Tag: Wilderness

The Mystery of Solomons Chok – Part 2 – Conclusion

What does ‘outside the camp’ mean?

In Numbers 15:35-36, it is clear that the death penalty under the Torah was to be administered ‘outside the camp.’

Yet what were the limits or how far away from the camp of the Israelites was this to be?

As the children of Israel were moving throughout the wilderness, they kept a certain distance between the Wilderness Tabernacle and the encampment or their places of habitation according to their clans each with their standards and ensigns. (Numbers 2).When they were to follow the Ark of the Covenant around the city of Jericho, this ‘distance’ that they were to keep away from the Ark of the Covenant was specified. 

Joshua 3:3 – “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord you God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it (ark)…”

So they needed 2000 cubits = to 3000 feet / 1000 yards /914 meters, in order to maintain the sanctity of the ark and for the preservation of their own lives. According to the Hebrew law, the place of residence for an individual, whether a tent or a house, would extend out from its abode for 1000 yards. If the place of dwelling was in a corporate site such as a walled village, a Levitical town or walled city, then the city limits was 1000 yards/914 meters from the outer walls of the village, town or city.

Moses and Joshua ministering to the Lord.

The House of the Lord, wherein rested the Holy of Holies(The Holiest), and the Ark of the Covenant, was the symbolic dwelling place of the Lord of hosts. To be ‘outside the camp’ or ‘outside the gate’, it would have to be over 1000 yards/914 meters, (2000 cubits) from the Temple Proper, or the residence of God/the abiding place of His Presence.

During the days of Messiah/Jesus Christ, the Sanhedrin,

who governed from the Chamber of Hewn Stones,

(which was on the left side of the Holy of Holiest facing east, or the north side of the Temple proper), used the same calculations to determine the corporate city limits of the city of Jerusalem.

Since the court of the Sanhedrin stood as the center, a radius of 1000 yards/914 meters determined the limits of their encampment.Outside this perimeter was ‘outside the camp’ As such the traditional sites of Jeremiah’s Grotto, the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and a small hill north-east of the Damascus Gate would be excluded from this definition of ‘outside the camp’ and thereby excluded as potential sites for the crucifixion of Jesus. View from Mt.Olives towards Temple.

Two thousand cubits was also the distance allowed for traveling on the Sabbath:

Marking 2000 cubits, 1000 yards/914 meters from Jerusalem’s Eastern Gate brings us to the summit of the Mount of Olives, to the place where the Red Heifer was sacrificed.

From this location, the High Priest could look directly into the entrance of the Temple as the Red Heifer was sacrificed and its blood sprinkled toward the Temple as an offering to God.

When God gave His specific instructions for marking the 2000-cubit limits of cities, the Israelites were just entering the land promised to them, hundreds of years before David captured Jerusalem and Solomon built the First Temple.

Only God could have specifically designed the Temple and the topographical features of Jerusalem, so that the place of the Red Heifer sacrifice – the place of Yeshua’s sacrifice – would be precisely located on the summit of the Mount of Olives. (Where He will also return to and which will split under His feet at His second coming.)Every prophetic detail of time and place from Adam, Abraham and Jacob on; included every symbolic meaning of God’s Master Plan of Redemption; which was established at the moment God created the world! (Matthew 25:34; Ephesians 1:4; Hebrews 4:3; 1 Peter 1:20; Revelation 13:8). Random processes and random events cannot account for the supernatural precision of the Creator’s design that is clearly evident. God controls and is orchestrating every detail of His plan of salvation, to point to the one true Messiah: Jesus/Yeshua!

Hebrews 13:12-13 – “Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.”

Carefully looking at this text it’s clear that in order to sanctify us with His death, Jesus, guided by His Father, meticulously fulfilled every detail of the ritual of the red heifer, in which His crucifixion occurred outside the gate, (walls of the city) and outside the camp.

So that that His death would not defile the Temple itself, the location was beyond the limits of 1000 yards, (2000 cubits), set outside the city walls and the closest location beyond the limits of 1000 yards, was near the summit on the southern hill of Mount of Olives.Is there a literal interpretation? Is the Hebrew author suggesting that the reader retrace the footsteps of Jesus/Yeshua?

In order for Messiah/Christ, to use His own blood for the saving grace and sanctification that it offers to all believers, He would have to suffer and be crucified outside the gates and walls of the city, as preordained since the days of Moses.

Not only that, the author urges the readers to mentally go and watch the crucifixion outside the camp on the Mount of Olives, and watch Him bear ‘His reproach’, or the cross beam of the crucifixion.

Jesus/Yeshua with patibulum – crossbeam.According to His own plan, our Creator (Colossians 1:15-17) entered His own Creation; (both entering within the earth and entering within a physical human body); to offer Himself for our sins ‘outside the camp’, ‘outside the gate’, on the summit of the Mount of Olives, so that we could have eternal life with Him.

From the summit of the Mount of Olives, Yeshua faced the Temple, just as the Red Heifer faced the Temple while being sacrificed. 

At the precise place and the precise time God appointed, foreordaining it all at the very beginning of Creation –

And all that dwell on the earth shall worship Him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Revelation 13:8

The Jewish Wedding and the Parallels that exist between God and the children of Israel and between Yeshua and the Body of believers, include coming events in the End Times.

(YHVH) God in Yeshua saw all Jerusalem and all Jerusalem saw God’s Passover Lamb and Red Heifer.

Literally becoming in person, the (Covenant Passover/Pesach Lamb), fulfilling the Annual Appointed Times/Feasts of the Lord that the Israelites had faithfully rehearsed since God gave them to Moses at Sinai. 

Considering the entire scene of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus/Messiah Yeshua. 

Jesus/Yeshua, was condemned and died just before a High Shabbat (Sabbath of the festival Passover). He was judged and condemned in the Chamber of Hewn Stones in His Father’s House (the Temple) and in the presence of God, His Father. (God cannot look upon sin.)As Adam was cast out of the Garden to the East, so also Jesus/Yeshua, accursed and condemned, He was led out through the Eastern Gate away from the presence of His Father.The Red Heifer had been examined and inspected and was found perfect and without blemish, so Yeshua was examined and interrogated by the High Priest,

the whole Sanhedrin and then Pilate, who could find “no fault in Him”. (Luke 23:4)

In the wilderness The Tabernacle /The Mishkan; the sacrifice was performed in front of the Ohel Mo’ed, (Tent of Meeting). The burning of the heifer and the sprinkling of the waters,are performed in the desert by a priest/kohen outside of the Israelite encampment.

(Later as we see, this was performed on the Mount of Olives outside of walled Jerusalem, east of the Holy Temple.) Both were done in a location from which the Priest/kohen could clearly see into the open entrance to the Holy of Holies. 

