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RECOGNITIONTHE MESSIANIC PROPHECY BIBLE PROJECThttp://www.messianicbible.com

HEAR O ISRAEL www.hearoisrael.orgSHEEPFOLD GLEANINGS WRITTEN BY JULIE PARKERwww.sheepfoldgleanings.com

MESSIANIC ISRAEL ALLIANCEhttp://www.messianicisrael.comAZAMRA TORAH FOR OUR TIME – RABBI AVRAHAM GREENBAUMhttp://www.azamra.org 2

BECHUKOTAI - In My statutes

TORAH: Leviticus 26:3-27:34; HAFTARAH: Jeremiah 16:19-17:14;

B’RIT CHADASHAH: Matthew 23:1 - 24:2, 2 Corinthians 6:14-18, John 14:15-21; 15:10-12,

All references: The Scripture 1998+ unless otherwise noted

THE TABERNACLEThe Levitical instructions carefully laid in the book of Leviticus describes how the tabernacle functioned, the duties, roles and positions of the Levites, the Levitical priests and Levitical High Priest (the Bride) before The importance of the teaching of the tabernacle can be seen in .יהוהEzekiel, as it is spoken as a prophetic message to the generation entering into the Messianic age in the end times. “Son of man, explain the House to the house of Yisra’ĕl, and when they are

ashamed of their crookednesses, they shall measure the measurements. “And since they shall be ashamed of all that they did, make known to them the design of the House and its structure, and its exits and its

entrances, its entire design and all its laws, and all its forms and all its Torot. And write it down before their eyes, so that they observe its entire design and all its laws, and shall do them. “This is the Torah of the House:

Upon the mountaintop, all the boundary of it, all around, is most set-apart. See, this is the Torah of the House. (Ezekiel 43:10-12 )

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THINGS OF OLD“Remember the former events of old, for I am Ěl, and there is no one else – Elohim, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from of old that which has not yet been done, saying,

‘My counsel does stand, and all My delight I do,’ (Isaiah 46:9-10 )

We are called to remember the Old Things as a key to the future as this will help us enter in.

Since then it remains for some to enter into it, and those who formerly received the Good News did not enter in because of disobedience. He again defines a certain day, “Today,” saying through Dawid so much later, as it has been said, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.” ...Therefore, since we have a great High Priest who has

passed through the heavens, יהושע the Son of Elohim, let us hold fast our confession.

(Hebrews 4:6-14 ) 5

A CHOICEWe begin with a choice:

‘If you walk in My laws and guard My commands, and shall do them, (Leviticus 26:3)

From our English interpretation we cannot see that the word “you” is a plural pronoun. Hebrew makes distinctions between the singular and the plural, so the conditional statement that we read in this verse is actually given to the nation as a whole, not to the individual. Another example is:

‘For I know the plans I am planning for you,’ declares יהוה, ‘plans of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and an expectancy.

(Jeremiah 29:11)The problem is that here again the word “you” is plural. The context of this verse is that it was given to the southern tribes of Israel after the 70 year Babylonian exile. Although some people are currently alone in this journey, we were never meant to operate as individuals. We can clearly see this too if we are honest, all over the world, יהוה is connecting His people together.

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יהושע“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who stays in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit. Because without Me you are able to do naught! “If anyone does not stay in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up. And they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. “If you stay in Me, and My Words stay in you, you shall ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done for you. “In this My Father is esteemed, that you bear much fruit, and you shall be My taught ones. “As the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you. Stay in My love. “If you guard My commands, you shall stay in My love, even as I have guarded My Father’s commands and stay in His love. “These words I have spoken to you, so that My joy might be in you, and that your joy might be complete. “This is My command, that you love one another, as I have loved you. “No one has greater love than this: that one should lay down his life for his friends. “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, for all teachings which I heard from My Father I have made known to you. (John 15:5-15) 7

UNITED BODY“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in My Name He might give you. “These words I command you, so that you love one another. (John 15:16-17)We have all asked for something “in His Name” and did not receive? • Firstly: We see that יהושע was speaking to His disciples as a group; • Secondly: He asks them to love each other and remain connected to Him by obeying His commands. THEN the Father will give them whatever they ask. “Love” for one another is defined by the Torah, not by our emotions. The disciples understood this, and it was not necessary for יהושע to add more detail to His statement. We have underestimated the importance of the people of יהוה(i.e. Israel) coming together as a unified body to obey Torah.

