Messiah is our Pesach/ part 1

For those of us that keep YHWH’s feasts the time of Pesach is almost upon us. Several years ago

our home fellowship began to discuss how we would keep it. What one person said shocked me to the core, that we should build an altar and sacrifice a lamb. I asked that everyone in our group study The Scriptures over the next three weeks in order to see what we would do. My eyes were opened not to words of men but to a greater depth of understanding and the fact that ;

THE MESSIAH IS OUR PESACH. I have seen one article in particular that troubles me deeply. It teaches that if we are to be obedient we must not only build an altar and sacrifice a lamb, but we must also put it on our doorposts. If this is what The Scriptures commanded then no problem, but we must study The Scriptures in their entirety if we are to find ourselves approved. I will not have much more to say in this letter but I will let The Scriptures do the talking.

The First Pesach

Exo 12:1  And יהוה spoke to Mosheh and to Aharon in the land of Mitsrayim, saying,

Exo 12:2 “This month is the beginning of months for you, it is the first month of the year for you.

Exo 12:3 “Speak to all the congregation of Yisraʼĕl, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this month each one of them is to take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household.

Exo 12:4 ‘And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next to his house take it according to the number of the beings, according to each manʼs need you make your count for the lamb.

Exo 12:5 ‘Let the lamb be a perfect one, a year old male. Take it from the sheep or from the goats.

Exo 12:6 ‘And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then all the assembly of the congregation of Yisraʼĕl shall kill it between the evenings.

Exo 12:7 ‘And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it.

Exo 12:8 ‘And they shall eat the flesh on that night, roasted in fire – with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Exo 12:9 ‘Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire, its head with its legs and its inward parts.

Exo 12:10 ‘And do not leave of it until morning, and what remains of it until morning you are to burn with fire.

Exo 12:11 ‘And this is how you eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Passover of יהוה.

Exo 12:12 ‘And I shall pass through the land of Mitsrayim on that night, and shall smite all the first-born in the land of Mitsrayim, both man and beast. And on all the mighty ones of Mitsrayim I shall execute judgment. I am יהוה.

Exo 12:13 ‘And the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I shall pass over you, and let the plague not come on you to destroy you when I smite the land of Mitsrayim.

Exo 12:14 ‘And this day shall become to you a remembrance(most translations say a memorial). And you shall observe it as a festival to יהוה throughout your generations – observe it as a festival, an everlasting law.

Important notes

Ex 12:7 does not appear again as a commandment, only as a reference

Ex 12 :13,23 The blood is a sign(seal) and it is Elohim who keeps the destroyer out.

Commandment

Exo 12:23 “And יהוה shall pass on to smite the Mitsrites, and shall see the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, and יהוה shall pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to smite you.

Exo 12:24 “And you shall guard this word as a law for you and your sons, forever.

Exo 12:25 “And it shall be, when you come to the land which יהוה gives you, as He promised, that you shall guard this service.

There is no question that this is a commandment forever “to keep this feast”. But are we commanded to put blood on our doorposts “when we come into the land”?

At Mt Sinai

Exo 34:18 “Guard the Festival of Unleavened Bread. For seven days you eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, in the appointed time of the month of Aḇiḇ, because in the month of Aḇiḇ you came out from Mitsrayim.

Overview of YHWH’s Moedim

Lev 23:4 ‘These are the appointed times of יהוה, set-apart gatherings which you are to proclaim at their appointed times.

Lev 23:5 ‘In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, between the evenings, is the Passover to יהוה.

Lev 23:14 ‘And you do not eat bread or roasted grain or fresh grain until the same day that you have brought an offering to your Elohim – a law forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

2^nd keeping of The Pesach

Num 9:1  And יהוה spoke to Mosheh in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Mitsrayim, saying,

Num 9:2 “Now, let the children of Yisraʼĕl perform the Passover at its appointed time.

Num 9:3 “On the fourteenth day of this month, between the evenings, perform it at its appointed time. According to all its laws and right-rulings you perform it.”

Num 9:4 And Mosheh spoke to the children of Yisraʼĕl to perform the Passover.

Num 9:5 So they performed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month, between the evenings, in the Wilderness of Sinai. According to all that יהוה commanded Mosheh, so the children of Yisraʼĕl did.

Important notes

Num 9:6-14 those who were unclean because of a dead body or traveling were allowed to keep the feast one month later. But I think it is important to note, nowhere is there a provision here to keep the feast somewhere else because they were traveling; it would be that they would return to Yerushalayim.