He would slaughter the heifer and sprinkle its blood 7x in the direction of the Temple. He then burned the cow in what was referred to as a ‘wine-press’ and gathered up the ashes of the heifer. The Mishnah and the Tosefta to Tractate Parah (chapter 3) describe the location of the burning of the heifer on the Mount of Olives, in a place known as the ‘wine-press,’ due to its shape bring similar to that of a wine-press in which grapes were tread upon.   This ‘wine-press’ was hewn into the mountain bedrock, beneath which cavities were excavated, in order to create a separation through which impurity could not pass, lest there be a burial site hewn into the bedrock below. The Priest/Kohen who sprinkles the blood stands on the Mount of Olives and looks westward to the site of the Holy Temple and from there towards the Holy Temple itself, and in the language of the Mishnah (Meudot 2): “The Priest/Kohen directs his gaze toward the Temple Sanctuary while he is sprinkling the blood of the red heifer.”The line of view of the Priest/Kohen, who stands on the Mount of Olives and looks toward the entrance to the Temple.

  Thus, the priest’s gaze passes through four gates, (above) that stood in one (red) line – through the gate of the women’s section (Ezrat Nashim), the Nikanor Gate, the massive entrance to the Ulam (entrance hall of the Holy Temple), and the entrance to the Sanctuary.

These gates increased in height as they approached the Temple. 

Thus the lintel of the gate of the Ezrat Nashim was only slightly higher than the level of the floor of the entrance to the Sanctuary. If so, then the location of the burning of the cow on the Mount of Olives should be exactly between the height of the entrance floor and the gate of the Ezrat Nashim.

The Mishnah (rabbinic compilation of Jewish oral law) states that water for the Red Heifer ritual came from the Pool of Siloam in the time of the Temple in Jerusalem.

White As Snow: Signs of the Messiah

“‘Come now, let us settle the matter,’ says the Lord.  ‘Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.’”  (Isaiah 1:18)

Another color change happened naturally when the Red Heifer’s body was completely burned; its ashes turned white and were mixed with pure water called Living Water.

Only then was it sprinkled on the people to purify them from the contamination of contact with death and sin.

When we accept the cleansing of our sins through the blood of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua—who is the source of pure Living Water — we, too, become white as snow/cleansed.

“These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white.”  (Revelation 7:14)

And just as the Red Heifer was sacrificed outside the camp, so was Yeshua.

“The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. And so Yeshua also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through His own blood.”  (Hebrews 13:11–12)

Leviticus 17:11 confirms, “it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life“.

When the scripture says that Jesus was “led away to be crucified” (Matthew 27:31), again we see thatthe most prominent passage and path for the temple priests to go outside the city was out the Eastern Gate of the temple, across the Kidron Valley over the Bridge of the Red Heifer to the summit of the Mount of Olives. 

There, where the red heifer was slaughtered and burnt (Holocaust), Yeshua was executed on a tree. (1Peter 2:24) 

Outside the city wall = same as ‘outside the camp’!

The Red Heifer was then led out the eastern gate of the temple, so also Messiah/Yeshua was led away from the temple out the eastern gate, also away from the presence of His Father. As an accused man of sin, Messiah/Yeshua followed the route of Adam and Eve as they were driven from the Garden of Eden and away from the presence of God because of their sin of disobedience.The Red Heifer was led across the Kidron Valley, walking over the Bridge of the Red Heifer to the summit of the Mount of Olives, and up to the summit of the mount where she was slaughtered, so also Jesus was led by the same route to the place where He is crucified.The Temple mount looked very different before the Temple was destroyed. The whole section of what is called Solomon’s Stables, left of Triple Gate, did not exist at the time of the Temple. It may have been added to the Mount by Hadrian around 135 AD. So even though it looks like the bridge runs up along side the temple mount in the picture in fact it went up the hill and connected to Triple gate, which was once Solomon’s Portico. Solomon’s porch in Herod’s Temple.

2000 cubits is approximate length of the bridge, which is the distance required from the Holy of Holies to the Red Heifer Altar.


View showing the length of the Bridge.This is important because the angle from the end of the bridge, on the lower part of the Mt of Olives, to the Holy of Holies must allow for a person to see through the East Gate, the inner east gate, and through the Temple door, seeing the veil that hung before the Holy of Holies.

Also the Priest performing the Red Heifer sacrifice at the top of the Mount of Olives needed to be able to see the Temple sanctuary to know when to begin the sacrifice.  So in this case he would need to be able to see over the top of the East gate and also over the inner east gate.
 

 The bridge is approximately 1,000 feet long and at around a 3 percent grade from the end of the bridge up to Triple gate. (Solomon’s Portico, which had the entrance to the East Gate within it). However it is written that the altar was on the summit (top of the Mount as being directly east of the Temple). The way the bridge was constructed it allowed for air to be between the priest and the graves below. 
Purity was demanded.

Living water had to be carried up the Mount to the Place of the Red Heifer Sacrifice. For this reason hollows (tunnels/caverns) were cut into the bedrock.

 A bowl from the 1st temple period 7th/6th centuries B.C. Jerusalem.

Chosen women gave birth there, and the boys born in the hollow grew up there, never allowed to venture out, for fear of them walking over a grave. 

To get the water to the top of the Mt of Olives these boys were carried on large doors up the Mountain while holding rock hewn bowls full of living water.

Near the end of the Red Heifer Bridge was the place of the counting of heads (skull);where papers were checked before the people could cross the bridge and enter the Temple from the East Gate into the women’s court. 

At the time of Yahshua’s execution we are told that “there [were] many women FROM AFAR beholding”. (Matt 27:55)

The women who had followed him from Galilee and ministered to Him, were allowed only to witness the execution from the Women’s Court Gallery on the Temple Mount.The distance from the Herodian Temple Mount to the execution site on the Mount of Olives was almost half a mile.This would have been considered quite a distance for spectators who were beholding the execution from across the Kidron Valley.

The only reason they were able to view the execution at all is because of the low eastern wall. It provided them a view which, if his execution had taken place either to the north, south, or west, THEY WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SEE HIM AT ALL!

All the walls which were there were high, EXCEPT THE WALL IN THE EAST, so that the priest who burned the heifer, STANDING ON THE TOP OF THE MOUNT OF OLIVES, and directing himself to look, saw THROUGH THE GATEWAY OF THE SANCTUARY, at the time when he sprinkled the blood [Mishnah, Perek 2].

The Mishnah connects the sacrifice of the Red Heifer, which we know occurred on the Mount of Olives, with the low Eastern Wall. Since this was the only site where the High Priest might have a view of the front of the Sanctuary at all, and we know the Women’s Court was two-storied on the east, this statement also connects the execution site with the Mount of Olives. But to confirm that this is so, we also have evidence that it was not Mount Scopus, a part of the Olivet chain, to which the rabbis referred, but the Rosh of the Mount of Olives, because this spot is connected with the Eastern Gate.

There were five gates to the Temple inclosure (i.e. the temple precincts)…THE EASTERN GATE, upon which was a representation of the city of Shushan, and BY IT THE HIGH-PRIEST WHO BURNED THE RED HEIFER, AND ALL WHO ASSISTED, WENT OUT UPON THE MOUNT OF OLIVES [Mishnah, Perek 1].