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BECHUKOTAI‘If you walk in My laws and guard My commands, and shall do them,

(Leviticus 26:3)The word BeChukotai (Bet-chet-kuf-tav-yud) means “in My statutes”. The numeric value is 520, which also equals: • “sakar” or “reward”, • “I‟yeeshar” or “will please” and • “v‟lemad tem” or “and you shall learn”. There are a lot of commentaries written on this verse because the phrase is somewhat odd: “walking” in His statutes, rather than “observing” them. And why “statutes”, when statutes are a subset of commandments? has carefully placed every single word into our Scriptures, so it is יהוה

worth our time to search this out.

WORD SEARCH – LEVITICUS 26:3 • Walk (halak) – Walking as opposed to merely observing suggests

strenuous activity. The implication is the progressive mastering of Torah through laborious study.

• Statutes (chukim) – Generally described as commandments that are given without an obvious reason for obeying. Many teach if you continue to obey these statutes and through study pursue the meaning for, eventually they will make sense. This word comes from a root which means “to inscribe”, thus it is said that statutes are “inscribed on the heart”. The sages teach that all יהוה’s laws will someday be inscribed on the heart, thus all commandments will eventually become statutes. יהוה tells us He has inscribed us on the palms of His hands. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are

always before Me. (Isaiah 49:16) “For this is the covenant I shall make with the house of Yisra’ĕl after those days, declares יהוה: I shall put My Torah in their inward parts,

and write it on their hearts. And I shall be their Elohim, and they shall be My people. (Jeremiah 31:33)

WORD SEARCH – LEVITICUS 26:3 • Keep (shamar) – Means to keep, guard or observe, but the basic

idea of the root is to exercise great care over.• Commandments (mitzvoth) – General term referring to any

commandment given by יהוה.• Perform (asah) – The covenant people were commanded to “do”

everything that יהוה told them to. • “If you walk” (talaqoo). It’s from the root word “halak”, and both

mean to “proceed”, as in “to move forward” or “advance” or “grow”. The word study of this verse reveals a gradual maturation through the applied study of the Torah that leads to the right heart attitude The beginner finds “walking” in the “statutes” to be quite difficult, because he doesn’t understand them. But if he expends the energy in his “walk”, with the goal of “keeping” them by “doing them”, then even those things previously mysterious and unexplainable become statutes inscribed on our hearts that make sense. Keep walking, because the blessings for obedience are great promises!

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BLESSINGS AND CURSESChapter 26 lists rewards and punishments at the national level. As a result of obedience, the nation will enjoy prosperity in regards to the land’s agriculture, political stability, security, and military successes (26:1-11). What we do NOT see here is the promise of prosperity to the individual for good deeds, or punishment for his sins in this life. Why? Israel was chosen to be יהוה special nation among all the nations of the world. Once they entered the Promised Land, Israel would be judged as a nation, and they would be rewarded as a nation.Note: There are 13 verses of blessings and 30 verses of curses. The blessings are listed in a general fashion, while the curses are listed in much more detail. WHY? Once the Israelites were in the land, if they followed His statutes they would immediately enjoy the entire range of infinite blessings. BUT if they disobeyed and violated His covenant, the curses would begin to kick in….not all of them at once, but one by one. First they would suffer minor blows…health issues intended to deter them and make them repent. Crop failure would be next and so things would continue to deteriorate for them unless they repented as a people.

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BLESSINGSLeviticus 26:2-13 ‘Guard My Sabbaths and reverence My set-apart place. I am יהוה. ‘If you walk in My laws and guard My commands, and shall do them, then I shall: • give you rain in its season, ... perfect harvest• give peace in the land, ... No dread or fear• clear the land of evil beasts, and not let the sword go through your

land. ‘And you shall pursue your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. ‘And five of you shall pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you pursue ten thousand.

