 |
The Flaming Sword of Eden
Tetzaveh "Command"
Exodus 27:20-30:10
Ezekiel 43:10-27 (Ezekiel 1:1-28)
Psalm 65
Revelation 21:17-26
To the Jew, the Revelation is the giving of the Torah at Sinai. To the Christian, it is the last book of the Bible, the Revelation of John. They are not so far apart, for if you've been reading these newsletters for a few years, you realize that Revelation is a recap of the Torah. One revelation clarifies the other.
By revelation on Mount
Horeb
, Moses is given the Torah command of bringing the oil to light the seven golden candlesticks, the seven-branched menorah that must continue shining through the night. It is housed in the
Mishkan (Tabernacle)
, which features the veil "weaving" of the cherubim. The cherubim represent the Four Living creatures that go wherever the Spirit goes.
By revelation, John sees the assemblies as the menorah, and the Four Living Creatures command the four horsemen of the Seven Seals. This is the title of the Torah portion: "Command!" The four colors of the horses will match four types of
tzara'at
, or leprosy, listed in Leviticus, and the traditional four colors of fire "mixed" in the
Mishkan
with the earthly dyes, infusing the Mishkan with Divine honor and glory. The four horsemen carry the four altar judgments of
cherev (sword)
,
ra'av (famine)
,
chayah (wild beast)
, and
dever (plague)
.
You
shall charge the sons of Israel, that they bring you
clear oil of beaten olives
for the light לַמָּאֹור/l'maor
, to make a lamp
burn
continually
.
In the tent of meeting, outside the veil which is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall keep it in order
from evening to morning
before the LORD;
it shall be
a perpetual statute throughout their generations
for
the sons of Israel.
Or
is to "become light" or "become bright."
Maor
is derived from it. It is a "luminary,"
a means of being light
. The
menorah is a luminary, the means of light to shine. The sun and moon are not the Light, but the means of it, luminaries.
A menorah is a physical object, a lamp to hold the light, like a human body. When the assemblies of Revelation are warned that their candlestick or lamp could be broken off, it is a reference to their physical bodies. Their lives will be snuffed out before they have fulfilled all the light they were capable of "being" in the world, and therefore, before dimming the glory they could bring into the Holy City, for there the illumination is the Lamb. In the Holy City, those who worship the Holy One are luminaries, replacing the light of the sun and moon with the honor and glory of the Holy One shining through their deeds from the inside out. They have become light as Yeshua commanded them.
Moses had a proto-revelation at Horeb before the Revelation at Horeb with the nation of Israel.
Now Moses was pasturing the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian; and he led the flock to the
west
side of the wilderness and came to
Horeb, the mountain of God
.
The angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from the midst of a
bush; and he looked, and behold, the bush was burning with fire, yet the bush was not consumed.
So
Moses said,
"I
must turn aside now and see this
marvelous
sight, why the bush is not burned up."
When
the LORD saw that he turned aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, 'Moses, Moses
!'...
And He said, 'Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall
worship
God at this mountain.'
(Ex 3:1-12)
The angel was in the fire...maybe he WAS fire...and the "bush" (sneh) did not burn in the fire: the physical substance was unaffected. It was a marvelous sight. The
sneh
is a thorny bush that grows in the "western" wilderness. The western side of Midianite territory is the
Aravah
/Negev.
Perhaps some of the pattern Moses received was in the marvelous bush. So here's the question of the Mishkan: Why was the lowly little acacia tree chosen for the boards to form the protective wall around the Mishkan and to contain its most precious gift, the tablets of testimony, the Ten Words? Take a close look at these acacia trees in the wadi below Mt. Tzin:
Acacias that grow in the midbar (wilderness) do not become large trees. The wilderness acacia is little more than a large, thorny bush at maturity, even in a wadi like this that receives more water. Horeb is another name for Sinai. While Horeb/chorev means dry, a desert or desolation, Sinai means "thorny."
It is the
midbar
, the wilderness, that
blocks the way
to the Land of Israel from Egypt. In the wilderness, a miraculously burning sneh (bush) is the sign that Israel will worship on the mountain Horeb, Sinai. Last week's newsletter discussed the special qualities of the acacia to the life of the midbar. It may have been the little acacia that was the burning bush on the mountain, a thorny bush that would protect the Mishkan's boundaries and the commandments given in fire, thunder, and lightning. Since the Mishkan represented the nation of Israel, the little tree symbolically agreed to protect the nation and its commandments.
Mount Horeb is formed of the same root as cherev, a sword, one of the judgments of the four horsemen of Revelation. It is charav, which means:
It is the
midbar
, the wilderness, that
blocks the way
to the Land of Israel from Egypt. It was in the midbar that the fiery law was given through miraculous fire. Although Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden, the Rivers that encircled it, and away from the Tree of Life in the midst of it, and their way of return was blocked by a fiery sword, in the midbar the Israelites encountered the way back:
So He drove the man out; and
at the east
of the garden of Eden He stationed the cherubim
and
the flaming
sword
(
lehat cherev
) which
turned every
direction
to guard the way to the tree of life
.