It was, in fact, only here where the rending of the veil and the breaking of the stone lintel above the veil might have been viewed. Since we are told that even the Roman centurion saw “all these things” happen, it again confirms that the execution site was somewhere on the Mount of Olives.

A tearing of this curtain IN FRONT OF THE BUILDING at the time of the afternoon sacrifices would have been public and very dramatic in effect. IT WOULD HAVE BEEN VISIBLE FROM THE MOUNT OF OLIVES [Erich H. Kiehl, The Passion, p. 141].Looking from the Temple Mount area towards the East to the Mount of Olives.

The fact is the individuals witnessing these events (those near the execution site) could not have seen them FROM ANY OTHER VANTAGE POINT IN JERUSALEM!

From noon until 3:00 P.M. it is stated in the gospels that “darkness” engulfed the land [Mark 15:33]. 

Now it was noonday, and darkness prevailed over all Judea, and they were afraid and distressed FOR FEAR THE SUN HAD SET WHILE HE WAS STILL ALIVE. For it is written for them that the sun should not set upon one put to death. and one of them said, “Give him gall with vinegar to drink.” And they mixed them and gave it to him. And they fulfilled all things and brought their sins to an end upon their own heads. AND MANY WENT ABOUT WITH LAMPS, SUPPOSING IT WAS NIGHT, AND FELL. and the [Master] cried out, “My power, my power, thou hast forsaken me.” And, saying this, he was taken up. And in the same hour the curtain of the temple of Jerusalem was torn in two [Gospel of Peter, ed. Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr., Gospel Parallels, p. 183].

By 3:00 P.M. an earthquake had occurred, damaging the Temple. Jerome, who had access to the Gospel of the Nazareans, clearly states that the thirty-ton stone lintel which held the veils in place was destroyed at the time of the earthquake.

In the Gospel that is written in Hebrew letters we read, not that the curtain of the temple was torn, but that THE ASTONISHINGLY LARGE LINTEL OF THE TEMPLE COLLAPSED [To Matt. 27:51 cf. Gospel of the Nazareans (in Jerome, Letter 120 to Hedibia and Commentary on Matthew 27:51); ed. Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr. Gospel Parallels, p. 184].

The collapse of the stone lintel that supported the massive Nicanor Gate would have rended the veils that hung from it. The suggestion that the veils still hung “unrended” over the Temple entrance some years later does not, in any way, refute the tearing of those veils hanging there at the time of Yahshua’s death. The fact is there were two new curtains made each year.

Simeon ben Gamaliel said in the name of R. Simeon, deputy [high priest]: The curtain was a handbreadth thick and was woven on seventy-two strands, each strand consisting of twenty-four threads. Its length was forty cubits and its breadth twenty cubits, made up in its entirety of eighty myriads [of threads]. THEY USED TO MAKE TWO CURTAINS EVERY YEAR, AND THREE HUNDRED PRIESTS WERE REQUIRED TO IMMERSE THEM [ed. Bialik and Ravnitsky, The Book of Legends, Sefer Ha-Aggadah, 160-61:6].

Jesus/Yeshua would have been crucified with a view to the Holy of Holies.  

That is why the Roman soldier could see the veil as it was rent in two, and also see the tombs open and the dead coming back to life and go into the city.  Matt 27:50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.
 27:51 And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split. 
27:52 The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; 27
:53 and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.


The curtain tore at the exact moment Jesus/Yeshua died and the priests were sacrificing the Passover Lamb.

Note here again the reference to the women looking on from afar off. However, they had the line of sight to the Mount of Olives from the Women’s Court.

Legally, family and friends were not allowed to be present during the Roman executions until near the time of death, when they were called for last-minute words.It was only when Yeshua had spoken these final words that He said “I thirst”, and after having been offered a merciful drink of water mixed with wine, declared “It is finished”.

Jesus was offered a second drink, which He accepted. It is ‘pocsa’, a sour wine popular at that time. Jesus accepted this drink because of two important images. The drink was given on the “stalk of a hyssop plant”.

(Same type of Hyssop branch as used by the High Priest in the Red Heifer sacrifice. Jesus/Yeshua is our High Priest.) 

Remember that these events occurred at the Feast of the Passover. During this feast, hyssop was used to apply the blood of the Passover lamb to the wooden DOOR posts (the last Hebrew letter Tav!) of the Israelites. (Everything is connected, see previous posts.)

Again, it is interesting the end of this hyssop stalk pointed to the blood of the Perfect Lamb which was applied to the wooden cross for the salvation of all mankind.

Hence the scripture:

John 19:25-27 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, he said to his mother, Woman, behold your son! Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” John 13:23

‘Saw His mother.’

Why say it that way if she had been there all along?

Interestingly, most of the visuals tell us that they were present at the crucifixion the whole time.

‘And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home’.19:28 After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. 19:29 Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar: and they filled a sponge with vinegar, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

27:54 Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

Mar 15:37 And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed His last.
 15:38 And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.


15:39 When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” 


The centurion, standing in front of Jesus, need only turn his head to see the veil torn in two and the dead being raised and walking toward the city.  This is only possible if Jesus was crucified on the Mt of Olives straight across from the Temple.

The Red Heifer bridge would have ended between Zechariah’s tomb and the road to Jericho, straight across from the blocked up gate in the east wall of the Temple Mount.  The place of stoning for the Jews would have been near by the end of the bridge, so that when a person died they would be before God (represented by the Holy of Holies) and they would be responsible for their own sins. 

It is said that the Centurion that stood guard across from Jesus at his crucifixion saw the torn veil of the Holy of Holies at the time, which means this is the same area the Roman’s crucified Jewish prisoners. Jesus was one of three being hung on a cross that day, which further indicates this as a place regularly used by them. 

The Roman’s always crucified people on the main roads going into cities that they ruled over as a warning to travelers, and this was sort of a crossroads with one road leading to the city and another leading to the Red Heifer bridge which lead to the Temple. They may have chosen a place above the road where He could be mocked by the travelers. 

The two criminals might well have gone through much the same process as Yahshua himself did. What is certain is that each was excommunicated from the community of Israel.

As the shofar sounded the blasts announcing excommunication from the congregation of Israel on the Pinnacle of the Temple a flagman (lactee), stood near the southeastern cloisters of the Women’s Court near the Miphkad Gate with a red flag. Each man would have been led separately over the Red Heifer bridge to the execution site on the “ridge” (or “cranium”, “spine”) of the Mount of Olives (Gulgoleth). A second lactee riding a white horse and carrying a wooden plaque on which the charge was written, led the execution party to that public square, the gathering place for the festal pilgrims situated near the Bazaars of Annas. Pilate had written on that plaque that Yahshua was the KING OF ISRAEL! No other charge was represented on the plaque.

THE MYSTERY OF THE RED HEIFER REVEALED IN MESSIAH YESHUA

The spiritual significance of the Red Heifer is considered by ancient and modern Jewish sages and scholars to be one of the greatest mysteries.

However, the mystery of Solomon’s chok is fully revealed in the sacrifice of Messiah Jesus/Yeshua.

The uniqueness of the sacrifice.

