at times translated both as singular and plural. ‘Besem’, ‘Basam’ and nekot are all used, and the number is big if all the variations of the individually named spices such as spikenard, calamus and myrrh are included. The last mention in the Bible of the word ‘spices’ is in the gospel of John at the burial and resurrection of Messiah:
Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.
The greek word,
ἄρωμα or ‘aroma’ is used.
The aroma of spices then is seen on the wind of Eden, as Adam and Eve are cast out into the world where nothing grows, and immediately following the rejection of Joseph by his brothers; Joseph as the one who would save Israel is taken to Egypt, attended by myrrh and spices.
Within 400 years of that departure, those spices and others will adorn the Tabernacle and the presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant. What a beautiful picture of the fragrances of paradise, weaving on the wind and the Word, and attending the worship of Israel for her God.
Spices coming in PART 2
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