The heavenly chariot of the four chayot (living beings) as described by Isaiah, Ezekiel, and John could also go any of four directions without turning because of its wheels within wheels. This is the exact Genesis Two description of how the Rivers of Eden circled the Garden and the Tree of Life:
The Hebrew verb describing the driving out of Adam and Eve is garash, meaning divorced or sent away. At Shavuot on Sinai, Mount Horeb, the Israelites were betrothed and shown the way back into the Presence of Elohim. There Moses was shown the pattern of the flaming dwelling-place. The sign of the relationship was Shabbat (Ex 31:13; Ezek 20:12, 20).
Although we think of the two cheruvim as holding the flaming sword, the text say the cheruvim AND the flaming sword (cherev) guarded the way to the Garden. Yes, the cheruvim are associated with the sword, but the text wants the reader to see the sword with its own separate identity. Its spinning evokes a vision of the fiery Rivers of Eden, a Heavenly Chariot associated with Elijah and resurrection life, a Chariot that goes wherever the Spirit of Adonai goes, just like the Israelite camps' four banners of the cheruvim followed wherever the pillar of fire or cloud moved and settled when they settled. A cloud is water, so again, there is the merging of water and fire as symbols of the Spirit.
As the cheruvim were woven into the veil of the Mishkan to remind the Israelites that the goal of their relationship to Adonai was a return to the Garden, so the dry midbar and its thorny, flaming bush were the inspiration for its walls and the Ark of the Covenant. Tradition says that had Israel not sinned with the Golden Calf, they were destined to cross the wilderness of flame and enter the Garden and immortality. They were already enjoying supernatural food, water, clothes, and shoes. The chariot wheels could have lifted them up, and so this language describes the action of the menorah lights, which in Hebrew means "to go up," not to burn as translated in English.
This explains why Yeshua needed to "go up" to the wilderness to be tested:
Then Jesus was led
up
by the Spirit
into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil
. (Mt 4:1)
Although the wilderness is physically "down," it is a spiritual level "up," a testing preparation to see if one is able to pass into the Garden. It is in the midbar that one will be tested on two points. These two points indicate one's readiness for the Garden work and rest: Would the "acacia" boards stand upright and resume guard duty over the Testimony, the Tree of Life in the
midbar
? If so, then they could cross over, or pass the seraphim and
cheruvim
.
There are two questions once a person has been saved from Egypt. It is a Babylon question. Egypt represents death, Abaddon, Sheol. Babylon represents unclean mixtures, which is why it is the focal point of Revelation and Israel is told to come out from among her. Adam and Eve had two jobs:
1. Work and worship (
avodah
) in the Garden, including the "work" of rest on Shabbat.
2. Guard the Garden against the serpent. Holiness.
To be restored to the Heavenly Chariot and live within its wheels, they face the barrier test of the flaming sword, the midbar. It will test whether they will keep His commandments and worship Him only, and it will test whether they will guard against the serpent. This is what a holy place is, a place where Adonai's will reigns. One is tested in holiness and worship in the midbar. Mixed worship and lazy guarding of the boundaries of holiness opened up the midbar-dwelling Israelite to the attack of the nachshim seraphim, or fiery serpent-angels (Nu 21:6). The fiery seraphim proclaim holiness:
In the year of King
Uzziah's
death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple
.
Seraphim
stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew
.
And one called out to another and
said,'Holy
, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory
.' (Is 6:1-4)
Israel is to become the glory of the LORD of hosts to the nations. It requires holiness. In the midbar, it becomes apparent whether an Israelite is ready to go up another level, into the Garden of work, worship, and holiness:
And the
four living creatures
, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night
they
do not cease to say, 'HOLY,
HOLY, HOLY is THE LORD
GOD, THE ALMIGHTY, WHO WAS AND WHO IS AND
WHO IS
TO COME
.' (Re 4:8)
The four living creatures of the Heavenly Chariot proclaim...and test...for holiness. Once we have been saved from Egypt, believers need to purify themselves in Babylon, forming a wall against uncleanness and disobedience to the Tree of Life.
This
midbar
experience is a necessary transition after the rescue from death (Egypt). Next, Israel must learn holiness and service:
The objective of the Exodus is not merely geographical-neither to 'merely' leave Egypt, nor to simply go to Israel. The objective is to serve God. - R' Kahn
If restored to the Garden, mankind must know how and must be willing to guard and work the Garden. It is better to be tempted at the "entrance" than to enter and fail serpent-temptation again. Exile protects and prepares Israel in this way. Look at the holy cheruvim on the veil and the acacia boards guarding the holy spaces of the Mishkan.