• turn to you and make you bear fruit, and shall increase you, and shall establish My covenant with you. ‘And you shall eat the old supply, and clear out the old because of the new.

• set My Dwelling Place in your midst‘I am יהוה your Elohim, who brought you out of the land of Mitsrayim, from being their slaves. And I have broken the bars of your yoke and made you walk upright.

IMAGE OF THE FATHER‘If you walk in My laws and guard My commands, and shall do them,

(Leviticus 26:3)The rabbis teach that contained in verse three is the crux of the whole Torah. If we walk in His Laws (integrate Torah into our lives), guard His commands (to keep or observe) and shall do them (carry out the mitzvot); then we reflect “Tzelem Elohim”, the “Image of Elohim”. Paul taught in Colossians 1:9-15: That is also why we ... have not ceased praying for you, and asking that you be filled with the knowledge of His desire in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, to walk worthily of the Master, pleasing all, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of Elohim, being empowered with all power, according to the might of His esteem, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father who has made us fit to share in the inheritance of the set-apart ones in the light, who has delivered us from the authority of darkness and transferred us into the reign of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, who is the likeness of the invisible Elohim, the first-born of all creation.

OBEDIENCEAnd we know that all matters work together for good to those who love

Elohim, to those who are called according to His purpose. Because those whom He knew beforehand, He also ordained beforehand to be

conformed to the likeness of His Son, for Him to be the first-born among many brothers. And whom He ordained beforehand, these He also

called, and whom He called, these He also declared right. And whom He declared right, these He also esteemed. (Romans 8:28-30)

Now יהוה is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of יהוה is, there is freedom. And we all, as with unveiled face we see as in a mirror the esteem of are being transformed into the same likeness from esteem to ,יהוה

esteem, as from יהוה, the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:17-18)So in obedience we, not only receive the blessings of our Creator and Abba, we begin to be transformed into His Son’s Image, which is His Image. יהושע is the image and likeness of יהוה. He is the physical manifestation of Elohim on this earth.

RAINthen I shall give you rain in its season, and the land shall yield its crops,

and the trees of the field yield their fruit. (Leviticus 26:4)Rain was and still is very important to any land. Rain is necessary at pertinent times for the crops, but if it rains out of season it can wash away the crops or make it hard to plant, harvest, etc. • Rain – symbolic of the teaching of the Torah• Trees – sometimes a symbol for people• The field – the world where the seeds are planted• Fruit – our works (righteousness)• In season – the times when He meets with us during

Shabbat/festivals. We can paraphrase Leviticus 26:4 to this:Then I will teach you Torah (rain) when I meet with you during Shabbat and My feast days (in season). The people (trees) who have received the seed (the field) will produce righteousness (fruit).

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WILD ANIMALS‘And I shall give peace in the land, and you shall lie down and no one

make you afraid. And I shall clear the land of evil beasts, and not let the sword go through your land. (Leviticus 26:6)

After the creation, when the world was filled with evil and dangerous animals, it was described by the verse, Genesis 1:31 AMP And God saw everything that He had made, and behold, it was very good (suitable, pleasant) and He approved it completely.. This means that even a ferocious animals have a role to fulfill in this world? What is the point of a promise to remove them?

And a wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and a leopard lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and a little child leads them. And cow and bear shall feed, their young

ones lie down together, and a lion eat straw like an ox. And the nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his

hand in the adder’s den. (Isaiah 11:6-8)

NUMBERS DO MATTER‘And you shall pursue your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. ‘And five of you shall pursue a hundred, and a hundred of you pursue ten thousand. And your enemies shall fall by the sword before you. (Leviticus 26:7-8)Math scholars will notice right off that these are not the same ratios. Five to 100 would be 1 chasing 20 enemies, yet 100 to 10,000 would be 1 chasing 100 enemies. Why the difference? The rabbis have taught that this means when we are keeping Torah together in unity, what is accomplished will increase exponentially over when only a few are together keeping Torah. I expect that this concept will become more and more obvious as the body of Messiah (Judah plus Ephraim) continues to come together. The power of the Spirit will increase exponentially. It is my belief that we will also see more miracles and physical healings as the broken pieces of the body of Messiah are put back together.See how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity – (Psalms 133:1) 18

TWO APPROACHES1. Rabbi Shimon explains that the animals will no longer do any

harm. He feels that the best praise of the Almighty is when the animals continue to exist but no longer do any damage. The approach of Rabbi Shimon is based on a desire to retain the completeness of the creation whilst still giving priority to the safety of humanity, the people who were created in God's image.