Symbol of the Color of Blood and the Impartation of New Life

An unusual aspect of the Red Heifer is it being female rather than male. The symbolism of this has also been a great mystery:

It has been conjectured that the use of a female, though sacrificial animals were usually males, symbolized the imparting of new life to those who had been defiled by contact with death.

The color red, being the color of blood, may have been the token of life.

By the shedding of His blood, Messiah Yeshua cleanses us from spiritual death resulting from sin and imparts eternal life, the free gift of salvation through His sacrifice for sin atonement.

The physical body of Messiah Yeshua was conceived by the power of the Spirit of God from the “seed of a woman” (Genesis 3:15; Luke 1:35). Perhaps another significance of the Red Heifer being female relates to the seed of a woman being used by God to bring forth the Messiah, by the power of His Holy Spirit.

Some believe that the significance of the heifer being “red” is symbolic of the red blood of the Messiah Jesus without which there can be no cleansing.

The paradox of the red heifer sacrifice suggests profound truth about the sacrificial death of Yeshua our Savior.  The kohen (priest) who sprinkled the ashes of the red heifer became tamei (unclean) himself, even though the defiled person became tahor (pure).

The picture of the priest here is one of sacrificial love – the giving up of one’s own spiritual purity so that another person can regain his purity…  “Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be clean” (Psalm 51:7). Just so, Yeshua willingly became unclean on our behalf – through our contact with sin and death – so that we could become clean (Isa. 53:4, 2 Cor. 5:21, Gal. 3:3, Eph. 5:2, Titus 2:14).

Because of Yeshua, the impure become pure, even though He became impure through His offering.  Because of Him, we have been cleansed from our sins “by a better sprinkling” than that which the Tabernacle of Moses could afford (Matt. 26:28, Heb. 9:14, 12:24, Eph. 1:7, 1 Pet. 1:2,18-19, Rom. 5:9; Col. 1:14, 1 John 1:7, etc.).

The sages of the Talmud had it partly right…. Yeshua’s sacrifice as our “Red Heifer” indeed preceded the “rebuilding” of the Temple (John 2:19) – though this Temple is one made “without human hands” by the power of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 26:26-28, 1 Cor. 12:27, Eph. 4:4,11-12, Col. 1:24, etc.).

The followers of the Messiah are now part of the Temple of His Body (1 Cor. 3:16, 12:27) and are called “living stones” (1 Pet. 2:5).The sacrifice of the tenth Red Heifer — Yeshua — instituted a new priesthood after the order of Malki-Tzedek (Heb. 5:10 with 1 Pet. 2:5) that replaces the older Levitical priesthood of Aaron (Heb. 13:10).

Beloved, we have been cleansed from our sins by a better sprinkling than that which the tent of Moses could afford (Matt. 26:28, Heb. 9:14, 12:24, Eph. 1:7, 1 Pet. 1:2,18-19, Rom. 5:9; Col. 1:14, 1 John 1:7, etc.).

This typology was inclusive of the both the bullocks and the goats which were used as sin offerings and the red heifer which was used for purification and holiness (from sin or defilement) of the Levites and the temple premises.

Hebrews 9:13-14: “For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the Living God.”

That the early church believers recognized the relationship between the Jesus and the Red Heifer is depicted in the Letter of Barnabas (8:2) written about 90 CE which stated, “The calf is Jesus: the sinful men offering it are those who led him to the slaughter.”

The parah adumah sacrifice was entirely unique for the following reasons: it was the only sacrifice that specifically required an animal of a particular color. This animal was extremely rare and entirely unique, in fact it is recorded by Maimonides in his commentary to the mishna that, 9 perfectly red heifers parah adumah were prepared from the time the Commandments were given to Moses until the destruction of the second Temple.

Mishnah 5, Tractate Parah –

“The 1st heifer that was burned was under the supervision of Moses on that 2nd day of Nissan in the second year from the Exodus.

The 2nd heifer was burned under the supervision of Ezra;

2 were burned by Shimon Ha Tzaddik;

2 were burned by Yochanan, the High Priest,

the 7th by Eliehoenai, the son of He-Kof,

the 8th by Hanamel, the Egyptian,

the 9th by Ishmael, son of Piabi and

the 10th will be burned in the time of the (for us Messiah Jesus) Moschiach.”  

“… and the tenth red heifer will be accomplished by the king, the Messiah; may he be revealed speedily, Amen, May it be God’s will.”

For us as believers we can say WAS prepared.

We need to be reminded that in all the 100’s of years, this occurred only nine times between Sinai and the destruction of the temple in 70 CE!

So the puzzle still continues….

According to rabbinic opinion, future temple construction cannot begin unless the ashes of the red heifers that have been mixed since the days of Moses also have been found. This fact is overlooked by many who await the construction of the Temple in Jerusalem as a sign of the End of Times, and the return of the King.

However For three decades, a former Baptist minister, now amateur archeologist, Vendyl Jones, has been searching for the K’lal, (Qalal) which according to the Copper Scroll; is the urn or vessel that contains the ashes of the red heifer that was used in the Mishkhan or Wilderness Sanctuary and in Solomon’s Temple.These ashes were from the first heifer that was slaughtered by Eliezar in the days of Moses.According to Jones, in order for the Beit HaMikdash (Holy Temple) to be restored, this vessel of ashes from the first Temple ashes of the red heifer must be found.Translation from the Hebrew linguists of the Vendyl Jones Research Institute,

state that “under the spices, is the purification.” According to the meaning of this translation, ‘they are buried beneath the site where the Temple Incense called the Pitum haQetoret was discovered; near the ‘hidden north entrance’ at the Cave of the Column, is the site where the ashes of the Red Heifer are buried.’

Sign of Jerusalem’s Impending Destruction – Red Heifer Gave Birth To a Lamb

According to first-century Jewish historian Josephus, one of the signs of Jerusalem’s impending destruction, occurred when a red heifer being led by the High Priest for sacrifice gave birth to a lamb! This strange occurrence took place just before Passover and was accompanied by other supernatural signs that destruction as prophesied by Messiah Yeshua was imminent.Another commented ‘What if the new 10th Red Heifer was prepared for slaughter to obtain the ashes to purify the site for a Sanctuary or New Temple and this time she foaled a ‘cub lion’.

Would the Orthodox Jewish rabbabim accept that the Messiah ben David, the Lion of Judah, was also the Messiah ben Joseph, who gave Himself as the Pesach Lamb in the 1st century CE? This drama still has a few pages left to unfold……The divine promise of purity has been fulfilled in Jesus/Yeshua, our Red Heifer and by His sacrifice we are made pure and acceptable in the sight of The Father.

 Please don’t leave this page before making 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? YOU CAN BE..

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 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

Mysterious Secret of the Hilazon

The Mysterious Secret of the Hilazon – Dyeing to be Holy.