Now (
vayehi
)
on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed it and consecrated it with all its furnishings and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and consecrated them also
...(Nu 7:1)
Significantly, the first use of
vayehi
in "it came to pass" is found here in the Creation:
וַיֹּ֥אמֶר
אֱלֹהִ֖ים
יְהִ֣י א֑וֹר וַֽיְהִי־אֽוֹר
(Ge 1:3)
Then
God said,
'Let
there be
light (or)'";
and there was light (or)
.
Work. Worship. Guard the holy boundaries of the Mishkan, for you are a little Mishkan in the wilderness. Become a luminary. Ezekiel saw the sapphire Throne when he saw the Heavenly Chariot. According to tradition, Moses was given the first set of the Ten Commandments written on tablets of sapphire stone. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of that Throne. In the Word, Israel holds...and becomes...the Light of the Torah, Light taken from The LORD of Hosts' throne between the wheels of the Chariot. The wheels of the Four Living Beings go wherever the Spirit goes.
Enjoy your "Mishkan days" of testing in the wilderness. Work. Worship. Guard. The Chariot will soon lift you and all the light you've become into the Garden once more.
The Seven Seals are READY!
Want to know more about the Four Living Creatures, the four horsemen, and the heavenly wheels?
It's LIVE on Amazon and available through local bookstores!
The revision of
Creation Gospel Workbook Two: The Seven Abominations of the Wicked Lamp, The Seven Seals, Seven Trumpets, and Seven Bowls of Wrath
(and the Thunders) may be purchased to enhance your winter reading and Scripture study!
We've gone from the original 75 pages published in 2009 to 366 pages. The new
e
dition includes extensive explanations of the supernatural bug-horsemen from Abaddon.
The entire Song of Moses is keyed to the Book of Revelati
on along with the events of the Exodus and wilderness journey, clarifying the concept of the Greater Exodus.
The new edition has an Answer Key to the study questions in the back of the workbook.
You already know the Sabbaths and feasts are important, but once you work through this workbook, you'll be more convinced than ever that your faith in Yeshua, his commandments, and especially his feasts, are vital last-day fulfillments of prophecy and inoculation against the plagues of sevens.
Be careful to purchase the February 2020 version (2nd Edition), NOT the 2009 version sold by used book stores on Amazon. Click
Seven Seals or the red horse graphic to view.
Sukkot in Israel
Interested in celebrating Passover or Sukkot 2020 in Israel?
It's time to plan Passover. Join us in Israel for a Passover seder and teaching on the "Lower Egypt" spoken of in Scripture, yet it is prophecy missed by most readers. To read about the adventure, click
Passover in Israel.
You can't beat the price for room and board!
Relax, hike, volunteer, explore the archaeological ruins, study, count the stars, or day tour, and choose the number of days you spend at Tamar. The sooner you register for Passover, the easier it is to book flights that fit your budget and schedule. The feasts are busy flight times in Israel, but prices are dropping due to coronavirus. If the borders were to close before Passover, the land price deposit can be moved to Sukkot or refunded.
|
|
| Sukkot Parade of the Nations 2019 |
If you're interested in a FULL-SERVICE tour, then please consider going at Sukkot 2020. Although we are still negotiating with hotels and working on the itinerary,
the registration page is up so that you can make a deposit. The price may drop once negotiations are concluded and the final itinerary set. Click on
Sukkot of Glory to view or reserve your place with a deposit.
Our New Series on HRN:
50,000 Degrees and Cloudy
The deep Torah study in Section One restores the
original foundation of the resurrection. The resurrection is put in the context of the numerous prophecies of in the Torah portions. The Exodus and wilderness journey have illustrations of the event that were too numerous to fit into one book. Section One uncovers the Torah foundation to which the writers of the New Testament refer.
Section Two answers the question, "What happens when we die?"
LaMalah Children's Centre
There is a plan to establish an education fund and a property fund for LaMalah. The older children will need to enter university or vocational training soon, so we hope to give them the advantage of education. The good news is that compared to the United States, quality higher education in Kenya is very affordable (about $800 per semester). We don't want to see the children enter the hard labor of working on the tea or coffee plantations around Limuru when they have the ability to train for skilled jobs. There is also a need for additional property, so we are planning for the future.
We appreciate your donations at any time, but especially in the "slow" months of winter. March is usually our lowest month for donations and even for royalty income from the Creation Gospel workbooks, which support the orphanage. Whether you buy a workbook or donate this month, it helps us survive the lean months.
If you would like to donate to the Children's Centre through The Creation Gospel, click on the Donate link below. It will say The Olive Branch Messianic Congregation on your receipt. Our local congregation is the non-profit covering for our ministry. Checks or money orders may be sent to:
The Creation Gospel
PO Box 846
East Bernstadt, KY 40729
|
|
|
|
|
|