Final instructions

Deu 16:1  “Guard the month(season) of Aḇiḇ, and perform the Passover to יהוה your Elohim, for in the month of Aḇiḇ יהוה your Elohim brought you out of Mitsrayim by night.

Deu 16:2 “And you shall slaughter the Passover to יהוה your Elohim, from the flock and the herd, in the place where יהוה chooses to put His Name.

Deu 16:3 “Eat no leavened bread with it. For seven days you eat unleavened bread with it, bread of affliction, because you came out of the land of Mitsrayim in haste – so that you remember the day in which you came out of the land of Mitsrayim, all the days of your life.

Deu 16:4 “And no leaven should be seen with you in all your border for seven days, neither should any of the meat which you slaughter in the evening on the first day stay all night until morning.

Deu 16:5 “You are not allowed to slaughter the Passover within any of your gates which יהוה your Elohim gives you,

Deu 16:6 but at the place where יהוה your Elohim chooses to make His Name dwell, there you slaughter the Passover in the evening, at the going down of the sun, at the appointed time you came out of Mitsrayim.

Deu 16:7 “And you shall roast and eat it in the place which יהוה your Elohim chooses, and in the morning you shall turn and go to your tents.

Deu 16:8 “Six days you eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there is a closing festival to יהוה your Elohim – you do no work.

Deu 16:9 “Count seven weeks for yourself. Begin to count seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the grain.

Deu 16:10 “And you shall perform the Festival of Weeks to יהוה your Elohim, according to the voluntary offering from your hand, which you give as יהוה your Elohim blesses you.

I underlined the two verses above for a reason. A few years back, one brother told me that YHWH had blessed him with the land that he owns here in Texas. So his reasoning was that since YHWH had given him the land he was to sacrifice it there.The verses above clearly show that you may not do it within your own gates.  

Yahushua(Joshua) in the wilderness

Jos 5:10 And the children of Yisraʼĕl camped in Gilgal, and performed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening on the desert plains of Yeriḥo.

Jos 5:11 And they ate of the stored grain of the land on the morrow after the Passover, unleavened bread and roasted grain on this same day.

History in The Scriptures

1Ch 23:25 For Dawiḏ said, “יהוה Elohim of Yisraʼĕl has given rest to His people, and He dwells in Yerushalayim forever,”

1Ch 23:26 and also of the Lĕwites, “They shall no longer bear the Dwelling Place, or any of the vessels for its service.”

1Ch 23:27 For by the last words of Dawiḏ the Lĕwites were numbered from twenty years old and above,

1Ch 23:28 because their duty was to help the sons of Aharon in the service of the House of יהוה, in the courtyards and in the rooms, in the cleansing of all that was set-apart, and the work of the service of the House of Elohim,

1Ch 23:29 both with the showbread and the fine flour for the grain offering, and with the unleavened cakes and what is baked on the griddle, and with what is mixed and with all kinds of measures and sizes;

1Ch 23:30 and to stand every morning to thank and praise יהוה, and so at evening;

1Ch 23:31 and for all the burnt offerings to יהוה on the Sabbaths and on the New Moons and on the appointed(feasts) times, by number according to the right-ruling upon them, continually before יהוה;

1Ch 23:32 and that they should guard the duty of the Tent of Meeting, the duty of the set-apart place, and the duty of the sons of Aharon their brothers in the service of the House of יהוה.

1Ch 25:1  And Dawiḏ and the commanders of the army separated for the service some of the sons of Asaph, and of Hĕman, and of Yeḏuthun, who should prophesy with lyres, with harps, and with cymbals. And the number of the workmen according to their service was:

Interesting note

In the Hebrew the name “Asaph” aleph(strength), samech(to protect/support), pey(a word).I thought that was interesting in light of how the sons of Asaph prophesy with psalms, and how they prophesied the psalms that The Messiah would sing according to the book of John.

2Ch 6:4 And he said, “Blessed be יהוה Elohim of Yisraʼĕl, who has filled with His hands what He spoke with His mouth to my father Dawiḏ, saying,

2Ch 6:5 ‘From the day that I brought My people out of the land of Mitsrayim, I have chosen no city from any tribe of Yisraʼĕl in which to build a house for My Name to be there, nor did I choose any man to be a leader over My people Yisraʼĕl.

2Ch 6:6 ‘But I have chosen Yerushalayim, for My Name to be there. And I have chosen Dawiḏ to be over My people Yisraʼĕl.ʼ

Note

Here is a reference to where YHWH will cause His Name to dwell.