2. Rabbi Yehuda feels that as long as mankind is in danger the world is still missing something. Wild animals are suitable for the current state of the world, and this temporary situation can indeed be described by the verse, He expects evil animals to be destroyed, and any other possibility seems to him a fantasy, not part of the Divine plan.

NOT TO BE DEFILEDLeviticus 26:14-34 ‘But if you do not obey Me, and do not do all these

commands, .... very clearly lays out five levels of warnings to help us see יהוהthe error of our ways and to draw us back to Him with a repentant heart. If we ignore יהוה’s words we will be a scattered people among the Nations; a people not listening to Him and a people who turned their backs on His ways. Only when the Land lay desolate and was cleared of disobedience could it finally enjoy its Sabbath years.Today, the consequences are closer to us than we think. In the present day, nations including the USA are coming against the covenant of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and threatening the Bridal Chamber – Jerusalem by plans to divide the city and allow a counterfeit bride to dwell there. יהוה is a jealous God. He is calling His Bride back; regardless of the policies these Nations are trying to impose on Israel.

WARNINGS1. and if you reject My laws, or if your being loathes My right-rulings,

so that you do not do all My commands, but break My covenant, I also do this to you: And I shall appoint sudden alarm over you, wasting disease and inflammation, destroying the eyes, and consuming the life. And you shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it. ‘And I shall set My face against you, and you shall be smitten before your enemies. And those who hate you shall rule over you, and you shall flee when no one pursues you. (Leviticus 26:15-17)

2. ‘And after all this, if you do not obey Me, then I shall punish you seven times more for your sins. ‘And I shall break the pride of your power, and shall make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze. ‘And your strength shall be spent in vain and your land not yield its crops, nor the trees of the land yield their fruit. (Leviticus 26:18-20)

WARNINGS3. ‘And if you walk contrary to Me, and refuse to obey Me, I shall

bring on you seven times more plagues, according to your sins, and send wild beasts among you, which shall bereave you of your children. And I shall cut off your livestock, and make you few in number, and your highways shall be deserted. (Leviticus 26:21-22)

4. ‘And if you are not instructed by Me by these, but walk contrary to Me, then I also shall walk contrary to you, and I Myself shall smite you seven times for your sins. ‘And I shall bring against you a sword executing the vengeance of My covenant, and you shall gather together in your cities, and I shall send pestilence among you, and you shall be given into the hand of the enemy. ‘When I have cut off your supply of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall bring back to you your bread by weight, and you shall eat and not be satisfied. (Leviticus 26:23-26)

WARNINGS5. ‘And if in spite of this, you do not obey Me, but walk contrary to

Me, then I shall walk contrary to you in wrath. And I Myself shall punish you seven times for your sins. ‘And you shall eat the flesh of your sons, and eat the flesh of your daughters. ‘And I shall destroy your high places, and cut down your sun-pillars, and put your carcasses on the carcasses of your idols. And My being shall loathe you. ‘And I shall turn your cities into ruins and lay your set-apart places waste, and not smell your sweet fragrances. ‘And I shall lay the land waste, and your enemies who dwell in it shall be astonished at it. ‘And I shall scatter you among the gentiles and draw out a sword after you. And your land shall be desert and your cities ruins, (Leviticus 26:27-33)

...Then the land would rest and enjoy its Sabbaths. ‘As long as it lies waste it rests, for the time it did not rest on your Sabbaths when you

dwelt in it. (Leviticus 26:34-35)

SEVEN causes you to be defeated before your enemies – you go out one יהוה“

way against them and flee seven ways before them. And you shall become a horror to all the reigns of the earth.