This is part of the mystery of the Tzitzit (fringe), and not the Tallit (Prayer Shawl) itself. Scriputre shows that our Hebrew Savior, Lord Jesus/Yeshua did wear Tzitziot, (the plural of Tzitzit), on His Prayer Shawl. This was a matter of keeping Torah, the Law, the Instruction of God; and Messiah kept Torah perfectly!Numbers 15:37-41 verse 38, ‘And the Lord/YHVH/Adonai spake unto Moses, saying, “Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them throughout their generations fringes in the corners of their garments, and that they put with the fringe of each corner a thread of blue.”Each of the four corners of the garment, ‘Tallit’ (prayer shawl), had to have Tzitzit (fringe) on it. This was made very clear to the children of Israel. They were to look on fringes and ‘Remember (Zikkaron) the ‘Words’ of Torah.’ 

 For God to place this instruction in scripture, commanding His people to make the fringes with the blue thread, He was in effect saying: ‘You are a kingdom of priests to Me.’ This is echoed in Rev. 1:6: “He has made us kings and priests (lit. ‘a kingdom of priests’) unto God and His Father; to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever.” 

The scriptures also teach that it was a violation ordinarily for one to mix two fibers such as wool and linen.

The fringes were to be made of wool, but this blue thread was to be made of linen.

So only in this instance, did God allow this to be done. It goes without saying that wool comes from sheep and of course the significance that Jesus/Yeshua being not only the Shepherd but also the Lamb of God is not without deep meaning.

A talit gadol (or a talit katan) must be primarily white with black stripes and made from at least 51% natural fibers. ‘Who is this that comes from Edom, with DYED garments from Bozrah? This glorious in His apparel, traveling in the greatness of His strength? I that speak in righteousness mighty to save’. (Isaiah 63:1) The word tallit תַטִלּי is pronounced TAH-LISS by those who use the East European Hebrew dialect. The plural, “tallesim,” is pronounced as TAH-LAY-SIM.” The more modern Israeli pronounciation you will hear most often, is “TAH-LEET.” The plural is “tallitot.” Pronounced as TAHLEE-TOHT.” The fringes on the talit are “tzitzit.” Pronounced zeet zeet  “TSI-TSIT.”The term Tallit, or talith is two Hebrew words, “TAL, meaning “tent” and ITH, meaning “little.” The tallit, when wrapped around the shoulders and pulled over the head, forms for the owner a “little tent” or “prayer closet where he may meet privately with God. The Psalmist writes:

I will dwell in your tent for all ages; I will take refuge in the shelter of the corners of your Tallit.” Tassels added to the hem were not worn by commoners, but by the nobility or royalty. The second significance of the tzitzit, then, is that they showed the wearer to be more than a commoner. He was a noble, or a royal personage.Not just the presence of the tzitzit but their colors also carried meaning. The color was white, but among the white cords on each tassel there was to be one blue strand. This color combination was part of the trappings of royalty, as were the colors blue and purple:The third significance of the tzitzit, therefore, was in their colors. They spoke of royalty and kingship. Even today we talk of “royal blue” and “royal purple” from the custom of Roman emperors who wore purple mantles.

The Tzitzit had to have a cord of blue (techlet) in it, according to the command of God. Why Blue and where did the blue color come from?

Tekhelet or techlet is a blue dye mentioned 49 times in the Hebrew Bible/Tenakh.It was used in the clothing of the High Priest,the tapestriesof the Tabernacleand the Tassels.Blue stripes were to be used: as with techelet, the sages explain why tekhelet blue is so significant.

The symbolism of tekhelet is manifold;the rich blue colors recall the oceans and the sea. The sea is like the sky of the infinite Heavens, reminding us of God’s presence in the world and of the bond between the wearer and God;
 and the Heavens are like God’s Throne of Glory, (kisei ha’kavod), the foundations of which are said to be sapphire. It is also to remind us of God Himself and where the Divine Presence dwells.

In the old testament The tallith of a prophet or master teacher would have dark purple-blue threads in the corner tassel. People believed that the purple thread contained miracle power.This is why the woman with the issue of blood wanted to touch the hem of Jesus’ tallith or garment. When she was healed, Jesus said, “Who touched Me?…I felt virtue leave Me.” Then He told her, “Your faith has made you whole,” clarifying it was not a purple thread but her faith in Him as Messiah (see Matthew 9:20-22 and Luke 8:43-48). 

According to the Talmud, the color was obtained and dye produced from a marine creature. A species of snail called Murex trunculus,known as the Hilazon or Chilazon.

It took some 12,000 of these to fill a thimble with blue dye.

This small animal’s body contains a special gland.

The liquid from this gland was dried and became a powered dye.In Acts 16, Lydia, a resident of Thyatira;being a seller of purple, would have been a wealthy and influencial woman. The clients who purchased garments or fabric from her, were the very rich. (Acts 16:14-16:40)This color was so expensive, that all but royalty were to wear it. When Messiah Jesus/Yeshua haMashiach returns riding in the heavens on His majestic white war horse, He will be clothed in glorious royal, garments of a King.

The zitzit with one thread of blue.

Why Blue and where did the blue color come from?

Some three thousand five hundred years ago, Moses gave instructions for the making of “tekhelet” (blue dye) that was to be used in the veil that covered the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle and in the ribbons along the edges of the tallit – the Jewish prayer shawl.

One of the contributions Adonai requested in the wilderness was blue which is tekhelet תכלת in Hebrew. Tekhelet blue, known as Divine Blue, identifying Israel and her God.Numbers 15:38, established the cord of blue as a necessity for all generations of Israel: “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue.”

 Much of the Wilderness Tabernacle utilized tekhelet blue:


Exodus 26:1 “ten curtains of fine twisted linen and tekhelet blue”Exodus 26:4 “loops of tekhelet blue on the edge of the outermost curtain … likewise on the edge of the curtain in the second set.”

  • Exodus 26:31 “You shall make a veil of tekhelet blue…”Exodus 26:36 “a screen for the doorway of the tent of tekhelet blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen…”

  • Exodus 27:16 “a screen of twenty cubits, of tekhelet blue…” 

This fact alone is very curious, as the Israelites must have had access to a significant amount of this dye and they were in the wilderness! The interesting question is, did they bring it with them from Egypt? Was it part of the wealth of Egypt that they left with?This is probably the case as the coast of Egypt which included Goshen where they were enslaved was part of the Mediterranean Sea; and also as expensive as this color was to own, no doubt the Egyptians had it and it was something to be desired.Location of wilderness tabernacle and where they were in the wilderness at Mount Sinai.Here they received Torah and instructions for building the Mishkan.The distance from Goshen to Mediterranean Sea was about 40 kilometers, approx. 25miles.

Lost and Found — The Tale of a Snail

Tekhelet blue, known as Divine Blue, has come to symbolize the hope of redemption; with its loss and amazing rediscovery after nearly 2,000 years.

 Extracting blue and purple dyes from a snail that grew in the Mediterranean became an important industry for centuries. However, with the Islamic invasion of the Holy Land in the seventh century, the industry disappeared. For the past 14 centuries the formula has evaded Jewish scholars.

Thus, until recently, Jewish prayer shawls have had only black ribbons.