The chapters from 1 Ch 23 and 25, and 2 Ch 6 will come up again, so this is a reference point.

History in The Pesach

I think it is important to read 2 Ch chapters 30-33. Y’chizkiyah’s story is beautiful.

2Ch 30:1  And Ḥizqiyahu sent to all Yisraʼĕl and Yehuḏah, and he also wrote letters to Ephrayim and Menashsheh, to come to the House of יהוה at Yerushalayim, to perform the Passover to יהוה Elohim of Yisraʼĕl.

2Ch 30:2 But the sovereign and his leaders and all the assembly in Yerushalayim had taken counsel to perform the Passover in the second month.

2Ch 30:13 And many people, a very great assembly, gathered at Yerushalayim to perform the Festival of Unleavened Bread in the second month.

2Ch 30:14 And they rose up and removed the altars that were in Yerushalayim, and they removed all the incense altars and threw them into the wadi Qiḏron.

2Ch 30:15 Then they slaughtered the Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the priests and the Lĕwites were ashamed, and set themselves apart, and brought the burnt offerings to the House of יהוה.

2Ch 30:16 And they stood in their place according to their right-ruling. According to the Torah of Mosheh, the man of Elohim, the priests sprinkled the blood from the hand of the Lĕwites.

2Ch 30:17 For many in the assembly had not set themselves apart. Therefore the Lĕwites were over the slaughter of the Passover for everyone who was not clean, to set them apart to יהוה.

2Ch 30:18 For many of the people, many from Ephrayim and Menashsheh, Yissasḵar and Zeḇulun, had not been cleansed, yet they ate the Passover contrary to what was written. But Ḥizqiyahu prayed for them, saying, “יהוה who is good, provide atonement for everyone

2Ch 30:19 who has prepared his heart to seek Elohim, יהוה Elohim of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the cleansing of the set-apart place.”

2Ch 30:20 And יהוה listened to Ḥizqiyahu and healed the people.

Note

It is possible to keep the Pesach incorrectly, Y’chizkiyah prayed and entreated YHWH and they were healed.

History continued

2Ch 35:1  And Yoshiyahu performed a Passover to יהוה in Yerushalayim, and they slaughtered the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month.

2Ch 35:6 “And slaughter the Passover, and set yourselves apart, and prepare for your brothers, to do according to the word of יהוה by the hand of Mosheh.”

2Ch 35:11 and they slaughtered the Passover. And the priests sprinkled out of their hands, while the Lĕwites were skinning.

2Ch 35:12 And they removed the burnt offerings, to give them to the divisions of the fathersʼ houses of the lay people, to bring to יהוה, as it is written in the Book of Mosheh, and the same with the cattle.

2Ch 35:13 So they roasted the Passover offerings with fire according to the right-ruling, and they boiled the set-apart offerings in pots, and in cauldrons, and in bowls, and brought them speedily to all the lay people.

2Ch 35:15 And the singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their places, according to the command of Dawiḏ, and Asaph, and Hĕman, and Yeḏuthun the seer of the sovereign. And the gatekeepers at each gate did not have to leave their position, because their brothers the Lĕwites prepared for them.

2Ch 35:17 And the children of Yisraʼĕl who were present performed the Passover at that time, and the Festival of Unleavened Bread for seven days.

2Ch 35:18 There had not been a Passover performed in Yisraʼĕl like it since the days of Shemuʼĕl the prophet. And none of the sovereigns of Yisraʼĕl had performed such a Passover as Yoshiyahu performed, with the priests and the Lĕwites, and all Yehuḏah and Yisraʼĕl who were present, and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim.

Note

I find it amazing that no one not even King David kept the Pesach as this king did.

Here is the second place the singers of the sons of Asaph are mentioned in regards to The pesach.

History continued

Ezr 6:19 And the sons of the exile performed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month,

Ezr 6:20 for the priests and the Lĕwites had cleansed themselves – all of them were clean. And they slaughtered the Passover for all the sons of the exile, and for their brothers the priests, and for themselves.

Ezr 6:21 And the children of Yisraʼĕl who had returned from the exile ate together with all who had separated themselves from the uncleanness of the gentiles of the land in order to seek יהוה Elohim of Yisraʼĕl.

Note

These verses have been used to justify “the Pesach slaughtering” away from Yerushalayim.

Yet if you read the book of Ezra the King of Paras let them go to Yerushalayim to do this.