(Deuteronomy 28:25)[Fulfilled in II Chron. 29:8.]

“Now when the unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none. “Then it says, ‘I shall return to my house from which I came.’ And when it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and decorated. “Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last of that

man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation.”

(Matthew 12:43-45)

I WILL REMEMBER‘But if they confess their crookedness and the crookedness of their fathers,

with their trespass in which they trespassed against Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, and that I also have walked contrary to

them and have brought them into the land of their enemies – if their uncircumcised heart is then humbled, and they accept the punishment of their crookedness, then I shall remember My covenant with Yaʽaqob, and

also My covenant with Yitshaq, and also remember My covenant with Abraham, and remember the land. (Leviticus 26:40-42)

At the lowest possible point, the people of Israel will come to the conclusion that they are suffering due to the sins of prior generations as well as the collective sins of their own generation. What will take place is what may be called “national repentance”. Israel has been judged as a nation. Now the righteous of that nation must confess the sins of the nation to which they are attached….just as if it were they, themselves who directly committed these sins.

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DANIELIn the book of Daniel, it tells us that Daniel had been reading in Jeremiah that the Babylonian exile would last for 70 years. Daniel connected the dots as he knew that after the period יהוה would begin restoration.

In the first year of Dareyawesh the son of Ahashwĕrosh, of the seed of the Medes, who was set up as sovereign over the reign of the Chaldeans – in the first year of his reign I, Dani’ĕl, observed from the Scriptures the

number of the years, according to the word of יהוה given to Yirmeyah the prophet, for the completion of the wastes of Yerushalayim would be

seventy years. So I set my face toward יהוה the Elohim to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes. (Daniel 9:1-3)and My people upon whom My Name is called, shall humble themselves,

and pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I shall hear from the heavens, and forgive their sin and heal their land. (2

Chronicles 7:14)26

SINS OF THE FATHERSO יהוה, my strength and my stronghold and my refuge, in the day of

distress the gentiles shall come to You from the ends of the earth and say, “Our fathers have inherited only falsehood, futility, and there is no

value in them.” (Jeremiah 16:19)We need to follow the pattern of confessing our sins AND our father’s sins so that the promised restoration might begin:

and I said, “I pray, יהוה Elohim of the heavens, O great and awesome Ěl, guarding the covenant and kindness with those who love You, and with those guarding Your commands, please let Your ear be attentive

and Your eyes open, to hear the prayer of Your servant which I am praying before You now, day and night, for the children of Yisra’ĕl Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Yisra’ĕl which we have

sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. (Nehemiah 1:5-6)

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PATH OF RETORATIONDeuteronomy 30 lists several details about how this restoration will take place and this time, the “you” addressed is singular: “And it shall be, when all these words come upon you, the blessing and the curse which I have set before you, ... your Elohim shall: • turn back your captivity, and shall have compassion on you, and He shall

turn back and gather you ... • bring you to the land. And He shall do good to you, and increase you more

than your fathers. • circumcise your heart .. to love יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and

with all your being, so that you might live, .. • put all these curses on your enemies and on those who hate you, who

persecuted you...• make you have excess in .. work of your hand, .. fruit of your body, .. fruit

of your livestock, .. fruit of your ground .. if you obey the voice of יהוה your Elohim, to guard His commands and His laws .., if you turn back to יהוה your Elohim with all your heart and with all your being. (Deuteronomy 30:1-10) 28

YOUThere are two things going on here simultaneously:1. The stirrings of the individual believer to return to the Father in repentance and obedience. 2. These collective individuals are referred to as “you” becoming connected, just like the dry bones of Ezekiel 37:Again He said to me, “Prophesy to these bones, and you shall say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of יהוה! ‘Thus said the Master יהוה to these bones, “See, I am bringing into you a spirit, and you shall live. “And I shall put sinews on you and bring flesh upon you, and cover you with skin and put a spirit in you, and you shall live. And you shall know that I am יהוה.” ’ .. And as I prophesied, there was a noise, and there was a rattling. And the bones came together, bone to bone. And I looked and saw sinews and flesh came upon them, and skin covered them, but there was no spirit in them. He then said to me, “Prophesy to the spirit, prophesy, son of man, and you shall say to the spirit, ‘Thus said the Master יהוה, “Come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe on these slain, so that they live.” ’ ” (Ezekiel 37:4-9) 29