When the Romans conquered Israel in 63 BC they seized control of the production of tekhelet blue.  By the third century AD, under the Emperor Constantine, only Romans, and primarily royalty, were allowed to use and wear the tekhelet blue. Jews were prohibited from its use—especially after the Council of Nicaea which established harsh laws restricting Jews (and Christians) from observing biblical commandments from the Old Testament.

Jewish dyers went underground. By around 600 AD, as the Jews were scattered, persecuted, and confined to ghettos, the identity of the creature from which the dye was extracted and the process of producing tekhelet blue was lost all together.From that time until very recently, tallits, the traditional prayer shawl that held the tzitzit, or tassels, as commanded in Numbers 15:38, on its corners, could not contain the cord of blue. 

The sages believed the loss of the tekhelet blue was attributed to the disobedience of Israel, suggesting that its rediscovery would be a sign of restoration and signal the coming of Messiah in His glory to Israel.

The miraculous rebirth of Israel in 1948, and the reunification of Jerusalem following the Six Day War in 1967 inspired zeal and renewed hope among the Jewish People. They thought redemption may truly be at hand. The Temple Institute in Jerusalem has painstakingly recreated the Holy Vessels and Garments in anticipation of the rebuilding of the Holy Temple according to biblical descriptions. Missing were the tekhelet blue and the ashes of the Red Heifer.

Tekhelet Restored! 

Tekhelet, (Strong’s 8504) the color (violet). Strong’s feels this sapphire blue comes from the Cerulean mussel in which the dye was obtained.  This was the color, blue, representing the firmament of the heavens that was used as fabric and curtains to drape the ceiling of the Wilderness Tabernacle.  It was the Zohar, when it refered to tekeleth, that stated, “This color had to appear in the Tabernacle for this reason:”Genesis 1:6 – “And God said, ‘Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.’” 

It was this dye, the color sapphire blue that became one of the rarest and most costly of dyes to be obtained in the ancient world.  It was always known to come from the gland of a snail in the Mediterranean, which disappeared soon after the destruction of the temple in 70 CE, and the process of how to extract it was lost. One source reports that in 1984, Irving Ziderman, a biochemist at the Israel Fiber Institute in Jerusalem, was able to identify the source of the ancient dye. After years of research, trial and error, he perfected the process, using the mucus of the “banded dye murex,” a spiny shellfish once thought to be extinct.Not until 1985, one Sabbatical week of years, was this snail rediscovered in the Mediterranean. Out of it came the royal purple and the royal blue.  It was also this blue dye that was used to dye the blue cord on each tzitzit, which was the hem or fringe of the prayer shawls of the Hebrews as commanded by HaShem.

Murex branfaris and Murex trunculus Snails 

 Numbers 15:37 – “HaShem said to Moses saying, Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘Throughout the generations to come you are to make tzit-tzit on the corners of your garments, and with a blue cord on each tzit-tzit, You will have these tzit-tzit to look at and you will remember ALL the commands of the Lord, and you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by going after the lust of your own hearts and eyes.  Then you will remember to obey all my commands and will be consecrated to your God.’”

 The secret to reviving this ancient formula to fulfill the commandment in Exodus 25:4 and produce tekhelet blue was a riddle waiting until the 1980s to be solved. 

The Biblical True Blue from the Murex Trunculus The Murex Trunculus snail had been identified in the early 20th century by the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel. Ezekiel 27:7 speaks of Tekhelet blue from Tyre and the coastlands of Elishah. Archaeologists uncovered mounds of Murex shells in Tyre and the surrounding area that dated to the biblical period. Blue stains on large pots and vats from 1200 BC were tested, and found to be consistent with the modern day Murex trunculus. However, until the 1980’s all experiments on the Murex extract only yielded purple dye …

until one sunny day.

Otto Elsner, a professor at Shenker College of Engineering and Design near Tel Aviv, took the process outside in the sunlight, and found that the dye specimen turned a beautiful, perfect tekhelet blue.

As soon as the gland is exposed to oxygen, the liquid in that gland undergoes a fascinating chemical transformation from a clear liquid to a yellow, to a green, a greenish blue, aquamarine, then blue and ultimately ends up a dark purple the purple liquid is dried and then ground into a powder.  By exposing this new compound to sunlight, the blue described in the ancient Jewish sources is achieved.Dr. Baruch Sterman describes one of the most dramatic aspects of the tekhelet:

“The molecules of any specific color can be measured in exact wavelengths.  This measurement is read in increments called nanometers.  When the molecules of the blue color called Tekhelet, extracted from the murex trunculus snail are measured, the reading peaks at exactly 613 nanometers. What a marvelous coincidence that this number matches the total number of commandments in the Torah, written by the finger of God in sky-blue sapphire.”Because eventually the tekhelet was lost, until recently, an observant Jew could not fulfill the directive of gazing upon the blue cord or meditate on the “twist of blue” and recall the eternal Torah, hewn from sapphire under the Throne of Glory. However once again he can and very soon the non-Jew, who loves God, Torah and Israel, can look forward to the days when;

Zechariah 8:23 – “Ten men of all languages and nations will take hold of one Jew by the corner Tzit-tzit of his garment and say, ‘Let us go with you because we have heard that God is with you.’”

 

Once again—for the first time in almost 2,000 years, the Jewish People are able to fulfill this commandment in the Land of Israel. And once more, they wear a cord of blue in their tzitzit as commanded.

The Talmud (Menahot 44a) says that once every 70 years the shores of the land of Israel are visited by the segulit snail from which the tekhelet, used to mark certain religious items, was made.

On November 10, 1990, The Jerusalem Post reported that these snails had begun to surface by the thousands along the Mediterranean coast!!

Some Orthodox Jews believe the reappearance of the snails are a sign of the approaching of the Messianic Age. 

Today, in Israel those praying at the Western Wall are wearing prayer shawls with beautiful blue ribbons.

Below is a 2,000-year old textile that contains the mysterious blue dye described in the Bible.Isaiah writes: and come let us reason together that our sins though they be as scarlet, κόκκινον, can become as white as snow. 

This color of “sins like scarlet or κόκκινον, red as crimson” of Isaiah 1:18, is Tyrian or Phoenician purple, crimson of murex shellfish from φοινός phoinós “blood red” Mycenaean…

The miracle of this techlet is now being made once again in Israel. They have found the snail, (murex trunculus), that is needed to make the blue dye.

Today as we are literally seeing Bible prophecy fulfilled before our eyes; in so many ways and in such precise detail helps us to realize we are in close proximity to His appearance. Are we truly living by the fringe of a wing and a prayer?

Let’s continue praying with intent, ‘within tent’!

Remembering, taleh means lamb, and also comes from the word that means covering!

God provided Himself a lamb.

The Taleh Elohim the Lamb of God.

The Lamb is our covering –  The Taleh is our Taletha !

 

This small snail has returned to the waters of Israel, and is seen as a “Sign that Messiah is coming soon.”

Even so.. come Lord Jesus!Make sure we are ready when He does..

 

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.