History continued

Eze 45:21 “In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you have the Passover, a festival of seven days, unleavened bread is eaten.

Eze 45:22 “And on that day the prince shall prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bull for a sin offering.

Eze 45:23 “And during the seven days of the festival he prepares a burnt offering to יהוה, seven bulls and seven rams, perfect ones, daily for seven days, and a male goat daily for a sin offering.

Eze 45:24 “And he prepares a grain offering of one ĕphah for each bull and one ĕphah for each ram, together with a hin of oil for each ĕphah.

Eze 45:25 “In the seventh month, on the fifteenth day of the month, at the festival, he prepares like these seven days, as the sin offering, as the burnt offering, as the grain offering, and as the oil.”

 These are all that I have been able to find in The Tanakh as references to The Pesach.

1.      There is not a second mention of putting blood upon the lintels and doorposts

2.      We may not sacrifice within our own gates

3.      We may only do the above in the place where YHWH has caused His Name to dwell, and that is Yerushalayim

4.      If you have been unclean or in exile you must first be sanctified; that only being done by the cohanim(priests) that are set for the service in the place where YHWH has caused His Name to dwell.

There are I’m sure other points to be given from these Scriptures. Yet to me they are not the focus. The Messiah however is our focus. So if you are curious come back for part 2, there is more in the Psalms and the New Testament. So till next time Shalom.

wisdom/chokmah

              For those who have looked at the previous studies I have posted; (grace/beauty, simchah/joy, chesed/mercy) my purpose has been to better understand the writings in the new testament. Not just to understand them in their current translations but to see them from an Hebraic perspective. Believing that YHWH would have us rightly divide His Word of truth. Therefore it is impossible to understand abstract words that have multiple meanings or to know exactly when to use them. There has been an awakening amongst YHWH'S people to return to the old paths and to a language (hebrew) which until the last century was considered a dead language. Hence the topic for this study "wisdom".
              Many people would say that to get wisdom you would go to your grandparents because they've been around for so long. Often quoted to me were the things my parents told me because they had "already been there". As always I would ask that everyone study out for themselves the things I put here. So to begin.
              The earliest dates I can find are very vague as to the first usage of this word "wisdom". Most popular among my searches were references to what we call our "wisdom teeth", others were esoteric in their definitions of the word.

Σοφíα/sophia

Greek for “wisdom” is a central term in such things as “helenistic philosophy, Platonism, Gnosticism, orthodox Christianity, esoteric Christianity and Christian mysticism.

Sophiology is a philosophical concept regarding wisdom, and they would tell us it is an theological concept regarding “the wisdom of god”. If you were to type in the word "sophia" you might be amazed at the dark and creepy things that pop up.

So know we know what "wisdom" in the scriptures is not. So we will see what it is.

Exo 28:3 “And you, speak to all the wise of heart, whom I have filled with a spirit of wisdom, and they shall make the garments of Aharon, to set him apart, for him to serve as priest to Me.

Chakam Strongs #2450

1) to be wise

a) (Qal) to be or become wise, act wisely

b) (Piel) to make wise, teach wisdom, instruct

c) (Pual) to be made wise

d) (Hiphil) to make wise

e) (Hithpael) to show oneself wise, deceive, show one's wisdom

Chokmah Strongs#2451

1) wisdom

a) skill (in war)

b) wisdom (in administration)

c) shrewdness, wisdom

d) wisdom, prudence (in religious affairs)

e) wisdom (ethical and religious)

These two definitions don't really give any meaning to the word. The question still remains, what does it mean to be wise or have wisdom?

The first word which is a root word "Chakam" is comprised of the hebrew letters (chet, kaf, mem).

The second word "Chokmah" comes from the first with one letter added the (chet, kaf, mem, hey).

When I first began to look at this I didn't have a clue. So as always we should look for more witnesses