PRAYER OF REPENTANCEAnd I prayed to יהוה my Elohim, and made confession, and said, “O

great and awesome Ěl, guarding the covenant and the kindness ,יהוהto those who love Him, and to those who guard His commands. “We

have sinned and did crookedness, and did wrong and rebelled, to turn aside from Your commands and from Your right-rulings. “And we have not listened to Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your Name to our sovereigns, our heads, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. “O יהוה, to You is the righteousness, and to us the shame of face,

as it is this day – to the men of Yehudah, to the inhabitants of Yerushalayim and all Yisra’ĕl, those near and those far off in all the

lands to which You have driven them, because of their trespass which they have trespassed against You. “O Master, to us is the shame of

face, to our sovereigns, to our heads, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against You. “To יהוה our Elohim are the compassions and

forgivenesses, for we have rebelled against Him

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PRAYER OF REPENTANCE“And we have not obeyed the voice of יהוה our Elohim, to walk in His Torot, which He set before us through His servants the prophets. “And

all Yisra’ĕl have transgressed Your Torah, and turned aside, so as not to obey Your voice. So the curse and the oath written in the Torah of

Mosheh the servant of Elohim have been poured out on us, for we have sinned against Him. “And He has confirmed His words, which He spoke against us and against our rulers who judged us, by bringing upon us

great evil. For under all the heavens there has not been done like what was done to Yerushalayim. “As it is written in the Torah of Mosheh, all this evil has come upon us, and we have not entreated the face of יהוה

our Elohim, to turn back from our crookednesses, and to study Your truth. “Hence יהוה has watched over the evil and has brought it upon

us. For יהוה our Elohim is righteous in all the works which He has done, but we have not obeyed His voice.

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PRAYER OF REPENTANCE“And now, O יהוה our Elohim, who brought Your people out of the land of Mitsrayim with a strong hand, and made Yourself a Name, as it is this day

– we have sinned, we have done wrong! “O יהוה, according to all Your righteousness, I pray, let Your displeasure and Your wrath be turned away from Your city Yerushalayim, Your set-apart mountain. For, because of our sins, and because of the crookednesses of our fathers, Yerushalayim and

Your people have become a reproach to all those around us. “And now, our Elohim, hear the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and for the sake of יהוה cause Your face to shine on Your set-apart place, which is laid

waste. “O my Elohim, incline Your ear and hear. Open Your eyes and see our wastes, and the city which is called by Your Name. For we do not

present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great compassions. “O יהוה, hear! O יהוה, forgive! O יהוה,

listen and act! Do not delay for Your own sake, my Elohim, for Your city and Your people are called by Your Name.” (Daniel 9:4-19)

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VALUE OF HUMAN LIFELeviticus 27:1-8 Regarding the valuation of human beings

Here the Torah speaks of the holiness inherent in the individual person and the value of his soul. יהוה’s teaching assesses the payment depending on age and gender. is our payment for the vows we spoke through the יהושעgenerations. On the night He was betrayed, the High Priest or Kohan determined what His Soul was worth thirty pieces of silver. This payment was given to the Kohan, who did not put it into the Temple. יהושע at His trial “remained silent.” He paid our redemption price and our death according to יהוה’s will. (Matthew 27:1-9; Jeremiah 32:6-9; Zechariah 11:12-13)The Hebrew word for “value” here is “awrak” which means to “compare” or “estimate” with the connotation of “arranging” or “setting things in order”, “setting things right”.