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

Endings Are Simply New Beginnings

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

Shemini Atzaret,

(Rejoicing in the Torah scriptures)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Sukkot Guests – Ushpizin – אושפיזין

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

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

Gog and Magog – Challenge to the Restoration of Israel

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

A Roof Revelation.

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

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

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

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

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

Another very interesting connection to this season is.. 

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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


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

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

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

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

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

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

Tishrei closes with another day of mystery.

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

The gathering of the 8th day;

The last day of the spiritual year;

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

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

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

The End Is Also The Beginning.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

It’s time to fellowship with the King!

The Sheltering Presence of God

Feast of the Tabernacles

in Hebrew Chag haSukot,

also Succouth, Sukkot or Sykkot.

Part 1

Special Note:  This Feast has already begun and takes place over 8 days. As there are so many important, pertinent and fascinating facts that point our focus to Jesus our Messiah; the post has been divided into 3 parts, which will be posted consecutively during the next few days.

 These Appointed Times of The Lord follow the Calendar Cycle of the life giving harvests and Sukkot completes the 7th of the Holy festivals in the 7th month of Tishrei. (Deut. 16:13; Lev. 23:34)Fall is the end of the harvest seasons, its themes include:

The Return of Messiah,The sounding of the trumpets announcing His comingThe Ingathering (agriculture and souls.) (Chag haAsif) and

Re-gathering and return of His people to Israel.

The repentance,

God and man face to face,

The Judgment of the Nations\separation of the sheep and goats,

The redemption,

The Kingdom of God and everything returning back to Him.

It’s the closing. The finish line.

As the Spring Appointed Times speak prophetically of Jesus 1st coming, so the fall speaks of Jesus 2nd coming; in which the end will reveal God’s final chapter. The completion of the harvest of souls and culmination of His plan of the Ages.

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. Jam. 5:7

 The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. 2Pet. 3:9 

In the Spring cycle, we are reminded that Messiah is the Lamb of God, who came to seek, serve and save.

The Autumn cycle of Appointed Times (Mo’adiym) reveals that Messiah is also from the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the King, the Great High Priest and The Lord of all. 

We are in fact, living now in the time between the Lamb, His first coming and the Lion, His second coming. Let’s live with joy and excited anticipation for the return of the One we love, serve and worship. The One who has a plan to completely reveal the mystery of the Autumn/Fall Calendar Feasts. 

The month of Tishrei is the most intense of the Hebrew calendar as it is during this month the closing end of the sacred spiritual year is celebrated.

As this month holds the secret mystery to the Autumn cycle, could it also hold the mystery to the closing of the age?The observance of Sukkot is the 15th-21st of Tishri (September/October). Most people consider it an 8 day holiday. The first 6 days are known as Sukkot. The 7th day takes upon itself a new name known as Hoshanna Rabba, (the huge water libation ceremony). The 8th day is known as Shemini Atzaret, Yom haSh’miyniy’Atzaret, The eighth day assembly. In Israel, the 8th day is also Simchat Torah (rejoicing in the Torah scriptures). Sukkot frequently called the Feast of Tabernacles. A better English translation would be the Feast of Booths, which is the meaning of Hebrew word Sukkot, celebrating the fall harvest with the third first fruits of the growing season. Leviticus 23:39  

The Hebrew word chag comes from the Hebrew root word chagag, which means ‘to move in a circle, to march in a sacred procession, to celebrate or dance.’ The joy of Sukkot was so great that it became known as ‘THE Feast.’  The word tabernacle refers to a temporary dwelling place, which is the purpose of the sukkah.

Other names for this season are:

The Season of Our JoyThe Festival of Ingathering Hag HaAsif,

The Feast of the NationsThe Festival of DedicationThe Festival of Lights

(Ex. 23:16, 34:22; Num. 29:12-39; Neh. 8:14; Zec. 14:16-19; Heb. 2:2; 2:5; Jn 7:2-52)         In contrast to the serious tone of Rosh HaShanah and the Day of Atonement, the 3rd feast in Tishrei was a time of joy because Israel had passed through the season of repentance and redemption.
ISRAELITES Past FULFILLMENT: Celebrate the Harvest and Entering the Promised Land with Great Rejoicing to be Celebrated Yearly Forever.MESSIANIC Future FULFILLMENT: (Prophetic) The Messianic Era or Millennium. The Kingdom of God on Earth. (Athid Lavo.) The Two become One.  SPIRITUAL APPLICATION: (Halacha) A daily rest (Shabbat) in the Messiah and having the rest, (menuchah) of His Kingdom in our hearts.Not coincidentally, the same time period marks the beginning of the construction of God’s sukkah, the mishkan, the sanctuary or tabernacle in the desert (Ex. 25:8-9). Tabernacle, is the word mishkan in Hebrew. According to tradition, Moses again ascended Mount Sinai for 40 days and nights to receive the second set of tablets and descended on Yom Kippur, carrying them as a sign of God’s forgiveness of Israel for the sin of the golden calf, and as a symbol of the lasting covenant between God and Israel (Ex.24:12-18; 34:1-2; 27-28).

The following day Moses relayed God’s instructions for building the mishkan, a dwelling place. Material for this portable structure was collected during the days before Sukkot, and work then began on it. (Ex. 35; 36:1-7).        Sukkot is also called the ‘Season of Our Joy.’

It is also known as the Feast of our Rejoicing, the Season of our Rejoicing, and He-Hag (the Holiday).

One reason Sukkot was a time of joy was that after the season of repentance, (Teshuvah) and the redemption of Yom Kippur, came the joy of knowing your sins were forgiven, of walking, knowing, and being obedient to Him.

Historically, Sukkot also commemorates the days in the wilderness of Sinai, after coming out of Egypt (Mitzayim). According to all natural laws, the Israelites should have perished, but were instead divinely protected by God. Prophetically, Sukkot is the festival that teaches on the Messianic Kingdom and the joy of that Kingdom. Spiritual application in Messiah: a daily rest and having the rest, ‘menuchah’, of His Kingdom in our heartsSukkah is the Hebrew term for the temporary building that is constructed for this holiday. Sukkot(h) is the Hebrew name of the holiday, the moed and usually translated as booth or small hut and to tabernacle with someone, is to dwell with them.

God tabernacled with the children of Israel as they wandered in the desert for 40 years, manifesting Himself as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

 In order to make following God easier, the Israelites lived in simple booths.

It is also symbolic of the protection that the Israelites received from God in the desert after they were freed from bondage in Egypt (Lev. 23:43). It reminds us that our survival is dependent upon God.

The symbolism is intended to remind us of being homeless, the feeling of living somewhere on a temporary basis. It is to serve as a reminder to us not to become over confident with our wealth or influence and that we need to look to God for our provisions, not man and that this earth is not our permanent home.

The sukkah or booth, symbolizes man’s need to depend upon God for his provision of food, water, and shelter. This is true in the spiritual realm as well.

The booth is the physical body, which is a temporary dwelling place for our souls and spirits. (1 Cor. 6:19-20).

