At this season
chag ha sukkot
those following the
appointed times of the Lord – His Moedim
observe Leviticus 23:40, 42 43.
Deuteronomy D’variym 16:13-15
Chag haSukot הַסֻּכֹּ֛ת חַ֧ג
13 ‘The feast of booths thou dost make for thee seven days, in thine in-gathering of thy threshing-floor, and of thy wine-vat;
14 and thou hast rejoiced in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy man-servant, and thy handmaid, and the Levite, וְהַלֵּוִ֗י levivy and the sojourner hag ger וְהַגֵּ֛ר
and the fatherless, and the widow, who ‘are’ within thy gates.
15 Seven days thou dost feast before Jehovah thy God, in the place which Jehovah doth choose, for Jehovah thy God doth bless thee in all thine increase, and in every work of thy hands, and thou hast been only rejoicing.
16 ‘Three times in a year doth every one of thy males appear before Jehovah thy God in the place which He doth choose — in the feast of unleavened things, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of booths; and they do not appear before Jehovah empty;
17 each according to the gift of his hand, according to the blessing of Jehovah thy God, which He hath given to thee.
A sukkah
is also called
סֻּכֹּֽת
a booth – a tabernacle – temporary dwelling,
depending on who you ask.
(There are several alternate spellings of the Hebrew word.)
It is only for 7 days and when it is described as a
temporary dwelling,
it’s because the
sukah/sukkah
construction itself is
temporary,
it is not a permanent structure.
For 7 days each year all who are native born in Israel
are to live in these sukkah
made of tree boughs branches and leaves.
The flimsy sukkah
is not really able to give much shelter from
the heat of the sun or the wind rain and dust;
nor does it provide privacy.
There’s no protection from criminal activities and by itself it’s totally ineffective for a long term dwelling place.
The point is that, for 40 years this is how the children of Israel lived as they travelled through the wilderness...
and it serves as a reminder to all subsequent generations, and the grafted-in-believers, how our Heavenly Father
protects and shelters His children
as we continue on our wilderness journey to His promised land..
We would opt for a more sturdy building of wood, brick and concrete with locks on our doors, if we were given a choice; yet is this any more permanent and reliable than a sukat/sukkah when the forces of nature are unleashed against it?
It only takes a moment, to look at the aftermath of deadly hurricanes and floods, for us to see the devastating results.
All who are native born ……sons of Israel.
Leviticus 23
40 and ye have taken to yourselves on the first day the fruit of beautiful trees, branches of palms, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of a brook, and have rejoiced before Jehovah your God seven days.
41 ‘And ye have kept it a feast to Jehovah, seven days in a year — a statute age-during to your generations; in the seventh month ye keep it a feast.
42 ‘In booths בַּסֻּכֹּֽת ye dwell seven days; all who are natives in Israel / Yisrael יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל
dwell in booths,
43 so that your generations do know that in booths בַּסֻּכֹּֽת
I caused the sons of Yisrael / Israel יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל
to dwell; in my bringing them out of the land of Egypt; I, Jehovah, ‘am’ your God.’
44 And Moses speaketh ‘concerning’ the appointed seasons of Jehovah unto the sons of Israel.
The sukkah reminds us
that our faith/trust should
NOT
be in
so called permanent structures
that have been built by human hands;
but instead
our faith/trust should be in the
One Who
has the power to protect us
in every situation and circumstance
and all adverse conditions.
We are to
abide and remain
in the
shade of shaddai….
the
shadow of the Almighty.
לְצֵל־ lezel – shade/shadow
שַׁדַּי shaddai/shadday –
strongs #5996
צל של שדדאי
shade of shaddai
צל – shade
אל שדי el shaddai the almighty
Strongs# 7706. Shadday: Almighty
Original Word: שַׁדַּי
Part of Speech: Noun Masculine
Transliteration: Shadday
Phonetic Spelling: shad-dah’-ee or sha’da eye
Almighty: Shaddai.
Masculine noun.
Strong’s 7706.
Root: שַׁדַּי
Pronounced: sha’dah-ee.
Meaning: My Destroyer, My Protective Spirit, My Rainmaker.
Self-Sufficient, Who Is Abundantly.
From the verb שדד ( shadad ), to destroy,
or the noun שד ( shed ), protective spirit,
or the verb שדה (shadah), to moisten.
God Almighty
El Shaddai – ale shad-dah’-ee. אל שׁדי
Genesis 17:1
HEB: אֲנִי־ אֵ֣ל שַׁדַּ֔י הִתְהַלֵּ֥ךְ לְפָנַ֖י
NAS: to him, I am God Almighty; Walk
KJV: and said unto him, I [am] the Almighty God;
And when Abram was ninety nine years old and the LORD appeared to Abram, and he said to him, I am El Shaddai, walk before me, and be perfect
Genesis 17:1
God Almighty
El Shaddai – ale shad-dah’-ee
letters: YDSLA – al shdy
Hebrew Letters:
alef, lamed, shin or sheen, dalet, yud or yod.
אל שׁדי
The Aleph is the picture of an ox head
and illustrates: the strength of an animal.
It can mean: strong, power, or leader.
The Lamed is a picture of a shepherd’s staff.
The shepherd used the staff to
exercise authority over the sheep to direct or lead them.
It can mean: teach, lead, yoke, move forward, or authority.
The Shin represents two front teeth
and can mean: sharp, eat, consume, separate, or destroy.
The Dalet represents a tent flap or door.
It can also mean:
back and forth movement as in going in and out of a door.
The Yud represents an arm and a hand.
The picture can mean: work, throw, worship
or it can simply mean: arm or hand.
The Aleph and Lamed form the root word
El which means: God or strong controller.
The Shin, Dalet, and Yud
form another root
Shad meaning breast.
Together they reveal:
The One mighty to nourish and
supply all our needs!
We live safely NOT because we have a well built house,
but because our Heavenly Father is
protecting us
and is also
providing for us
and caring for us each and every day.
Even the most reliable building is really just a
sukkah
because one day it will no longer exist.. BUT…
we will have a permanent dwelling place forever with Him.
Let’s allow Him to teach us to put our trust
only in Him
and to know that He shields us from harm because
He is our provider and protector.
This time of reflection towards our dwelling place and where we live and rest, reminds us of Psalm 91:1-4 because it’s related to the fact of not being reliant on a physical place in a natural sense….. It has the elements of a protective sinnah – shield,
and the shelter and shadow/shade/lezel
of the Almighty/Shaddai
…because is the secret place of
עֶלְי֑וֹן
El’yon
pronounced:el yown
which is
the shield and surrounding wall of His truth.
This is not a metaphorical description, it’s a real place;
as real as we allow it to be to us.
How so?
Because if we don’t believe it’s there or that it exists, how can we go there?
And if we don’t ever go there, how can we rest there habitually as the Psalmist says?
He who dwells in the shelter of Elyon,
will abide in
the shadow of Shaddai.
It’s very real, yet sometimes hard to find…
Is it because we’re looking for the wrong kind of structure?
When we read the word secret, do we think it’s hidden by some kind of camouflage?
The verse says it’s a stronghold so do we think its made of some indestructible material?
Does the shield part make us think we can’t see through it and that the surrounding wall may be so high and wide that we can’t get around or over it?
So we are looking for something our minds can relate to and in looking from the
Shade of Shaddai
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