VALUE OF MEN 20 – 60 YEARSwhen your evaluation is of a male from twenty years old up to sixty

years old, then your evaluation shall be fifty sheqels of silver, according to the sheqel of the set-apart place. (Leviticus 27:3)

50 SHEKELS OF SILVER: 20 is the value of the letter “kaf” which is the “palm” of the hand and the “crown” of the head. It’s an age that when the palm of Elohim on one’s head is needed to guide and lead. It is also the numeric value of the word “yod” or “hand” and represents strength. 60 is the value of the letter “samech” which means “ordination”. It’s shaped like a wedding ring and represents coming full circle or encompassing. This entire age range represents to us the prime of life in all aspects; from the strength of youth to the ordination through learning and growing wise.

50 SHEKELS OF SILVERThe valuation here is 50 shekels of silver (man’s love for יהוה). Fifty is the numeric value of the letter “nun” which is “fish” and/or the “kingdom”. Fifty equals the Yovel or Jubilee Year. The number fifty figures very prominently in the Tabernacle, or Dwelling Place, of Elohim. Each curtain had 50 loops connected by 50 taches of gold and the court of the Tabernacle was 50 cubits wide. The weight of each ingredient of the set-apart incense was 50 shekels. 50 is the numeric value of the word “admah” which means “fortress”. Also, Shavuot (the giving of the Torah and Ruach HaKodesh) is 50 days from the waiving of the barley omer, the day after Pesach.The valuation of a man, aged 20-60, represents the whole Kingdom with יהוה dwelling in the midst.

VALUE OF WOMEN 20 – 60 YEARS‘And if it is a female, then your evaluation shall be thirty sheqels;

(Leviticus 27:4)30 SHEKELS OF SILVER: Thirty is the numeric value of the letter “lamed” or the shepherd's staff and means to “teach” or “learn”. Thirty is the age when a Cohen begins his service. יהושע was 30 when He began His ministry. Josef was 30 when he became ruler in Pharaoh’s house. David was 30 when he began his reign as King of Israel. Thirty represents “service” in the Kingdom. We are to learn and then teach; as יהושע told His talmidim before His ascension, “Go and make taught ones…”

30 Shekels of silver to redeem the bride

VALUE 5 – 20 YEARSand if from five years old up to twenty years old, then your evaluation

for a male shall be twenty sheqels, and for a female ten sheqels; (Leviticus 27:5 )

MALE - 20 SHEKELS:Five is the numeric value of the letter “hey” which means “behold” as a “revelation” and 20 (or “kaf”) is “palm” or “crown of the head”. When we are spiritually very young we first behold the revelation of יהושע as His palm guiding us. Twenty is also the numeric value 10 of “dodo” or “loving”. He takes the “youngsters” in the faith right back to the basics, the two pillars of the Torah; love יהוה and love each other. FEMALE - 10 SHEKELS: 10 equals the letter “yud”, the “hand”. Ten represents divine, or ordinal, perfection. Ten is Yom Kippur (the 10th day of the 7th month), or the perfection (completion) of our atonement. Ten is a tithe, a minyan, the number of generations from Adam to Noah and from Noah to Abraham. יהוה gave Moshe Ten Commandments written by His finger. As we’ve learned in teachings past, the tithe represents each of us, one at a time.

VALUE 1 Month – 5 YEARSand if from a month old up to five years old, then your evaluation for a

male shall be five sheqels of silver, and for a female your evaluation shall be three sheqels of silver; (Leviticus 27:6)

MALE 5 SHEKELS:One month (aleph Chodesh) represents the beginning, our beginning. Five, is the numeric value of the letter “hey” which is “to behold” or “revelation”. It represents the journey from our beginning to beholding His revelation (our awakening). FEMALE 3 SHEKELS:Three is the “gimmel” which is the “bridge”. Three also equals “aleph-beit” which is Ab, the short form of Abba (Father). When we behold His revelation, when He reveals Himself to us, He bridges the gap that separates us from Himself. It’s our choice, whether we separate, or keep our vow to come to Him.