Exo 31:6 “And I, look I have appointed with him Oholiaḇ son of Aḥisamaḵ, of the tribe of Dan. And I have put wisdom in the hearts of everyone who is wise-hearted, and they shall make all that I have commanded you:
Exo 35:26 And all the women whose hearts lifted them up in wisdom spun the goatsʼ hair.
Exo 35:31 and He has filled him with the Spirit of Elohim, in wisdom, in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all work,
Exo 35:35 “He has filled them with skill to do all work of the engraver and the designer and embroiderer, in blue and in purple, in scarlet material, and in fine linen, and a weaver, doing any work, and makers of designs.
Exo 36:1  “And Betsalʼĕl and Oholiaḇ, and every wise-hearted man in whom יהוה has given wisdom and understanding, to know how to do all work for the service of the set-apart place, shall do according to all that יהוה has commanded.”
Exo 36:2 And Mosheh called Betsalʼĕl and Oholiaḇ, and every wise-hearted man in whose heart יהוה had given wisdom, everyone whose heart lifted him up, to come and do the work.
Deu 34:9 And Yehoshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom, for Mosheh had laid his hands on him. And the children of Yisraʼĕl listened to him, and did as יהוה had commanded Mosheh.
Job 28:28 And He said to man, ‘See, the fear of יהוה, that is wisdom, and to turn from evil is understanding.ʼ ”

I have skipped over many other places where these words appear to a particular one in the book of Job.

Job 32:3 And against his three friends his wrath burned, because they had found no answer, and pronounced Elohim wrong.
Job 32:4 And because they were years older than he, Elihu had waited to speak to Iyoḇ.
Job 32:5 And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of these three men, his wrath burned.
Job 32:6 And Elihu, son of Baraḵʼĕl the Buzite, responded and said, “I am young in years, and you are aged. Therefore I was afraid to let you know my opinion.
Job 32:7 I said, ‘Days should speak, and many years should teach wisdom.ʼ
Job 32:8 But truly it is the spirit in man and the breath of the Almighty that gives him understanding.
Job 32:9 The multitude are not wise, nor do the aged understand right-ruling.
Job 32:10 Therefore I have said, ‘Listen to me, let me also make my opinion known to you.ʼ
Job 32:11 Look, I waited for your words, I listened to your reasonings, while you searched out what to say.
Job 32:12 And I paid close attention to you. But look, not one of you proved Iyoḇ wrong, nor answered his words.
Job 32:13 Lest you say, ‘We have found wisdomʼ – it is Ěl that drives him away, not man.

Psa 51:6 See, You have desired truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You make me know wisdom.
Psa 90:12 Teach us to number our days, And let us bring the heart to wisdom.
Psa 111:10 The fear of יהוה is the beginning of wisdom, All those doing them have a good understanding. His praise is standing forever.
Psa 136:5 To Him who by wisdom made the heavens, For His kindness is everlasting;

I could put all the places where it appears in the first and second chapters of the book of proverbs, but I think those are better read in context.
As always my purpose for these studies is that I believe the writers of the "new testament" had great understanding in The Torah. They also have seen The Messiah in the flesh and walked with Him. That said, I cannot comprehend the usage of these abstract words, or believe the would have used such words to illustrate anything! It has taken two months of study, always trying to keep in context these passages of scripture. I believe we must be painstakingly careful to keep from creating doctrines or empty philosophies.
So about three weeks ago as we sat together on shabbat studying His Word, we something very interesting unfold as we read more about this "chokmah"(wisdom). Many times it is closely tied to the word "chakam"(wise). The word "chakam"(wise) is many times also tied to the "heart" of the person in the verse. It would seem that those who are of a "right heart" are "chakam(wise)" and they are the ones who receive "Chokmah(wisdom). I think the scriptures clearly show that to be old does not mean we are wise, nor that we have this "wisdom"; rather it is something that comes from YHWH Elohim.
He clearly blesses those who? Have a right heart!
Now for the finale. When you look at the word "chakam/chet, kaf, mem" we see "divide, water, hand".
When you look at "chakam/chet, kaf, mem, hey" we see "divide, water, hand, breath"

If you have a hundred men standing in a line there is nothing that sets one above all the others. Each one has different skills and gifts but nothing that "sets them apart" so as to be the best one. With YHWH we know that He is no respecter of persons. Does He set one apart just to be better than another? No. He does set a man or woman apart because why? They are a person after His own heart. As King David for example, or Ruth who is named in the lineage of The Messiah. YHWH gave the spirit of "chokmah" to ordinary everyday men in order to build His Tabernacle in the wilderness. Those men were set apart not because they went to a trade school, but because YHWH Elohim gave them something. I would say it is this.

YHWH Elohim gave them the ability to "divide by hand the water". There is no way to comprehend someone being able to divide water with their hand, it is an impossibility. But with YHWH nothing is impossible. As always study for yourself. Shalom

2Ti 2:15 Do your utmost to present yourself approved to Elohim, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.
Heb 4:12 For the Word of Elohim is living, and working, and sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting through even to the dividing of being and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Eph 6:17 Take also the helmet of deliverance, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of Elohim,