We need the food that the Word of God provides (Matt. 6:11; 4:4; John 6:33-35); the cleansing, rinsing, and washing that the Word of God brings to our lives (Eph. 5:26); and the shelter of God’s protection over our lives from the evil one (Matt. 6:13; Ps. 91). Our physical needs will be provided for by God if we seek Him spiritually (Matt. 6:31-33)The Hebrew word for tabernacle is sukkah. It means ‘a booth, a hut, a covering, a pavilion or tent.’ The Greek word for tabernacle is sk’en’e, which also means ‘a tent, hut, or habitation.’ and the context by which the word tabernacle is used in the New Covenant (Brit Hadashah).

This Greek word, sk’enos, means ‘tabernacle, booth, shelter, or covering’ and also appears in Rev. 21:3. This same word, sk’enos, is used to speak of Yeshua during His first coming, (John 1:14). here we can see the protection provided in Rev. 7:16, corresponding to Isa. 4:5-6, and the fountain of living waters in Rev. 7:17 and 21:4.

In Isa. 4:3, it is written ‘And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy…” (also see Zech. 14:4,6-9,16-17,20-21). Those who are called ‘holiness unto the Lord’ in Zech. 14:20 are the same people in Is. 4:3 who are called Holy.
The clouds in the wilderness are called ‘the clouds of glory’ and the wilderness experience is a picture of the future Messianic age, the Millennium.

The sukkah was built to teach and understand the thousand-year millennial reign of the Messiah, the Messianic age, the Millennium, or the Athid Lavo in Hebrew eschatology. 

 

 Jesus/Yeshua tabernacled (sukkot) among us (John 1:14).

Peter spoke about his body being a tabernacle (2 Peter 1:13-14).

The apostle Paul told us that our earthly bodies were earthly houses or tabernacles (2 Corinthians 5:1-5).

The tabernacle of Moses (Moshe) was a tent of habitation (Acts 7:44; Hebrews 9:2-8).

Abraham Isaac and Jacob lived in tabernacles (tents) (Hebrews 11:8-9).

The tabernacle of David was a tent or dwelling place (Acts 15:16; Amos 9:11). This tabernacle was the temple of Solomon (1 Kings 5:2-5; 8:1-21).

Jesus/Yeshua entered the temple on the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles) (John 7:2,27-29).The Bible speaks of a heavenly tabernacle (Hebrews 8:1-2; Revelation 13:6; 15:5). This heavenly tabernacle will come to earth (Revelation 21:1-3).

Jesus/Yeshua was the true tabernacle of God (Hebrews 9:11).
The sukkah remain standing for the entire 8 days of the holiday.

On a clear night, a person can sit inside the Sukkah and look through the sparsely placed branches

to the stars and be reminded of the promise God told Abraham that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens (Gen. 26:4).Sukkot is the plural of Sukkah (more than one hut or booth) and sometimes the holiday is referred to as Sukkot

This name reflects the final harvest of the year attributed of the holiday. Sometimes it is also referred to by the Hebrew name Shemhateinu. The Feast of Tabernacles has an agricultural meaning, because it reminds us of how the farm laborers in ancient days lived as they worked to bring in the harvest.

  Sukkot is the time when the produce of the field, orchard, and vineyard is gathered in. The granaries, threshing floors, and wine and olive presses are full to capacity. Weeks and months of toil and sweat put into the soil have finally been amply rewarded. The farmer feels happy and elated. No wonder Sukkot is ‘The Season of Rejoicing.’ While all of the three pilgrimages are times of rejoicing, Sukkot (Tabernacles) is specifically designated as Zeman simchatenu, the season of our rejoicing.

Sukkot is also considered a harvest festival. One reason is because at harvest time something resembling a Sukkah would be built near the field that the crop pickers were working. This became a temporary place of refuge for them from the sun and even a place to sleep when necessary. The Sukkah is, therefore, symbolic of protection and peace. It also became the one time of the year when most farmers could relax since the crops were just harvested, and it was still too early to plant the next crop.
Olive harvest.

There is also a Messianic meaning in which we find fulfillment in our Messiah.

Passover And Sukkot Connected: In some ways, the Feast of Tabernacles is considered an Exodus holiday.

This passage in Leviticus shows us that these two holidays are connected. Lev. 23:43; so your descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the LORD your God. 

Both holidays are related to Israel’s exodus from Egypt and are observed on the 15th of the month.

Passover marks the attainment of the end of bondage and the right of religious freedom.

Sukkot marks the attainment of national and territorial independence (except from God), the essential ingredients of the nations Sovereignty.

The Great Salvation

Hoshana Rabbah (literally, the great hosanna or the numerous hosannas) is the 7th day of Sukkot (Tabernacles). Hoshana Rabbah should have been a full festival day, but is not because of Shemini Atzeret, which follows it. However, it has some special customs that make the day more like a full festival day than any of the intermediate days.

The most important of these (ceremonies) are:

The circling of the altar seven times instead of once while carrying the four species and reciting the Hoshana prayers; and The beating of the willows. Messianic Understanding. In John 7:37-38, Jesus/Yeshua said, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.”

 At this season of Sukkot, Isa.12:3 was often quoted, as it is written, ‘Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.’ Jesus/Yeshua in Hebrew means ‘salvation.’
The drama of the water drawing ceremony took on a new dimension of meaning when Jesus/Yeshua attended the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles). On the seventh day of the feast, Hoshana Rabbah, which literally means ‘the great hosanna, the great salvation’, the festival activities were different from those of each of the six previous days when the priests circled the altar in a procession, singing Ps. 118:25.

On the seventh day of the feast, the people circled the altar seven times. That is why the day is called Hoshanah Rabbah, as the cry, “Save now!” was repeated seven times. Jesus/Yeshua’s statement in John 7:37-39 was said on Hoshana Rabbah. Spiritually speaking, in the Bible, there is a link between water and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh). Yeshua told the woman at the well to drink of living water (John 4:7-14; 6:35; Matt. 5:6).  
This relationship between water and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit is contained in the symbolism of pouring out water. Is. 44:3 links the pouring out of water with the pouring out of God’s Spirit and parallels the thirsty land again links water with the Holy Spirit.The link can also be seen in Joel 2:23,28; Acts 2:1-4,14-17; and Ezek. 39:22,27-29. Zech. 14:8 speaks of living waters. Is.12:2-3 speaks of drawing water out of the wells of salvation. Water and the Spirit are connected in Psalm 42:1-4; Zech. 13:1; and Rev. 7:17. It can also be seen in Ezek. 36:24-27.Jesus/Yeshua was trying to communicate this to Nicodemus in John 3:1-6.

He also was teaching this during the Feast of Sukkot (Tabernacles) in John 4:14, which concluded with His statements in John 7:37-39.At the ceremony of the water drawing, the people’s attention was focused on the pool of Siloam.(Pool full)

It was here that Jesus/Yeshua healed a man who had been blind from birth (John 9:1-7).

Notice again the statement in John 9:5. This is the last day of the feast (Hoshana Rabbah) (John 9:14; Lev. 23:34-36).



To be continued in Part 2