VALUE 60 AND ABOVEand if from sixty years old and above, if it is a male, then your

evaluation shall be fifteen sheqels, and for a female ten sheqels. (Leviticus 27:7)

MALE 15 SHEKELS:60 is the letter “samech”, “full circle” and 15 equals a number of letter combinations that I’ll let you look up; but, most importantly it equals “Yud-Hey” or Yah, the poetic intimate Name of our Father. When we’ve come “full circle” in our Torah walk with Elohim, we’ll truly be on intimate terms with Him. FEMALE 10 SHEKELS:The “completion” of our “perfection”. You’ll notice that these two valuations, 15 and 10 shekels, is half of the valuations for ages 20 to 60. Why? The rabbis teach that, at age 60, our valuation is cut in half because we are to be sharing the knowledge and wisdom we’ve gained with the younger and our vow is no longer just personal, but corporate.

TOO POOR‘But if he is too poor to pay your evaluation, then he shall present himself before the priest, and the priest shall set a value for him.

According to the ability of him who vowed, the priest shall value him. (Leviticus 27:8)

Our Priest, יהושע, did just that. His betrayal price was 30 pieces (shekels) of silver. But, the valuation He put on us was His Life, the highest “bride price” of all. As we pray and make our vows, our promises, to Abba יהוה in the Name of His Son and our Redemption, let’s remember our worth to Him and set ourselves apart according to His Love for us.

TITHE‘And all the tithe of the land – of the seed of the land or of the fruit of

the tree – belongs to יהוה. It is set-apart to יהוה. (Leviticus 27:30)

The tithe is the tenth of the whole that belongs to יהוה. He puts this into our hand to see if we will be faithful in returning it back to Him. This is a test of our heart that is our seed. What we sow in faith in His principle of the tithe will produce in its season and in its time according to יהוה ’s promise to us. The tithe belongs to and thus He asks us for His tithe, not for His sake but to יהוהbless us, for what we give to Him multiplies back to us over and over again. His seed is meant to be given away, so He can multiply it back, and we can give it away again, and again, and again. (Deuteronomy 28:1-14).The tithe is used for maintaining the tabernacle, priests included.

Without the tithe being maintained - both will perish.

PRIEST AND RABBISWith the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, the priests were out of their element. It was during this time that they experienced competition for their authority. In 70 more years, their authority would be in the hands of the Rabbis. In Scripture, it was the priests that יהוה gave the authority to, not the rabbis. Rabbinic writings contain only the views of the rabbis on how the sacrifices and offerings were to be conducted; they do not contain the views of the priests who had conducted them. The rabbis rejected all Sadducean views, and the priests were primarily Sadducees. The rabbinic writings declared that the rabbis were the ones with the authority not the priests. If the Temple were ever rebuilt, the priests would have to operate under rabbinic law, whereas Scripture states that this is clearly under the domain of the priests. With the rabbinic authority in place, the rabbis laid down the law for the priests.

HISTORY OF TITHEAkiba, the father of rabbinic Judaism, into motion the rabbinical order in place of the priests. His decisions effectively demolished the priestly authority and nullified יהוה’s law of the tithe that provided for their support. Akiba authorized the law of gathering the grain far too early so that the grain not gathered was free from the tithe unless it was stored in a protected barn. If it was stored in a court to which two people had keys, it was unprotected and free from tithes (Mish. Ma’aserot 3.5; Mish. Ma’aser Sheni 4.8).Abolishing the whole system of tithes effectually eliminated the livelihood of the priests, which effectually eliminated the priesthood as a competitor for rabbinic authority. In this way, Akiba was able to firmly establish his own Judaism over that of the priests to make the Torah what it "should have been." It was Akiba’s involvement in the Bar Kokhba rebellion that led to the never before complete expulsion of the Jewish people from the land of Israel for eighteen centuries.

יהושע is the manifestation of the spoken Word at Mount Sinai יהושע(John 1:1; 14). יהושע spoke all the commandments to the Children of Israel at that time. יהושע commanded us to keep His Word and again exhorted us in John 14 to keep His commandments and walk in them.

“If you guard My commands, you shall stay in My love, even as I have guarded My Father’s commands and stay in His love. “These words I have spoken to you, so that My joy might be in you, and that your joy might be complete. “This is My command, that you love one another,

as I have loved you. (John 15:10-12)